My first Softie and bloglovin

My first softie happens to be a little bunny and he is an Easter gift for a very little friend of mine, who is celebrating his first Easter this year.  

Get the free Pattern here:  This is sunny the free bunny

I am starting to thinkI am becoming a softy for softies. (cheesy, thats me)
They are a super fun, simple and great scrap busting projects.

Here are a few more softies I am looking at on my pinterest board under sewing.

I am starting to collect  free patterns for these sweet cuties. :) Maybe I will start pumping these guys out by the dozens, by the double dozens...or maybe not.  I do know my next one will be much better.
Oh the joys of trail and error.


FYI -Google reader is leaving
...for all you who follow me or other blogs via Google reader it will be non existent this summer.  

If  you don't already have a bloglovin account it's easy to set up. Also with bloglovin you can import all your blogs you are following via google reader within a minute or 2. 
 Just go to settings and click the button to import from google reader and within a minute or 2 you have all your lovely blogs you follow right there on your bloglovin feed!  And don't worry if your favourite blogs don't use bloglovin, you can still follow them to. To add new blog just search for there name in the search bar.

If you would like to follow me via bloglovin simply click the button below:
    Another way to follow Creatively Content is through facebook or e-mail.  These option are in the side bar next to each other.  Thanks for letting me talk through those necessary details. 
Now back to the Bunny.... using what I have to make a softie this week! Enjoy. In my west corner, Becky

Felt Art for my girls room.

Piecing together some felt for my girlies room.

What do you think?

Patterns and me, well we forget about each other, until half way into a project.

This  piece  "love on a hill" was made with the very LITTLE felt I had left.  I decided to cross stitch a bunch because of my lack of felt and I am very glad I did because it helped me try something new and add texture to the picture. I also overcame my intimidation of black thread. I really enjoy how the black outlines the hills. I used a few beads...one for the door knob and red ones coming from the chimney. :)

I am excited to add this sweet colourful piece of heART to my girls room.

Free art for the wall! 

Do you think it looks finished?  I was thinking about a cloud? 

This is what my kids were doing when I was sewing this project:

They were colouring in a doodle that quotes Julia Child:

"Find something you are passionate about and stay tremendously interested in it." 

I am determined to create. Creating with and around my children often makes the projects longer, and can test my patience, but I love to ask their thoughts and advice, I also love seeing them use their own God given creativity. For me creating is like breathing, if I don't do it I get a little dizzy in the head. :) Creating keeps me clear and focused. 

I have the girls room 80% finished. I have even begun the painting process in their room.  I look forward to capturing all the 'use what I have color in their room' it in pics and then sharing about it.

Good evening to you all. Iyi aksamlar.
Using what I have to create a little piece of heART in my home,
From my west corner,
Becky

Sneak peak of some HOMEmade decor

This is a little peak of what I have been working on:

Bunk bed cozy curtains

Scrap fabric curtain

(these have continued to evolve... fabric, a button strand, ribbon, and a tissue paper pom pom all are apart of this scrap fabric curtain.) 

Bringing life to an old table

Can you guess what room all this is for?  

We have lived in our apartment here in our little west corner for 4 years now. Over the past two years I have done very little to our place because the owners were planning on selling. Well the owners are still trying to sell and we are still here, soooo enough of waiting for everything to fall into place.  Here I go unleashing my pent up desire to nest and preform colourful masterpieces in my home. :) As of now the room I am giving all my passion to is the girl room.  

Ah yes one more thing, I am trying to decorate with using what I have and not really spending money. :) 

I'll be back the beginning of next week to show you the progress. :) 

May the God of all peace, guard your hearts and minds in him. May you walk in contentment of heart, trusting fully in the God who created you. 

~Creating color in my little house in my little west corner.

Becky

If you want to see some ideas I am checking out

Click: Girls room ideas on my pinterest

(My super duper) Up-cylced patched jeans. :)

These crazy jeans were given to me by my younger sister probably 4 years ago. I don't know what it is about these jeans but weather I add a few pounds or drop a few they always fit me. Miracle jeans truly. They are like the jeanse that keep on lasting, even if the bottoms are all tadered and torn. :)  So when one of the knees finally got a hole in them I decided to patch 'em and keep on wearing 'em.. Especially since I am at the 'add a few pounds stage' these days. :)

So here are my up-cylced patched jeans. :)

I really like the big patches. 

I hand sewed them on. It took me more time than I thought. I also before sewing on the patches ironed them on with an iron on adhesive to help keep the patches on and the hole from getting bigger.

Here I am on my balcony, trying to give ya 'all a better look at them. 

Hope this is inspiring to someone somewhere. I know there are few who would wear these pants. :) 

Deb your jeans are living on.... you would be proud. :)

In my west corner..using what I have to keep my jeans alive.

Becky

Psst...i just discovered the beginning of a hole right next to one of my back pockets. ??? 

Felt circle trees/a baby blanket ~ part 1

This is what I am working on to be a matching set for the pillow I made. 

(If you remember the felt tree pillow I made a bit ago - click here to see )

Still not 100 percent sure on how I am going to pull this off.  I have enough of the same white fabric I used for the pillow to have 4 to 6 squares worth. Now I need to decide what fabric I will use for the other squares and the back. I only have patterned fabric and not really any good baby stuff....so I will piece something together with what I have here in my home stash and see where that leads me. :) 

I will keep you posted. 

I really like it when sets don't match perfectly but just tie into each other in different ways. So I am switching it up a bit for the blanket and making several circle trees, instead of one tree with several circles. 

My two thoughts are to make the circle trees the center of the blanket with fabric strips in the middle to separate them and then coordinating fabric around the edges etc. or my other thought is to  make several fabric squares and inter mingle the circle tree squares throughout the pattern and blanket?  So still thinking it through.  What do you all think? 

In my west corner ...using the fabric I have to create something for that little niece of mine! 

Becky

an itty bitty p.s.~ This is my 201 post! Again I think that is crazy I guess I need to go back and read all that I have been saying over the past few years. I love blogging...it is such a great way for me to process and record my life.

No pattern A-line dress

Hi! there.

Here is my A-line dress with some ric- rac pockets. :) 

Kinda looks like the circus:).

plus lots of Pocket tutorials and ideas!!!!!!

Simple A-line dress tutorial: 

*Take one of your daughters dresses and fold in two. *Take 2 pieces of your fabric fold one in two then the other. *Take the two folded pieces and place them on top of each other then place the dress on top  *Trace the dress giving one inch extra seam allowance as your trace along the dress. *Cut out. * I then took one dress piece and cut the neckline in more of a circle for the front of the dress. (also you need to make sure the dress will go over the child's head if you are not putting in buttons or a zipper.)

You can use this pattern over and over with so many variations. 

I recognize this is not a detailed tutorial. It was just SOOOO easy I wanted to share just in case others needed an encouragement jump start. This is a perfect project for a novice. 

 A -line pocket dress tutorial.

This tutorial is very similar to mine but with some added details and the pockets are big and darling!!

Source: From the blue shed

Here are some more wonderful helps and ideas for pockets. 

Pocket TUTORIALS

Tutorial pleated pocket

Easy patch pockets tutorial

Shirred pocket tutorial

Ikatbag pocket series tutorials!

Sweet shaped pockets for little girls

Pocket IDEAS

Fun square pocket idea

A dress full of pockets ~ super fun idea.

simple Rectangle pockets idea

I made this little Circus dress for DRESS A GIRL around the world sew along ~April 2012. This was my first ever dress and sew along and it turned out pretty good I think. I used whatever I already had in house for fabric and and such. The dress is made from a sheet like material and the pockets are up-cycled from some old pj pants. :)  I think I can do better next time so it will be fun to make a few fro my girls this summer. 

In my west corner....slowly learning to sew and using whatever I have to do it,

Becky.

Felt tree pillow update

Felt tree pillow ~ finished. :)

This colorful circle tree pillow is for my soon to be niece. 

The wonderful story behind this is we will be visiting in the States this summer and my sisters due date falls on the time we will be in the States. I am so very grateful to be able to deliver this little pillow to my little niece in person, it is a gift both ways. I love you Debby and can't wait to meet you Gracie.

I was trying to figure out which ribbon to use the blue or the purple ric rac and so I asked my girlies. 

And they said both...:)  What do you think? 

The blue ribbon holds the pillow case together at the bottom along with velcro pieces on each side.

Here is a close up of some of the quilting. :)
All all of the quilting is done in white expect the little circle clouds in light blue
and the grass done in green..

Almost forgot the back. :) So here it is.

This pillow was fun to design and great practice for me. 85% of it was done by hand.


So should I create a blanket to go with?  

In my west corner playing 'show and tell',
Becky

Homemade Lavender fabric pouches (& a bit of culture)

This little project is perfect for small sweet gifts to fit into any type of card.

This is also great for those pieces of scrap fabric and ribbon.

Each little pouch has a different front and back.

The little story of how my lavender fabric pouches came to be:

Circumcision is quite an event here. It is kind of like a coming of age party for the boys. Usually they have the party for the boys around age 7or 8. We are being invited to several these days because so many of Autty's little class mates are of that age. No, my daughter has no real understanding of these parties, she just thinks it is unfair that the boys get these parties and the girls don't. :) So as we have attended a few circumcision parties as of late, I have found that lavender is a popular thing to give to the guests. Who knew? Usually the lavender is in some sort of vellum pouch, so it got me to thinking. I decided to go find myself some lavender, figuring it couldn't be that expensive. 

I have been able to make 8 fabric pouches with this bag of lavender and I think I can easily get 2 more out of it.  So that is 1 lira (.65cents) for 10 sweetly scented pouches. Oh the things you can learn at circumcision parties. Love it!

Here is a pic of us at one of Autty's friends circumcision party. 

Two little kids and a bunch of tiny little flowers, equals a need for concentration. 

Sweetly placed in a drawer to make you smile. 

Off I go sewing up a little storm of lavender pillows, sachets, pouches etc.

Smelling sweetly here in our west corner,

Becky

Ps. Please keep your eyes open for the giveaway planned this month. Also I have finally got a Facebook page up a running..feel free to find me there. :)

Felt circle tree pillow

Here is a peek of something I have been working on, on and off for a bit now. 

I am hand quilting and enjoying the process and slow pace of it. 

This little pillow is going to be a gift to someone so very very special!

I love giving handmade items...especially pillows. I really hope the receiver likes it lots.

What do you think? Should I add something more or leave it simply the tree and grass?

I will show you the finished product...whenever that is. ;)

In my little west corner,

Becky

Scrap fabric pillow with a pop

Here is what I have been working on....

I was determined to only use my scrap pieces of fabric for this pillow, minus the back. 

The result was a pop of color and vibrancy.

I tried a few new things with some of the left over pieces. 

I don't know all the rules to piecing and applique, however this time I really wanted to use that to my advantage instead of feeling inferior or uncertain. Sometimes not having all the details allows for more experimentation.  I see how I can do a few things different next time. But overall I am pleased with it.  

Would love your input..what do you think?

Dear following along friends, I have decided when I hit the 299 mark for followers and readers that I would like to do another giveaway. I think I am about 10 away..so keep an eye out.  I have a real surprise this time. I am so honestly humbled that you all have joined up to make this journey here in the West Corner so much more full for me. Thank you.

In my west corner,

Becky

linking up at these great Parties  click here 

Re-purposed Sweater to Cardigan ~

Button latch Cardigan~

I was on my way to buy a cardigan and then my 'use what you have' conscience reminded me of my 

sweater drawer and tada:

Here are a few Sweater to Cardigan tutorials 

that were really helpful to me:

The Emma Pillsbury-Inspired Cardi Refashion

&

Sweater to Cardigan

Really this is a great way to save sweaters!! 

Before
I think I wore this sweater once, it was given to me and it just hung out in my sweater drawer.
I now wear it often. :) 


 I am humbled by those of you who follow along, comment and read along.  This is a personal blog and I am so thankful and often surprised that others have come along with me on this adventure and blog. Thank you.


Ok off I go to spend some time with my Savior this morn. 
In my west corner,
Becky

Linking up at these fun blogs: Where I party

Our pumpkin girl, cake and applique

For our little Pumpkin:

Happy 8 year old Birthday sweet Autumn.

She is such a delight to our life. She fills our lives with colors from the rainbow. She has her own unique style and confidence. She loves the outdoors. She is generous and a dreamer. She is honest and loves to share her passion for Jesus. She values her family and traditions (espaically Saturday morning family breakfast ).~

Ever since she was a little baby we (me) have called her pumpkin. This year I wanted to remind her that she is our little pumpkin, deeply loved and cherished for who she is.

A pumpkin shaped birthday cake. 

I made her a pumpkin place mat with the clear contact paper I have found these days for her birthday dinner. David and I then wrote out a bunch of things we enjoy about her.

This year we had a simple family celebration with our dear little friends 

Lindsey and Maddie over for dinner and an intimate party. 

Here is the little pumpkin applique shirt I made for her :) 

it has a few cute little fabric yo yos on the shirt too.  

This girl has a winning smile and a way to make you feel like you are the coolest. She is ridiculously creative and loves things that I make for her. She received ALOT of gifts this year, including two little turtles..Doodle and Toodle. 

My constant prayer for her is that she would be convinced of Gods love. No matter life's circumstances or even our failure at times as parents that Gods truth and word would be rooted deep in her heart and she would know not only our love but the love of her Heavenly Father.

~will post again soon... 

Oh yeah and tomorrow I will be starting up my "investing in my neighborhood schools" again by doing a craft project for Autty's class.  Every time I do one of these projects in the local school I am reminded how I should still be studying my Turkish! 25 students and a ten lira budget. :)

In my little west corner of Turkey to all of you in your corners of the world,

Becky

I HAVE LEARNED THE SECRET OF BEING CONTENT IN ANY AND EVERY SITUATION, WHETHER WELL FED OR HUNGRY, WHETHER LIVING IN PLENTY OR IN WANT. I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH HIM WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH." PHIL. 4:12,13

Sewing an ugly quilt

My cardboard love series will start next week mainly because I have been sewing like crazy lately and if I am on a roll I better not stop.  I am trying to learn how to sew proficiently. The struggle for me is that I am not the best at details and reading directions really is a challenge for me.  I like to SEE pics or SEE others demonstrating it. I think I would do great at a sewing class.  I could take one here but they are such a time commitment every week day for for 3 hours for about 4 to 6 months. (crazy) So I am slowly making progress on my own...

I have had this VERY flowery 100% cotton fabric (impossible to find cotton in my town).  The State flowers fabric series...someone gave to me. So I cut it up in squares and I recently starting patch-working it together. The top part is finished and now I am working on tying it instead of quilting because I think it is too ugly to spend that kind of time on it.  So I will show you a picture of the finished product soon. It is very basic but hey basic is where I am at. I think I will make it into a picnic quilt.

Also because I have my machine out I decided to try and upscale or up-cycle my wardrobe.  I am excited to show you the results of that too.  I have put together a full outfit that I never would have worn together before the remake.  A pregnancy dress and a sweater turned into something ~ simple and trendy, but most importantly me!  Here are the before pics, I have no idea if I will have the guts to model the outfit we shall see. :)

I have finished the sweater so off I go to finish up the dress. Until next time...
In my west corner,
Becky