Inspiration, Part 2

This "inspiration" post is more about what I've been doing, but maybe you can get some inspiration from something you see here.

Shopping. What could be more inspiring than shopping? Well, I think I started yesterday's post similarly, talking about finding inspiration at the quilt shop. And you all KNOW I didn't leave the shop without buying anything, right?

Prairie Paisley. I don't know why I haven't made a big commitment to this line--I should have just bought a fat quarter bundle, because it seems I can't stop buying charm packs! I used up just about every little bit of the other two packs I bought when I made the Decoy quilt and I just love the way these fabrics look together. So three more charm packs (and a couple red fat quarters) made their way into my bag last night.

And two more Schnibbles patterns--Little Red and Darcy. I think as I finish projects from these patterns, I'll give the patterns away here on my blog, like I did with Decoy. After all, sharing among quilters is a long-standing tradition, so let's keep it going! Of course, the key here is that I actually need to MAKE THE QUILT before I can do a giveaway, so don't hold your breath, but I think I can promise more of these in the future.

I've talked lately about shrinking wool sweaters to make purses--yeah, it's been all talk and no action so far, but I hope to change that soon. So while I was at the quilt shop, I picked up a package of handles. That made me start thinking about seriously looking for purses with useable handles at the thrift stores. This package of handles cost around $15--I'm positive I can do a lot better if I keep my eyes open while thrifting, but these will get me started.

Making. This is a photo of a push pin I made for my desk at work. Here's what I used to make them--

Some months back, I ordered a few packages of buttons from Re-Conceived.com's Etsy shop. These are the type of buttons that have pin backs, and she makes them from illustrations in old books and other printed paper sources. Alice in Wonderland has long been a favorite, so I ordered two sets of six Alice in Wonderland buttons as well as the package of chicken buttons you see here. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them when I bought them, but the other day when I was sorting through some crafty and sewing things, I came across these large-headed quilters' thumb tacks and the idea was born. All I did was remove the "pin" part from the backs of the buttons and, using some super strength glue, glued the tacks to the inside. The same thing could be done with magnets, but Re-Conceived actually sells magnets already if you're interested in something like that.

Up at the top of this post and here below, you can see the bird bookends I made for my desk at work. After I showed them to you the other day, I added more paint and chipboard letters, and then I mounted the ceramic birds using that same glue I showed you above. I love this glue--it seems to hold everything!

The letters on one of the bookends spell out "Chirp" and the other bookend says "Fly." Hummm. "Fly." Sometimes at work, I wish I could! One more work day, though, and then the weekend's here! Just in time to get busy with the things that have been inspiring me all week! I'm glad you could stop in and visit!