Lynn Carson Harris

Thoughtful Sunday

(view from Pont du Gard, 2007)

"It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that."

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J.K. Rowling, 1997.

Tie Dyed Eggs - again

We dyed a dozen more eggs today using old silk ties.

These are so fun to do. I like seeing the result when the fabric is pulled away from the egg. Sometimes the dyes transfer in unexpected colors.  That brown tiger stripe design looks so much more vibrant on the egg than in the original tie.

I also think the stripe designs look great on the eggs. My favorites of the day are the red and blue stripe, the half paisley half dot, and this red and aqua one.

Wetting the egg before wrapping seemed to help prevent air bubbles.  I think I'll try hollow eggs next so that we can save them.

The directions we followed are at Our Best Bites.

Edit to add. A new and updated link for directions here.

One Step at a Time

It seems to be that busy time of year for me. There are lots of activities with the schools and kids - concerts, fundraisers and the like. It seems my sewing time has all but vanished. I am able to work a few minutes here and there with P's help.  We recently basted one of the quilts from the fall (2007) Beaver Island Quilt Retreat.

It is not a large quilt so we could pin it quickly.  I still have not come up with the quilting design but at least the quilt will be ready when the inspiration strikes.

This is a not so great photo that I took after retreat in 2007.

I am feeling so tired lately that instead of trying to get lots done during P's nap, I take a nap WITH her.  I am eager for spring break next week.
Tomorrow we will be dying some more eggs.

Kim's Giveaway!

Calamity Kim is having a giveaway! Get over there and enter! She has packed a big box of goodies to give away.  Just wait until you see the tea towel she made!

Thoughtful Sunday

"You have to stop when you're lonely and listen."

If You Listen, Charlotte Zolotow, 1980.

Happy Spring!

Happy Spring!

I love spring. I love the excitement of new flowers, new growth, the earth coming back to life after the long winter. 
The egg has been a symbol of rebirth of the earth for more than two thousand years.  In honor of the first day of spring we decorated these "Tie Dyed Eggs" last night. It was easy peasy to get these fabulous designs. We used some old thrifted silk ties and the easy to follow tutorial at Our Best Bites.

I only had five white eggs on hand so we only dyed five. I'll be saving up the white eggs and dying more.  I think they turned out great. Next time I will try starting with wet silk fabric because I think there were some air bubbles that kept the dye from transferring properly in places.

I picked up a few more 25 cent silk ties today! I think we'll have an egg dying event later this week!

Try it! You will love this project!

Edit to add. A new and updated link for directions here.

Bookmarks

I had someone special order a bunch of Winnie the Pooh bookmarks for a baby shower. I thought that was a great idea.   I like how they turned out.

Stars for Tia

I have finished up another pair of quilt blocks for my 8two8 swap. These liberated stars are for Tia of Camp Follower Bags and Quilts. She makes some pretty fabulous stuff.  You can see her flickr sets of bags and quilts here. She is currently living in Australia and started the Brushfire Quilt project which is putting together star quilts for families who lost homes in the brush fires over there last month.
 
Tia requested liberated stars in red and aqua on a light background. I love this color combination.  Again, I have seen some of the other blocks that have been made for her and they all look great.

Play Capes

Last week I made four new play capes for P's preschool. It was a great way to use up some fabric I had gotten at garage sales and it helped clean out the sewing room!

My original plan involved doing a little tutorial to post with them. I tried taking pictures as I was making these but the pictures didn't really show what I was doing very well.
I can share my pattern and a description of how it goes together.

These are really fun to make as you can use almost any fabric. You can make them short like a capelet or long and flowing to the ground. I like that they can be used for many kinds of play.

This is the pattern and how it should be placed on the fabric. If the selvedge edge of the fabric looks nice, place the front of the hood on the selvedge edge of the fabric and there is no need to hem.
The length of the cape is determined by the height of the child or the length of the fabric on hand. The fold edge of the pattern goes from the neck down the back of the cape.

1. Cut out as shown above.
2. Sew the two hood pieces together on the curved edge.  I use a flat felled seam for better looks and longer wear.
3. Hem and add any desired trim to the outside edge of the cape (all except the neck edge.)
4. Gather the neck edge of the cape and sew to the bottom of the hood. I either stitch the seam allowance to the hood or cover the seam with bias tape for longer wear.
5. Sew velcro tabs to the edge at the neck seam and embellish with a fancy button.
Here is a cape I made for P last year.
 

If you make something using this tutorial please add photos to my flickr group. I'd love to see what you've done.

(please do not sell items made from this pattern)

Thoughtful Sunday

"Once I might have wished for that: never to grow old.  But now I know that to stay young always is also not to change.  And that is what life's all about-- changes going on every minute, and you never know when something begins where it's going to take you."

A Gathering of Days, Joan W. Blos, 1979.