Some Progress on the House with Potential

A couple of years ago we downsized to a smaller fixer-upper

and my daughter suggested I chronicle our work on this

House with Potential.

Quite a bit got done that first year, but then we got a little

  sidetracked for a while with work and family.

 Things are finally starting to get going again, so let's 

look at some of the progress!

 This is what the house looked like when we moved in.

I was nonplussed with the faux Spanish arches and blah color.

 We had never had a stucco house before, 

 so we were a little unprepared for how much work 

it would be to take down those arches!

 But a lot of blood, sweat and tears later,

 we finally have pretty white posts!

And I love the turquoise door with the new grey color!

happy valentine's day

I have been spending Valentine week with some of my very favorite little people,

so here are just a few pics celebrating

Valentine's Day!

Canvas Bags Personalized

Along with the usual books and toys I buy my grandkids for Christmas, 

I also like to give them something personal every year.

Something handmade just for them from their Grammy.

A few years ago, when there were only 2 of them, I made

these cute canvas bags with their names on them.

Inside were small pillows (also handmade) and other small items.

Perfect for sleepovers at Gammy's!

But this year, grand child #3 noticed that she didn't have a bag with her name.

 So I quickly got busy.

 Pretty buttons make cute flowers.

 These were very easy to make, but unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of the process.

However, I have a feeling I will be making some more soon, 

as grandchild #4 turns 2 this year 

and #6 is due this summer, so stay tuned for instructions!

Camel Back Sofa Slipcover, Part 2

We are taking this charming old camel-back sofa from this:


to this:

So without further ado, let's get back to the tutorial!

Here is where we left off, the front of the arms pinned,
right sides together and trimmed.
At this point, pin in the piping.

Now sewn and turned right side out, 

but not yet sewn to the side of the sofa.

With both arms done, getting ready to attach the

grey linen to the top and sides.

I find it easier and a better fit to turn down the main fabric and pin/sew

to the secondary fabric, rather than the traditional right sides together plan.

 Piece in whatever you need and pin carefully.

I used the same grey linen on the sides and back of the sofa.
 Just pin a large piece of fabric to the space, cut out the shape
allowing for seams, and pin to herringbone fabric,
using the same method.

 This is the back, just a large piece of linen sewn right sides together.
(Actually, you can sew it either way you choose)

 
 You can see how the arms fall into place once the sides are put together.

Now that the basic sofa is done, it's time to tackle the cushions.


The tricky part here is to pin them around the cushion.
This is important because otherwise they will surely twist and
have to be redone.
 Just be careful getting them off the cushion with all the pins!
If you are using piping, be sure to pin it in too.

These cushions had seen better days and were a little skimpy,
so I added a layer of foam and batting to plump them up.


You have to squish the cushion down when getting the cover on and off.



Finished cushion: nice and plump!


The finishing touch was a band of the linen around the bottom.

 What a huge difference!

It works really well with everything else in the room.


I love the crisp white piping against the soft grey of the herringbone.

The lesson here is, never turn down a free sofa!

Camel-Back Sofa Slipcover

Last summer I was looking at sofas to replace the
 huge dark leather one that I hated.
I knew basically what I wanted and how much I wanted to spend,
but I wasn't having much luck.

Just as I was getting frustrated and close to giving up, a friend sent me
a picture of a sofa she was trying to get rid of.
 Free.
I drove right over.

 If it looks a little faded, that's because it sat out in the sun all summer,
waiting for me to have time to get to it.

 I knew exactly what fabric I wanted on this sofa: a soft grey herringbone.

 I laid it out over the back, centering the fabric and making sure
the pattern was in the direction I wanted,

 and cut to fit.

Next, I added fabric to the sides, right sides together,

to cover the entire back.
You can see that it is a little long; that's because it will need to be
cut on a diagonal when I add the arm fabric.

 I decided to use a solid grey linen for under the cushions.
Once that was cut in, I laid the herringbone over the arms and rough cut that.

 I then pinned it to the back, right sides together,
 making sure it would be a good fit.
Pin, sew, trim edges.

Next up: the arms.

As you can see, they have kind of a funny little shape.

 My 1st attempt: fortunately I noticed the pattern 

was crooked before I got too far,

 so I tried again, making sure this time to get it straight.

 Make sure to flip the sofa fabric to the wrong side 

so you are pinning right sides together.

 Once it's pinned, you can trim the edges.

Add the piece that wraps around the bottom of the arm,

and trim to fit.

Next we will get to the piping, sides, back and cushions.

Stay tuned!