Exorcism Needed??

Ok guys….my husband thinks I have lost it! He has threatened an exorcism! My children have disowned me. My parents refuse to comment. All because I have apparently committed the unforgivable sin...I have started listening to country music……..There! I said it! It is now out in the open!! Don’t judge me! You see.....I have been under a LOT of stress lately and I NEED an outlet! I have found that if I put the radio on the Classic Country Station, I can sing at the top of my lungs with the greats like, Waylon or Willie or maybe George or Patsy or belting it out with the likes of Kenny, Johnny and June or Charley, Roy, Conway and Eddie!! I’m tellin’ you people, It is the best stress relief!! So, for all of you who are stressed out, worried about the economy, your kids, your job, your spouse or what ever it is that's troublin' your sweet little mind, I thought perhaps you needed a little country in YOUR life today!! Soooo.....wherever you are right now....turn up the volume and let the stress relief begin!! C’MON you KNOW you WANT to sing along!! Go for it!


No need to thank me....everyone could use a little Waylon and Willie in their life!
or....if these guys aren't to your liking....try something a little more "classic"



I'm really diggin' that spiffy outfit of hers!! Perhaps this little seamstress (ha!) will have to whip one of those getups out for rodeo this year!!! hahaha!

Amy Butler's Wide Leg Lounge Pants Vintage 70's Style!

I ab-SO-lutely LOVE me some Amy Butler!! I headed out to Barnes and Noble and picked up her book "In Stitches" on Friday.


BOY HOWDY am I glad I did!! I have been hording a nice sized little stash of vintage 70's sheets and pillowcases. (perhaps you may have seen the apron I made from one of them here??) Well...one of those fun little sheets just became my new "lounge pants", using the pattern included in the book! I lived in them all weekend!!!! Can't wait to make more!

Upcycled Pillowcases

In my previous post "Fun Weekend Project" I promised I would show you some of the other crafty ways to UPcycle a pillowcase. Sooo....here are a few I found.

Check out this super cute bag made by the Farm Chicks

Calamity Kim made these precious drawstring bags that totally put my little guys to shame!!


or this cute bag fromburdastyle.com-I am totally in love with this website! Open source sewing what a great concept! If you are a newbie like me it's a great place to find tutorials and there are lots of free patterns too! (FREE!! That's one of my favorite words!)

or here's another gem! also from burdastyle.com

or check out pillowcase nightgown

or this apron at recycleyourday.com

or this dress at the Red Instead blog....and it comes with instructions!

how about these "lounge pants" for little girls from Jane's Apron? LOVEEEE IT!

or a skirt from DIYlife

or how cute is this one???? from Bella Dia???

ok....just one more, super cute one from craftlog

Wonderful Weekend!

What a GREAT birthday weekend!!!
My sweet Hubs took me to the BIG fabric store in downtown Houston.
We are talking 30,000 square feet of fabric!!
I was in complete AWE! I wanted to look at all of it, touch all of it, take all of it home!!

Didn't take me long to hunt down the Amy Butler fabrics! I love her stuff!!

If you've never heard of her check her out at amybutlerdesign.com

I just love her designs!



a few of those beauties came home with me!!! Yay for Birthdays!!!!

As if that wasn't already a FULL day!!...we decided to stop by Old Town Spring for lunch on our way back home!!

We had the most enormous chicken fried steaks I have EVER seen from a historic spot called Wunsche Bros!! (Calories don't count on Birthday weekends...right?)


We had a great time walking around and shopping a bit!! Wow...it is hard to come back to the ole 9-5er after a fun weekend like that!!!

Happy Monday to all!

p.s. thanks ladies for all of the wonderful birthday wishes! **blushes* Ya'll made me feel VERY special!!

39

39 years ago today, a baby girl was born in a hospital in Houston, Texas. When the doctors announced her birth to her mother, the mother quickly replied, “No, it couldn’t be my baby, I’m sure I just had another boy”. However, after some convincing the mother was elated to find out that her hopes for a girl REALLY had come true. I believe they described that baby as a “butterball” hmmmm….somethings haven’t changed!
Today, I celebrate 39 (mostly) wonderful years on this earth.

A big ole shout out to my Daddy God for all of the lessons learned, experiences lived and blessings you have showered on me!!!

A Letter of Thanks

A letter of Thanks to my Husband-the man who’s voice makes all of heaven stop and listen, whose heart is a rare find in this world, whose love is fierce and his loyalty unmatched.

Thank you sweetheart, for all of the sacrifices, both great and small, that you make for me. I am so grateful for the dishes washed, trash taken out, for the hot coffee waiting when I open my eyes in the morning, for the “straightened” sheets when I’m ready for bed, for the sweet kiss goodbye in the morning and the huge hugs that mark our greetings in the afternoon, for the stolen moments of your sweet touch, for the times I’ve caught you watching me sleep, for taking the dog out when I’m scared of the dark, for saving this damsel in distress from the crazy raccoon that has taken up residence on our porch. Thank you for the countless hours you spend at work to bring home the bacon! Have I ever told you how thankful I am to have found a man with such a tremendous heart as yours? Never before have I met someone so strong and yet so tender. I absolutely love the way you can always find “just” the right card that will make me cry! How do you do that? Thank you for the extra money found on my car seat on the mornings when you know I have spent way more than I should have. For putting up with that little dog who always wedges himself between us, for patiently listening to my rants about nothing at all. For all of the long “dream weaving” sessions…..there’s nothing I love more than planning and dreaming about our future together……well except maybe living today with you. Yes, today….will all of its disappointments, heartaches, financial stress, and all of the other junk…..with you here it is not only bearable but somehow, in some crazy way, enjoyable!! Thank you baby!

Fun Weekend Project

I saw this tutorial for how to make a pillowcase purse on marthastewart.com and couldn't wait to try it!!

Here is my version:


I was inspired to try applique after finding this tutorial on Sewing Chick's Blog....Loved the cupcake and HAD to try my hand at it!!


While at the fabric store I spotted this FAB cow print in the scrap bin and knew I wanted to do something with it!! Here's my "something":



I have found tons of articles on how to "upcycle" a pillowcase! I will share more soon!!

Santa = Sewing Machine!

Apparently Santa had LOTS of requests for Sewing Machines this year!!! My super-de-duper sweet niece, Sydney received this A-DOR-able Barbie Sewing Machine for Christmas. How could I resist when she asked, "Aunt Tracey, **bats eyelashes** can I come over your house to learn how to sew?" To which I replied "Of course you can!!" I didn't have the heart to tell her that I don't know what in the heck I am doing either!
I will say this for the people over at the Barbie camp, their machine really humms!! We had a fun time making a pillow for her room.


Look at that concentration!!

I'm kinda jealous that it's pink!! I want a pink sewing machine!!!!


And here is the finished product!! Syd...you are quite the little seamstress!!!!


I have successfully spread my Yo-Yo obsession to the next generation!!! YAY!!

Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

What a FUN LONG WEEKEND!! I am having a blast with the new sewing machine!!! Check out these beautiful aprons I made for the girls who came out to help make tamales on New Years Day! I found inspiration for these at Lipstick and Laundry and also Whoopsie Daisies Days at and then somewhere along the way, I said forget pillowcases!! and started designing them myself!! It is alot more fun to think something up, use fabric that inspires you and then VOILA CREATE IT!!
Did you spy a little skull and crossbone in there?? Yep! made that one for the "rebel" sis in law!!!

I have a new addiction to yo-yo's!!! I bought these "Clover" YoYo makers at the craft store and they are soooo much fun!!!





Sadly, I have no pictures of our wonderful tamales, I was tooo busy running around like a chicken with my head cut off!!! But, they turned out wonderful and I am sure we all gained lb's after that night!! I followed the recipes from Son of the South and recommend them to anyone who wants to attempt tamale making!!
Monica, Michelle and Sam...see what you missed!!!