Inspired!

so I've been looking at this page cause I found a pattern from there a couple months ago that really helped me out and it  has inspired me to do a few more projects and tackle some things that seemed impossible
http://www.burdastyle.com/projects

Jumping in!

 So catching up on all the blogs I read I got inspired, and well the creativity started flowing and it just won't stop.
In the past 2 days I have cleaned the house, made 3 skirts (one for Izzy 2 for etsy), made 7 sets of bobby pin barrettes and a few stragglers as well as group together some of my photography prints. I am planning to stock my etsy shop and hopefully make a little extra cash to fund my etsy addiction as well as my daughters need for some new (to her) clothes. So go check it out @  JLynnFinch

Nutcracker

                                                        WE SURVIVED!
Ok so it wasn't that bad and we definitely had fun! I took way too many pictures and am now editing and going through them all adding them to facebook and shutterfly to share with others so I will add the links here to eliminate another upload. for now here are a few sneak peaks

Tea with the Sugar Plum Fairy

Well as most of you know #1 and #2 are in ballet and its Nutcracker season #1 is a gingerbread chef as well as a party boy he's super excited and we are too since he is scollarshipped so if he really enjoys this it could be a career. #2 is an angel and having fun. Well to help raise money for the Ballet company I painted some dead point shoes for them to add to their silent auction as well as place a couple in shadow boxes (sorry no pictures) with a poem by my niece. we did the theme the slipper that saved the Nutcracker Prince lol since Clara throws her slipper at the Rat King and distracts him long enough to save the Prince.

So tell me What do you think should I do several of these throughout the year to get ahead for next year?

Should I do several different ballet themes and try and sell them on ETSY?

Or does anyone have any other ideas to do with dead point shoes.

 

See what happens when I dust!

 So Wednesday morning I started out vacuuming and dusting with the help of my children and well all the furniture had been pulled away from the wall to get the spider webs and we ended up rearranging the whole living room. from left to right this is what you see when you walk in now 

and then we had to clean the bedrooms lol and we have decided to stack the beds and make bunk beds again so they have more room to play now that Isaac's pack-n-play is in there. Ad here are some pictures now that we have finished that thought.

 hopfully we will be painting Izzy's room after Hanukkah and before new years hah fat chance but hey I can dream just like I would really like to finish getting the tin up on the boys walls and paint the bathroom before next summer.

The BIG Reveal

Ok I know you all have waited so long but there is only so much hand stitching a mom of 4 can do in a day. found this wonderful pattern at Past Patterns and although it is not missing its mistakes they did a marvelous jog translating the pattern and bringing history alive the pattern has a little history behind the dress included and I absolutely loved reading about it. I was a little limited by color because of the role I am playing in the Nutcracker  Ballet but it was ok because I had way too many ideas and it helped to not be able to do some of them. the skirt was easy I used my coat pattern to make gores and then just sewed them together, bound the top, and added elastic in the binding so that there was some extra for movement and give for all the underthings I will be wearing.

  The bodice was a little more difficult to do I had to have help as I couldn't fit to myself  and wasn't sure about some of the techniques that in the end I skipped and did it the way we would do things now. I was originally going to be putting lace across the top and around the bottom edge of the sleeves but in the end it just looked too busy and I opted to just do the roses but that looked too plain so I did a little hand embroidery and wow it is perfect.

So what do you think it took me about 3 weeks start to finish getting the fabric and waiting for the pattern I have a few last little things to do like connect the bodice to the skirt so when I am dancing it doesn't pull up too much and figuring out how to make the pettiskirt a tad shorter without altering it since I am borrowing it. I need to add a little bow on each sleeve with a rose in the middle to bring the ribbon from the lace up back into the rest of the outfit. Might add a few tiny matching bows to the bottom of the skirt where I put roses at each scallop gather.

I meant to get a picture when I was wearing it at rehearsal last night but totally forgot in all the excitement. Everyone LOVED the gown and I was even told three times I was not allowed to wear it because I would upstage Clara and her "mom" lol and the studio owner said she was going to rip it off of me because she adored that color and wanted it for herself (although I'm pretty sure i would never fit her she is so petite). I will get a picture of me in it after the last alterations are made

completely obsessed

ok well I have been sewing till my fingers hurt and my brain is all full of plans for other projects that don't involve sewing lol, But in all my research for this victorian ball gown I came across this website  http://ana-white.com/ and WOW I am completely obsessed and really want to get the boys room finished so it is more kid friendly and functional. SO as soon as I finish the dress I will post pictures and then we will be off on the adventure to redo the boys wreck of a room and I can blog about that.

Victorian ball gown and my winter coat

Well It has begun I have all my fabric and trim for the Victorian ball gown I will be wearing in my children's ballet performance of  The Nutcracker.

 I have been working on my coat that I found fabric for last winter in every spare minute I have so I will have it when the cold actually hits TX. I will be posting pics of that asap I have to put the liner in today so maybe I can let you all see it tomorrow ; )  For now just a taste of things to come I pray you are all well and NOT getting the stomach bug going around. Shalom

A little here and a little there

Well as busy as we have been Nate and I have gotten a few projects finished so I have pictures to show you all hope you enjoy them.
The first is a mirror that has been sitting in a corner for a couple years I have been trying to figure out what to do with is it has some paint splatter in a few areas and it was very plain I am not sure I will keep it like this but Nate does like the way it looks in its new home.

Before

After

The little card table was amazingly found in the trash outside my dads apartment with two broken legs and Nate managed to repair them the top is a beautiful inlay I will have to add pictures of that later and it folds open to reveal a leather table top it is missing its little drawers but for now I have my little tray in there I use as a lap desk when I am sitting on the bed looking through design magazines. 

The chair was given to me and I had to redo the seat and glue a few joints and it now is a comfy spot to sit in the evenings and do my school work.

For now that is all I have to finish the quilts for my sister-in-law and then to get started on my Victorian ball gown and a coat as it is going to get rather chilly here soon.

Fun in Chestnut Square

We had to even things up since we missed Jacob and Josiah when it came time for birthday pictures. The location ended up being in our historic downtown with some fun hats and beautiful fall weather. I cannot thank Kay McIntire enough she really captures my children and does beautiful photography check out some of the boys pictures at the link below.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=234302&id=38195887236

A Whirlwind

 Well Fall is officially here and we are loving the cooler weather and being able to have the windows open.
We have been crazy busy getting Schelly(my sister-in-law) ready for her mission trip to Bangladesh through her school DBU. She was not able to find any appropriate clothing in her size so we had to make her 11 new outfits that would be appropriate for the Indian customs (veil and tunic down to shins). we sewed day and night for 4 days even had a machine give out on us but we got it all completed in time to wash it and treat it with bug repellent before she had to get it all packed. She is now back safely and very jet lagged she is having a hard time readjusting to our time zone and I have no clue how she is able to go to work and school. Schelly brought us all back some beautiful goodies see how pretty they are

I am continuing to sew making quilts out of all the scraps to sell and help pay back all that she had to borrow to make it possible th share the Gospel with those in another country I will post pictures of those quilts as I go.

With Fall also come Nutcracker! Izzy's class is angels, Jacobs class is gingerbread, Jacob and his cousin Ryorden are also party boys  whom help Fritz (Clara's brother) wreck havoc on stage and break the nutcracker. Nate and I have volunteered to be party parents and dance in the first scene which requires lots of practicing and an excuse to make a regency ball gown yay! Another project that I will be sharing with you all probably making one post with step by step pictures. For now I must go be supermom!

Crafting away!

 I have been busy busy busy fr the past couple of weeks with the fall holidays and family staying on the property.
We have accomplished alot and fed an army. Here are some pictures from our Feast of Trumpets

It was Delish and I am very thankful for our friends in South America that gave me the challah bread recipe.

the kids are learning alot this year we made alphabet posters

we are also learning about their body in science and how to properly feed it so it can grow and be healthy here is their paper body that we are making to aid in seeing the inside organs

I have gotten caught up on my sewing too and am now working on a coat for me racing to get it done before the cold weather hits lol this is Texas I still have 4 months rite! for now here are some pictures of some things I've been working on

we also decorated some pumpkin cookies for aunt Robin's work 

Sooo as you can see we have been very busy and productive in the past couple of weeks
                                      and now we are in Nutcracker season and have costumes and rehearsals and well
                                           We might be a little insane by the time its over.

What a Blast of Fresh Air

  So last weekend I went on a little road trip to Arkansas to visit my aunts and attend a baby shower and best of all take some pictures of my sweet little cousins. Izzy went along with me and she was such a little helper growing up to be a beautiful little woman. got side tracked by some garage sales and flee markets but oh what finds at great prices found an amazing twisted metal plate rack I am going to use to hold some odd ball frames in my entry way will post pictures when I finally get around to hanging it. Some cute antique cast iron planes for my boys and a ballerina bear for my little ballerina. The pictures turned out amazing here is a little taste.

We went to an amazing place in North Little Rock called The Old Mill it was in the beginning scenes of Gone With the Wind and WOW it is sooo pretty even with the rainy weather.

well it is now Labor Day Weekend and we have been having fun helped Schelly at the Heard Museum yesterday for her fund raising for Bangladesh spent some time with my dad on Friday and we are kinda taking it easy since Isaac has a nasty cough deep in his chest after 5 months of not having to use the inhaler we have had to use it 3 times in the past 2 days so I am praying it is just the weather change and not the treatments we have been doing to get rid of the Group A and B strep in his stomach. The good news is Isaac is growing and doing well just not absorbing the triglycerides because of the strep so pray for these two things for us will you I know God has a plan for this little guy and it will all happen in His timing.
Have a great weekend everyone.

Crazy Monday

  Well our first attempt to get into a routine for the new school year was a FAIL, But there is always tomorrow.
We did however manage to get dressed and have breakfast by 9:15 and then went outside to cut and wash the Lemon Thyme to be dried on trays for teas this fall and winter. I have to say I didn't realize how much we had harvested until we had it drying on trays and it was everywhere. We still have one more bed of it to cut and go through but it will be the hardest for some reason the caterpillars really like that bed and have made cocoons all through it.  Jacob helped me pick the black eyed peas and I need to come up with a way to keep the fire ants off the plants or I will just do without those peas I refuse to have those pests in my garden and hate that my fingers are now puffy and blistering from the bites thankfully they don't itch because we put lavender oil on the bites.

  I have Chicken marinating and we have rice leftover from Shabbat  now to cook the eggplant and make a yummy spinach salad maybe I can find some walnuts in the freezer and some dried cranberries too!
I'm Off for now have laundry to fold and we will see if I can get some sewing done tomorrow.

New blog new web address.

Ok we have extra blog fun at    http://finchfamily4.shutterfly.com/  and that is where I am currently uploading pictures you will need to email me for a password as I am trying to keep my children safe from perverts and crazies. I will be attempting to keep this blog full of goodies from my photo shoots, craft projects and crazy decorating adventures. I hope you enjoy and are inspired to do more crafting.