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Stop staring and start sewing!
jonag.typepad.com/stop_staring_and_start_se
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My name is Jona Giammalva and I want you to sew! And if you already sew then I want you to try some new things (because it's fun and will make you feel smarter than you were yesterday). Stay tuned for my adventures in the world of fabric and patterns and the best adventure of all, motherhood.
#33647 in All

Snips and snails....unfortu nately not

This is what we're dealing with here...nasty stuff, eh? And check out that stinger. I think this is going to be a bad year for critters since we had such a mild winter and now summer is heating ...

3 h ago

McZip it (a cool new advertiser)

I was so excited when Matthew from Mczips wanted to advertise on my blog because he sells zippers. Neat, colorful zippers! Every color you'd want and even a variety of shades within each color. ...

4 days ago

Right brain meets left brain....

I came up with a great idea for all the sewing supplies I like to keep within arms reach while I'm working. The idea came a few months ago but, in my usual fashion, we just got around to making ...

21 may 12 1 person likes this

Too much of a good thing?

Well, if you've read my blog at all you know how much I love spray paint. So far I've been crazy about everything I've painted. I'm not sure about this last job though. I was over...

06 may 12

Remains of the party...

I had a fun sewing party over here on Friday. Bari brought some of her new, beautiful LilyBelle fabric and my BFF (Best Fabric Friend) Jamie joined us for a lovely day of stitching. It was so much fu...

04 may 12

Finishing touches

I finally finished the last main part of my bedroom re-do. Curtains! Big curtains. I put it off forever just because the hassle of working with panels this big was daunting and I really needed to cle...

19 apr 12

A winner! And a project for me!

Okay! The lucky winner of Patty Young's Sewing Modkid Style book is number 76, Jana who said "There are so many project ideas in that book that will be perfect for my little girls. It woul...

17 apr 12

Its the little things

Today I made a little valance and it made me feel like myself. I took a short break from all the hub-bub around here and finished the last one in my kitchen/dining area. I made the big one back in ...

15 apr 12

Sewing Modkid Style....another stop on the tour

I'm so thrilled to have my turn on Patty Young's Sewing Modkid Style blog tour! Once I had the book in hand I couldn't wait for my chance to show you what a great and necessary book ...

11 apr 12

A little bit of sewing for everyone

I kind of miss the days of my 3 girls all wearing matching smocked dresses on Easter Sunday but I don't miss the late night of finishing everything up the Saturday before (only to have them rip ...

10 apr 12

Winner of the beachin book....and a sale!

The lucky winner of the Seaside Home book is #55 Joanie MacIntosh who said "I love your blog. I am just getting back into sewing. A copy of your book, signed!, would be wonderful. thank you!&quo...

02 apr 12

Spending time with grown-ups, yay!

It's been a good week! The weather is nice and I've been able to get out of the house and spend time with people my own age. On Wednesday I joined this great group of local ladies for a won...

31 mar 12

Another give away (this time its personal!)

Last year I was asked if I would be interested in contributing a project to a beach themed book by Stash Publishing (an imprint of C&T). Then acquisitions editor, Susanne Woods, asked if I would...

25 mar 12

Burp Rag Pattern....an updated tutorial (now with printable pattern!)

This tutorial has been getting a lot more attention due to Pinterest (follow my Pinterest boards here) so I thought this would be a good time to update it. Back then I didn't have the skills to...

13 mar 12 1 person likes this

What happened to February?

Okay, so I'm here....I didn't mean to be gone that long but I seriously needed it. I went to Portland for a week and had a wonderful time with my nieces and nephews...and great nephews (all...

12 mar 12

And now for something completely different.....

A really great give away! I'm going to be away from my computer for a few days so I thought this would be a great time to do something out of the ordinary. The kind folks at Shabby Apple have o...

21 feb 12

Sprucing and stuff

I took 15 minutes out of my crazy schedule and spruced up a chair for Peety. I think she found this chair in one of the neighbors bulk trash piles (one man's trash....) and spray painted it. B...

16 feb 12

A Man Cold and a Deadline (pt 1?)

Joey has a man cold and I have a deadline. I'm grateful that he isn't a big baby about it. I think he is comforted by this handsome hat that he made for himself. And that iPad. I'm ...

04 feb 12

My New Brown Paper Flooring...pretty cool stuff

I've grown tired of our 8 year old carpet. We got the builder grade carpet when we were building thinking we would replace it much sooner than this. Now it's just icky. Kids + dogs + cat...

23 jan 12

My "new" pink armoire

I'm finally sharing my cute pink armoire (I'm not sure if it qualifies as an armoire but I don't know what else to call it) that I fixed up a couple of months ago. We've had this...

19 jan 12

Its MY day. Deal with it.

I'm having a Me Day today. I'm going to make some oven mitts and potholders for ME. I'm taking MY kids to an obnoxious pizza place where they can stuff their faces and play on immuni...

12 jan 12

Thanks...I needed that

It was nice to take a break. I really needed it. It wasn't as restful as I'd hoped for but it was a break nonetheless. I was able to get a few projects done and a few projects started. ...

05 jan 12

Our annual batch of biscotti.....a recipe!

Here's another great recipe we make every Christmas season and it's a huge family hit. Plus it makes oodles of big cookies (5-6 dozen) so it's great to share. Although you can use al...

22 dec 11

I love to volunteer.....my husband

I was asked if we could make dessert for the small group leaders in our church for their annual Christmas party last weekend and I said "Sure! We'd love to!". And then Joey ended up ...

13 dec 11

Its that time of year again....heres your Christmas gift!

Download pdf file here (6013.4K) I had the hardest time coming up with a tutorial gift idea this year and finally it hit me (and I'm so grateful because I was drawing a complete blank)! So here...

06 dec 11

Its December....where s my egg nog?

Just a quick stop to show you the Christmas version of my door frame. Isn't it cute? I like it even better than my fall version here. I'm almost done with my annual gift to my readers (j...

03 dec 11

Forget the malls....lets deck the halls!

I am not a Black Friday shopper. Never have been. Maybe it's because I've never wanted anything bad enough to stand out in the dark for hours waiting in an unmoving line (except maybe And...

27 nov 11

Dude, thats my Pam Kitty Corner...

Okay, so I've been wanting to show off my cute new Pam Kitty Corner but there's always somebody sitting there (and it's never me, darnit). Anyway, I thought Joey looked cute knitting ...

21 nov 11

Making progress...its a good thing

I finally found a cute coverlet to replace my old red one (seen in this post). It's a soft, buttery yellow and the kitty likes it. Plus it was dirt cheap at Ross (and came with shams which I n...

15 nov 11

A project finished

I finished my "new" cabinets a couple of months ago but wanted to wait until my office was clean before I took pictures to show everyone. I waited...and waited....okay, so it's not go...

10 nov 11

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