Just a little fix

I dropped by a nice home decor fabric store today for a little fix....you know what I mean. I just needed to see something fresh and touch a few textures.

I was not disappointed. I love touching everything. Next time I will take the camera so I can share some pictures with you.

I am getting in the mood to sew. There is so much on my list that I don't know where to begin. I have some fancy fabric that would make a nice bag, I am in the middle of a quilted fabric art piece for my kitchen, I would like to start a few Christmas project.....I think I will go bake an apple crisp and think about it.

Using Our Talents and All That Fabric

I love this story posted in The Charlotte Observer written by Dannye Romine Powell. Doesn't the end quote sum up how we all feel?

Stitching frothy bits of beauty for Haiti's girls

Johnnie Hayes and her busy sewing machine are brightening lives.

Posted: Tuesday, Feb. 01, 2011

COLUMNISTS »

Dannye Romine Powell

Dannye Romine Powell writes on life in Charlotte and the Carolinas for the Local section of The Charlotte Observer.

E-mail Dannye.
704.358.5230

A little lace here. A row of ribbon there.
And Johnnie Hayes, age 91, if you please, is off and running.
Since the earthquake in Haiti last January, Johnnie has designed, sewn and dispatched 115 adorable outfits - most of them dresses with matching ruffled panties - to the little girls of Haiti.
She has a dozen more pressed and ready to go.
"Imagine being a mother," she says, "and not having something pretty to dress your little girl in."
Call it a labor of love. You'd be right on the money.
Call it doing God's work. Bingo on that one, too.
But sewing - and designing these sunshine-fresh dresses - is what happens to make Johnnie's heart sing.
"Sewing is my thing," she says. "I can hardly wait to get up in the morning."
She starts working at 8 a.m. and stops at 3 p.m., to watch "Judge Judy." ("I've never heard anyone so mean.")
Johnnie doesn't sew at night, and she doesn't sew on Sunday. ("I do knit on Sundays," she confesses.)
She has been married to John Hayes for almost 72 years. They have four grown children - three daughters and a son.
For more than a quarter of a century, Johnnie worked in alterations at Montaldo's on North Tryon Street. During her later years there - she retired in 1982 - she headed the department.
She calls those the store's glory years, when movie stars from Joseph Cotten to Clint Eastwood brought their wives in to shop, when hand-painted clouds graced the ceiling, when the doorman sprayed fragrance on the sidewalk in front of the store.
But Johnnie's love of pretty things started earlier, growing up in Waxhaw.
"My mother was prissy," she says. "If she didn't have money for rouge, she'd wet a piece of red paper and rub the color on her cheeks."
Johnnie herself had long curls and enjoyed pretty clothes, which she grew up thinking were important to anyone's self-esteem.
Until the earthquake, she made quilts to raise money for the building fund at Central Steele Creek Presbyterian Church. She showed me photos. Gorgeous creations.
But quilts were getting too heavy to work on, she says.
When the earthquake hit, she thought of all the little Haitian girls who were without.
Don't think these handmade dresses go unappreciated.
Here's a card from Carrie Evans, a former minister at Central Steele Creek, who volunteers in Haiti and delivered the latest batch of Johnnie's creations.
"There are no words to share the emotions of handing a child a brand new dress sewn with so much love.... The looks on the mothers' faces as they picked up their children from school were priceless. I only wish you could have heard the children chant in their beautiful Haitian accents: Thank you."
The note went on to say that for many of these children, Johnnie's handmade dresses are the only new articles of clothing they will ever receive.
'I want the children to feel pretty and feminine, she says, "and I don't care if they get out in the mud and play. Let them be children."
You must feel so - I'm reaching for the right word - useful, I say.
No, Johnnie says. Humble. Humble that she can keep helping.
Does she foresee a time when she might not be able to sew?
She gives me a look of spunk-laced surprise.
"If I'm working on something when I die," she says, "throw it in the coffin, and I'll finish it."

Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/02/01/2026564/stitching-frothy-bits-of-beauty.html#disqus_thread#ixzz1K1CQc0lK

Project Linus - Sewing For Others

 I hate to let go of any of my fabric but if I know that it will be enjoyed by someone else it makes the seperation easier.

In the past I have shared a couple of places that you can donate your handmade items. Are you ready for another resource that can use your talents and time? Project Linus is a well organized and very productive group that provides warmth for children in need.

The volunteers, known as “blanketeers,” provide new, handmade, washable blankets to be given as gifts to seriously ill and traumatized children, ages 0-18. It is Project Linus’ policy to accept blankets of all sizes, depending on local chapter needs. All blanket styles are welcome, including quilts, tied comforters, fleece blankets, crocheted or knitted afghans, and receiving blankets in child-friendly colors.

Project Linus is comprised of hundreds of local chapters and thousands of volunteers across the United States. Each volunteer and local chapter  works together to achieve the goal which is to provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans, lovingly created by the volunteers. Since 1995 they have distributed over 3 million blankets to those in need.

Linus, of Charlie Brown fame, found great comfort in his blanket. Won't you spend a little time this month creating something that will give a child that same sense of security?

http://www.projectlinus.org/

If you want to work with one of the freshest color palattes try yellow and gray. It works in home decor as well as your wardrobe. How about finding a buttery yellow print and making a quick scarf to wear with a gray sweater? Brighten up dining room chairs by covering them in a print such as the one pictured.

I have a yellow polka dot that I have draped over a chair in my sewing room. I am waiting for the right inspiration to hit on what to do with it. In the meantime I am just enjoying this little piece of sunshine.

Happy sewing!

Melisa

What Your Table Needs

I was looking at a collection of home decor fabrics of varying sizes and designs. I wanted to make something that would allow me to enjoy the colors and textures.  I came up with this table runner. I make a pillow to go with it.

To make one for your home decide on the length that will work well on your table or buffet. The width can be in the range of 14 inches. Lay the fabrics out in a pleasing design then sew together. Add a backing fabric and if desired a piece of flannel or thin batting for an interlining.  Pin the backing on well to keep it from shifting when you are sewing the long runner.

Runners will add a bit of color to your entryway hall table as well as end tables in the den. Make a collection to decorate your home for the different seasons and holidays. My daughter and I used a bride's china as inspiration  to create a pretty table runner for her new home.

I hope that my runner inspires you to pull a few of your favorite fabrics to decorate your home.

Melisa

You Love Fabric and Sewing When....

You iron alot but NEVER clothes.

You stroke and pat fabric in the store and at home.

A trip to the grocery store includes a side trip to the local fabric store. ( Why don't they sell fabric at the grocery store? You could hide your fabric purchases by making it look like you were buying hamburger meat.)

Hardly a day goes by without someone picking a thread off your clothes.

UFO's aren't just for science geeks.

A fulfilling day is one where you can refold your fabric and think about all you can do with it.


Have a fabric filled day!
Melisa

 

Pink Awareness

I am so in awe of organizations like the Susan G Komen Foundation that has made us aware of how prodominent breast cancer is among our peers.They  have also pushed hard so that finding the cure is a major goal in the medical community.

 I walked into WalMart one day and all the endcaps were filled with products that have 'gone pink' this month.  At first I thought I had walked into a giant Barbie world filled with full size products for our  favorite shapely doll. I then saw how lovingly and creatively companies had used pink and the symbolic ribbon to show their concern for women in America.  With support like that I am sure this cancer will become less of a threat in future years.

Speaking of Barbie, Mattel has designed a gorgeous Pink Ribbon doll for collectors. They have also pledged a minimum of $100,000 to the Susan G Komen Foundation.

In keeping with the pink thoughts this month, here is a fabric that incorporates the color  in a way that doesn't seem too girly. The use of cream for the background adds sophistication to the design. I have used it in pillows. My daughter has made a striking clutch adorned with a silk cream flower pinned to it. Both were feminine and grown up.

Find a little pink in your fabric collection and stitch up something this month. And don't forget to schedule your mammogram!