#Win Sew Red: Sewing and Quilting for Women's Heart Health #Review and Giveaway

Every 90 seconds, a woman in the United States has a heart attack. 
Both men and women suffer heart attacks, but they are often more fatal in women.
More than 10,000 American women younger than 45 have a heart attack every year.

Sobering statistics reported in the Heart Healthy Living section of my latest product review and giveaway.  I am honored to have the opportunity to bring you Sew Red: Sewing and Quilting for Women's Heart Health. Sew Red is part of author Laura Zander's  and her Jimmy Beans Wool heart healthy campaign Stitch Red, which hopes to educate the public  and raise awareness  of the startling reality of these statistics.

As a book, Sew Red is a beautiful compellation of 30 red themed sewing and quilting projects, each brought to you by some of the biggest names in the crafting world, including some of my favorites, Anna Griffin, Nancy Zieman, Kaffe Fassett and Ty Pennington.  Each project features a bio of the designer, and his/her tip for a heart healthy life.
The projects represent a good variety of style, time required, and skill level, showcased in its full photo table of contents. Each project includes material requirements, supplies, cutting instructions, and sewing instructions.  Illustrations are plentiful helpful, making instructions easy to follow. Patterns are enclosed in an envelope at the end of the book and are made of good quality paper (not the flimsy tissue paper patterns), making storage and reuse of the patterns possible.  I also love the spiral binding of the book, making it much easier in the sewing room to fold the book flat to a single page. 
As someone who aspires to sew so much more, I really love the rich variety of fabric patterns represented within the single color theme.  I especially love the sweet sixteen skirt, the Sonoma purse, and the Fleur Rouge Quilt.  I hope to bring you photos of my work--probably not until the summer.

Beyond what you would typically expect to find in an average sewing book, you will find a heart healthy living section, which features information, tips, resources and even recipes.  I'm very excited to give the heart healthy macaroni and cheese recipe a try... I'm sure it has to be tons better for me than my current family favorite.

Sew Red retails for 22.95, a portion of the proceeds benefit the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health in support of The Heart Truth^®, a national awareness campaign for women about heart disease, sponsored by the NHLBI. The Publisher has generously offered to share a copy of Sew Red with one of Kat's Adventure Book's lucky readers.  To enter, please use the Rafflecopter entry below.

Please note that I received a free copy of Sew Red in exchange of my fair and honest review.  I received no additional compensation.  All opinions are my own.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/c6803a6/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway

So much to do....

Oh so little time...

You may or may not recall, I had a four day holiday weekend at the beginning of this month. I was agitated for most of it because I didn't have many projects to work on. After a trip to Jo Ann's I was restocked with ideas and sewing supplies. Since then, however, I just haven't had the time.

I started to work on making quilted crib bumpers. They look super easy, but because I'm quilting them, they are taking forever. Coupled with the fact that I am dead tired when I get home in the evening again, I haven't felt like sewing except on the weekends--while I'm trying to catch up on the cleaning I've been neglecting because, oh that's right, I'm exhausted in the evenings.

The other problem keeping me from getting crafty projects done is my ability to keep thinking of more projects I want to do. I started a list. These are in no particular order, but my plan is to prioritize the list and knock off the things that will be most useful.

Finish crib bumpers: not the most useful, but I would rather complete it than leave the pieces scattered about the apartment.
Froggie crib quilt: So I bought this super cute froggie fabric at a local quilt shop intending to whip out a cute simple quilt I could lay on the floor. The baby already has two crib quilts I made, but neither go with the "theme." Non-essential, but if you saw the fabric, you'd want a froggie crib quilt too.
"heirloom" blanket: We have a piece of fabric from our childhood we'd love to see turned into a crib size blanket. The more detail I take with this the better it will turn out, but the more time I take, the less I have for other ideas.
Hanging Wet Bag/ travel wet bag: This is an essential for my plans to cloth diaper. Ever since I discovered that Jo Anns now carries PUL in store, I figure I could make one or two of these to keep my initial cloth diapering expenses to a minimum. Shouldn't take too much effort, just time and yes, another Jo Ann's trip.
Paci holder: definitely non essential, but it's one of those frills that parents with frills seem to have in their diaper bag repertoire. Super easy project that will probably be a good use for scraps, but when time is of the essence, this project is not.
Travel changing pad: A receiving blanket would work just fine, but as above, those with frills can't live without this. I probably have most of the supplies laying around, just lacking the energy.
More wall storage (pails/shelves/pocket hanging): Storage is definitely at a premium around our converted dining room turned nursery. I'm thinking of either adding a craft shelf with pegs or create a new wall hanging filled with plenty of storage pockets (similar to the crib caddy). I'm thinking of hanging decoupaged pails from the shelf pegs. While storage is necessary, I'm not sure I'm gaining enough space justify the effort.
Bibs: We don't have many and this will be useful... probably higher on the priority list than some other ideas.
Burp cloths: I have made some already, but not sure just how many I'll need. Not exactly the most glamorous project.
Bib strap: Essentially, two mitten clasps on opposite ends of a wide ribbon. Turn napkins, burp cloths and washcloths into instant bibs. I'm waiting for notions to go on sale for this one.
Shopping cart cover: This has been on the list for a long time because I received a pattern for one with a package of patterns I bought long before we even knew Johnny was on his way. They look cute, but I'm not sure I'm germaphobic enough to remember to haul this to the grocery store with me each time. Also, Johnny probably not going to be riding in the shopping cart for several months yet.
Car seat cover: Essentially a fitted sheet/blanket that fits over a car seat with slots for the harness straps to go through. In the event of baby projectiles and bodily fluids coming into contact with the seat, this cover could easily be changed and washed. I think the car seat cushions are technically washable, but I think this would clean and dry a lot quicker.

In short, the next 8 weeks will go very quickly and the carpal tunnel will likely get worse before it gets any better. I'll post pictures if I ever get any of this done.

Weekends of Crafty Goodness

What does one do on a rainy holiday weekend? Craft projects for the nursery, of course. The dining room of our one bedroom apartment now comes close to resembling a nursery thanks to some crafty and creative additions.

For Christmas, I finished the "hockey quilt," for Rich. It's a standard Crib size with an Ohio Star pattern. I used flannel for both the front and back, and a cotton batting. A large portion of the quilt is machine quilted (in the ditch. Hopefully the machine quilting will help it hold up better through many washes. The white squares are hand quilted in a "net" diagonal checkerboard pattern and the star centers feature a hand quilted redwings logo outline. I made the pattern for the logo by tracing the shoulder patch from the Winter Classic jersey. The border features blue and red prairie points. This quilt doesn't really go with the nursery theme, but we think Johnny will like it just the same.

Several weeks ago, I created about 4 receiving blankets out of flannel. They are simply 2 1yard cuts sewn right sides together, then turned out and finished. For two of the blankets, I cut the 45" down to 36" so the resulting blanket is square and easier to use for swaddling. Very simple, but Jo Ann's has so many cute flannel patterns and they look very nice. The double layer of flannel should prove to be pretty warm too.

I also created a dust ruffle--yet another layer in my shabby chic decorating. The fabric for the dust ruffle was easy to obtain. We had an old blue and green striped fabric shower curtain we weren't using. The fabric was cut to fit the crib length. Remnant pieces were added at the headboard and foot board to complete the look at no cost to us.



This weekend I created a "crib caddy"-- a fabric creation with pockets designed to hang from a crib and keep necessities handy. We're actually tying it on to the changing table, as that's where we need more storage anyway. Besides, it's a small space, so everything is within arms reach of everything else. I used grosgrain ribbon instead of the prescribed bias tape, which seams fairly sturdy. I followed a simplicity pattern, which made it seem more complicated than it was. Having made it once, a second one should go together easier, but it's not on my priority list.

Since the cost of a new glider was not in the budget, we've decided to recover our old glider. Structurally, there is nothing wrong with the old one, other than the fact that the cushions were old, a little worn and not very comfortable. I wrapped the old cushions in 2 layers of high loft batting and a layer of fleece. For this project, I used a full size pre-packaged batting, which was enough for the cushions, and ottoman, with enough left over for the memory boards. I very quickly tacked the batting/fleece in place with some loose hand stitching. Tacking things down was a good idea; I could tell it would have been a nightmare trying to stuff the cushions into the covers otherwise. I chose to cover the cushions in a blue and white gingham.With the cushions on the fabric, I cut out two pieces with roughly 1 inch extra all the way around. I stitched together three sides, leaving the "bottom" open to insert the cushion. Once the cushion was inside, I hand stitched the opening with some ribbon tabs to tie the cushions to the chair.


So we have this "pond" theme for our nursery, and above Johnny's crib is his own lily pond. We made lily pads from green fabric. I used coloring book images to create a rough pattern and enlarged the pattern to various sizes. Two pieces of fabric were stitched together, turned right side out and filled with a little bit of scrap fabric or fiber fill. To create "veins" I used a variety of machine stitching patterns. Some of the lily pads were sewn to the blue tulle "pond" canopy. The canopy is attached to the ceiling in a random draping fashion using thumbtacks. Rich did most of the ceiling work as I directed from the ground. Next, we added extra lily pads suspended from fishing line, as well as tissue paper "lilies." Sparkling blue butterflies from Hobby Lobby's summer decor finish off the ceiling masterpiece. We were careful to keep the canopy far enough from the ceiling fan, but close enough that when the fan is on, the hanging pieces have some movement.

On the wall behind the crib we painted pre-cut wooden letters. You can find these letters at just about any craft store--ours happen to come from Walmart, where they were marked down. Rich gave the letters two base coats of white. I added green and blue accents and voila, for much less than $16 a letter we have a cute wall decoration.
Under his name, we added a frog. It's actually a kid's summer placemat from Jo Ann's for $1. We may add accent fish to the sides yet.


On the to do list yet... Finish the memo boards, create a window treatment and more wall art. I might make a "pond" mirror--but that's not a priority.

Where does the Time Go?

I can't believe that I haven't written in nearly 2 months. Things have just been hectic, I guess. So for those who need to know, here's a recap
In October I had an interview and got to spend a fall weekend at home. I went apple picking with the whole family, which was a blast. At the end of the month, Maudy and Grumpy came to visit. We took in many of the great Savannah sites we hadn't yet seen as well as some great dining.
November. Well, I have no good excuse about where Novemeber went, except that it too flew by. I've been volunteering with the libraries and a local elementary school. I worked on three major school projects: a quilting catalog, a reclassification for the CD collection at the Library where I work, and a capstone project that was a larger bite than I should have taken. The capstone project was interesting, since I was comparing browsing habits of library and bookstore patrons, but it was also very time consuming since I had to follow patrons around and observe those habits. If I were smarter or lazier, I would have stuck to a literature review.
In my spare time, I've been following high school football play-off as Rich's road-trip attache. I'm not the biggest football fan, but I do like taking in the various corners of the state, including a pizza parlor featuring a shrine to Robert E. Lee.

The good news is, the projects are done. My hockey quilt is done. Christmas shopping is mostly done and I'm ready to go home for the holidays and relax. Now that I'm practically graduated, I shall have to resolve to keep up with this blog a bit more frequently.