Calamity Kim

alice inspired placemat

alice inspired placemat, originally uploaded by calamity kim.

Today is a special day! Not only is it a Surface Design Guild Meeting Day but I am meeting a Flickr friend in real life! Susi (who lives in Germany) will be vacationing in Florida and is swinging by to meet and hang out with me today! We are doing a place mat swap and this is the one I made for her. It also is Inspired by Alice in Wonderland which was a Guild Challenge! You know how nice it is to kill two birds with one stone and so I did!

It turned out quite nice, if I do say so myself and I might have to make a set for us!

I did go see the movie last Friday and I enjoyed it very much.
Now, I'm off! I have a busy day ahead but things will slow down a bit soon and I will be sewing up items for our Guild's Fashion Show next month!
I will be back with photos and more wonderland inspired things soon.
I miss you all, very much, dear readers but it's "season" here and there are many art shows and things to do and see and it's so hard to keep up!
I am dying to go see the Costumes in Cinema exhibit at the Florida International Museum at St Petersburg College. They have Johnny Depp's costume from Pirates of the Caribbean! Just so many hours in a day, right?
xo,
calamity kim

4 Way Swap Love

Soooooo...did everyone have a Happy Halloween?
We only had 8 kids!!!
I have lots of candy left over and will have to take it to Picasso Moon or someplace! Maybe the Mr. can take it to work! He tried to "dress up" like a nerd/geek and no one even noticed that he was wearing a "costume".
heehee!
Yesterday was especially wonderful for me because I received
 my doll quilt from Laura J and it is just delightful!
She used Andrea of Badbird's dutch girl embroidery pattern but as an applique and then added some chooks of her own to represent me and the girls!

I was really amazed at all the work in it- the applique is lovely and the background is all patch worked and she even quilted a windmill in- it's lovely and thoughtful and just shows that she not only knows me but loves me.
Now that is a swap!
Love in  the mail!
One day I will do my Swap Etiquette Post According to Calamity Kim and try to convey what a good swap is (at least in my humble opinion).
Some people give wholeheartedly and others give because they have to.
There is a huge difference and the recipient always can
feel the love when it is given freely.
So, once again, Thank you Laura, for the time, the talent and the LOVE.

vintage strawberry pincushion

vintage strawberry pincushion, originally uploaded by Rick Rack Ruby.

My Blog Friend Susan at Chickenfoot is having a Strawberry Swap!
Sign ups are until Aug 1 so head on over to her blog and let her know you'd like to swap. In this swap you will need to make at least one strawberry themed item and a written recipe for those luscious berries.

Susan says: "this will be a one on one swap. after i get everyone signed up, i will send out partners. the only requirements are that you hand make at least one main item, any other items can be store bought, but need to be in the strawberry "theme", also you need to include one strawberry recipe(preferably handwritten on a recipe card or index card)"

I had an email from Susan this morning with a link to a Flicker Group that she made for us to share pictures in. She has also listed a bunch of links to different strawberry items- including patterns and folk art strawberries and fabrics.
Deadline for mailing is Sept 15 so you have some time if you want to get in on this- I love these vintage faded velvet pincushions (photo borrowed from Rick Rack Ruby at Flickr) and I plan to make one like this love the pearls...anyway...come and have some swap fun!

Here's the button too- in case you Blog about it- just right click on this and save it.

Hop over to the signups for the Pumpkin & Black Cat Swap!!!

Hop on over to HopHopJingleBoo! and get signed up for Debra's Swap!!!!! Hurry the deadline is Sept 1st. Go check out her Blog and get her email address and sign up now!
It's gonna be fun!
Spooky fun!
Sinister Spidery Scary Fun!!!

Things to Make & Do

It's strange how when you are sick all creativity is drained and ceases to flow...maybe that is part of the virus's weaponry. The bullet that puts you down and makes you not care if you ever get up, just please, please go away and make it stop!
I am feeling almost normal- yeah, for me that is left of center at best, but I am feeling stronger and yesterday caught up with those futility chores. You know, vacuuming, mopping, laundry...but now I can concentrate on finishing one final part of my giveaway- That Bipolar Becky that I owe Angela, who has been so patient.
I sent out boxes in drips and drabs, as many of you know- thank you for your patience.
I always like to make my barrage on the Postal System the largest attack possible and get all my boxes together at once- unfortunately that isn't always so easy...boxes...I needed boxes...and the strength to pack them...and while I could have taken them one at a time- I am just OCD enough to have to do it all at once-or not at all! I am like that with a lot of things - 100% or nothing at all. Ach! Whatever. All that anticipation makes it so much better doesn't it? I did receive my lovely quilt from Vicki at Turkeyfeathers in a lightening fast shipment- It is so sweet and lovely. With perfectly executed stitches and use of fabrics. I adore it. I am hoping she will like the apron I swapped her for it. Maybe we will get to see pictures of her twirling around in it on her Blog?
The above image is from Vintage Workshops   and they not only have groovy e-cards but a whole store full of neato Cd's with vintage ephemera and fabric to print on.

If you haven't met Vicki yet then by all means go visit her Blog and read about her  ninja deer who stalk her garden and her world of sewing, embroidery, doll house miniature sweet treats (hand crafted by her daughter Grace) and her life. She has a wonderful Web Store called Pattern Bee  and if you love Vintage Embroidery Transfers then this is the place to get them! I bought a box lot of them from Ebay one time and I dare say that I can only hope to live long enough to embroider half of them!  Vicki seems to have energy to spare and must always walkabout with hoop in hand and camera in the other. Go visit her shop at Etsy too and feast your eyes on some lovely doll quilts...maybe you can get one of your own.

I opened mine, when it came and just sighed with joy and happiness at the beauty. I enjoy other peoples work visually all the time, but it's a different experience all together to hold it in your hands. Now I have two doll quilts made by artist's that I admire. The one from the Doll Quilt Swap by Susan of Joybucket who makes wonderful dolls also. The next photo is of the heart & quilt wall in the living room- or the room where the TV lives. Speaking of Doll Quilt Swap- Lisa is hostessing another and you will need to keep your eyes peeled to when the sign up date is- I will try to post it as soon as I know but here is the link to bookmark just in case... Doll Quilt Swap 2

I just saw (thanks Lisa!) where Whip Up's Challenge this month is also Doll Quilts!
I hope someone does a book, featuring them sometime soon- I look forward to that! A whole luscious book of miniature Doll Quilts...almost as good as the real thing...not quite but almost!
I am going to start on my Pockets themed apron soon and then maybe I can tackle a doll quiltie for whip Up.
I was not conjuring up any new ideas while I was sick- couldn't come up with a thing worth putting down on paper with the exception of the "hellinahandbasket apron" I loved it when Amanda named one of her dolls Hellina Handbasket and couldn't get it out of my mind and while tossing and turning in a fevered delirium I conceived of an art apron with flames licking the hem and basket shaped pockets using some of my woven print stash of fabrics. I can see it- can't you? Soon, peeps.
But for today just go take a peek at Sew Mama Sew and the zipper tut by Michelle from Green Kitchen whose delightful aqua and orange bird skirt made me want to DROP EVERYTHING and get started on a skirt! Now that I feel confident enough to handle a zipper after her expert instructions (even though the barrel prefers drawstrings)  I will be giving it a try and when I finish a skirt from my Sew What Skirts Book I will be posting them to this Flickr group.  Oh, wait, maybe this Group  Stay tuned...especially since Sew Mama Sew has declared May to be Sew A Skirt Month!!! I am impelled to make one and then post those pictures here

Here is the badge if you are also compelled....the skirt, the apron, the quilt, the joy. I gotta go SEW!!!!!

The Pincushion Swap

This is my stuff from the pincushion swap that I received from Italy. In this swap we had different partners instead of giving back to the person who gave to us. This had some nice buttons, lace, tea, sequins, pins, an Italian Craft mag and a snowman ornament/pincushion. Oh, and the blue fabric with flowers. What a nice suprise. I promptly stuck all the pins into the snowman and he kind of looked like a voodoo doll!
I mailed mine yesterday to Little Jenny Wren, Down Under in Australia. The Giving tree was my inspiration and I hope she likes the stump pincushion. I also added some gnome shrinky dink pins I had made and some chocolate and bits of sewing ephemera. I've already started on the Vintage Ornament and ATC swap and feel relieved at ticking things off my to do list. Now, I'm off to watch Cars and drink some more coffee! Happy Cartoon Saturday!

Swap Excitement! The Big Share

1. Embroidery patch :due November 15  check out: this site
2. Atc & Christmas Ornament Swaps: due Dec 1   check out: this site
3. Pincushion swap (mine goes to Australia): due Nov 23 check out:
4. Month of Softies : We have a huge wonderful list of bizarre themes to choose from for November: Due anytime and post pic's here: MOS
5. The Vintage swap group added my blog so I must be in!!! Yah Hoo!..here

And that should keep me out of the office and in the SEWING ROOM, I'd better get going.
Well, maybe after I read about Heather Bailey's trip to Market....Happy Sewing!

flour sack squares

flour sack squares, originally uploaded by calamity kim.

She included 2 delightful 9 patch squares made from flour sack material.
I love the print.
How did she  know this would be so perfectly Me?
Does she know that I am already working on something to make her smile? I hope so, cause I am! So, I need to get back to the sewing room...more pictures of my swap partner's generosity can be seen if you click on the pictures! Maybe you'l get lucky and she'll be your swap partner one day!
Thanks again, sweet Jenny Farmgirl

Catawba Grape stained glass jely

Catawba Grape stained glass jely, originally uploaded by calamity kim.

I am saving this for Thanksgivig to share with my Mom and Dad. Jenny and her husband grow the grapes and she made the jelly and I feel so blessed that she shared some with my family!

sew on wednesday!

sew on wed, originally uploaded by calamity kim.

I adore this sweet little lady just stitchin away on her very own tea towel