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Monday, December 19, 2016

Merry Christmas!

The Domina is taking a break to celebrate Christmas with family. Your support and love has been great this year! I can't wait to see what the new year brings! :)

Merry Christmas! See you all in 2017!


Saturday, November 26, 2016

Pom Pom Garland available!!

It's Party Time!!! 
Bright and jazzy pom pom garlands are now available in my shop


Eight feet of fuzzy, funky fun!


Great to brighten up Christmas, birthdays, patio parties, baby showers, and more!

Get them here!

Friday, November 25, 2016

Always Time for Tea - a new custom sign!

I love coming up with unique designs for my clients, and when one approached me with the request to make a piece that spoke to her love of tea, I was more than happy to oblige! I did a few rough sketches of layouts for her to pick from, then set to work.

A chalk sketch helps with placement and trying out some variations. I love the fact that this is a no-commitment step! I often change things on the fly.



Using a long paint brush handle as a mahl stick keeps my hand steady and from dragging through wet paint. It has come to be an essential part of my sign painting process. That and no coffee!

 A cup or two of tea during this process was needed inspiration.


Finished size: 12"x24"


I love taking custom orders! Send me an email for more information! 
Thanks!

Saturday, November 12, 2016

Christmas items in the works!

I know, I know. It's not even Thanksgiving yet. Give the Christmas stuff a break, lady! I can't help myself - the crisp air and constant desire to reach for a sweater get me thinking about Christmas. And a few fall craft shows have given me the opportunity to test out a couple festive items.

Pom poms!! I love their bright burst of color! I was inspired to make some ornaments from them, using leftover poms from this project....


Pom garlands!! Aren't these fun!? Christmas red and green is so limiting, and dull. For the biggest holiday of the year I think we need all the COLOR we can get, especially in the darkest part of the year. I keep thinking of all the fun ways to use this garland beyond Christmas - birthday parties, summer grill-outs, New Years Eve parties.... See what I mean? I've had these garlands at a few places and it is always the CHILDREN who run up and love to touch and play with them. One little girl promptly wore hers as a necklace! I love it! 

These ideas have been around the internet awhile, so I finally had to try them. Let me tell you, they are a cinch to make. I'd love to show you how... Which brings me to an exciting announcement.....coming in a few days!! Keep you posted!!


Saturday, April 16, 2016

Imagine

What do you imagine? 

Flying on a trapeze at the circus?

Being a fairy in an English cottage garden?


Dancing in the deeps with giant squid?


Just one hour of pure peace and quiet?


Can you imagine that!? 

A piece of junk wood turned into a delightful imperative.
An open window through which to fly.
I love the power of words!

Wednesday, April 13, 2016

It Is Well - a new print!

This new print is just bursting with sunshine! It makes me smile every time I see it. "It Is Well" reminds me of one of my favorite hymns, speaking of comfort through all those rocky, gray, dreary times we encounter. Comfort that comes through the One who salves the soul. What a joy and delight that is!


I got big 11x14" prints made because this might be my favorite painting to date. The cheery colors, the flowers, the bouncing letters just speak JOY into my heart. I am so happy to share this with you and hope that you find will find that It Is Well with your soul too!

Prints are available in my etsy shop, Domina Design.

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

The "Better than Sweatpants" Skirt

Recently I scored a queen sized jersey knit bedsheet at a thrift store for only $3.00. I planned to make a few yoga waistband skirts with it. Because a few of you asked about my method of sewing a yoga waistband, I thought I'd share the process.

But a few caveats - There are a ton of yoga waist sewing tutorials out there in blog land. This method is not unique to me but it is the method that I like and fits my shape. Second, I am not an expert seamstress. I do, however, have a fair amount of experience, mostly from the school of hard knocks. I also am not a great photographer, due to a crummy camera. So bear with my dimly lit and slightly blurred photos. Apologies in advance!!

Let's get sewing!

Like I said, I got this queen-sized bed sheet. It's KNIT, not a cotton bedsheet. So it stretches, which is precisely what will make this yoga waistband maxi skirt sooo comfy. Do not try this tutorial with a cotton woven fabric. You will not be able to get into your skirt!

If you don't happen to have a large knit bedsheet laying around, you can always purchase yardage of knit fabric. There are different types of knits that are more or less suitable for certain applications - again, I'm no expert, and when shopping the thrift store I snatch up whatever I can find. I think this particular bedsheet is a jersey knit. It's stretchy in both directions, but more so one way than the other. My fabric has pinstripes, and the stretch is across them.

1. Lay out your fabric with the stretchy direction running sideways (this will go around your body). I folded it over about 30". If you want a larger hemline, fold over more.

2. Near the top, mark a center point with pins. I like to make an X. Time for some simple math. Really, I'm an artist, math is not my BFF, but this isn't hard! Measure around your waist and divide that number in half (my waist= 33", cut in half is 16.5"). With a tape measure mark either end of that measurement putting the pin X in the center. This is the waistline of the skirt. (Midpoint of my waist's 16.5" is 8.25", shown below). 


3. Now measure down from the waist center point about 7". This is the hipline center point. Mark with pins.






4. Measure around your hips. Divide that number in half and center the measurement on the hip line marked on the fabric. (My hips are 40", cut in half is 20"). Mark each end of the hip line with pins. In the photo below you can see the waist and hip center and endpoints marked with pins. 


5. Figure out how long you want your skirt. I am making a maxi skirt, so I want mine to go down to my ankles. Hold a tape measure up to your waist and let it fall. I drop the 0" end so I can read the measurement at my waist without having to bend over. For my maxi skirt, I measure 39" down to my ankles (yeah, I've got long legs! Now you know why I'm sewing my own skirt!) Your measurement will vary. Remember to leave some extra length if you plan to hem this. Because we're using knit fabric, it won't fray or unravel. I often leave my hems just cut, and they might roll up a little. It's a casual look. Mark the length with a pin and put pins on either side of the hemline. I ended up with a 27" wide hem, because I estimated the 30" fold.


6. Now it's time to draw the seam lines! I use my tape measure as a guide and basically connect the dots that we've pinned. Cut about 1/2" outside the line. You will now have two pieces - a skirt front and back. Congrats! This was the hardest part!


7. Sew the side seams of the skirt. Remember to use a ball point needle when sewing knits! I don't have a serger, so I just use a medium stitch length and go back and zigzag the seam edges to finish them. You don't have to zigzag, but it does keep the seams from rolling in. Be careful not to stretch or pull the fabric as you sew. It's a good idea to try it on to make sure the fit is what you want.


8. Let's cut the yoga waistband! Make sure your fabric is folded over and the stretch is oriented the same way as the skirt. I once made the mistake of cutting a waistband with the stretch going the wrong way - I could not wriggle it up over my hips! Stretch should go sideways, around you!

Take your half your waist measurement and subtract an inch or two, depending on how stretchy your knit it. You want the waistband smaller than you (called negative ease) so it hugs you and your skirt doesn't fall off while you're walking through the supermarket. I cut it 20" high so that it can be folded in half when sewn on and still have length to fold over, thus the yoga-ness of the waist band.


9. Sew up the side seam. Then fold the waistband in half. You'll need to pin it to the skirt right sides together. I have the skirt inside out in the photo below and am in the process of sliding the waistband inside. The skirt is wider than the waistband, so you'll need to stretch it gently to fit the diameter of the skirt. Use lots of pin, they're your friends!




10. Sew the waistband onto the skirt. I like to do a double line of stitching, just to make things really secure. Remember to stretch the skirt while sewing. This allows the line of stitches to stretch when you pull it on over your hips. Finish the seam with a zigzag. Below is the skirt and waistband, inside out.


11. Turn it the right side out and give it a gentle pressing with an iron. That evens out any wonky stitching. Try it on and do a little dance! If you want to hem the bottom, do that now. I left mine unhemmed, perhaps to add a ruffle later. I could hem it later too. Wear with the yoga waist band folded over for that uber-comfy fit! 




It's a nice, wide, comfortable waistband with just the right amount of give.



A finished skirt! I'll definitely be wearing this a lot this Spring and Summer.



A long post, but this only took about 45 min to sew, including stopping to take pictures. 

Let me know if this was helpful - and I'll love to see pics of your hand sewn yoga waist band skirts!





















Monday, January 11, 2016

Happy New Year - and a new painting

Happy New Year!! I know I'm slow. Guests and a flurry of activities over the holidays had me hit the pause button on the blog for a bit. We had a great Christmas! I challenged our family to give hand made gifts, and one of my boys really took me up on that! I'll share what he did in another post soon.

Right as the new year rolled in, I had a commissioned painting to finish. A friend wanted to surprise his wife with a lettered and illustrated quote. I love working on these surprise gifts - I like to make it extra special and think about including details that the recipient would love.

Here's the finished product:

(I'm convinced every house should have a turquoise wall - it makes every piece of art I hang on it look fantastic!)



I used thinned down acrylics for the lettering. Bouncy, quirky letters are so much fun to make. There are endless options for curliques and loops to dress it up. 





And my daughter thought I should have a picture of myself with the painting, ha. I admit, I love how this turned out and had a hard time parting with it!

The verse is from a poem by Robert Louis Stevenson:
    YOUTH AND LOVE - I
    ONCE only by the garden gate
    Our lips we joined and parted.
    I must fulfil an empty fate
    And travel the uncharted.

    Hail and farewell! I must arise,
    Leave here the fatted cattle,
    And paint on foreign lands and skies
    My Odyssey of battle.

    The untented Kosmos my abode,
    I pass, a wilful stranger:
    My mistress still the open road
    And the bright eyes of danger.

    Come ill or well, the cross, the crown,
    The rainbow or the thunder,
    I fling my soul and body down
    For God to plow them under.