Handmade Gift Exchange and More Projects

So many WIP's right now!!!

(work in progress)

I'm almost done with my prezzie for my Handmade Gift Exchange Partner.  (Too late to sign up for this session, but Craftaholics Anonymous will have another at the end of the year.)  I ended up taking a simple project and using it to practice a few skills that always give me trouble. Hope it works out in the end!  : D

Thursday I will have my first Gypsy Thread photo shoot with a beautiful young lady modeling new wares. Very excited! And yes, that means new items will finally be added to Etsy. I still have a few skirts and aprons to finish before then. Yikes!

And there are always projects in the que for family members... like finishing a jacket for my mother and fixing some work pants for my bro-in-law. (Why are even grown men so hard on their clothes?)

However, today I will be taking care of my WONDERFUL, ADORABLE, FABULOUS nephew instead!



First Birthday Mickey Party in March

 

First Birthday, First Cake - March 2011



Maybe we'll get some better pics in the backyard today with the world's best nephew and the world's craziest dog chasing each other today. And maybe my hands will be steady enough to take them!

How many WIP's do you have on your plate?

Hope you have a great Monday!

~ Carey

Happy Father's Day

Happy Dad’s Day…



To all the Dads in our lives…



 

                             Whether big or small…





             Biological or adopted…

 

                        Grandfather, Uncle, or family friend…

Single Moms taking on roles of both parents…

                        Thank you, all of you!

Where Were You Wendesday

Not you. Me. Where have I been? Today I only went to CVS, where I found my bank card had finally quit on me. (Too much swiping?) No, I'm not talking about today either. It's a general statement/question to myself... Where the heck have you been? Obviously not writing on my blog.


Thank you Graphics Fairy



As you may or may not have figured out from my previous postings, photography is not my strong suit. Frankly, I stink at it. So picture taking is never at the top of my list and therefore never inspires a blog post from me. Projects for Gypsy Thread keep piling up. I never have enough energy to get to all of the lovely items on my to-do list. (Sound familiar?) Then there's life in general always pushing blogging to the bottom of the priority list. And recently my beloved laptop decided to stop cooperating. This is a great travesty. A moment of silence would be appreciated if you're hearing this for the first time.

It's ok, I'll pause.

Tissue?
Thank you.

Now that I've spent a good part of the past week organizing, writing things by hand *gasp*, and re-prioritizing, I've decided that paying attention to my blog should be higher on the list. I don't have to write a novella every time. Sometimes just a, "Hi, how ya' doin'?" works when I'm reading other blogs... or just a pretty picture... that I will obviously have to borrow from someone else. It feels good to send something out into cyberspace. It's a task accomplished, a goal set and reached. Kudos for me. Right?

The new-and-improved blog to-do list has already produced (finally) About Me and Shop pages. I've also linked up some online nice stuff that I'm signing up for. And get this... I already have 5 new posts started. Please don't expect them all in one week, though. Baby steps. Can't overdo. I might pull something.

Until I write again, or you decide to write to me...

~ Carey

Wanna Win a Gypsy Thread Goodie?

Not being able to pursue my creative endeavors for several weeks has left me feeling very antsy. Hopefully now that I've fixed a lil' medical snafu I'll be able to restock my Etsy shop soon. Until then I'd like to say thank you to those who have been sooooo supportive of both Gypsy Thread and my personal life. What better way to say thank you than to give something away?!?!?!?!

Gypsy Thread Giveaway ~ a cute pink and brown paisley wristlet!

On Saturday, May 7 @ 8pm EST, Tiny Tots Resale Shop, a FaceBook based shop specializing in fun handmade and up-cycled items for the kiddos, will be hosting a Fan Appreciation Game Night on their FaceBook Page. Tiny Tots Resale Shop recently hit their 4,000 fan mile marker and is celebrating with many of their regular boutiques and shops participating as freebie sponsors.

How can you win one of these fabulous prizes? Simple...
Like Gypsy Thread on FaceBook and like Tiny Tots Resale Shop. Then, log into your FB account on Saturday night, watch the Tiny Tots wall, and play along with their live games. If you'd like to win prizes from any of the other participating sponsors (at least 10 I think), make sure you like their FB pages too.

On Thursday, May 12th Gypsy Thread will also be a featured shop for a Tiny Tots Game Night. On Game Nights they play the Mine Game. Basically whoever comments with "Mine" first gets to purchase the super discounted item. I'll have all new stuff only available that night on Tiny Tots for the price stated. Any items not sold that evening will be listed on Etsy for their full retail price the next day.

I'm so excited to be participating with a great group of other handmade artisans AND to be giving away a freebie to my friends and supporters.

Thank you!!!

~ Carey

My First Flower

Big news for me. Possibly mediocre news at best for you.

I finally tried making a certain type of flower embellishment and succeeded on my first attempt! Yay me! So proud of myself. What do you think? Perhaps a pretty something for a new purse?

Why have I waited so long to try out making these simple, melted petal beauties?

This one was made with a poly satin, scraps that I just couldn’t seem to throw away. (Great, like I need another reason to hold onto small pieces of fabric.)

And how did I do it, some may ask? Easy peasy. Here were some of my tools.

I traced two different size circles onto my scrap fabric. In this case these circles came from the top and bottom of the same kids’ cup. Then I very informally doubled/tripled over the fabric and cut out the less than perfect shapes.

Here’s the tricky part. It involves fire! Holding the edge of the fabric circle close to the flame of a small candle (tea candle in this instance) I watched for the fabric to begin melting, curling, and/or changing shape. If you hold the fabric too close, it will catch on fire – FYI. You only need the heat, not the flame. I did cut some burnt edges off and then re-melt those areas, but some edges I kept “crispy” on this off-white color because I liked it.

Once you have a bunch of circles properly melted, a process that prevents fraying as well, stack the “petals” starting with the largest, flattest one as your base. Arrange with the smallest circle on top. To hold these petals together you can choose to glue them or put a simple stitch or two through the center of the stack. I went with the thread and needle method. Super easy.

Centers of the flowers can be anything. You could continue to cut smaller fabric pieces and crinkle to your heart’s delight. Perhaps you want to sew in some beads or sequins. For me, a vintage earring with the back removed (reason for the pliers) worked great… glued in with that heavy duty glue stuff.

There are lots of sites and blogs with more detailed directions, options, and ideas if you’re looking for more info. Feel free to check out any or all of these:

Make It and Love It

I Am Momma Hear Me Roar

K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple, Sister)

Squiggly Twigs Designs

Off to make some more beauties!

~Carey