Tis the Season to Craft....

Oh my how I love this time of the year!!  I look forward to it all year long with such anticipation.  I so love the smells, the color and especially the crafting!!!  Fall and winter months just seem to naturally hand in hand with sewing, quilting and more.  We are inside more and what better way to spend cooler days than working on crafting projects.

One of my obsessions these days is perusing Pinterest for craft patterns and ideas.  It is just amazing what you can find on there and for me it if just chocked full of inspiration.  I just can't seem to get enough.  Now I have to work on spending more time actually doing things that I learn on there.  ;o)  f you haven't been, you have to go - there is something there for everyone!!

I am trying hard to get back to my embroidery machine - so many wonderful things you can do with these little imagination factories - even with a small one like mine.  One day I hope to be able to add a bigger one or a quilting machine - oh the wonders never cease.

Like most everyone I am working on some quick ideas that I can whip up for Christmas gifts.  I am such a Last Minute Lucy and should have been working on this for months now.  In my defense, one of my boys is getting married in early November and that has overtaken my brain.  Ravelry is another place that I love to haunt and find ideas for gift making.  The site is packed full of knit and crochet patterns and the pictures are more than inspiring.

Another joy is finding simple cloth doll patterns to use for gifts for shelters, etc.  My new favorite site is Dolls and Daydreams!  Her patterns are soft and safe for little ones and easy on old hands like mine.  She also donates dolls to places that need them.  Check her out and your imagination will run wild.

Well I need to get off this blog and do stuff!!  Fall will whiz by and be gone before we know it.  Happy Fall and Crafting!!!

Dog Toy Violence.....Really???

This is little Gingy and he came to live with us at Christmas.  He was a gift for Maddie and BJ.  Yes - those are brains now coming out of the side of his head.  His chipper smile is deceptive because he has taken quite the blow and left to his own resources, he will be stuffless or destuffed in short order.  In the spirit of full disclosure, he does have a squeaker inside his little chest and I am aware that is more than likely the cause of his demise.

But......is there nothing we can do about this dog toy violence that occurs during the night, unprovoked???  I have tried all sorts of little "friends" for my two chewers and even the toughest of tough cannot withstand their quest to commit murder ---- slow tortuous murder.  The poor little toys suffer the loss of body parts - normally the nose or an eye goes first but many times it is a single blow to the head as in this case.  Their toy basket is strewn with parts and pieces of their pets and when all else fails they use the lifeless carcuss for a rowdy game of tug of war.  Does the violence never end for these little souls??

I am on a quest to find a pet for my pets that will not succumb to their torture.  I know there must be a fabric that I can work with to make them a friend that they cannot and will not mercilessly murder.  If you have any ideas or suggestions, I welcome them.  No one around here is admitting to this particular attack but they know I know the truth.

Words in a House.....

This adorable little house was created by Artist Susan Branch whom I love!  Looking at it gave me the idea that I should create something out of words this year.  Not a novel idea but I thought it would be fun.  I have been working on another blog about Thanksgiving - something different to be thankful each day for 365 days.  How wonderful would it be to have a shape made up of the words of thanksgiving.  I surely don't have any of the talent or imagination that Susan Branch has but I may just borrow her idea.  She has another one on her site that is a tea pot full of recipes - just love it.  You can find her at SusanBranch.com.  You won't be disappointed if you visit her site - it is full of wonderful ideas and recipes and colorful artwork that will tickle your brain.  I just can't get enough.  I have one of her Christmas books and it is so worn from my use of it and I keep it out all year long.  So thankful for people like Susan who keep us smiling!  ;o)

Organization.......

Ah Organization - the buzz word for every new year, almost as popular as dieting.  Is it a dirty word?? - does it have to be?  Anyone who knows me knows that I am very organizationally challenged!  I border on being a hoarder and if I didn't live with other people, things would not be pretty.  No this is not my space on the left but a link on Martha Stewart's web site. This is my dream.....my goal - probably not one I will ever reach.....

Soooo each and every year and many times in between, I get very excited about organization.  For me it is the hope of organization - what could be.  I peruse web sites that show beautifully organized rooms, labels, shelves.  I spend hours looking at books and magazines, mark pages, save ideas and I really do attempt at least some of these.  If a magazine has an article on the cover with the word organization in it then I want it.   I try to look at myself as always learning - I will probably never be a very organized person - that is unless there comes a time in my life where I have no possessions at all.  Sad but true, but I try to make the best of this handicap  and I chose to make organization a positive ongoing process which will probably last as long as I draw breath.  Here are a few little things that I have learned that actually work for me without much effort.

• I save shoe boxes (I know more clutter) but if your guy or anyone you know has big feet, the boxes are wide enough to put file folders in them.  You can do so many things with this sturdy staple - cover them with fabric or paper; use them for shelf storage; use them in the kitchen cabinets to hold all sorts of thing to keep your pantry organized and best of all they are free!!!
• I save the little somewhat square tissue boxes after the tissues are all gone --- I know, I know.  Anyway - put an empty one on your dryer and put all of those lint pieces, etc. when you clean out the filter, in there.  When it is full, just chunk it.  Keep one near your sewing machine for all of the loose threads and trash - the uses are endless and when full, then you can throw it away - that is unless you find another use for it.
• Shoe bags - I know this idea is not knew, but they are so useful.  Throw one on the back of every closet door, bedrooms, etc.  I even have one hanging in my laundry area for dog leashes, collars, shampoos, etc.  There are all kinds and some are very pretty.  If the slots are not clear you can have fun labeling them.
• Notebooks - I can't say this enough.  Notebooks should be on the 12 step program for the disorganized!  Buy the kind with a sleeve in the front so that you can customize the covers and they can help you in every area of your life.  I use them for ideas, recipes, web site info, instructions for projects----the possibilities are endless....
• Alpha File Folders - I picked up one of these years ago - it is like a big file folder with sections labeled for the alphabet.  I keep it in my file drawer and when I purge my paper in box, I do a presort into the letters that correspond with the items.  That way I am not so bummed about filing - it can be broken down into small jobs.  These can normally be found at office supply stores - hint:  They will fit into your big shoe box...

I will share more as I can - we can all share and learn together....organization is possible for the organizationally challenged-hoarder type people.