Cost = Free ~ Part II

The other thing I found recently was this amazing table and chairs.

(This is the picture from the ad that I responded to.)

The folks had just moved and it didn't fit in their new house so it had to go.

She said there were multiple calls between the time I called and made arrangements to pick it up 

and when I arrived.

The cool thing about the table is it has two leaves but no seam down the middle.

(Before I got the cabinet in.)

See~

Our old table worked but was an old one my grandmother had 

that we gorilla glued back together multiple times.

The chairs were recently recovered and I love the color, but they must have changed them when they did so.
I think there should be a plywood form as well.
As is when you sit in the chair, you feel like you’re falling into a big toilet seat.
There is no support so you actually sink into the chair.
I need to pull one apart and make a pattern of sorts.
From there, I can do them one at a time just to make sure one size fits all.
In addition to not having much time lately, 
I haven’t been super excited to get to this,
because it involves pulling staples.
If you’ve never pulled staples on this sort of thing,
Come on over - I’ll learn ya how 😉
It will be nice to have them done, and I do have plywood for the job,
Now it’s just that time thing.  

*~*~*My Design Tomato Trellis - Tutorial*~*~*

Well, I don't know how right on it I was,

but I did get most of my tomato trellis made.

Being very human,

I mis-calculated and ended up one stick short.

So tomorrow,

I will go get one more 1X2.

Requirements: 8 or 9 1X2s (at least 8:)

and 4-6 hinges
wood screws (about 1 inch)

You will end up with:

8 each = 5ft. 1X2s

4 each = 1ft. 1X2s

4 each = 2ft. 1X2s

4 each = 17inch 1X2 or scrap strip

4 each = 21inch 1X2 or scrap strip

Here's what I did.

I started by getting some boards cut to the right lengths.

This is not all of them,

just a sampling:)

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You could seal your boards

before you assemble the project.

I will wait until

it is all put together,

because, I like to seal up

those screw holes.

After doing this the difficult way,

I drew a line 5 feet long then

on the top and bottom board,

I marked the center and lined the mark up

with the line so that there were no

'weird' angles, and it was square.

Working with finer pieces of wood like this,

it's very important to pre-drill your holes.

At the corners, it is also important to put 2 screws

so that the piece is sturdy and 

does not rock.

I then used some scrap pieces I had

left over from another project to add rungs.

These were only about 1X1s so I only used

one screw on them.

You will need to repeat this 3 more times

so that you have 4 pieces like this. (ladders)

Once you have all of your 'ladder' pieces,

flip them so they are rung side down

and the long 5 ft pieces are on top.

I will be using 3 hinges but only had 2 on hand.

Place hinges appropriately.

(top, middle, and bottom)

Screw them in place making sure

that they fold up as they are laying this way.

-otherwise the rungs will be in the way-

Then you can stand them up.

They should be pretty sturdy.

This is only 2 of the 4 sides.

As I said earlier,

I was 1 board short.

I will just use jute to tie

two of these sections together

in order to use them.

At these deminsions,

5 feet tall

1 foot across at top,

and 2 feet across at bottom,

it is sound

and should not tip over.

If needed, I can use

tent stakes as tie downs

-if the tomatoes get that big.-

I plan on prunning them 

if they get over 5 feet tall

so that their energy

will go into making fruit

rather than leaves.

If the plant needs more support,

I can use jute to string

across from one side to the other.

I didn't want so much wood

that it blocked the light.

The reason I am making them

with only two sections

is that they fold flat

for winter time storage.

Those round metal ones

drive me crazy.  They are never

strong enough, and 

always seem to be in the way.

By using scraps for the 

middle supports,

I ended up with some

3 foot drops.

I am hoping to make

something similar

but 3 feet tall for

my cucumbers.

The other thing I took into

consideration was

access to the tomatoes.

Maybe I'm a little lazy,

but I like to be able to

get to those ripe ones

without having to do too 

much digging.

Our seed order arrived yesterday.

Now we just have to have

patience for a couple more months.

Having a project helps point my

focus somewhere other than

just the growing part of gardening

as it snows outside!

You don't need a lot of room

to grow some of your own food.  

You could even set this over a potted plant.

Keep warm and safe, and I hope this inspires you.  

Until next time,

Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

*~*~*January Projects for the Garden*~*~*

1st

If you haven't ordered your seeds,

I would strongly suggest placing your order soon.

One site I really like:

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

I have only had good luck with their seeds,

and I'll just remind you that this is me

the brown thumb talking.

2nd

Go through your seeds and see what you will

want to purchase as plants.

I have horrible luck starting tomatoes from seed

so I just plan on buying them.

If your seeds look like this,

maybe do a little tidying-up;)

Even the sunglasses for weed wacking.

3rd

If you don't already have one,

maybe find a local source of bunny poo.

Yep, you read that correctly.

It's !ultra-fabuloso! for the garden.

I called our extension service and

they hooked me up with a 4-H family

who had a gold mine of doodoo.

They were only too obliged to share.

4th

I don't know what you all do,

but I can't stand the tomato cages

that you buy in the store.

I even bought the larger, sturdier, more expensive ones,

and they were wimpy.

So I've come up with a little plan.
I will have to play with it and get some pictures
before I share:)
The suspense is brutal, I know.

Hopefully I can get on it &
get it done.

I read another blog about things they plant in January.
Our ground hasn't thawed since October.
I just have to wait for my seeds to arrive,
and clean-up my seed box before they show up.

More soon.
Until next time,
Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

Traditions, Ideas, & a Gift Tutorial

As many of you are aware,

we don't have television.

Over Thanksgiving,

we were at my in-laws

who seem to have it on for

all but a few sleeping hours.

On our way home,

Mr. LB said, "No wonder people act so stupid."

We couldn't believe what was in the shows

and especially in the commercials.

We didn't 'do' Black Friday &

find it abominable that big box stores

started their 'big sales' on Thanksgiving.

Yet we know - so be it.

There are things that are so much simpler

and for us at least, better.

When the children were just youngins,

they would string cereal on jute

and hang it out for the birds on Thanksgiving

so they could be thankful too.

It was great.

I love that memory.

The year this was taken was extra-special for the birds.

They also got bagels with peanut-butter and bird seed.

One idea I recently ran across

is to make little pockets for the Christmas tree.

When you are taking down the tree,

strip the needles from some of the branches,

and put them in the pocket for in your dresser drawers.

Then you can be reminded of Christmas

every time you open your drawer.

I thought it was a great little tradition

so here's what I came up with.

I made a very simple version

and will probably make a few more

just for a few friends.

(Just letting you know: I used some scraps I had.)

Also, I used a machine, but they would not be difficult to do by hand.

I like the more primitive look (in the real sense of the word)

so I tore a strip of tea dyed muslin at about 4 inches wide.

Then cut at about 11 inches long

Depending on the width of your fabric,

you can get 3 or 4 pockets from one strip.

Then tear an alternate color at about 1/2 inch wide.

You will need 2 that are about 4 1/2 inches long

and one that is about 4 inches ~ the width you tore your muslin.

I wanted the selvage across the edge so left it.

I used a small scrap of iron on interfacing.

This is where the button hole will be.

Also, on the second one (green) I stitched one of the

1/2 inch strips across this end and liked it better than without.

At the other end, I stitched under about 1/4 inch. 

Stitch a button hole in the end with the interfacing.

(Not done in the picture yet.)

Lay the two 1/2 inch strips along the sides. 

Fold her up and stitch along the sides

(after button hole is sewn of course.)

See below~ 

 Sew button in place.

Fill with pine needles and Christmas memories.

You could get as fancy or as detailed as you wanted.

I thought about stitching "NOEL" on one.

I may or may not do that.

I do like the one with the extra strip of color.

(The green along the selvage.)

If you know someone uses a fake tree,

you could stuff it with cedar shavings.

Other than a floral arrangement and using the Christmas napkins,

I don't decorate until a week or so before Christmas.

I do enjoy Christmas,

and like to keep the focus on the real meaning.

I know others do so differently~ 

it's all good.

Wishing you all Peace, Happiness, and Harmony

this Christmastime.

Until next time,

Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

Decking the Halls with Nature

Here are some more sticks:)

I little different then the last 

I posted about.

They aren't difficult,

just a little messy.

You will need 5 sticks

roughly the same size,

some craft wire (or strip those little twist ties,)

and some needle-nosed pliers.

(Never mind my tea)

I chose mossy sticks for this star.

You could spray them white or silver etc.

to suit your decor.

Again, I prefer natural.

Lay them out in a star shape

before wiring anything.

You might need to put one over or under

another because they aren't perfectly straight.

Then wire the points together (using the needle-nose pliers) 

wrapping any of the wire tails to the back.

Once you have all five points wired,

wire at least a couple of the places

'in the star' where the sticks cross.

I made two different sized.

The taller one is about 16 inches tall.

The smaller one is about 8 inches tall.

I might have to do a really big one.

We'll see how ambitious I am.

Until next time,

Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

Company Coming for Thanksgiving? Inexpensive Memento Idea

These are simple and add a bit of sparkle to the season.

All you need is:

Borax, boiling water, pipe-cleaners, and a jar.

(oh and a pencil and scissors)

If you have company spending the night,

you could have them twist up their snowflake

of pipe-cleaners at night.

There are a ton of possibilities:

a simple asterisk, a star, or something more detailed

like the one above.

Hang the snowflakes in a jar

supported by the pencil across the top.

Boil water.

Add about 3 tablespoons of borax to each cup of boiling water.

I like peanut butter jars, because they have a wide mouth.

I let my borax solution cool for about 10 min.

so it wouldn't melt the jar.

If you are using a glass jar,

you don't have to wait.

Just pour the borax solution over the snowflakes.

Now... go to bed.

When you awake~

A couple of notes:

*You can use colored pipe-cleaners & it will add

a little tint to them.

*You can add a few drops of food coloring to the borax solution.

*Be sure that they are not touching the bottom

of the jar (they'll stick.)

*And lastly, be sure that the jar is filled to the top of

the snowflake.

Or it will turn out like this one - oops

I almost didn't show you,

but sometimes it's as helpful to know

what not to do as it is to know

what TO do.

I like this one, but the top wasn't submerged.

They are fun and sturdy for what they are.

Kids (& adults too) can take them home

with them and hang them on their tree.

Fun for the whole family.

Until next time,

Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

Free St. Valentine Pendant Tutorial

Hello All,

Just thought I would share a little project with you ~ enjoy.

You could of course make just one, or a string of them like I did.  I am a bit of a romantic so I chose a little piece of Shakespeare's and put a floral heart in between.

The verse I chose was:

Doubt thou the stars are fire

Doubt that the sun doth move

Doubt truth to be a liar

But never doubt I love

You could do something as simple as "Be 
Mine," or just various fabrics.  It's meant to be fun - low stress and enjoyable.


















First take a piece of copy paper and folded it in half the long way.  Then draw a line from the upper outer corner to the center at the opposite end and cut so when you open it, it looks like this.

You will need one from fusible web and two from fabric cut about 1/4 inch larger than the web - see picture. You will need to do this for each section if you are doing a string of them like I did.

Next take that triangle paper and fold it back in half the long way like when you cut it.  Then draw half a heart and cut it out.

If there is a certain font you like, you can print it out, and trace it onto your fabric (if the fabric is light enough.)  Then stitch the words centering them over the heart so you can cut it out.
Now you are ready to make a sandwich. You will fuse the triangles together right sides out according to your fusible web instructions.  Center your heart on the triangle and stitch about 1/4" in from the edges.  You can use a decorative stitch or a long basting stitch etc. - whatever you choose.  It's supposed to be fun remember so enjoy & just do whatever.

   Now cut a strip of coordinating fabric about 1/2-5/8" wide the width of fabric (44".)  Use your longest straight stitch to stitch down the middle of this  skinny piece of fabric.  If it isn't directly down the middle, it will still turn out:)  Gather to fit the lower two edges of the pendant.  Stitch in place.

I made my own bias tape long enough to fit my seven pendants and make a loop at each end.  If you want to do this, I cut strips about 1 3/4" wide, ironed it in half lengthwise then folded each side in to meet the center crease.  Place each pendant in the bias tape and stitch the entire length. If you would like the hearts a little more raggedy looking, you can take mailing tape and roll it backwards then brush the edges.  This will fray-up the edges a little.  I think I might do that to mine.
That's it.  If there is any part that needs clarifying, just shoot me an email.
Until next time,
Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

Free Thanksgiving Pattern

Giving thanks and giving back.

I have some exciting news.  My friends and family have been telling me I should do this for a long time.  I have made patterns for people in the past, but haven't charged for them.  I am taking a leap and have begun posting my patterns.  If you look in my blog shoppe, they will be added as I have opportunity to do so.  It takes a little time just to get them posted to the shoppe let alone to create them. 

As a little perk to you, I am giving you a sweet Thanksgiving design that could actually be used the entire autumn season.  I put mine on a table runner, but you can make a pillow, tea towel, pot-holder, wall hanging, or a number of other items with this design.  The best news is... it's free! 

I would like to ask a couple things: first, I would ask that you become a follower - it's not a requirement.  You can still get the pattern if you choose not to follow.  I am a believer in the honor system:), and second, would you like more free patterns or designs perhaps each season?  Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think.  That's where being a follower really kicks in.  You would get to see those free patterns, and of course, this is just a fun place to hang out.  (I hope you like the idea as I have a another one in mind and am hoping to get started on it.)

I have a couple other patterns in the works that are more along the quilting line.  It just takes a little longer to get those samples made.

This free pattern is in my blog shoppe as well.  Let me know if for any reason it isn't working.  You should be able to just click and print.
I am still a newby to blogging so I am learning by doing:)

Until next time,
Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches

PS: Blessings to you folks over on the east coast - be safe.

Free Tutorial Burlap & White Book Mark or Name Tag

Here I go again.  Just thought I would show you a little how to book mark out of burlap and white muslin.  First you will need to go get the piece of burlap you have hiding in a special place so it doesn't make the rest of your fabric smell funny.

Then cut a strip off the end.  It is important that you cut on the grain of the fabric staying between two specific fibers.  If this is tricky for you, try pulling one fiber from the edge.  This will give you a cutting path.  I cut mine two inches wide. I am making a book mark.  If you are making a name tag, you might want it just a tad wider (a nice name tag size is 2.5 X 4.5.)  I then cut 5.5 inches from the strip.  (I will be making more than one so I cut a whole long strip.)  I then cut a piece of iron-on interfacing about 1.5 X 5 inches and ironed that (steamer off) to the burlap.  Very Very Very important - make sure the shiny side is toward the fabric so it doesn't stick to your iron.  That would be bad.  The measurements I use leave about 1/4 inch all around to pull some of the fibers away for a 'fringy' look.  Heehee, I like that word.  I then did what I refer to as doodling with my needle.  I just made a couple little flowers.  I don't use patterns for little things like this, but you could draw a little flower, a cat, write a name, or just any ol' thing you are into.  Next, you will need to get your white muslin. 

Snip and tear from one corner, then from the same corner, snip and tear in the other direction so you end up with a freyed corner.

 I then lay the burlap piece on the white muslin and snipped and tore to make it just slightly larger than the burlap (about another 1/4 inch on all sides.)

 

 

Now you will need your wonder under or heat-n-bond which ever double sided adhesive you prefer.  Cut a piece just slightly larger than the interfacing you cut before stitching.  Iron it (shiny side down & no steam) on the burlap piece.  While you are at it, might as well iron the muslin piece.  Peal the paper off and  place the muslin on the burlap making sure it is centered both top to bottom and side to side.

Iron this from the back - you don't want to take a chance either cinging or snagging your embroidery on the front.  Also, the heat travels through muslin better than it does through burlap. 

And "Voila!"  There you have it.  If you are making name tags, simply hot glue a pin back to the back of the tag or use fun, big safety pin to pin them on.  It is almost easier to make several of these at one time and use the little assembly line technique rather than just one.  This one is going to a very nice lady I met in Prosser last weekend. 

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think.
Hope you are having a fantastic weekend.