Paintings From Rita Maria

One of the first things we did this year was put some artwork up on our walls!

A little back story first! I met Rita, an artist, at a networking event in  2011. One of the biggest things I took away from the networking was don't try and meet as many people as you can. Instead, spend your time making a meaningful, personal connection with one or two people. I'm so glad I did! Rita and I found that we had quite a bit in common.  We were new to the networking scene, we lived about .5 miles away from each other, our wedding anniversaries are a day apart, we usually don't drink beer (the event was at a brewery!), and we were both settling in to what we wanted to do professionally. Since then Rita has been a wonderful client of my graphic design and photography work. And now I own two absolutely gorgeous pieces of artwork that she made especially for me!

She made one for my craft room.

I just adore it! You know, when I first saw the photos she shared with me I wasn't sure exactly how it would look, but it's so perfect for the space!

 She put so much lovely detail into it! Rita, how do you do it?!?

She made one for our kitchen as well!

You can see more of Rita's beautiful art on her website, blog, and facebook page.

I am so blessed to own these two pieces of art and I know I will treasure them for a long time :)

Round Quilted Chair Cushion

I wanted to make a fun chair cushion for the yellow chair that I use in my craft room. I found an awesome pillow pattern and tutorial by Cluck Cluck Sew that was the right shape and size. Seriously I couldn't have found anything more perfect for this project! I did make a couple modifications to the pattern so it would be more suited for sitting on.

First I picked out fabrics from my stash. It was so fun and hard to chose 12 fabrics! Of course you don't have to use that many, but why not!?!

{I made a couple swaps since this}

Next print out the super easy pattern. It comes in two sizes. I used the 16 inch large one. Then cut out the pieces.

Arrange the pieces in a way you like and take a picture so you have something to refer to if they get messed up.

Then sew them together in twos using a quarter inch seam allowance.

Iron the seams, then sew pieces together so you have 2 halves.

Then sew the two halves together and iron some more.

{yay}

One of the things I wanted to do differently than the original pattern was to quilt the top piece. I think the quilting adds more stability as well. I folded the top piece in half to get the shape and size for the batting piece (do this to cut out the back of your cushion as well).

Pin and stitch the batting and top layer together!

{quilted}

Now cut out your pieces for the sides. The original pattern has you cut out a 5" x 50" strip. I wanted to put ties on the back to hold it onto the chair and make it skinnier. I used two pieces: 12" x 3.5" and 39 x 3.5". For the ties I cut out 4 - 15" x 2" pieces.

 Iron the strips for the ties before you sew them.

{iron one end in so you will have a clean edge to your ties}

{fold each side towards the middle and press}

{and sew!}

Once all the ties are sewed, sew the side pieces together into a ring.

{here's the layering - nice sides together with the ties sandwiched in between}

Next it's time to pin your side piece to the front and sew using a half inch seam allowance.

Then do the same with the back piece. Leaving a gap so you can turn it inside out and stuff it.

Once stuffed hand, sew the little hole closed.

{wahoo! almost done!}

The next steps are for covering a button with fabric if you don't have a fancy button maker.

Cut a piece of fabric slightly larger than your button. Use a button that has the hole on the back. Are there a special name for these kind of buttons?

Hand stitch around the outside.

Place your button in the middle and pull the thread tight. I also placed a little bit of batting in between the fabric and the button to make it padded.

Now it's time to add this to your cushion! The finishing touch to cover up those seams in the middle where it didn't match up perfectly! 

On the back I used another button for extra stability and to hide the knots.

Now my seat is nice and comfy!

I wish Jake and Elwood were like this the whole time while they were in the craft room with me...

In fact, it was more like this...

{Jake chewing on pins and Elwood checking out the iron that was on. No worries, they were quickly reprimanded and shooed away!}

And like this...

{Sweet mom! You put the ties on it for us to play with!}

Let me know if you have any questions about the cushion or if you use the pattern too!

Peg Board Update for the Craft Room

I was really inspired by some finds on Pinterest for this project. It is definitely budget friendly and makes a huge difference. Peg board is not just for garage and basement workshops anymore.

{aren't they fun and stylish!?! found here and here}

My parents let me have at a piece of pegboard that had been sitting in their basement ever since I can remember.

{here it is before not the happiest looking peg board}

I cleaned it up and got ready with the spray paint! I painted it outside and used empty soda cans to hold it off the ground. I didn't use any primer, but it might have been a good idea this pegboard absorbed quite a bit of paint. I basically used up the whole can.

{I used Rust-Oleum's satin Summer Squash color}

After it was all dry it was time to hang it in the craft room! Hubby helped with this part quite a bit. Well actually he did most of it. I told him where I wanted it and helped hold it. He's the best. We used a skinny board on the top and bottom to keep it about 3/4" off the wall so the hooks can be added easily.

{see?}

{cheery and organized no more clutter on the table at least for now. Look at all the space I still have!}

I got a box of 50 assorted hooks for just under $5 at Menards. It has all the variety I need and there's still plenty left for when I find more fun stuff to hang up.

{who wants to come over and craft with me?}