LOVE in the air!

Valentine's Day is just around the corner and LOVE is in the air!  Check out the newest item in my Etsy shop, the Upcycled "Love" Wrist Cuff.

I've secured the canvas heart to a strip of Upcycled jeans with funky free-motion stitching & backed it with premium Kona cotton. "Love" is hand written, then free-motion stitched.

 It closes with 2 lime green metal snaps & my signature "V" free motion embroidered on the side.

  

This wrist cuff is labeled, "Victorious For Lyme" & signed on the inside.
measures aprox. 8" x 3"
fits small sized wrist - 6"-6 1/2"

Edgy Asian Eyes Dragon Wallet #2

Here's a cool new wallet that I made using some of my favorite fabric featuring a dragon.  I mixed in some brown corduroy with the unbleached natural cotton, red chinese characters & Asian eyes print...for a funky fresh combo I call, "Edgy Asian Eyes Dragon" wallet #2.






You can pick it up in my Etsy shop here:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/54652416/victorious-vixen-edgy-asian-eyes-dragon

Here is the front of the wallet...

and here is the back, with lots of free motion stitching around the dragon...

here's a peek at the inside...

hello Asian Eyes!

some detail on the dragon...you know I put the LOVE in there!

The Asian Eyes print has been my most popular fabric so far & I get lots of requests for it.  It is no longer in print, so I picked up as much of it as I could...I just love working with an Asian flair.  

What prints would you like to see me working with?  Which of my designs is your favorite?  I'd love to hear from you!  =)

Wishing you well,

Nani

Revamped T-shirt Tutorial

Well, I sure had a lot of fun with this next project.  I was trying to get my sewing mojo back...seemed to have hit a creative block.  I have read a few books about upcycling old t-shirts into cool tops, skirts & other things and decided it was time to just GO FOR IT!

 What you need:
t-shirt (s)
scissors
needle & thread

Makes life easier to have:
rotary cutter
ruler or straight edge
sewing machine
dress form (I made mine!)

I got this green shirt from CALDA, California Lyme Disease Association, and thought it would be great to revamp it into an attention getting outfit.  

• I started by cutting off the sleeves with my ruler & rotary cutter (the thing that looks like a pizza slicer).  If you don't have one of these, just use a pair of scissors to do the job.  Having the rotary cutter will give you a nice even edge to work with, making it easier to match up when you're sewing.

• I carefully cut out all the portions of the shirt with writing on it & set it aside.

• I cut the sleeves open (just follow along the seams) & trimmed it to make green strips.

• Then, I did the same thing to 2 black t-shirts of mine.

• Next, I pieced the shirts together in a crazy quilt type fashion...there are NO rules when you are the designer!  =)  I like that a lot. In fact, I didn't use a pattern or anything, just cut, pin, sew & go.  I also wanted my stitching to show, so I sewed them together with wrong sides together, alternating from a straight stitch to a big zig zag stitch on my seams.

• I created a long chunk of fabric that was pieced together & fit it to my dress form...I did have to fit it on myself when I got to the bottom of the dress since my dress form doesn't have a booty!  Just pin to a comfortable fit and sew this bad boy up!

• I used a scrap of pieced fabric for the strap...sew it in half lengthwise & zig zag stitch the ends to the dress.  I wanted mine to be a halter but you can criss cross them in the back or do it however you want.

• Lastly, I stitched the CALDA logo with the tick onto the front lower part of the dress & added some additional lines of stitiching for a bullseye effect.

That's it!  I now have a funky fresh attention getting lyme awareness outfit...and I have to say, I feel pretty darn good in it AND it's super comfy too!  Definitely think it's LymeSexy...what do you think?

Lyme Inspired Creations

Being a craftivist feels really good...I've known in my heart for a very long time that helping others was a calling for me.  I remember watching those "adopt-a-child" TV programs in elementary school....wanting to sponsor a child of my own.  

I enjoy sewing and making things with my hands, taking pictures with my trusty point and shoot, seeing the beauty in ordinary things and incorporating them into my work.  Adding a spin of Lyme awareness has been a new challenge of mine.

Here are some of my latest creations with Lyme in mind...

This is a Lyme Inspired clutch that was donated to benefit the recent Elizabeth Chalker fundraising event in Florida.  She is well short of her goal & is still in need of help to get her life-saving treatment.

Here are some clutches that I recently made, sporting the same wild zig zag free motion stitching.

 

I sent this one off to New York to help fellow Lymenaide team member & creator of LymeBites.com, Eric Rutulante, raise money for his costly Lyme treatment.  

If you are lucky enough to know Eric, they you are probably familiar with his uplifting sense of humor & steadfast dedication to spreading Lyme awareness.  He was featured recently in the news for an interview with his local station & was instrumental in the success of the "Paint May Lyme Green" campaign..  Click here to watch his news interview.

(below is a detail shot of the free motion stitching on the back of the clutch pictured above)

I recently received an order from someone who had a friend who has been battling Lyme Disease.  They wanted to get her something that was special & personal which carried our message of awareness on it.  With some help from my Lyme friends (thanks Abbie!), we simply came up with "Chronic Lyme is Real."                                                                                                                                             Contrary to how the current IDSA guidelines are written, Chronic Lyme disease IS real, does exist & can be a persistant infection that has been known to illude the savviest of medical professionals, especially those who are not Lyme Literate Medical Doctors (LLMD's).  Sadly, most Lyme patients are faced with the unique challenge of having to PROVE THEIR ILLNESS to the medical community...usually with strong resistance.  

It is my hope that through my craftivism efforts, more people will come to know the truths about Lyme disease to help prevent new infections from happening & create positive change that will help those already suffering from Lyme.  They need access to knowledgeable LLMD's, the treatment of their choice, and for their insurance to cover it.  They need support from their family, friends, community & government.  

I know I am just one person & that I alone won't be able to accomplish all these things...but I do believe in the power of a dream, a vision, a goal, a calling...whatever you want to call it.  I'm putting it out there & looking for others who share my dream, who have the same vision & want to come along on this journey with me and the rest of the Lymenaide team.

 This Lyme Inspired Clutch is now listed in my Etsy shop at:  http://www.VictoriousVixen.Etsy.com

You can check out more pictures of my Lyme Inspired creations here.

Letting Go...For a Good Cause!

I just love creating art and sewing my heart out...I really do put the LOVE into my work and hope that when people receive my creations they enjoy them as much as I did when I made them.  It's hard for me to let them go sometimes, but I totally believe in the causes & people that I am able to contribute to from the sale of my goodies.

This year, I have really enjoyed a whole new world of crafting...mixed media!  I love it because ANYTHING goes...no rules!  =)  Inspired by Traci Bautista, mixed media guru and author of the best selling book, "Collage Unleashed," I ventured into the world of painting in a free and spontaneous manner.  Then comes the layers of texture, collage and free motion sewing...so much fun and totally addicting!  One of my favorite things about it is recycling & UPcycling paper & other things that would otherwise end up in a landfill as trash!

These 5 mini books are for a swap that I am participating in for the "Collage Unleashed" yahoo group.  Each of the participants are to create 5 mini books & send them off to the host...we get a return package of 5 assorted books from other artists!  What fun!

So here are the mini books I created...

hand painted papers...

I UPcycled an old dress that I got from my sewing class to create the red hearts!!!

UPcycled papers, various stencils and free motion sewing...

all tied together with string...have I told you how much I just love this stuff??!!

Here is my table with plenty of things going on!  Victorious for Elizabeth & Lymenaide mini books in the works...


...as well as the Victorious for Lyme Wrist Cuffs in the back...




...and some new things to help in the Gulf Rescue & Clean-Up efforts...

I have a show planned for Saturday, July 24th at the Cypress Community Festival & will be featuring several projects I'm working on for one charity or another.

I hope you'll stop by my booth, learn about Lyme disease & pick up some unique handmade creations, all made with love for a good cause. =)


If you are interested in contributing something on behalf of these or other charities, please let me know & I will make them available at my booth.  You can email me at: Nani@VictoriousVixen.com, or leave me a comment below.

Happy Creating!
--Nani