Wool Sweater Makeover

Handbag made from wool sweater.

Cute as a sweater, but oh so much better as a bag.

I spent a lot of time sewing embroidery floss in all the grooves. 

I love the bright colors with the cream wool.

I whip stitched in a canvas lining to give it more body. 

I cut open one sleeve and used it for the bottom.The other one was used for the handles.

I love me some sari silk flowers.

My favorite source for sari silk. http://store.darngoodyarn.com/

Every now and then you finish a project that leaves a big fat smile on your face. Well this is one of those times for me. I found this great wool sweater last December at the thrift store my brother and his family own. Ya you heard me, I have a thrift store in my family. Lucky me, I just wish we lived in the same town so we could hangout and work with them more often. Every time we go for a visit, we take them a bunch of our stuff, and I always find a few treasures that I can't live without. Well this sweater was my favorite find from the last visit. Any second hand wool sweater is a joy to behold to most mixed media or quilt artists. But this one was better than most because of it's unique bell shape. As soon as I got it out of the dryer, I knew it was destined to be a handbag. I simply cut the sleeves off and turned the body of the sweater into the bag. I hand stitched embroidery floss in all of the grooves of the wool. This was the longest part of the project.  I used one sleeve for the bottom and the other for the two handles. Next I whip stitched in a canvas lining. The cherry on top of the cake came when I sewed on the handmade sari silk flowers. I make and sell them as pins, but this is one of those times when more is better, so I put every last one I had around the top of the bag. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.  What is your favorite thrift store find?

Dollar Store Journal Makeover

I like to buy these little dollar journals. Sometimes I find them at the Dollar store, sometimes a Michaels. I simply make something new to glue to the covers. I've done many different things in the past, such as adding handmade fabric flowers, using wool roving, and my favorite, sari silk. But these are the latest ones. I painted several pieces of canvas in different colors. I then cut the canvas to fit the covers, sewed, painted, and glued. Voila, new journals with cute handmade covers. PS I got these journal on clearance for 50 cents apiece.

Polymer Clay Lockets

As you can see, I'm still working towards the Crimson Valentine's Event. It's going to be here at my house on Feb. 4th, with two other artist friends. It's our first annual. We also held our first Crimson Holiday Event in December. We set out to host something that people would enjoy and hang out at. So we had fun and creative food, lots of great shopping, and my cute and creative daughter Annie taught a make and take. She is a great teacher. Everyone is always amazed by her. So we are doing it again, but with hearts. What more could you want? Hope you enjoy my polymer lockets. They are wired together with a lot of beading, and tied off with recycled sari silk. The colors are bright and cheery, like I hope your day is.

Show the Love

This is just a fast little post to let you see what I'm working on at this moment. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in what I'm creating that I don't stop to blog. Well not anymore! I'll be sending out short posts with pictures and no pressure to be witty, charming, or even intelligent. Hey I think I can do that. So these are some of the projects that I'm working on for next month. Do you like?

I'm Featured in Cloth Paper Scissors 2012 Calendar

I was so pleased to find out last February that I had been chosen to be in the CPS 2012 calendar. I must have checked my computer 50 times on the day the 13 winning names were to be  released. The names were finally posted at 5 pm that night. By that time I had pulled all my hair out. I was so excited to see my name on the list. My family, dog included did a happy dance all around the house. Next came the wait to see the finished calendar and my placement in it. I thought that since the art was white and monochromatic, it would probably be a winter month. The day finally came and a 12x12 inch cardboard box was dropped on my front door. I knew what was in it, and couldn't wait to get it open. So there I was, December and so happy. My husband likes to say he married a calendar girl. Yes, he was pretty proud. I recently contacted Barb at CPS, and asked if the calendar theme for 2013 had been released. I was sad to find out that they aren't producing a calendar next year. But I have still been busy creating a few art pieces to submit this year. I would like to encourage others to submit artwork to be published this year. It takes some time, but is well worth it. Check the back of your favorite magazines for their guidelines and get to work. If you are looking for my journal giveaway, scroll down one post. Happy New Year and Happy Creating.

100 Follower Giveaway

Wow, I'm so excited, I thought this day would never get here, but here I am with my 100 follower giveaway. I stopped my vintage garland giveaway a few days early, hope you don't mind. The winner of that giveaway is Meghan at Love Petunia.  I love having giveaways, as artists we end up with so much finished art. A giveaway is a great way to bless someone, while meeting new friends. So let's get on with it. This is a handmade journal, very vintage. The cover is 8 x 10 inches, so it is a nice big book. It is machine and hand sewn. There are several clear pockets to fill with treasures, and plenty of blank paper to fill with your thoughts. To enter this drawing, leave a comment, join as a follower, or post it on your sidebar. CONGRATS TO LISA, YOU ARE THE WINNER OF THE 100 FOLLOWER GIVEAWAY  How cool is that! Thanks to everyone that wrote comments. I love to hear from what you have to say.

Serendipity Christmas

"What is Serendipity?" you ask. Serendipity is a little slice of heaven located in the Village of Arroyo Grande, Ca. It is a fabulous home and garden store, that always looks great, but at Christmas time it is dressed in it's holiday best. I love this store and the people associated with it. They carry a lot of my artwork, but I would still love them even if they didn't. If you live on the Central Coast of California, or come for a visit, stop by and say hi.