A picture says 1000 words...

... a picture can say "I love you" over and over again.

Several of our friends had Kerry and I make these photo pendants for their mothers or friends for Mother's Day. We hope they enjoyed them.

It was fun working with these cute kids pics and the wonderful handmade paper collection we have in the studio. Each person choose their favorite paper to complement the child's photo and the wearer's sense of style.

We hope the recipients enjoyed their gifts last weekend as much as we enjoyed making them.

Happy Mother's Day & Friday Freebie

(right click the image to save it for your use)

The above image is from an old, undated, unmarked greeting card. Surely we all do the cleaning and cooking in such a lovely frock as this one. Be sure to thank your mom for all she does!

And for some Mother's Day fun, what do you think these ladies are saying as they toil over the stove? (This is a fun game to play, like "Fantasy Family" over at Amy's blog.)

Here's mine:

Ethel- Oh, Myrtle, I don't know...just how long have these turnips been in the Frigidaire?

Myrtle- Throw them in anyway, no one will notice. Cook anything for five hours and it doesn't taste like much.

Happy Mother's Day to you all!

Have a great weekend!

Almost Mother's Day

In addition to sewing more costumes (yes, I know, never let anyone know you can sew), I have been busy making Mother's Day gifts. The first one I completed is a pot holder set for my mother-in-law's newly renovated kitchen. (shhh! don't tell her I made these for her! It's a surprise!)

I took this pattern from the Sew Simple Book I told you about earlier last week. I thought the pattern was simple enough, make a pieced piece of material using tapered strips of material. The trick for me was to alternate the wide an narrow ends of the strips. I think that I goofed it up several times, but you might not notice if I didn't point it out.

I used a color palette that matches her kitchen colors, a bright blue and yellow. I thew in the green to add some 'pop' to the design. I had fun mixing the colors and large and small patterns to create visual texture. I found heat-proof batting to use inside the pot holders, and added a loop of ribbon for hanging. I made the towel top so that it can be hung from a convenient spot in the kitchen. All I have left to do is add a button to keep the towel attached.

The book suggests that the same idea could be used to make coasters as well. Upon reading that idea, my head started spinning to all sorts of other ideas to use this construction: table runners, place mats, even the front of a tote bag. The possibilities are obviously endless.

I was so excited about the design, that I started piecing more material to make a set for my grandmother. Unfortunately, this set is yet unfinished because I was consumed with making 8 Lullaby League skirts for the Wizard of Oz at the elementary school and the fabulous photo pendants that Kerry and I made for several customers this week. I will show you those next week--I don't want to spoil anyone's Mother's Day surprise!