Spruced and Hung

A couple of years ago my brother and his wife stayed with us for a few days.  My brother went on to a sign painting convention and his wife hung out with us for a bit.  When he came back he gave us a gift that I posted about here.  After I painted my dining room I didn't have many decorations up.  I finally hung up the sign...but it was bugging me a bit.  The sides weren't painted and I wanted it too look crisp.

So I complicated things up and painted it while it was on the wall.  Then I added washi tape to the edges.

You only notice if you are sitting at the table and have nothing else to look at.

Now on to the other things I want to put on the walls.  After almost 4 years of living here I think it's time to start hanging things.

Shirt to Cardigan

Being tall is great most of the time. But being tall and busty--while nursing-- makes it hard to find shirts that are long enough.  I've had a bright blue shirt for a few years, and usually just pair with some jeans.  This winter it just wasn't working.  The length is just too short and I'm not comfortable in it.

 I lined up the seams, then cut down the front middle.

I could have just left it here, but I wanted to make sure it looked nice.

 Using some neon green bias tape I had on hand I stitched it on each side of the cut.

 Then I folded the sweater to the inside and stitched it again.

 To make sure the bias was secure and would look nice I followed the first line of stitching again.

 You can barely see the two lines of stitching, but is gives it a nice weight.  I ironed both sides of the front.

 And there you have it, a nice bright shirt turned cardigan.

And if I remember I got this shirt for $2 at old navy!  When my hubby got home from work he said it looked really nice too!  

Orange Quilt

My Brother-In-Law and Sister-In-Law are having another baby.  We are excited to have another little cousin to play with.  As has been tradition with her others, 1 & 2...I had to make a quilt for #3.

My Sister-in-Law LOVES orange, so I thought it only appropriate to make an orange quilt.

 The quilt is just lots of half square triangles.  When you make a quilt like this make sure your triangles are pointing up and down-not side to side,  it will make the quilt look better

I followed along the bigger trapezoids while quilting.  The back is a fun green fabric.