As a freelance writer for HGTV, sometimes I’m assigned specific projects and other times I’m asked for project ideas that fall under a broad category.  When I was asked for kitchen window treatment ideas a few months ago, I immediately thought of cafe curtains. When it came time to sew the rod pocket, I wanted to figure out a simple way to make sure the width of the pocket was the same along the entire channel.  It’s easy to go a little wonky when you’re sewing, especially if you’re a beginner, and it helps to have something to use as a guide.  I didn’t want to mark the white linen, so I used Frog Tape!  I placed the Frog Tape exactly where I wanted the pocket and sewed on both sides of it.  It worked out perfect that the pocket needed to be an inch wide.  Once the pocket was

I have the honor of being a guest over at Annie Selke’s Blog Fresh America today.   Annie Selke is known for her flawless taste, fabrics, Dash & Albert rugs and Pine Cone Hill Bedding, so I wanted to share a project that would compliment her products.  I came up with making a slipcover for a small ottoman/foot stool out of a vintage tea towel and some trim.  The sewing is super easy and quick!  Check out the full tutorial HERE. AND we’re each running a $100 shopping credit to Pine Cone Hill, Annie’s bedding company.  (I got my beautiful bedding from Pine Cone Hill.) (I love the blue & white throw featured in the photo below.  May have to get that!  You know me with blue & white!) To enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment here on this post.  My giveaway will close Sunday, Jane 16, 2013, at

When I was a newlywed, I traded my mom my rollerblades for her sewing machine.  I wanted to learn to sew and make things for my house.  And she wanted to…well…rollerblade.  I don’t know if she ever took up rollerblading around the neighborhood, but it was a great trade for me.  Today, I helped her hem 12 premade drapes for her family room and that trade paid off for her as well. Hemming can be really easy when you’ve made the curtains.  You can make sure all of the fabric is square at the corners and the measurements are uniform.  When working with premade panels, it’s a gamble.  These panels were not square and uniform, so we had a tough time figuring out how to get an even hem.  We ended up creating a system that worked like a charm.  All we used was a measuring tape, Frog Tape and