Girls' Day

Recently, my good friend Sharon and I had what we called a "Girls' Day." With my husband working and her husband fishing, we decided to get together and craft in my backyard workshop. Sharon, who is a very creative person, wanted to sew an apron. She brought the cow fabric and some vintage trim and I added the vintage checked fabric. Since the cow fabric was a knit, the bottom was serged to create a ruffled effect. Although we both worked on the design, this was Sharon's first attempt at sewing an apron. She did a great job. She gave it to one of her sisters as a gift.
My mom, who is multi-talented, joined us later that day. She brought her cake decorating supplies and a fresh batch of homemade buttercream frosting and we practiced different cake decorating techniques. My mom has done cakes professionally for weddings and special occasions. I always remember a special decorated cake at my birthday and school parties. My mom and aunt made my wedding cake.


In the above photo, we practiced on a plastic cutting mat, using the various tips such as star, shell, and basket weave. The right tips make it real easy.
The above picture is my attempt at a decorated miniature cake. I like the Spring colors. I felt like it looked better in the photo, than it actually did in real life, but it still tasted great. I think I will stick to sewing.

Sharon and I had so much fun that we decided to schedule another Girls' Day in the near future.

More Pretty Pillows

I have recently added a few more pillows to my shop on Etsy. These will be sold as pillow covers. The pillow above just looks like springtime. The fabric on the front was taken from a vintage bedspread I found at an estate sale. The front also features a piece of vintage embroidered linen. This photo was taken in a rocker, found at a yard sale, that I had refinished and recovered myself. The colors in the pillow look so pretty with the roses on the fabric. These pillows combine my love for vintage linens as well as fabrics.
The above pillow I have named "Pocketful of Posies", since it is a pocket pillow cover. The pink fabric comes from a vintage bathrobe I bought at a yard sale. It is such a pretty shade of pink (to me, just about any shade of pink is pretty). The piece of vintage linen folds over the pillow form inside and buttons down in the front.
The above photo shows a closeup of the button and the basketful of posies. Such detail.
This pillow cover is also made from the same vintage bedspread and the front is from a vintage dresser scarf. I call it "Lovely Lilacs". You could almost smell the lilacs. They are in shades of purple and lavender and have been hand embroidered.
What is so wonderful about using these vintage fabrics and linens is that, not only is it recycling, but it is giving a new life and purpose to these beautiful linens for another generation to enjoy.

Berry Pretty Valance

This week I made a valance for my kitchen window out of a vintage tablecloth that I had purchased at a thrift store. I used three of the corners to get the point effect. I enjoy giving linens, I've bought at yard sales or thrift shops, a new life, by incorporating them into something useful for my home or to resell for someone else to enjoy. When I was trying to decide on a fabric for the top for a rod casing, I laid the green polka dot fabric against it, and the colors just popped right out.
This is a close up of the strawberries. I just love the faded pink color achieved by years of use and wear. It is hard to duplicate those soft, shades. The colors in the embroidery are still bright and pretty. Putting this valance over my kitchen window will bring a touch of spring into my home.