Stitchify - Crafts and Fiber Arts Inspiration

Gingerbread mug cookies from Not Martha.

I’ve never made myself a real sweater. Only shrugs and boleros and the like. I think I have to make this paper dolls sweater my first! Love love love it <3 Found here on Ravlery (must be a member to follow link), and here is alternate link to the talented designer’s blog.

Here’s another cute one by the same designer. I’m going to make this one too, in case there is ever an Andyjuliejunior! Find this pattern for purchase on the designer’s blog on Ravelry.

Baby gifts are the best kind. So teeny and quick to make. This weekend I went to a friend’s shower, and she’ll be naming her son Orion. Perfect opportunity for some relevant craftiness. I Googled the constellation and ironed a bunch of Orion pictures onto some onsies using June Tailor Light T-Shirt Transfer paper (which can be found at JoAnn Fabric). It worked like a charm.

I also crocheted a miniature version of my brimmed beanie and embroidered the constellation on it. Super cute. I think the mommy-to-be liked it. She cried (while smiling) when she opened the gift, so I think that is a good sign ;)

If you try to use the June Tailor paper, obey the directions and iron it on a hard surface. Even if your board has hardly any padding - it won’t work. And press hard! Follow these rules and it will turn out great! Oh, that reminds me! I made some shirts last month with this same transfer paper. Some friends of mine joined Andy and me in a walk benefiting the Leukemia Lymphoma Society (you guys freaking RULE!). We all wore matching shirts - except I didn’t put flowers all over the guys’ shirts like I did the girls. I think the guys were happy about that ;)

And tying together the post nicely, here is Hazel - REPRESENTIN’ Stitchify with a For Susan shirt and a Julie-made knit kimono. Hazel rocks!

We got our Truman tables and I LOVE them. Here they are in the living room with our Overstock chairs!

The coffee table with our hand-me-down couch from Andy’s parents. What a hand-me-down, huh!?

You can see our black fireplace glass in this shot. I’ll post a pic of it lit up for you some day. Maybe when I finish knitting our Christmas stockings and hang them up (although there is no mantle so that will be something I’ll have to figure out).

Here are our awesome chairs!!! They are beautiful but very uncomfortable unless you put throw pillows on them. We already owned these teal, suede, down-filled guys from Target and I think they’re a great shape (tall rectangles) for the chairs and actually make them comfy. Our old Ikea rug currently resides under the chair. The jury is still out regarding its fate but I don’t think it looks bad there and I don’t want to buy anything to replace it right now. It’s a bit busy, but we’ll soon be starting a small construction job and I’m hoarding our money until that is over with.

The height of the side table is perfect for the chairs. The wood doesn’t match the chairs exactly, but you cannot tell normally. Obviously this picture was taken with a bright flash. So that’s your first glimpse into our new house with our stuff in it. What do you think?

While we’re not going to be very strict, since we have so much stuff already, we’d like any new pieces of furniture that we bring into the house to be modern (as in Mid-Century, not Contemporary). I have been searching Craigslist and online shops with no luck. Last weekend I visited my family in the DC area, and boy I tell ya - my grandma has exactly the kind of furniture I’m looking for. She has some really awesome teak furniture that she bought in London in the… late 60s? Early 70s? Anyway, it gave me a good idea of what I should look for.

And wouldn’t you know it, I found some great pieces on the Urban Outfitters website! We have decided to get both the Turman Side Table and the Truman Coffee Table for our living room. We need one more side table, but I didn’t want to go too matchy-matchy. We’ll have to find another table at some point in the future.

We are big fans of the show, Mad Men. If you haven’t seen it, go get if from Blockbuster or from Netflix. It is GREAT. The main characters, Don and Bettie have a gorgeous, tufted headboard that I (and apparently lots of other decor-philes) lust after.

Here it is again. (What a great still. This basically sums up their relationship in the 2nd season.)

And score! Urban Outfitters has a great selection of upholstered headboards for a reasonable price!

I think this one looks the most similar to the Drapers’. Alas, it doesn’t come in light blue. If I bought this style, I would get it in this off-white color. The only other options are darker than I desire. But I don’t think this is the one for us. If we’re going to go for it, we’re going to GO for it, and off-white doesn’t cut it.

Another option is this rectangular headboard. It’s velvet and the right color. But does it have enough oompf?

Next up is a bordered, rectangular, GOLD, silk headboard… Oh me oh my. Isn’t it gorgeous???

And finally, this winged Tide Pool silk headboard. Very sophisticated. This is the most expensive one at $475.

Which one to get… We’re going to think about it for a few days, and I’ll let you know which one comes to live with us. Very excite!

I have been going crazy discovering interior design blogs since we put our offer on our new house, and I’d like to share the best of the best to share with you. I have about 8 or 9 that I really love, so I’m going to break it up between a few posts.

houzz.com

Why I love it: They post multiple “ideabook”s daily, featuring abbreviated vignettes on specific design topics. The coolest thing about this site is that you can get a login ID and add their pictures to your very own ideabook.

Boulevard Interior Design

Why I love it: The author, Kristin, is amazingly talented. I love her Free Advice Fridays, and I would love to get an eDecorating box from her once we settle in.



Little Green Notebook

Why I love it: The designer behind this blog, Jenny, is so creative and innovative. She needs her own HGTV show.

Young House Love

Why I love it: The dynamic couple that runs this blog is so adorable, dedicated, eager, and fun! And prolific! They always have something fresh going on.

What design blogs do you follow?

I have wanted Pottery Barn’s Palmetto Wicker Egg Chair for about a year now, ever since Nicole of Making it Lovely posted about it. It was safely out of my reach at $1300, but now it is $800! I have yet to come up with a new landscape design for the backyard, so I don’t think it would be wise of me to impulsively buy it right now, but you have also been lusting after this, you should go for it! I think it is probably being discontinued, and it is so dang cool looking! And $500 off!

All Vogue Knitting, Knit Simple, Knit.1 and Debbie Bliss patterns are on sale for $2.99 today through Wednesday. Some patterns are over 50% off. Go check it out!

P.S.: Have any readers tried my free hat pattern over at Craftzine?

Right before we moved I finished a Jo Jo Basic Crew Sweater from Louisa Harding’s Natural Knits for Babies and Moms. I haven’t found my button stash since we moved, so I still need to sew them in the right shoulder. This is the second item I’ve made from this book, and I really like Harding’s patterns. I checked this book out from the library, but I think I might end up buying a copy. These seem like patterns you would want to make often. I posted the specs on my Ravelry page (my user name is Stitchify - let’s be friends!).