Spring Sewing Goodies Giveaway!

It's the start of May, so I thought a great way to celebrate the new month & spring being in full swing would be to give away a sweet sewing goodies bundle from my store, 

Heavenly Fabric Shop!

My shop is known for its faith-based fabrics, craft supplies & gifts, but I also have inspirational and whimsical items too. I've assembled some of my favorites into a giveaway for you.  These are all the sweet things up for grabs:

One winner will receive the entire sewing bundle, which starts off with a yard each of these two fabrics:

The aqua sky print is Serenity Bird Toss:

and there's the vibrant inspirational Our Nest Is Blessed:

Besides fabric, there's this big assortment of adorable notions to get your spring projects moving:

Including a silicone flower pincushion ring:

some coordinating button sets of whimsical Believe in Fairies,

and ultra cute Fairies Welcome.  The fairy doors & enchanting mushrooms are so charming for all sorts of projects:

Last year I made a fun little fairy garden bowl with these:

I'm also including these really cool UV Solar Color Change buttons.  The Color Change Flowers Buttons set turns from pale pink to deep purple in the sun.  They are gorgeous on any project and little girls LOVE them!

There are also two Color Change Large Round Button Sets. Both start off white, but 3 turn blue and the other 3 turn magenta.  These will kick any sunny weather project up a notch!

And to top off this sweet sewing bundle is one of my most popular shop items, the Rainbow Unicorn Thread Scissors.  Not only are they great little scissors, but they are so fun and look adorable in your sewing space.  I've gifted several pairs to loved ones and they've always been a hit:

Now, grab your chance to win them all!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Sewing Gear I Couldn't Live Without

As much as I'd love to be showing new tutorials & sewing up spring goodies, it's just not happening for me right now.  Man, is it hard to find down time these days!  This being my 4th newborn, this isn't a surprise, but while this little guy sleeps a lot, it's usually on me, which while super cuddly, makes doing anything else impossible.  I find I'm spending more time planning & thinking about sewing than the actual thing.  

This thoughts-only time got me to thinking about what sewing supplies are my absolute must-haves.  These are the things I use almost ever time and are so key to making things go well.  I thought I'd share the 5 items that are the Sewing Gear I Couldn't Live Without: 

I hate hemming, so of course 2 of my items are related to making that easier!

1. Clover Hot Ruler.  This tool is made for lazy sewers like me.  Instead of measuring slowly with a sewing gauge and pinning like crazy to get the hem just right.

You simply fold the hem up to the desired measurement line and press with an iron, since it's heat safe.  So much faster and more precise.

2. Paper Backed Fusible Tape.  This is a hemming favorite too.

Choice the desired width - I usually use the 1/2 & 1/4 inch wide varieties.  Apply it to the wrong side along the fabric edge and then peel away the paper, fold it over so the sticky side presses against the fabric (or iron it in place if it's non-adhesive), then sew.  No need to measure or pin.  LOVE how it kills two birds with one stone.

It also stabilizes the fabric so it won't pull or stretch while sewing.  I've found it to be a lifesaver with knit hems and for minimizing tunneling (when the fabric sticks up between stitch rows) with twin needles.

3. Rotary cutter.  Since I first bought one when I began sewing 9 years ago, I've never looked back.  It takes a little getting used to, but it makes cutting much quicker, easier around curves and to do perfectly straight lines (against a yard stick).

I also love being able to cut through several layers at once - even thick fleece, which is nearly impossible with shears.  The only con is you have to be VERY careful to keep fingers out of the way and get in the habit of clicking the button to retract the blade.  All it takes is one time not paying attention to give yourself a wicked bad cut.  That blade is sharp!!  

4. Walking Presser Foot This is usually an add-on accessory you buy separately from your sewing machine, but boy is it useful.  

It's handy with knits since it grips fabric from the top (instead of just the feed dogs underneath), so the even hold keeps layers from creeping or stretching while you sew.  

It's also great for quilting, heavy weight and fabrics like laminate or silky synthetics that can easily shift.  The photo below was a mix of fleece, metallic bias tape and chalkboard fabric for a chalkboard gift bag and the walking foot kept it all in place beautifully.  I use mine on nearly every project.

Heck, it even works on crazy materials like plastic feed bags. It was a lifesaver when I made this feedbag tablecloth:

5. Mini Clips.  They are key for holding fabrics together when pins won't do.  I know there are some that are sold in craft stores, but really any small clips will work.  These were bought at a hardware store and have the rubber tips.  

  

Like doing small, folded bits like this drawstring for a pleather duffel bag:

Perfect with laminates that would show pinholes, like this pocketed laminated wallet project:

Or loads of layers like this insulated oven mitt project:

What are your favorite sewing tools?
Share them below!

SaveSaveSaveSaveSaveSave

The Fabric Hoarder Update: Reforms a Bit...Also Buys More Fabric

Many of you will recall my post from a few weeks ago, Are You Fabric Hoarder Too?, and I want to give an update on things in Fabric Hoarderville. After seeing an explosion of page views for that post, and hearing so many comments echoing my situation, I realized this topic struck a chord with many sewers & crafters out there.  I've tried a few of the ideas I mentioned for reducing my hoarding and wanted to share my results and some things I've discovered along the way.  

Good News - I have made progress on reducing my stash!  
Cue the sound of angels singing.  
Here's what's happened so far: 

Sewing More.  I've used up a good amount of my flannel (some of it years old, some recently bought) by making some much needed pajamas pants.  They were quick to make and ideal for winter nights.  It's reminded me that not every project has to be something complex or unique looking or even a new design/pattern.  It was fun to be able to knock out a few useable items in a short amount of time and know they'd look good since I'd made them before.  Next up on my to-sew list are my fleecy/fuzzy fabrics as tops.  
Verdict: Definitely will continue to do this regularly. 

Selling My Stash: I've listed a bit of my fabric stash in my Etsy shop, The Green Hedgehog.  I started with prints I knew I didn't need or couldn't see using for a project any time soon and quite a few are already gone.  Emotionally detaching myself from my stash and getting realistic on what I'm really going to use has been worth it.  The fabric is going to someone who wants it and I'm making extra space on the shelf & a little money at the same time.  Verdict: Definitely keeping this up.

Some of the lovelies available in my shop, The Green Hedgehog

Giveaway/Donate: I'm starting to get some random outgrown clothes, stuff we don't need, etc. ready for a donation to Purple Heart and am including some fabrics I never really wanted/needed to the mix.  Mainly, stuff I was given from prior hoarders looking to de-stash on an unsuspecting newbie.  I'm also compiling a few bundles of small cuts/scraps of fun prints to giveaway here this spring.  
Verdict: Still need to get them out of the house, but it's a good start for unused stuff.

Using Self Restraint:  I've been pretty good.  I've ignored the dozens of fabric sales and coupon codes hitting my inbox and mailbox.  A new Hobby Lobby has opened by me, which I'm excited about (the nearest had been 30min away before), but since I don't need anything right now, I haven't gone yet.  I even went into Jo-Ann Stores to buy elastic for my pajama pants and only came out with said elastic.  After a while I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything.
Verdict:  It works and is a huge improvement for me.

Ok, since everything sounds good thus far, 
on to my fabric buying...
(cue any "so much for getting rid of your stash" thoughts).

We just got back from a kid-free long weekend in Canada.  Of course I planned to check out fabric shops.  I told myself I was allowed to get a few things, but only if they met these 3 requirements:

1. They were hard-to-find at home 
2. An unbeatable price
3. I could think of an immediate project use for them.   

Considering the impulse picked piles I usually come home with, I think I did pretty well.  I saw a few other things I liked, but when I couldn't think of what exactly I'd do with them, I told myself no. Here's what I came away with -

I'm a huge old-school Strawberry Shortcake fan (as seen with my Fleece Strawberry Shortcake Hat and Themed Birthday Party) and had been looking for some fabric for a long time.  Len's Mill had a couple prints, so I got this one to make a pretty party dress for my daughter:

I found these cute kawaii prints there too.  I'd never seen them before and thought they'd make some cute bags/fabric baskets to organize my kids' stuff with.  They hoard toys and knick knacks like I hoard fabric, so some containers be useful.

As well as this colorful rainbow minky fabric.  I knew my daughter would be in love with this, since she adores all things pony/unicorn/pegasus.  The price was crazy good - under $8US/yd.  I'm either going to make her a blanket or do a reversible, mix & match top and pant outfit with some solids I already had.

And they also carry some handy notions I can't find at home, like pleather strapping (going to use to make handles for purses/bags):

Plus these fun elastics - the wide grey one is super plush and the purple paisley seemed really different looking.  I plan to use these as "exposed" elastic waistbands and shoulder straps on skirts, pants and tops.

Over at Fabricland I got some cute candy print knit fabric.  I have a lot of binding & FOE in matching colors so I can see this being either pajamas or a fun top for my little miss:

And my husband found this interesting bonded faux suede that has some soft cuddle fabric on reverse and it was marked down from $40CA to $8CA per metre.  Will be using this for some historical/adventure costumes for my two boys.

The excellent exchange rate made all of these items a lot less than what I could buy them for online, so that also helped me decide what was worth getting.  
Verdict: Proud of my willpower to keep the additions to a minimum. Which also brings me to my last resolution...

"1 In, 2 Out" Rule.  For each item coming in, I've got to use up/get rid off 2 current items.  Once I get these babies washed, I've got to turn my eye to pulling out at twice as many items in my stash.  Then figure out a plan to use some within 60 days and get the rest out of the house via selling or donating.  I think I'm going to make a prioritized to-sew list comprised of the new stuff & things to use up.  It's a little ambitious, but I think I can do it - or at least give it a try! Verdict: We'll see how this goes, but I'll be too busy with this to buy more fabric, so I think it'll be a win no matter what;)

I'll be doing more follow-up posts to chart my progress, share more stash-busting ideas as they come and, if it happens, any relapses.  Stay tuned fellow fabric hoarders!!  

And if YOU have any other ideas, experiences, hoarding anecdotes, etc. go ahead and share them in the comments.  We hoarders love to know we're not alone!