Friday, February 6, 2009

bird bags, dish rags, and other useful things

sickraiger1

If you could see my house you would pray for me and scold me for blogging right now. I have so very much to say but the in law's are coming over tonight so once I take care of business here on the blog I'm taking my house on full speed ahead.

The Raiger got hit by a fever virus this week. It was kindly passed down to her by her big sister and I'm already hoping and praying that little man doesn't end up on the receiving end of it next. I have also been feeling cruddy this week... so we've been all couped up in our infirmary. But on a positive note, I will say that I am quite thankful for just a minor illness... it could be much worse. {Which reminds me... y'all keep praying for Hannah Grace, Cora, & Annette, ok? They need us to storm heaven's gates on their behalf.}

The Raiger used to be good medicine taker and now she has declared that both of these are "too picy" {which is "spicy" for those of you without a 2 year old}. She may take one but it usually gets spit out and there's no convincing her to take the 2nd one. Kids!

med

Which leads me to the next statement... my children have NEVER had antibiotics! Can you believe it? Abby was here last weekend and we were talking about ear infections and none of mine have ever had one of those either. Praise the Lord! I'm not anti-antibiotics but it's a real treat to not have ever used them so if and when their little bodies need them they'll hopefully work really well!

While we've been held hostage in our own home {who am I kidding, I don't leave when we're all healthy} I've been working on a few little useful things. First, we are in need of some dish towels and since I have a problem going to Target {because I go for dish towels and leave with $100 worth of other stuff} I decided I'd make my own. Just like the one I gave away before Christmas. I bought the birdseye cotton from Sew Many Diapers and I love it because it's super soft and absorbent and 45" wide so I can get 2 dish towels from one width. Most other birdseye I've found only comes in 30". It's a very fun, rewarding and useful sewing project. The top one is made of scraps left over from my apron and the one below is made of fabric that was hiding in my pile... it reminded me of February:: blue skies with a splash of red.

dishtowel3

Speaking of blue skies... look at what we marvelled in today?

blueskies

So take a little blue sky and a splash of red for February and this is what you get...

dishtowel4

The other one looks like this all opened up...

dishtowel2

My other project was a bird bag...

birdbag3


birdbag

Those of you who have been around for a while know I have quite an affinity for little feathered creatures... aren't these guys cute? They were hiding in my stash too. Can you tell they're shiny? I used an iron-on vinyl by ThermOWeb and I may have a new favorite product. I found mine on Overstock for $20 for 5 yds! Now my wheels are turning as to what else I can vinyl-ize! I'm thinking some placemats and perhaps some bibs for junior!?

The zipper pouch is similar to the one I showed a few weeks ago but this one isn't lined and I added gussets to the bottom so it will stand up on it's own. I think I will use it for diapers and wipes and keep it in my purse!

Ok, I seriously need to go... I'll leave you with this:

eufaby

That's our dog, Eufaby {pronounced U-fob-ee}. Isn't she sweet? Well, really she's not, but she likes us a lot.

Toodles poodles!

24 comments:

Christi said...

you are impressive!! i'm not pro but don't they say that breastfeeding you kids helps build their immunity? i wonder (hope) that has helped with not needing antibiotics? anyhow, thanks for the inspiration. i have towels on my list, too! =) i love the blue and red, naturally.

Anonymous said...

First of all - I hope everybody feels better soon. There is nothing worse than having sick babies! :(
Secondly... OMG you gotta sell some of those kitchen towels. THat one with the polka dots makes me SO.HAPPY!

No Longer Newlyweds. said...

How did you come up with the dog's name?

Lindsey said...

Love your creations, esp. the blue and red towel.
Hope ya'll feel better soon. :)

Unknown said...

Ohh, Fabs. So sweet. Except when he wants to bite your leg off;0 Cute though. Very cute bird fabric! Miss you all so much!!

erika said...

cute, cute, cuter, and cute.
you are too much.
kisses to the raiger and the fab'-dog for me.
xoxo
mommasis

Peppermint Bee said...

I just love your projects! I have no idea how you have that much time with your 3 little ones. I don't have any little ones yet, but I struggle to get one project done a week. You do inspire me though!
Your blog just makes me smile!:)

Anonymous said...

I'm having dishtowel envy - hope you don't mind if I copy!

Julia

becky said...

so, will raiger not take the liquid form. mine would probably gag if i made them chew things up. and luke went through a real phase where i actually had to sit on him and make it go down. however, a chocolate chaser may work. might i suggest taking one with a rolo??

and when i read your blog, i learn big words like gussetts and vinyl-ize. it makes me happy to know someone so smart!

becky said...

shoot...gusset has 1 t and not 2. and also, i totally forgot...i hope you all feel better soon!!

Anonymous said...

Hi Darby! My name is Kelli and I stumbled upon your blog about a month ago. I LOVE reading it. You always have posts that are informative and helpful. After reading this post I began a search for the Iron-on Vinyl and found this:
http://store.quilting-warehouse.com/batting---interfacing-irononvinyl.html
It's a little cheaper but I don't know how shipping would figure into the price! Thought I would pass it on! Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Gray's Class said...

You've inspired me to use my scraps and cotton to make some dishtowels - but I'd hate to use them and mess them all up! Boy to I have some great bird fabric for you - seriously - if you're interested let me know I have some good size scraps left from a recent project. I'm sure you could make something wonderful with it.

The Pavliches said...

i am going to buy that shiny stuff and make some reusable grocery bags for me and smaller ones for the kiddos-i have been wondering what to make those out of, and you have answered my question!

Jennifer said...

First of all, good move on not stepping foot in Target. They have too many super cute things in right now. I know because I got in trouble there yesterday. Anyway, your towels are much more adorable than anything in there. My heart went pitter patter when I saw the towel w/ the polka dots and gingham that you made.

I hope everyone is feeling better and that you and JM stay healthy.

Victoria said...

Oh heavens above I adore the dish towels you made!!!! Will you be sharing a tutorial for those of us sewing challenged???

Hope the kiddos feel better quickly!

KricketM said...

Darby - I'm not a chef by any stretch of the imagination...not a cook either. I just made your ciniminis and my fam is VERY impressed! Thanks for that recipe... so yummy! I love them more than cinnabuns! (and they're so easy even I was able to do it correctly!!) :)
THANKS!!!!!

Dianne said...

OMG, you are quite amazing. I LOVE the dishcloths and the bag. How do you do it all? And then, you had the in-laws for dinner. Wow! I was hoping to catch a glimpse of the painting in your kitchen. The dishtowels are equally colorful and arty. A good combo.
I do hope everybody feels better soon. Spring is right around the corner.

Megan said...

We've never had to use antibiotics either - I thought we were the only ones! Of course my husband is an infectious disease doctor and therefore Mr. Antibiotic responsibility so that may have something to do with it. They have each had one ear infection each but we just waited a few days and they were fine. I must say I'm jealous of those kitchen towels. Mine are just atrocious in comparison!

andi said...

I am so impressed...

Gail said...

I was wondering...Do you knit? If so...I found this wonderful idea. Seems a lot of churches are doing this. They are meeting and knitting, Prayer Shawls...Talk about relaxing, but I would have to believe that you don't have time for that! LOL..I loved the dish rags and would love to make those, too! Thanks for the great idea. You are fun to read....Always doing something neat!

Brooke said...

thanks Darby! yes, i did VBAC! it has been a 10 x better recovery... so worth it. I love love love your blog! you are so creative with pics and witty when you write! love what you have done at your house... i need your expertise!

Brooke said...

thanks Darby! yes, i did VBAC! it has been a 10 x better recovery... so worth it. I love love love your blog! you are so creative with pics and witty when you write! love what you have done at your house... i need your expertise!

Eleanor said...

I LOVE your blog and want to be just like you when I grow up! Ha! Seriously though - you are truly amazing! Beautiful towels and bag!! I hope everyone feels better soon!

Mrs. Gray's Class said...

I must have used the wrong vinyl with these because it's all crinkly.