New on Etsy! PDF Hand Embroidery Patterns!

Brand New on Etsy! Hand Embroidery PDF Patterns - Nesting Doll, Owl, & Summer Time Design Sheets! I'll be adding a few more patterns in the coming weeks including more project patterns!

New Cute Things on Etsy!

Kawaii Mushroom Phone Cozies for iPhone, Blackberry, & Droid

Owl Applique Denim Tote Bag

New! Dreamcatchers in the Etsy shop!

Felt Woodland Deer Dreamcatcher made from Embroidery hoop, vintage ribbon, hand embroidery, & eco friendly Felt! Now on Etsy!

Felt Fox Dreamcatcher made from embroidery hoop, hand embroidery, modern fabrics, and lace! Now on Etsy!

Shop Update! Mushroom Keychains & Bird Hair Clips!

Eco Felt Kelly Green Mushroom Keychain

Felt Hot Pink Mushroom Keychain

Eco Felt Plush Bird Hair Clip

Eco Felt Bird Hair Clip in Red

SALE!

Introducing my first PDF Hand Sewing Pattern: Retro Owl Plush Pattern! It's $6 and arrives directly to your inbox! I hope to get more project patterns into the shop very soon! So be on the lookout!

Hey Friends! Lots of goodies in the shop are on SALE, including pins, keychains, & lots of other sweet felt things! I'm clearing out to make room for some new goodies! Happy etsying! Visit the Etsy Shop!

Let's Get Crafty!

missisaau

So I'm very happy that I've been working on a new special project, my first craft book! (insert a million exclamation marks here) I obviously can't share many details of what I'm working on but I'll try to share what I can along the way and keep you updated. I can tell you that, my book is being published with North Light Books and will be released in 2012. It's going to feature a lot of brand new & interesting projects that I'm so excited to be working on! In fact, I must admit I'm not -the best- secret keeper so not being able to post & share all of these neat new things is going to be so, so difficult!!! This is also the reason I've been a little MIA lately and had temporarily taken down some of my wholesale listings, etc. So just wanted to let you all know whats up!

Giveaway Winners!

Thanks so much for the all the support on the Owl Cozy giveaway! I loved reading all your responses! The winners of the giveaway are Ausra & Rougeau26, they were numbers 23 & 33 which were randomly chosen by random.org! Thanks again, I hope to host another giveaway later this summer!

Giveaway!

 

It's about a time I did a giveaway! I'm offering one Owl Cozy of Your Choice to 2 lucky winners - That's right - 2 winners! Your sweet cozy will be made just for you to fit your phone or gadget! You have until April 25th to enter!

Enter up to 6 times by doing each of the following (be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry): 

1. Leave a comment & let me know which owl cozy is your favorite at the link above

2. Ask me a question on formspring

3.Follow this blog

4. Subscribe to the newsletter - subscribe box over the top right

5. Tweet about this giveaway be sure to include @lovahandmade so I can RT

6. Like LR on Facebook 

*Don't forget to leave me a way to get in touch!* Also wanted to mention this giveaway is open to everyone including international folks!

A Little Bit of Everything Update

I've been up to a lot lately! I have some new projects coming up that I'm really excited about but can't share yet! I'm still hoping to post the giveaway that I've been meaning to do (hopefully in just a few days) but the past few weeks have been full of distractions! The plus is they've been rather good distractions! Here's a few random neat things:

Won a pretty awesome giveaway on Twitter from @Crafternews, received a ton of neat books!

Received some brand new Eco Felt from Kunin!  I'm not sure the new printed Eco Felt by Kunin is available in stores yet so I thought I'd share! It's super fun, I can't wait to try out some new projects with it! It's also super soft, I've seen other printed felt before and well, this new Eco felt is just different! Most I've seen has been almost like a screen print on felt and its rather rough on one side, this new printed Eco felt almost seems woven as it has the same soft felt texture on both the back & printed side. Looking forward to see what other prints come out! I'd love to see some polka dots or ginghams! 

I got married! My new hubby Joe & I decided to just go get hitched & just be married, we tied the knot on Feb. 28th! We've been together a long time and well I'm just not one for big parties but don't get me wrong - I'll totally go to your big party, just didn't want to plan one myself!! However, we did a have a super nice family party last weekend to celebrate! Horray!

Updated the Shop with a Tree Mobile today - I added a sweet little butterfly to this one!

Japan Relief Badge! Donate today!

Created this little cutie to support relief efforts in Japan! I will be donating 100% of the sale of these badges to the Red Cross and other organizations supporting relief efforts. Donate today by picking one up here, wear it to spread the love, and let those in Japan know we're thinking of them in their time of need!The badge will be available through the end of April. I'm totally amazed by the courage of the Japanese people and hope many blessings come their way soon! Japanese art & culture has been a continuing inspiration for me and I just want to say thanks!

Shop Update!

Shop Update! Added a few new Owl & Bird Keychains to the shop yesterday! I have a few brand new goodies on the way very, very soon so be sure to check in! I'll also be announcing a Giveaway on Thursday!!! Stop by to enter and check out what awesome LR goodies you'll have a chance to win!

 

DIY Tutorial : Framed Embroidery Hoops

Hey Friends! Just wanted to share with you today a how-to on Framed Embroidery Hoops! Framed Embroidery Hoops are every where, they make great gifts, wall art, and a perfect way to show off your embroidery! I'm sure most methods are quite similar but I haven't seen anyone back their hoops like I do so I thought I'd teach you how! 

Adding a little piece of backing fabric helps to create a little finished piece of art work and it's just a nice detail! Plus it really helps to add some sturdiness to your hoop, especially if you're framing a thinner cotton or making patchwork hoops. 

So here we go: 

1. After you've finished up the embroidery you plan to hoop, cut a piece of cotton fabric to fit in your hoop, I usually just use my finished embroidery as a guide for size. You don't often find me measuring things! ;) (thinner fabric works best for backing in this method).  


2. Place your backing fabric front size down on top of your inner hoop, lay your finished embroidery finished size up on top of your backing fabric, and attach your top hoop. 


3. Once you have all your fabrics in place and your hoop tightened down, pull the edges of your backing fabric to get it nice & taunt and then do the same with your embroidered top piece. Tighten down your main hoop once again so everything is snug and in place. 


4. Next trim down your backing fabric so that it is level with your inner hoop. Since everything is snug & in place you won't need to glue this fabric down since your outer fabric will hold it in place just fine. 


5. Then decide whether you need to trim your top fabric - I like mine to just cover the rim of my hoop but not go all the way down to my backing fabric. I just think it looks neater this way. So trim down your remaining edge so it is about a half inch and enough to go over the edge of your hoop. 


6. Time to start gluing! I start from the screw at the top of the hoop and work my way around the circle doing 2 to 3 inches at a time. I like to use good ol' Aleene's Tacky Glue - it's well, very tacky and stays in place great! Be sure you're framing a piece you'd like to stay in the frame because you probably won't be able to remove it easily! 


- I like to do a bead of glue on the very edge of the hoop and then a lighter line of glue on the hoop wall - the glue there I spread out with my finger so you get less glue oozing from the bottom. Begin pressing your fabric down and hold in place for several seconds until the glue starts to bond - keep working all the way around your hoop. You may have a few places that pop back up or some larger folds once you finish but just go back around your hoop smoothing things down and holding for a bit longer if necessary. 

Voila! You've got a nice little finished framed embroidery hoop.


Hope this was helpful! If you have any finished embroidery hoops or other crafty goodness that you'd like to share, post them to the Lova Revolutionary : Blog Pool on Flickr!

Horray! Goodies from MarthaStewart.com

I was super excited to receive an email from one of the editors at MarthaStewart.com recently! I won their Martha Stewart Handmade Valentine's Contest for submitting my Valentine's Owls! I'm not certain there will be any type of announcement on MarthaStewart.com but I'm still stoked - it's just not every day you get an email or goodies direct from the people at Martha Stewart! 

Valentines Edition Owl Ornaments!

 Here's what I won: A neat pad of colorful paper & some paper punches! I'm looking forward to using the punches since I haven't tried any from the Martha Stewart Craft line. I always love all the Martha craft supplies - they always have such a perfect aesthetic and can be used with so many different styles of craft. 

 

Shop Update!

Embroidery Stitches No. 1 Colorful Mini Original Painting ACEO

Handmade By Crafty Gals Gift Tag Set

Joy Birds Hoop Set #4