After The Superstorm

After the Big Storm 2012

I am busy checking out things , inside and outside of my house, after the big SuperStorm that hit us yesterday and last night.
We are so lucky, because we have had no damage and we did not lose our power during the storm.   

I spent a lot of time preparing for the arrival of the Frankenstorm.  
I even listened to my mother's advice, and poured water into buckets and containers , and bowls, in all of the bathrooms.  (Water to use for " minimal toilet flushing" if power went out for a loooooong time, and we lost our water source.   

One water stash - for personal use in the bathrooms

As the evening progressed, and the winds kept getting stronger, (they really did roar like a freight train , as we live up on a ridge and get a lot of wind in normal times) , and more pieces from trees began blowing up against our windows and roof, I began to repeat ,in my head,  other advice that my mother had given me for the last few days.....

"Sleep far  away from areas of the house where you have trees that could crash through the house...."

So I got up from watching The Weather Channel, and  actually moved some of my  'valuables '  away from  any windows and walls that could be affected if a tree was blown over.
First up.....   my Viking Topaz sewing machine, of course.

This faces the back yard, where LOTS of  TALL TREES are.  They SWAY and SWAY with the wind!

And  I can see tall trees swaying out of  every skylight !

Then I moved my Ott floor lamp away from that window.   (I really got a good deal on that lamp from JoAnn Fabric!)

My Ott floor lamp is squeezed into our little study.  (Some of the squeezing MIGHT be due to piles of fabric. laying around..... maybe.......

Soon, my Viking Topaz and little Baby Lock were safe on my desk in the study. There are no trees on this side of the house!   (But , it is too small for my husband and I to sleep in here...   and that is not just because there is  a lot fabric in here.  Honest.)

My  Topaz and Baby Lock  are safely  stashed in my study.... no trees on this side of the house!

This morning,  after  moving my sewing machines back into their little spots,   I have been tending to our bird feeders .  One of them got pushed down by  the wind and  the water soaked ground couldn't keep it upright.   I measured over 5.4 inches of rain in my rain gauge on the deck.  I think there was more rain, but many times the wind was blowing rain sideways and it didn't get measured in my gauge.    We have a minor leak in the basement, from the blowing winds of the Nor'Easter,  and lots of tree branches and twigs and limbs in our yard.  But that is all minor.  

We are lucky and thankful to have made it through the storm.  
(I'll be praying for all of the folks who have real problems and losses....)

Can't wait to get sewing again.  I have several projects lined up.

Take care!

I'm off to my sewing room!

Kitchen Towels

Making Kitchen Towels With Ties

I have a dear friend, Rosa, who cooks most of her meals.  She spends a lot of time in her kitchen.  She cooks the most delicious Italian foods, and luckily for me, she invites me to eat  when I go to visit her!

One day, she asked me to shorten up the ties on her aprons... on the section that goes over her head.   That was an easy fix.... I just sewed the strap together, shortening the top loop,  so that it just fit over my head.

She also asked me if I could make any towels that would tie to the door handle on her refrigerator.   

I looked online and found some good tutorials.  Luckily, I knew just where to look for a style that ties to the door handle of the stove.   At my sister's blog , Amy,  of Amy Made That! ,  she showed us how she made her beautiful Stay Put Kitchen Towels  . 

Amy's Stay Put Kitchen Towel

 I like this style for the oven door handle, but wanted to make  ties that would be very durable , so that the  whole towel would stand up  well with lots of washing.
  
After a lot of thinking, I decided to try making fabric ties, similar to the ties I make in the Bow Tucks Tote purses .   
Here is a short description of how to make  skinny fabric ties:

Simply,  cut fabric into 1 1/2  inches by WOF
 Press wrong sides together, lengthwise, so there is a center press line.  Unfold.
Fold in raw side edges  (the short sides) about 1/4 inch, and press.
Fold up raw edge(lower  half) to the center press line, press.
Fold  the other raw edge (upper half) down to the center press line , press.  (Both raw edges meet in the center now.)
Fold these 2 folded -edges together ( on top of each other) , press well and pin.  Sew close to this folded edge.
It is now 1/4 of it's original width, after folding.  And there are no raw edges!

I used the bow ties (in place of the ribbon) to tie the towel to the oven door handle

I used material that had black and white colors, to go in Rosa's kitchen.

 I looked aound further for more ideas on making a towel that would tie to a refrigerator door.  I found a great tutorial at Trey and Lucy.blogspot.com , by  Tanya, that I adapted a little to  meet my needs.

Tanya's:   from Trey and Lucy .blogspot.com   tie-on dish towels

I wanted fabric ties, but decided to make them narrower than Tanya's.  (She uses 9 inches wide.)  I made them like a bow tie, but began with a width of 4 inches of fabric, so that the final tie would be 1 inch wide.

I gathered my towel with a basting stitch, through the middle of the towel  

Then I made my fabric tie...   I stitched a top stitch all around the edges.  It is 1 inch wide.   I pinned the the tie on top of the gathered area. 

Pinned and ready to sew

I used the zig-zag stich, around each edge, and then through the center, for maximum strength

Zig-Zagging the fabric tie onto the gathered towel is the last step!

Tied onto my refrigerator door

It "works" on the oven door, too!

But I like it better on the refrigerator door handle!

 I'll see how Rosa likes these styles of tied kitchen towels, and  then make some more for her.  
Meanwhile, I will look around for some thicker towels, since this seems to work!  
This is an ideal  gift to make for bridal shower and wedding gifts!

Stay  safe and dry during the 'Frankenstorm ,'  friends!

I'm off to my sewing room!

Sunflower Purse

 Sunflower Bow Tucks Purse

This past week I had a fun project to work on. 
My dear friend, Mary, asked me to make a purse for her sweet daughter-in-law.  And Mary requested that I use sunflower fabrics as the main featured fabric. 

I love making things for Mary, because she often says, "You make it like you would make it for yourself. I trust you."  ( Mary is herself extremely gifted as a florist.  You should see her beautiful weddings!)

So I looked around and bought my fabrics that featured sunflowers.  

Harvest Abundance  by Wilmington Prints ; Gold-  Quilter's Linen Print -Sunflower  by Robert Kaufman

I like to use  this  Bow Tucks pattern because I get to pick out at least  3 different fabrics to coordinate , like  a beautiful "mini quilt" .  It is a tote AND a purse, that can change its looks by adding or taking away the  bowed ties at the sides. 

The Bow Tucks Tote Pattern

It is called the Bow Tucks Tote ,  by Penny Sturges.  You can see all of her patterns for bags and purses at   www.QuiltsIllustrated.com.  

This is the pattern of the  very first purse that I ever sewed!  

Inside- I have pockets on both sides.  Lots of pockets with this pattern!

This side has a zippered pocket, too.

I embroidered a K on the outer front pocket

This tote bag/purse will hold a lot of things!   

By adding some  extra length to the handles (I made these 26 inches),  and  not putting on  the side ties, it gives the bag a more modern look.

(My sister, Amy ,of AmyMadeThat!, and I  affectionately call them, "Bow Tox" purses !  I guess that's a joke only a sewer would appreciate! lol  )

Functional AND fun !
I can't wait to see if she enjoys using her new sunflower tote bag!

I'm off to my sewing room!