My Cosmo Ya'll and Post 200 Giveaway

My girl Jemellia is quite the seamstress and fabric is really her thing. She is hosting a Monthly Bag Challenge using the Amy Butler book Style Stitches.

Having never sewn a bag or used a pattern before, I took a class at the local quilt shop, Quiltworks, with my buddy Leslie using the Amy Butler Birdie Bag pattern on Friday. I chose to use a French General fabric with a bird on it for my first ever sewing project of this kind.

It went so well! I was thrilled with the outcome.

I thought "Oh my gosh, I am good at this!"

And then...

The Cosmo bag... I chose this Dena Fishbein blue with birds, of course, from Hawthorne Threads. Love their website.

Just so you know, Amy lists this as the first bag and calls it easy. I could gouge her eyes out for that. Thank God Leslie had shown me how to do the Birdie bag or I could never have figured out much of this pattern.

That last step was horrible, ridiculous and the wonkiest stitching of all is right there in the handle of the finished product. I am still reeling from the beastly ghastliness of it. Other members of the bag challenge produced some lovely bags and they can be seen in the Flikr group. Not everyone is as surly as me about it!

That's why its called a challenge and thus I am more determined than ever to complete all 12 bags this year but only because Birdie is so cute! And by Birdie I do mean Jemellia.

Giveaway!

This is my 200th post. I would like to celebrate. I feel like shipping out that Cosmo bag but I have as much time in it as it takes to get a Master's Degree, so no. I will however put together a little surprise package of ephemera to one of you, something like what you see above. Please leave a comment here to enter. Entry will close at midnight Thursday, 3 February, 2011. I will announce a winner by random drawing on Friday.

Thank you for coming here!

Little Angry Fairy

This month I completed all my projects from Silver Bella in November. I was not able to finish one thing while there. User error. Class times too short for unknown reasons. And me saying "this class time isn't long enough" didn't help anyone. Not anyone. I see that now...

This is the Caged Fairy class sample by Kerry Lynn Yeary.

My version. I thought I would be a genius at folding wire. Seriously. I thought I would. I was wrong...

The angry little fairy is my daughter. First day of preschool. She was so mad that I wanted a stop and take a picture. So big and bad with her little rabbit and grimace. That rabbit is like 4 inches long. She was so tiny. And angry. Lawdy, I love her so much.

The Junque Journal entry for the class.

Next and final installment is CoCo's class...

2010 In Review

Twenty-Ten was a significant year of struggle and growth for me. In the midst of all the pain and miracles I made a lot of things. I furiously worked it out with my hands. Here, I have selected an item made each month that represents new techniques for my arsenal of art.

In January I completed the Hodge Podge Journal from my Silver Bella 2009 class with Rebecca Sower. It began my love affair with journals.

I made this journal for Holly Abston in February.

This is a collage made in March for Shelley Overholt who had a heart attack in her early 30s. I was moved to make this.

I knitted all year but this was new in April.

These journals were thank you gifts in May to our bankers who brought in dinner for us when we were so beat up from life. They happen to be all ladies and so smart and loving and lovely.

Heather Ales taught me to solder and this is my favorite piece from the year, made in June.

I made so many of these necklaces as gifts throughout the year, this is one from July.

Valances in August from vintage western barkcloth.

In September I made this case for my journal. I made a lot of these cases for gifts last year. Yet another love affair, an amalgam of many techniques.

This upcycled necklace in October was a first at this kind of jewelry collage.

I haven't shown you this I made in November to wear during vendor night at Silver Bella.

I had not made a quilt in years until this one for my husband's grandson. It felt so good just to cut fabric and sew and sew. I appreciate you guys showing so much love to me for this project.

I failed to include any of the things I made for Jemellia in 2010. She received almost one of each of the things above.

Now on to 2011. I start with out with a wonderful win from Jackie's blog Good Grief Girdie. She made this lovely calendar which I will look at and enjoy each day in 2011. Thank you,, Jackie, I admire you so very much.

Thank you for being with me here in 2010. It was a tough year. I made it through because of you, people who have loved me and held me up.

Thank you.