Dad did a great job of making my day special... now I had better get to work, so his day can be as special as my day was!

• Father's Day Gifts to Sew

The kitchen is the most used room in my house.... and the most ignored when it comes to spiffying it up. There really is no reason to not make up simple little projects that can make a huge difference. Cloth Napkins are the latest addition to my kitchen. They are a great way to go green and keep one ore thing out of the landfill!

• Sew Your Own Hanging Hand Towels
• Sew a Dish Liquid Apron
• Mixer Cover Directions
• Blender Cover Directions
• Toaster Cover Directions
• How to Sew a Basic Curtain Panel
• Cloth Napkins
• Mason Jar Fabric Covers
• Lasting Table Center Piece
• Scented Hot Pad

Most graduates love to receive cash to pay for collage. The problem with that is the cash is gone in no time flat and there is no memorable gift that will last a life time...unless you present the cash in a magic wallet. Use a graduation print or school colors so memories will always be there.

Today is not a gardening day for me, so I'm taking advantage of the time that I can't spend planting to organize the stacks of free printouts I have accumulated. I can never resist printing out a free pattern for fear of it not being there when I want it but the piles of paper tend to get overwhelming if I don't take care of them immediately... and I never do.

• Storage Solutions For Free Patterns and Internet Print Outs

I went out to lunch this week... not a big deal until you add the fact that I had the opportunity to say thank you to someone I hadn't seen in over thirty years. I hadn't seen my 4H leader in well over thirty years. How wonderful it was to finally be able to say thank you.

• My Sewing Teachers

We all want to have mom love her gift .... and most mom's really don't want us to break the bank to give her a gift... the perfect solution is to make mom a gift she will love and know you put the effort into making it just for her. Mother's Day is almost here though so you better get to it!

• Free Sewing Patterns and Projects

Some rules just don't work and you may have to break or gently bend the rule to achieve your goal. I tend to preach about perfect seam allowances, pivoting at corners and such things... bottom line... there are times that those rules just don't work. No one wants "bunny ears" on the corners of their pillows, or corners on their collars that are not a sharp corner... and there are ways to bend the rules to achieve your desire.

• Sewing Seams
• Solving Problem Corners
• Grading a Seam
• Under-Stitching

We are in the process of recycling tons of metal and cleaning up things that were stored here before we bought the house.... which means we are spending lots of time outside filling dumpsters... and feeding the bugs. One thing I discovered this week is that by making the Wild Things! sun hat with a 2" brim it keeps the sun out of my eyes AND by spraying the underside of the brim with bug spray it keeps the bugs off my face and out of my eyes and ears. The best part is when I'm sweating, the bug spray is staying on the hat not rolling into my eyes!

Hat Making Patterns and Tips

We have been having THE most unbelievable PERFECT weather in the great northeast... way before we should have it, but you are not going to find anyone complaining! I have noticed the sunburns on everyone though... go news to keep the dermatologists in business but not great for our health. Sun screen is the first line of defense but hats are strongly suggested to keep our faces, necks and ears protected. So this week I'll be sewing up some hats. My husband loves his baseball hats but I'm determined to get him to wear hats with more of a brim so that his ears and neck get protection from the sun. Me... I am hoping to avoid a few of the wrinkles that are bound and determined to find their way on to my face!

• Hat Patterns and Hat Sewing Tips
• Sun Safety/Health
• Effects of Sun on the Skin

I can't be the only one who looks at the pile of beautiful little thread bits that were trimmed away as I embroider a design and think, there must be something I could do with those threads... there is! You may enjoy the answers I found in Sculpted Threads by Janet Shipley Hawks