One Stitch Two Stitch

DIY Klippan Footstool Cover

The last time I shopped at Ikea, I was disappointed to discover that the Klippan footstool had been discontinued, which in turn meant no more change covers! I decided then and there, I'd sew up a new cover myself. Guess what? It was very easy to make, even for a first timer like me(I'd never done a project like this). If you're a Klippan footstool owner and have a sewing machine, here are some quick steps & tips to making your own cover.

* This projects only requires 1 yard of fabric. Suggested fabric: outdoor/ home decor fabric or canvas fabric. Total cost to make my cover - $7.98 (cost of fabric)

Step 1 - Unstitch your original change cover. Make sure to remove the velcro strips attached the original cover as well and save for later.

Step 2 - You should have 3 pieces - the middle piece (largest piece, rectangular in size) and 2 side panels (smaller pieces). Arrange the pieces so they fit on your new fabric. Wherever there are seam allowances, make sure to unfold them. Pin the pieces to the fabric, then trace each piece (with the seam allowances unfolded) onto your new fabric.

Step 3 - Cut out each piece. Using your old change cover pieces as a model, fold in the seam allowances in the same manner (1/2" approx.) and steam iron the seams. Pin the velcro strips onto the ends of each new piece (the same way there were on the original cover).

Step 4 - Using a needle for denim-weight fabrics, attach the velcro strips. Once all strips have been sewn on, assemble the cover by pining each panel to the largest piece and sewing together (make sure to give a 1/2" seam allowance!).

Step 5 - Cover your footstool with your new change slip and enjoy!

If you have any questions, please let me know! Sue

Vintage Craft - A Garden in Your Kitchen

Ever since Danielle exposed me to the wonderful world of vintage craft magazines, I've enjoyed challenging myself with vintage-style projects. One I've finally got around to doing are these decorative flower dishcloths for my kitchen (I already have them hanging on my kitchen wall!). The pattern came from this tiny magazine from Coats & Clark's Jiffy Gifts Book No.141. The pattern is at an intermediate level since it requires you to be familiar with half-double, treble, and double treble crochet stitches, but overall, if you feel fairly comfortable with theses stitches, they're quite easy and fast to stitch up. I definitely recommend trying out this project if you'd like to spruce up your kitchen!

Basic Borders: Single Crochet

I finally finished my chevron baby blanket! One main thing I noticed while making this style of blanket is that it takes a lot longer to stitch up compared to a granny square one (about twice the time), but in terms of difficulty, it's very easy to make! I debated about the border. I thought a frilly border would take away from the chevron pattern, so I decided to single crochet twice around the whole blanket. I really like how it came out, clean and modern! 

If you would like to crochet a chevron blanket, here's a great site:  Easy Ripple Afghan

Such Pretty Hearts

Yay! My first shop project of the summer is complete. I'm really happy with how my heart hair pins came out, so fresh and pretty. Here's a taste of my favorites:

Blue/Green Hair pins

Green/Pink Hair Pins

Yellow/Pink Hair pins

If you'd like to see more of these pretties, just click here! Sue

My Monday

 . . . was the 1st day of my break (no work for 2 whole months!).

 . . . started at 8:30 am with lots of coffee and a heavy dose of creamer (I'm addicted to the stuff!)

 . . . made progress! I tidied up the apartment, did laundry and cleaned my a/c vent (I was a handyman  in another life).

 . . . was healthy. I'm trying to eat more veggies and fruits, hence the carrots and grapes!

 . . . gave me time to play with colors, get stripy, and finish my hearts for my new hair pins!

How was your Monday?

Dreamy Rainbow Mosaic

1. owl toy softies, 2. baby blanket, 3. Mr Owl, 4. Vintage style cupboard, 5. gifts for my mom, 6. Whimsy Spring Houses, 7. fabric, 8. Wee Gnome Family, 9. felt flower brooches

Another Year Wraps Up

There's a set of rituals that come along with the end of the school year.   The last week, the kids are only at school for half the day and as each day goes by the the stream of children quickly dwindles to a trickle. You say your last "See you laters" and "I'll miss yous" and then you're left with an empty classroom and a huge to-do list.

Down come the learning charts, posters, and students' work displays. Then it's gathering up the mountains -and I mean mountains- of students' graded papers, used workbooks, and miscellaneous papers for recycling. After, I'll file away some samples of my kids' work to show for the next school year - this is where I'll get nostalgic and say to myself "awe, I remember when we read that book" or "we had so much fun doing that project." This task will always take me longer to finish (I'm such a sap!).

Each day, I set realistic tasks to complete. Today, all my library was packed up and stored away and all my supplies organized and inventoried. Tomorrow, I'll work on storing my classroom decorations and setting up a supplies list for the next school year.

It's funny how each year ends and starts in the same manner, anticipated yet stressful, exciting yet hard-labored and bittersweet from the new hellos and inevitable goodbyes. To all my teachers, here's to a year well-done and an even better year to come! Now go enjoy your summer! Sue

WIP Wrap Up

This weekend, I finally got around to re-focusing on my stalled projects. The summer is always my most productive time because I'm no longer teaching and can dedicate myself whole heartedly to my projects.

As you can see, my chevron blanket has made some nice progress. I'm aiming to finish it in a week. A few weeks ago, I bought found some pretty wooden hearts and, today I painted them in some lovely pastels (Martha Stewart has the best color palette). I have in mind to make some cute hair pins with them. I also made an inventory of all my fabric . . . to my surprise, I'm way overstocked! From here on out, no more binge buying (cross my heart); I'm sewing only with what I have! Sue