{burlap and ruffles}

I am a lover of {pillows}. Toss pillows, small or large are generally an inexpensive way to dress up a sofa, change up a bed or soften a porch swing.




Today I made this luscious beauty!
The added touch of silky {peonies} was such a lovely contrast to the burlap.

Recently I made these two pillows for a friend of mine ... I loved the mix of burlap and muslin, but wanted a pop of something a bit {dressier} for my own pillow ...

... on my newest pillow, the ruffles of shabby white muslin give the flowers so much added punch ...

 ... by extending the burlap over the end on the back side of the pillow and adding long tie closures the pillow has lots of extra {ruffly fluff} at one end ... which I {love} ...

... the floral center of the pillow is bordered with a vintage gauze like trim in a {fold-and-pleat} style ...

... the mix of textures is a great love of mine. The coarse burlap combined with soft muslin and a silky fabric just makes me want to reach out and touch it ...

... one day while I was in a fabric store I grabbed a bunch of this wonderful {silky} material. I am kicking myself for not making a note of what it actually was, because I know it was NOT silk. The price tag alone told me that. I think it may have been some sort of liner material. Whatever it was I love it and I will be hunting for more.

... the burlap was a different color. I usually gravitate to the natural brown color, but this day I found a shade just between brown and green. Not quite olive. It was lighter, interesting ...

... I am thinking of making a few more pillows similar to this to coordinate. They would make a beautiful {trio} on the sofa ... maybe one or two for the loveseat as well ...

... I used a candle to melt the edges of my {peonies} ...

... I love the way it makes some flowers darker and a bit shinier on the edges. It gives them character, much as you would see in nature ...

... one thing that I didn't really love about this project - sewing with burlap on my newish sewing machine. Those little hairs and loose weave make for quite a mess! 

... enjoy !

{ I will be linking this up to some great parties here}

{A is for Apron}

     I have been working the last few nights to get some things ready for the holidays and the Etsy Shoppe and I am so excited to finally share a few photos with you!

Farmhouse style is one of my favorites and no matter what I create or what fashion dictates, I seem to come back to it, again and again...

...I love the fresh and funky feel of whitewashed porches, chippy rocking chairs and well worn aprons...all those years on my grandparents dairy farm in Wisconsin left me with fond memories of these and other farmhouse style lovies....

A if for {Apron}...a sweet and simple two 

pocket apron that speaks of days gone by...

B is for {Buttons}...vintage looking calico prints 

make these loop back buttons super charming...

 

 C is for {Cards}...Farmhouse style note cards complete with 

ruffles, stitching and sweet, sweet peonies.

{sneak peek}

 The holiday are fast approaching and so is the hour when I will bring out the lights and the tree and all the festive goodies that bring a smile to my face...

...I seem to get in a super creative mood at this time of year, and this season is no exception. I have had so little time during the day, with school, work and trips to the hospital, BUT, I do have my nights...

...here is just a {sneak peek} of what I have been working on for my Etsy Shoppe. Stay tuned for more yumminess!

{day 4 . a gauzy ruffled wool pouch}

Here I am with another project using this beautiful {inky vintage gauze trim}...

... and as adorable as I think it is, I must preclude this post with a confession. I love this little pouch because it's style closely resembles the beautiful little bags made by my friend, Roben-Marie over at Every Life Has A Story. She always creates the most beautiful bags and journals. I love everything she does...

...so while I did not start out this little bag thinking that it would look like one of hers, it just took a turn somewhere along the way because that is my favorite style.

 I was actually practicing a little sewing and one thing led to the next...

 ...I even remembered to line the bag - well half of the bag. Yes, you heard me right. I only made enough liner for one half of the bag...don't ask, because I just don't know!

 ...hence, the practice pouch.

 I used some hand dyed wool I had leftover from a recent pillow project, and added three yummy rows of that sweet and simple {vintage hand dyed trim} that I have been featuring in my etsy shoppe, all week long.

 I layered on a ruffled silk flower I made with a center that I created using leftover dyed muslin.

 I did a little free form stitching {love it} on the front panel of the wool...

 added some leaves, a vintage button, and some french knots tied with some vintage baker's twine I had in my stash...I used another piece of the {peony vintage dyed gauze trim}to create a tie. I use this to wrap around the button for a casual closure to the pouch.

 More {vintage gauze} in that delicious {peony color} was used as a lip on the pouch, for the finishing trim. While digging in my treasure trove of old thread, I found some pink silk that was actually in great condition...Love it!

 Lovely photograph showing the top panel of this little pouch lined...bottom panel NOT lined...

You can also see that my stitching is not perfect, but it is okay. I like the "timeworn" look.

{that is what I like to call it when I can't sew so great - "timeworn!"}

 

A hand dyed piece of muslin, in pale mustard adorns the bottom back panel. I hand stamped it with a stamp that I actually carved at a recent retreat with friends. I LOVE IT!

 

...so it is not a perfect pouch, but a practice pouch...and I think it is super sweet!

The look of it is just what I wanted...my daughter is already asking for it for her birthday!

That made me feel pretty good...half liner and all!

And as always, if you make a project with any of the new {vintage inky gauze trim}

from the etsy shoppe I would love to see a photograph! I will even post it here!