marie-madeline studio

doing the dishes...

Dishes are one of those things with us Long ladies.  We all collect them!  Oh the days, spent scouring flea markets for the perfect dish.  We each have a favorite pattern, a favorite color(s), and a favorite style.  Here are our recent (gorgeous) findings... now tucked safely away, until we have the pleasure of using them in our own homes, Lord willing!

for Achaia~ a fabulous floral 70s-style pitcher--

 

     

for Apphia~ perfectly elegant turquoise (!) "bubble" cups and saucers--

  

   

fabrics: farmers market and pop garden  

Operation-- Army Sack Makeover!!

Alright... this may sound a little funny, but I like army sacks. The shape, size, and feel of them just seem perfect. Except for one thing: they're a bit "boyish" looking for a girl. So, I got the idea that if I ever found a cheap army sack I would buy it and line it with a fabric, using the same techniques we use to put lining into our bags. Hadn't seen one. Then one day...

We went to a flea market in Fairland, Oklahoma. (If you're ever down that way look up Fran's Flea Market!) Can you imagine what was there for $8? You guessed it: my army sack! I was so excited!! Home I came with the army sack in tow. Next on the list was to wash it.

At first it was a little blah (inside and out!)::

Now I made a plan of attack::

Cutting out (I made a rough pattern using freezer paper, as you can see). I chose an Amy Butler fabric from her new Midwest Modern line. There's a bit of green in it that's the perfect shade of army green!::

While putting the lining together I decided to add a pocket to help keep my extra little goodies "organized"::

Hand stitching the lining in around the top was the hardest part! (with the help of my wonderful partners I decided stitching around the top with the sewing machine was out of the question! I just set the lining in and hand stitched around it.) I ended up with a purple thumb from poking myself (and used up 2 needles in the process)::

Mission Complete! My army sack is ready for duty and officially done. Well almost. Now I plan to embellish the flap with a 1970's applique from Mom's cute collection::

posted by Achaia

Nanny's Visit:: Day 5, 6, and 7 Shades, Shades, Shades

We are SO sorry.... we've not posted about our progress for so many days! Nanny, Mom, and us girls have been extremely busy working on the Roman Shades. Lord willing we'll be able to finish them all today, because Nanny has to go home tomorrow. We're all really going to miss her!

Our Roman Shades have turned out very well so far. We used plain sheeting to make them with and Mini Blinds without the slats. Lord willing you'll get to see pictures of the finished product later on today, but for now, here's some pictures working on them. We had a total of 10 to do!

Took some cutting, measuring, and ripping!

Not to mention pressing and sewing!

Then yesterday afternoon, we decided to drive over to a town about 20 miles from us to do a little looking around. We felt like we could take a small break anyway! We visited a couple flea markets and throughly enjoyed ourselves. We brought along a digital camera so we could snap a few pictures to show you all.

Aunt Amy, your sister bought these for you!

One Happy Camper!

Our little camp stool was in pretty poor shape when we picked it up for $6 at a local flea market. (If you've read our blog for long, you know how we love flea markets!) It looked something like this (except for the fact it had a tacky blue paint on the legs, and the cover was an unattractive striped material)... 

We girls saw that it "could" make an adorable addition to our room. So... we went for it, hoping for the best. Wiping down thoroughly, a can of white spray paint, and a new cover was needed. To make the cover, Abigail tore off the old one (by getting the staples out) and measured its length and width. Then she took some pretty, bright vintage fabric we'd gotten at another near-by flea market (14 yards on a bolt for $15! We saw that bargain a mile away!), cutting out the size she'd measured from the old piece, plus a little extra seam allowance. Abigail got some plain white sheeting and sewed the two fabrics right sides together, leaving a small opening for turning. After turning it right side out, she hand whipped the opening closed. The staple gun was used to attach it to the frame. Viola! What a cute addition to our room!  

You could easily do this project for yourselves. A little camp stool, fabric you like, a rag, a bottle of spray paint, and a little imagination. You never know... maybe soon you'll be sitting pretty on a cute camp stool yourself!

posted by Achaia

Handy Storage Solutions

After spending some time settling into my new room, I realized that storage (that is, attractive storage) can be a real problem. So after struggling for not a little while to find something suitable, we came up with these solutions....

Cigar Boxes- oh, I know that seems funny. But you see, when my mom was in junior high, she knew a girl whose father owned a cigar store. Mom still has boxes that her friend gave to her in the late 70s! And they are really very cute and colorful. Not to mention very inexpensive. Be sure to get the wooden kind... they are most durable!

Glass Cracker Jars- these are so cute, and a very convenient way to store pretty objects like ribbons or buttons or beads. At $3 to $5 dollars each, cracker jars are perfect for the frugally minded. However, I must warn you... the lids are silver. So I spray paint them! These want to be turquoise, I think.

Plastic Woven Baskets- I found these Rubbermaid baskets on clearance and bought them before I really had any idea of what to do with them. But they have turned out to be such a blessing! They now house sheets, extra sweaters, papers and memorabilia, Christmas presents (those go on the very top shelf!), and other little items.

Little Flea Market Finds- This category is definitely most fun! The little jars and dishes found at flea markets or garage sales are often so unique that they really make a statement. And they can be bought for literally pennies! Some of my favorites cost me less than $1 a piece. They are great for things like pens, pencils, scissors, seam gauges, jewelry, and hair barrettes.

Photo Storage Boxes- These are great, too! We have them in the sewing room for miscellaneous notions like thread, zippers, adhesives, embellishments, and purse handles. Both JoAnn Fabrics and Hobby Lobby carry these in a wide assortment of colors. (The boxes shown below are in the sewing room, but I plan to find some colored ones for my bedroom.)

Once you really start looking, storing those little odds and ends becomes easier. It's always exciting for us to discover some clever way to hide our less-than-pretty necessities!

The Lord continues to bless us in ways that astonish me! After struggling with the advertising dilemma, He has graciously dropped a wonderful opportunity right at our feet. Sometime in mid to late December one of our pleated cottage aprons will be in a giveaway on Crystal Paine's blog! We have been encouraged by Crystal's blog for quite some time now, and are very excited about the giveaway. We're working on a diaper bag for her as well, and in return are receiving a whole month of free advertising! It's been such a joy to work with Crystal... she is so sweet. I am very thankful for this opportunity. In the last several months, the Lord has prospered our work so much and allowed us to do things that I would've never imagined!

posted by Apphia

This one's for you Mom!!!

Since we aren't close in miles, I thought that I would just have to show you this quilt this way, Mom.  Do you remember our "treasure hunt" in Oklahoma several weeks ago?  Well, aside from my $2.50 glass to hold pens and pencils in the studio, this quilt was my major find.  Of course it caught my eye since it was a quilt with lots of colors... so I read the ticket that the owner had put on it... "Handmade in Kansas in the late 1800's".  I just had to pick it up to feel it - then I saw the back of it.... my favorite shade of bright pink...and the scalloped edges...and the tiny little pieces...Well, Mom, as a quilt lover yourself, you must know what I was thinking.  I thought of the painstaking work that someone put into such an awesome quilt.  Each piece is a hexagon with each side measuring only 1/2", and each hexagon is then sewn into a diamond shape block.  Truly a work of art.  I imagine a mother made this quilt for one of her children or grandchildren... she cut and sewed each little piece with love...maybe she even prayed for each member of her family as she worked on this..

I didn't buy the quilt that day if you can believe it.  I wasn't in the "spending mood" so even though it was reasonable priced, I passed it by... but I couldn't get it out of my mind.  For days I thought of that quilt and wondered if I'd made a mistake.  "Oh, I should've bought that quilt!" I'd say to the girls.  Suddenly it struck me... Zeb had given me some money for my birthday and I hadn't spent it yet... why didn't I use that money for the quilt???  Yippee!!  But, I didn't know the name of the store that had the quilt...we'd went to so many that day...Providentially, Apphia had taken a picture of the sign outside that particular antique store so I found out the name.  I searched on the internet and found their phone number.  I then called and  explained my situation and how I couldn't stop thinking of a certain quilt that I'd seen there the week before, would they see if it was still there and could I send them money for it.  Frankly, I thought it could be gone because it was so beautiful and so reasonable priced.  Imagine my excitement when the owner walked through the store back to where I told her I'd seen it and found it still laying wadded up there!!  Praise The Lord!!!!  I was elated!!!  She said I could send her the check and she'd get the quilt in the mail!   About a week later the quilt came and how sweet it was... worth every penny... and a very special birthday gift from my oldest son.  Thanks, Zeb!!  I love you!

Hope you like the quilt, Mom!  I love you too!

posted by Kristie

Patterns, pink walls, and pillow shams

At this moment I feel as though I've lived patterns for the last few weeks. But now-- finally-- they are ready to go to the printer! What a major relief. It's still difficult for me to believe that the first-ever marie-madeline patterns will be debuting in the next month or so! That's the grace of God, let me tell you. Three down and about, maybe,  20 to go?

My workspace in the studio is incredibly crowded... so crowded in fact, that I often have my stuff strewn all about the house on every available countertop and table. However, my brilliant Dad has finally come up with a plan. After eighteen years of sharing a bedroom with one of my sisters, I have a room of my own... complete with workspace. (In other words, this was a very logical and reasonable way to keep my things somewhat contained!) When I moved in the room was a blank canvas. Completely white and completely empty. I painted it the most gorgeous shade of pink last week.... now it glows every day when the sun comes peeping through my window. Pictures can't really do it justice at all.

That's the wall for my personal "studio". I have enough room for a six-foot table! I plan on having some shelves hung to accomodate my jars of piddle. Still haven't found a good table, but we plan to go flea marketing one day this week. Flea markets yield the best furniture! Like this little blue chair that I picked up a couple of weeks ago in Oklahoma....

In my spare time I've been sewing up some new pillow shams, too. I am doing my room in Freshcut fabrics by Heather Bailey... that vintage-modern feel is wonderful!  

Hopefully I'll post some more updates soon!

posted by Apphia