Saturday Sewing

Saturday the garage sales were horrid. My 8 year old and I must have hit close to 15 garage sales. We came home with a pair of shoes for her. That's it!  Friday, I swear every garage sale was sporting '80's home decor and craft projects from  over 2 decades ago, with modern day prices. Why oh why do people price their crap so high?  Not even good crap.

The first garage sale I hit on Friday looked like they were cleaning out mom's  house.  I picked up a couple of cheap frames for .25 each and found  close to 5 yards of cotton duck cloth/material in black, white and a pale green... for .25! The sign said "fabric pieces 5 for .25."  What a steal and  crazy! I was super excited. Around Christmas time last year, I made a play car mat for my nephews and back then, I remember buying some cotton duck cloth/canvas at JoAnn's for about $8.50 a yard.  When I saw the duck cloth at the garage sale, I knew immediately what I would do with some of it. I had a plan inspired by many, many home decor blogs, and by some pillows that I spotted in a Ballard Designs Catalog.  One of the latest decorating crazes I noticed, is French Grain Sack Pillows. I have seen them everywhere in the blogging world, on Etsy and in home decor magazines. I knew I could create the look much cheaper, and put my own spin on it.

So armed with my practically free duck canvas, my sewing machine, a cutting wheel, a paint brush, painter's tape, Exacto knife and some Maroon colored Ceramcoat acrylic paint,

I got to work on Saturday making some throw pillows for my family room sofa. I knicked my finger with the cutting wheel, but my hands were spared when it came time to using the Exacto knife. It isn't my project until I have bled on it, I decided.  When I was done sewing and cursing, then began the fun part of painting a design on these pillow covers.  I knew I wanted some simple stripes, but what else?

 I settled on a fleur de lis... very French.  I found a clip on the Internet, printed it out and then took my Exacto knife and made a stencil out of it. Using blue painter's tape, I created some stripes.

The inspiration for the next pillow came from a French song. I could not get the song Aux Champs-Élysées out of my head... so the street name Champs-Élysées,  made it's way onto a pillow.

I free handed the lettering with a set of new paint brushes that I picked up at a garage sale... I wish that I had just a slightly nicer set as it was difficult working with the fabric and the paint... oh well.  Now every time I see the pillow, I start humming the song Aux Champs-Élysées and it puts a smile on my face. My first year of college French - many moons ago, my french professor taught us this song and we sung it multiple times throughout the semester. 

The third pillow I just decided to write "Maison No.23" on it. Maison means "house" in French. The number 23? Well It's for my birth date... I also free handed this one and I like how it turned out for the most part.  I have one more pillow that I will paint, but am not quite sure what kind of a design I will incorporate.

Anyway, it's kind of fun  feeling my way through this home decorating maze and finding what I like and what I want to try out.

I am kind of obsessive that way. I pick up a new hobby and run with it for a few years, then I am onto the next thing. Just ask that hubby of mine that has endured my many interests for the past 16 years!