In His Grip

Material Obsession

Yesterday, my daughter Anna and I went to the local Borders Book store closing sale.  We were in search of fun craft books that we would not normally buy but rather borrow from our public library.  With the "everything must go" sale going on we figured these books would be more reasonably priced and besides that we had a gift card that needed using before the store went out of business.  Material Obsession 2 book was the one that I just had to have.  Just look at the picture of the rows of fabrics.  I open to this picture fist and the book had me. This kind of image just makes my mind go crazy with ideas and inspiration.  I can spend hours in a fabric store, my children can back me up on this one, just looking at all of the artistic design and bright colors.  

Here is a picture of me taken back last January at a great little fabric store in Lawrence, Sarah's Fabrics.  I could have spent hours there just browsing.  There is just something about textiles that makes me want to touch them, imagine, and then ultimately create something from them.  Now this is going to sound a little "cheese ball", but I think they speak to me.  For real!!!

Sew Excited Sewing Class

This morning my daughter, Lindsey, hosted a sewing class in my Stitches by Sturman studio. She kept getting gals she knows asking to teach them to sew so she organized a sewing class.  The gals brought 1 1/2 yards of fabric along with stuffing and other embellishments for their pillows.  Lindsey did a great job helping the gals with their first sewing projects.  She asked me to be there for moral support and to help with any snags that might come up.  The class started at 9:30 am so we had an offering of muffins and coffee as well.

My studio is not used to having company so I had to spend a good part of Friday afternoon cleaning up and making the place presentable.  

Lindsey was able to work on a pillow of her own.  She made a pillow out of one of my Dad's wool shirts.  She kept the button placket and pocket to embellish the fron,t it turned out super cute and she plans on putting it on her bed.  I never did get a picture of the finished pillow.

This was really fun and such a great idea it may not be the only "Sew Excited" class there will be.

Repurposed Recliner

This had been my project for the last couple of weeks.  There was a time when I thought the recliner would win but I kept at it and I finally conquered the challenge of the crazy recliner.  Early last year a coworker of Jeff's asked if I would want a recliner they no longer had a use for, he must have been aware of my dumpster diving hobby and allowed me the dignity of picking it up from his home rather than picking it up off the curd with the rest of the trash.  Since I have never upholstered a recliner before, my naivety, made me believe this would be no big deal.  Boy, was I mistaken!

 
Here is what the recliner started out as.  The fabric was a very worn polished cotton.  Although, this chair had been used a lot and the fabric thread bare, the structure of the chair was very solid and as it turned out a good brand name as well.  Score one for me!

 
When I begin to take a piece of furniture apart, I always start on the back and take lots of pictures of each step.  This is so helpful as you begin to put the piece back together.  I am always careful not to tear the fabric as I then use these pieces as my pattern, marking them with "top", bottom", "right", and "left".  This sounds like a bit much, but believe me it is more helpful then you know.

 
Recliners come apart, top and bottom.  This makes it easier to work with and I was able to work with each piece separately.  For the most part, I always replace or add additional dacron padding to the arms and sides.  On this chair, I added stuffing to the head and back cushion and dacron warp to the seat cushion, sides, and arms. 

 
Because of my lack of experience with recliners I miscalculated the yardage and realized I was going to be about a yard short.  Score one for the recliner.  As my luck was going with the project at this point, the recliner was winning, the store had sold out of the fabric I had purchased just a couple of days prior. Dang, dang, double dog dang!  New plan, this chair was not going to beat me, so I let my creative side take over and decide to add in a contrasting color to the back and sides.  I would only have to redo the seat cushion and add the contrast to rise so that it would go with the rest of the chair.  I ended up purchasing 2 1/2 yards of the contrasting fabric to make this new plan work. 

 
As it turns out, I like how the contrast looks and makes the recliner unique rather than just any other relciner. 

 
My mistake turned out to be something really good. However, I don't think that I will be tackling any more recliners any time soon.  This one just about did me in.  I did learn a lot, and if I ever do another one in the future, I will take waaaaaay more picture.

 
Now I think I will just pick up my book and cup of coffee and rest before I start my next upholstery project.  This time I am doing a sofa I found on the curb with the trash! Oh, yeah, re-purpose other people's cast offs, that's how I roll. 

I am participating in the following link ups: The DIY Showoff, Between Naps on the Porch, Dittle Dattle, Keeping It Simple, Skip to My Lou, Making The World Cuter, Sumo Sweet Stuff, Today's Creative Blog, Coastal Charm, Ladybug Blessings, Blue Cricket Design, All things Heart and Home, Me and My Bucket, Niikki's Nifty Knacks, Sew Woodsy, The Thrifty Home, Trendy Treehouse, Alchemy Fine Living, Miss Mustard Seed

My New Favorite Mug

I would like to introduce you to my new favorite coffee mug.  Isn't she pretty?  There are things that I just seem to have a weakness for and a great looking covered beverage container is one of them.  As I work in my studio, I made a rule 20 years ago that no uncovered drinks were allowed.  Needless to say, I always have an eye out for a great covered drink container and it seems to me that Starbucks is hands down the leader in not only functionality but they are totally the leader in the cute factor.  Because I use my cups everyday all day long they do eventually begin to look shabby and get that gross coffee stain look.  So when I saw this new ceramic design, I think the stain problem will be eliminated.  I feel so uptown with ceramic rather than plastic.  It doesn't take much for this midwest gal to feel a bit more sophisticated. 

My Kind of Style

If you have read my blog at all you know that I love the local store Urban Arts & Crafts.  Not only is it just the most inspiring place ever, but they carry fabrics that no other stores carry, by designers like Amy Butler, and Anna Marie Horner.  I  have been dying to make something from some of those whimsical fabrics.  So several weeks ago I picked up a couple of those coordinating fabrics and wanted to make something to wear.  Although, I love color, mostly pink, and patterns, I wanted it to be something that was comfortable and up to date.  However, I just couldn't stay away from the large pink floral patterns, so much for trying to blend in.

 
This is the Amy Butler pattern that I chose to make.  It comes in three different lengths, shirt, tunic, and dress.  I picked the tunic lengthen so that I could wear it with either jeans or leggings.

 
I used the small print as a contrast for the button placket as well as the collar and cuffs.

 
 
I love how this turned out and cannot wait to wear my new tunic.  I recently picked up some brown leggings and a brown t-shirt that will work nicely under my flowery fun.

 
The back is great too.  I have always been a pushover for bows. Besides the tie helps give this gal a waist.

I am participating in the following link ups:  Keeping it Simple, The DIY Showoff, The Gril Creative, Its So Very Creative, Skip to My Lou, Today's Creative Blog, Coastal Charm, New Nostalgia, Nikkis Nifty Knacks, Blue Cricket Design, Fireflies and Jellybeans, Paisley Passions, Tales from Bloggeritaville

IKEA Magazine Organizer Fix Up

It is no surprise to anyone who reads this blog that I like things to look pretty.  It does matter if the item is functional or not, if I have anything to say about it, my choice is always make it look good.  So when it came to organizing some of my magazines, or "books", Where Women Create, after all, they cost $15.00 each, I wanted something functional, that looks nice, and works in the decor of my studio. This left me with no other choice then to redo something that would be perfect for my use and let me be a little creative at the same time.

This is an IKEA cardboard magazine organizer for cheap, cheap, cheap.  If I remember right they come in a package of four for like $5.  You can't beat that, but they are a bit flimsy, so why not use some Mod Podge and tissue paper to give them a little bit more substance?

 
I found the wonderful toile tissue paper at Hobby Lobby that matches my studio perfectly.  After tearing the tissue into smaller pieces, I use a large brush and Mod Podge and cover the whole organizer.  Wrapping the tissue over the edges not only to give the piece a finished look, but this helps with stability as well.

The finished organizers helps keep my "books" from getting bent and they look great on the shelf of my studio as well.  Making something cheap look good always gives me a sense of accomplishment.  You just can't beat satisfaction!

Participating in the following link ups:  Between Naps on the Porch, Its So Very Creative, The DIY Showoff, Keeping It Simple, Skip to my Lou, Sew Can Do, A Silly Little Sparrow, Today's Creative Blog, New Nostalgia, Blue Cricket Desgin, Its a Hodgepodge Life, Finding Fabulous, Its a Blog Party, Its Fun to Craft, Vintage Suitcase, The Shabby Nest, Trash to Treasure

Flower Ring with Purpose

This weekend  I just happen to be out and close to my favorite and most inspiring craft store in the Kansas City area, Urban Arts & Crafts.  Whenever, I am anywhere close to this store, I do all that I can to stop in.  I was really on a quest for some fabric, but was taken in by the pin cushion rings the gal at the counter was making.  That is when I knew that I just had to have one of my own.

 
First, I picked out a bag of felted wool beads.  I have admired these beads for a long time, but not knowing exactly what to do with them, I  have managed to pass them by.  The colors and texture are so yummy, I knew that whatever I made out of these babies had to be good.

 
Next I picked out a bag of small felted wool circles.  They come in a variety of colors and tend to be in a color scheme with five circles of each color.

 
My flower ring will have a chocolate brown center with melon pink petals.  The ring that I chose was a little large and after completing this I would choose a ring with a narrow band next time, just a little tip for free. 

To begin making the flower you pinch the circle together and sew it to the center bead.  Repeating this with all five circles.

Secure the petals well to the back.  Don't worry about making it pretty as this will be all covered up.

Using another felted wool circle secure the ring base by sewing the circle over the ring base and stitch well.  This is where, if my ring base were more narrow, I think this would have worked better, and maybe even more secure.

And there you have it, the cutest flower ring ever.  I think this is going to make my day fun just because I am wearing it.

To top it off, this little piece of loveliness has a purpose too.  I can use it as a pin cushion at work.  I love it when I can make work more fun and pretty at the same time.  Double bonus!  Man, as I look at this picture, my hand looks so old.  I am glad I feel a lot younger than that hand looks, seriously.

I am participating in the following link up parties:  Between Naps On the Porch, Its So Very Creative, The DIY Showoff, Keeing It Simple, Mad Skills Monday, Skip to My Lou, Coastal Charm, Today's Creative Blog, Me and My Bucket, Blue Cricket Design,Nikki's Nifty Knacks, Fireflies and Jellybeans, It's Sew Stinkin Cute, Life as Lori, Paisley Passions, Tales from Bloggeritaville

Working, Working, Working

With this being a short week, I have been so busy not only at work but planning an event for small group leaders at Indian Creek Community Church (this will be a post for later).  But who can complain when you get to work with such great fabric and design.  The girl that gets to have this in her bedroom is one lucky girl.  The colors and wonderful touch of retro is out of this world.  I can image, a mirror ball sparkling and teenage girls in mini skirts and go go boots dancing around with the songs from the 70's playing on a record player. 

 Linking up to: Paisley Passions, Finding Fabulous, It's A Blog Party, Its Fun to Craft, A Visision to Remeber 

Featured On Blue Cricket Desgin

Becca at Blue Cricket Design 
has featured Lindsey's Goodwill sofa.  How fun is that?  This is so exciting to get this kind of exposure not only for the great sofa transformation, but for "In His Grip" as well. Blue Cricket Design is a great place for inspiration and DIY projects of all kinds.  I go to this sight often to see what is out there in the world of DIY and just for plain fun.  I mean look at her blog banner, who would not want to spend some time at this web sight?  Go on over and see what Becca has going on beside this great sofa!

Daily Reminder of the Great Commission

In my studio I have a wall above my cutting table that has been blank for a long time.  Recently, I decided to fill it with reminders of what I want my life to represent, where I have been, and what Stitches By Sturman supports.  The pictures are from the several mission trips I have been on.  The quilted cross was made by the women of The Mashia Foundation.  The women live in Nigeria and help support their families by making quilted items and selling them.  Since my first trip to India in 2006, Stitches By Sturman has purchased at least 4 sewing machines a year for women in India to start their own sewing business to support their families.

I bought all the frames at garage sales for .25 to .75.  They were not in the best condition and really did not match.

Using some black spray paint, it did not take long for all of the frames to look a lot better and like they all went together.  I then picked some of my favorite pictures and printed them in black and white and placed them in the frames.  I now have a daily reminder that this is what it is all about and Stitches By Sturman is God's way of providing me with a way to support women 1,000's of miles away doing the same work I do and giving me a connection with them through His love.

I am linking up to: Between Naps on the Porch, Its So Very Cheri, Keeping It Simple, Mad Skills Monday, The DIY Show Off, The Girl Creative, Skip to My Lou, Today's Creative Blog, Coastal Charm, New Nostalgia, Me and My Bucket, The Thirfty Home

The Sofa is a Star!

Wow! Lindsey's sofa has become a real hit out there in the blog world.  It has been featured on another blog.  Go on over and check out Just Sew Sassy!  How fun!  I so enjoy when others like what I do.

Goodwill Sofa Made Fabulous!

With our daughter Lindsey moving out into her own home, the last couple of months we have been on a quest to find furniture on a bargain budget.  Just because we had little money to spend did not mean that we had to leave fun design at the door.  Lindsey found the pink flower fabric on sale and knew that this was the fabric she wanted for her sofa.  As a single gal, she knows that if she is going to ever have a pink sofa the time is now before other opinions have to be considered.  But she did not even have a sofa to cover yet.  Off to garage sales and thrift stores she went.  She found the jackpot one evening at the Goodwill.

This is what we found that night at the Goodwill for, get this, $19.99.  Yes, score!  The cushions are not shown in this picture but they were in good shape other than the fact that this white canvas was filthy.  The piece was sturdy and had a good shape so we knew that it would make a great pink flowered sofa.

First I took off the white canvas cover and found this other upholstery fabric underneath which was like new.  So the transformation began.

 

 

 Lindsey made the cushion covers in my Stitches by Sturman studio.

 
The finished project was all that we expected and Lindsey is over the moon with how great it looks in her new great room.
 

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Garage Sale Book Shelf

Since I updated my studio last year, I have been looking for some shelving to go a the bottom of the steps.  I considered doing a custom built in but then the cost became prohibitive so I started to keep my eye out for  something that would work from a garage sale.  I found the perfect piece about three weeks ago for only $10.  Awesome, right?  It works just perfect for my space.  Of course it did not start out looking like this.  I painted it red and then sanded some back off.  With the speed of the internet here in the north woods at Camp Grandma, I am unable to post more that one picture per blog entry.  But the process was the same as I did with this and this.  I love my new garage sale find and always keep my eye out for something old that I can make new again.

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T-Shirt Transformation

This is my second t-shirt transformation this summer.  Once again, I picked up another Target boyfriend t-shirt and jazzed it up.  I have been seeing all of the t-shirts out this season that have fluffy flowers on them.  So here is my version of all of those spendy t's.  

I started out with some old sheer fabric I had left over from a Stitches By Sturman project and cut it into 1" bias strips.  I am guessing I had probably 10 - 15 yards of bias strips.  (Note: Out of one yard of fabric you can cut 25 yards of 1" bias strip.) Using the fabric on the bias will allow for a little bit of fraying when laundered without it totally falling apart.

Next I ran a gathering stitch down the center of the strips.  I used a gathering foot for this, but if you do not have one you can stitch a double row of basting stitches and then gather by hand.

I then began hand stitchin g the gathered strips in place making the flowers by going around in a circle.  I have washed my t-shirt several times and the more I wash the better it looks.

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Starbucks Insulated Cup!

I have been scoping out this insulated cup at Starbucks for the last several weeks.  Oh, how I wanted it.  Because I have to have my drinks covered in my Stitches By Sturman studio, (people don't take kindly to coffee and tea stains on their window treatments) I am always on the look out for a nice covered beverage holder.  In the Summer, I really need to have the cup insulated or the thing sweats all over the place and then I make water rings everywhere.  When I spied this at Starbucks I knew it would be my new favorite cup this Summer.  Oh yeah, I purchased my this morning.  So now you can picture me in my studio with a venti, iced passion tea, no sweetener in my new Starbucks insulated cup.  If we run into each other this Summer I will probably have it with  me.  My cups tend to go everywhere I go. 

Picked It Up At Borders

I picked up my favorite magazine today at Borders.  My thought was to put it away until next week when I am on vacation, but I just could not wait that long.  I had to break it open just a little bit.  This magazine is really more like a book in that it only comes out four times a year and it is a little pricey, but I soak in every page.  I like to read it with my laptop sitting right beside me so that I can not only read the articles but check out the related websites as well.  The fact that it is dedicated to women and the space in which they create, is more than inspiring to me.  It motivates me to make the space in which I create a lovely place to be.  Although, in my studio on a daily basis, I am making up other designers' creations, I do make time to do my own creating there too.  Over the past year or so, my studio has really become a fun place to work and and make my own treasures.  I continue to add loveliness on a regular basis and am making my studio a place "Where Women Create."

Old Shutter to Supply Holder

These are the shutters that I purchased last Fall.  I gave $5 each for them.  I liked how they were weathered and the paint was all cracked.  I had this idea in my head on how I was going to use them in my studio to hold small supplies.  So this is how the looked before their transformation into their new re-purposed supply holder.

I decided to once again use the colonial red spray paint that matches the other things in my studio.  Giving the shutters a couple of light coats of paint and then allowing them to dry.

After they had dried completed, I used my handy dandy electric sander and lightly sanded off part of the paint.  I always try to make things look like they have been naturally worn so I pay particular attention to the edges and corners.  Once I was satisfied with the way that the shutters looked, I put some hangers on the back and hung them on the wall in my studio.

After hanging the shutters on the wall.  I took some jars that I have been storing supplies in and wrapped wire around the top twisting it together until it was long enough to make it into a hook.  I love the way they look hanging on the shutters and there is plenty of room to add more.  Now, this clears up some space out of one of my cabinets and I can actually see what I have. 

 

Sewing Pattern Lamp Shade

This is a lamp shade that I have had around for a couple of years.  I have two of these lamps with this pink shade and they have been very happy in Ryan's room.  Okay, I know that it is not Ryan's room because he does not live with us anymore but I just cannot bring myself to call it a guest room.  So I think I will always call bed rooms by the name of the child that occupied it, perhaps Ryan's Retreat, Lindsey's Lounge, and Anna's Escape.  I don't know just a thought.  Anyway, I decided that the shade need a redo.

I took the fabric off of the frame and this is what I started with.  The first time I went into Urban Arts and Crafts, I fell in love with the lamp shades they have hanging above their cash register.  They had made them using sewing pattern pieces.  I knew that someday I would make one of my own and decided this was a great lamp shade frame to try it on.  I began with sewing pattern pieces and Mod Podge.

 I started delicately painting the Mod Podge over the pattern pieces and overlapping the pattern pieces as I went.  I folded the tissue over the top and bottom wires and carefully Mod Podge the back side.  Once the tissue is covered in the Mod Podge it tears very easily as it is wet.  So I tried to get a coat on and then not go over again. 

Once the first coat had dried completely I put a coat of Mod Podge on the inside and then when that dried, I coated the outside with a second coat.  The result makes the shade feel like plastic.  It was not nearly as fragile as I had imagined.

I added trim along the top and bottom edges just to snaz it up a bit.  Besides the edges were a bit rough and I needed to cover them up, and you can never go wrong with a great beaded trim.  Trim scrapes in my studio are a perk of my job and you can bet I save every little bit.  You never know when you will need a dab of trim.

Here is where the lamp now lives, in the Stitches by Sturman studio.  I love the golden light that it gives off.  I have not deceided what to do with the pink bubbles, you can see the one at the top and there is also one on the bottom.  But that is for another day.  I think I will put it on a timer so that I can leave it on all the time and will not have to worry about turning it off and on.

Summer to Cozy Winter Bed

This is our master bed the way it looks from March-ish through October-ish.  We have a wide variety of pillows and if it were up to me we would add some Euro shams behind the shams you see here but Jeff has put his foot down and says there are too many pillows as it is.  (Like he makes the bed and arranges those pillows on a daily basis.) But being the compliant wife that I am (ha, ha), I have let the Euro shams go for now.  (I do have some fabric set aside in my"fabric closet" that will do very nicely as Euros someday, shhh, don't tell Jeff.) 

When the weather starts to turn chilly I want a more cozy look to our bed.  So I just make a couple of changes.  I add another down comforter with a velvet duvet cover and the shams are change out to match as well.  The matelasse cotton throw is folded up on the end for an extra blanket if we need it.  And wal lah, a cozy bed for winter cold nights.  When the temperatures get even colder I have some fun brown and blue snowflake flannel sheets that will help take the chill off of those cold sheets. 

This Old Ironing Board

This is the old ironing board that I found a couple of weeks ago and paid $5 for.  The legs were broken and it did not really stand up very well.  But with some wood glue and a couple of screws, ta da, it stands up just great and I decided it would make a perfect table in my studio.  And look, the legs were already red so no spray painting needed.  After looking at it for some time, I felt it needed a little spiffying up.  I took an old dictionary and decided to decoupage some of the pages on the top of the ironing board. 

If you look closely, the edge of the pages of the dictionary were red and the Mod Podge made the red bleed slightly.  I ended up putting several coats of Mod Podge on the top so that it would be smooth.  I need all the help I can get on cutting down on the dust bunny collection.  I love how it turn out!