A blog I love and a giveaway I couldn't resist...

I love Sandy's 4 Reluctant Entertainers blog! She has tons of tips for entertaining (not to mention gorgeous photos) - no matter your age, space constraints, or budget. Here is an exerpt from Sandy's blog:

"With the best intentions, many of us think about entertaining, but never get around to it. For many this blessing of gracious living for both the host and her guests never takes place because of fear … fear of failure, unable to cook, unwilling to share their lives with others, fear of deepening friendships … they are intimidated and think the meal has to be perfect, or … they don’t have the lifestyle that says, “welcome.” I believe in connection. I believe that Americans need to lower the expectations of perfection and open their homes to heart-warming dinners and in doing so, open their lives to LOVE!"

If that isn't motivating enough to go check out her blog, then you should also know that she is having a giveaway! Go check out her blog to learn more about how you could win a lovely Cheery Cherry Apron and more!

http://www.reluctantentertainer.com/

Diaper Bag for a Friend

Yippee! It's finished! My friend just had a baby and wanted a customized diaper bag. We looked at different pictures and designs and came up with this:

She wanted a sturdy bag that could hold its shape, so I used heavy duty stabilizer. The strap is adjustable and has some polyester batting inside for comfort.
It's a messenger style bag, so we took advantage of the flap and added a zipper pocket for extra storage.
The back has a large flat pocket and the sides have bottle pockets.
The inside has pockets lined with clear vinyl. The bottom has clear vinyl too for easy clean up and spills. I decided to add a zipper pocket, because my friend wanted 'lots of pockets' :).

I hope she likes it - I can't wait to give it to her!

Faith, Hope, Love

I think this quilt pattern by McKenna Ryan is gorgeous. I love the message, the colors, the design, ahhhh...everything. It looks like tons of work with lots of applique, so I don't know if I'm quite ready for this type of project. Also, the price tag isn't quite so gorgeous - about $100 for just the patterns!!! I think I'll just drool over the pictures for now :).

More pics here: http://www.pineneedles.com/SuperStore/SuperStore-Assortment.asp?AssortmentID=48

To infinity...and beyond!

I've always wanted to make an infinity dress. For those of you who don't know what it is, its a halter top style dress with very long straps that can be wrapped and knotted numerous ways. If you look at the pic below, the straps are attached at the waist and then come up over my shoulders, cross in the back, then they cross again around my waist and are tied in the back. It's fun experimenting with all the ways I can wrap this shirt.

Originally, I wanted to make a dress, but in my search for ideas, I found someone who paired a shirt with a skirt. This way, I have the option of wearing the top with pants, other skirts, or the matching skirt. Fun stuff!

Here's the tutorial I based my infinity shirt/dress on, but I did change a few things like the length of the dress as well as the length of the straps. I also added extra fabric in the band for modesty and I left the fabric square to get the hankerchief hem. http://rowena.typepad.com/rostitchery/2006/06/one_seam_conver.html



Here it is as just a top. The straps are quite wide so I can scrunch them up like a tank top or spread them out to get a cap sleeve.


Here is the infinity top with the matching skirt. I'm debating how often I will wear the matching skirt - does it seem a little 'too' formal to you? I was hoping to wear it to church, but I may save it for weddings or formal occasions. Hmmmm.

Thanks for looking, and I'd love to read your comments!