My friend Heather and I have been friends since we were 3 years old and were born just 4 days apart from each other. This year I made her a fabric book cover for her birthday using Mai’s tutorial. I also embroidered her initials on the front and used one of our favorite fabrics, Echino Bird to Hang linen by Etsuko Furuya. Love!! The only change I made to the pattern was to use a piece of elastic in the back since I didn’t have any cotton tape on hand. I gave it a little tension so it would hold tight to the book cover.
It turned out really well! The only issue I have with it is that when you make something like this you have to have a certain book in mind. Book sizes vary so much that you’re basically making one cover to fit just one book. I cut out the pattern according to Mai’s measurements, but if I make it again I’ll cut it quite a bit bigger. Although, I did manage to find a good book to slip into it to give to Heather :)
Happy Monday everybody! Did you have a good weekend? I did!
So my official birthday is tomorrow, but my husband planned a surprise birthday party for me Saturday night and it was just that–a complete surprise! We had gone out to dinner that night with a friend and her husband and I was expecting the four of us to go back to our house and play some games, but when I stepped in the house and turned the lights on to a living room full of my friends and family it was such a shock! Apparently, Jeremiah had been planning this for the past month and a half and he did such a good job keeping it a secret that I hadn’t caught on at all. Everybody knew about this party except for me, even the waiter at the restaurant we had had dinner at that evening knew! Too funny :)
Anyway, on to my favorite BurdaStyle projects from last week. These are garments that I particularly like and would love to wear myself. I usually just “favorite” them on BurdaStyle, but a couple weeks ago I decided to make it a regular thing to feature them on my blog so I could share the inspiration and applaud the talent of the people who made them!
Enjoy!
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The Petal or Two Dress
by Awhite_carnation101
(this dress is actually for sale)
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Gracie
by bre
(I love that off-center collar and the lining fabric she used!)
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Dress with balloon skirt
by anu22
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Crochet detail Batwing Top
by bluephin
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Jeans that fit!
by elainemay
(Don’t miss her PG-13 blog post where I first heard about these jeans)
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Sky
by PurpleJB99
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Several months ago I bought a few yards of upholstery fabric off Craigslist with the intention of recovering one of our couches, but when I got home I made the sad discovery that it was several yards too short.
What I didn’t realize until now was that I only really need to cover the parts that show. So with that brilliant idea I measured all the fronts and tops of the cushions and I had just enough fabric to cover them!
Here it is mid-process with the three seat cushions completed:
Yeeaahhh, see why I was wanting to recover it? Unfortunately, as with most of my projects, I lost steam about half way through and it’s been languishing in our living room for weeks. It wasn’t until Wednesday night that I finally mustered up the courage to finish it.
And look at the amazing results!
Looks like an entirely new piece of furniture, doesn’t it?!
And while I was at it, I decided to do the other couch, too. Oh what a difference!
Before:
After:
I tell ya, what would we do without Craigslist? ;)
Ok ok, we totally got an all new-to-us living room set and finally got rid of those ugly, disgusting things!! I did save that upholstery fabric, though. That was much too nice to throw away. Ahhh! I now actually enjoy being in my living room. They were Jeremiah’s birthday present to me :) He gives the BEST presents.
Craftzine posted this pic back in November last year and I still get a kick out of it!
rhombus wrap by assemblage
Isn’t this an interesting garment? That neckline is fantastic! Pattern for this wrap is by Ori Ami Knits and can also be found on Ravelry.
I swear, I’ve really got to learn how to knit and I’m tentatively holding onto plans to attend a couple knitting classes at a local fabric store in March.
This pic randomly found on Flickr.
Happy February 1st! (aka 8 more days until my birthday…!!)
Here are my favorites from the last week of BurdStyle projects from its very talented members. Lots of great creations this week!
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Charcoal Melissa Dress
by wzrdreams
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Red & Pink Belted Minna
by MissLivia
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Retro skirt
by Zhew
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must-do corrections
by skwarynia
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“(white) BLACK magic” – of “twinkle sews” by chia wenlan
by lovely_polly
wishes, originally uploaded by i.Anton on flickr
My very first post on this blog was January 29, 2009. So today is my first year anniversary of blogging!
Hard to believe how quickly it’s gone by and not just the blog but my actual life. My birthday is in a couple weeks and I’ll be 25 years old. I think back to when I was 14, so young and naive and wondering what I will be like when I’m 25 and feeling like it’s sooo far away. And yes, sometimes it does feel like it took forever to get here, but at the same time I can still feel exactly how I felt at 14, wondering and wishing, and then look at myself now, older and in some ways much wiser, and I feel a connection to me then and me now. And I feel like I finally made it! I finally grew up.
I’ve been rather introspective lately. I think it’s that 25 year mark (and I think this probably happens to a lot of people my age). I’ve realized just how short life is and how quickly it can pass and I feel a big need to fill it with good decisions. To explore more and learn new things. And that affects the blog and how it’s evolving and changing to reflect my interests. It’s been something I have really enjoyed over the past year.
I thought about hosting a giveaway in celebration of today, but I just haven’t had the time to put anything together for it. I will do one soon, though! As soon as I get my act together :) So stay tuned.
However, in honor of the occasion, I did put together a list of a few of my favorite posts of mine over the past year – enjoy!
- When I learn how to knit, I still want to make these!
- I have yet to finish this dress, but I’m still overly proud of those pockets!
- The beginning of it all…
- I still love going back and looking through these vintage candid photos.
- A fun and relaxing mini vacation to Lake Chelan
- Get your kitty fix!
- Must be comfy, cozy!
- I don’t know how many times I’ve made this dish since discovering it, but it is still soo good!
Do you have a favorite post of mine over the past year? I’d love to know which one!
Have a great weekend, everyone!
~ Erin
Phoenix – 1901 – A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.
I’ve heard of La Blogotheque’s Take Away shows before on Current TV and had been interested in watching it, but unfortunately it was airing around the time when we had to downgrade our cable and we subsequently lost that channel (BOO!!). We’ve been mourning ever since, but I came across the above video on Tralalere the other day and have been playing it nonstop! I should have known that Vimeo would have all the shows. I’m loving all the French! (And if you recognize that song, it might be from a certain car commercial)…
Other Take Away shows that I’ve had on repeat lately:
Phoenix – Lizstomania/One time too many
Sigur Ros – Vio spilum endalaust
Yo la tengo – With a girl like you(Troggs cover)/Our way to fall
Rachel of Elephantine, one of my favorite blogs, is doing a giveaway of a set of her handmade jewelry, you+ me. Aren’t these so delicate and pretty? All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on the post and a winner will be drawn on Saturday, Jan. 30th.
Now that I’m done with the mandatory quilts for a while, my attentions have been veering towards garments. Thus, I have been perusing BurdaStyle a lot more lately and decided to post a few of my favorite projects that I’ve recently found by various BurdaStylians!
I’m working on a dress for myself right now, so hopefully I can get that finished this week and show it off, too…
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Go Sweater Dress
by catchannette
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Veruca Salt Jacket
by Brumby Ramsay (see her great blog post!)
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One Shoulder Evening Dress (includes instructions on how to make it!)
by cloe_venter
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Sencha #1 (a Collette Pattern)
by PrettySweet
