Burpin' it

Looka, yet another burp cloth!  This time it's flannel gingham backed toile with ribbon taggie trim and embroidery.  Seriously? Babies are gonna puke on this blue cuteness?

March to your own drumset

Middle nephew was given choice of image from my new Stitcher's Revolution SR4 Rock'n & Roll'n iron-on transfers for hand embroidery.


The drums.
Excellent choice, Bratcake, rock on with your bad self.

The rest of you, please to enjoy.

Buck Face

Stitched a couple tea towels with images from Aunt Martha's Big Game Animals (3969) pattern.

The outline stitch was quick and easy but when I began to stitch the details on Buck Face, I wished I had trimmed to the pattern to omit the eyes and such. When stitching on looser weave, eyes are tough to get right. One shift of the weave or thread and you got a cross-eyed deer. It's disturbing, I tell ya.
Sooooo, I tried removing out the ironed-on transfer with laundry pre-wash and guess what, it worked! Next time, I'll trim their faces off before ironing.


Would love to take credit for the abstract silhouette look but it was the result of pure laziness on my part. As I stared at the finished towels, I saw a modern striped interpretation of camouflage animals.

Leezra dissolved my bucking face off!

I can't see you, dear

Birthday T-shirt

Embellished a couple T-shirts for Baby Cutie's first birthday. Eileen and Ernest are hosting a crawfish boil/birthday party for him so motif shirts were in order. Please to enjoy.

Crawfish/lobster motif drawn onto back of WonderUnder paperbacked fusible web. Image trimmed. Ironed to shirt. Appliqued with fast and sloppy stitching. After laundering, the orange knit fabric will curl up and look even more distressed (in a good way).

Numeral drawn onto shirt with water erasable pen. Outline stitched and filled in with little seed stitches. Super fast and super easy. Just like your ma.

There's a squirrel on your towel

Squirrel outline in stem stitch

Still playing with the squirrel motif so made a teatowel for the Rikki Tikki Tavi.

I used the same method as the black Labrador dog towel: stitched squirrel onto an upholstery sample and appliqued with zigzag stitches and a fringed border.
Cotton weave towels from Pier One.

There's a dog on your towel

Black backstitch on dog outline.

Split stitch on collar. Clear bead stitched on for collar loop.

French knot for eye.

Pencil color used for shading.

My sister Rikki Tikki Tavi commissioned me to stitch a black Labrador onto a tea towel for a dog owner gift.

New to embroidery, I stitched directly onto the towel but now experimenting with stitching on accent fabric and sewing it as an applique. Messy straight stitches used with fringed border instead of turning under the raw edges. Hopefully, the fabric won't unravel. Using the applique application allows you to stitch on tea towels that would otherwise not be appropriate for embroidery.

These tan and ecru check cotton weave towels found at Pier One.

What's up, Home Squirrel?

Y'know how your family or friends have their own special language and shorthand? They do, I tell ya! Well, amongst my and sister's female friends, we used to call each other "home squirrels" instead of "home girls" so when baby sister Rikki Tikki Tavi's friend had a baby last week, I opted for a home squirrel embroidered onesie.

The orange knit fabric is cut from an old t-shirt of mine. Sulky transfer pen used for tracing image and ironed on to fabric.

Left squirrel - split stitch. Right squirrel - backstitch.

Both with (securely stitched) bead-y eyes.

Covering my hole(s)!

Eons ago, my good buddy Ernest gave me some fabulous high-end fabric used for men's custom suits and jackets and last year, I finally cut it for a winter skirt during Chrysanthemum's and my skirt sewing marathon. After sewing the side seams, I realized there were a few holes in the fabric. The holes didn't look like moth holes but rather clips from careless scissor handling. Foo-ey! I loved the fabric, what to do?

Well, I said it before, I'll say it again, necessity is mother fucker of invention so I snipped some leaf shaped tweed scraps, ironed them on with that WonderUnder fusible web, did fast and sloppy applique stitch around the leaf and embroidered a meandering vine.
I used the same tweed fabric and iron-on petal idea on this little girl skirt.

For the price of FREE, what's not to like about this skirt?

3 bears 3 burp cloths

And my first attempt at crayon tinting! I perused the tutorial offered at Pimp Stitch and made some lazy girl shortcuts, below.
The embroidery Pattern glommed from doe-c-doe's site. She graciously shares embroidery designs and while I am no fan of "cutesy", the three bears were perfect for a 3 pack of baby burp cloths. doe-c-doe's illustration had all 3 bears in one illustration but I split up the kvetching family by downloading the graphic, printing 3 copies, trimming each bear individually, tracing with an iron-on transfer pen and ironing 1 bear each on 3 burp cloths. Note: I did not use the mirror image option on my printer but should if image is directional.

Skipping 2 -3 steps in the crayon tinting process, I simply filled crayon color after the transfer was ironed. Then I placed a clean sheet of paper over the tinted graphic and ironed again to set color.

Next was stitching. With a little touch of femininity for Mama Bear.

After completing the first bear,

I realized the stitching could be hidden in the many layers of the diaper with only knots on back. My next lesson to learn is how to use waste knots.

(I still maintain burp cloths were wrongly named.)

The girl can't help it

I am participating in a craftster swap where partners construct a purse and accessories. My partner likes geometric prints and wanted a little case for tampons.Sewed this little fold-over style case and decided it was just too boring so stitched a little flair inside, on the lining. Sure hope my partner has a sense of humor about her cycle/moon phase.

Teach yourself how to embroider

This book is a great place to start. Kids Embroidery by Kristin Nicholas. It includes nice illustrations and comprehensive instructions. I found this book after attempting to use an "adult" book that skipped a couple crucial steps. ~~Frustrated,~~ I perused the children's section and found this gem. In no time at all, I was stitching and looking for big girl books!

Onesies for Baby BooBoo

The anxiously awaited kid doesn't have a name yet because Eileen & Ernest want a surprise. So here's a few onesies for what THEY call BabyBooBoo.

Iron-on frog pattern from Dimensional Craft's Savvy Stitches kit called "Fun Things" with couched thread outline.

Monkey image from the same kit, above.

Sleeve detail with my favorite and super easy embellishment.

Run 1 strand of floss under the hem stitches

for a cute serpentine or almost rick-rack effect.

My first attempt at freezer paper stenciling. SO easy! And fun!

**Later edit: The arrow onesie has purple arrow pointing up, toward baby's face. Back arrow is brown, pointing to outlet.**

Fleur-de-lis stencil from same freezer paper stencil technique.

Sponged on with terra cotta color and topped with gold glittery paint.

Embroidery tip: How to couch a long thread

baby onesie embroidery
Originally uploaded by Skitzo Leezra

Thread needle onto cut end of thread. Poke needle through fabric from the front. Pull thread to the back so there is a tail of 3 or 4 inches. Remove needle. Double knot the end of thread on the back side of fabric, trim it and pull the knot tight to fabric. Make couching stitches and unwind floss as needed. Repeat process to finish the couching thread.

Monogrammed tea towels

~~Courtesy of Elizabeth.



She and I have a great barter system. I provide items for her to machine embroidery - one for her, one for me. That way, she isn't stitching, coveting and resenting all at the same time. THAT is a no good combination that may result in defective goods and cat fight scratches. People give me stuff - personalized stuff!

Nice cotton tea towels from Martha Stewart's line at K-Mart

Hey Cupcake!

Stitched this little cupcake

onto a white apron

atop a cupcake stencil

outlined with water soluble pen.

People give me stuff - antique linens

My cousin moved last month and gave me a bag of embroidered linens from my grandmother and great grandmother's houses. Also included, some tatted or crochet trims and a couple doilies. I LOVE embroidered linens. I DISLIKE doilies.


The weirder the motif, the more I like it. Unfortunately, no cocktailing monkeys or anthropomorphic vegetables in the bunch but there was this one kitty in a basket. Too bad kitty is not smoking a cigarette. Alas, my ancestral females were nice Baptist ladies. Woe is me.

Not a big fan of the heart motif but plan to add this trim to a linen hand towel.


THIS atrocity will be either given away or defaced. She looks like a precursor to the Holly Hobbie ilk. Ugh.

Stay tuned for the re-stylings of vintage embroidered linens.

Tea towel swap

My new craft buddy Anary and I arranged a 2 tea towel swap and she put put so much thought in to my most perfect towels. TRULY, it is one of the most personal and touching gifts I have ever received because it was ALL ABOUT ME! And my fat cat Sammy. Anary took a look at my blog and incorporated all kinds of SkitzoLeezra-isms into her work.
You know I love me some use of SHUT UP!

Anary's needlework and stitching is sublime and DANG, it is impressive! I cannot even imagine how long it took her to make those towels and feel guilty that I contributed to her possibly being a crafting shut-in lady that never ventures out of the house. A crafting agoraphobic, if you will.
And I used to think people that don't use items because they are "too nice" are stoopid, but I think I understand now. Those towels are FRAME worthy!

Big thanks to Anary for one of the nicest and the most thoughtful items ever.
The shiny "caw, caw" shout out goes to the Silver Bullet can of Coors. And the kitty claws are stitched with glow-in-the-dark embroidery floss. You heard me. Glow-in-the-effin'-dark! Love that.

Tea towel swap

Just completed an embroidered tea towel swap with my new craft buddy Anary. She suggested a few random holidays like "Ice Cream Soda Day". I found the perfect image in the vintage coloring books that Kay gave me (People Give Me Stuff!) and made an iron transfer.

Here is the completed ice cream soda in Anary's preferred colors.

I took liberty with her idea of "5 a day food pyramid".
Stitches include couching, backstitch, wrapped backstitch, outline, stem, seed, etc.

Allium flower embroidery

Pretty sure I saw this flower idea in the book The new crewel : exquisite designs in contemporary embroidery" by Katherine Shaughnessy. With a water soluble pen, I drew overlapping circles from a stencil then filled with various stitches. Super easy and super fast.

Baby feet!

Made a pair of Heather Bailey's Bitty Booties (tutorial HERE) for yet another breeder friend's spawn. It is never too early for a girl to appreciate the color combination of pink and green.
This was my first attempt of baby foot wear so I chose inexpensive felt fabric. The good thing about felt: it is loosely woven so can be stretched slightly if baby's foot is indeed fat.
I attempted a random embroidery stitch look but my mind cannot seem to that. Plus, you kinda need to match it to the other shoe. Should you want to try making a pair of booties, do yourself a favor and look at the unique styles shown over at flickr. Wish I had checked out those before completing mine. I woulda lined these maamajamas with pink and green plaid!