organizing my threads.

I love having a bunch of pretty embroidery floss around to stitch with,

but it can turn into such a tangled mess!

I saw this idea on Pinterest & knew I had to give it a try. ;)

So I spent a couple of hours on a Saturday doing this...

{all of my floss + miniature clothespins}

{I labeled each clothespin with the floss number

in case I need more of the same color.}

{and, done!}

My threads don't get tangled,

and they look so pretty in a mason jar!

sewing {with a pattern}

As I'm sure you all know, I really love to sew.

I remember my grandma teaching me to sew buttons,

and helping her cut out patterns.

Miss Gussy inspired me to learn more about sewing.

BUT, the one thing that I struggle with is sewing from a pattern.

They're intimidating for me, honestly.

I tend to sew my own way, and sometimes the terminology gets confusing.

Fortunately, I have a wonderful {future} mother-in-law who is a great seamstress, and very willing to help me out!

 A couple of weeks ago, I spent the afternoon with her, and she helped me sew this super cute skirt {from a pattern!}.

It ended up being easier than I thought, but I'm so glad she was there to help me if I needed it!

For anyone interested, the pattern is Simplicity easy-to-sew, #2224.

I plan on making more of these in the future, and I have the fabric all ready to make one for one of my {future} sisters-in-law. Sew fun! ;)

I even had enough fabric for a matching bloom clip!

Do you sew using patterns? What do you enjoy making the most?

P.S. I really hate being in pictures like this...hopefully I don't look too awkward. :)

*****

Be sure to stop by & enter to win some Scentsy!

my "creative process"

I snapped these photos yesterday while I was working...

just wanted to share a little of my "creative process" with you.

Often when I sew, I take the assembly line approach.

I get annoyed if I'm constantly cutting, then sewing, then ironing, etc.

So I'll generally get all my fabrics+zippers laid out,

and decide what style pouch/clutch I'll be making.

Yesterday I was working on a new design {to be shared soon!},
so I only cut+sewed one. You know, just to make sure it

would turn out the way it did in my head.

And now that I know it is a design I want to make,

I'll be cutting out lots of different pieces,

ironing interfacing,

sewing ruffles,

etc.

And {hopefully} new lovely things will be

making an appearance in the shop very soon!

Tell me, what does your creative process

look like from day to day?

*****

I'm so enjoying the feedback from the reader's survey I posted yesterday.

If you haven't taken a minute to share, would you consider doing that?

Thanks so much!

infinity...

...an infinity scarf, that is!

I first saw this on Aunt Spicy's blog, and hopped over to We Shall Sew for the tutorial. This was a really easy project {thanks, Melissa!}, and it probably took me about an hour {with distractions} to finish.

I paired it with the Target dress from this post, and I love it!

I've already made plans to make another. :)

What have you made recently?

{my afternoons}

This is what most of my afternoons look.

Projects spread over the ironing board.

Including {but not limited to} blooms, bows & pouches.

The remote for the DVD player while I listen to Mansfield Park.

My handy glue gun, pins, thread, clippies, etc.

It's where I get most of my best work done. :)

What do your afternoons look like?

*****

Have a lovely, wonderful weekend!

{sneaky...}

Just a little sneak peek...

...of what I've been working on lately!

I just love these sweet little bows.

Hopefully some will be making it to the shop very soon!

I need your opinion, though.

Would you prefer these bows on a headband or a clippie?

{the one I'm wearing is on a headband, but I like the clippies for flexibility}

I'd love to know what you think!

{busy...}

{vintage paper bobbins}

I have several major things coming up that I am going to be extremely busy preparing for.

I'm participating in my first craft show at the end of February.

I might be working on a wholesale order soon.

Trying to keep the shop stocked.

Making some lovelies for giveaways on different blogs.

All of the new fabric I bought yesterday is washed & ironed.

Waiting to be sorted out, cut, ruffled, sewn...

I need to order zippers and hair clips. And business cards.

Cut out a gazillion small circles for new blooms and petals.

I think as long as I can stay focused, I'll be okay. :)

In the meantime, any advice from my wonderful readers would be much appreciated.

How do you stay focused while working on projects?

{I'm very easily distracted...}

Have you ever done a craft show? What do I need to know?

Wholesale?

*****

P.S. Many thanks to Libby for passing along this award to me!

{fabric & sewing}

{via}

Today I'm heading out to JoAnn's to shop for fabric.

I love looking for lovely colors and patterns, trying new combinations,

matching thread and buttons...I just think it's so much fun.

The only part I don't enjoy? The lines at the cutting counter. ;)

I'm hoping to add more to the shop very soon, and I'm also preparing for a craft show at the end of February. I'll be sewing away until then, and trying to stay diligent and get a lot done.

In the meantime, what would you like to see added to the shop?

What's your current favorite color combination?

I'd love to hear your input!

{adding some color}

If you've been reading The Sweetest Petunia for very long, I'm sure you've noticed that I love color. A lot.

(check out the {color love} section if you haven't been here long)

A while back, I had an outfit I wanted to wear. It's kind of complicated, but I had found some shoes, put together an outfit...but it just needed something. Something fun and colorful to brighten it up.

I had some Amy Butler fabric from the Love collection that I'd been hanging onto, and Mandie had posted about this scarf she made. I figured I'd give it a try!

I didn't use a tutorial, although Mandie told me a little about how she made her version. I think mine ended up being wider and shorter, but I like how it turned out. I just fastened it with a posey pin from The Pleated Poppy instead of wrapping the scarf around.

What do you think?

It was fun to wear, and even the sweetheart liked it.

Have you ever made a scarf?

If you need a little help getting started, check out Julie's fun Scarf Along tutorials!

{love} sewing

self made - 4x6 print

by sixhoursphotography

I'm not sure how I actually learned to sew.

I helped my grandma when I was younger, sewing buttons, cutting out patterns.

I didn't have a sewing machine of my own, so I did a lot of hand sewing.

As I got older, my family finally got a sewing machine.

{we're currently on our 3rd}

And I love to sew.

I won't say it's always easy.

In fact, just this past weekend,

I got very frustrated with a project

and just had to walk away from it.

I'm seriously considering opening a new Etsy shop by the end of the year,

specifically for sewn items. I'm not quite sure how it'll all work out,

but it's something I'd love to do.

What do you think?

Since I've had fabric on the brain, I'll just share some of my current fabric obsession:

Daisy Chain by Amy Butler

{images via hawthorne threads}

I hope to post some photos of my own projects sometime next week, so "stay tuned"!

In the meantime...

Do you sew?

Have a current fabric obsession?

Please share!

{zebra print}

I love when other people know I'm crafty.

Because then I get questions like...

"Can you fix this dress for me?"

"Oh, you can figure out how to make boutonnieres, right?"

"Will you make a headband to match this dress?"

And really, I don't mind. I like helping people. I like doing things. So it all works out.

This week I made this adorable headband:

So fun, right?!

It's for my {future}* niece, for her birthday.

Her grandma {my future* mother-in-law} made her a dress with zebra print fabric and hot pink accents.

Now she has the perfect accessory!

I really hope she likes it. :)

What have you made this week?

*just a note: when I refer to my {future} family, it's actually my sweetheart's family. hopefully that's not too confusing!

{flower pins}

I've always wanted to make some flowers pins.

I've been inspired by The Pleated Poppy's posy pins, but these are a little different.

It all started with a dress.

{I forgot to take pictures of it, but you'll get the idea}

I bought it last summer at Ann Taylor Loft for five dollars!

I wore it once for the sweetheart's birthday.

You see, it had these sleeves that were just...poufy. Sometimes I like poufy sleeves, but not on this dress. So finally, I decided to do something about it. It was easy - I just trimmed off the sleeves, folded the raw edge in and hemmed the edges.

So to make the perfect accessory for the dress, I used the fabric from the sleeves, cut out a bunch of little circles, and sewed them in a circle on a piece of felt.

Add a button, and I was done! What do you think?

{I wore this outfit yesterday and got lots of compliments, so it's a success in my book!}

And of course, when my baby sister saw mine, she wanted one.

{I used fabric scraps leftover from my patchwork tote project.}

{patchwork tote}

Last week, I decided to sit down and make myself something. I wanted to make a bag of some sort, and since my sewing skills are somewhat limited, I decided on a tote.

And then I decided to go for a patchwork design.

I cut out all the squares, lining, straps, etc.

Worked on and off during the week.

And finally finished it yesterday.

It is not perfect.

But I made it.

And now I know how to make it better next time. :)

{little dress}

I made this dress for a special 5 year old...who is now almost 6.

I didn't use a pattern.

I kind of just guessed.

And crossed my fingers, hoping it would work out.

Well, I think it did.

{ one yard wonders }

Last night when my dad came home, he brought something fun for my sisters and I.

One Yard Wonders.

source

I am so excited!

I think the concept of this book is really neat. I always try to use as little fabric as possible, but I want the project to turn out amazing, too. Now I have 101 to choose from!

Yes, last night I sat down and flipped through the entire book, writing down all the projects I wanted to try. Now I just have to find some fabulous fabric!

Some of the projects look harder than others, but I thought the directions looked fairly clear.

Of course, I tend to ignore rules/directions when sewing, so we'll see how it goes. :)

What about you? Is this a book you have? One you would want to use? Tell me about it!

{ fabric }

I will admit this to you.

I seem to have a slight obsession with sewing at this point in time.

And that's not a bad thing!

Seriously, I need to snap some photos of some of my creations. I'd love to share them with you. Maybe a little later this week? Hmmm.

Anyway, because I've been enjoying sewing so much, I've also been drooling over looking at fabric. I wish I had a very large budget for fabric, because I love a lot of it.

Nicey Jane fat quarter set

Meadowsweet

Timber

Does anyone else share in my {slight} obsession with fabric?

I hope so. :)

{ sewing }

Well, I think my sewing machine might like me again. I'm hoping it lasts, because I have very little patience for that machine!

So on this lovely weekend, I'm hoping to finish some sewing projects and {maybe} try some new ideas that have been swirling about in my head.

What will you be up to this weekend?

If you'd like to join in on my "virtual coffee visits", be sure to leave a comment right here.

{ #1 and #66 }

1. Learn to sew in a zipper.

66. Sew a zippered pouch.

Check and check!

I have to say, sewing is not my forte in life. I mean, I can sew, but I don't like to use patterns or follow directions. Problematic? Probably.

I've always heard the term zipper foot, which you use when you sew in a zipper {okay, that seems sensible...}. Well, my sewing machine is a really old hand-me-down from my grandmother. I'm sure it has a zipper foot, but I have no idea where it is. So I decided to experiment on my own instead.

And it worked!

I've made several {read: 8} of these zippered pouches.

And I'm actually happy with the way they turned out!

I have no plans to sell them, other then to help Haiti.

Maybe someday.

And credit must go where credit is due...

The ever fabulous Gussy helped me out a ton! Her tips and suggestions got me going and helped me reach the end goal {the first few pouches I made were not so lovely...}.

Thanks, Gussy!

So, tell me:

Do you sew?

Or are you afraid to try?

{Trust me, I was there for a while}

I'd love to hear your stories!

P.S. Currently my sewing machine does not like me...I'm trying to fix it, but nothing seems to work. Which is sad, because I would like to sew on it soon!

See my { 101 in 1001 } list here.

{Finally}

Yesterday afternoon, I told myself that I had to take these pictures. And I did. Although I'm not the best photographer in the world, but at least you'll get the general idea.

You ladies certainly are creative! I loved all the ideas you gave me, and I'll share a few before I show you what I actually did make.

Eva Gallant:

Maybe individually they could be used as an accent pin on a dress or coat; or glued around a vanity mirror like a frame?

Juggling Thoughts:

What about a pin in the hair? Or attach a hair tie to it?

Ms. Diva:

I'm thinking what about putting them on a fleece scarf?

Lisa Kate:

Sew them onto a few headbands, for sure. I think they would make ultra cute accessories!

There were other great ideas, too, and if you'd like to read them you can check out the original post.

I liked the scarf idea, and I got these fleece examples for $5. So I had to group them in three's (I can be a little strange like that), and instead of sewing them directly to the scarves, I sewed them onto safety pins and pinned them to the scarves. So if you wanted the flowers in a different spot, you can move them! I thought that was a nice touch.

I was also planning on making some hair pins. I made 3 sets, but 2 of them went bye-bye before I took the pictures (They were Christmas gifts for my sweetheart's nieces). So I can only show you the one, but they're all really cute.

{The color is kind of strange in this picture...sorry. Someday I'll learn to take better photos. Or get Photoshop so I can fix them.}

I also got some simple plastic skinny headbands to use:

I actually wore the purple-flower headband last week for fun, and people liked it! The 2 white headbands will have their own flowers someday soon, I just haven't done it yet.

So there ya go!

I'm sure there's more I can do with these, but right now I don't have much time to play around with them. I have made more though, so if inspiration comes upon me, I'll be ready. =)

I will hopefully put up a tutorial on how to make these yo-yo's after the New Year, but if you're dying to know how to make them now, Heather Bailey's tutorial worked great for me!

Oh, and if you come up with any more clever uses, be sure to let me know. =)

On a Wednesday...

...when I totally forgot to take pictures so I could show you all the fun I've made with these:

...and when I promise you they'll be up tomorrow. Thanks in advance for your patience.

...When I discovered that Pandora is one of my all-time favorite websites. And that my favorite "channels" have to do with Dario Marianelli and Bing Crosby (although not both at the same time).

...When I'm missing this sweet guy like crazy.

...When I'm {finally} going to go get my hair cut this afternoon. After I've put it off for a looong time.

{And I'm excited. I like getting my hair cut!}

...And when Christmas is only 9 days away. Can you believe it??

How are you on this Wednesday? I'd love to hear your thoughts!