Nutcracker costume - Fritz

So, all day Saturday, I worked on the Fritz costume. Sadly, I didn't finish it. What was stopping me? Buttons! Nope, not my button hole function on my sewing machine, but actual buttons. I couldn't decide what buttons I wanted to use on the vest. and well, no buttons means no way to make the correct size button hole. So, I dumped my entire box of buttons onto my table, and went through each and every one. I picked out the ones I like the most, and took pictures of them against the gold fabric of the vest.

All of this work, and I still wasn't happy. I really wanted to like the pearl shank buttons, but they were too white, and just slightly bigger than I'd prefer for this size of a vest.
So, last night the boys and I (hubby had to work) had dinner with my parents at their house. After dessert Mom and I went up to her craft space to look through her stash of buttons to see if I could find 2-3 matching buttons. Well, we didn't find any, but Mom reminded me that I could change the color of buttons using embossing powder that we usually use for scrapbooking. Yes, my mother is a crafty woman. And yes, it does run in the family.
So, we did a test run on some buttons, I liked what I saw, so she sent me home with a new embossing pad to keep and some gold embossing powder to borrow. And here's how I made my own gold buttons.

Left to right: Heat Gun, Embossing ink, test buttons from yesterday, and embossing powder.

"ink" the button with embossing ink.

Dip into embossing powder. (make sure tweezers don't go all the way through the button holes or else you'll emboss those too)

Heat it up with heat gun until all embossing powder is melted.

Allow to dry.

New button next to original.

Now to do the back of the button.

Oops, my tweezers damaged the front. Note to self, start with back first.

Better way to dry to avoid smudges.

Perfect match! I'm in love!

Yeah, I was feeling pretty awesome this morning. And here is how the whole outfit turned out.

Kit as Fritz:

With jabot tucked in to show off pretty "new" buttons

With the lace trimmed jabot out.

There will be no sewing today since someone is buying my dining room table (AKA my cutting table) tonight, so I had to clear it off. I'll be picking up my smaller dining room table and chairs tomorrow while the kids are at school. I'm sew excited!!!

Until next time...

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Nutcracker Ballet - Outfit #1 - Godfather

As promised, here are the pictures of the first outfit in my series of costumes from The Nutcracker Ballet.
This is my Our Generation Jack dressed as Marie/Clara's Godfather.

Blouse with jabot (neck tie, ascot, scarf, etc.) and fully functional buttons. Lined vest with fully functional buttons. Lined jacket with lapels and coat tails. Lined cape with tie. Eye patch with tie.
Bigger pictures on my Picasa Albums. Don't forget to check out my Facebook Fan Page.

Next on the cutting table is either Fritz's vest and breeches (I made that shirt when I made Godfather's shirt) or Marie/Clara's dress (I've already made her petticoat and pantalettes).

Yep, I've been a busy little sewing bee this month. I sure hope this sewing motivation keeps up.
Until next time...
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Holy cow, it's been forever!

Happy new year! I can't believe I haven't posted since November 22nd. Good grief!
Well, let's see, the holidays were hectic, as usual, and I didn't get any sewing done. :( On the upside, I made three new year's resolutions, one of which is to sew every other day. I've done pretty well with it this month. I've given myself a sewing goal of doing a Nutcracker Ballet outfit a month. Well, I finished one tonight, and have pieces of two more done. Yeah, I'm feeling pretty awesome. I'll post pictures tomorrow when I can use some natural sunlight.
Speaking of completed outfits, I finally got a chance to work on the outfits from the September Giveaway. One shipped out earlier this week, and the other one shipped out today. Oh, I guess I should show some pictures: Check out my Facebook Fan Page.
I promise to update this more often.

Until next time...
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Live from Denver, Colorado!

Hi guys!

Mini Molly and I made a cross country road trip with my sister and her two little dogs. We left Charleston, South Carolina Friday morning, took a break in Little Nashville, Illinois, and then arrived in Denver, Colorado Saturday night.
There were a lot of neat little places along the way, but with the dogs and wanting to get to Denver as soon as possible, we didn't stop. I made the mistake of not charging my camera before we left, so I missed a few pictures along the way since I had to change my camera batteries four times. Once we arrived in Denver I stopped to pick up rechargable batteries and a charger. I still have pictures to take, including Thanksgiving with the family, and I won't be able to get my charger until I get home on Wednesday night.

It's beautiful here! Cold, but beautiful. I can see why my sister loves it here, and I think she will fit in nicely in her new city.

My sister and I went by the American Girl store yesterday. The last time I went to an American Girl store was 3 years ago when I went to see my sister when she lived in Atlanta and we were celebrating our birthdays. The store was nice, and only after we left did I notice it was only a boutique and not a bistro too. Made me a little sad, but on the upside, they has a lot more room for displays and merchandise, so it evened out. I picked up a few store exclusives and some new glasses, and stayed under budget. I only chose to put one thing back that I picked up, and that was Kit's Nighttime Accessories. They are really cute, but the set put me over my budget and it was too bulky to fit into my already full bookbag that I am taking on the plane with me. My whole time there and I got two pictures: one on the way in, and one on the way out.

This one was taken with my phone, and the other was taken with my camera. I'm able to upload pics straight from my phone, but since I won't have internet on my laptop until tonight (I'm using my sister's right now), I'll have to wait on those.
Here's a link to the pictures I've uploaded so far, and I'll upload more pics to the album once I get my internet up and running: Picasa Road Trip From SC To Colorado

I've been looking at the fashion here to, and loking at how it differs from the fashion of the Southeast. I found a great outfit at Urban Outfitters, and I plan to make a doll sized version of it. I'll post a pic of that too when I get my laptop connected to the net.

Until next time....
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(yellow lines in the middle of the road)

More logo design ideas

So, I went from 3 posts in one week to not posting at all for 2 weeks. I haven't been feeling well these past two weeks, but am working on getting better. I definitely have better things to do than be sick.
So, what have I been up to since my last post? Well, I finally finished the blue and orange PDR Round 4 dress, however I do not have any pictures of it completed yet. Once I finished it, I decided it needed a crop jacket, so that is in the works (along with several other projects).
I also finished the Halloween treat houses for my kids' teachers.

The one that is the second from the left is the one I did in a class. The others I worked on at home. There is a 5th one, but my husband has it at his desk at work.

I am absolutely loving the pattern for the treat houses, so last night, while cropping at my LSS, I was inspired by my Stampin' Up Wash Day rolling stamp, so I made some New Mom treat boxes (to be filled with chocolate).

The outfits on the Wash Day border are colored in with Stampin' Up markers and the socks, bunny, butterflies, and ducks on the bibs are topped with Ranger's Glossy Accents. The Black and white outfit popped up on the side is a $1 stamp I cut out (the red heart is colored with Stampin' Up marker and topped with Ranger's Glossy Accents). The striped paper at the top is embossed (the brown on the boy one is the reverse side), and was cut using the Marvy Scallop cutting blade. I didn't get to finish them, but what I want to add to them is "Welcome home" on the front, and "baby boy/girl" on the back using my Cricut markers and the Cricut Don Juan cartridge.

Now, onto the main subject, new logo deign ideas.

So, let em know which one you like the most. Also, let me know your likes and dislikes about all of them.

Until next time...

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Three posts this week!

Three posts in one week! Wow! Now, don't get too used to it.
Today's post is about the things I made at a 60 hour Save The Ta-Ta's Crop at my LSS (local scrapbook store). I worked the 9pm-9am shifts Friday and Saturday nights. The first night this is what I what I got done:

My first thing for myself, an apron (yeah, I'm rocking an apron and arthritis gloves)

I made this using a pattern I picked up over the summer. As with most patterns I try for the first time, I followed the directions and all the while I was making mental notes (and verbal ones too) that this pattern was over complicating itself and I'm going to revamp it.

The second night was still productive, but in a different way. I labeled/priced/merchandised my doll clothes for consignment at the store:

My sign now hangs above it (and hopefully the rack is a little emptier)

Once that was done, I worked on a layout of my step-son. His grandmother had posted these pictures on Facebook a month or so after it happened, and I debated scrapbooking it since it was pictures of an open wound, but since it's now his "Harry Potter Scar", I did it anyways, and the close up pictures are tucked away in the green pockets and have big bandage pulls tabs with "Warning: Close up!"

"My Harry Potter Scar" - "November 2009 - Christian had to get stitches after getting hit by a rock when he surprised his cousin."

As of the moment, my sewing desk is cleared off in it's newest spot in the dining room, and I'm ready to get to sewing. No fabric tonight since I'm working on a scrapbook layout for work. 

Off to the sewing/scrapbooking desk....

Until next time...

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It's beginning to look a lot like a logo...

As technically gifted as my sweet husband is, he is not gifted with artsy creativity. Therefore, after several attempts of making a me a logo for my Gomunk Creations, he seeked the assistance of a logo company. Here's the first 6 ideas they came back with.

So, what do you think? Which is your favorite? Which things do you like? Any suggestions?

They'll be a round two soon.

Until next time.......

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New, at a store near you

If you are in the Charleston, SC area, make sure to stop by Charleston Scrapbooking. As of yesterday, my doll clothes are available for sale there as well as the other places I sell online (my website, Facebook, Etsy, AG Fans, and AG Playthings). So, stop on by to see The Mom and check out my inventory. Now that my inventory box at home is empty, and my sewing/dining room is rearranged (yet again), I hope to get back into my sewing groove soon.
Here's the display so far, it's just waiting on me to put a sign on it too. I'm thinking of using the one I used at National Scrapbooking Day Weekend.

(Taken with my 2mp cell phone)

(Made from 2 pieces of 12x12 cardstock spit and sewn together. font is from Cricut's Robitz cartridge)

I'm excited!

And we have a winner!

Yes, I know it's a couple of days late, but we've selected a winner. To make up for being late, we're selecting two winners. One from the blog and one from our Facebook fan page.
Blog winner: Laura (Sophie Amelie)
Facebook Winner: Patricia P.

Now, the outfits are not complete yet, and as it nears Halloween I've got a special order I need to finish first, but I can give you a sneak peek of the outfits since they are already cut out.

Yep, straight from the cutting board. The outfit on the left is a print dress, solid jacket, reversible hat, and solid bag with print accent. The outfit on the right is a solid dress, print jacket, reversible hat, and print bag with solid accent.

Congrats to the winners! For those who didn't win, have no worries, I am planning another giveaway for Spring.

Until next time...

I'm a slacker, baby...

Holy cow! 8 more days until the end of my September contest. And what have I done as far as the outfit goes? Cut out all of the solid pieces, and traced a few of the print pieces. And my sewing machine? Well, it's not gathering dust, but that is only because it's still in my rolling tote that I take to my scrapbooking crops.
My sewing desk has become quite a "catch all" and I had to dig through the stuff on top of it to get to my camera charger yesterday. Oy!
I've revamped my sewing room/dining room again. I changed dining room table and chairs to something less bulky and I wouldn't trip over, plus removed a desk that was more in the way than it was helpful. And have I sat down to actually use my sewing desk? No.
I am frustrated with the fact that I planned all these sewing projects once the kids started school, and I've completed one thing since then, and that was the Elizabeth outfit I sent off in the AG Playthings Summer Sewing Swap last month. That PDR Round 4 dress? Yeah, still almost done. I made the sash, but haven't sewn it to the dress yet. I did make a petticoat for it though, but I don't like it because I think it needs to be poofier (yes, poofier is a real word in the crafting world, just like pastely and thing-a-ma-jig). I still need to make the last two of three puckers in the back of the skirt, and finally add the snaps closures to the back of the bodice. My DollDuds polo shirt? Yep, halfway done. Waiting for a sleeve, then side seam, and Velcro.
Yes, I am the Princess of Procrastination, and lastly I've felt like the Mistress of No Motivation.
Half of my doll items are packed away because I no longer have the room to have my doll displays set up. All of my dolls are still out and about, but most of them are confined to the doll bunkbed (that my dad made for me) I have in my upstairs hallway. My Addy is still in North Carolina with Buddy Holly, and I hope she's enjoying her trip. She's been up there for over a year now, so when she gets back she'll have a couple of new faces to meet. Since she's been up there I've picked up some new dolls and also sold two to a mom for her two daughters. The mom wasn't able to pay me before her daughters headed off to stay with their dad for a year, so I let the girls have them early, and I'm still hoping the mom comes through with her end of the deal so I can use that money to buy Lanie from American Girl since I used my "Girl of the Year as a birthday present from my hubby" on Elizabeth since she is archiving and may sell out closer to Christmas where as the Girl of the Year Lanie should make it until sometime in December.
Speaking of American Girl... Mild mannered me (stop laughing) got a little short with their Customer Service today. It seems they have switched from shipping with UPS to shipping with FedEx. I loathe FedEx. In all of my years of retail, plus my years of online purchases, FedEx has always topped my list as Worst Delivery Company. I've had them throw boxes at my door at home, I've dealt with their rude delivery guys, and watching the way they've handling their boxes have me want to yell "Have some respect for that! It belongs to somebody and I've sure somebody paid for it with their hard earned money!" Anyways, after my rant about not liking FedEx, the customer service person informed me that since it was being shipped FedEx Smartpost, it would be handed to the US Postal System sometime, and would take another day or two. That would be all  fine and dandy if I had a mail person like my last one in North Carolina, or even the one my mom (who lives around the corner) has. But no, I am blessed to have a moron for a mailman. Ugh! I politely (okay, not really, but in my defense I could have been worse about it) told the customer service person that I expected to have to call them again once my package arrived to let them know it was damaged. Am I being pessimistic? Probably. I like to think I'm preparing myself for the worst, that way if it's not damaged, I'll feel better and FedEx and my mailman might actually earn themselves a cardboard cookie. My reason for calling American Girl today? To find out why it took two days for my box to travel an hour and a half drive. Seriously? It's an hour and a half by car to go from Middleton, WI (right outside Madison, WI) to where it was last scanned this morning at New Berlin (seriously?), WI which is right outside Milwaukee, WI. **sigh** Maybe I'm just looking for something to fuss about or maybe I'm getting tired of being too nice. I'm too nice to some folks and rude to those who truly deserve it, but I'd like to find a happy medium, you know?
I miss sewing.
I have done a couple of scrapbooking pages since I last posted, but I think I only have a (poor) picture of one layout.

Dylan when he was learning to crawl.

So, here it is 9:30pm now. The kids are in bed, and the house is quiet. I need to go sew, but need to clear off the dining room table and my sewing desk off first. Ugh! I miss my old sewing rooms. :'-(

Oh well, off to make the best of what I've got. Wish me luck, I'm going in.................