an update for Wednesday || Home + Sewing Post

To say I have been busy these last few weeks would be an understatement!  Three quilts in the works, along with taking care of a home and family, has taken my time.  On Sunday, I shared on my Facebook page the plain lamp shade I dressed up with a little fabric and paper.  I'll try to post soon how I did it.

There were some lighting issues like the casting of green light onto my ceiling and walls, and there was this orange-y tone on the shade.   Kind of like a really bad fake bake on a white girl.  Two things I was not planning on at all when I thought I was making the coolest shade ever.  I have not had the time buy a new bulb to see if that would help, so it's hanging in the kitchen until then.  (Thank you Facebook) If that doesn't work, I'll most likely move the shade to my living room since that area is next on my list to redo.

Yesterday it was cloudy and rainy, which made for not-so-great lighting in my kitchen, so sorry about that.  I like that little bit of peek-a-boo green.

Last week I shared a custom quilt in the works.  The owner requested a plus (or is it cross?) quilt.  She wanted yellow, blue, green, grey, and orange.   I got the top done, and now I need to make the back, baste, quilt, and bind before it's sent to its owner.

And awhile back I shared a snippet of a quilt in progress.  I finished it earlier this week.  I'm waiting for more appropriate sunny weather before giving this its well deserved photo shoot and listing it in my shop.  I really love this quilt, but then again, I love all the quilts I have made.  ;)  The orange and white stripe Hello Pilgrim fabric on the backside really gives it a nice touch.  It complements the Kona Charcoal well.

Thanks for stopping in today.

I'm sharing with Freshly Pieced

let's take a quick poll shall we?

It's poll time!  I like taking polls just to see kind of where I am at with things.  As you may or may not know, I blog about my home and sewing.  Sometimes, the two are related, but most of the time, they are not.  I understand many people prefer reading a particular genre, and I respect that.  I like to read home DIY blogs just as much as I like to see who is sewing what, but I don't expect everyone else in the world to like that too.  Am I going to change owen's olivia into just a sewing blog or just into a home DIY blog?  No, I don't foresee that happening anytime soon.   Lately, I have been trying to be a little more considerate in letting you know what my post entails by titling it with "Home Post" or "Sewing Post" giving you the option to click or pass.  So this poll lets me who likes what.  Is it the sewing or is it to peek into my home? Or is it both?  My plans for this blog are to continue to do as I am doing.  A mixture of what I love and the constant determination to bring more beauty into my life and home.  I want you to ultimately know that I truly appreciate your friendship, comments, and support, so thank you for taking time out your day to visit me!  Thank you for all that you do.

What interests you?

Also, is there another blog as unique as mine?  Do you know someone else who blogs about home DIY + sewing?  If you could leave the name of the blog below in the comment box that would be great!

Oh, and don't forget that I have a Facebook giveaway going on too!

I'll see you guys tomorrow!

The going ons in Nancyville

I'm sure my name will never be included in a town, but, if there were a Nancyville, I'd like to live there.  Well, only under the conditions hot chocolate came out of faucets and Norman Reedus was my gardener.

But back to reality.  sigh.

Around the home:

I finally found out, and by accident too, what these yellow ball things were.  Billy balls.  Though my immature side chuckles inside every time I say Billy balls, I think they are the loveliest dead things ever.  Unless Norman dies.  He would be lovely dead too.  

Well, I scooped myself up a few from Teresa's Plants & More on Etsy.  She even has a cool hanging glass globe like mine, which I shared with you here.  (And yes, I killed that freaking air plant.  seriously???)

I bought my very first orchid.  I feel very sorry this plant had to come home with me because I do not foresee a long future with it.  It's so pretty though, and I will thoroughly enjoy every moment it's in our home.

And the very last mention of flowers is the roses my husband gave me for Valentine's.  A week later and they are still going strong.

My kitchen is coming to a close.  Finally.  I have concluded I'm the world's slowest person to decorate her home, or maybe I'm normal?  Who knows, but I do know I so much closer to being done than I was a month ago.  There have not been too many changes, but it's still fun to have a before + after reveal post.  Don't you think?

An update with this photo:  I couldn't do it.  The art came down.  I'm sorry Owen.  I'm a bad mom. (Blogged here.)

I hung my "I'm Awesome" print, which I blogged about last week here.

My sewing room:

My scrap quilt is quilted and now needs to be bound and photographed before officially showing you all.  I'm in love guys.  So my affection goes in this order:  Jesus Christ, Matt, Owen, scrap quilt, and Norman.  I feel I learned a bit from this quilt, and now, I completely understand why people love quilts. I drag this thing around like it's my lovey.  I have snuggled with this quilt every night the last few days.

A custom quilt in the works for a customer:  Blue, yellow, green, gray, with a touch of orange

Another quilt top in the works using this line that I purchased from StashModernFabric on Etsy.  No pictures until I have the top finished in March.  Sorry!

And just life in general:

This photo is blurry, but it makes me happy.  This captures pure joy.


Have a good day y'all.



I'm sharing this with Freshly Pieced, Live a Colorful Life, 

Captain? What captain? || Before + After

A long time ago, I bought my kitchen table and chairs off Craigslist.  Two of the chairs were captains, which were fine at the time, but I soon realized these captains could not be pushed under the table.  So I grew to loathe them.   Using a Dremel, I cut off the arms and spindles.  After that, I basically followed this tutorial for priming and painting, and painted my two captain chairs yellow.  That was months and months ago.

My original plan was to add foam and fabric for my seats, but I got lazy.  So the chairs sat unfinished for all those months until this past weekend when I decided a coat of paint will do.  (I shared a sneak peek of the project on Facebook.  Feel free to follow along if you like seeing behind the scenes pictures.

And after . . .

I use one of the chairs in my sewing room, which also has the table I bought with the chairs .  The other one actually sits out in my carport.  :)  And to see what my current dining situation is, you can view that here.  (I painted the other four chairs in white.)

So what do you think?  Isn't it amazing what a little bit of paint can do?

So you may be wondering what does Aurifil's 40 Weight Variegated Mako Crayons looks like?

I picked up a spool of Aurifil's 40 Weight Variegated Mako thread in Crayons (3817) because I thought it would be fun to use in the future.  I currently do not have a particular project in mind, but I went ahead and stitched a 6" square to share on the internet in case someone was wondering what Aurifil's Crayons looks like stitched before purchasing.

So here you go . . .

Reds, yellows, blues, greens, and purples all at different lengths.  Enjoy!  I know I do.

I purchased my Aurifil from Red Rock Threads.  Great selection, great prices, and quick shipment.




(fyi- Totally not a sponsored post filled with paid advertising links.)

PLEASE WAIT. I'M BUSY BEING AWESOME

Designed and made by me.  Please do not copy or make this print for yourself.  Thank you!

I made this print the other week (a great scrap buster project!), and I thought today couldn't be any more appropriate to express this exact thought.  I have felt a little overwhelmed the last two weeks with my to-do list, most of which I unnecessarily brought on.  But don't we, as the creative type, usually do that?  I certainly have been busy.  All of last week, I watched the sweetest little girl, and Owen was happy to have someone to play with, even if she was two years younger than him.  Besides the normal life of being a homemaker, wife, and mother, I have found some time to do a little sewing.

  Man, there is so much I want to do with so little time on my side.   And I can't even think of all the quilts I want to make in the future.  One of them being an x + quilt, which Bijou Lovely has sparked this desire within me.   You must check out her x + quilt.  AMH's Field Study is showcased very well.  A collection that I didn't love entirely.  Oh my gosh . . .  was that blasphemy in the quilting world????  I do own a few of the prints in Field Study, but there were some, ahem cheetah, that I could care less for.  But Holly makes me want to copy her quilt to the T.  I don't think I can stop gushing or daydreaming about it.

But back to being awesome.  It's a nice reminder.  Something we should always think of ourselves but sometimes feel opposite of in a competitive, digital age.



Today I'm linking up with Freshly Pieced.

How's it hanging? || Home post

Just a little living room update.  Before you are all like, "Girrrl, why did you add more brown???" just bear with me here.  Using what I had on hand, I took some things from other places in my home and placed them into my living room.  Also, Young House Love has a great post about "the middle."  So just refer to their post for understanding "the middle."

My curtains came from my bedroom.  I have plans to paint the entire panels in white and then add a graphic print on top of that.  I have no clue how this will turn out, but I don't mind taking the risk.  I've painted on curtains before, but only on a portion of them.   Before I paint them though, I have plans to shorten them, so the hundred feet of draped curtain panel on the floor is gone.  I'll also remove the grommets and use clips instead for hanging.

I kept this antique dresser I found on Craigslist.  My original plan was to experiment using Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint and resale it, but I decided to keep it and as is.   On a side note, I did end up buying  AS Chalk Paint but not to use on this piece.  I'm thinking - new knobs?

I bought my clock from Kirkland's a few years ago on clearance for $15.  Though I do like its pattern, it reads a little more traditional to me, and in order to break up all the traditional items in my home, it needs to be painted. (Remember- I discovered my style is transitional.  I like modern with a touch of traditional.)  I'm thinking of using my hello logo in the header of my blog that I designed and having the center be black with bright neon clock hands.  What do you think?  I think it could look pretty awesome.

wow.  Check out that overstuffed library cabinet over there.
I would like my two sitting chairs to look more like the photo below.  I just want to sink into my comfy chair and toss the upholstery into the wash.  I would love to add these pillows to my chairs, if I slipcovered them white.   But you may have remembered the day I cursed slipcovers.  Wouldn't metal zippers down the back look pretty cool?  Yeah, they would.

As for my coffee table, I purchased the Pottery Barn piece off Craigslist several years ago.  It is so heavy and solid.  If my son is able to jump up and down on it, then I think it could handle anything else that comes it way.  What I dislike about this piece, which was not an issue pre baby, is the glass.  It was in mint condition when I bought it, and after having Owen, the glass has seen better days.  I'm soooo tired of wiping glass.  So tired.   My plan is to cover the top with a thick piece of wood and stain/white wash it .  My only concern is will it become too chunky, too boxy, too heavy looking for the space?  It is something I will not know until I place wood on top of it.  Sometimes, I just can't visualize things.  TIP:: Glass allows light to pass through and can make a room feel more spacious than it actually is.  But this is my goal:

source

The rug.  Oh, the rug.  Rug. Rug. Rug.  I just cannot make up my mind about that darn rug!  I blogged about rugs here.  But after looking at this photo, I realized my 8' x 10' rug is actually a little small for the space.  Personal opinion probably, but now it is something that is going to bug me for awhile.  Can you relate?

As for the ceiling fan . . . it has to stay.   For now.   It gets really hot and humid here in the South, so we use it all the time.

So here's the progress.

Don't forget to enter my Facebook giveaway.  Thanks for stopping in and have a great weekend!  If you live in the Northeast, please be safe.  My prayers are with you.



Relevant Links

A new(ish) credenza for the living room
The before photos of my living room

let me stache your iPad for you . . .

I made this about a month before opening my Etsy shop.   I absolutely love this little iPad sleeve.  It's padded for a little extra protection and has the most adorable wooden mustache button.  The reason I never listed it right away was because of its label inside.  It says "small shop studio."  That was going to be the original name of my Etsy shop, and if I could have that name today, I would snatch it up in a heartbeat.  I work in a very small space and I have always wanted to say that I have a"studio."  So dreamy, right?  The name has meaning for me, but before I googled "small shop studio," I was too anxious to get things going and didn't properly research if anyone else had that name.  Well, someone else does, and she has a brand styling studio.   Awesome for her, bummer for me.  So that is why the sleeve was never listed until today.  Today, I say who cares.  I made an awesome sleeve, and I want someone to enjoy it.  So today my friends, I list it in the shop.  

You can read all the details in my shop.

Winner of the 5 patterns from Etsy shop, During Quiet Time, is debbiekl!  Congrats!

Triple Zip Pouch || Sewing Post

It's always a risk to show off photos of gifts before giving them.  The likelihood of the person who is receiving this gift reads my blog is very low.  So I am taking a risk and sharing with you my completed triple zip pouch that I made for Karlyn, my teenager niece.  And if Karlyn is reading this post - Happy Birthday!  It's not my fault you chose to read this one and only post!  ;)  I have one more I need to make but I haven't done it yet, and I'm already contemplating making one for myself too.  Debbie from A Quilter's Table created this pattern that features three zippers on one pouch.  I had no problems with it, but I did use my seam ripper a lot.  Also, I ended up doing the last few steps differently.  Mine is a little bigger too measuring 10" x 7" and has the zipper extended off the pouch.  You can head on over to the Flickr group to see what all the other talented people have created from this pattern.

I'm sure you'll see more photos of this pouch when I photograph the second one.  (These are the photos used for the Flickr group.)



Relevant links: Other gifts I have sewn
For Gracie
For Lucy
For Maeghan
For Olivia
For Nicole


My quilting book released Sept. 24, 2015 and is on Amazon.  Check it out!