Happy Holidays!

These bags are a quick and easy way to package homemade baked goods. Gather a few brown paper lunch bags, assorted paints, a sponge, scissor, and a sharpie. With your sharpie, draw several shapes onto a sponge. Using a scissor, cut out the shapes. Remember, it doesn't have to be perfect as we are going for the rustic look. Dip the sponge shapes into the paint(I used acrylics)and stamp to your hearts content. Once the paint has dried(you can speed it up with a blow dryer if you wish), take your sharpie and do a quick outline on some of the shapes, adding squiggles and other dibs and dabs for interest. Place your baked goods into the bag, fold the top over once, punch a couple of holes, thread some ribbon or twine through the holes, add a tag and voila, you're done! Easy peasy. Homemade goodies in a rustic, homemade bag. Perfect!

I wish you and your loved ones a happy, healthy, and safe holiday season. As we say here in the islands, Mele Kalikimaka and Hauoli Makahiki Hou, or Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Aloha!

Money Bouquet

It is late, I'm bleary-eyed and brain dead, and really shouldn't be posting at this hour but I've decided to do it anyway. I guess you can tell that this will either be an incoherent post or a very short one. Or maybe both.

I made this little flower bouquet for my niece for her sixteenth birthday. I dislike giving money in an envelope and always try to find a unique way to present it. I also got her some cute Smashbox lippies. These are a limited edition and are at Sephora for just $29.00(that's a fantastic deal). My niece is just starting to wear makeup and I know that she will have fun with these. Heck, I know I would have fun with these too!



I hope you are doing well and enjoying the holiday season. Take care!

Aloha!

Sweet Angel

Hi everyone! I just found this little wooden angel among the chaos of my sewing room and I thought that I'd share her with you. She is made from various wooden shapes called Woodsies. This brand can usually be found in most craft stores.


I received an email from a friend introducing me to a wonderful Christmas idea just oozing with the true spirit of the season. Do you feel like bringing a smile to the face of a stranger this Christmas? Well, Creating Keepsakes has put together an event called an Ornament Drop. This event is open to anyone who wishes to participate. The general idea is that you will leave a handmade ornament, along with a printed tag(downloaded from their site), in random places for strangers to find. The tag asks the finder of your ornament to log onto the site and post their "found ornament" story. You can read their stories and comments and pictures from participants here. This is such a heartwarming idea, don't you agree?

I hope you all have a fabulous evening.

Aloha!

Darling Miss Effie

Please meet Miss Effie. She hangs out in my sewing room and glares at me every day. She is in charge of quality control and is not afraid to tell me when something doesn't meet her expectations. She's a little bossy, all 3-inches of her. Looking for a little fun and a change of scenery, she's made herself at home in the Christmas tree. She thinks she's cute in her hand painted, lace trimmed frock. I guess I kind of have to agree with her, in a homely kind of way!

Okay, in all seriousness, this little doll has been hanging out in my sewing room for a very long time. Of course, she is a prototype (a.k.a. experiment). And she is ugly. And I'm not sure what to do with her or where to take her. The one thing that I do know is that I love that she is a miniature. At least she has one good thing going for her. hehehehe

I hope you all have a fabulous day. Gotta run. I'm off to the doctor for a follow-up.

Aloha!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, sort of...

I am ashamed to say that I have barely put a dent in my holiday preparations. I readily admit to taking my merry ole time getting to the finish line. Maybe because once I get there, it will mean that Christmas will almost be over. I am trying to savor every precious moment of it that I can. The rain continues to fall (a.k.a. Hawaiian snow) and is expected to be here until late next week. The sound of rain is what I associate with the holiday season anyway. I realize that for most of you it is snow, but for me, it is the rain. I really don't mind. In fact, I actually love it because it relaxes me and makes me feel nice and cozy. I've been drinking loads of hot tea, sitting back, and trying to savor the flavors and scents of the season.

I realize that I am probably making your head spin with my choice of Christmas decor. You are probably scratching your head and asking yourself where all of the handmade items are. My trees haven't had a handmade look for quite a few years. I don't know why, but my taste has changed over the last decade or so. Here is a small tree that is in the hall that separates the dining and living rooms. I love glitz and you will surely find it in this tree. I picked up those delicate pink, white, and gold snowflakes at Harrods while were were in London last year. Unfortunately, due to the lack of room in my suitcase, I had to be very careful about the items that I chose to bring back. These were chosen because they were very compact, non-breakable, and easily transported from city to city.


I believe that I have finally found one of the best light-up mirrors for the price for grooming and applying makeup. It is from Zadro and was purchased through Amazon. I have been looking for a mirror for a very long time and have been reading product reviews like crazy. It arrived a couple of days ago and I love it. On one side is a regular mirror(1X),and on the other side is a 10X mirror which gives you insight to every minute imperfection in your skin. You can see every stray hair that you neglected to pull, and it let's you see exactly how horrifying your pores really are. Trust me, that's a good thing! LOL The best thing about it is that there is no distortion on the 10X side like in some other mirrors. The light is fabulous too. The on/off switch works just like a dimmer, and it can easily take you from bright sunlight to evening lighting in a snap.(The light has been turned off for the photo) Anyway, I guess you can see how excited I am about this mirror.

The large chest that you see in the background is a machinist tool chest that I got last year from Lowes. I found out about this chest through one of the makeup boards that I read. Alright, I confess that I am a real girly girl and this chest holds my makeup. Each drawer is felt lined. I am told that collectors of knives and other small valuable pieces also use these kinds of chests. I've opened the drawers so that you could see how spacious it is and how perfect it is for storing makeup. It is also great for storing your jewelry too.


Are any of you into Lush products? I absolutely adore their bath bombs and bubble bars. I pick up several of their products each time I visit the shopping center. They're so hard to resist! You have to practically pull me out of the store because I can stay in there forever. I also like to go to YouTube and watch the videos that are posted of the bath bombs spinning around as it colors and scents the bath water. It's also fun to see all of the glitter and confetti that are emitted from the bath bombs. I know, I know, I need to get a life, don't I??? LOL


Well, I hope you've all had a wonderful weekend and are ready to take on the hustle and bustle of the coming week. Be good, because Santa will be here soon. Fabric, makeup, and jewelry is so much better than a lump of coal!

Aloha!

Happy With My Progress

Things are finally starting to happen around here. Hallelujah! We (me and hubby) left for the shopping mall yesterday morning at 9:30am and returned home last night at 10:00pm. The majority of our shopping has been done. Whew! Close call. Never will I wait to shop this late in the season again!!!

The Christmas tree is up. Most of the ornaments have been hung. Just a few more crystal ornaments to go and it will be complete. Here is a picture of my tree taken early Wednesday morning, sans crystal. As you can see, my tree lacks glitz and shine without them. I will try to snap a new picture once the tree has been completed.


We currently have a really nasty storm passing through the islands. The heavy rain and wind started last night and is expected to continue throughout most of the day. Many areas have been particularly bombarded, my area included. We are currently under flash flood warning, heavy rain, and expecting wind gusts of up to 50mph. Many of our schools have been closed. I love nesting in this kind of weather. I plan to continue my cleaning and organizing, finishing the decorations on the Christmas tree, and most importantly, taking some time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the holiday season.

Aloha!

My hands are itching...

...to make something. Anything. But that is not to be because there are still humongous amounts of cleaning to be done first. So...I dug through some of my storage bins to find these flowers to show to you.





These are the flowers that I pin to the handbags that you see in my photos from my craft fair. They belong to the handbags that were never finished due to lack of time. *grin*

The petals and leaves are made from fabric that have been heat bonded together to add shape and sturdiness and to also keep them from ravelling. They will eventually all have leaves on them like the two pictured above.



Well, I best be lighting a fire under my butt or "okole" as we say here in the islands. The Christmas tree isn't up yet, my house is still in shambles and can you believe that I haven't even unpacked any of my craft things from my last fair?!?!?! Yes, my friends, they are still in my van! *bows head in shame*

Have a super fabulous weekend, everyone.

Aloha!

Assorted rambling...

Have you ever wondered why you continually have the urge to create? I often do. The desire to make things runs deep within me and the feeling never seems to go away. I often ask myself if creativity, or the yearning to create, may be an inherited trait. I assume that I follow in my dad's foot steps because he enjoys making things too. Among many things, he designed and built an enclosed patio and full bathroom and a workshop to hold his collection of tools which included large working areas. He always had a solution to every problem that arose around the house. He fixed everything and anything that was broken. His job as a sheet metal journeyman meant that he built items to precise measurements. Whenever he made anything, it was always perfect.

I guess the purpose of my rambling was because I'd like to show you my thread holder that was made by my dad. I have had it for a very long time and I love it. I can't imagine being without it. It sits on a shelf right above my sewing machine which leaves all my thread at arms reach.





After a year of sewing, my thread holder was getting awfully dusty and full of spent spools so I decided to clean it out and toss a few.



This is my dad. This photo was taken on 7-7-07 on his 77th birthday. See all those sevens!!! If you are "Vegas superstitious," you will understand why we were in Vegas at that time. I celebrated his birthday at Hugo's Cellar in the 4 Queens Hotel in downtown Las Vegas along with my mom, my two sisters, my brother, my nephew and his friend. This trip was very special because all four siblings and my parents were there together. We hadn't been on a trip together since we were young children. By the way, the atmosphere at Hugo's is very old-school Vegas and the service was impeccable and the food was delicious.



Well, gotta run. I've got to finish cleaning my living room because I would like to get my Christmas tree up before hubby returns from California tomorrow.

Take care.

Aloha!

Hi, Long Time No See!

Sorry for the prolonged absence from my blog but I've been busier than a bee on a busy day!

Since I have nothing much to show you except for piles of fabric pieces, I will leave you with a picture of a "prototype" handbag that I made a year or so ago. I am not in love with this design, especially the pieced fabric strip. It sure could use a little bit of regularity in the piecing instead of the odd-sized scrap fabrics that I used. The button placement will be given better thought too. It is what it is, a prototype, and I am sure that many things will change along the way.



For those that are asking about my health...I have been through a flurry of tests and all have come back negative for any serious problems. My Doc's conclusion is that I may have had an asthma attack triggered by an unidentified substance or perhaps I developed an infection such as pneumonia. I will be on maintenance drugs for a very long time since it seems to be stopping whatever it is from ailing me. I am relieved that I am not a gonner as I had believed I was. I guess this means that you are going to be stuck with me for some time to come. *grin* Thank you so much for your concern.

It has been nearly impossible for me to do much blog reading lately (this makes me extremely sad..boo hoo) and I am struggling to answer my emails. I have been spending very little time at the computer. This will soon be rectified in the beginning of December when you will need a crowbar to pry me away from my computer! Until then, please take care and be well.

Aloha!

Colorful Rag Handbag

This tote will be my carry-it-all bag. It certainly is large enough. I think it would make a great beach bag because of the colorful fabrics that I have chosen.

BUT...my rag making days have come to an end. I just got this...

...and I cannot make myself put anything into it that causes a tremendous amount of lint.

I want to address several comments/questions that have been posed to me lately....

Carrie P. asked: "Do you ever sleep? You sure do make a lot."

Carrie, yes I do sleep. Sometimes more than I should. In fact, sometimes this old gal even takes a nap during the day. But, when I'm awake, I work diligently on creating product.

Netter asked: Whoa! How long does it take you to create a batch like that?"

Netter, it is true that I do believe in creating large batches. I always make a single prototype and if I like how it turns out, I create anywhere from 50 to 350 of that same item. I do everything in steps. I methodically do the same work on each piece before moving on to the next step. This saves me a lot of time and I recommend this method to anyone who needs to make more than one of anything. Please be aware that my method could make a sane person go crazy, though. Hehehe!

Sweetiepie commented: "I love your flowers. So many different patterns and colors. I would like to see your fabric stash sometime. I bet it is amazing and huge."

Joyce, my fabric stash isn't as huge as you imagine. I do love fabric and I do confess that I have quite a bit. At the moment, it is extremely unorganized and scattered everywhere. The busier I get, the messier my sewing room gets. I wouldn't think of burning your retina with such awful photos. Maybe sometime in the future when life returns to a slower pace and I have the time to organize it all.

Annemiek commented: "I so wish I could see you at a fair!! I picture you in some kind of colourboost. Please make pics and post them by that time!!

Annemiek, my craft booth needs a serious makeover. I do nothing fancy because I never have the time to be creative as all of my energy is put forth in making product. Believe it or not, I don't have a single photo of my booth at a craft fair. I promise to snap a few this time around.

I continually receive emails asking if it is okay to reproduce my items for personal use or for gift giving. The answer is Yes and Yes! And...you don't even have to ask me for permission to do so. The only restriction is that you DO NOT reproduce any of my items for sale.

On another note, I thought it was hilarious when someone did a google search for "yo yo quilting for dummies" the other day and landed at my blog. Too funny!

I'm still working at a feverish pace to get things done for my fairs. I'm beginning to think that I enjoy the adrenalin rush that this creates and I do admit that I am at my best when working toward a deadline.

Take care, everyone.

Aloha!

I'm Forever Making Flowers

I have a penchant for flowers. Fabric flowers, to be exact. Nothing wrong with the real ones but I'm not in charge of creating those. *grin* So....if you haven't already figured it out, I have an undeniable adoration for fabric flowers and they're popping up everywhere.

These are my Posie Handy Dandy Pincushions. The stem fits into the center of a spool of thread which makes a convenient spot to park your sewing needle.

Flowers of every color and hue.


Sending a shout out to all my bloggy friends. I miss you and I promise to visit soon. (((Hugs)))

Take care.

Aloha!

A Bevy of Handy Dandy Pincushions

Hi!!! I hope you are all doing well. Thank you for the get well wishes. It has been very comforting to know that you have been out there cheering me on. The good news is that I continue to do better and better each day with the help of maintenance medications and am looking forward to feeling at the top of my game very soon. Believe me, I will never take the simple act of breathing for granted again!

I am still as busy as a bee working on craft fair items but it has clearly become evident that I will not have as much inventory as I had planned. I guess I just need to accept that and roll with the punches. There will always be next year, right? LOL

I will leave you with several images of my Handy Dandy Pincushions...






Now I need to go put back and reorganize over a hundred spools of thread. Harumpf!

Have a lovely weekend!

Aloha!

Oh Tooth Fairy, I'm ready for you!

The forces are against me this year. I swear. With craft deadlines soon approaching, my health in shambles, I almost feel as if I'd rather find a cave and hibernate until Spring. I am on a bunch of new medications and have seen my doctor more than I care to (nothing personal, she's fabulous) and it's making my head spin. I might have asthma. I think that may be a good thing because this could also be something much worse. Time will tell. When I am on Prednisone, I do well. As soon as I am weaned off of it, my breathing problems reoccur. I am pushing aside many of my plans to create new products and am trying to finish some of the piles of WIPS that I have had hanging around for a long time. I guess that's a good thing, in a depressing sort of way. *smirk*

Get ready to welcome the Tooth Fairy in style with a heart shaped pillow. They have a loop for hanging on a bed post, a door knob, or a dresser pull. Glass seed beads and a sweet yo-yo posie add a little fru-fru and glitz that every little girl will love.









I can't wait to get back to regular posting and blog reading. I sorely miss it and I miss you all too. Take care and be well.

Aloha!

Fabric Yo-Yo Lollipops

Hello everyone! Hope you're all doing great. I just wanted to pop in to let you know that I'm still alive and kicking, sort of. Over the last week, I have been sick with a cold which ended in a terrible asthma attack. I am on Prednisone and Albuterol and am now on the mend. These problems have really cut into my sewing time and has upped the stress a notch or two. But...I will survive. I always do.

Thank you for all of the great comments and emails of support and encouragement. I'm so sorry that I cannot return comments or emails for a while due to the lack of time. I miss you all and hope to get back to regular blogging in the near future.

I'll leave you with several images of the lollipops that I have been working on. As you can see, I decided to omit the beading due to time constraints and because there are just too many of them to deal with. Sorry for the terrible pictures. I kinda just tossed the lollipops onto the table and snapped away. What ya see is what ya get. LOL







Take care and be well.

Aloha!

Crunch Time

Hello Mr. Crunch. Or should I call you Mr. Time? About this time every year, you rear your ugly head. As predictable as you are, you continue to defeat me year after year. Oh, don't get me wrong. I take full responsibility for your visit but I don't have to like it, do I?

Yes, my friends, I am now in the midst of my annual race for time. My craft shows are right around the corner. The majority of my work should have been done by the second third of the year and that didn't happen. To compensate for this shortfall, I have limited my computer access strictly to the time it takes to drink a cup of coffee and no more. Sorry that I have been so scarce, but times are a gettin' hard and it's only gonna get worse. Let's see, if everything goes as planned, I should have some
free time in early 2009. *Sigh*

Here are several pictures of my flower pins. Unfortunately, they aren't quite pins yet as they lack their felt and pin backings. Oh well, just consider them a work in progress, won't you.




I need to mention a couple of things. I have had several requests for patterns for my products. Unfortunately, because of time constraints, I haven't been able to
return individual comments and emails so I thought that I would address it here. At present, I do not sell my patterns and my products are only sold locally at craft fairs. I may consider changing that sometime in 2009. There are several things that I have been looking into that may make that possible. But for now, please be patient with me. Remember, I live in Hawaii, where the pace is much slower than the rest of the world. Well, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it. LOL

The second thing that I need to mention is that I didn't get to address the receipt of my Welcome To Fall Giveaway. As you all know, Lorraine of Paper Vernissage was the winner and has since received her items. It was a thrill for me to read her response after receiving the parcel of handmade goodies. I believe this is why giving makes me so happy.

Hopefully, I'll be back much sooner than 2009. I guess I'll be seeing you when I see you. Take care, everyone!

Aloha!

We Have A Winner!

The Welcome Fall and Winter Giveaway was such a wonderful experience. The sharing of recipes and the sentiments that went along with them was truly heartwarming. I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did.

With each giveaway comes excitement and hesitation. I am always very excited for the recipient of the giveaway and a little downhearted for those that didn't win. I truly wish that I could send something to everyone, but with the cost of postage from Hawaii, that would be very difficult on my budget. I do want to send my gratitude to all participants. Please check back again because there are going to be more giveaways in the future.

There were a total of 53 eligible comments containing recipes (deleted 3 general chit-chat comments).
Without further ado, and through the help of a random number generator, comment number 21 is the winner.

Please congratulate Lorraine of Paper Vernissage. Since her comment is number 21, she is the winner of my giveaway. If you haven't already stopped by her blog, you definitely need to. She is an artist of paper crafting, a magician, if you will. Her creations are fabulous and inspiring. Lorraine, I will be contacting you through your blog shortly.

I am in desperate need of a blog break to catch up with some sewing. I will be back whenever I have pictures to share with you. Take care everyone!

Aloha!

Welcome, Fall!

Hello everyone. I hope you had a great weekend. Busy doesn't even begin to describe mine. Sometimes I wish that I could just lock myself up in my sewing room and become a recluse for a day. No cooking, no dirty dishes to wash, no laundry to do, no grocery shopping, no house cleaning...the list goes on and on. As you've probably guessed, not much of anything craft or sewing related was accomplished this weekend.

Today is the beginning of Fall and that makes me very happy. I can hardly wait for cooler temperatures. I'm giddy with excitement at the thought of the approaching holiday season. There are only 93 days until Christmas, my friends!

Let's get on with the last day of the giveaway...

I don't think it would be an acceptable giveaway without something sweet to eat. Included will be a box of Hawaiian Host Chocolate Covered Macadamia Nuts and a can of Mauna Loa Glazed Macadamia Nuts.

These are two of my favorite things and it could be yours along with....

This woven heart ornament...


this quilted eyeglass case...


this set of 5 beaded strawberries...


this Violet Posie Handy Dandy Pincushion...


this pale yellow and mint green pin...


this 8-pocket travel jewelry tote...


these flower hairpins...


this ice cream cone ornament with beaded wire hanger...



this pretty Fall sunflower tissue holder...


and this Sunshine Posy handbag.


To be eligible for this giveaway, please share your favorite holiday cookie or dessert recipe along with the reason why it is special to you in my comment section under my post of September 3rd. The giveaway will end today when the clock strikes midnight, EST. A winner will be chosen by random number generator on Tuesday, September 23, 2008.

I hope you all have an awesome day.

Aloha!

T.G.I.F.

I have been feeling a slight nip in the evening air since last week and I'm loving it. After a long hot and humid summer, I'm looking forward to cooler weather. I'm often asked how cold it actually gets in Hawaii. I happen to live in a cooler area and have seen the evening temperatures dip into the upper 40's in the heart of winter. That's bone chilling cold to me. I know, I know, laugh if you want. The only snow that we actually get in the islands is at the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island. When the mercury dips into the 70's, many people start pulling out their winter wear. Okay, laugh again if you want to. Our average temperatures during winter in the daytime is in the upper 70's and the average lows are in the upper 60's. Of course, it varies depending on where you live in the islands. It is currently 65 degrees as I am typing this and my toes are freezing. I'm ready for winter. Bring it on!

This woven fabric heart would make a lovely addition to your holiday decorating. It would also dress up a holiday gift when used as a package tie. The heart measures approx. 4-1/2 inches and is adorned with a sweet little fabric yo-yo posie.


This woven heart ornament could be yours along with...

this quilted eyeglass case...


this set of 5 beaded strawberries...


this Violet Posie Handy Dandy Pincushion...


this pale yellow and mint green pin...


this 8-pocket travel jewelry tote...


these flower hairpins...


this ice cream cone ornament with beaded wire hanger...



this pretty Fall sunflower tissue holder...


and this Sunshine Posy handbag.


To be eligible for this giveaway, please share your favorite holiday cookie or dessert recipe along with the reason why it is special to you in my comment section under my post of September 3rd. You will not be judged by your recipe. The giveaway will end on Monday, September 22, 2008, which also happens to be the first day of Fall. A winner will be chosen by random number generator on Tuesday, September 23, 2008.

There are only 96 days until Christmas, my friends. The days are speeding by and the holidays will be here before you know it. Being prepared takes the stress out of the holidays and leaves you with more free time to spend with your family and friends. Take this time to start making out those lists before the hectic pace sets in. You can do it. I know you can!

Have a glorious weekend.

Aloha!