felted bag

I'm sure there is a "right" way to do the lining but this is how I did it:

1. Lay fabric right sides together and trace the bag. Cut along the tracings. Fold the top edge under, wrong sides together and press.


2. Sew the top.


3. Pin right sides together and stitch around the sides and bottom.


4. Sew lining to bag.



I'm still on the hunt for a handle.

Pattern: Formal Boot Bag pattern on Knitting Daily (here is the link to it on Ravelry)

Yarn: Wellspring Woolens yarn in Fieldstone, bought at The Yarnery. Here is a great review of the yarn. Within the last several months, I realize yarn comes from sheep who may not be treated that well, especially when it comes to the mass produced yarn (google mulesing, for example). I am an avid user of cruelty-free products so I'm not sure why I didn't have this "aha" moment sooner. So...I'm working through my existing stash of yarn and anything new must be cruelty-free. I love that Wellspring Woolens is soft, local - to me anyway - and cruelty-free.

Side slip cloche

Pattern: Side Slip Cloche from Boutique Knits: 20+ Must Have Accessories
Yarn: Joseph Galler Superfine Prime Alpaca from The Yarnery
Pin: re-purposed hair accessory from my wedding





I re-purposed my hair comb that I wore in my wedding for the hat. It's not like I was going to wear it again so what the heck. I unattached the comb and curved the metal into a circle. I wrapped some extra wire through and attached a pinback.



The original hair comb was from Che Bella in St. Paul. I wear the matching earrings often and am excited to use the comb!

warm mittens

I'm making these for my sister-in-law's niece who insisted on light pink and black stripes because "those are the only colors that look good on me and I like stripes." It reminds me of a bumble bee on Pepto Bismol but I'm not 6 with a clear fashion sense.


I used this basic cuff up mitten pattern and modified it a bit so there are two layers for extra warmth.


I made the inner mitten per the pattern instructions and ran a piece of waste yarn through the purl side on the last row of ribbing. Once I finished the mitten, I picked up those stitches and knit the outer mitten, minus the ribbing of course. I went up a needle size for the outer mitten so it would fit over the inner mitten without having to add stitches. I'm lazy that way.

a simple kitchen valance

Aside from yarn, painting is my biggest weakness. In the three years we've lived here, I have painted almost every room at least twice - some three times. The painting bug bit last week and the kitchen was calling my name. Of course, I needed a valance to go with the new colors.


Fabric: the top half is Amy Butler Belle Duck Egg / Seeds and the bottom strip is Amy Butler Lotus cherry/full moon polka dot from Crafty Planet.


I followed this tutorial for the fabric flower and used a regular button instead of a fabric button.


Here is the kitchen with a fresh coat of paint, the new valance and our Flor carpet tiles in House Pet by the door. The carpet tiles were my crazy inspiration - they look like fresh green grass so I wanted to keep the paint fresh and summery.

The paint is AFM Safecoat no-VOC from the Natural Built Home Store which I highly recommend. I've used Sherwin Williams' no-VOC paint and I much prefer the Safecoat brand. It went on really well and there was virtually no smell. I used Netti (yellow) and Morning (green) mixed with a good amount of white to mellow the colors down a little.

Like most of the house, this room is a work in progress. We really need to stain the window - it has only been 3 years since we had it installed - and get a new door. I'd love to get new cabinets, counter tops and appliances but that won't happen since we're hoping to move in a couple years.

French Press Slippers

This is my second go at the French Press Felted Slippers. It is the easiest, most adorable knitting project ever and you should make a pair right now.

For my sister-in-law:




And the first pair that I made for my big feet:


Yarn: Cascade Eco-Wool purchased from The Yarnery (the best yarn shop ever) in St. Paul.

Buttons: Three Kittens Needle Arts has a really does have a great selection of buttons. I just happen to love turquoise.

Chair cushion

The chair cushion is miraculously done. I followed this fantastic tutorial at Sew, Mama, Sew! and it only took me 2 solid evenings and most of another day. I'm sure most people could finish it in an evening but I am truly a horrible sewer.



I got a 24" x 24" x 4" piece of foam and bonded Dacron from Rochford Supply in Minneapolis and used an electric knife to cut the foam down slightly. I stuffed it according to this video from DIY Upholstery Supply.


The pink material is for the back of the chair and the buttons for the tufting.

Chair reupholstery

I got this great mid-century chair from Craigslist with the intention that I'd make a slipcover and be able to afford to have it professionally reupholstered some day. The chair was made by Beaucraft Inc. Minneapolis, MN. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find much about the company.



What I didn't take into consideration is that slipcovers look really difficult to make well and I'm not a good sewer.

So being the overly ambitious person I am, I decided to jump into reupholstering it myself. I don't know why I thought it would be a good idea. The only thing I've upholstered are dining room chairs....the kind where you screw off the seat, staple on some fabric and screw the seat back on.

Google convinced me I could do it. I read a bunch of websites, watched some videos and started taking the fabric off piece by piece. This is my chair now.



I'm a little freaked out. I took lots of pictures and notes but I can barely make sense of them now. I have a vague sense of what I need to do from online videos that I'm sure I'll have to watch a hundred more times. I'm fully prepared to pay someone to do the seat and back cushions because my sewing really is awful.

To add a little more challenge, I went to do something like this. I have dark brown and tweedy light brown fabrics and a deep berry fabric for the back and piping (which is actually called a welt in the upholstery world).

Picture from Turquoise-LA (a long time ago)