Guest Post: A Behind the Scenes Look at Auntie Lolo Crafts

Everybody’s heard the old saying, “Behind every good man, there’s a great woman.”  Well there’s also a slightly less well known saying that goes, “A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle.” If you ask me I think the second is more fitting when it comes to Auntie Lolo.  Truthfully this woman doesn’t need much support but when my wife called for guest posts I have to admit I secretly wanted to be picked.  Part of it is because it’s a creative outlet for me to write.  Another part wanted to let you all in on a behind the scenes look at the Auntie Lolo Craft world. 

When I met Auntie Lolo all those many years ago she had one hobby that I was made immediately aware of – she was a scrapbook-a-holic.  Naturally I did what every guy does when trying to impress a woman . . . I tried scrapbooking.  (There I said it and it feels good!!!!)  I failed miserably.  I found her best friend and enlisted her help to save my futile attempt at a present for my then girlfriend.  It was then that I learned the real talent it takes to be crafty and creative and to take an everyday object and turn it into something presentable.  I would later make one more attempt at scrapbooking and take some of the honeymoon photos from our trip to Vegas and turn them into a memory.  Let’s just leave it at you can tell which pages I did and which ones Auntie Lolo has done. 

Occasionally I’m called in as a consultant but let’s be honest . . . . it’s more out of pity than actual necessity.  While we were dating she had a class where she had to put a vistor’s guide together for a foreign country.  She chose where I served my mission for the LDS Church – Nicaragua.  What did I do to help?  I got to draw the little girl (Maria) who was to be the reader’s guide.  It was cute and crafty, and it got her an “A”.  Let’s look at another case in point:  Last Christmas our nieces and nephews asked for stuffed owls that my wife sews out of felt.  The picture on the left is her rendition; the one on the right is mine!

As you can see hers is much better.  Mine was a feeble attempt at snow camouflage for our 12 year old nephew so his didn’t seem so girly.  Not my best work.  About the only positive thing I contribute to the Auntie Lolo Craft world is paint.  That’s right . . . . paint.  Since I work for Glidden we have an abundance of paint at our house – in all sheens and shades of every color imaginable.  So all the cool colors you see of painted projects – that’s all me!!!! 

So for what it’s worth I will say this.  When I first met Auntie Lolo she wasn’t a mega-superstar crafter.  She wasn’t even a crafter – in fact the only thing she did was scrapbook.  But to be her support during this journey and watch her evolve and has been an unique adventure.  I’ve seen her transform from a grain of sand into a crafting pearl.  She’s the epitome of what it means to develop one’s talents – take nothing and turn it into something.  Heck, I’ve even learned some things.  Since being married to Auntie Lolo I’ve learned to sew, cut fabric, and even use the Cricut machine – although I still need a guiding hand like a two year old learning to color for the first time.  But it’s an adventure nonetheless.  So for all the husbands and significant others of theses crafters, I salute you fellow bicycles for fish.  Your job is important.  Even if all you do is supply the paint. 

Guest Post: How to Make an Ironing Board Cover

Hi, I'm Cynthia from Dream Quilt Create.

Today, I will show you how I made a beautiful ironing board cover.  I got the idea from "I Have to Say".  

This is my lovely ironing board cover.  All my covers get these nasty brown stains.  I think it is from using spray starch.  Does that happen to you?

I went to JoAnn's and bought three pieces of Denyse Schmidt fabric.  My ironing board measures 18" wide by 48 l/2" long.  I bought 5/8 yard (22.5") of the first fabric (goes on the pointy end), 1/4 yard (9") of the middle fabric and 1 yard of the third fabric (goes on the end).  I also bought 4 l/3 yards of 7/32" cording which is found in the upholstery section.

Measure your ironing board and do the calculations. I used a l/2" seam allowance and 4" extra all around the ironing board.  It is always better to have a little bit extra than not enough.

Here are my three fabrics sewn together.  The selvages are on the sides, I sewed the cut edges together.

I laid the sewn piece of fabric on the floor, right side down. Then I put the ironing board on top of the fabric and traced 4" all the way around with a blue pencil.  It doesn't have to be extremely accurate.

Then I cut all the way around on the blue dashed lines that I drew.

Guess what?  I have extra fabric for my stash!  

Measure l/2" all the way around and press.

Zigzag close to the edge, all the way around.  Don't worry that there are crinkles around the curves.  This won't matter a bit.

Turn zigzagged seam under 3/4" and press all the way around.  There will be a few more crinkles this time, but the seam will be under the ironing board and won't show.

Stitch this seam all the way around with a straight stitch, close to the edge, leaving a 2" opening at the end (the square end) of your ironing board cover.  

I pinned a safety pin to the end of the cording.  Make sure your pin takes a good bite into the cording, or it might slip out when you are pulling it through the casing.  Push the safety pin through the 2" opening of your casing, at the end of the cover.  It will take a while, but carefully ease the safety pin with the cording, all the way around the ironing board cover.

Lay your ironing board cover on the floor, right side down.  Center the ironing board on top of it.  

Pull the cording sideways, easing the fullness around the ironing board.  Tie the cord and then tie a bow.  You can tuck the cording under the cover so that it doesn't hang down.

Now you have an awesome  redesigned ironing board cover.  This is the prettiest ironing board cover I have ever had!  It was so easy that I could even have a new cover for every season.  Not really, that sounds a little bit fussy to me........and with the prints, those nasty stains might not show up as much.  

This was a really easy project, easy enough for a beginner sewer :)

Guest Post: Scissor Holder

Hi y’all!  I am thrilled to be guest-hosting again for Auntie Lolo’s Crafts today.  I am Lacey Camp, a life-long crafter, who has now become a blog and Pinterest addict!  Today, we are going to make a scissors holder.  This is a great way to use up some of your scraps for embellishments!  I used to make these years and years ago when I had a craft booth and they sold very quickly!  I hope that you’ll enjoy making them as well.

Supplies:

glue gun

scissors

one potholder, loop MUST be in the corner of the potholder, not the middle

lace, multiply the sides of your potholder by 3 for the length (mine is 28”)

ribbon and/or buttons to embellish - I discovered my buttons at WalMart!

Basically, you can put anything you want on your potholder.  It’s totally your preference.  I am making this scissors holder for my future craft room (yes, I even have a board set up on Pinterest just for that room!).  http://pinterest.com/laceydcamp/  I am hoping to have my craft room done this summer!

For instructions’ sake, please position your potholder as a diamond at all times, with the loop at the very top.  This is your hanging loop and will keep you in perspective during this tutorial.  Take your left corner and fold it straight across the potholder towards the middle (until the bottom corner is folded as well).  This is the inside of your scissors holder and it is the only place we will not embellish.  When you fold the right corner back over it, you will see the basic design.  It should look like an ice cream cone.  You can glue your potholder together now.  Please note that I am aware you can see my glue at the tip.  I tend to overdo adhesives but at least I don’t sniff them, right?  Anyway, it won’t show in just a minute, I promise.

To begin to embellish your scissors holder, turn your potholder over to the back side.  You will begin to glue on your lace at the bottom of the cone.  I wrap my lace around the bottom just a tad so I know it will stick. 

I like the eyelet on my potholder and didn’t mind the binding at the top to show; hence, I glued mine on top.  (If I hadn’t liked it, I would have glued it beneath the edge of the potholder.)  You should be able to use one length of lace to glue onto the entire front of the scissors holder.  You will start at the back and glue from the bottom of the diamond up to the first corner, making a nice turn there.  Don’t cut your lace, use it in one long piece.  You can easily maneuver it. 

Once you have finished attaching your lace to the right front of the cone, you will need to decide how you want to finish your scissors holder.  Do you want your lace to cover the top edge of the potholder?  I do because I don’t necessarily want everyone to realize it IS a potholder.  This also leaves your hanging loop behind your lace so it’s easy to access.  If that’s the look you want, you will have to jump your lace at the very edge of the cone then continue it again inside the lip of the cone down to the front left side, jumping it again to cover the last of the front of the cone.  You can tell in this photo that I glue on one side before jumping it to the next side.  Glue well so it will hold.  When you are finishing the front left of the cone, note that you have to fold your lace onto itself to twist it upwards at the front to match the other side. 

I felt my scissors holder still looked a little unfinished.  I tied a bow with three lengths of white ribbon and glued it on to the front center.  I then took my largest daisy button and glued it on top of the knot of the bow.  Daisies are my favorite flower so I decided I needed a little bit more!  I strung three more buttons onto the end of the bow and knotted right below where I wanted them to hang.  What do you think?  I didn’t choose the daisy buttons so that the orange matches my good scissors but, hey, it looks like I did, doesn’t it?  Just saying……………..

Thanks for reading today!  If you loved it, please pin it!  Should you have any questions or comments, please leave them here and I will respond through Auntie Lolo.  I will be guest-hosting on Auntie Lolo’s Crafts again this month and hope you will join me then as well.

Click below to follow Lacey on Pinterest! 

Guest Post: Heirloom Children's Blessing Gown's

Hello, my name is Cynthia from Dream Quilt Create.  I am thrilled to be a guest on Auntie Lolo's blog.  I have known Lois since she was a little girl.  She is my daughter Lindsay's best friend, and like a "fourth" daughter to me.  She once saved my youngest child from our burning house and took him to a drug dealer's house for safety :)  That is a long, long, exciting story for another time........

I learned how to sew heirloom children's clothing by machine, in 1986.  When I learned I would soon be a grandmother, I thought it would be great to sew each of them an heirloom gown for their blessing.  The idea was that they could pass it down to their first child and so on.  Great care is taken in choosing heirloom materials that will endure the years.

 I bought this book for inspiration, and for a glossary of techniques, including a basic pattern.

Bridger was our first grandchild, a boy.  That didn't deter me, because there are plenty of patterns available for boys.  I decided on this one.  The sleeves weren't puffy for a boy, it had a cuff at the bottom of the sleeve.  My daughter (Lindsay) chose a champagne colored Swiss Nelona fabric.  I smocked the bodice in an antique brown thread, and the lace trim on the collar and sleeve cuff was a little l/4" crochet trim.  The romper has so many gathers, that it almost looks like a dress!

Our next grandchild was a girl named Kennedy.  Her mom (Lindsay) chose a white Swiss Nelona, with antique beige colored thread for embroidery, champagne lace, and peach embroidered flowers with sage green flowers.  White silk satin ribbon was chosen for the bonnet and beading on the dress.  Lindsay did some of the embroidery for the dress to help me out, since there was so much on the front and the back.  Little seed pearls were added on the decorative yoke and the bonnet as well.

The french lace is all inset.  The little dotted lace is called entredeux.  That is french for "between two".  Entredeux is always placed between two pieces of lace or fabric.  The entredeux is attached to the lace or fabric by a zig zag stitch.  The needle must go through every hole of the lace, and it takes extreme concentration!

The bottom ruffle of the gown is all pin tucks.  

This is the beading along the bottom of the sleeve.  

This embroidery is all done on the back of the dress.

There is "puffing" inserted between some of the layers of lace.  Puffing is a strip of fabric that is gathered on the top and the bottom and inserted in to the garment that way.  The lace in the above photo, is 3 pieces that are attached together using an heirloom method.

Here is a photo of the embroidered initials that is customary to put on all the gowns.  Kennedy Grace Nielson, the family name initial is always in the middle.

The smocked bonnet with pearl seed adornments.

This is Kennedy in her bonnet and gown.  Unfortunately, I don't have a good photo of her, but you can see all the yards of french heirloom lace.

Next, in the year 2010, we had four grandaughters born within seven months!!

Charlotte was born in April, 2010.  Her mom, Lindsay, chose an off white Swiss cotton with off white french lace.  The method I chose this time, was "shark's teeth".  You sew 1/2" pin tucks, and clip them to the seam line at strategic places to form a design.  You fold back the pleats at the clips and you have nice, pointy shark's teeth. Then you use a narrow zig zag stitch to encase the folded back tucks so they don't unravel when washed.  Each section (between the inset lace) was sewn separately.  I used yards and yards of lace and entredeux.

The lace trim ruffle along the front, edge of sleeve and double ruffles on the hem were antique laces.  I was fortunate to buy some on ebay.

I forgot to mention that I always make a slip with the gown, the fabric is quite sheer.  I sew inset lace or embroidery or pintucks on the yoke.

The finished dress.  These gowns are quite long, about 12" to 18" or longer,  below their feet.

Here is Charlotte in her gown and bonnet.  Her bonnet is tied with antique gold, double sided silk satin ribbon.  I love chubby baby hands!

Maisie was born in July, 2010.  Her mom Rebecca, wanted an off white Swiss cotton with dusty rose embroidery and ribbon.  I sewed two fancy bands.  Fancy bands is a band of rows of french lace, painstakingly joined together.  

I ran dusty rose silk satin ribbon through the beading (three rows), making sure not to tug too tight, not too loose, but just right.  I embroidered the ribbon/flower motif all around the band, front, back and sides!  I really enjoy hand work, I just have to make sure to give myself enough time to complete it. I set deadlines for myself which helps a lot. I can't be rushed doing these gowns, so I leave myself plenty of time. 

I love embroidering the yoke of these gowns.  I always put some little seed pearls in the embroidery.

I made the sleeves to match the skirt, with little verticle pintucks.  It was my own design, each gown has something a little different that the previous one doesn't have.

The slip's yoke is pintucks with a swiss cotton insertion sandwiched with entredeux.

The finished dress with matching slip.

Here is Maisie in her blessing gown, I wonder what she is thinking???

Neo was born in October, 2010.  Her mother Mabulane, wanted an offwhite dress with antique lace and antique gold ribbon.  Mabulane wanted the embroidery to be antique beige.  I don't have any photos of the gown hanging up, so Neo is included in all of the photos!!

Neo's slip had 3 vertical rows of inset lace.

Mabulane was quite specific about how she wanted the lace.  No ruffles, with a panel going down the center front.  She didn't want the dress to be as long as the others, but long enough to cover up Neo's feet.

There is a wide band of antique lace, with an overlay of antique lace, over a long panel of pintucks.  It is a replica of an antique dress in "Grandmother's Hope Chest".

Here are the initials embroidered on the back of the dress by the hem.  Neo Kimberley Horst.

Here is a close up of the antique beige embroidery with seed pearls.

This is the best view of the whole gown.  There is a ruffle of antique less on the hem, attached with a row of entredeux.

Our youngest grandchild Reagan, was born in November, 2010.  Reagan's parents, Jordan and Kimalee, wanted a white dress similar to Charlotte's with shark's teeth, but no lace ruffles along the sides.  Completely white, with white silk satin ribbon and white embroidery. They wanted alternating shark's teeth and puffing.  It took me a couple of tries to get the shark's teeth centered.  It is very mathmatical! Who said  math skills you learned in high school won't ever be used in life?

The lace along the hem isn't ruffled and I love the look, it matches the tailored look of the gown.  The entredeux and netting of the french lace shows up really well in this photo.

The white is so crisp and clean looking.  I love it!  I didn't get a photo of the embroidered initials on the back.

I always sew little 3/8" mother of pearl buttons on the back enclosure.

The yoke on the slip is pure pintucks.

The lace on the hem of the slip is different, it is a row of beading without ribbon and french lace.

The finished dress, almost looks like a wedding dress, doesn't it?

Pure baby, pure innocence.

Reagan likes her dress!!!

When I was making the first heirloom gown and my father in law saw how much time (and money!) was involved, he warned me that what I do for the first grandchild I must do for all the grandchildren.  I couldn't imagine what he meant. Now after one romper and five gowns, I understand.  As each bundle of joy arrives, I do my best to show my love and appreciation for each one.  I am leaving a legacy to each of my grandchildren, hopefully making a mark in their lives :) 

Do you have a favorite gown?