Monday, February 1, 2010

Snow Days

As I ready myself to return to school after yet another snow break, I can't go back to grading until I share my excitement about how I've been spending my snow days! I shouldn't be happy about our breaks, as each snow day is one less day between the end of school and our wedding (we had three weeks, but now we're down to 10 days, eek!) However, I'm choosing to make the most of my time now; no use complaining! So, here's what I've been up to:

My wonderful fiance gave me a sewing machine for Christmas, and his sweet mother outfitted me with a sewing kit, scissors, thread, etc. Aren't they beautiful? Now, these materials have taken up permanent residence on my dining table:
I'm even more thankful for their coordinated thoughtfulness, as these have been the perfect tools to keep me busy while I (still) can't drive myself anywhere. So, I set about searching the internet, scouring for free patterns, and I came across this great website for "people who sew," BurdaStyle.com. Here is the (free!) inspiration picture I found:
The Charlie bag is a re-usable grocery bag. I love the idea of having a cute grocery bag, because I think the cute-ness will help me remember to take the bag with me when I do my grocery shopping. Btw, did you know petroleum and natural gas, neither cheap for our economy nor renewable, are used to create the plastic bags we usually use? I had no idea. I'm no hippie (even though John L. would beg to differ), but I believe that every little bit helps! So, I tackled this cute grocery bag project, and here's my first try:
I'm quite proud of my initial try at this pattern, but all too late I realized this bag might be more than I could handle. The thick canvas and the lining turned out to be too much for my new machine, and I broke not one, but two (!) needles on my machine. Oh dear! So, I backed off a bit, and I'm proud to reveal my second bag of the snow break:
This simple bag restored my confidence, so I took it a bit farther, mimicking a bag I bought a few years ago. The result?
And I feel like I'm back on track! So, again, I'm thankful to my chauffeurs, John & Cara, for taking me on a fabric-trek today. We came up with some fabulous finds! So, here is a taste of things to come:
Little brother, and all other B-ville friends, please note the purple and gold that seems to continually find its way into various areas of my life!

Even in the midst of this recent crummy weather and continued no driving, I'm so reminded of my blessings. I'm thankful to my wonderful fiance for driving up and back yesterday to surprise me and get me out of the house for the afternoon! I'm thankful for Cara & John for interrupting their day to take me out again. I'm thankful for my mom and dad for listening to me ramble on as I've needed people to talk to over the last few pent-up days. Of course, the list could go on and on. I'm most thankful to my Lord, for covering me with even more blessings than the thick snow that still covers the ground.

1 comments:

Unknown said...

Love the fabrics! Even more I love they way you express yourself and give God the glory. I love you so much!

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