She Wears Her Heart on Her Sleeve

 

Over the weekend, I was wearing one of my "go-to" shirts that I often wear under a sweater or vest. I have several of various colors, but this one is probably the one I wear most often. It's off-white and goes with just about everything. So I was feeling pretty comfortable and was in a I've-got-my-crap-together kind of mood when I looked down at my left sleeve and saw a hole! How'd that get there?

A mouse? A bug? A flirty bra hook in the washing machine? An extra sharp arm hair?

 

To remedy this, I did what any handy girl would do and fixed 'er up.

I embroidered a heart on my sleeve.

 

Which lead me to the meaning of this idiom:

"She wears her heart on her sleeve."

The ever-popular Urban Dictionary defines it as:

to express emotions freely and openly, for all to see.

 

That's me all over. I could never play poker, that's for sure! I've never understood people who keep their emotions all bottled up. Let those babies out and deal with them, I say! Of course, expressing those feelings may sometimes get reactions from people that you don't expect. It also opens you up to getting your feelings hurt easily. Been there, done that.

I like to wear my heart on my sleeve, both literally and figuratively.

It's who I am.

 



Sweet Pouch Swap exchange!

My Sweet Pouch from Trina!

 

Back in early January, a sweet blogger, Ros at SewDelicious,  was offering her third swap for anyone interested in making a pouch and sending it to a selected friend. I got my name in the pool (a bit late, but she took me anyway) and I was paired up with Trina from Winnipeg, Canada! Not only do we both live in frigidly cold winter climates, but we both looove purple! We exchanged a few emails and what we liked and then the sewing happened.

 

Last week, I got my package in the mail and I was (and still am) so tickled with my bag! It's perfect for me with the sewing words in the fabric, the owl which represents the teacher in my, and of course---the purple! We were to fill the bag with sweets from our area and somehow (ooops!), the treats disappeared once my package was opened. Chocolate doesn't last long in this house. :)

 

Bottom of the bag: notice the word "PURPLEST"??? How cute is that?

 

 This is the back side (how did she know I loved chevron?) and the inside which is a lovely floral lavender.

In exchange, I made a bag for Trina and mailed it off to far-away Canada...actually only an 11 hour drive, but still...

Trina loves to knit and sew, so I thought this might help her tote her supplies around. It's got 6 outside pockets, plus strong straps to throw over her shoulder.

Those skeins of yarn can get heavy! I embroidered a { T } near the top to personalize it. That way no one named Wanda would steal it.  

 

Pictures of the back and the inside. I love the way it turned out and so does Trina!

 

This was such a fun swap. I hope to get involved in another one soon.

It's a great way to make a new friend!



Super Bowl Bibs!

Super Bowl Bibs

 

I am not a football fan. I am not a baseball, hockey, tennis, basketball, soccer, or even a ping pong fan. I am a mean tether ball player...at least I was in 6th grade. I do enjoy watching figure skating on TV, too. I guess you could say I am not a sports fan. I am a minority, I know. That's the way it is.

Anyway, yesterday while the Big Game was broadcast all over the world, I was up in my sewing room making a few bibs for a friend of mine. Nancy became a first-time grandma a few months ago and I decided I'd better hop to the bib-making before this little lady was eating with chopsticks on her own! I was in pure bliss as the TV roared below me. Give me a little Pandora and my fabrics and I'm a happy girl. Well, throw in a sewing machine too.

The hardest part for me...also the most fun...is choosing coordinating fabrics. I have quite the stash. Ahem. Let's leave it at that.



Then there's the part where I need to choose a design. Yes, I have quite a collection of those too.

 

 I tried 3 different bird designs til I found one that worked for me. I really like how this one matches the birdies in the fabric.

 

 

 

Notice the yellow ends on the neck edge? Well, those weren't part of the original plan. One of the ends got sewn to the applique, so I had to cut it out and sew on some patches. Does it look like it's supposed to be there?

 

 

 

 

The coordinated backs. These bibs are reversible!

 

 

The final step...sewing on snaps. I used to put a Velcro closing on the bibs, but a few moms said their little stinkers learned quickly how to pull the bib off. So, it's snaps from now on, unless someone requests otherwise.

 

These pretty bibs will go in the mail today to my good friend, Nancy.

I hope she is blessed with many more grandbabies!