I had this awesome idea the other day! Why not combine my love of fabric and basket weaving together and create fabric baskets!!! So here's my first project. I think it turned out great and was alot of fun to make! I plan on making more real soon. I think the next one will be made out of some fun and crazy fabric with yellow this time. Yellow is my absolute favorite color. It's just bright and happy! However, my favorite flowers are white daisy's, not the yellow one's. Daisy's are just simple and pretty! There's alot to be said for simplicity, especially in this day and time. Right now, I'm looking forward to the summer so I can get back to the basics of life. I'll have more time to read my bible, spend with my 86 year old mother and my sister and do some canning and sewing and other projects that I've got on hold for now because work is so consuming. I've gotten off the subject, but just wanted to share alittle about what I like and what makes me who I am. Have a wonderfully blessed day until next time...

Good morning fellow bloggers! It's Sunday, the Lord's day and I would like to encourage everyone to spend at least 15 minutes today and everyday with God, either in prayer or reading the Word! God is so good! Everything we have on this earth, our families, worldly possessions, friends and even our talents come from the Almighty God, our Savior!
Here's a verse that spoke to me this morning as I began to do my devotional:
"...all who keep the Sabbath without descrating it and who hold fast to my covenant- these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer." (Isa. 56:6-7). God just wants a relationship with us just like the relationships we want with our earthly family and friends. He loves it when we come to Him in prayer and talk to Him. This is something I need to do more often. When I do, I feel His love and power all day. I feel His protection all around me! I love my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ with all my heart!!
I wanted to share a new fabric wrap bowl with you today! Now, I know I tell you everytime I post a new project on this site, that this project is my favorite. But truth be told, EVERY project is my favorite because they are all different and have their on "personalities" and there is usually a story behind each project. Some I can tell you and others I can't. Anyway, this bowl is definitely one of my favs because the colors just turned out beautiful! I love bright colors! They just give off an energy of their own. Don't you agree? I call this bowl springtime, mostly because it's blue color reminds of the blue waters off the coast of Cancun and of the blue sky in the spring, which is just around the corner. I have loved the snow we've had this year, but am SO ready for spring and summer to get here!! Love to all, and God Bless until next time...

I haven't written anything lately because I've been busy quilting and sewing. Here's a couple of my projects that I've completed. This is my button bowl and so fun to make. I love these bowls, but they take some time to make them. I think this is sold, but to be honest, after I complete a project to sell, I really want to keep it for myself! So much time and effort goes into these projects, it's just hard to give them up. I'm sure other crafters feel the same way though.

Keith's Quilt

Hey everyone! It's been several days since I last posted something, but I'm back at work now with the snow all melted. But I do have something very special to share with you. I met up with a friend from high school about a month ago whom I haven't seen him in about 35 years!! WOW! Where did the time go? I've enjoyed catching up on old times with Keith. He seems to know the whereabouts of everyone from our high school days and lets us know when a high school buddy has joined facebook. The "something special" I mentioned is this beautiful quilt top that Keith's great grandmother hand pieced for him. She hand pieced a quilt top for each of her grandchildren and great grandchildren,(hope I got that information correct) but never finished putting the backs on and completing the quilt. Keith has asked me to finish putting the quilt back on and hand quilt it for him. I feel so honored to do this and I pray I can make his great grandmother proud!! I'll post pics of the project as I go, but it will take time to finish this project. Some things you just can't rush and quilting is one of those things! God Bless you until next time...

Pin Cushion

hey there! i told you my world is insane with baskets and crafts! i have so much i want to share with you that i have been posting several posts a day! anyway, since i sew alot, i needed a new pin cushion. here is one i designed and am very happy with the finished product. it's just the right size for me which is much bigger than you can purchase in the stores. most of what you get in the stores are the regulation size tomato pin cushion. i need a bigger pin cushion to serve my needs. this was easy to make and i hope to make more and sell them. i love bright material and use it quite often in my projects. well, i need to go make breakfast for my children, they're wanting pancakes this morning, so until next time, God bless...

My Wine Baskets

hey everyone! hope all is having a wonderful day. since we're out of school, again, for snow, i've been completing alot of projects. here is a picture of some of my wine baskets that i made for my sister-in-law to give out as birthday presents. i wonder if she'll provide the wine to go inside the baskets?? anyway, i'm not sure if you can see, but i wove a piece of grapevine around the top of the baskets. i think it adds that "something extra"! i actually designed this basket on my own. we have a winery in the next town over and as i was driving by one day, the idea to make wine baskets hit me. i couldn't wait to get home and design this basket. yesterday, i finished a market basket and i worked a braided weave on top of the handle. i'll post a pic as soon as i finish staining it. well, i hear the pitter-patter of little feet coming down the stairs, so i must go create a devine breakfast of cereal or oatmealfor my little ones. have a bless day, until next time...

Finished! Finally!

Here's the tote I've been telling you guys about. It took me several weeks to make this only because I have such a busy life: 4 children, cooking, washing, homework, lesson plans, you gals know the routine! Anyway, I'm quite please with this tote and love the fabric (Batik). I'll probably use this to "tote" my projects around town, like if I'm going to be sitting in the doctor's office, I'll just be able to pick it up and go and I'll have something to work on without having to stop and gather the needed items. Some how, I noticed that when the tote was finished, I had a pocket left over that I never used! Kind of like taking a car apart and putting it back together and having a few extra parts left over. When I noticed the pocket, I thought, "this can't be good", but I really don't think I needed an extra pocket, so no worries! Hope you enjoy, until next time, God Bless...

Here it is!!

Here's what was in the beautifully wrapped gift left on my pillow this morning! My husband added a charm to my bracelet, a red birthstone for my son's birthday. I already had the green birthstone for my daughter. I'll eventually get a birthstone for every significant person in my life. Isn't it pretty?! Guys, you can never go wrong with pretty shinny things for the woman in your life. God Bless until next time...

Happy Valentines Day to everyone! My husband and I seldom get each other anything for Valentines Day or most holidays because we feel we've been blessed with so much! However, apparently this year is an exception! I stayed home from church this morning to take care of my child who had her wisdom teeth extracted. When everyone else left for church, I headed back to my bedroom to get showered and make the bed and I found this beautiful package which had been placed on my pillow! Well, totally not expecting this, my heart jumped and I wanted to open it right away, but decided I would open it when Roy (my husband) gets home from church. I'll let you know what it is as soon as I can. By the way, this picture was taken in 2009 at a celebration lunch, right after my son proposed to Jacqui.Roy doesn't like getting his picture made so I had to go way back on my camera and this was the most recent pic I had available. He's a good man, husband, father and friend. We will be married for 33 years on March 19th! WHEW! That's a long time! But I love him so much more than I ever thought was possible. I've been blessed. Until next time, God bless you...

The top quilt is a rag quilt created from Homespun Material. I love this material because is looks so old fashioned! And that's me: old fashioned. I even wear an apron when I cook.
The second quilt is called a Snowball Quilt that I made for my daugher years ago. I began cutting out the pieces of this quilt when I was in grad school. It was a nice break from all the studying and papers I had to write. In 1997, the quilt was put together, but not quilted yet. It was held together by safety pins. In 1998, I had 1/4th of it quilted and now here it is, 2010 and I'm just now finishing the quilting! I guess better late than never. All the material in the quilt is from scraps from clothing I made for my daughter while she was growing up. And the best part is that she remembers the outfits! That's pretty awesome! I love this quilt the most I guess because of the memories. This quilt was an actual pattern, but I have a quilt that is literally "pieced" together with scraps I had at the house and some "purchased" fabric. I hope to post a pic soon. Until next time, God Bless...

hey everyone!today's been awesome mostly because we're on our fall break from school! so i spent most of my day working on my projects. i can't wait to show you the tote i'm making out of batik fabrik! the directions aren't very clear, so it's taking me a while to figure them out. but here are some crochet snowflakes that i've done over the past few years. i love to make them at Christmas and put one in each of the Christmas cards that i send out. i really don't know how much longer i can make these, because when i finish one, my eyes are crossed from straining them so hard to see the stitches. they are very tiny stitches (chains) and it takes a while to make them, but they're worth it in the end. hope you enjoy. God bless until next time...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9NkGdZ-N2E

i thought i'd introduce my family to you. taz the pug, reagan the lab and candy kisses the fearless Chihuahua! candy kisses has been a part of our family since 1997. she was given to me by one of supervisors in graduate school. she originally belonged to Lori Morgan's (country music singer) sister, beth. candy's siblings were show dogs, but candy's teeth were out of line and one protrudes outward and looks like a fang. Plus, her personality was not conducive to that of a good show dog. my supervisor asked if i would be interested in "babysitting" her for a weekend. we did and fell in love with her. but as is with most chihuahua's, she VERY protective of me and even bit my husband once when he hugged me before leaving for work!
TAZ! what can i say about taz! cute, playful, funny, and an asthmatics worst nightmare! i bought her for roy's birthday a few years ago and i soon began having asthma attacks and would also break out and itch on my neck,and face. so, we ended up having to find her a really good home/family to live with. i miss her, but can see her whenever i wish.

Reagan, the beautiful black lab was saved from the pound. she was named after one of our favorite presidents, ronald reagan, like all labs, reagan is very laid back and great with children! she loves to walk around the neighborhood and check out what's going on and maybe get a nibble from someone. she also likes to sit in the front yard as if she's the "police watch dog" for the neighborhood. but her favorite place in smack dab in the middle of our den on her bed. she's such a loyal dog! she's not allowed in our bedroom, so once when roy was sick, reagan laid at the bedroom door all day! she was making sure roy was okay and would have called 911 if necessary. she's the sweetest dog EVER!

these are my other children!! LOL! my beautiful and talented daughter, Ashley, who is my very best friend! And my wonderful son, R.J., and his beautiful wife, Jacqui. they are my life and are the most wonderful blessings any parent could have. i could not have "hand picked" a more wonderful, christian woman for my son. check out her website listed under links on this page. my ashley lives with us right now while she is in college and i'm loving every minute of it. she's the best!

well, i'm was so excited about showing you my fabric wrap bowls, that i'm just gonna go ahead and put them up. i've had many request for these, especially, my fiesta bowl. they take many, many hours to make and then several hours to sew them together. to make these, i mostly just use fabric scraps that i already have around the house from previous projects. however, i did purchase new material for the fiesta bowl. i love how the colors just "pop". as with all my bowls, no two are the same. they may have the same colors of fabric, but they always turn out to be very individual designs. the fabric that i used in the bowl with the button in the center is called "homespun" fabric and gives the bowl an old fashion look. the bowl with the handles was just some "calico" fabrics that i had on hand. i love fabric! i love fabric so much that i even framed some and hung the frames on the wall above my !bed. i could spend hours and hours in a fabric store just looking and thinking about possible projects. ~love~love~love~ fabrics~
until next time, have a blessed day...

well, here are a few more filet crochet projects that i've done. the family name hangs over the fireplace and the "welcome" hangs in our sitting room.
my daughter and i are hoping to have a crochet and knitting class very soon for some local teachers. i'm very excited about this class, mostly, because all these teacher's have such outgoing personalities and are just wonderful, loving people. i look forward to all the fun i know we'll have. i guess the most important thing i will have to teach these ladies is that you have to have patience with yourself when learning to crochet. so many people that i've taught just want to have one class and leave with a finished project. it takes many hours of practice to learn how to crochet. but in the end, you'll be glad you put the practice in and your projects will be works of art!

some crochet stuff

i thought i'd break away from my baskets and show you some of my crochet and other stuff. this is called filet crochet and is the initial of my last name. i've done alot of filet crochet family names for wedding gifts. i just love how pretty the finished product looks, however, the work is very tedious and a great strain on my eyes. believe it or not, this is a very easy project to do as long as you know how to chain. you just have to use a tiny crochet hook and make sure your tension is very snug. this one is conveniently hung in my bathroom! LOL! anyway, i have my full last name hanging over the fireplace and mantle. i'll put a picture of it up later. well, you guys have a wonderful and blessed day, until next time...

White Oak Baskets

hey everyone, hope all had a wonderful day today! mine was great! i was out in the garage today trying to organize my weaving supplies and that's when it hit me. i haven't shown you my one and only white oak basket that i made back in october. my sister-in-law and i drove up to Jamestown, Tn. and took a white oak basket class from this wonderful gentleman. we actually met this man at the Cannon County White Oak Craft Fair in Tennessee. after speaking to him for a while, we decided to take his class and it was the most wonderful experience. he was a true southern gentleman and he and his wife showed us what good southern hospitality is all about. the class lasted three days. we learned to identify a "good" white oak, chop it down, split it, shave it, and weave it into a basket. not an easy process i might add. i now understand why these wonderful and beautiful baskets are so expensive!!

i loved this handle! we had a couple of handles to choose from that we could make, but this was the most popular one. i have to say that throughout the three day long class, i must have sliced my fingers 3 or 4 times from the weavers and managed to get some blister's as well. sharp objects, wood and me are not a good mixture.
while this is not your typical white oak basket, it's very pretty and functional, however, this one is used only for decoration. i hope to weave the more popular "egg basket" this summer, but i have to say it is my least favorite to weave. it is very difficult and i think it will take years, probably, before i can weave an egg basket of decent quality
well, i hope you've enjoyed looking at my one and only white oak basket. i'll post some pics of the class soon.

...more baskets

...yet more baskets

i had created another blog account and page, but decided it didn't fit what i needed in a blogger format, so after many hours of searching for just the right one with the colors that suited me, i am replacing all my pics and blogs. i'm new at this and i tried to save everything in order to copy and paste, but wasn't able to figure it out. copy and pasting on blogg accounts is different from just regular copy and pasting in word. or at least it was for me. i do tend to get impatient with some things and this was one of those things. i wanted this up and running a week ago. but God's timing is always perfect in all aspects of life, so here i am reposting pics and blogs. but this is good, because i found some pics that i had forgotten about. here's a few. these pictures were taken at a good friends local business in mcminnville, tn. she was kind enough to let me put my baskets in her store to fill up her shelves. i have since taken them to different craft fairs and have sold them all. i can't wait until this summer, when i can restock and put more baskets in her store. i'll let you know which store it is later after i ask her permission to do so.

the basket with a heart is one that i made for a dear friend. she had a basket that she used as a center piece which was falling apart, so i took the basket and discarded all but the handle and made her a new one. it has ceramic decorations for each season and a few for special holidays that are interchangeable. the basket shaped kinda like a triangle is called "amy's basket". this is a pattern that i ordered and whoever created the design must have named it after someone special to them. it's a really cool looking basket just because the shape is so different. the cross was completely experimental. i bought the Georgia Long Pine Needles (oops, i used the caps key) in hopes of making a pine needle basket, but after making about 30 attempts, i gave up. (for the time being that is). i will tackle this project again someday because i don't like to give up on things and it has now become a mission. so one day i just formed a cross with the needles and wove a God's Eye in the center. i have one hanging in the entrance of my home. i love the cross and all that it represents. the last basket in this post is another kind of wall basket that you can weave just about anything into it. this one is made of rope, grapevine, with a God's eye on both ends. it's not very functional, but it's pretty. God Bless until next time...

...more baskets

well, i'm not sure how this arrangement will turn out, but here goes. the basket with the heart, bow and wrapped handle is called harvest or market basket and is fun to make because the designs are just however creative you fell like getting. i believe i have sold more of this design because they are so decorative and i can match just about any color scheme and are functional as well.

the next basket is a mini williamsburg basket. it's great to put little trinkets in or just to fill up a space on a shelf.

the baskets

well, i'm still learning to how to post and arrange my pictures. i wanted these to be side by side, but maybe i'll have better luck next time. this basket is called simply, wrought iron basket! it is one of my favorites.the next basket is called a floor basket with leather handles and is great for magazines, yarn or just projects that you're working on.

the third basket is called a cat head basket because if you turn it upside down, it looks as if it has cat ears! it's funny how names originate on things.

the last basket in this post is a muffin basket and sits on my kitchen counter and usually has some form of muffins in it.

i have sold all these baskets and had to make many more just so i could have one of each in my house to enjoy. i hope you've enjoyed looking at these baskets. i'll post more soon. i have many designs. God Bless until next time...

welcome to my world

welcome to my world of baskets, crafts and now blogging! i love to create things and am always looking for new projects to tackle. i am never a bored person and i don't believe in idle hands. the best part of learning different crafts is that when i get tired of one project and i can work on another project. and believe me, i have all kinds of projects at various stages of completion. i love to sew, quilt, tat, heirloom sewing, weave baskets, and as of recently, creating white oak baskets from the tree to a basket (more on that later). i love to read, crochet and knit. but don't get me confused with someone who really knows how to do each of these hobbies. i know just enough to get me in trouble financially! LOL! also, something you must know about me, is that i don't like typing capital letters when i'm blogging. it's just too much trouble to hit that little button! i have full life and love every minute of it. i have a wonderful family, wonderful job and the love of my savior, Jesus Christ. i hope you enjoy looking at my crafts and reading my blogs and hope that you will leave a comment from time to time. come back and visit me often! God Bless until next time...