Calamity Kim

working on the tea cozy

working on the tea cozy, originally uploaded by calamity kim.

My arms a bit tired from all that felting yesterday- I have some pictures to share- maybe later- I just need to take advantage of the mr working late to get somemore embroidery done on the Mushroom house tea cozy I started today.
I used a gnome purchased from Bad Bird's gnome patterns on Etsy and then appliqued the door and added a window.

I am planting some more flowers then will quilt this and it will go around tea pot (mushroom stem) and a red polka dot cap will go on top.
It's just gonna be swell with the table runner!
I am in gnome heaven!
gotta get back to work!
xo,
calamity kim

This is why I make things

Thank you Kim!, originally uploaded by the little red hen - egg money.

Because sometimes you just have to make someone smile.

Calamity's Got A New Bag!

I know I've mentioned "Word of Mouth" Cafe/Diner (on 6604 Gateway Ave) and how awesome the food/waitstaff/owner is and I might have mentioned the Estate sale place next door, but today we had breakfast and then moseyed next door and I hit the wicker purse strawberry jackpot!
I saw a photo of a purse similar to this and that's what inspired me to make a million velvet strawberries last year!
I never could find a wicker bag to add some to and ended up making
my own quilted bag.
This one is spotless inside and out and must have been stored in a plastic bag (or airtight time capsule) because it has no dust, dirt or sign of wear!
I also picked up (grabbed!) the crocheted pillowcase- it is so lovely and perfect! I just admire all that crochet work, really because I know how long it would take to create something like this!
Doesn't it just scream SPRING!!!!??!!
I could live without the kitschy plastic lemons but, still, it's just too fabulous not to completely fall in to handbag heaven with!
I'm so happy that I can hardly stand it!
Now, I'm going to go weed a flower bed and then I'm going to go get some flowers and plant them- maybe a few tomato plants too!
Have a lovely day!
xo,
calamity kim

Spring Time Table Runner Mired in the Mud of Indecision...what to do! what to do!

Trying to decide if I should add some more applique or just start quilting.
I really need to just stop and go to the grocery store (what will we have for dinner?) but I have to get it right in my mind first.

I love these vintage images of Goldilocks and Red riding hood.
I have it layered with the cotton/silk batting and the backing fabric.
Usually when I can't make up my mind, I just stop, and that's when I never go back to it and it becomes a UFO (unfinished object) or WIP (work in progress).
Bah!
 Tarter Sauce!
I'm gone.

Odd Sally gets an enthusiastic reception!

My husband says that he has never seen anyone wait for the mailman like I do.
I don't actually go outside and wait by the box, but I do keep one eye on the front window as I go about my morning until he arrives and then I count to 10 and wait for him to go to the next house and run, scuffing in my house shoes to the mailbox. It's a big deal to see if there is anything exciting!
I know I'm easily amused!
I also buy shop online a bit and get the occasional card from sweet friends and so it's always a surprise.
Unless its junk or bills, but we won't dwell on that!
So today the only thing in my mailbox was a package from Victoria of Sillyboodilly and I was so happy to find a nice note from her and a wee giraffe patch and my newest love wrapped in tissue and tied so sweetly with a red bit of ribbon. (and yes, that's the table runner that I dropped to go get the mail!
I am working on it some today!)
It all began, this little love affair, a few days ago when Victoria posted some pics on Flickr and after learning that Odd Sally "Enjoys secretly following people, could live on cornbread and lemonade,believes everything is a conspiracy, and likes it that way"- my heart was won!
 I raced to Etsy in hopes that she would be there and sure enough, she was! and with a few clicks she was mine!!!!! yeehaw!
Of course everyone heard me talking to her and getting her a glass of lemonade and soothing her ruffled nerves from the mailing experience and they came running in to see who had arrived!
I told Sally to just ignore Vincent Vidalia as he has been quite obnoxiously working on a new stand-up routine that just isn't funny- no matter how drunk his audience gets, they never laugh and still he persists with the idiotic dream of becoming the Last Comic Standing! really!
Bo Peep seemed a little jealous of Sally's gorgeous apron- I had to tell her to go back to her room.
I'm going to go to the grocery store now and I guess I'll take Sally with me- she needs some fresh air and a chance to get acclimated before the weather gets too hot!
have a happy day!
calamity kim

Happy Earth Day! Did you Do something wonderful for the world today?

I didn't get to plant any trees but I  finished the bag for my friend Carol and delivered it to her today and she was quite pleased with it! So it made her world a little brighter!
I am so glad and relieved!
 It's tough to make something for someone and have all the doubts and worries over will they like it or not!
 I know what I like and that's all I'm really sure about!
I used some vintage embroidered linens for the inside pockets and a combination of Heather Ross's Mendocino mermaids and some money fabric.
That way she'll always have the illusion of cash in her bag!
I used a lot of batiks and even some linen that I had rusted in this one.
I am crossing things of my "to do" list and it feels really good!
 
Hope you had a great day-

xo,
love & stitches,
calamity kim

I finished the book cover and had to make a small rag girl to test it out!

I finished the book cover and had to make a small rag girl to test it out!, originally uploaded by calamity kim.

It's time to stop sewing and make some dinner! Thank goodness the Mr ate lunch today! I just had to make a small rag girl to test the bed- I can't wait to see "Petunia" playing with this! It feels really good to get some things finished!
Just wanted to show you!
see ya later!
xo,
kim

The Ugly Duckling Quilted Book Cover Story or how it takes me forever to create the visions that dance in my head!

This is a tricky post to write because I don't want to spoil the surprise, but I want to show you what I'm working on!  I think it's so cute and I know you will too.
A long time ago I bought a book for "Petunia" because I thought that the ugly ducking would be precious made from a yellow wool blanket that I had felted.
So, time came and went and I made the duck.

Lynn of "The Little Red Hen Blog" was going to be in Fl, visiting in Tampa and after several emails, she and "Petunia" came and spent the day with me and we made some paper dolls.
I gave her the book and the wool duck but kept the book jacket, to use as a pattern for a quilted  cover.
 I had been thinking about it for so long and I had drawn a picture and then started working on it.

More time came and went and I finally am quilting it.
I wanted to make a bed for the duck on the front of the book cover and have a quilt and use some embroidered linen for the sheet- counterpane? I used the drawing as a pattern- cutting out the posts and head board and foot board and then ironing the fabric around the pieces. Then I appliqued it down, adding stuffing as I went until it was sewn to the base fabric. The embroidered linen is sewn like a lined pocket and then stitched down as well. Now I am hand quilting it together and then I will bind the edges and make the inner flaps to fit over her book. Once she gets it I can share pics of the duck "in the bed". Now, isn't that too stinkin cute?

It turned out better than I had expected!
This shows the fairy quilt and foot board underneath the embroidered sheet.
Hopefully it will fit the duck just fine and he'll be all cozy between play times.
The pillows have pillow cases and I am just going to lightly tack them down so Lynn can cut them off if Petunia wants her too- I like the idea of being able to move them from the bed and play with them but hate to use velcro or snaps.
It's a very smurfy day when projects get near completion and there hasn't been a calamity for days!
yee haw!
 have a smurfalicious Tuesday!
xo, calamity kim

Day Tripping with Calamity Kim- or Anthropologie is Almost Heaven and only an hour away!

OK, maybe I should go make a cup of Earl Grey Lavender Tea and come back.
The pictures are still loading in Flickr...
I'll be right back.
Talk amongst yourselves.
That's better!
 Now I can share the fine adventure I had yesterday with "Mr Wonderful".
We went to Tampa- first to Hyde Park to visit the Anthropologie Store for me and then to Sam Ash Music for him.
It was a wonderful day.
Really, it was!
Sometimes I call him Mr Krabbs but yesterday he was Mr Awesome.
Even when we were lost and had to turn around multiple times and consult the gps he was patient!
We went to "my store" first and it was ______ (insert either awesome, wonderful or fabulous here)- forgive me if I continue to repeat those three adjectives when describing Anthropologie.
It's difficult to explain what a shopping experience in Anthropologie is like but I'll give it my best shot- maybe you should get a cup of tea too- I'll wait.

It's located in a sweet little area known as Hyde Park (on Dakota Ave) and we had a pleasant walk to get there.
The weather was perfection and trees were blooming-
no, wait, I said BLOOMING!!!
that's better!
and we saw cool old fashioned red telephone booths near the park...
As we got nearer to Anthropologie there was a few faded chalk drawings on the sidewalk and I could barely contain my excitement!
Did I say it was a terrific day?
Anthropology is renowned for its fabulous
window displays and I wasn't disappointed.
As you enter and look to the right there is a giant bee hive made from waxed tissue over a chicken wire framework with bit o honey wrappers used in layers with the tissue. It hung from a branch made from paper mache with paper leaves. so cool.
This kind of creativity makes my blood pressure start to rise.
The front wall was covered with stucco and made to look like a garden grotto with ferns and moss.
I was so glad they allowed photography!
 The sales assistants were super nice and only a few of the shoppers looked at me strangely. I'm used to a few sideways glances so I didn't care! Nothing could dampen my enthusiasm.
We had walked all around and I made my purchases and then, while Mr Super Husband was sitting on a sofa, waiting ever so patiently,  I walked back around taking my pictures.
love the faux bois table and stools.
these were display items only- I think- I couldn't reach them but- I recognized the work from the American Craft Council show I saw this year- these are designed and made by Jim Mullan of "Mullanium".
you know I love everything they sell.

They use cool stuff to decorate the different sections of the store and most of the walls and floor and counter was concrete- very cool- with old wood beams and stones on the floor.
The honey combs were made from cardboard and layers of paper bag and tissue melted with wax paper. They really glowed like stained glass in the afternoon sun.
I didn't buy much- but I did get a few things.
The tea pot, creamer and sugar chickens were regular $48 bucks and I got them on sale for 19.95. I love the happy colors and every time I look at it I will be reminded of my marvelous day in Tampa.
The mushroom salt & peppers were on sale for $3.95 so of course I had to get them. The K mug is from my trip to Anthropologie in Naples (no camera that day!).
Here's the whole small cupboard with the aqua "Butterprint" pattern Pyrex I have been collecting for a few years and a cherry pie and some tin cans of soup.
This bird container has a candle with wet meadow grass fragrance- I bought it yesterday too, couldn't resist though it was regular price and probably the most expensive candle I have ever bought ($16) but the container will last forever- right?
I took everything off both cupboards after breakfast and dusted and rearranged everything and then took these pics.
The lighting in there is never really bright and I don't like using the flash so forgive the darker images. It's the best I can do without asking Mr Wonderful to help.
that's with the flash. so's that
I bought this cup too yesterday and just love the design- I must be secretly European or something cause I have a thing for Dutch shoes, English tea time, Scandinavian gnomes, German bears and fairy tales,and Irish Linens and Italian, Chinese and Mexican foods!
Maybe I am just an international kinda gal- my ancestors are Italian, Scottish and Cherokee. That must be it!
I even cleaned off the top of the fridge!
Amazing!
Now I have to go do dishes and fold laundry- at least I have some fine and happy memories to keep me company!
 Oh, and this guy...
who makes me laugh and is very patient with me most of the time...
it ain't easy! (Most of the time I am a hot mess, as they say down south!)
 As we came back home (over the skyway bridge- thank goodness it was dark!) I nearly broke his arm holding on tight- I will probably never get over that fear of heights, but it's better in the dark cause you can't see how high up in the air you are!
so there ya go- a fine adventure- he had fun at Sam Ash Music center and bought a keyboard stand and some blah blah blah that he needed- I don't care- I went over to Fresh Market and had fun buying clementine oranges and rose water and other fancy stuff.
 The waldorf chicken salad is delightful.
I'll be doing some more work on the table runner after my chores are done and will show some progress when I make some- and I will show pictures of the completed handbag soon too-
have a happy remainder of the day!
xo,
calamity kim

where did you get that bag?

Today in the grocery store, as I was looking at the sugar content in various duck sauces,  a woman leaned over and pointed at my purse and said- "wow- I love your bag! Where did you get it?"
I turned it over so she could see the yoyo's and embellishment on the "right" side and said: "I made it."
 She looked at me quite surprised and said-"you made it?"
It's 3 years old and still getting the compliments! amazing!

This bag is similar to the one I made for myself except it's in shades of Autumn.
 I am making it for a friend of mine who made a lovely knitted scarf for me.
 I will be sure to give her plenty of business cards for when the admiring folks want to know- where she got her bag!
I'm not bragging, no far from it, but the universe seems to keep repeating the same refrain: Make those quilted yoyo bags, kimmie!!!
If only I could force myself to make them each day in and day out, but I thrive on chaos and can't conform to that much rigidity and repetition.
 I think I would grow tired of them and fall out of love with the process.
 They take a concentrated effort to place the yoyo's and buttons and beads and leaves in the right configuration without it being too much or too little.
Like a certain bear chair, it has to be just right.
 So I spend a lot of time searching through my button tins auditioning this or that while the frustration grows and I finally just sew it down and then another and add a leaf or maybe a bead or a small charm.
It has to flow.
It has to look as if it were growing in a garden.
 Perhaps the garden of a seamstress, who never could grow a real garden because her green thumbs had been used like pincushions for so many years that she couldn't use a trowel- the pain was to great to withstand.
I used to garden but never make time for it anymore.
 I want to stitch and sew and use my time in creating things of beauty.
These are called "Lucky Bags" by the way, cause you are lucky if you ever get one!
 They take so much time-30-40 hours and that's just crazy to try to sell.
Maybe I should call them "Love Bags"- because everyone who sees them loves them and they are a labor of love.
time for sweet dreams,
 goodnight my calamitous friends,
 xo,
love & stitches,
 kim

Happy Easter everyone!

Happy Easter everyone!, originally uploaded by silly lil' doe!.

is it too late to share this whimsy I found at Flickr? So cute and flat out adorable!

Beware- More Embroidery and Gnomish Gardens Ahead...not quite Grey Gardens but close...

For the past few days I have been embroidering flowers and trees on the table runner while watching old movies and cartoons. I usually don't watch tv during the day. In fact I never turn it on until dinner time.
I love Johnny Quest and old MGM cartoons.
Of course the Smurfs are the perfect thing to watch as I work on this project!
I recently saw Smurf plush and even Papa Smurfs house at Target. I didn't buy any but I really wanted to! They remind me of when Troy was little and that sense of nostalgia is comforting.
I would have never thought they would be popular again,
but here they are, Smurfy as ever.
It's really much too early for me to be trying to string sentences together and the needle sticks on my fingers make it somewhat painful to type.
 I try to be careful, but still end up stabbing myself as I embroider. That's just natural for a calamity like me.
I am not using a hoop on this one- I don't mind if it's slightly puckered- it will be more so once it's quilted. I am just making it up as I go along, not marking a pattern on the cloth.
wandering flowers, wildflowers I guess that makes them.
Yesterday I watched Ant Bully while I braided some perle cotton and then used it to create a small rug for these two mushroom houses. Thinking small and gnomish isn't always easy but I am pleased with the overall result so far.
I started this in such a hurry and now I have slowed down to enjoy it. I have several projects going at once and when I think I can't stitch another flower,  I set this aside for an hour or two and go work on something else.
It's like one big creative factory. Projects piled up on the guest bed; on tables and chairs; where ever there is space to let it sit until it's turn comes around.
I know you are just dying to see a shot of the whole thing- well here goes.
There are no windows in my kitchen and it is still kind of over cast from yesterday's much needed rain. I cropped it so that you could see more than the floor
 and table legs!
Once I get the embroidery done and then quilt it I will bind it and then try to figure out the best way to photograph it. It's really bad light in the kitchen-all yellowish.
I think it should be done by next week.
 I am giving it a good try anyway.
 I am too afraid to set it aside for long or I may lose my momentum.
 I have plans to make a tea cozy and embroider some of Bad Bird's gnomes on it with a mushroom house to match. It's gonna be so cute your eyes will fall outta your head and roll all around the floor in amazement!!!
Can you imagine?
The headlines would read:
Terrific Tea Cozy Causes Eye Popping Calamity!!!
maybe I need another cup of java.
have a happy Wednesday!
Love & Stitches,
calamity kim

Springtime Elegance in my memory

Remembering Easter when I was small and wore a bonnet, gloves and shiny black mary janes to greet the Easter Bunny.
Those memories are happy and I know I was lucky to have those experiences. The dog trying his best to stick his nose down in the basket, me pulling it away and running through the grass; dogwood blooms falling gently to the ground.
By the end of the day, my hat was surely gone, dirt stained my gloves and the shoes and dainty lace edged socks were tossed someplace,  so I could be barefooted and free...
the sugar from the headless rabbit, abandoned in plastic grass near the bottom of the basket,  giving me energy to chase the dog, who was busy  chasing chameleons.
Memories of Easter in Augusta when I was small are touching the day with sadness.
 Hard to believe it was 43 years ago.
 I embroider flowers with no rhyme or reason.

No plan, just letting the needle guide my hand, where it will.

Trying to balance the jellybean colors so that they compliment each other as the gardens bloom.
Memories of azaleas, dogwood and forsythia blossoms everywhere along the neighborhood.
My springtime elegance.
Happy Easter,
I hope the Bunny found you well and happy this year,
Love & Stitches,
 calamity kim

Good Egg

hello chick, originally uploaded by calamity kim.

Today I took a detour and used Retro Mama's pattern to make some fabric eggs. After I cut out , sewed and stuffed the first one I thought, man, this doesn't look like a good egg! It looked bad. Really bad.
So I tried it again.
Same result!
Another bad egg!
Too fat, more like a misshapen beach ball than an egg.
So I went back and read the tutorial and found my error!
I was going with the grain instead of against the grain and it certainly made a huge difference!
She tells you to cut the sections out perpendicular to the selvage.
I just didn't read it.
I have sewn balls before, but never eggs and I just didn't realize how drastically it mattered- the straight of the grain is stretchy and really gets fat when you stuff it.
I feel like such a loser.
All theses years I have been sewing and just naturally used the straight of grain.

So I made a tiny chick too.
Same thing happened when I cut it out perpendicular to the selvage.
It is much smaller than the other ones I've made.
d'uh!
I'm certainly humbled now.
anyway...

It's hot again.

I wish that cold front could have lasted forever for us.

Back to the bake!

Skip Spring and go directly to Summer!

Maybe I'll just go to the beach and forget all about eggs and chicks and sewing calamities.


"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg
even though he knows that you are slightly cracked."
~Bernard Meltzer

Happy Good Friday
wishing you nothing but good eggs,
calamity kim

hedgehog in the fog

another link with a smile from my friend Sara.
I copied the info from You Tube on this:
hedgehog in the fog ( yozhik v tumane - ёжик в тумане )
 Classic Russian animated short film from 1975.
 Based on a story by Sergei Kozlov, directed by Yuri Norstein.

 In 2003 "Hedgehog in the Fog" won the "№1 Animated film of all the time" at "All time animation best 150 in Japan and Worldwide" contest in Tokyo, Japan.
with english subtitles

I really enjoyed it-
I hope you do!
xo,
kim

what a jolly street

red and white, originally uploaded by calamity kim.
Building a neighborhood with mushroom houses is fun! Picking the fabrics, cutting them out, stitching them down, the morning is gone while I pin and sew and smile to myself.

With the windows open I can here birds singing and lizards running through the dry ferns outside in the flower bed. I consider putting a cd on to play, but don't want to stop what I'm doing!
I quickly take pictures, they are softly out of focus from my hands trembling. I love the feeling of excitement as the table runner takes shape. I don't want to stop and eat, but I feel tired and know that I will do a better job if I'm not distracted by grumbles from my tummy.
I stitch them down, all around, once or twice and then I will go back around everything as I quilt it.
I love the starkness of the back.
One day I will make a very plain one like that.
Just thread and linen.

The edges will softly fray as this is washed and I will have something for the table for Spring that I will love.
 I never make anything for myself, hardly, the majority of my work goes to sell or as gifts and I feel guilty working on this project.
Now, that's a little crazy, isn't it? But I have so many things to finish for other people that it weighs heavy on my mind and I guess that's where the guilt comes from.
I just have to keep the momentum flowing and not get sidetracked with books or field trips and I will get it all done eventually!
 Keep your fingers crossed for me anyway!
 I need to pray for completion of all my half started and nearly dones!
I added a touch of lace under the cap of these condo shrooms.
I need to give them doors, windows and smoke stacks.
I better get back to it!
Hi Ho, Hi Ho, it's off to work I go!
 Happy to be sewing,
xo,
 calamity kim

Charming Table Runner For Spring

Charm Squares

Got any?

 5x5" of delightful color and pattern!

If you are a quilter or if you have ever shopped at a quilt fabric store then I need not explain what a charm square is or might be used for- but do you actually use them? More often than not they sit quietly, waiting in my sewing room for that day in the distant future when I might finally decide to sew some together!
It's not that I don't want to use them, I really do!
It's just that once I use them up, they will be gone and I really like looking at them. It's the only time I really get to own a complete line of fabric.
I usually buy novelty fabrics by the yard and have never had a whole colorway of any one line , though I continue to try!

OK, well, I finally opened my treasure box of charm squares and after clearing  off the dining room table, I began arranging them in rows and after finally selecting a nice arrangement I started sewing them together.

It couldn't be easier to stitch each row together, press and then go to the next row.
After all 3 rows were stitched I trimmed the edges and then sewed each row together.
I used neutrals with a few Rachel Ashwell samples from her Shabby Chic line a few years ago. I tried to blend linen, cotton, and jacquard woven squares with some quilt fabrics to make a mellow back ground.
I then tore some wide sections of linen fabric for the ends and sides.
 I am going to embroider and applique some gnome houses and
flowers along the linen sections.
The center section will be mostly covered with rabbits, chicks and gnomes anyway!
I know you are probably thinking about Easter right at this moment but I tend to think about the whole season of Spring and Easter is just one day in that season.
The older I get, the less time I want to spend on house work and that includes decorating!
So, next I will be making some mushroom houses and clotheslines with tiny gnome clothes and daffodils and daisies pushing up everywhere!
I wanted to make something wider than a normal runner  so that I wouldn't have to also use placemats. We'll see how it turns out!
I hope that the Easter bunny has a nice warm sweater and some snow boots!
Happy Sewing!
calamity kim

 

Calamity Kim's Gnome Egg Warmer Pattern

Sometimes in the early Spring when all the flowers start to wake up and begin to bloom,  you can spot a gnome,  if you are very quiet and know where to look.
I often leave bits of fabric and felt under the old oak trees out back so that any wandering gnomes might take what they need for a new wardrobe.
Imagine my surprise this morning when I heard a soft tapping at the back door and as I opened the door a wee fellow stepped out from the ferns and shyly told me thank you for my kind donation.
 When he asked how he might repay me, I told him I needed a model to pose so that I could draft an egg warmer pattern. He quickly agreed and as we went to work- him standing still while I sketched- a butterfly landed on his cap and scared him so bad he apologized and quickly ran away!
I tried not to laugh but couldn't help myself! Really! Afraid of a beautiful little butterfly! I had drawn him quick enough so I went right to the sewing room and drafted a pattern. It looks just like him, if I do say so myself!!!

Here is the Download Gnome_egg_warmer for you to download.

You will need:
Small fabric pieces in red and blue
peach colored felt
fabric for lining
black perle cotton to embroider features
scissors
exacto blade
sewing machine and thread in neutral color

Here are the instructions- Please read them through first!

• Print pattern and cut out.
• Trace on to leftover cardboard (cereal box) and cut out again.
• To create template for Face  use a small hole punch to punch out eyes and mouth on cardboard pattern. Use an exacto blade to cut nose slot.
• Hold cardboard pattern close to felt and cut close around edges to make face. 
• Place red fabrics right sides together and cut out 2 cap pieces.
• Place blue fabrics right sides together and cut out 2 body pieces.
• Then place cardboard face pattern behind the felt piece and use holes as a guide for creating embroidered features. This way you don't have to make any marks on the face.
• Embroider features using black  perle cotton.
• Place felt face on blue section and top stitch close to edge of face.
• Place red cap over top of blue section and top stitch down.
• Repeat for back pieces.
• Place right sides together and stitch with 1/4" seam allowance. Trim with pinking shears.
• Turn right side out and press lightly with iron.
• Using sewn gnome as a template, lightly trace around it on to the back of lining fabric.
• Cut out two lining pieces.
• Stitch along side using 5/8ths seam allowance but leave opening (about 2 inches) along one side for turning.
• Trim lining with pinking shears and turn right sides out.
• Place lining inside gnome with right sides together. Pin along bottom.
• If the lining is too large then remove and stitch again to make smaller. It should pin together evenly along bottom without any puckering or gathering.
• Stitch all the way around bottom with 1/4" seam. Pink edges.
• Using hole left in side seam of lining, turn gnome right side out and then use pencil to push tip of cap out smoothly.
• Place a tiny piece of stuffing or part of a cotton ball inside tip of red cap to help it stay pointy.
• Push lining up inside and iron bottom of gnome. I added a black perle cotton running stitch along bottom about 1/4" from seam but you could use rick rack or just a button for decoration.
• stitch opening in lining closed.
• Cut two butterflies from printed or stamped fabric and layer with small piece of cotton batting in between. Stitch all around butterfly. Cut out close to edge and hand stitch to gnomes cap.

Now make as many as you need to decorate your table or one for each place setting.
I am working on the table runner and hope to be back soon with pictures and instructions for it!
Happy Spring, My Gnomies!
Please ask any questions you might have if this isn't clear- I didn't step it out cause it's so simple- but if you are a beginner it may be as clear as mud- so let me know!
Happy Sewing!
xo,
calamity kim

I'm not saying this guy made a deal with any devil, but he sure can paint!

sometimes when there is nothing on tv and the dishes are done, I wander back here and sit and stumble around until I find something that simply takes my breath and I know that I must right click and save it so that I can share it here with you.
tonight I stumbled across the work of Will Wilson.
here are a few that I fell in love with.

Behind The Scene

Black Box

Bouquet For Beverly

Goodie Two Shoes

Object of Affection

Pansies

Untitled

Pollination

The Artist In His Studio

The Spiral

Wee Willy Wilsons

First Sitting

Here is a link to his website...go see some more of his brilliant work, and remember to breathe.

I really will be back tomorrow with some calamity crafting fun!
Right after we get back from the beach....
:)
c'mon, the weather is the best it will be all year and we're looking kinda pasty from that long cold winter....
I promise to put on some lotion...spf whatever...
sweet dreams,
calamity kim

Hooping It Up!

OK, so I didn't get over here yesterday...I am sorry! I was doing the chores, then shopping at the Oriental Food Market and finally stumbling through the Scandinavian Gift Shop and by the time I got home and we had dinner I was too worn out to do more than watch some bad tv and crawl in bed.
I did order some new fabric and since it probably won't be here till next week I am just going to use what I have and contemplate a spring time table runner  that can have a few fairies appliqued to it later.
In the meantime I ran across a site called Urban Threads that has all kinds of funky cool hip patterns to embroider by hand or machine. When you get there be sure to open an account and get a free PDF of the Deliciously Crafty Bunny. There is also a Flickr Group for anything you make and care to share from the Urban Threads site.
If you have read my Blog for any length of time you will know about my Blogger friend Andrea Zuill of Badbird fame and how she generously gifts us each month with her free embroidery patterns.
 This month she has drawn the cutest little cowpoke I have ever seen! I printed it out and danced through the house looking for Fred to show him!!!
I can see this on a journal cover or doll quilt and hope to use it soon.
***
We are gonna go for a walk in a minute but I will be back later with some project ideas. I have lots of charm squares (do you?) that I have purchased and never used and this might be the time to stitch them into a table runner.
I have been thinking about it for days and want to do some mushroom houses appliqued down on a neutral sort of quilted base.
Right at this moment, it's too beautiful to be inside and my but won't get any smaller just sittin here!
Happy Saturday, little calamities!
xo,
kim

Springing Forward with New Ideas

I feel as if I have been on vacation!

Letting the blog stay on the giveaway post was difficult at first.
I would think of something I wanted to share and then say to myself, no, gotta wait till after the giveaway.
Then it became like a free ride!!!(Sorry about that- but I have needed a break and I promise to make up for it in the coming weeks with lots of creative and new ideas.)
 It was nice to take a refreshing pause but then I realized that  Easter is on the 12th and Earth Day is the 22nd! Yikes! Holidays and activities galore coming up!

This can be a wonderful time if you have small children or grandchildren who look forward to Easter egg hunts or visits from the Easter Bunny!
 I don't dye eggs so much anymore but you know I love bunnies, chicks, baskets and the flora and fauna of Spring!
 When my amaryllis start to bloom I know
 that winter is done and the heat will be on soon!

I want to go shop for a new swim suit and start going to the beach again- now that my allergies are improving we have been walking and the idea of going outside sounds more like fun than it did last month!
I have been working on some paperdolls and used some on the fronts of journals for a demo at the Venice Art League recently.
I am working on a few things for publication and will share them when I can.
***
 I am also working on an idea for my dining room table to celebrate spring. I was disappointed with Target, Macy's and Home Goods this year. Usually I can shop around and find something I like but more often than not lately,  I seem to prefer to make something myself.
I fell in love with the fairy fabric by Michael Miller
 inspired by the art of Cicely Mary Barker. Here it is at Hancocks of Paducah
I am thinking about fairy sized fake cupcakes with nests on top and red capped mushrooms and of course a few gnomes.
***
Have you seen the coolest project for those silk neck ties making it's way around Blogville? My friend Lynn of The Little Red Hen has been making gorgeously "tie dyed" eggs using silk neckties and vinegar- I was blown away by the neat-o designs she and Petunia achieved after wrapping the eggs in silk squares and wetting them, then wrapping white cotton material around them and boiling in water with a little vinegar! Go check her site for more info and great pictures-
***
The Mr and I  have been eating fresh veggies and salad and tonight I am making Chicken Satay with wild rice (*<>*) so I need to get my apron on and get started in the kitchen.
***
Tomorrow we will get started on our dining table runner so meet me back here to see what kind of mess I'll be making!
Speaking of mess, what is wrong with Lost?
 At least the final episode of Life on Mars was all tied up with a pretty little bow of happiness.
 Now if Hurley could just help me figure out the time/space/travel/shark jumping I might be less miserable over this season.
sigh*
whatever...
read any good books lately?
stitches and hugs,
calamity kim

and the winner is...

I want to say Thank You to all of you who took the time to link to my giveaway! I was blown away by the 140 comments! I knew a few people read this Blog, but really, I am usually under the suspicion that it's just a couple of friends and family spies along with the regular readers who always leave a comment.  I have always been content to just post away and ramble on about this or that and know that you would indulge me but this was AWESOME!!! You really are out there and I appreciate all the nice feedback.
I wish you all could win, but sadly there can only be only one winner and it was #42!!!
I put the numbers (1-140) in a numbers generator and #42 came up on top.
That means that Shean of Dairy of an Unconscious Mind is the winner of all the apron loot!

No more monkeying around!
I will be back soon with some Springtime Ideas for your table and centerpiece!
Thanks again for playing with me!
Love & Stitches,
Calamity Kim