Tolentreasures

You will need: 4  - 16 1/2" x 12 1/2" pieces of main fabric 4 - 12 1/2" x 4" pieces of coordinating fabric 4 - 20 1/2" x 16 1/2" pieces of interfacing and of backing fabric 50" of trim Regular sewing supplies. To begin: Choose your fabric and cut to size. If you happen to be using fabric samples as I was, cut of the paper backing. Cut the coordinating fabric. I waited to cut the backing and the interfacing.  I then laid the main fabric on top of the interfacing and backing and used my ruler and cut it 2 inches bigger the whole way around.  (As a note, I had stiffener that I bought at a local upholstery shop and it worked great for interfacing and saves $$$, however you could use any stiff interfacing) Your stack should look like this. Zig zag the edge of the coordinating fabric, sewing through all layers. Next, sew the trim on through all layers. Take the entire stack to the ironing board, put on some great music or your favorite TV program and...

You see, I had these big plans to post a nice tutorial on these lovely placemats this morning, well actually yesterday morning and then the day happened so you are going to get a play by play of my exhausting day yesterday instead.  Not interested, that's ok, just stop here and check back tomorrow to learn how to make these. That being said and I see you are still with me so get ready, take a deep breath and help me remember one exhausting day. 4:30 AM -  WAAAAUUUUGHHHH!  Some classic rock station with a lot of static blares me into a semi awake, heart thumping state.  I really like to wake up BEFORE the alarm and turn it off and then nicely get out of bed and start my day.  I must have dozed after that 5:00 AM  - Oh my gosh, I have to go, make the coffee, stretch, pills, water, exercise clothes, shoes, open the house up, fresh air, get to boot camp. 5:30 AM  - Boot camp and my FIRST sweat of the day.  Not the greatest workout, ...

Not BIG security issues, just little baby/toddler security issues.  My older daughter had a blanket, well actually two blankets, but I am not sure that she knew that.  You see, she carried one of those white thermal receiving blankets everywhere she went.  I kept one hidden so that we could always have a Clean Leave the House Blanket on hand.  My younger daughter was much easier, she had her thumb, always available and always with her.  A little harder to break than the blanket security.  It was somewhere in the first month of kindergarten when she was trying to hold her pencil and write with her thumb still in her mouth, right handed, right-thumbed, picture it?  Now for the grand kids:  Tyler had a Binky, a certain Binky that he had to have.  I had about six of them at my house, never wanting to be out of one and not be able to find one.  He hasn't used it in two years, I recently found one in my nightstand.  See how often I clean...

Everything but the milk can was an order that needed to be finished.  The wheelbarrows were leftovers from VBS that somehow ended up in my possession to paint and the boxes needed a quick little spruce up for a shop in Smicksburg.  Still painting away, trying to get ready for our Open House that is three months from today. 

You see, it was raining, and I am not talking a mild summer rain, I am talking monsoon rains.  You know, the sound like a freight train and you are looking around for the funnel cloud rain.  The rain that manages to come down our chimney, wetting the carpet in the living room and dripping through to the basement and splatter all over the varnished items on the top of the freezer rain.  Get the picture?  So I call dear hubby down to look at the splattered items sitting on top of the freezer otherwise doubling as a varnishing counter and show him the water issue.  Apparently, all the other times that this has happened I have just TOLD him about the issue and he has not heard me TELL him about it.   In defense of the poor guy, he does not venture into my area very often for fear of his life, however this time he SAW the problem and starts to insist that the problem is with the window behind the freezer.  I tell him repeatedly that it is the chimney a...

1.  When you finally manage to empty the dishwasher on Tuesday morning and every sippy cup and ice cream bowl is in it. 2. The garbage can is full of pull-ups, swimming diapers and baby wipes. 3.  Your carpet has a nice colorful tone to it from all the sprinkles from the banana splits spilled on it. 4. Every extra bed in your house is dirty and needs the sheets stripped. 5.  When you walk sleepily through the living room to open the front door in the morning before your coffee, you step on a matchbox car and say bad words. 6. The yard sale items that you bought on Friday morning are still in the bags and you have forgotten what you even bought. 7.  Your arms are itchy from what seems like another bout of poisen ivy after searching for blackberries on the hike to the water tower. 8.  You find lost underwear and socks in the dryer that are way too small for either of us. 9.  All of the stuff that you put "up" on top of things is now coming down little by...

GONE!!!  Where is it going?  This weekend I have this little girl (she doesn't arrive until tomorrow) and these little boys, who are tucked in for the night and sleeping for the beginning of their weekend at Grandma's house.  John escaped to camp for the weekend.  Too much confusion for him. Tomorrow we are going swimming and then supper and then hiking to the water tower and then we are making banana splits.  Helps to have a plan, although most of the time Flexibility is the Key to Success. These chairs are my yard sale find for the day!  They were $5 for each set and barely fit in the back of the Equinox, but they made it.  They are perfect for the patio by the fire.  They are also surprisingly comfortable. Not sure whether to paint them or not...opinions? Finished these items this week, or should I say ALMOST finished them.  The painted items still need varnished and embellished.  The towel, at least is done.  I have more of...

My half of the favors are FINISHED!  These were started about a week ago and I have 33 of them.  Mom is making the other half.  I passed her up on finishing them.  I made them on an assembly line and she is more precise and makes them one at a time. Thank goodness for my very short, long ago career in the sewing factory.  They things that you learn. Had to share these cuties with you.  They actually sat still enough for a picture all together.  How nice that was and sure beats the trauma and hives of taking them to a photographer.  It is me that has the trauma and hives...not them.  And the second week of boot camp starts tomorrow.  I have done something to my ankle.  Today will be spent on the recliner after church, resting and icing! Have a great Sunday!

As I have hobbled, limped and dragged myself through the last 48 hours, I am thinking "Was I NUTS?" Every inch of my body is hurting, or so it seems.  I am pretty sure my fingertips are OK, although I cut one at work yesterday with an Xacto knife, so that one is a little tender.  Nine fingertips that feel pretty good and the toes aren't bad either, everything else is screaming!  This morning I just hoped that that the sheets were tucked in tight at the bottom as I grabbed the top of the sheet with those nine fingertips and tried to pull myself to a sitting position so that I could wince as I swung my legs to the floor and hope that they held me up to stand.  It is a great workout though and I am going back for more this morning.  I managed to finish a few things the last couple of days.  This picnic cooler has been hanging around the basement for a few months, just needed the tag and the handle wrapped and off to the attic to add to the Open House invento...

or How many sewing machines have I owned...and wore out?   First there was my mother's machine.  I gave it quite a work out and it is still my favorite to date.  An old brown Singer that was quite the workhorse, sewing through blue jeans and wedding gowns with ease.  Next came the JC Penney machine that my Mom and Dad bought for me for graduation, nice machine, lots of fancy stitches, great buttonholer , would not sew through a pair of jeans though. That machine wore out somewhere in the late 80's.  It finally was not going to sew any more play clothes, Easter dresses, or Halloween costumes.  Then came another Singer, not a very expensive one, times were a little tougher and a basic machine was all I could afford.  That one finally gave up a few years ago and dear hubby bought a nice Brother machine for me.  Lots of fancy digital stitches, a really easy buttonholer and of course, it would not sew through denim. And then the killer, m...