Tutorial on Painting Furniture

Here is the link to the Red Shoes Blog post about painting furniture. Catherine gives great advice and has given me permission to link to her post about how she paints furniture to sell in her store. http://redshoesllc.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/09/old-thingsnew-l.html#trackback

I love that people are starting to think about the environment and the foot print we leave on the earth. Reinventing furniture is a great way to save money and the environment. Happy Painting!

Bed Buddies

This is what we call a "Bed Buddy". We heat them in the microwave for 2 minutes and put them in our beds to warm the sheets. (1 1/2 minutes for the kids because they get hot.) You can't believe how good it feels on a cold winter's night. You can also put them in the freezer to use medicinally.

This Christmas I made oh so many of these for my neighbors along with a personal letter telling them the things we loved about them. It took me a long time to write all those letters but my neighbors appreciated it. The letter started out something like this: here is something to keep you warm and a letter to warm your heart. Many of my neighbors expressed their appreciation especially for the personal letter at such a busy time of the year. Here is how I make them.
We use feed corn purchased from Intermountain Farmers. It is approximately $8.00 for a 50 pd. bag. It is better than rice because it is less expensive and retains the heat longer.
Yes, this is what it looks like...hard kernals of corn.
Cut your fabric. It doesn't matter what size it is. I cut these 7 inches by 20 inches.
Sew with right sides together. I line up the edge with my presser foot to gauge the seam allowance. I also use a small stitch length. Cole (who is four) is helping sew these. Aren't those cute little hands? Leave an opening for turning.
See the opening between the two pins? Next, go around again zig zagging the edges. (I sew a lot but I don't own a serger. Don't forget to leave the opening unsewn.
Turn bag right side and and fill with corn.
Here is Grant (age 7) filling the bags. I fill a cup up with the corn and squish it so it works more like a funnel. I also fill it over a tray. Easier clean up when all the corn doesn't make it into the bag. Don't fill the bags too full. You want the bag to be able to conform to a knee, shoulder, back, or other hurting body part. I sew the opening shut on the sewing machine...another reason not to fill it too full.

You can make a cover that you can wash since the bed buddy is not washable. Does any one want a tutorial on that? I have extras for guests to use and take home too. Happy sewing! They really are great to have.