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We’re in the middle of a busy week. But I wanted to take a moment to share a few things that made me pause between walking the dogs and getting the yard in shape.
Clockwise from Top Left:
- It’s almost S’mores season! Why not have a little fun with them this year (not that I don’t love the classic flavor combo)? Cooking Classy has some great new ideas including these Lemon Meringue s’mores.
- I wish we had a kiddo just so we could try making our own sidewalk chalk this spring with Playful Learning. The color possibilities are endless!
- How lovely are these handcarved wood toothbrushes by the Japanese artist Yohei Murai on Mr. Kitly? They are totally impractical price-wise, but it’s a dreamy idea.
- I just want to dive into this fluffy bed photographed by Bryce Covey on Style Me Pretty. I also want to find out what color they used on those walls. I’m convinced it’s the perfect shade of soft gray.
Don’t forget to enter the big Spring Cleaning Giveaway before the 4th! This is one of the best prizes yet on the blog. I can’t wait to select a winner.
Metallic may be by favorite “color”. And the best place to find metallic paper goods and pretty things is Inkkit. Confetti, washi tape, envelopes, twig pencils, glitter stickers and so much more. What I wouldn’t give to spend an hour wrapping pretty packages in their studio.
Visit Inkkit on etsy or their blog for more.
All images property and courtesy of Inkkit. Feel free to pin or share, but please always link and credit lovingly.
I love working with Nicole at Sent Well. She always has something new up her sleeve. This month when I sent he a “What’s new?” email, she responded by sending me some photos of her newest line of cards. These cards are perfect for brightening someone’s day or just catching up. And they come with a bonus! The top part is perforated and the inside has a keepsake recipe card.
Since we both have a sweet tooth and soft spot for lemon desserts, I used the recipe card to send my grandma a copy of this Easy Lemon Cookie recipe. She loves getting old fashioned mail, and this one will come with a little surprise. She’s going to love that she can tear out the card and add it to her recipe file.
The other 2 cards in this line include a crafty DIY directions card and a cocktail card that includes 2 cocktail recipes. All 3 cards are currently available on Sent Well. Sent Well ships super fast and has a unique collection of independently designed cards and gifts.
Visit Sent Well today and treat someone you love to some good old fashioned mail or stock up on cards for this summer’s showers, weddings and special occasions. Make sure to throw in a couple of these perforated cards just in case.
With quilting madness happening in my studio, I’m burning through my fabric collection pretty fast. That only means one thing… fabric shopping! In my opinion, fabric shopping is more dangerous than shoe shopping. Those $3 fat quarters can really start adding up once you start throwing them in your digital shopping cart.
The kid in me loves Japanese and illustrative patterned fabrics. Jared bought a bunch of fat quarters for christmas a few years ago which went into my first quilt. With that supply depleted, I have been shopping around to replenish my stock. I thought I would share some of my favorites today.
Pictured Above: Sunshine Garden Floral from The Hey Day Shop
Click here to see the link list for all of these amazing textiles.
To celebrate Valentines Day, Michelle and Christa put together the most gorgeous floral DIY on Cotton & Brass. I was floored when I saw the finished photos and arrangement. Head on over to the post and check out the rest of the photos and perhaps learn a thing or two.
If you follow me on Instagram (@lostandfawned), you know I was a busy bee this Saturday! I woke up early and decided to try a different style quilt block. I found a stack of fat quarters Jared had purchased a few years ago to wrap my christmas presents (super cute linen prints from Japan) and got to work. By noon I had the whole top finished. I ran to the local craft store, picked up my batting, simple unbleached muslin for the backer and some pretty red wool yarn and rushed home. By dinner time my first scrap quilt was finished and folded.
It’s small. I’m not sure what I’ll do with it. Probably keep it wrapped up until we have a little one to use it. But I used heavier batting so it’s nice and thick. I love how soft the muslin is on the back and the tufting makes it so casual and a little kitch.
I did learn a few things along the way…
- Tufting is the best way to hide slight imperfections at the corners of your quilt blocks. Naturally since it’s my first real effort, my corners don’t line up perfectly. Tufting is the yarn ties at the corners of each quilt block. It’s an alternative to traditional “quilting” and is great if you have a wonky old machine like mine that doesn’t like to sew neat lines.
- Making something random is SO difficult. I found myself micromanaging where each scrap was trying to achieve a “random” look. I finally had to let go and let it be truly random.
- The iron is a quilter’s best friend. I kept mine hot and handy and pressed the blocks between every step. It paid off.
- Another amazing tool you should invest in is a Magnetic Seam Guide
for your machine. You can’t rely on it 100%, but it really helps.
- If you plan to tuft a quilt, pick up a cheap Yarn Threader
- Quilting is not a cheap hobby. I always knew it was a lot of work, but it’s also expensive. It’s pretty clear why beautiful handmade quilts cost a small fortune.
I’m about halfway through the top of a much larger, much pinker, half-square style quilt. It’s looking really good! I haven’t decided if I’m going to tuft this one again or try hand quilting or try to re-calibrate my machine to sew a nicer line. I’ll see how it looks when the top is finished and pressed.
I’m totally hooked though. I have about 4 different quilts planned out in my head already and before we know it, we’ll be swimming in blankets. At least my massive fabric collection is finally being put to work. I’ve been hoarding fabric for years knowing I would use it someday.
Have you tried a new craft yet this year? How are you staying busy through these winter months? Any tips for a newbie quilter?
Yet again I am trying something new this winter. We all know I am a “dabbler”… I am always taking on a new craft genre. This time, it’s something I have played with before, but never properly or with real research… quilting. I have made some rough attempts. I have a few half started, slightly wonky quilts I have began and found to be below par. This time I’ll be planning it out properly.
I just ordered a couple of scrap bundles from Skinny Laminx. It probably won’t be enough for a full quilt, so I’ll be picking out some supplemental solids when they arrive. I’m not sure if what I’ll be using as the backer yet. I kind of have to wait until they arrive to make a lot of decision regarding accent color (I ordered all blacks and grays), quilt pattern, tufting vs. hand quilting, etc. All I know is I want to finish this one. The fabrics are gorgeous (I have a number of other fabrics and things from Skinny Laminx, Heather makes beautiful products) and so inspiring.
What I need from you is inspiration! Have you made a quilt? Have a favorite tutorial? Book? Quilting guru? Show me your projects. I’m particularly interested in beginner’s quilts and scrap quilts. Show me what you’ve got!
All fabrics by Heather Moore of Skinny Laminx. See more in her shop or website.
One of my sponsors this month also happens to be my card-giving guru, Nicole of Sent Well. Nicole has a beautiful selection of cards for any occasion and ships lightening fast. Even with shipping, her collection of cards is comparable to the generic cards you see in big-box stores. Plus, Sent Well can ship the cards to you OR (if you are a little late in sending your card) will hand write your message and send it directly to your recipient. Better yet, if you are really forgetful, you can set up a calendar and automatically have your cards shipped in time for birthdays and anniversaries.
I just received my valentines from Sent Well and Nicole and I have been brainstorming different ways to jazz up your valentines. Here are a few ideas…
- Add glitter or confetti for a festive surprise when your lucky recipient opens their card.
- Try making a custom envelope liner our of pretty paper, vintage book pages, wrapping paper, a doily, or anything else you can think of. I used pages from a vintage bird book in our wedding invitation envelopes. Here is a great tutorial.
- Write a sweet recipe on a recipe card and slip it into the valentine for a treat that you can send via mail.
- Cut simple hearts out of felt or pretty vintage fabric, add a safety pin and your Valentine can wear their heart on their sleeve.
- Give calligraphy a try! Invest in a pretty pen and hit the local library for a calligraphy book.
Lost & Fawned readers can take 25% off anything at Sent Well with the discount code FAWNED at time of purchase. I’m a loyal customer for life. Give it a try!
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This post was posted as part of my sponsorship program. If you are interested in sponsoring Lost & Fawned, please visit my Sponsor page.
This week kicks off the “appropriate” time to put up your holiday decorations (though if I had my way I would have a year round tree in our living room). I’ve been gathering inspiration for a few months now and here is a little round-up of some of my favorite ideas this year.
Embroidery Hoop & Dogwood Wreaths // via Under the Sycamore
Pinecone Garland // via Bebeh Blog
Dress up a Rack (or a faux one like these) // via Montana.dk
Greens Atop your Frames // via Dear Lillie
Faux Tree Poster // via Poppytalk & Graphics Fairy
Small Trees in Other Rooms (we have this one from Ikea) // via Delight by Design
Simple Garland in the Guestroom // via likanien parketti
Bayleaf EVERYTHING // via William Sonoma
Pillows are so darn expensive. As I was gathering pieces for our living room makeover, this is probably the item I struggled with the most. To build a comfortable, full looking sofa you need about 3-4 pillows, and at $40-60 a pop, that quickly adds up. To top it off, I had a specific scheme in mind and couldn’t find anything this time of year that fit the bill. So I took my old worn out pillows and made some covers myself.
This was my first adventure in dip-dying. Ombre of course has been huge this year and I’ve been meaning to give it a go. This seemed like the perfect project to try it. I used just about the cheapest material available, a raw canvas drop cloth. They are about $20 at any home improvement store and you get yards and yards of material. I cut it down to roughly the size I would need before dying it.
I started my soaking the whole piece of material in water thoroughly. I mixed (but didn’t measure) the dye into water in a stainless metal mixing bowl in the sink. I knew I wanted pink, so I used Rit Scarlet Red and used less than recommended. I rolled the material into a very loose tube and dipped it halfway into the bowl, let it sit in the dye mix for 30 seconds to a minute and lifted it out to take a peek at the color. It was a nice pink, so I hooked it over the faucet, leaving the end in the dye mix as evenly as possible. Then I just let it sit for awhile.
The water pulled the due nicely up the fabric. I wasn’t sure how the canvas would take dye, but I was surprised to find it help the color quite well. Once it had a nice deep pink, even ombre effect, I pulled it carefully out of the bowl and rinsed it, making sure to rinse down so the dye would not color the top of the fabric.
The color was lighter after I washed it with detergent, but still held a nice pink tone. I’m very happy with how it turned out. I did have to use a bleach pen to clean up a few pink finger prints from the dying process, but they bleached right out.
In hindsight, I should have steamed the pillow before taking these photos. That’s the one downside to canvas, but they do steam up nicely. I used linen on the back since it’s a nice neutral texture and I usually have a few yards laying around the house.
The other pillow pictured is Stockholm Blad from Ikea. It’s a great deal at just $12.99 (for the case AND the pillow form!). Stick around to see the whole sofa and living room all put together. We’ve made a lot of changes.