Saturday (FINALLY)

I'm so glad Saturday is finally here! Unfortunately I have not had much of a chance to sew on my new machine. I have been playing with it and figured out a few things ( and that the "reverse" does not work :cry: )

This is Labor Day weekend, so hopefully I'll have a chance to sew some.

I have lots of chores to do - laundry, dishes, cleaning, etc., so maybe after I get that stuff done (or before :D) I'll work on sewing.......

My New Toy

So I was searching CraigsList last night and saw someone had posted a sewing machine. Since I sew ALL THE TIME, it peaked my interest. This is what I ended up purchasing - 1993 Elna 8000 model - made in Switzerland. The cost was $2,000 new in 1993 (we have the original receipt) and I paid $250. It's a little older than I hoped, but I still think it's worth $250. It has 80 stitches including the alphabet and numbers.

(Please excuse the mess behind the machine - I need to clean!!)








And the accessories:


I'm excited to use it on something. I played around with it last night for a while and it seems to work very well.

Back from Kansas

The trip to Kansas was so much fun (well, except for the 11 hour drive). McKenna is just adorable!! Here are a few pictures we took:
Papa Truck and McKenna - she likes to cuddle!

Not very happy:

Me holding her. (Brute was feeling left out...)
 

ADORABLE!!!!

She likes it when you talk to her.


It's sad that they live so far away, so we're hoping they keep taking lots of pictures for us to see.

Friday afternoon

We are getting ready to go to Ft. Riley KS to visit our newest granddaughter, McKenna!! (And her parents LOL) We'll have a full night of packing the car, then we'll leave about 3 am. I took our larger dog, Buddy, to the kennel this afternoon and we'll be taking our little dog, Brute, with us. I always hate taking Buddy to the kennel for the weekend because when we get back, he's horse from barking all weekend. It makes me sad, but it's really best for all.

I'll have lots of pictures when we get back on Monday!!!

I LOVE sewing, but it doesn't like me....

well, specifically, my right ankle. If I sew a lot, my ankle hurts the next few days and once in a while feels like it's going to give out on me. So instead of listening to my hubby, who said to quit sewing (as IF), I just bought an ankle wrap thing and it works wonders. LOL

So yesterday the magnetic snaps came so I could finish the Hibiscus purse that I made over the weekend. Ever since I got as far as I could go without the snap, I'd been trying to figure out how to finish it because there wasn't much room left between my label and the top where I needed to attach the outside of the purse to the lining. After the snaps came in the mail, I was really sweating all afternoon trying to think of what I was going to do. 5:00 came and I was walking out the door of work and a lightbulb went off!!! So as soon as I got home, I put supper in the crock pot (if you haven't already, check out this website http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/ - this lady is using her crock pot every day for a whole year and she posts the recipes! I've made a few and so far they are really good! She was even on the Rachel Ray show!). Oh, last night we had Salmon and Spinach with Dill and Lemon - EXCELLENT and it only had to cook two hours on low. Where was I??? OK - So I put supper in the crock pot and sat down to finish the Hibiscus purse - here are the pictures:


The pockets on the front and back are just wide enough to hold a magazine. Plus there are small pockets on each side. ALL the pockets have velcro closures.

And the inside - you can see the "flap" I decided to use to close the purse (my lightbulb moment).


And once I get sewing, I can't stop. I had this lime green fabric that I bought at WalMart as a remnant - I think I paid $1.00 for the fabric. Sunday night I had cut out pieces for the outside, lining and interfacing, so all I had to do last night was sew the "flap" and put everything together. Here is the finished Lime Green Purse:

It's the same size as the Hibiscus purse so it will also hold a magazine. I also put pockets on the inside of the purses and hang a D-Ring to hold keys!! Great addition for organized people like me!!!

I haven't decided if I'm going to add these purses to my etsy shop yet. I REALLY like the Hibiscus one, so I may keep that for me, and the Lime Green one has a few "character flaws" on it.

PLEASE comment or send me an e-mail if you read my blog!!!!!!!

<3 Jyl

It's been a while.

I'm still adjusting to having Todd home all the time. I don't get to do what I want as much, which is OK, because we are spending quality time together. Some nights he's in the office with me - he's on the computer and I sew (or get ready to sew), so we can talk about "whatever". It's nice to be around when he talks to his kids or parents because before he used to forget to tell me what's going on in their lives.

We have gotten a few more pictures of McKenna.

Isn't she adorable?!?!?!?! She's laying on the afghan that I made her. We are going to see the new family next weekend, so I'll have a bunch of pictures next week.

I have been sewing a little. I finished a purse but I'm waiting for the magnetic snaps to come in so I can finish it. When I do, I'll post pictures. I also have another one mostly cut out and will start on that soon.

I'm still waiting for my first sale on my etsy shop. I'm hoping that will come soon. Please, everyone cross your fingers for me!!!!