Thursday, June 30, 2011

My Summer DIY Project

I needed a good summer DIY project that was conducive to lots of car trips and hanging out by bodies of water while chatting with family.

Throw in a large USA road map, laminate it, cut it up, pair each state thoughtfully with my favorite fabric scraps, back it with adhesive, iron it on to a canvas then stitch the whole thing down by hand and you've got the makings of a great (very long!) summer project.
I'm happy to report that the East Coast is looking mighty fine and is well on its way to being completed before July even starts. (Whew! And miraculously my two boys and husband are still alive and wearing clean clothes!)
Can you guess which state holds my heart?! It's pretty bright, I know.
Silliest state award goes to Florida... gotta love those Gators! :) Tebow would be proud.

(Update: If you want to see more, you can check out my progress and the finished product.)

11 comments:

Jenny Garland said...

*Adorable!* I love your bright yellow state :)

Grammy Goodwill said...

That is SOME project. I can't wait to see it finished.

Angela said...

What a great idea! I think you should embroider a red heart in your state before sewing it down. :)

Kiwi The Kreator said...

This is the AWESOMEST!!! Can't wait to see the finished product!!!

La-Dee-da crafter said...

Fun, fun!!!i have seen something like this and i think it is awesome. Maybe oneday I will have the nerve to try it.
ladeedacreations.com
following you now

Sarah said...

Spotted Owl.. great idea! I'll be doing that for sure. Thanks for the encouragement.

Adam and Natalie said...

Sooo pretty! I've been seeing this all over the net and it catches my eye every time. Does kind of make me sad there's no Alaska though in the pattern...;)

Sarah said...

Nat, I couldn't find a fabric cool enough for Alaska! "Cool" in awesome sense and in the weather sense too I guess.... bahaha I'm so punny!

Catherine Grace Searcy said...

I noticed that the laminated states were underneath the scraps of fabric. Do you iron on the fabric over the laminated states or did you just use that as a guide? Thanks for your help!

Sarah said...

Catherine,
I used the laminated states as a guide. The only reason I laminated them was so I could use them for another project. There's no reason you would have to add that step if you didn't want to.

kate said...

Where did you get a map big enough for the project? Please tell me it was from your local Triple A office, or someplace equally cheap!!
Thanks,
Kate