Bistro Awning Tutorial

What a way to make a statement in a kids bedroom or playroom with a striped awning! I've designed two wood awnings - made one myself and my contractor made the other (they can be a little tricky). Sewing a fabric awning seems like a great project to tackle.  Dana shows how to make a bistro awning.

Sunbrella 5702 Yellow White 6 Bar Outdoor Fabric

                      

 Canopy Stripe Fabric By The Yard   Garden Awning Fabric    54'' Wide For Your Home Awning Stripe Olive Oil Fabric By The Yard

Flower Power: Fleece Fabric Pillow

 Fleece is an inexpensive and easy to work with fabric. Just how cute are these fleece flower pillows? Laura from Come Together Kids is a "fleece addict". She has full instructions on how to make these simple flower fleece pillows. Most of the pillow was put together using a glue gun...how cool is that!  I can imagine these cutie pie pillows in a playroom, little girls room, etc...

Make sure to check out her blog for complete instructions.



                                                 

        64'' Wide Minky Fleece                                 58'' Wide  Fleece Pink Fabric By The Yard



                                                  

  58'' Wide  Fleece White Fabric By The Yard              1-1/2-Yards Fleece Fabric, Orange Solid



                                                      

         Crafty Cuts 1.5 Yards Fleece Fabric                   58'' Wide Fleece Turquoise Fabric By The Yard

Friends Forever T-shirts

Chelsea of Pink Fig Patterns made this incredibly sweet t-shirt as a project for girls in Japan.  There is also a boy version! Chelsea explains the project:



"I call it Chloe and Mieko. Chloe means blooming and Mieko means beautiful blessed child of God. The two together are a representation of the worlds love for Japan and their bright future ahead. It will bloom again and there is hope and light for them because God loves them and we love them. I want them to know that, so I designed this shirt to send to them. Join me in showing the children of Japan that we love them and make a shirt!



To get the free down loadable pattern and for more info on how you can be a part of this project please visit U-Create. I will be collecting t-shirts until the end of May. For those of you who send me a shirt, I will give you a 50% off coupon for my new Rag Doll pattern that is coming out shortly. I will also be asking for doll donations to send with the shirts.



My friend Susan will be doing a sew along on her blog for those of you who like step by step instructions and she will also be doing a boy version! Grab this button and spread the word:"

 Another project to help those in Japan...

David Chan started Hope Letters shortly after the recent devastation in Japan. If you would like to write a letter to students in Japan or relief workers, Hope Letters will translate it into Japanese and send the letter for you. How COOL is that??



Recent Highlights of Hope Letters

• Hope Letters received the 1,000 letter on March 22/11. Just over half translated into Japanese.

• A batch of letters were printed and placed at an evacuation centre in Oishida, Yamagata, which has been receiving evacuees from Fukushima.

• CBC in Canada, NBC in Bay Area (San Francisco and San Jose), and US local news reported on Hope Letters.

To submit a letter online go to http://hopeletters.wordpress.com

Get your school/church group to write hope letters.



Two wonderful opportunities (crafting and writing a letter) to help those in need.

Kids Floor Cushions

 A little gray shared this cute kids cushion she made for her little guy.  She linked to the tutorial by 3 Punk Mom showing how to make the floor cushions below.

A well-explained sewing tutorial to make a floor cushion by 3 punk mom. If you have some basic sewing skills, give it a try! You never know what might happen - maybe you'll end up with a completely adorable floor cushion. FYI -I came across a website that sells pellets for beanbags Foam America.

1/4" Cotton Welt Cord Piping Drapery/Upholstery Supplies 10 yards

Morning Glory 5-Pound Premium Fiberfill

45'' Wide Amy Butler Midwest Modern Optic Blossom Ice By The Yard

Wrights Maxi Piping 1/2 Inch 2-1/2 Yards-Oyster

54'' Wide Premier Prints Traditions Brown/Pink Fabric By The Yard

Wrights Maxi Piping 1/2 Inch 2-1/2 Yards-Seal Brown