18 in 2018: October Update

October showed the least amount of progress on my goals of the entire year. I was having fun making Halloween crafts and I went on a trip to Oregon. I didn't think about my goals very much. But I did do a couple things.

Goal #3 - Blogging about my projects from 1994 - 2008

I made blogs posts for three of the four weeks (due to my trip). I'm still reviewing projects from 2001.


Goal #15 - Basic Pattern Drafting

I drafted the skirt pattern and sewed a mock-up from scrap fabric. The skirt fit! It's not something I'll ever wear, but it set me in a good direction. For this skirt, I need to make the patterns shorter, change the shape of the hem, figure out a couple waist finishing solutions, etc. I'm very encouraged.


Goal #16 - Color Theory

I watched several videos on color theory and learned about Adobe's wonderful color site. I also did an overview of my correspondence course. I've decided to give the course concerted effort while my husband is away on a business trip in November.


That's about it ... and will be for the rest of the year because Goals 3 and 16 will go on into next year.

In November I hope to create some Christmas cards and do some more stitching and sewing. Oh, and Christmas crafts. I love to make Christmas crafts! (Don't tell anyone, but I've already made my first one this year!)

One thing this 18 Goals in 2018 challenge has taught me is that I need my goals to be simpler and take less time so that I have plenty of creative energy to develop new ideas as the year unfolds.

Spooky Owl Wreath

This is the final Halloween craft I have planned for this year. The finished product is nothing like I envisioned when I started out. I think this may be even better.

I'd intended to make a wreath base from tree branches in our back yard. Lo and behold, my husband Dale has been johnny-on-the-spot and cleaned them all up as he prepped the yard for winter! So I moved to Plan B, which was finding a grapevine wreath in my stash. This was originally from Dollar Tree. The first thing I did was spray paint it black on both front and back, with two coats of paint.

The four fronds I used (also from Dollar Tree) are covered in glitter -- with a lot of fallout. So I took them outside and sprayed them with hairspray to contain some of the mess. It did a fairly good job, but there was still plenty of glitter to sweep up on the floor and table in my Studio by the end of the day. (It's worth it!)

Once all the components were dry, I began the decorating. I started by making a hanging loop on the back of the wreath from a black chenille stem (pipe cleaner). These were in my stash, left over from the Skeleton Wreath I made earlier.

It took three attempts to attach the fronds to the wreath form in a way that looked pleasing. I ended up cutting the frond "branches" apart, bending them into a slight arch, placing them on the wreath, and attaching them with chenille stems.

All the attempts at placing the fronds made some of the black paint scrape off the wreath. I used a black Sharpie to color in the most egregious spots.

When I hung it on the wall, I liked it, but it looked like it needed something else. I didn't want to add ribbon, because I wanted it to look more spooky than pretty -- even though it's covered in glitter. While I worked today, I was listening to the Audible book A History of Magic. I'd just finished listening to a chapter on Magical Creatures. Owls! I could add an owl!

I Googled images of owl silhouettes and found several good candidates. I settled on this one. I resized the image to approximately 6 inches tall. I printed it. Then pinned it to craft felt and cut it out using small, sharp embroidery scissors to get into the nooks, crannies, feathers, and talons.

Then I took another piece of chenille stem and whip stitched it to the back of the felt owl to give it a little stability and keep it upright. I tucked the owl into the fronds, which are holding him in place.

I put this wreath in our front entryway, flanked by a couple skeletons.

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To recreate this wreath if you have no supplies, it would cost approximately:
$ 1.00  grapevine wreath
$ 4.00  glitter fronds
$ 6.00  spray paint
$ 1.00  hair spray
$ 1.00  chenille stems
$ 1.00  black craft felt
$14.00 TOTAL

Since I had most of the supplies in my stash, it cost me $4.00 for the glitter fronds.

Foam Pumpkins - Part 3

This is the last of the carvable foam pumpkin makeovers that I have planned for this year. This time, the pumpkin is covered in lush velvet (velveteen, really).

I started, once again, from a foam pumpkin from Dollar Tree.

I used this velveteen fabric that I have in my stash. This fabric began its life as a king-size waterbed blanket. I bought it at a yard sale many years ago, gave half of it away, have used it in several projects, and still have a lot left. It worked well in this project because it doesn't ravel when cut and was easy to work with.

I used some scrap paper to approximate the size of fabric strips I'd need to cover the pumpkin from top to bottom, and be convex enough to cover the roundest part of the pumpkin.

Using that pattern, I traced it on the back side of the velveteen fabric with a sharpie, and cut the strips with pinking shears. I needed fourteen of these strips to cover my pumpkin with plenty of overlap.

Then, using two straight pins at each end, I attached the strips to the pumpkin. I started at the top, pulled gently, and then attached the strip to the bottom. Each strip overlapped the previously strip about 1/4 to 1/2 inch.

I wanted to try something different for the top. Instead of using the styrofoam stem that came with the pumpkin, I made my own stem from aluminum foil and polymer clay. (I didn't take any photos while I was experimenting, sorry).

I began by taking aluminum foil and crushing it into a shape that looked something like a pumpkin stem and vine. Next, I conditioned some polymer clay I had in my stash left over from a project from my daughter's wedding. After softening it, I rolled it into a thin layer.

Next I cut it into narrow strips and laid it over the foil armature, smoothing the pieces into place and rubbing them until they adhered to each other. Making the shape and keeping it was a little tricky and called for some patience.

I cured the polymer clay by placing it in a 275 degree oven for 30 minutes. After it cooled, I painted the clay with one coat of white chalk paint (for good coverage). I then applied two coats of an Aztec Gold paint. I didn't really like the result because that gold is rather dull. So I added one coat of Pure Gold paint. That made my stem nice and shiny and gave me the look I was going for.

Finally, I used hot glue to attach the stem to the top of the pumpkin.

Overall, I'm pleased with this piece. I like the technique I used for the stem. I do think the size and the shape of the stem is slightly disproportionate to the pumpkin. It sticks up a bit taller and straighter than it did in my imagination. I think the finished piece makes a pleasant addition to my pumpkin patch.

Welcoming the Trick-or-Treaters

Jeanne came by on Saturday and we laughed all morning while decorating the front porch for Halloween.

This year, instead of a giant spider as our main feature, we decided to create a monster face using craft paper, wrapping paper, printer paper, crepe paper streamers, and giant google eyes. The small purple bats are a new addition to the porch, too.

We covered our "twirler" with a paper towel and cheese cloth, then added goodle eyes on springs to make the ghost a little scarier. He twists in the wind.

Our black cat flying on a broomstick made a reappearance, along with the big black bats. This year, a small purple bat held on to the broom tail as a stowaway.

The tablescape is full of pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns, along with a skull brewing in the kettle. The

jack-o-lantern on the right will be lit on Halloween night.

On the right side of the door, the wreath made of black plastic straws returns with its spiders.

Our new skeleton bones wreath hangs on the door's left.

One of my favorite features this year is our new mangy cat guarding the door. He's cut from craft felt and looks ready to scratch any kid who gets too close.

I do believe we're ready!

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Mangy cat inspired by Greenstar Outdoor Vinyl

Moose on the Loose

While driving home from the grocery store this morning, I came upon two moose chewing the leaves of the cherry trees in the park at the end of our block! I pulled over at a safe distance and used my phone to take these photos and this short video.

This photo shows both moose

This is a close-up of the moose closest to my car

Here's a short video (I don't know how to edit video)

My windshield is still buggy from my trip to Oregon, and I'm not used to making videos, so the quality is bad. But I wanted to catch this!

Skype Time!

I got to spend some time with Julie and Melody via Skype this morning. We hope to make this a semi-weekly event. Melody knows how to say "hi" and "bye" and "sure!" She can play peek-a-boo with me and was surprised that I know the "A, B, C" song.

I get to be caught up with how Julie is doing with her pregnancy.

They're getting ready for Halloween now and they showed me Melody's pirate costume.

The best is seeing Mommy and Melody happy together. This is a screenshot from our session today.

Bird Detail

If I recall correctly, I spotted this bird at the vintage mall painted on the headboard of a bed. I appreciate the coloring and the delicate shapes, especially the frond on which she sits.

The furniture is in rather brittle shape in the shop. The wood appeared dried and the finish was crackled. I was able to clean the painting up and brighten it a bit using my photo editing software. The colors are much more vibrant here than in real life.

At the Olive Garden

I had the opportunity to spend a long weekend with this lovely lady. I drove to Springfield, Oregon to see Jodie and Ken's new home, to drop off a big hammock, and to have a cuddle pile. That done, we organized some boxes, bought matching Levis jean jackets, did some thrift shopping, painted a corner shelf, tidied up her new studio, found a dozen geocaches, and had a lot of laughs.

Then we ended our visit with our traditional meal of Chicken Gnocchi soup, green salad, and bread sticks at the Olive Garden. Our kind server took our picture for us.

Gosh, I love spending time with my daughters!

On my drive over and back I listened to a new-to-me podcast: Harry Potter and the Sacred Text. If you're a Harry Potter fan, as I am, I can highly recommend this podcast. It has an innovative way of digging into the text of each book, one chapter per podcast.

Peacock Feather

This is a photograph of a painting I saw at the vintage mall.

As you can see, it's showing its age. I played with it a bit in my photo editing program to fill in some of the worn spots and give it some vibrancy.

The artist is unknown to me. I wish I could paint like that. But since I can't, I'll use what photo editing skills I have to create my modified version of this lovely artist's work.

Wall Tile

I spotted this beautifully detailed wooden wall tile at the vintage mall. It's about and 18 inch square.

Painted Bowl

Another gorgeous find at the vintage mall. This is a detail of a black bowl painted in vivid colors.

Trinket Tray

Jeweled detail on a vintage trinket tray

Fuzzy Pumpkin

I'm at it again, with another handmade pumpkin.

I found this pattern years ago as a freebie on the PatternBee website

I decided to make mine from craft felt in three colors. The main pumpkin is a bright orange. the tops are in rust and tan. I cut out six sections of the pumpkin and hand stitched them together with a running stitch.

Then I turned the pumpkin inside in, gathered up the bottom, and covered it with a small circle of orange felt, stitched in place.  (I neglected to take a photo of that step. Doh!)

Next I filled the pumpkin body with polyester fiberfill, overstuffing it a bit to make it as poofy as possible. I then gathered up the top of the pumpkin with long stitches.

I grabbed some jute twine for the stem. I made a short chain stitch with a piece of it, threaded the beginning tail through the chain to the other end, then inserted the tails through the top star and circle and glued the pieces to the top of the pumpkin over the hole.

Then I stitched all the pieces in place with a buttonhole stitch because it didn't look like the fabric glue was going to hole them very well.

The pumpkin is fairly pliable, so I can squish it and plump it into a pleasing shape. It now resides on the living room mantle with the rest of the pumpkin patch.

Throwback Thursday - 2001 (Part 12)

Here are a few more projects I completed in October and November 2001


Best Witches

This project was stitched from a free chart found on the Waxing Moon website. It's a cute little witches hat surrounded by stars and magical bursts. The chart calls for a couple fibers from Gentle Art, but I didn't have them in my stash, so did some substituting. Instead of using "Soot" for the hat color, I used a DMC variegated (#53) Steel Gray.

And instead of using "Hyacinth" for the words, I used another DMC variegated (#102) Dark Violet. I also used the Steel Gray for the outlining instead of using a stark black. I'm really pleased with the results! I display this piece each Halloween. 

The framing on this piece is noteworthy because it was a new framing method for me. One of the gals in my EGA showed me how to do this method. It involves using a needlepoint canvas frame, some strips of mat board, batting, quite a lot of fabric, and staples. I do like the finished result, but the method is too convoluted to do often.

Here's a current photo of Best Witches

He Loves Me...Loves Me Not

This was a kit I bought at a close-out price from Annie's Attic, I believe. I just liked the concept of this one, it was cute, and the price was right, so I bought it.

This is one of the Button-Ons by True Colors Crafts. It's a square of aida with the edges finished (hemmed) and button holes in each corner. The idea is that you stitch the design, then can use it to embellish a tote bag, sweatshirt, pillow, framed piece, etc. by buttoning the stitchery onto the background. If you stitch more than one of the Button-Ons, you can change out the stitchery each season (or at your whim).

The kit came complete with the buttons and other embellishments, too. Since this was a fairy/angel, the kit came with a button-like face, ribbon for her hair, and curly hair as embellishments.

I decided to finish my Button-On as a pillow. This is a real casual pattern, so I made the pillow out of my husband's old jeans. It's the first time I've made a sofa pillow, too, and was very pleased with the outcome. The pillow was too big to fit comfortably on my scanner, so only I have this (sloppy, pieced-together) scan of the stitchery. 

I took my pillow to my local EGA's Christmas party, just to show it off. One of the gals, Alice, really seemed to take a shine to it. She says she collects angels. Since I stitched this piece with no recipient in mind, I offered the pillow to her. She gave me the best reaction! Really made me happy to give it to her. 

Count Your Blessings

The next two pieces are related. I stitched the same piece twice, once for my dad's cousin and again for my own family. This is a very simple and fun-to-stitch primitive piece from Sisters and Best Friends.

The pattern calls for a combination of DMC floss and Sampler Threads. But I decided to stitch it with fibers from my stash. On my cousin's, I stitched the pumpkins with DMC variegated floss #51, Burnt Orange. On mine, I stitched the pumpkins with blended colors of DMC floss. I like the way both of them turned out.

This is my cousin's piece.

I framed both of these with the same wooden frame/batting/fabric sashing/stapling method that I used on Best Witches. This time I did "double matting" with the fabric in two shades of green. (The framing was still a frustrating experience!) But I do like the way they turned out. Once again, the pieces didn't fit well on my scanner, so you get to see most, but not all, of the framing.

Here's a current photo of the one I stitched for myself. The pumpkins are stitched with blended shades of orange from the DMC floss line. The variations in pumpkin color in mine are not as noticeable as in the one I stitched for my cousin. I display this piece every Autumn.

Pat's Flower Bookmark

My next small project was a bookmark for another of my Quilt Group ladies. She likes pink and flowers, so I found a nice border chart of flowers for her. I changed the chart's flower colors from purples to pinks.

DMC Colors Used:
602
604
987
989
White