on november 30

today happens to be the birthday of two people who are both very important in my life, albeit in ways so different they are hard to reconcile. the first is my mother; the second, my husband.

one year for christmas, i printed and framed copies of this photo as gifts for my siblings. i have one too... it's in a box in a closet around here somewhere.

i haven't talked to my mother for two years or so, and haven't seen her in five. to be clear, this is my choice. i realized that i needed to walk away, at least temporarily, from our relationship for the benefit of my own mental health. i've not yet seen any need to go back, though i am open to the idea that may happen in the future.

there are a lot of little things that i could say were "wrong" in our relationship, and lots of places where i could place blame, but it's not really about any of that anymore. for me, it is about doing what is best for my children and my family. in this case, providing a life where family is a safe place.

a lot in my life would be different without my mother, in ways good and bad. she taught me how to sew, and that counts for a lot in my world. she made amazing clothing for my siblings and me when we were kids and taught me how to use a sewing machine, how to paper piece quilt blocks, and to not be scared of trying something new.

i hope that wherever she is today, she has a happy birthday. i hope that she can find the strength to trust herself and move past her own demons. in a mixed-up way, i suppose, i hope she can make some peace with the fact that we don't have a relationship.

then there's this guy...

my love, my favorite person in the whole world, the one who makes me smile, makes bad days ok and good days great. the person without whom i'd never be able to do all that i do (he's my secret weapon!), he's my mr. gnats and i'm proud to be his mrs.

perhaps most importantly, he's the person who knows before i do that the quilt i'm making for his birthday has zero chance of being finished in time ;) i love you, Nick.

happy november 30, friends.

ps. i'm closing this post to comments, but as always you can feel free to email me... rachael {at} imaginegnats {dot} com.

zakka style: little pocket pillowcase

last week was my nephew's second birthday. the little man formerly known as "baby Max" needed a fun (but adequately grown-up) present, and i was feeling low on inspiration... so i paged through a stack of my favorite craft and sewing books for a little help.

i found a winner in Zakka Style: 24 Projects Stitched with Ease to Give, Use & Enjoy (written by the lovely Rashida of i heart linen)... the little pocket pillowcase project by Meg of elsie marley!

by the way, is 24 some kind of magic number in books? there are, my friends, 24 projects found in each of the following books: Sewing for Boys, Small Stash Sewing, Wee Wonderfuls, and Handmade Beginnings. i'd hazard a guess that there are more...

i had a few math and construction issues with the pillowcase, as i didn't actually read any of the directions and i didn't fully consider how i would attach the patchwork pocket... just a normal day around here, really. it all worked out in the end *plus* the pillow ended up having all french seams. i'd call that a bonus.

the little alien/teddy bear is made out of the sleeve of an old sweater. the part of the sleeve that i didn't need for the outside of the toy, i cut up into tiny pieces and used for stuffing. (yup, we've been reading Little House and if they could use every part of the hog, i think i could manage to not throw away any of the sleeve of a now-defunct sweater.)

the patchwork is Malka Dubrawsky's simple marks for moda, solids are moda bella in summer house lime and turquoise, and i used Aurifil 28wt to stitch Max's name across the patchwork.

sweet dreams, little man Max!

personalize stockings with felt

want to personalize your falling flakes stocking without breaking out the embroidery supplies? with only scissors, your sewing machine, and a fabric glue stick, it's easy to add felt names to your stockings.

first things first, you'll need the names you want to put on your stockings. then you can either free-hand them or use any word processing software to choose font, size, and print.

cut out the paper letters/word and place wrong side down on your felt. trace around your shapes and then cut out felt. (hint: i'm a huge fan of my Havel's serrated scissors, and they are perfect for this!)

after your felt is cut out, apply glue to the back side of your letters. (i can't vouch for all fabric glue sticks, but i used the Clover Fabric Adhesive Stick and i was really impressed.) stick felt to stocking and allow time for glue to dry.

with your sewing machine, stitch on your felt. i used one stitch line in the center of the felt, and attached small items (like the dot on the i) with two stitches back and forth.

i chose red thread that blends in with the felt, but you could use a contrasting thread and/or decorative stitches for a different look.

this stack of yummy stockings is on its way to my sister's house as an early christmas present! i hope they enjoy them for years to come... and that i spelled everyone's names right ;)

happy stitching!

merrily we sew along: cowl neck duffle

for the second episode of merrily we sew along, we have a stylish and functional improv garment: the cowl neck duffle. (note: you can find this project on page 72 of improv sewing.)

i lost my mind a little over this project, i must first admit. i decided it was the perfect opportunity for a refashion! i was so excited that i started with a trip to the thrift store with miss B. (can you believe that B insisted she wanted black? i was able to convince her to compromise with black stripes... is four too early for a goth phase?) sadly, the thrift store was a complete bust, and we ended up at some crappy discount place where we scoured the clearance racks to bring home two XXL men's waffle weave knit shirts, one striped and one gray.

cowl neck duffle one: floral sweatshirt refashion for K

we found a floral hoodie in my "to refashion" bin that was the perfect start for K's new sweatshirt. in order to preserve the gathered sleeves and gathered section on the back, i just cut along the seams to remove the front of the sweatshirt and the hood. i traced the front pieces of the original hoodie for the new piece out of the gray men's shirt we picked up at the discount store and then carefully stitched in the new front at the shoulders and then along the armholes, leaving the the side seam unsewn.

with the sweatshirt inside out, i marked how much smaller i needed to make the arms, trimmed to allow for seam allowance, and stitched the arms and sides in one seam. to shorten the arms, i cut out the excess fabric and reattached the original cuffs. i folded a 4" strip cut from the gray shirt and stitched it along the bottom of the shirt. by cutting a piece from of the gray shirt for the cowl, i was able to use the original shirt hem for the edge of the cowl.

and we have one very happy customer! side-note: someone lock this one in her room for the next decade, mmkay? i'm in trouble...

cowl neck duffle two: stripey penguin refashion for B

i started with a long-sleeved t-shirt that fit well, cut the front and back out of the XXL striped shirt lined up with the original hem at the bottom, and then widened the neckline a bit. i cut the arms out of the striped shirt's original arms and preserved the cuffs.

then i let B loose in my "to refashion" bin, and she latched on to her favorite shirt from last winter... long-sleeved, striped, and with a penguin. so there went the pocket, and mr. penguin was saved. now i'm thinking that maybe he'll need to get a new shirt every year? she decided on pink for her cowl neck, so i used pink thread (from my aurifil 28 wt simply color stash... that's right, i broke out the good stuff) to stitch on mr. penguin. 

so, yes, B is very happy with her new sweatshirt. but more than that, i am one lucky mama... just look at this girlie! for that face, i'd make her a new one every day. 

are you inspired to stitch up your own cowl neck duffle?? we would love for you to sew along with us (merrily, even).

but before you start stitching, a bit more inspiration to share. i'm excited to announce that this month's fabulous guest poster in our merrily we sew along series is...

Venus of Suburbia Soup!

... you should definitely check out Venus's awesome project as well as those that my lovely co-hosts have made here: casa crafty and Our Improv Diary

so, stitch up yourself a cowl neck duffle and share a picture in the merrily we sew along flickr group for a chance to win a super fabulous prize!!

speaking of prizes, episode two: cowl neck duffle is sponsored by the very lovely Figgy's, Sew Well Maide, and Fabric Tree!

the winner of the merrily we sew along episode two challenge will receive two pdf patterns from Figgy's, an amazing handmade gift from Sew Well Maide, and a half-yard bundle (2.5 yards total) of Santa's Workshop from Fabric Tree. how great is that??

so get improv-ing... i can't wait to see what you stitch up! just upload a picture of your cowl neck duffle to the merrily we sew along flickr group by december 24 to be entered to win!!

good luck and happy stitching :)

merrily you sew along: improv placemats winner

a big thanks to all of you who've been sewing along with merrily we sew along! it has been fabulous to watch as all of your beautiful improv placemats have been added to the flickr group, and it was certainly not easy to choose a winner.

but Kelley and i put our heads together and managed to make a choice. without further ado...

the winner of project one: improv placemats is Jennifer (aka Jeifner) from Secondhand Dinosaur, who entered her Icesmeismographberg placemat! we loved her interpretation of the project, and who can resist a made-up word? ok, maybe that's just me...

you can read all about how she made her placemat, the story behind it, and the awesome vintage thread she used on her blog here.

congrats, Jennifer!! you have won a Simply Color collection from Aurifil and four fabulous craft books (including improv sewing) from Storey Publishing.

thanks again to everyone who stitched along, and stay tuned for merrily we sew along: episode two. i can't wait to share my new improv project with you!!

happy stitching :)

i {heart} Pellon stocking tutorial

i have another quilted stocking tutorial to share with you, designed by yours truly for Pellon Projects!

the i {heart} Pellon stocking uses Quilters Grid to make quick work of an adorable postage stamp patchwork detail on the front, and includes instructions with or without area for embroidery.

you can download the full instructions (including printable pattern) for the i {heart} Pellon stocking for free from Pellon Projects!

my sample stocking is made with essex linen (Kaufman), Aneela Hoey's Cherry Christmas for Moda, and lined with fabric from DS Quilts.

want some more samples? you're in luck! here are two i made for sewn studio with Kate Spain's Joy (left) and Aneela Hoey's Cherry Christmas (right). we have even put together fabulous kits including all of the materials you need to make your own i {heart} _____ stocking :) not to mention that some cray person *cough* me *cough* cut out all of the 1.5" pieces you'll need for each stocking, yay for that! you can purchase your own i {heart} stocking kit from the sewn studio store.

unrelated to stockings, i'm not sure that i ever mentioned this Pellon Project... Frippery Coasters. you can get the free tutorial download here and whip up your own set of strip-pieced and hand-quilted coasters, perfect for last-minute gifts! samples made from Thomas Knauer's Frippery, backed with essex linen, and hand-quilted with perle cotton.

as always, if you make something from one of my tutorials, i'd love for you to share your pictures in the imagine gnats flickr group.

happy stitching!

upcycled owl hat tutorial

there is frost on the ground, a chill in the air, and right now is the perfect time to whip up your very own upcycled owl hat! the thing i love most about this hat is that i didn't have to run out to the store to buy a single thing in order to make it... yay for hoarding old clothes responsibly saving worn-out sweaters for reuse! note: this post originally aired last february here at Sew Sweetness.

see that silly hat on my head? well, last winter we found ourselves with a 2yo that refused to wear a winter hat (no matter how cold it was) and we simply could not find a solution. when i started seeing funky animal hats pop up all over the place, it seemed the logical thing to try my hand at making one.

spoiler: she didn't like this one either. this year, though, she's suddenly fine with hats. *sigh*

all that you need to make your own owl hat is a random selection of ill-fitting or otherwise unwearable sweaters, a few pieces of felt, scissors, and thread. 

1. lay sweater flat and cut out two squares. this will be the main part of your hat. the size that you'll want your squares to be is really going to depend on both the stretchiness of the material you're using and also how large you want the final hat to be. assuming about a 1/2" seam allowance, here are my suggestions for sizing:

toddler: 6-6.5" square main material
children: 7-7.5" square main material
adults: 8.5-9.5" square main material

2. fold both squares in half and cut out a quarter circle on the fold (fold shown at top of photo below). from the fold, your quarter circle should cut about 1/3 of the way into the material. on the raw side (shown on bottom in photo below), cut a slight angle to form "horns."

3. lay main pieces flat, cut one half circle from another sweater, and center along bottom of the front hat piece.

4. from your felt, cut a triangle for the beak and three circles for each eye (i used dark purple for the small and large circles and light pink for the medium circle).

5. pin your half circle to the hat front and stitch around. embrace the exposed seams and make it fun... i used a zigzag stitch in a contrasting color.

6. pin your medium circles on top of the large circles and stitch.

7. pin the small circle on top of this and stitch.

8. once the eyes are together, pin them on the front of the hat and stitch.

9. do the same with the beak.

10. now that the front of your hat is ready, pin the front and back hat pieces, right sides together, and stitch around the sides and the top.

11. turn your hat right side out (you may want to add a little "hoo hoo" here, unless someone is around). cut a band of ribbing. the size of your band will depend on the material and desired hat size. here are some general suggestions:

toddler: 2-2.5" wide and twice as long as main material minus .5"
children: 2.5" wide and twice as long as main material minus .5"
adults: 3" wide and twice as long as main material minus .5"

12. sew the ends of your ribbing bad together so that it forms a circle. i just overlapped the ends of mine 1/2" and used a zigzag stitch.

13. pin the ribbing band to the iside of the hat as shown (wrong sides together).

14. stitch the band to your hat.

15. try it on!!! depending on fit, you can wear the hat with exposed seams or fold up the ribbing (as shown in the first picture).

i hope you enjoy your new hat! as always, if you whip something up inspired by this (or any other) imagine gnats tutorial, please share your pictures in the imagine gnats flickr group.

happy crafting :)