I Have Another New Blog!

It's hard to wait for another season of Project Runway. So I (along with my fabulous BPR Team) am tackling a new show. It's called Top Design and it debuts on January 31st on Bravo. I've seen part of the first episode already and it is a lot of fun. And I am all about the fun of course!

Maybe this show will inspire me to decorate MY house! We shall see...

Happy New Year!

Like 99.9% of the bloggers out there I am pledging to be a better blogger in 2007. Oh sure my Project Runway blog was very busy last year, but what about Ruby? Poor Ruby is so neglected.

I know I've said this before but this time I REALLY mean it.

Here are some additional resolutions:

1. Sewing for fun again - not for sales.

2. Sewing more gifts. When I look at the gifts that I purchased for the girls in my family, I am certain that they would prefer my handcrafted ornaments and bags. I pledge handmade gifts for all next year. Actually there are some women in my family who literally BEG me for angels and vintage stocking ornaments. What is wrong with me? I can certainly make these things again.

3. Not so much garment sewing. Maybe even a moratorium on garments. Kaitlin has enough clothes and I have a box of stale inventory that will probably wind up in the charity pile.

4. Time to re-decorate this house. Talk about stale! We moved in about eleven years ago and most of the furniture is in the same places that the movers placed it when we moved in. Mom gave me a beautiful painting for Christmas and I could re-decorate the entire house around it!

5. Who will hold me accountable?

Where's Laura K?

It's a Christmas Miracle!

Four of our children are employed! Yes - at this very moment Matthew is working at a ski resort in Colorado, Kaitlin is working at Anthropologie in the Scottsdale Fashion Square, Daniel is working at Chipotle and James - yes James, age 14 - is working at Safeway!

In other news, yours truly is the proud winner of four passes to see the movie "The Nativity." I rewrote "Frosty the Snowman" for Arizona. We have "Dusty the Sandman" here in AZ. A local radio station was holding a contest. Of course I couldn't resist.

Thanksgiving in San Diego

Here are the kids, posing once again on the wall at the Seaport in San Diego. Kaitlin is 21, James is 14, Dan is 18, Will is 10 and Matt is 25.

Just for fun -
here is last year's entry!

Zoot Suit Premiere

Bob, Aaron, Chris, Jerry and Joe in the back and Georgia, Tammy, Linda and I in the front.

We performed at the Phoenix Rotary 100 Black and White Gala on Veteran's Day. The event was held at the Phoenician Resort. It was really really fun. We sang "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree" and "Chattanooga Choo Choo" along with a couple of patriotic numbers and some more current favorites.

We have been rehearsing since June so it was nice to finally perform! I love these musicians. I have sung with many many talented people and these are among the finest. Thanks Linda for your organization and for making sure that every detail was covered. Thanks Joe for writing out all of the parts for the band. Thanks band for your patience with my solo on Boogie Woogie and thanks to the Rotary 100 for inviting us. It was great!

Vintage Wool Bird Pouches

I've been kind of obsessed with zipper pouches lately. And vintage fabrics.

I had a stack of vintage wool squares that I purchased at an antique show. Perhaps someone was planning to make a quilt from them but never got around to it. I washed and dried them all to felt them and then they sat for while. I didn't know what to do next. I had LOTS of ideas of course, but was never quite convinced that I had the BEST idea for them.

Meanwhile I had been seeing little bird pouches everywhere. Mostly in the Japanese Craft books - mostly from calico-type fabrics. I liked them.

One of them had a plaid wing.

And I had plaid squares in my wool stash.

Things were starting to click.... but not quite...

The squares were really too small to make anything big enough to be useful.

So I began sewing them together. The turquoise blue next to the rust reminded me of a bluebird.... and voila - clickeroo!

The first one was tricky. Especially putting in the zipper. (The pouches are lined with 1940's reproduction calicoes.... But after that they went fairly quickly and the next thing you know - I had twelve.

I delivered them to passage and a few days later received a newsletter where the birds were featured:



Four had sold in four days. Whoo hoo!

Who's That Girl?

Why...it's KAITLIN! Modeling for her aspiring photo-stylist friend, Dominique Dawson.

Does Anyone Live Near Tukwila, Washington?

Please e-mail me, Thanks! Kluless7@cox.net.

Congratulations Daniel!

Be it known to all that Daniel Stanton Kluvo graduated from Notre Dame Preparatory High School on Wednesday May 24, 2006. Hip Hip Hooray!

Vintage Pinks

I finished another lace jacket. This one has some pinks.














What do you think?
Thanks for modeling, Katiegirl!

Vintage Whites

Yes, I am sewing! Here is a white dress that I fashioned from a vintage filet crochet yoke some vintage dotted swiss, and a petticoat hem. Getting the proportions right was a little tricky. but once I saw it on Kaitlin I felt really good about it. She said, "Mom, this could be a wedding dress!"




















Next is this extremely labor-intensive-but-oh-so-worth-it lace collage jacket. I cut all of the pattern pieces from a water-soluble fabric and then stitched and stitched and stitched a variety of vintage laces on top. Then I put the jacket together on the serger and then dissolved the backing in the washing machine. I just washed it on gentle with warm water and then dried it in the dryer. Sounds dumb, but I wanted to see how durable it was. Didn't it turn out great?






















Here is a close-up of the back.



I hope you like these - they were fun to make!

BIG NEWS!

I am sewing again! Sorry for neglecting Ruby for so long. I've been so busy with the Project Runway blog that I have spent just about all of my spare time on it. Finally with the season over, I am almost back to my normal self! Yesterday I finished a messenger bag that I made from vintage barkcloth and other antique textiles. I immediately started a second one. Photos to come!

Also, I have been singing and leading worship for several retreats. This weekend I go to beautiful Flagstaff Arizona with the women's ministry of The Church at Arrowhead. The featured speaker is a favorite of mine and a dear friend Daisy Hepburn. This is my third Retreat since February - so I have been busy - just not with sewing!

I'll catch up more later - and I promise to post new photos. Thanks for your patience!

Lace Scarf

At last a new design! This is a scarf made from lace and wool yarns. I made it on the sewing machine with a foundation of dissolving fabric. I have a large stash of offf-white, white and natural yarns leftover from making Santa beards. They've been in a box in the garage for a while. I also have quite a stash of lace. So I combined these into the scarf. I added about 20 mother-of-pearl buttons for texture. They're hard to see in the photo. What do you think?

AZ Craftsters Meet Again...

Oh how on earth could I possibly pass up a sale at a YARN STORE...? Ha ha. These yarn shoppers are completely psycho if you ask me. Lined up for 30 minutes just waiting to PAY for their purchases... Now if it was a fabric store this would be perfectly normal behavior.

So, the AZ Craftsters met again for coffee and then off to the yarn store and then back for more coffee. Decaf.




Here is a photo of Terry knitting a sock.




Wendy crochets a hat.














Stephanie MADE this crocheted sheep as a gift for Amy. What a nice friend.
Stephanie didn't make it for our group photo because she was purchasing a drum carder from the yarn store.












Here's almost everyone:




From the left Terry, Chris, Chris, me, Amy, Wendy, Denise, and Stacey. These girls are great!

Cutest Girls Ever!

Kaitlin, Ryan and Mandy. Christmas 2005.