Tipsy Tuesday--How to get TOTALLY unwarranted compliments

Hello, and welcome to Tipsy Tuesday--which I've actually decided to do on Tuesday this week! LOL

Tip # 1 --How to Get Totally unwarranted compliments!

If you are feeling a little down in the dumps or need a little self-confidence boost I recommend that you do a giveaway (see post below) and tell people if they want to win, they have to schmooze you! Works like a charm! :oD

I have had so much fun reading the comments so far--thanks to all who have played along with my silliness !!


Tip #2

This is a helpful blog post on the IndieFixx blog I ran across this morning that is full of great information about SEO....Search Engine Optimization--Very helpful for those who are in business online. Stop by and get educated !!

Tip #3

I get happy comments from my customers about the quick shipping times on their orders, and wanted to pass along this little tip--use that 4 digit extension of the zip code!! You can look them up HERE , it only take a few seconds and really seems to speed up the shipping times!

Tip #4

If you like any of the items you have seen on this post--all you have to do is click the picture and it will bring you right to my Etsy shop--easy peasy!

Time for a Giveaway!

***This drawing is now closed--the winners have been chosen!!***

Well, it's Monday--I feel a need to add a little excitement to the beginning of the work week, and what better way to do that than having a giveaway!I have some new little bird bookmarks, "Page Perchers" , that I made up with some of Amy Butler's scrummy cardstock (oh man, I love this stuff--I want to marry it and have it's babies)! LOL So I'm going to give away one of each--one pink and one green. Sooo....here are the rules:

***Leave me a comment here telling me either how talented I am or how attractive you find me, and the person who schmoozes me the most will win.

***OK!! that's just a joke!! lol--all you have to do is leave a comment in this post and I'll put your name in the hat.

***If you spread the word, I'll add your name again--just let me know (leave me a comment with a link to your word-spreading blogpost)

***If you make a purchase from my shop--I'll add your name again for each purchase.

Misseskwittys.etsy.com Leave a message in the Note to Seller area when you purchase and I'll know to add your name!

***I'll have my lovely cat, Miss Rosie, with the help of my lovely daughter, draw 2 names from the hat on Saturday, October 4th and announce the winners in a post that day.

Good luck and have a great week!!

Tipsy Tuesday --Stickin' it!

OMGosh--I think I've jinxed myself on these Tipsy Tuesday blog spots, LOL! Yesterday my mouse died. I found out it is very hard to work the computer without a mouse! Soooo.....here it is again, Whoopsie Wednesday with our new mouse in hand and our next (hopefully) helpful tip.Today it's all about washable glue sticks. Yup. This one is for sewing--if you don't have one of these on your sewing table, you need to get on it, Honey.

This stuff has 3 things going for it:
1) it's sticky

2) it's washable--so it' s just temporary until you can get your item sewn down
3) it dries clear--if you don't want to wash it out

Most of you probably have already figured this one out--but for those who haven't, you are in for a treat! I remember when I first used this...I was prepping a little wallet for stitching on some rick rack. Those of you who work with rick rack and other bulky trims know how diffucult it is to pin it in place--it distorts the lay of the fabric and makes it very difficult to lay it straight. Anyways, I was sitting there getting frustrated trying to pin that stupid rick rack and, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the glue stick! Well, let's just give that a shot, shall we?

Oh yeah, works like a charm! All you need is a little dab about every 5 zigs and one on each end!

It's also good for holding things that need to get pinned to the seam allowance--you know, purse handles, button loops, ribbons, etc

Just add a little dab to the seam allowance, add your whatever, and then you don't have to worry about it shifting out of place when you stitch your seam. NOTE: it will sometimes get a little gummy on your needle if you go too far and glue into the seam line, but it rubs off the needle very easily.

Once I found out how slick this works--I found myself using it all the time!

Zippers!! Oh, it's a zipper layers dream. Oh yeah, I get excited just thinking about it ;OD

Layers that need to stay in place until stitched.

Of course, laces and ribbons.

Even an unruly button or two has gotten the glue treatment.

OK--that's it for today. I hope you will add this to your table, if you don't have it already.

If you have a helpful hint or tip to share, please add them here and we will share them next Tuesday (or Wednesday! lol).

***Joey from JoeysDreamGarden shared last week that running the Freezer Paper through the printer didn't work so well, it "gunked up" her printer--so make sure you do a trial run before trying it on your printer Thanks Joey!

***Teresa from Cedar Junction
shared that she likes to iron the FP to tissue paper and run that through her printer to transfers images to tissue to use in her lovely altered art! Thanks Teresa!

***Lucy from Sweet Repeats shared that she used it as a work station protection. I actually do that too--but didn't think to add it to the tips! You are so right Lucy--it's fabulous for painting and gluing, your project doesn't stick to it, and you can then just toss it out when you are done! Thank you!!


Have a great day :o)

Smiles, Karen

Tidbits

Hello friends :o) From Miss Rosie and I!

Thought I'd share some little tidbits with you!

First--I was surprised with a nice convo this morning that one of my products was being featured on this fun blog-- On the Dot Creations

It's a really cute blog--and I think that the writer is as crazy about dots as I am (if that's possible!) LOL Thank you Julie!


I snapped up a TREASURY yesterday! It's called "Hope Springs Eternal" stop by and see!!

SympleTymes also linked me up this past week--she and her daughter enjoyed the FP tips and are excited to try the applique trick! Good luck and be sure to share your results with us!!

I had a custom request for a Christmassy bird ornament from one of my sweet regular customers (she has a growing collection of these birds!) so I did one up in red and white--

I made a few extras--so if you want one too, just click the pic!!

I used to do a lot of prim/country work (back in the day!) and I resurrected one of my fav projects, just cuz' I felt like painting for a change! Need something to make you smile for Halloween?
AND here's another little sweety I made up this week. One of my dear little nieces turns Sweet 16 today--(Happy Birthday Chani!) and I made her a cute little wallet and matching bag in honor of the occasion! I made a few extra wallets and you can find them in my shop too (yep, just click the pic!)

We popped in on my brother Paul this weekend--he is doing well. They took the last of the bandages off--so everything is healing well. This week he has a PET scan (yes, it took this LONG for the insurance company to agree to the tests =---what the hell! Grrrrrr!) and they will be tattooing him for the radiation treatments on Thursday. I get to go and babysit little Austin again while he goes to the doc, so I'm looking forward to that. Please keep him in your prayers--we are praying that he doesn't have any more cancer lurking about anywhere!

Thank you for stopping by--and have a fantastic day!!

Tipsy Tuesday--Freezer Paper, Our Crafty Friend

Hello, welcome to Whoopsy Wednesday--an extension of our Tipsy Tuesday feature which **whoopsy** I didn't get to yesterday! LOL! Had one of those crazy days and my computer decided it was in a bad mood and didn't want to cooperate with me :o(

Today I want to talk to you about one of my favorite craft room friends...freezer paper--which I will refer to as FP in this post (just cuz' I'm lazy!).

I use it A LOT in my crafting adventures and wanted to make sure that you all were aware of it's many charms!

What is it? It's a nice weight white paper that is coated with a thin layer of plastic on one side. Not to be confused with wax paper, which has wax on both sides. Sometimes it's a bit hard to find...but just go to your plastic wrap/tinfoil section and check the very bottom shelf and the uppermost top shelf...that's where I usually find it.

What is nice about the plastic side is that you can iron it onto many surfaces, and it just peels right off, slick as can be, when you are done using it! Another great thing is that it can be usually be used several times before the plastic wears off--so it's economical too!

Here are a few ways I use it in my everyday crafting:

1) Making templates

Just draw your pattern on the paper side of your FP (which you have traced or copied from another source..see tip #6) and iron it onto a piece of medium weight cardboard (cereal boxes work great for this)--cut out, and there you have a wonderful, reuseable template. Easy as pie.

You can also cut your freezer paper into regular sheet paper size and run it through your printer (making sure the printing is going to the paper side, not the shiny side) and this will enable you to get patterns from online into your hot little hands. It just saves a lot of tracing and re-drawing and gluing of patterns.

I haven't tried this yet, but you can also iron the FP to a piece of fabric that is cut into paper size and run it through the printer to print on fabric. I would think you would have to iron very carefully (no air bubbles) and make sure you don't have any loose threads.

2) Cutting things from FELT!

I think we all know how difficult it is to cut things from felt...trying to mark the patterns without distortion and even then to have to try and remove the markings when we are done cutting them out--this is perfect for this! Just draw all your patterns to the paper side of the FP and iron it onto your felt--cut out --and peel off the paper! You are left with perfect little pieces..Yeah!

Of course this would work well with fabric too--if you don't mind having raw edges on your project or if you will be satin stitching the edges...but this leads me to my next tip......

3) Making fabric appliques

Make FP pattern piece and iron it onto your applique fabric, cut out ***making sure to add a seam allowance all around for turning under***. Make little snips all around the seam allowance area of the applique (for turning curves and valleys) and turn your seam allowance to the back. I like to spray on some heavy starch before beginning this, as it helps to hold the fold nice and firm. When you are done turning under your seam allowance, just peel off your paper and you are ready to stitch your applique to your project!!

4) Freezer Paper Stencils
So, what if you don't want an applique, but want to paint or ink your design onto say, a t-shirt for example?? Well, FP works wonderfully for that too! Just trace your stencil onto the FP and cut out ---

AND here's a bonus tip for ya! I like to use an exacto knife to do this for smoother cutting lines, as working on interior cuts with scissors is a bit tricky, and this little gadget from Fiskars is the BOMB! It fits over your finger and you can really have great control over your cutting--Love it!
Then you just take your FP stencil and iron it onto your t-shirt or fabric or whatever and go ahead and apply your paint or ink--remove the paper and WaHLaH! Cute.

5) Stitching lines
I can't tell you how many little wallets I made with crooked flaps before I figured this one out! Make a template from FP of your projects stitching line and iron it onto your project--then just stitch along the line for perfect seams allowances! This is a great way to stitch smaller items and things that have to be perfectly even. And, like I said before, you can re-use these FP templates several times before they won't iron on any more--so this is actually a pretty economical material in the long run.

6) Tracing patterns!

This one is worth it's weight in gold. Really! Any pattern you trace can then be ironed onto your project. No more ruined fabric from mis-marking! You can also embroider or machine stitch right through the paper and remove it after you are done (Yeah, another bonus tip--dampen the paper with a damp washcloth before trying to remove it and it won't pull your stitches out of place!)

Oh, and how do you like my little light box?? I looked at so many expensive light boxes in the art stores and couldn't afford one. One day, while Christmas shopping for the kids, I ran across this Nickelodean one in the children's art section for a whopping $10! LOL And it works like a charm!

OK--that's it for today. I hope I was helpful to you and that you will give the freezer paper a shot, it's really a great help.

I would love to hear any helpful hints or tips you might have too. If you blog them or leave them here in a comment, I will share them next Tuesday.

Have a great day!

ETSY!

I was over at AlwaysAmy's blog and she is encouraging us all to spread a little of the Etsy love around--hey--I'm all for it!

We have the big shopping season coming up, and when you are thinking about WHAT you are going to give to WHO...why not put a little thought into the rest of that equation..the "from WHOM"? Why not think about purchasing your gifts from a real live person, someone who is just like you...just trying to make a living doing what they are good at.

Really, I have become more conscience of the fact that we really need to quit throwing our money down the faceless corporate drain...let's put it into the pocket of another human being who is going to use it to pay their rent and feed their family. Let's spend it with these people who we have met through our blogs and shops and fairs and friends and neighbors. You will be supporting the economy in a real personal way AND, as an added bonus, you will be getting a quality and truly unique product. What's better than that?

I am proud to have an Etsy shop--Mrs. Kwitty's Cottage. It has enabled me to stay home and raise my kids AND make some extra income to contribute to the family, despite the fact that I have some physical ailments that would otherwise make it difficult for me to work. I am very grateful for that!

Here is a really great video commercial about ETSY in general--gives you a basic idea of the pricipal behind ETSY--which I think is great. Please have a look, and if you like what you see, I would encourage you to place this video on your blog too. Let's spread the word! This could be a very Merry Christmas this year for a LOT more people :o)



Thank you!!

Happy Birthday Bean!

1991......7 lb 15 oz.
17 years ago God blessed us with a bouncing baby boy! (yeah, don't be jealous of my giant glasses!)


1995 --approx. 40 lbs.

He's been such a joy in our lives--

2008.....about 190 lbs!

and we are very proud of the fine young man he has become!

Tonight we are taking him to his first big concert---guess who it is?? (It's NOT AC/DC--though that would be pretty cool!) You will have to click the link to see who it is!
We're so excited!

Stu-stu-studio!

I got so busy that I forgot to brag about cleaning my studio! Yes. It took me about 5 dedicated days to do. I just couldn't stand it any more. Too much stuff, all piled everywhere, there were even places that I couldn't get to without moving a bunch of stuff (I'm so ashamed!) It got to be stressy to work in there.
I have a nice, big studio--hubby actually split the basement in half and one half is my studio! He worked so hard to turn a dark, dreary, dirty basement into a lovely space, and added lots of custom features, made to my specifications. My favorite is a giant cutting table (4' x 8'), (with shelves underneath) that is the perfect height for me when standing--no more stooping or reaching--and no more back aches! My sewing machine sits right next to it--it's a nice and convenient work space. The ironing board sits at the other end of the cutting table.
See the white multi-drawer unit on the cutting table above--well, I sweet-talked this old guy out of that during a garage sale! LOL--he had a bunch of hardware in it--and I actually smoozed him into emptying it out and selling it to me for $15. Yeah, it's good to be the Queen. Of course, it wasn't as pretty then as it is now, but after a good clean up and some experimenting with crackle paint , there it is! That little house that sits on top is a cover that hubby made for my spare sewing machine. We recently helped my Aunty Connie move into an apartment, and she gave me that cute yellow table. I brought it down and created this little crafty cubby on the crafty side of my studio. I have an astounding amount of stuff organized into this relatively small area!A major part of my re-organizing consisted of moving all the books I had (I could open a library of crafting books!) on this shelf over to the shelving on the other side of the room and moving all the tote boxes of fabric that were there over to these shelves! All the fabric yardage came out of the boxes and were folded and stacked here! What a treat! It's all over by my sewing table now and I can see it all! Love, love, love.And--all my thread is now out of the boxes too and put in this cool thread holder ---this was a thrift store find, I believe it was a salesman's sample case, because it folds closed and locks . I had the hubby screw it into the wall. Each one of those little spool shelves actually swing out for easy access to the spools.

I hope you enjoyed your little tour!

Tipsy Tuesday

Hiccup.

Hello peeps, and welcome to my new feature---Tipsy Tuesday. So, let's all go get our favorite libation and get to work!
LOL! OK, ok.....not that kind of tipsy, but TIP-sy. I always love to get tips that are useful in my home or crafting, how about you? I thought I'd offer up a helpful hint or tip or share a gadget that has been useful to me. I'd love it if you would share your tips too--either post one on your own blog and shoot me a link--I'll add it to my next week's Tipsy Tuesday post OR just share it in the comments here and I'll do the same thing. Yeah!!

I've been trying to get a little crafting done (trying!) - the kids are back to school now and things are starting to slow down to a manageable level. My local quilt shop runs a Fat Quarter sale every so often where you go pick out 20 fat quarters for a special price (yeah, love THAT!) and I found this darling fabric at the most recent one---- and made a cute bag from it !And a little matching wallet too

And then another wallet in black and white dots--with blue as the accent color Which leads me to my first TIP! Well, it's a gadget actually. Who puts snaps in their items?? Pain in the booty, right? I've even looked into getting a snap setter machine, but the prices are WAY out of my price range! One day I ran across this little baby, The SnapSetter, and it was so reasonably priced that I thought, "what the heck--I'll give it a shot!". Let me tell you, folks, it's a dream. Yup. No more wrecked items from trying to remove those stupid snaps that went on crooked. It's so simple, yet effective and easy to use! I just love it.You follow the manufacturer's simple directions, smack it with a hammer, and that's it! I am not being paid at all for mentioning this, but.... if someone from The SnapSetter happens to see this and feels like gifting me with some free snaps...well, I guess I could be all right with that! LOL
Well, that's it for today. Remember to share your helpful tips and hints--I'd sure appreciate it!

I get to go and babysit my little nephew later on today while Paul goes in for his radiation treatment- I love 3 year olds and I'm really looking forward to it!

Bye for now :o) Hugs.