Jul 21, 2002
Quick Newsletter - Summer Ideas and More
Happy weekend to you all!
It's still summer. Yep, it's hot. I'll be heading to Virginia Beach for three days starting tomorrow, so at least I'll be pretending to enjoy the weather!
A friend of mine is retiring and I was trying to think of something unique to give her. I created a small "picture" (fabric, paper, and
other things) that represented what she does for the agency, then glued
that picture to a piece of cardboard.
My original intention was to then add a coating of polyurethene or varnish to the piece and put a pin on the back. I did put the coating of polyurethene on it and then
thought... hmmmm.... I don't like this as a pin; it's too big. I started thinking (my family wondered what all that burning smell was!) and as I walked by my refrigerator, I noticed a year-old calendar magnet. You know the kind - it's about 4" x 3", thin, and the calendar is printed right on the magnet paper.
Voila! I glued the
former-thing-to-be-a-pin on the magnet paper, right over the calendar. I let this dry and then cut the magnet around the shape of the
former-pin. I gave it one more coat of polyurethene, catching the edges of the magnet itself, and I had myself a nice little, unique gift to give to my friend. I gave it away before being able to take photos, but
will document another project like this on the site soon.
The whole
process lead me to go to the craft store and pick up more "magnet paper"
to make other items with. I'm thinking small scraps of pretty fabric would make wonderful magnets. You can also purchase round, thicker, stronger magnets to make decorations with buttons and other notions you may want to show off.
This is how my mind works. I start out doing one project and end up with a completely different one. I often don't follow the "rules" the first time, either! I encourage you to go through your stash of fabrics and see what strikes you. Sometimes, I'm stymied and don't sew a thing. Other days, I'm doing fabric projects all day.
Yesterday, I broke out my son's quilt that I've been working on for about 12 years now. I'm almost done. Some of you may know that I
started it when he was about 6; I wrote about it in a former newsletter when I was talking about unfinished projects. I sat up until about midnight last night basting the edges and looking for missed ties. I'll have pictures of this one for the site soon too.
What unfinished projects (UFOs) do you have around the house that you need to break out
and work on?
Please stop by the message boards on the site and join in our growing discussions. The new software is working great! Lois is helping to
investigate gallery software. We like what we're using, but it's not very friendly to edit. Remember, too, that we have chats during the week at about 8 p.m. ET until 9 or later. The room is open 24/7, and you're welcome to use it with your friends any time.
Lastly, I wanted to talk about scrapbooks and sewing. I have friends who are into scrapbooking big time. They collect bits of paper, pens, and all sorts of creative materials, but I never notice any fabric in
their scrapbooks. If I were to begin scrapbooking, I know for a fact that mine would include Wonder-Under and fabric. I seem to be addicted to the stuff! What other ways could we use fabric in scrapbooking?
SewingWeb.com is about sewing, but it's also about fabric art... no matter how you slice it. Thanks for being a part of the site and we welcome your comments. The dictionary was recently updated, by the way, and we're getting requests from other sites to use it. We also have a new affiliate, SewingPatterns.com. You can click to their site from our front page.
Until next time - keep sewing! Pet your stash!!
Donna Gettings-Apperson
Webmaster, Online Community Director
http://www.sewingweb.com
