Pirate Pants Tutorial (a.k.a. bandana Pants)

Here is a quick and dirty tutorial for making summer pants for your kids. Once you have be basic concept you can make these for just about anyone and just about any size. I will give some info on that at the end of the Tute.

My kids love these pants and wear them all summer. I have found that they fit about a large 3T to about a size 10 or so. My 11 (almost 12) year old can still wear hers but she is super skinny.

Materials

2 large bandanas (smaller ones would make pants for a toddler)
Thread.


Construction

1. Place two bandanas right sides together.

2. Fold them in half and just out a J shaped piece from one outside corner. The J size I use for most children is about 3" by 9". I came up with that number by measuring their crotch from the top of their bum to their belly button and then dividing that number in half and added a couple of inches. I placed the measuring tape on the fabric in a J shape and evened it up and decided that was my J shape. (sorry not very scientific but it works for me).

I had a little pirate waiting for the pants. Tutorials take oh so long when you are 6 and are waiting for some hot new pants to run around in.

3. Take each leg piece now and fold it in half with right sides together and sew up the inside seams. Since the bandanas are already hemmed you just need to make sure you keep that edge even.

4. Turn one leg right side out and slip it "inside" the other leg. Stitch the crotch seam.



5. Turn down the waist about 1 1/2" and press. Sew a casing 1" from the outside edge. Leave an opening to run the elastic in. Sew another casing 1/2" from top edge leaving a hole for the elastic in the same place as the first. Run two pieces of elastic through and secure them and finish off the seam. (measure around the waist and cut the elastic to fit. You can "test the elastic first around them and see how snug you want it.)



You are done!!! One Happy Pirate. These shorts will fit from mid calf to the knee depending on how tall your child is. They are long pants for my 3 year old and shorts for my 11 year old.

You can also make these pants with just fabric if you don't have bandannas. Two fat quarters make pants for a little kid. You can also make these for larger people by using yardage. You want to measure around the widest part and divide that by 2 and add four or five inches. That is how wide each piece of fabric needs to be to go around the waist, hips and legs of a larger person.
Play with the measurements and see what you come up with. You will need to finish the top edge of the pants with a zig-zag or serger and will have to help the pants.

Have fun and please post your pictures in the " Sewing with Mama Byrd Tutorials" flickr group.

Neapolitan Skirt PDF Ready

It's Done!!! Can you tell I am excited?!

The PDF file pattern is finished and ready for sale at my Etsy Shop.

My Byrd Nest

I have also finished up some skirts that are for sale at the shop right now.

Let's Bake a Sunshine Cake

We have had an exceptionally wet spring this year here in MO.



We had almost 3 weeks of rainy weather and very little sunshine. So last week we decided to bake a Sunshine cake to encourage the sun to come out so we can work outside in the garden.
I occasionally go over to Aunt Ruthie's Sugar Pie Farmhouse. I enjoy her music play list. It features songs I heard on old movies growing up or songs my dad used to sing, play or listen to. One of the songs she plays is Sunshine Cake featuring Frank Sinatra with Paula Kelly. Well the words have been stuck in my head and I had to find out if there was a "Sunshine Cake" recipe. Well there is, or I should say are. I found hundreds from vintage cookbooks to Food Network.
A traditional Sunshine cake seems to be type of sponge cake. They all seem to involve Oranges and or lemons. So I searched around and came up with a version we wanted to try and here it is.


Mama Byrd's Sunshine Cake Recipe

6 eggs (farm fresh of course), room temperature
1/2 cup cold water
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp lemon juice
1 1/2 Tbsp orange juice
2 Tbsp orange zest
2 tsp lemon zest
1 1/2 C cake flour, sifted **
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Pre-heat oven to 325* F.
Separate eggs, putting whites in a large mixing bowl and yolks in another large mixing bowl. Beat egg yolks until light and foamy. Slowly add the water. Gradually beat in the sugar, vanilla, lemon and orange juice and zests. Beat until pale and thick in texture (about 7 minutes). Sift flour again with the salt and baking powder. Return to sifter and fold the flour mixture into the egg yolk mixture, sifting in a little at a time.
Beat egg whites until foamy. Add a pinch of salt and the cream of tartar. Beat until they form glossy peaks.
Pour the egg yolk mixture in a thin stream over the entire surface of the egg whites, gently cutting and folding with a rubber spatula. Make sure you have them completely folded in.
Pour into a 10" round tube pan with a removable bottom (angel food cake pan). Be sure to remove air pockets.
Bake for 1 hour.
Invert on a rack and let cool in the pan for 1 1/2 hours.
Remove from pan and Ice.

This cake doesn't need much dressing but here is what we put on ours.

Orange Icing

Powdered sugar
orange juice
orange zest

Sorry I didn't measure this, I never do. I took about 2 cups of powdered sugar, poured a couple of Tbsp. of orange juice in and some finely chopped zest and stirred adding juice if needed until I hand a runny Icing. I drizzled that over the cake .



Enjoy!

** I don't have cake flour, never have and most likely never will. :o) However I do know how to make a good substitute. I mixed 1 1/3 C all purpose flour with 1/4 cup corn starch. It worked just fine.
I also discovered that my baking powder was missing that morning so I made a substitute with 1/2 tsp cream of tartar, 1/4 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp corn starch. It works great too.

The morning after baking the cake my great nieces Gwenny and Renata and Julia came to spend the day. Jeddie has big sisters so he knows that when girls get together they have tea parties. He saw the cake in the kitchen and pointed to it and said that the girls needed a tea party. He helped me set it up and called them in for herbal tea, cucumber sandwiches, Sunshine cake and fresh fruit. I think they had some fun. They all helped fix up a plate to trot over to grandma's house next door.

Neapolitan Skirt

Thanks to a bug my friend Michelle put in my head a few days ago, I came up with a nifty thrifty, easy peasy skirt pattern to make multi sized, double sided skirts for my girls. The pattern makes skirts from size 6 mos to girls size 14 or larger if you wanted.

Here are the first three I made.


Side 1


Side 2

I am working up the instructions this weekend with illustrations and am seeking out some handy dandy pattern testers to see if someone else can follow my instructions.
It really is so simple to make, just 3 or 4 steps and you have a lovey, sturdy, double sided skirt with no hem. I really hate sewing hems and gathering.

I would love to hear what you think! Please leave a comment.


*** Edited*****
The Neapolitan Skirt Pattern is for sale in my Etsy Shops Here and Here.

Tessa Bloomers and Matching Bag Giveaway!!!

The lovely ladies at Marie-Madeline Studios are giving away a pair of their new Tessa Bloomers and a matching bag.

You just have to go to their blog and follow their directions to leave a post and get counted. (be sure to mention that you came from here and that Lucy sent you so I can get an extra point.) :o)
You can also buy this pattern at their Etsy Shop.

Busy Bee Club Apron Swap

I will not be running a new swap here until June. If you are looking for another swap to join you can BUZZ on over to the Sassy/Flirty Apron Swap Blog and join Lucy and Shawnee in the Busy Bee Club Garden Apron Swap Club.

Green - Jeans Apron - Tutorial

Yes I have another jeans apron tutorial. This one is by request of my 13 year old son. He wanted a new apron. It had to be durable and boy friendly. So here is yet another Jeans Apron tutorial. Yes I know that make 4 of them now.
I very much believe in the Depression Era adage of -
"Use it up,
Wear it out,
Make it do,
And Do without."
My mother had this hanging on the wall of our home when I was growing up. I love writing tutorial for re purposing found objects.
Well on to the tutorial.

Materials List

1 pair of old Jeans.
Straps - can be heavy twill tape, wide ribbon, fabric sewn, or even left over strips from the jeans.
Snaps, buttons, or something to make it it adjustable.
Thread


Sewing Instructions

Take the jeans and cut them off at the top of the leg. (just below all the pockets. Save the pockets for the pockets on your apron.

Cut the leg of the pants open along the outside seam or the one that is not the flat fell seam. What is that? Here is a picture of the flat fell seam. DON"T CUT THAT ONE.


Lay this leg out flat on your cutting surface. The cuff or bottom of the pant leg will be the top of your apron. For an adult or large child size apron, you will want to use as much of the length of the leg as possible. For a child's apron you can measure down from the hem of the leg how far you want the apron to be long.

You will notice if you are using the whole pant leg that the middle seam of the leg will not lie flat. Where the seam meets the crotch of the pants it is tapered and usually I just cut above it so I don't have to deal with it. Well this time I wanted a little more length to the apron and since they are short legged jeans, I had to use that bit of the pants. So I cut the seam a few inches up until it would lie flat.

Be sure to cut the side that goes under the seam.

Then slide one cut side under the seam so that the piece of fabric will lay flat. pin in place.


Stitch it in place, following the stitching lines of the jeans' seam.

I use gray or light blue thread when sewing on jeans because it becomes invisible. That way you can stitch right over existing seams and it doesn't show at all.

Trim the extra fabric.

Now you will want to trim up the apron.

You will find that one side of the pant leg is wider than the other. I try to even them up.

Next you will want to add an arm curve to the bib of the apron.

I cut my "J" shape at about 2 inches by about 8 inches. For yourself you can hold it up to yourself and see where you want it to hit you.

You could stop here but we wanted an apron that wrapped farther around. So we took the other leg of the jeans and cut it open on both seams giving me two pieces. I cut two equal pieces to fit the side of the apron front. The length and width were determined by the front I had already prepared and the width of the pant leg I was using.


Sew the side pieces in place. I finished this seam off on the serger so it wouldn't ravel. I do recommend at least finishing it with a zigzag stitch.


For the pocket of the apron I cut off one of the hip pockets of the jeans I used. I cut around the outside edge of the pockets and then cut off the inside fabric as well but left the pocket seams intact. I placed the pocket where I wanted it and stitched it in place with gray thread. I followed the stitching on the pocket seam. Again my stitching was invisible.

Now you will want to finish off the seams of this apron. Because this is for my son and he wants to wear it out in the woods while digging around and exploring the pond I chose not to spend too much time fussing about the outside edge. I stitched around the whole edge of the apron with a 1/2 inch seam allowance. I then clipped all but the top seam with my scissors.

Then I washed and dried the apron to "rag" the edge.
You could also finish of the edges with bias binding tape that you purchase from the store or make yourself. You can also fold the edges under but be warned that this gets very bulky with jeans.
For the ties I stitched two lengths of heavy twill tape at the shoulder and crossed them over the back.

Because this apron is for my growing boy I figured I had better make it adjustable. So I put snaps at the back corners of the apron and on the bottom edges of the straps.


If you are making this apron for yourself or someone that is not likely to grown anymore, you can just stitch the straps in place. I chose this style of straps because there is no tying and you can just slip it over your head and are ready to go.
If you don't have snaps you can sew a button hole in the apron and sew buttons on the straps.
If you prefer traditional ties you can sew ties at the neck and the corners of the apron sides and tie the traditionally. This IS your apron so make it the way you like.

Here is my finished apron.

You can doll the apron up with some rick-rack or a ruffle of fabulous fabric or a colorful patch to cover some hole in the jeans. :o) I can't wait to see what varriations you come up with.

Suzi Homemaker Apron Giveaway

The fabulous ladies at Suzi Homeaker AU are sponsoring a Hostess Apron Giveaway at Sassy Apron Swap.

You get entries by leaving comments and it is open to Everyone. So go check it out. You have till Tuesday, April 21.



They create very HOT vintage Aprons.

Happy Easters

Happy Easter

To all my peeps.

From my little peeps.

Marilyn's Oatmeal Cake - Birthday Post

My oldest boy turned 13 this week. I have to say the thing I love most about my boy is his simplicity. He loves simple things. He didn't ask for anything for his birthday. He got some money and wanted to go to the flea market to find some old treasures. He had a ball just looking at old junk and finding "the groovy" in it. When I pressed him for something he wanted he said that a jar of pickles all to himself would be about the coolest thing ever. (he has 4 younger siblings and the thought of possession of food only for himself was pretty tempting). So his sisters got him a jar of pickles and promises not to snitch them, and a jar of Nutella all to himself. He thought that was a real treat.
That is what I mean the boy loves the simple life. Nothing makes him happier that free time out in the woods in our backyard. We asked him what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday and all he said was that he wanted an apple pie. So his little sister made him one. We did get out of him that he does like the oatmeal cake recipe I got from my mom. So we made that. Here is the fabulous cake recipe. It has to date back to at least the 1950's if not before. It is pretty fabulous.

Marilyn's Oatmeal Cake


(You know when you find an old recipe that looks like this, you have found a real treasure. Recipes only look that beat up when they have been made about 1000 times.)


Pour 1 1/2 cup boiling water over
1 cup oatmeal
Let stand

Cream and add to cooled oatmeal
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs

Mix well.
Blend in:
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Pour into a greased pan and bake at 375 deg. F for 35 minutes.

Frosting:
Mix:
6 Tbsp Butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup canned milk (any milk will do, even cream)
1/2 tsp vanilla
Cook till thick (10 minutes) and add 1/2 cup coconut and 1/2 cup nuts. Beat until it can be spread.

(I followed those directions and it separated on me and the butter came out, so I added about 3/4 cup powdered sugar and it fluffed up into the yummiest frosting ever. )

(I also increased the amount of the nuts and coconut to 1 cup each)

Gock's Frocks Giveaway

If you don't know about Gock's Frocks you have been missing out!!! Kristen of Gock's Frocks is a very talented clothing designer. She artfully uses the many bold and beautiful fabrics available now to create unique children's clothing (and now adult skirts too!). My friends Vea, Jill and Michelle put me onto her site months ago. Her dresses inspired the gifts I made for my three girls this Christmas. Her color use is so exciting.

Anyway she is having a give away open now to April 13th. She will pick three lucky winners. :o) So run on over there and check out her blog and her two etsy shops,
Gock's Frocks and Betty's Closet.

Fintess Challenge

Ok so it is now the end of March. What happened to my New Years resolution to lose 30 pounds by now?? What ever!
Well my friend Shawnee told me about the fitness challenge over at Abby's A Feathered Nest. She has started a Fitness challenge instead of an Apron Swap. What a fabulous idea. :o) I would love to drop those 30+ pounds so I could wear the new apron patterns I have just cooked up without having to size MY OWN patterns up to fit ME. I just made the cutest blue apron from my Tea for Two apron swap partner and I doesn't fit me! Sad days! I have to adjust the pattern to make myself one. Anyway, if you are interested in playing in Abby's Challenge, she is still taking entrants. You just don't get as much time as the rest of us. :o) Go to her blog and check it out. $$ is involved. Winner takes all.

Lemons

I have been a member of the Four Seasons Quilt Swap for 5 rounds now and have loved it every time. I get so excited about the theme she picks and some up with a dozen or more quilts in my head. Then I get my partner's preferences and my mind goes blank. That happens to me with every apron swap too but I digress.
This round we had to do a monochromatic quilt in the color your partner chose and based on the season they picked. You also had to take into consideration their style preference. That got tricky. I was so excited about this theme and then got hung up with the season thing. It kept pointing me toward something representational. Her color was yellow, her season was summer and her style was NOT whimsical which means (in my mind) cutesy country stuff. Not my thing either so we were good there. Well the summer theme kept me trying to make a picture but to do that you need plenty of contrasts and that is hard to do with one color at least for me it is. So in the end I went with abstract squares, lemons and yellow black and white.

I am not much of a quilter but I really enjoyed this one and wished that I had made one for myself. I usually make two and sent the better one but I was out of time so I just made the one and hoped for the best.
You should go to the FSQS site and check out their flickr group. There are some fantastic quilts in it. Totally fabulous!

What Would Jane Do?

I been on a Jane Eyre kick for several months.

I made it a quest to watch every copy of the movie I could get my hands on and to re-read the book. Don't ask me how many times I have read it. I couldn't count. Well Actually I have only "Read it" once, just now but I have listened to it at least 50 times on tape. I have a nasty reading disability that makes reading rather difficult but not attainable. So, my clever mother figured this out very early in the game and invested I don't know how much money in books on tame at least 30 years ago. She knew that my appetite for literature was way beyond my actual ability. (see she has the same problem and knew what a struggle it was for me and my siblings). So as I plodded my way through Dick and Jane she would dangle the carrot of a fabulous book on tape for me. I remember in third grade that if I read a chapter in Dick and Jane each day, she would let me then have unlimited time the rest of the day to listen to any book I wanted. So that summer I listened to Robinson Crusoe, The Three Musketeers, The Sea Wolf (my favorite by far), Heidi, Swiss Family Robinson, and so many more. I would drink up the books. I am an auditory learner and I just was the happiest kid from then on. Being a clever mother and educator she knew that if she could set my heart of good literature that the desire to read would be there and that I would keep struggling at it till I could become proficient. When I was in Junior High, she bought Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. I was in ecstasy. I listened to them over and over again. I practically had them memorized. I simply fell in love with Jane. Who doesn't? She was the perfect 19th century model of a heroine. She is strong willed but not self centered. She know who she is and doesn't waver. She loves God and knows that he loves her and that this knowledge gives her the strength to do what she knows is right no matter how hard the task. I wanted to be her so bad. She is smart, funny, and humble. I also really enjoyed Mr Rochester. I really loved the fact that they hero and heroine weren't "pretty". I was a little plain myself and could identify with Jane.
If you haven't read the book, do it! You will love it. I have an extra copy now that I just finished and would love to pass it on to someone else to read now. Don't get too excited. It is just a cheap copy I picked up at Wal-mart a million years ago but it has the whole story there and that is what matters.

I spent about 2 months collecting copies of all the movies made of Jane Eyre that I could find. I wanted to share them with you and maybe you will enjoy them too. I always find something to enjoy in each of them. They all catch some part of the book that just makes my heart sing.
If you haven't read the book, Stop here and read it first. The story is so fabulous it is worth the read and difficult language to feel the story for the first time. In reading it as an adult I really wished it had been my first time. It is such an emotional book and I really get into that. I love being transported to someone else's dilemmas and struggles. I wish I hadn't know what was coming next because it would have made the read so much more exiting and gripping. It was still fabulous and Bryan got me the book on CD so you know what I will be listening to over and over as I sew this spring.

Here are the movie versions I could get my hands on and how well I liked each of them.

The Oldest version I could get my hands on was the 1934 film starring Colin Clive as Rochester and Virginia Bruce as Jane. It was an interesting interpretation. Jane finds out about the wife fairly quickly and is pretty upset with Edward and leaves him to work in a soup kitchen. Interesting. He divorces his wife and everyone lives happily ever after. As far as following the story, this one only uses the names but they story is not the same. It was interesting to see. The young Jane is a real pill and the older Jane is a 1930's spit fire. She has enough attitude to spare for all. It was pretty funny to see such a sassy Jane. I wouldn't buy this one but if you have Netflix you can rent it.


The next one I saw the the 1944 version with Orson Wells and Joan Fontaine. I have always liked this version. The girl playing young Jane is simply fabulous. You can't help but love her. I actually like Wells as Rochester. I love to watch his face. Fontaine is not my favorite. She makes Jane always look so pathetic and so much the martyr. Jane had more spunk than Fontain seems to be able to muster. It is worth the watching just because the the filming. The photography in this film is fabulous.


Then I found the 1970 version with George C Scott and Susannah York. I enjoyed this one. I like the interactions between Jane and Rochester. Scott is just a little too old though and York looks really old. She should be 18 and she looks 35. Scott is a very harsh Rochester. I have noticed that problem with a lot of Scott's characters but he does look the part.


The 1973 BBC version with Michael Jayston and Sorcha Cusack was very disappointing. It was really drawn out but not with the story. There is a lot of Rochester brooding and her is really cruel in this version. Not really what you get from the book. I don't recommend this one. I have no desire to ever see it again.


I really love the 1983 version with Timothy Dalton and Zelah Clarke. This is the first version I owned. I love Zelah's portrayal of Jane. I really identified with Jane as a teen and loved the strength portrayed by Zelah. I really enjoyed Dalton's Rochester also. He is a little mean but much better than most. The Bertha Mason on this film is really nasty. She really fits the description from the book. I love it. I really recommend watching this one.


Then comes the 1996 version with Anna Paquin and William Hurt. I love this version too. It is very short but I love to watch Hurt portray Rochester. Rochester has a really tender side. After all, Nature intended him to be a good man and you see that in his performance. I wish this one was longer.


Then next year Samantha Morton and Ciaran Hinds starred in a version of the movie. This one is really short. I was so excited to see that Hinds would play Rochester because he is such an interesting actor and really isn't that good looking at times. I hoped he would be fabulous but I am afraid not. He is volatile and abusive and just totally misses the mark. It left me feeling kinda creepy about the whole story. Morton kinda looks scared through the whole thing. It brings out a very unhealthy relationship between Jane and Rochester that just really wasn't the case. There are some really great aspects of this film but all in all it is very disappointing. Rochester actually throws a fit when Jane leaves him. Not cool.


I have to admit that the last version, 2006 with Toby Stephens Ruth Wilson is my favorite. I love the young Jane, the aunt Reed is fabulously nasty, and Jane is divine. She is the best Jane in MHO. She captures Jane's spirit, her great faith, her sweetness and her strength. I like this Rochester too. You really see his struggle with himself and his battle over what to do. I love the portrayal of the Rivers' home. You don't always get to seem St John, Mary, Diana, and Hannah. They are delightful. We even get Miss Oliver which is even more rare. This version is a real treat. A little racy but a real treat. There are some suggestive scenes when Jan is thinking about Rochester while teaching at Morton. In reading the book it makes me wonder if that is a memory or a dream. In the book she dreams of scenes like that and wakes alone and devastated. One think I didn't like so much was the Bertha Character. She is just plain too good looking and not near crazy enough. In the book Rochester is disgusted by her nasty character and crude behavior before she is completely mad. This version kinda makes you wonder about her. I do love Adele and Mrs Fairfax. They both do a fabulous job and it is great to see Bessy too. I hate it when they leave her out.

I would love to hear from you and what you think of the versions you have seen. I know I have missed a few but I couldn't get my hands on them. Apparently there is a Charlton Heston version in from the 1940's. Holy cow. I would love to see that one. There is also a musical version. I had no idea. (yes I live in a bubble I guess). I don't have access to that one and am not sure I could deal with them all singing. I would love to hear what you think.
I will pick one of my commenters on Friday night and I will pass along my copy of the book for someone else to read.

Hurry Big Fabric Sale!

Run, don't walk, over to Quilt Arts online. They are having a 50% off sale. Yes, that's right ... 50% off all fabric! And all the top designers -- Amy, Joel, Kaffe, Heather, Denyse, Tina, Sandy, and more. Kokka and Japanese fabrics, too. Fat quarters are only $1.25 ... Patterns galore...yup ...all 50% off!
I think I just ordered half their stock so you better hurry over there before it is all gone!

Fabulous!

My friend Jenna of SwapDex has posted an interview this weekend about my swappingness and my fried Shawnee's marvelous swappingness. It was so fun to answer the questions and she got lots of funny info on us. :o) I talk too much!
Anyway to celebrate her birthday Jenna posted an joint interview on us. If you haven't already checked out Swapdex you should. Jenna posts links and write-ups on swaps she finds on the Internet that are WORTH checking out. I always find fabulous swaps to join there. Go check it out!

Oh My Moda

Yes I know I need to be posting pictures of my sewing room but I am up to my eyeballs painting my house. Every free minute of the day is spent painting and painting, papaya Orange, buttercup yellow, pear green, fiesta Chile pink, imperial plum, La Fonda turquoise, and on and on and on. My skin and hair are sporting a rainbow of spots. I have also been battling the worst flue and strep infection I have had in a long time. Thanks to Silver Shield I am back on the mend and painting like crazy to finish up this house.
I am going to post about the room as soon as I have free minute that I am not coughing, painting or swapping something.
In the mean time I wanted you to share a lovely site that I discovered recently and have to share with you. It is fabulous!!!

Go check out Moda Bake Shop.

It is loaded with projects that use their wonderful fabric packs. As some of you know, I occasionally work at my friend's quilt shop when she needs my help. When I first saw the charm packs, layer cakes, and jelly rolls and such I wasn't sure if I liked them but have found them to be more fun than I ever imagined. They give you a wonderfully coordinated scrap bag effect to your project. You can mix and match fabrics from a whole line of fabric without having to buy the whole line of fabric. The sizes are very usable too. Anyway, I am not paid to promote Moda's line or fabric bundles. What I love about these projects is their scrappiness and the ideas they offer to USE UP your fabric stash. (after all remember that when the stash is gone YOU CAN BUY MORE!) I am looking at ways to use up my stash this month to reduce the clutter in my sewing room and here is a quick way to get ideas. Every post is a tutorial or a recipe for something to sustain you while you sew. :o)