More Batik and Why I Hate the USPS

I made my friend, Maggie, some napkins for her birthday. She lives in Florida and I've only been to her apartment once, so I don't really know what her colors are. I remember seeing some blue somewhere, so that's the color I went with. Plus, who doesn't like blue?





After I got the napkins finished, I had a little bit of fabric left over, and I was feeling overly ambitious. I had a similar color batik fabric, in a smaller print, left over from a dress I made a couple of years ago. I used those two fabrics to make a pair of log cabin pillows for her sofa (or bed, whatever).



I used 2 1/2 in. strips for the blue fabric and 1 1/2 in. strips of the white. I stitched a couple rows around the white squares to quilt the block to a piece of white fabric (no batting) to line it and give it a little extra stability. I did an envelope closure on the back and added a few buttons to make sure it stays closed.



Now that you've seen all of my hard work (and I've had a good cry looking at the pictures), onto why I hate the USPS.

I mailed Maggie's present two weeks ago and it never showed up. The idiots from our wonderful postal service lost it. I didn't pay to have the package insured and I lost my receipt with the tracking number on it. I'll admit, that's my fault. However, I trusted them to get Maggie's present to her and they DIDN'T DELIVER (pun intended).

So Maggie, I hope you've enjoyed looking at pictures of the birthday present that you'll never get and that you feel the same deep seeded hatred for the USPS as I do. I'll get to work making you another birthday present.

Batik Napkins

I've always used cloth dinner napkins, but I've actually never made any for myself.

A couple of months ago I got a Crate and Barrel catalog in the mail that featured some batik cloth napkins. Adorable! I love batik, but they came as a multi-color set that didn't match my kitchen, and I hate spending that much on napkins.

This inspired me to make some for myself.



I think batik is a great look for summer and I liked the spontaneity of C&B's multi-color set, I just didn't like the colors (especially the orange and yellow). I picked two complimentary prints and went to town making napkins.



Of the store-bought napkins that I have, some are made with a plain, turned under hem, and some have mitered corners. I like the ones with mitered corners better, they look a little more polished.



This tutorial on mitered corners is a good one. A 22 in. square of fabric makes one 20 in. napkin and a 44 in. length of fabric will make a set of 4 napkins.

Why I Make Stuff

My mom used to teach HomeEc. She sews beautifully. (She cooks well too. Sadly, I didn't learn to cook from her.) She made me dresses, outfits, and Halloween costumes, until I got to the age where clothes made by your mom were no longer considered cool.

She was always encouraging me to draw, make stuff, and be creative when I was a kid. I always had a big box of crayons and a thick stack of construction paper to play with. Art was my favorite subject in school.

My mom taught me everything I know about sewing. I remember her helping me sew simple outfits for my My Little Ponies with a needle and thread when I was about 4 or 5 years old. When I was in the 3rd grade I started sewing at my mom's sewing machine one day. I had been watching her do it for years and figured that I could do it too. This scared the crap out of my mom. She quickly gave me a lesson in how to use the sewing machine and NOT sew over my fingers. I took HomeEc when I was in 8th grade and my teacher let me teach half of the class how to sew. (Half of the class used Bernina's, the rest used Singer's, I believe. Because I knew how to thread a Bernina, that's what I taught.) I probably didn't do a very good job at teaching them, but it made me feel important.

When I was about 12, my grandmother tried to teach me how to crochet. The only thing I could figure out was how to chain stitch. I eventually figured out how to single crochet, cobbling together what I remember of what she showed me and what I read in a book. Crochet is not my forte but I like it because it's fast.

I moved to Dallas when I was 24. I got bored sitting at home, alone, in my apartment. Instead of going out and meeting new people, I bought a book and taught myself how to knit. I knit a blanket for my neighbor's baby. She and her husband introduced me to the guy who would become my husband. Let this be a lesson to all of you single people out there. Learn a craft, sequester yourself at home making said craft, then give your crafts away in order to win favor with your friends so that they will introduce you to nice people and you won't be single anymore.

I make more things for other people than I do for myself. My nieces get most of what I make because they're still young enough to appreciate handmade stuff, especially if it's a crazy color or looks a little wonky. I think the joy of giving enhances the sense of accomplishment that I get from making stuff.