thimble + bobbin

Meet Penelope

2012-01-23T15:36:00.007-05:00

I made this little girl using Gingermelon's pattern. She is SUPER small and 100% hand sewn!

I adore the felt flowers in her hair and at her waist! I made them from the tiniest of scraps!

I used the dress template that came with the pattern, but altered it to have a scalloped skirt and peterpan collar.

I added tiny buttons to sew the shoes to the feet because they kept disappearing.

I made her as a test run using the felt I had on-hand, acrylic, but ordered the wool-blend felt that was recommended. So hopefully there will be more dolls in the near future! =)

I made this little 'movie' of Penelope running around on my daughter's books. I am new at GIFs and such and would love any tips anyone might have!

A new plan

2012-01-19T15:38:00.002-05:00

I changed my mind about using the giant star backing for my Innocent Crush quilt. I want to do some intricate quilting on the front of the quilt and I think it'll get lost on the backing. So I decided to make it into two baby quilts. Each one has a 'night' and 'day' side. I'll be listing these in my Etsy shop and am hoping someone will enjoy them, perhaps someone with new twins!

One is bound in orange.

The other is bound in red.

So I'm back to the drawing board for the backing to my Innocent Crush star quilt. I'm thinking I might just make a whole cloth backing? Any suggestions?

A post for Jess

2012-01-16T21:27:00.003-05:00

My blogging partner in crime, Jessica, made this AWESOME yellow and grey purse for me for Christmas! I've been too busy using it, since she gave it to me, to actually take photos of it, lol! So Saturday in absolutely freezing weather, I'm talking 'stand outside for five minutes and can't feel any of your fingers cold', I made her model her creations. Aren't I a good friend?! Ha!

One side has three individual pockets.

The other side has a huge pocket with a snap closure. There is also a small pocket on the inside and she lovingly detailed the length of the opening and straps with a running stitch of yellow embroidery thread! I'm a lucky girl!

She also made this awesome green and blue version for herself!

The green fabric is an awesome thrifted find that feels like a dotted swiss!

The little detail of an applique patch of an anchor may be just about the cutest thing!

Until you see the cute PINK WHALES inside! I was all OMG THEY'RE THE CUTEST, MUST TAKE A PICTURE! The whales are another thrifty find, Jess is the queen of thrifting in case you couldn't tell! ;)

This is the Go Anywhere pattern and since I didn't make the purses I can't comment on the actual pattern or construction (feel free to edit the post with your thoughts on that Jess!) but I LOVE my bag!

Jess is kinda lax in documenting her awesome creations so I'm hoping by me posting her stuff she'll get a little nudge in that direction through comments! So go on and tell her how awesome she is =)

A finish

2012-01-11T10:06:00.005-05:00

I dug out this old WIP in November...

I had put these dresden pieces up on my design wall in plate formation, when my 4.5 yr old came along and rearranged them to look like this...

I never thought to arrange them by alternating ends! They make a lovely applique on this tiny aqua corduroy zip bag. Once again my young daughter has made such a simple change in just a few seconds that makes me see things completely different! She is a constant source of inspiration =)

~ Holly

Added:
I also made this 'flat cat' for my daughter. It's from a Halloween T-shirt that no longer fit her, she was upset about that, so I cut it out, backed it and added fiber fill. He's about 10" tall.

Star Backing

2012-01-10T10:18:00.005-05:00

The star is about 72" square.

This is not the original design I had planned but after messing up several times, including cutting the pattern out backwards (no clue) this is where I'm ending up. And being almost done with this backing is really where I want to be. Why are backings so difficult?!...for me anyway. You can't see the top points in this photo because it's hanging over the back fence...no extra hands for pictures today.

Added: I forgot to say that this is AMH free star pattern, enlarged about 500%.

January

2012-01-06T22:58:00.002-05:00

Hi there! Although I've been MIA there are a few things that have been in the works. Like this block from November...

I have a few of these started, not really sure where I'm going with them, but I like them so far. I think these will be an ongoing project for 2012.

...and this never ending project...
...enlarging a pattern to a size that is unthinkable.

...and having your cat steal the toys you borrowed from your daughter to use as pattern weights.

Although 2012 didn't start out well for us here I'm trying to change the outlook by finishing up a few WIP to feel a sense of accomplishment. Hope to be back soon with something that looks finished =)

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-26T11:57:00.002-05:00

A pic of my girl and me!

Laney's Christmas kitchen that I've been working on slowly since the summer! The sink and stove are finds from a thrift store that we refinished, the fridge is a Trofast unit with added cabinet doors (that we cut to fit). Everything is filled with Melissa and Doug wooden food sets and ceramic dish sets! I'm not thrilled with the curtains, I had a hard time finding a primary, geometric fabric to match the setup but am still looking =)

You can see better in this photo the faucet on the sink we put in, it was originally ordered for our powder room but we went with another faucet, so now she gets a real nice play faucet, lol! Also Marie is apparently getting washed in the sink, ha!

Stenciled the dining table =) I LOVE yellow!

Our house was hit hard at the beginning of December with a virus. It started with my daughter, basically just a cold, but jumped around and I was the last one to get it and recover. So we had a very slow going Christmas and happily were all well for Christmas eve and day. I haven't sewn a stitch since before Thanksgiving and am hoping to finish up the two quilts in progress in January. Hope everyone had a lovely holiday!

Mini Quilt Party

2011-11-11T13:14:00.005-05:00

I'm participating in AmyLouWho's Mini Quilt Party by sharing my mini quilts. The mini below is special to me because it was something I figured out on my own and didn't use a pattern for. Even though I'm sure there are patterns out there for this!

The whole thing is made using Lizzy House's Castle Peeps line. Such bright, vibrant colors!

Plus some solid white fabric for the contrasting stripes.

I know this looks complicated but it actually is an easy design. It does require tedious ironing and tons of top-stitching but other than that, easy peasy ;) I really want to revisit this idea for a few throw pillows, perhaps a tutorial would be fun? I'm not great at explaining things but think I might take a shot at it!

Here are a few other minis that I've made...

Garden Party Mini Quilt - Original Post

Vintage and Solids Dresden Mini Quilt - Original Post

Mendocino Mini Quilt - Original Post

Mini quilts are such a great way to try new patterns and ideas without committing yourself to a large, lengthy quilt process. Hop on over to Amy's blog and check out all the other wonderful mini quilts! =)

~Holly

Ava's Quilt

2011-11-09T11:36:00.003-05:00

(Front)
Anna Maria Horner's Folksy Flannels, in squares, strips and stripes.

(Back)
Minky Dimple Dot in warm yellow, with a bit of AMH flannel.

Minky Dimple Dot binding, YUM!

This was the first time I used Minky for binding, the result is amazingly cuddle soft! But it was tricky and thick to work with. This is also the first time I've used a walking foot, and honestly could use more practice, lol.

This little quilt, approx. 30X40", is a baby shower gift long over due. I'm hoping to deliver it soon, hope they like it! =)

The calm before the sugar storm...

2011-11-03T16:46:00.004-04:00

A sweet moment between my daughter (Little Red Riding Hood) and my niece (Tinkerbell) before they actually started trick-or-treating. Hope everyone had an awesome Halloween!

I have been doing a few sewing things, but between finally getting our house on the market and lending my camera out over a month ago, I'm slow at getting things together and organized for documenting. The iPod seems to take decent pics as long as it's in natural light. I hope to have more to share soon =)

Ghastly Blog Hop - Monday's Winner

2011-10-25T08:41:00.003-04:00

Thanks so much for all your lovely comments on yesterday's post! It was so nice to 'meet' so many new creative ladies. =)

ON Monday, October 24th

Mrs Kirie Ghastlie

Ms Carol Ghastlie

Ms. Wendy Ghastlie

Ms. Carrie Ghastlie

Mrs Holly Ghastlie

( Ghastlie Fabric Giveaway....Alexander Henry

Winner- Grand Prize.... the Lady of the Cloth

from Kirie Ghastlies Shape MOTH.blog..)

Be sure to check out the rest of the scheduled stops on the Ghastly Blog Hop!

ON Tuesday October 25th

Mrs. Annie Ghastlie

Mrs Doris Ghastlie

Mrs Brandie Ghastlie

Ms. Alidiza Ghastlie

Mrs. JudyC Ghastlie

ON Wednesday October 26th

Mrs. Barb Ghastlie

Miss Karen Ghastlie

Ms. Loralynn Ghastlie

Ms. Jen Ghastlie.

Ms Penny Ghastlie

Mrs Rhonda Ghastlie

ON Thursday October 27th

Mrs. Katherine Ghastlie

Ms Sharon Ghastlie

Mrs. Gooden Ghastlie

Ms. Selina Ghastlie

Mrs. Melinda Ghastlie

ON Friday October 28th

Miss Trudi Ghastlie

Ms. Deonn Ghastlie

Mrs. Marlene Ghastlie

Mrs Kim Ghastlie

Mrs Tammy Ghastlie

ON Monday October 31st

Mrs. Toyna Ghastlie
Mrs Tiramisue Ghastlie

Mrs. Angela Ghastlie

Mrs Pauline Ghastlie

Mrs. Karin Ghastlie

Mrs Barb Ghastlie

ON Tuesday November 1st

Miss Daisy Ghastlie
Mrs. Dana Ghastlie

Mrs. Elaine Ghastlie

Mrs. Gramma Sheri Ghastlie
Ms. Suz Ghastlie

ON Wednesday November 2nd

Mrs. Jane Ghastlie
Mrs. Laura Ghastlie

Mrs. Mary Ghastlie

Mrs. Michelle Ghastlie

Mrs. Dawn Ghastlie
Mrs Mary Ghastlie

ON Thursday November 3rd

Mrs. Sharon Ghastlie
Mrs Corrie Ghastlie

Mrs Cheryl Ghastlie

Mrs. Linda Ghastlie
Mrs. Pickles Ghastlie

ON Friday November 4th

Mrs Nan Ghastlie

Mrs. Gmama Jane Ghastlie
Mrs Joan Ghastlie
Mrs. Nancy Ghastlie

Ms Susan Ghastlie
Madame Ghastlie

Ghastlies Blog Hop Day 1!

2011-10-23T19:51:00.014-04:00

Welcome everyone whose joining us today from the Ghastly Blog Hop! I hope you enjoy the 4 Ghastlie projects that I have made and I can't wait to follow along with everyone else to see all the wonderful creations from all 53 ladies who are participating!

*********************************************************

Ghastlies Spider Web Quilt:

This quilt top was finished last October but the charcoal grey minky I wanted for the backing was back-ordered at the time, so I folded it up and shelved it. Which ended up working to my advantage because I found this AWESOME site and used this pattern to free-motion stitch my Ghastlie Quilt!

***I would like to note here that I own a BASIC KENMORE, nothing computerized or fancy, so if I can do this ANYONE can. The videos on that site are awesome and take the guess work out of so many designs. The only thing I did in addition to watching the video was looking up spider web quilting that long-arm quilters had done to understand how you transition from one web to the next. I practiced with pen and paper first, than scrap fabric and then dove into my quilt sandwich. =)***

On top of my new stitching skill I picked up I'm most proud of my three split-color blocks...

The reverse side, seams...

As you can see, I literally joined the different colorways through the images to create a more interesting block.

Added - Note: I had a ton of questions on how to do the split color blocks. It isn't as hard as it looks, but my explanation is sort of lacking without photos so jump over to OhFrannson who shows a great way to do this using a glue stick! I've never used the glue method, but I join the pieces basically the same way. I think I'll try the glue method in the future since it seems to be a easier way to greater accuracy =)

****************************************************************

Laney's Teetering Tower Quilt:

This quilt was designed by my then 3 year old daughter last year. I am absolutely SMITTEN with this lovely design and so PROUD of my little one!

She wandered off with my scrap pile, laid out this design and than skipped off to play with her toys. I was so LUCKY to have a camera nearby...I snapped a quick picture, gathered up the scraps and put them in a sandwich bag until I could get to figuring out how to sew her design together, lol. It was tricky at first to figure it out, but I really would like to revisit this idea again soon! =)

**********************************************************

Scrappy Improv Ghastlie Pillow:

The original post for this pillow cover can be found here. I had a lot of scraps left over from the above quilt top and wanted to use them in a different way, so I cut a central focus piece and than sliced it up at odd angles, then just added strips and cut again...like you would make a scrappy log cabin.

I also did a bit more of piecing although you can see the right seam much more obviously than the bottom left, lol. I do this in a lot of my projects where fabric is lacking =)

*****************************************************************

Folded Fabric Star Ornaments:

Although I've posted about these types of ornaments before, these are the first Halloween ones!

(These are the same 3 ornaments in both pictures, just front and back views. The pictures were taken at night and I tried to touch them up in Picasa, so if the color differs between them that's why, ha!)

These are really simple to make, even if they look complicated...the link for the tutorial I used is in the link to my original post above =) A great idea for getting rid of scraps but this uses a TON of straight pins.

*************************************************************

So there you have my 4 Ghastly creations, I have a ton of scraps left over so a new project might pop up here or there eventually, lol!

Jump over to...

Mrs Kirie Ghastlie

Ms Carol Ghastlie

Ms. Wendy Ghastlie

Ms. Carrie Ghastlie

who are also posting their Ghastly creations today! Don't forget to leave comments on each posting, including mine, to be entered in the giveaways! You can read about the prizes and details over at Madame Ghastly's!

Thanks for taking the time to visit our little blog! =)

The Ghastlies are Coming!

2011-10-23T19:33:00.006-04:00

Tomorrow the Ghastlies Blog Hop begins! So please check back here tomorrow for my post of Ghastlies projects! Also be sure to check out these ladies...

Mrs Kirie Ghastlie

Ms Carol Ghastlie

Ms. Wendy Ghastlie

Ms. Carrie Ghastlie

...who will also be posting their Ghastly projects tomorrow. If you click on the Ghastlies Blog Hop link above it will show you the schedule of all 54 ladies and the prizes that are being given away!

Saturday Night with Greta

2011-10-16T14:55:00.004-04:00

I blame Holly for this. Which, honestly, is a good thing. Was it Friday...I got a text...

Holly: I want to make dolls...

Me: Dolls?! I want to make too

Holly: Go for it! I won't be able to even start one until after Monday

So, I did. So here's to you, my too-busy-friend:

This little lady comes from my Saturday purchase of the Greta Doll PDF Sewing Pattern from retromama (etsy, of course).

I love the internet. The fact that I could buy a pattern, have it emailed within hours of purchase, print it out and have a completed doll by 9pm is just--it's amazing. And this pattern, in particular, was great. All the pieces were sized to print, so no enlarging needed; there were pages of info for beginner sewers, too, with clear instruction and a glossary. 11 pages of great info, with options to customize the dolls, too!

Here's the breakdown of what I used:

Hair: AMH Innocent Crush

Skin: That would be an old pillowcase I picked up from Ikea. Part of it got stained, so I used the back of the case (i.e., the not stained part).

Hair band and dress: Funny thing about this. This is actually a little girls shirt from Target that Holly picked up for Laney, that Laney hated and refused to wear. I loved the fabric, and I think it was on clearance for a few dollars, so Holly passed it on to me! It had ties for the back, and that's what I used for the headband. For the dress, I just cut below the collar, keeping the buttons and pleating detail intact. Oh--and the button on the headband is a giant old, mother of pearl guy.

Legs: Wow, this is some ancient FQ I found. What is this? I don't remember...

Shoes: Just some gray twill I had from a failed dress.

Bracelet: Just some embroidery floss and a cool old button.

I'm pretty proud of the face (layout in the pattern, too!); I don't think I've ever performed more symmetrical work in my stitching life:

I will be making more of these for sure!

A City Girl - To School and Back

2011-10-12T13:05:00.005-04:00

In September I saw a lot of posts of children going off to school, but only seemed to see suburban children. So I thought I'd share my daughter's commute to school, which is literally across the city.

To school...

and back...

Does anyone else live in a major city?

Sneaky peek

2011-09-17T11:00:00.002-04:00

Some spider webbing!

I will be participating in The Ghastlies Blog Hop over at Madame Samm's during the month of October, you can find the button in my right side bar. So I'll hold off on posting this complete project till then, but I was too excited about my new quilting to not at least share a sneak peak! =)

Fairy Tales & Broken Cars

2011-09-16T15:09:00.005-04:00

Well, when I woke up this morning, I didn't realize my car would thwart my day. Alas, it decided that driving was not on its agenda, which meant work for me was sidetracked, too.

After spending the morning sorting through clothes to donate to the VVA and walking to Heritage's for some lunch, I was faced with boredom--and a pile of quilt squares that needed connecting.

So let me give some context for this quilt: I'm not a huge HR fan. I like some of her stuff, but I tend to buy bright, bold graphic patterns, rather than sweet, sketchy designs. However, when I read that HR was making a Snow White line, for FFA3 (it's 3, right?), I knew I'd have to buy it when it came out. Thanks to a sale, I ended up saving about 30-40%.

Of course, it wasn't until after I placed my order that I found out about the 'controversy' of this line (good post at lulubloom about it...). I was lucky because I bought 1/2 yds and yards, so I had scenes to work with. But I will admit, it took me some time to start cutting into it...

Anyway...Here we are.

I used a little bit of a lot of stuff for this one. I wanted a patchy look. And with colors of Green, Yellow and Pink, I didn't really know what else to do. Those aren't exactly matchy-matchy colors. I also had a piece of Snow White themed fabric that I picked up while in Savannah this past March (Fabrika). I used some AMH, some DS, some Joann's--so yeah, little bit of everything here. The pattern is simple--and honestly, I don't know what it's called--just a square with a couple rectangles and a smaller square. I was inspired by this quilt, at Spool. I liked the randomness and playfulness of the quilt.

Ok, here's my thing with HR: Snow White kinda sorta maybe looks a little...dead. Yeah, I know, it's probably just me. But I felt that way with some of the mermaids in her Mendocino line. But whatever, I just ignored that. As with all fairy tales, they're not meant to be real, just fantasy. So I'm going to pretend she's just sleepin', waitin' for Prince Charmin' to come along or something much more lovely than a CSI episode.

One of my favorite scenes: the dwarfs working in the woods. Though, in the Disney movie, they were gem miners--I would much prefer gems if these were the dwarfs I were living with. But I guess caves aren't as pretty as trees?

Just some nerd facts for ya: check out more info about Dwarfs vs. Dwarves here. It's actually kind of interesting, if you like to read and are a word-nerd like moi.

RicRac Binding

2011-09-08T11:40:00.004-04:00

This starling print is one of the select prints that I couldn't bring myself to destash. Something about the combination of purple and grey with a splash of yellow and blue, love it!

I had a few yards of this grey jumbo ricrac that I bought while out shopping with Jess awhile back. I used it as an alternative binding material.

Of course in my usual jump into everything without thinking it through attitude, it wasn't until after I machine sewed half of it onto the quilt that I realized I would have to hand-sew the rest of the 'binding' on.

Thank goodness this is such a small quilt! 40 x 33"

I used loopy quilting to quilt the layer, (my minky remnants seem to be never ending) it was my first time using this design and it was super fast and easy! So much quicker than stippling but also complimentary to the swirly lines on the front print.

I LOVE the finished look of this but won't be doing it again, ha! I started out with intentions in making this whole cloth quilt a 'car quilt' for my daughter (I like to keep at least one blanket in the car for her during the winter) but after all the extra time spent on it this quilt might just stay in the house, lol!

A winner =)

2011-09-02T20:43:00.003-04:00

The winner is #4, Ella! I'll be emailing you shortly so that I can send you all the lovely loot!

Thanks to all the ladies that donated towards the fight against breast cancer and helped support our friend Kate in the marathon!

Shop Update

2011-09-02T10:41:00.005-04:00

I spruced up the destash shop and added some new items! The coupon for 20% off is still in affect and listed in the shop!

(The 'Chocolate Lollipop' is all gone, thanks Lindsay!)

I also wanted to thank everyone who's made a purchase!!! My stash has successfully been shrinking from my previous 4 storage boxes, to almost 2 boxes now! =)

I also wanted to remind everyone that the drawing for the fundraiser ends today! Here are some of the goodies...

Thanks to all those who've donated so far! I will close comments this evening and draw a winner!

Ghastlies Scrappy Improv Pillow

2011-08-27T16:12:00.003-04:00

I pulled out my container of Ghastlies scraps to make a pillow cover for what I'm now calling my 'seasonal pillow'. I realized this specific pillow should have one cover for ever seasonal change, so as not to have to store so much fluff with the changing of every season.

I started out with deciding which image I wanted for my 'center' and than just used scraps randomly. I'll be honest, I did get lost for a bit in the mist of doing this, even though improv is fun it makes you think a whole lot more.

I love the selvedge edge and also the witches in the top right corner. I stitched-in-the-ditch along every seam for the pillow top and the back is one piece of the cat print on white with random black lines quilted across it.

I might be overdoing the whole using up my scraps thing, but I really wanted a house image in the pillow and used 3 different cuts sewn together to make that one house, can you see them? The one on the right is more obvious, the other is towards the bottom left, across the front porch awning.

I had full intentions of quilting the Ghastlies quilt this weekend, just needed to get the batting...however we're waiting for the arrival of hurricane Irene so driving 30 minutes for something that wasn't a survival necessity was out of the question. Just wanted to get this posted before we loose power =)

A Giveaway for a Cause

2011-08-25T17:27:00.020-04:00

Our friend Kate is running 26.2 miles in the Breast Cancer Marathon to help raise money for the fight against breast cancer. Neither Jess nor I are runners so we thought we would do our part by hosting a little giveaway on our blog here in hopes of helping Kate get closer to her $2,620.00 goal. So first here's the loot...

50, 5" charm squares

All fabrics are hard to find and out of print.

Included is the highly sought after Flea Market Fancy, as well as Katie Jump Rope basketweave and ribbon prints.

Also, Heather Ross' Munki Munki both poplin and flannel prints, a few Lightening Bugs & Other Mysteries charms and so on...

Do I have your interest yet? No? Need more? Okay...

1 fat quarter of Heather Ross' OOP Frog Jars on Blush.

16X21" cut of Denyse Schmidt's Big Dot Little Dot

15.5 X 21" cut of Heather Ross' Bikes on White

So how does all that sound? Pretty good deal for $5.00 huh?! If you're new to quilting this is a great way to help build your stash and get those highly sought after prints! All prints come from my personal stash and are washed and pressed =)

***********************************************************
Okay so here's how the drawing works, it's a bit different than a regular giveaway.

1. Go to Kate's link on the Breast Cancer Marathon site and donate $5.00.

2. Than come back to this post and leave a comment below saying that you donated.

(For every $5.00 you donate you get one entry into the drawing. So it's up to you how many entries you'd like! For example if you donate $20.00 that's 4 entries into the drawing.)

ALSO ***each entry needs to be a separate comment please*** So for $20.00 you'll need to leave 4 separate comments. You can repeat the same comment however many times if you like. Please make sure your account can receive email, so if you win I can contact you!
*************************************************************

So that's it, make your donation, leave your comment saying you donated and you're entered to win all the loot pictured above! Winner will be chosen at random next Friday! Adding to your stash is awesome, but helping out a great cause while doing it rocks! =)

****Please email me if you have any questions, instead of leaving a comment, that way we can keep the comments strictly to the entries! Thanks!****

Scrappy Christmas Pillow

2011-08-18T21:23:00.000-04:00

Recently my Mom gave me this Shabby Chic pillow she had and wasn't using any longer, thinking I could use the pillow form for something...
It sat there for awhile, cause honestly I had no clue what to do with a round pillow, ha! But a thought finally dawned on me the other day, I had this gallon zip bag filled with scraps from this throw quilt I had made my Mom two years ago. When making 'geese in the forest' there seems to be a ton of wasted fabric left over and I felt guilty to throw them out, since I knew they were usable. Right after I had completed the quilt I started joining the triangle remnants to make tiny squares, and was into it for awhile until I couldn't stand the sight of it and bagged it up.

So I pulled out the bag and began sorting them into yet another geese pattern, but on a smaller scale. Each finished square measures 1.5" sq.

I cut up the original pillow cover to use as a template for the new pieces.

Here I have the 2 round pieced pieces cut out, the solid green for the gathered edge and the red is just a little added trim.

I made both round layers into quilt sandwiches, using flannel for the middle and cotton for the back. Both were stippled, which matching the original throw quilt.

There is an invisible 22" invisible zipper running along the bottom curve between the red trim and the quilted edge. This took me a bit to figure out where the zipper should go since the original cover had an envelope type back with buttons.

I wanted the zipper instead of buttons so no matter which way the pillow was tossed it would still look okay. I'm happy to report that it was gifted today to my Mom and she LOVED it =)

I still have a decent amount of scraps left, but now I don't feel so bad about throwing them out! HOORAY!

Side Project #8374

2011-08-17T15:59:00.003-04:00

More letter press drawers to paint. I was so happy to find these huge ones a few weeks back at the auction. I'm Kilz-ing them to seal in the dirt, and then will spray them with a white gloss .

A small project I hope to finish up tonight and share with you tomorrow. I'm basically using as many scraps from that gallon zip bag and finally getting rid of them!
Side projects are why I'm so slow finishing quilts, lol.

1001 Peeps: Fabric & Book

2011-08-15T09:51:00.006-04:00

I have so much love for this palette and these prints!

I recently received my new book 'Lizzy House's 1001 Peeps - 5 Magical Projects' isn't it pretty?!

The outside cover feels like a cross between velvet and rubber, and I maybe petted it for several minutes before actually opening it, ha!

Lizzy's doing a quilt-along for this lovely pattern 'Diamond Mountain'. I SO want to join in but have some other things I must finish first, has anyone else started this quilt-along? She's doing it through video, which is super helpful and she's totally adorable!

The book has 5 lovely patterns and I can't wait to get started! Also she's showing sneak peaks of 'Outfoxed' which I believe will be available in October? Start saving your pennies!!! =)

Also this addition to my library totally needs a special selvedge bookmark don't you think ;) I think I can sneak in a small project first!

Innocent Crush Star Quilt Top

2011-08-12T20:21:00.001-04:00

Back in February...yes 6mnths ago....I cut into my lovely Innocent Crush fat quarter stack. I wish I could say I've been diligently working on these stars each month but in reality it was taking me about 2 hrs to piece and press 1 star from start to finish and after completing around 8 stars this quilt top got pushed back on the priority list. Until 2 weeks ago, our realtors told us it's better to wait until September to list our house and since summer is basically over we agreed to wait. So I stopped dead working on painting walls, ditching paint brushes, rollers and drop cloths and dug out my poorly neglected quilt top.

Each night after my daughter went to bed I worked on star after star. Choosing to work each star only in the 4 quadrants the pattern shows before final assembly and finger pressing as I went.

Ending with a tall stack of stars waiting to be pressed and assembled.

Last night I stayed up well into the morning pressing each row of blocks, I was on a mission, ha.

(the last two quit top pictures were taken at night and are a bit dark)

This giant is complete! I'm SO happy with it. I truly will never tire of the lovely saturation of Anna Maria Horner's gorgeous fabrics! Here's a little math breakdown of my stitching craziness...

*36 completed stars (each measuring 17" square)
*each star consists of 12 color pieces & 24 white pieces...40 total pieces per block
*1440 individual pieces make up this quilt top
*10 yards of white Egyptian cotton
*22 fat quarters of Anna Maria Horner's Innocent Crush prints
*2 spools of Gutermann white thread - 2188 yrds
*quilt top measures 101.5" square (not a typical quilt size)

Now to finalize my plans for the back of this beauty =)

Added: I didn't realize I never linked to the pattern for the stars, sorry! It's a free pattern for a star block called 'Love Emblem' that can be found on Anna Maria Horner's 'make' page on her website www.annamariahorner.com/love.emblem.pdf =)

Note: Sorry to anyone who reads posts outside of reader, I have changed the blog background several times and always seem to get interrupted before I can finalize the look, so it's always a bit in the midst of changing, lol.

Play place-mats

2011-07-24T13:42:00.004-04:00

Castle Peeps for my Niece who turned 3.

4 Place-mats, the front fabric is 'Castle Peep's' by Lizzy House and the backing is 'Confetti Pop' by Laurel Burch.

4 cloth napkins were included made from coordinating prints from the 'Castle Peeps' line.

One more little apron for my daughter, this time in a Halloween theme. I used scraps from the adult apron I made myself.

Another set of play place-mats and napkins, this time in a japanese canvas animal print!

The fabric was from a lovely Flickr friend and my daughter just adores the animals.

The backs are primary Kona solids, as are the 4 napkins.

The last set is fairy-tale themed.

This fabric I believe is called Tillbrook, by Alexander Henry.

4 coordinating napkins in jellybeans from Heather Bailey.

All 12 placemats measure 9 3/4" X 11" (with binding) and all 12 napkins measure 5X5". I have to say these have to be my worst binding attempt yet, lol! Thank goodness they'll be covered in juice and chocolate milk stains shortly, ha! So a little more finished up from my stack of UFOs. All from my stash and the fairies are actually from a failed dress attempt for my daughter. My Kona solids are slowly disappearing and I'm thrilled! I'm hoping to replace my solids with Freespirit Designer Solids, because they are SO MUCH SOFTER! Also some Pure Elements solids =)

Magnets and Laminate

2011-07-22T14:42:00.003-04:00

The wonderful Jenny helped me track down magnets that I had been looking for to put in the backs of these covered buttons. She made the lovely one all the way at the top, the little girl in the hat! So cute! So I could say she sort of started that ball rolling for me, cause of course I needed more ;) It's a total obsession, cause you only need a 2" square of fabric to make a colorful magnet!

I was also able to purchase some Loulouthi laminate from fabric.com when they had their 30% off coupon last week! We were using a cloth tablecloth but I am so sick of scrubbing out chocolate milk stains, so viola, wipe-able gorgeous new surface! I had bought fabric to recover the chair seats, but I suppose I'll have to find something that matches the table now =)

Destash SALE

2011-07-18T20:05:00.002-04:00

Having a sale in my little Etsy shop! Everything MUST go.

The house is FINALLY going up for sale this week and I NEED to find these fabrics new homes.

After I moved my stash into Ikea storage boxes, I thought I had slimmed all of it down, but 4 boxes later I realize it's out of hand, again. So I'm aiming to get it down to 1 box! I'm listing things as quickly as my 4yr old allows me to, lol. I'm finally letting go of all the remnants I was hanging on to, that I know now I'll just never get around to using. Please don't hesitate to convo me if you have an questions on any of the listings! =)

Look what came to live with me...

2011-07-14T19:40:00.004-04:00

!!!!!!!

...the couch, not the cat (he's lived here for a long long time, lol) I absolutely LOVE this couch. Got this lovely on craigslist yesterday. We are listing our house for sale next week and the living room was missing a couch, as we sold our old one knowing we didn't want to bring it to the next house.

I am hoping to eventually turn the above couch into something like this. But I doubt I'll get to it until after we move =)

Mermaid Apron

2011-07-07T10:27:00.002-04:00

There's nothing like finishing a project and having your daughter tell you she absolutely won't wear it. Even though she picked the fabrics out herself.

I used the template from her other apron but used more layers in different sizes. The plum straps are pinned in place at the moment since I ran out of thread to make the button holes. Another project from the scrap bin =)

Altered backs

2011-07-06T09:04:00.004-04:00

Okay so here's my Emmeline Aprons slightly altered. I took the two straps that tie at the back of your neck and crisscrossed them to button at the band below the bodice. Hence the button pics from yesterday.

Christmas apron, the reverse side is green/yellow geometric print. Fabric was purchased November? of last year, lol, from JoAnns.

A Halloween Apron, it's the same on both sides.

Veggie Apron, the reverse side is Kaufman pea-pod print.

Spring apron, the left picture is Erin McMorris fabric and the right picture is home decor fabric from Ikea. The waist tie on this apron is half width, since that's all I had left of this color solid. All solids are Kona, and everything was from my stash! Hooray for finishing things up and using fabric I already had!

A note about this pattern, it's pretty simple to follow, but since it's reversible it's a bit time consuming. It tells you to cut the bias binding on the bias for the straps, I just cut mine the width of the fabric and it didn't seem to make any difference. I also pieced the straps where my solid remnants weren't long enough, the pattern calls for 1 & 3/4 yrds of fabric for the bodice bands and straps, but I used closer to 1yrd by piecing and cutting WOF.

Sewing on the floor

2011-07-05T13:44:00.003-04:00

Yup, that's me, using my sewing machine on the floor. We are attempting to get our house in order to sell, so 'staging' is going on in every room except my daughters (there's no give in that room, lol)

I sewed 4 Emmeline Aprons using the sewing machine on floor level, so it isn't all bad =) (I'll post some full pics as soon as I have another set of hands around)

My daughter's apron that I made about 2yrs ago. Going to use the template I made for this one to make her a few more.

Here's the back of her apron, please ignore her messy room. Apparently she's on a book mission, ha! I don't like things tied around my neck and didn't want to go through the trouble of having her hair caught in the tie every time she wore it, so I made the back a crisscross and a waist tie.

iPod Touch cover

2011-06-29T11:14:00.003-04:00

I had this shirt that my daughter never wore...

So I turned it into this last night, a cover for her iPod Touch...

The back...

It's lined with minky and has fusible fleece inbetween the inner and outer layers...

(Wonky stitching above flower, that's what happens when you use your sewing machine on your bed, lol.)

Little fingers using the button closure...

I really adore the little girl from this shirt =)

Laney's Cat Quilt

2011-06-23T15:39:00.006-04:00

I finally finished up Laney's cat quilt just in time for her birthday, which was yesterday.

54 x 52"
I just adore this bright crosshatch print! It's so cheerful!

As I previously mentioned all the cat prints are from Heather Ross' Munki Munki line of pajamas, so it's a mix of poplin, flannel and sateen. Super comfy-soft! =)

Here's a close up of the cats, the look like they're falling in the 'cleo' print, lol.

I wanted to add a personal touch to the quilt for her so I free-motion stitched a heart.

I didn't want to stitch through any of the cats on the front of the quilt, since the blocks were so fussy cut, so I stitch around each one trying to echo their shape. The rest of the quilt is stippled.

Of course my quilt was trumped big time by her new iPod touch, lol!

These are two panels that I made awhile back and were waiting for binding. They are to go inside the glass doors of my Billy Bookcase unit to hide the dvds.

This is also another WIP finally finished up, it was tucked away since Christmas. I wanted to make my daughter her own Christmas placemat and used the scraps from this project. So I'm either 6mnths late or 6mnths early, ha!

Satin Stitch

2011-06-17T12:48:00.005-04:00

I'm trying to learn embroidery. I got this book awhile back and finally started using it as a stitch reference.

This Drawing Room print has been patiently waiting for me to finish the hoops I cut out over a year ago.

So here's my smallest of the hoops so far, 4" I believe.

Embroidered using the satin stitch.

More hoop progress to come soon =)

Etsy Sale

2011-06-14T14:30:00.003-04:00

I know there isn't much in my shop at the moment but I'm having a little sale in my Etsy shop. Enter coupon code Flickr20 for 20% your purchase. I hope to be adding more listings in the next few days! =)

Shirred Dress

2011-06-04T19:31:00.003-04:00

Look I sewed something!

You know when you need an instant-gratification type project? Well this is it! Last night I wanted to feel like I could accomplish something, so I made this dress in just over an hour.

The fabric is Heather Ross' double gauze from the Far Far Away I line, I've had it for over a year and finally used it!

The best part of this project is it only really requires elastic thread and 3/4 yard of fabric!

I used this tutorial that Heather did on the Martha Stewart show. The only real alterations I made were making the top edge larger than the 1/4 inch fold over from the tutorial, to give it more of a 'ruffled' look and I made shirred straps with another wide edging for more ruffle. I personally don't like spaghetti type straps on dresses for small girls/toddlers, they just never seem to stay up. I can see making a few more of these as shirts for my daughter =)

On a non-sewing note...

2011-06-01T09:25:00.003-04:00

I thought I'd share what takes up the other half of my free time, working on the house...

(Please ignore all the spackled spots EVERYWHERE, painting the walls is the next step.)

This oak staircase was installed about 4yrs ago and has remained unfinished since then. I finally stained it this weekend. I'm still working on the white parts, but had to lock up the cats and ship off my daughter to do the treads and kicks, so that was the priority. It literally is the LAST large project to be finished before we list our house for sale! (Can the next house not have a staircase? Or at least one that's finished, lol!) We replaced the staircase because it is an old, over 100 yrs old, row and the original steps were so narrow you couldn't fit your whole foot on the tread. This was the first time I used a Varathane instead of a polyurethane and in the words of Tina Fey 'you can suck it' (skip to 1:00) polyurethane and your 6 hour drying time! Varathane takes less than 2hrs to dry between coats and you don't need to sand between each coat, meaning it took two days to stain and coat the stairs instead of a week, ha!

We tried to match the stain color to the dark cherry bamboo flooring of the first floor which was hard, especially since the 2nd floor has oak flooring that's cherry but not as dark and of course the staircase ends at the second floor, lol.

Update

2011-05-27T17:06:00.004-04:00

Covered buttons are completely addictive! I haven't made any in awhile and after receiving my order yesterday I promply cut out 100 circles from my scrap bin! These are going to be magnets, I love magnets and my daughter has a blast rearranging the magnets on the fridge! Thinking about adding a magnet (paint) wall to the play room to use them there.

The pixelated quilt is finally finished. I didn't have anyone to hold it up for me so these are the best shots I could get today. The backing is made from AH Raindrop Stripe yardage I had originally cut for curtain panels, I am happy it has left my scrap pile and is being used!

I sewed two long lines a 1/2" from the seam in each row. This is my first attempt at straight line sewing. It was much quicker than stippling, that's for sure. I quilted the entire thing using my daughter's small table while accompanying her in the play room, lol! Really should have invited someone over to take a picture of that ridiculousness!!!

All my fabrics are currently in Ikea boxes as we are getting our house prepped for staging to sell. I relocated the cabinet that previously housed them to the family room. So after much digging I found this red dot fabric I forgot I had. Yay for using something out of my stash!

I picked up this project the other day, it was started...ehem...a year ago and got tucked away, not sure why. I have to go to the store to get more Perle cotton in the correct colors, but I hope to share a finished product soon, lol! Have I mentioned my love for Anna Maria Horner fabrics? LOL

Wordless Wednesday

2011-05-04T14:17:00.002-04:00

Glider Redo

2011-05-03T16:50:00.006-04:00

This glider was given to me by my Mom for my daughter's nursery....yea, 4yrs ago. Since then it's gotten pretty well used and was in desperate need for new fabric. (I was in too much of a hurry to start this project to remember to take before pictures, but at least I got one in progress.)

The beige fabric in the center, bottom of the picture is the original fabric and the green micro-suede fabric is the new one. I got it on clearance at JoAnn's Saturday, where clearance was an extra 50% off, so all 4.25 yrds was only $15.00!

Here's a 'reality' shot for ya, lol.

The back of the glider has straps that snap directly to the wood, holding the cushions in place.

Note: I seamed ripped the entire thing apart, used the original pieces as templates and reused the foam pieces and foam cording. I really hate upholstery work, but the result is nice =)

Someone didn't waste a moment testing out the new comfy fabric =)

Happy Accidents

2011-04-29T10:54:00.005-04:00

I had originally ordered this yellow crosshatch fabric for my solids quilt backing but apparently didn't order enough, however it ended up working perfectly for Laney's quilt top =) This might be the longest WIP yet. I want to get this finished up for her soon though, since it'll be her new 'special blanket' as I finally put away her fleece and minky ones that are her favorites. This will be much cooler for the summer months =)

(I currently have 5 quilts in progress, I either am lacking backing or batting on a few, and the others seem to be taking forever since my sewing time has decreased immensely.)

Chance thinks a new quilt sounds like a great place to get cozy, lol.

Pixelated

2011-04-22T10:33:00.005-04:00

It feels like it's been forever since I posted. Between my daughter starting Pre-K an hour away from where we currently live and several dentist appts for myself, this month has just flown by.

A while ago I bought some Free Spirit charm packs to make a color chart and finally used up the remaining squares and rectangles.

Chain-pieced squares, 2.5" each.

Assembled randomly, which was very much out of my comfort zone. The only thing I did do while assembling, was try to make sure no like colors were side by side.

SEAMS! I <3 seams! Because I used pinking shears to separate the charms these look like pretty scalloped edges.

Hanging in the window gave it a pretty stained-glass feel. I'm going to attempt to quilt this in straight lines, a first for me.

My daughter's dollies having a picnic, lol. Not pictured are the other dollies she's currently holding on to...these little guys are on sale at Target for $4.00 each.

Note:For any of you who follow me on Flickr, I changed my username to Holly_V, I've had that other username since high school and it seemed like time for a change, lol.

A kitty quilt

2011-03-14T10:38:00.003-04:00

I started the above log cabin blocks MONTHS ago and am still working on them. There is an insane amount of fussy cutting.

So this weekend I took out the pile of fabrics I've been saving for this quilt and went to work on the quilt back.

This is such a simple design and it is almost instant gratification since they're such large strips.

So many kitties =) Left to right: flannel, pink poplin, green poplin and striped sateen.

Rosie approves of this quilt hehehe =) One WIP almost complete, almost, lol.

A quest for white cotton

2011-03-08T10:49:00.005-05:00

Remember these pieces? well they were slowly becoming these star blocks...

I was too anxious for my own good, as usual, and started making these blocks with Kona white I had on hand from another project. I always use Egyptian cotton in white for my quilts, I buy it by the bolt at JoAnn's (with a 50% off coupon of course). I prefer the Egyptian because it has a tighter weave and is less transparent than the Kona, in my opinion. But after making 3 stars, which by the way are pretty time consuming, I'm not too pleased with the noticeable difference in base cloth in the Innocent Crush and Kona. So I started looking at other options...

I had only recently heard about FreeSpirits designer solids, and was curious about how they compared to the more well known Kona solids. I have very limited knowledge of solids but I use a lot of Anna Maria Horner fabrics, which come from FreeSpirit and would rather use a solid that is closer to the base cloth of it's designer. So I ordered a FreeSpirit designer solid charm pack from FatQuarterShop, who has them at 1/2 off right now, to make my own color chart. (FreeSpirit currently does not offer color charts to the public)

***FYI-If you order one of these charm packs they are apparently stacked in numerical order. So keep it bundled until you are ready to compare it to the FreeSpirit site for labeling, which has them arranged in color-order, with their numbers below each picture.***

I also finally bought a Kona color card/chart from FabricShack, they aren't listed on their website, but if you call them they are one of the few stores left that are still carrying them at a decent price, $15.00. Hopefully I'll get back to this project soon, lol.

Although I only have 5" charms to compare I think that the weave seams to be a bit tighter than that of the Kona and a bit smoother to the touch. I will say that I was very displeased to learn that the Kona prices at JoAnn's had jumped to $6.99 a yard, which in my opinion is just ridiculous. So Sunday I ordered a bolt of white in Egyptian cotton from Joann's using my 50% off coupon and they had a sign up that the Egyptian was $6.99, instead of it's regular $7.99 a yard, and they honored it! So for this project I will be sticking to the Egyptian, since I need around 15 yards of white for this quilt top, sigh.

As soon as the bolt arrives, I'll be picking apart those stars, really not looking forward to that part. =/

A few things

2011-03-08T10:49:00.001-05:00

The interior seal broke on this giant (2.5 gallon) jar we keep on the counter, usually filled with rice. So now it's got a new home, on my sewing shelf =) Doesn't it look lovely filled with my collection of selvedges!?!

Made up this boxy pouch last night for my husband.

I used this tutorial and it's pretty easy to follow. The only thing I would do different is making the seam allowances for the lining panels 1/2" instead of the 1/4" stated. It's got a bit too much bulk inside for my liking. Usually seam allowances are decreased by at least 1/4" on interior linings in bags and such, making them fit more snug.

I can see making a few more of these perhaps with this tutorial next time, for a bit more height, which also requires a 14"zipper, instead of the 12" I used for the above pouch.

A Productive Weekend

2011-02-27T17:44:00.004-05:00

I don't know what possessed me (is there a 'cleaning demon'? 'cause that's what I was today.), but I was getting stuff done today.

I'll spare you the cleaning projects, and just share the fabric related successes:

At Marshall's yesterday, I found this awesome bath rug. The pattern looks like a quilt. When I placed the rug in the bathroom, it fit perfect, and--somehow--instantly brightened the room. Maybe it's the white? Maybe it's the new? Either way, loved it!

Then, today, I decided to decorate the walls (all over the house). But, I don't like putting paper in the bathroom; the steam will only ruin it over time. So...what to do...use fabric of course! Seen these all over the place, but finally had enough 'extra' hoops to do them. I love these old metal hoops. Though they can be a pain to work with, they sure make a nice looking wall thingy. (Thanks for the fabric Holly!)

No, I didn't stop there. I found a piece of white fabric, big enough to cover the window, and went to work on a curtain, that mirrored the pattern on the rug, and used the fabrics in the hoops.

Nothing fancy here. Cut out the fabric. Topstich. I didn't bother hemming (I'll probably change it soon anyway; I also really like the frayed look.

I'm just putting this in here as a shout out to my dad, who helped me build this shelf. It's hanging over the toilet. I just love it.

Heather Bailey Freshcut Quilt Finish

2011-02-18T21:17:00.002-05:00

Plus 2 pillowcases using this tutorial again.

The blue fabric of the pillowcases are in the quilt, here and there, even though it's hard to see in the photos.

I went totally random with the pattern and even kept a few squares as solid squares. The whole thing is stippled in meandering, I tried to keep it very loose and open this time. I have a tendency to stipple my 'loops' very tightly together, which makes the quilt a bit stiffer.

I used minky dot in green for the back to make this extra cozy. The quilt and pillowcases were gifted to my Mom and she loves them, so that makes me happy. =)

The quilt is full size, and while I aimed for the technical full size of 90X72", it came out 87X78"...um yea, NO CLUE! LOL...I can measure, and measure and remeasure a dozen times while making a quilt and my numbers will almost ALWAYS be off.

Previous posts about this quilt are here and here for anyone looking.

2011-02-07T15:02:00.004-05:00

While waiting to match solids to this project and waiting for packages to arrive for this project, I started a new project, lol...

I am THRILLED to cut into my Innocent Crush stash finally!!! If you've read any of my other posts you know that Anna Maria Horner is my FAVORITE designer, her Garden Party line takes up a considerable amount of space in my current fabric stash.

SO MUCH COLOR!!! The saturation in her collections kills me! Just GORGEOUS!!! Plus I love all the pointy shadows above ;) I'm hoping when we finally move I might be able to convince my husband to buy me one of her beautiful rugs.

I regretted not making the Garden Party quilt I made big enough for our bed, so this one is a new quilt for my bed! We have a queen, but I generally make my bed quilts king, giving it more of a drape I like. Above is a picture of a fq, and how I'm trying to utilize every square inch of each precious print. Yes, I trace my templates with Sharpie, lol, the tip on the fabric markers are just too thick for my liking. I currently have cut 19 of the 22 fat quarters and the pieces are in the hundreds. This project will probably be an on-going one for awhile. =)

2011-01-31T16:33:00.005-05:00

So I'm basically finished the quilt top that I started, it's 3 rows short of the size I wanted at the moment though. Even after I sorted through my scrap bin and added 80 more squares to the quilt.

I was lucky that someone in the Flickr swap group just posted a few of these prints, so I have some swap fabric coming that will allow me to add on those additional 3 rows to make this a full size quilt.

I purchased this beautiful print above from Kristen on Etsy and was lucky enough to find a square frame, with matting at Joann's 1/2 off! I really love this print!!!

Vintage find this weekend, a new tablecloth! Excuse the wrinkles, I washed it, but haven't had a chance to iron it yet.

With tons of hand-embrodiery! In perfect condition!

Best of all it was only $5.00! I just love the colors, so bright and springy, pinks and greens, yum! Which is what we need here after the 15+ inches of snow we got this past week and several more that's supposed to be dumped on us here Wednesday. Ugh, is spring here yet?!

Attempting to use up my stash

2011-01-27T13:13:00.006-05:00

I've read a ton of blogs talking about using their stashes this year and I'm right along with them! I will not be purchasing any fabric unless it's for finishing a specific project. I'm actually hoping to use my entire stash without any new additions. I would LOVE to have empty shelves by this time next year! It would be really fun to start new and fresh, especially since I feel a lot of my tastes have changed since I started collecting the stash I currently have.

(Thanks to Kristen for the suggestion of using Picasa for collages awhile back!)

The above picture is Heather Bailey's freshcut fabrics from my stash. Awhile back I decided I wasn't going to use them for what I had originally gotten them for, so I stuck them in my swap set. With no takers there I added them to my destash shop and than the other night I thought 'I can get these cut up and sewn together for a quilt top in no time, if I choose a simple pattern and don't over-think it too much.' So I yanked them from Etsy and cut away.

I cut up almost all the yardage, into equal amounts of 5" charms. The blue and brown prints that are overlapping only started as fat quarters, so there weren't as many charms of those 2.

I sewed them all together using the half-triangle method, where you sew two squares together and cut down the center for 2 new squares. They were randomly laid out and sewn into horizontal strips. I started assembling the strips last night, and am hoping to finish up tonight. I was hoping I'd have enough yardage to make a queen size quilt, without adding sashing but it's looking closer to a full size. This quilt top has a recipient in mind and that makes me happy!

Another WIP but only a peak =)

Scrappy Giveaway Winner

2011-01-25T13:11:00.002-05:00

So sorry it's been so long since I posted the giveaway! I felt bad that you all had to wait so long to find out who won, so I doubled up the scraps and charms! The winner selected by Random.org is #8 Carmen. Congrats!!!

We just finished renovations on our basement this past week and all my attention has been there. Painting, hanging doors, putting down new carpet, etc...we're getting closer to being able to list our house for sale!

Without fabric?

2011-01-22T08:28:00.004-05:00

So one of my 2011 resolutions is to crochet. My mom taught me how to in high school, but that. was. a long. time. ago.

I picked up a few project books, and one how-to book (Learn to Crochet, which I found in Jo-Ann's for 40% off). I spent my sick Tuesday, when I wasn't sleeping or drinking orange juice, practicing.

Ta-da.

Yeah, I know. Boring. I was bored, too. But I forced myself to just follow the instructions before I tackled a project.

Here is my first project:

Book: Creepy Cute Crochet by Christen Haden

Isn't he the cutest little Nosferatu you've ever seen? Ok, my stitches aren't perfect, and I definitely fudged some things, but with some felt eyes and fangs, he'll look adorable!

The surprising part for me is that I started and finished this guy in about 4 hours. Once again, spending my Friday night homebound and crafting. Good times.

***Done!***

Scrappy giveaway

2011-01-15T14:16:00.003-05:00

In celebration of once again attempting to clean out my overflowing stash I'm offering up a scrappy giveaway. All are designer fabrics, and a few Munki Munki charms. The 2nd and 3rd charm from the left are flannel, just an FYI. I'll be adding more scraps as I continue to sort through my stash this week, so I'll post a new picture after the winner is drawn! Just post a comment and make sure I have a way to contact you! =)

***Comments are now closed***

Friday Night Knots

2011-01-15T08:36:00.005-05:00

I don't know how you spend your Friday nights, but mine tend to revolve around just being at home. I like it. I look forward to it. So here's how I spent my Friday night: Tying knots.

I cut strips out of my scraps--about 3-4" x 1". I'll be honest, those weren't exact cuts by any means.

That's the frame on my knee, with scrap piles all around.

I picked up this wire wreath frame for $.30 at the local thrift store. Last night, I pulled out the bags of scraps I've been storing--and need to get rid of. My original plan was to cover the entire wreath. But:
1. My fingers hurt. All that knot tying. Ow.

2. I like the mix of polished and not so polished.

And here it is:
I love this wreath frame. It's bent, and old. Someone else decorated it, someone ripped all that decoration off. Then (maybe) it came to me.

Wonder what will happen to it next...

What do you watch on television?

2011-01-11T11:57:00.005-05:00

Frell yeah!!! Early Valentine's Day present from the hubby!!! I have a serious girl crush on Claudia Black XD

Things you may not know about me...I don't watch reality TV or sitcoms or Lifetime movies, lol. I prefer sci-fi and fantasy, a bit of mystery, no horror thank you... Farscape, Firefly, Legend of the Seeker, Star Wars, Star Trek, Buffy, La Femme Nikita, X Files, the Pretender, Quantum Leap, Harry Potter and Twilight. Yes, those last two are fantasy too, lol. Why do all the good shows get cancelled?? Arrested Development, I miss you! lol

Current shows I'm watching are... Community, Castle, Bones, Chuck, Glee, The Simpsons, 30Rock, and The Guild ...to name a few. If you like Castle, and don't know about Firefly, it's Nathan Fillion's earlier work ;)

We just started watching Outsourced and Series 5 of DrWho. I just finished Stargate SG1, mostly for Claudia Black and Ben Browder, to fill my withdraw of Farscape, lol. While working on Jess' dresden mini-quilt SG1 was my constant background and thus will always make me think of stargates and off-worlders, lol.

Oh and just about anything Hayao Miyazaki does! So what gems have you found out in tv land?

**Okay, so with this post I'm basically admitting I'm a super geek and it's not suprising I married someone in IT, hahaha! ;)

My daughter...

2011-01-10T13:34:00.002-05:00

I don't usually share too many pictures or thoughts of my daughter but really wanted to get this off my back. My beautiful daughter is now 3 1/2 and it amazes me how big she's gotten. She's super tall and slender and started out at only 5lbs.

The thing that amazes me the most is the realization of how strangers judge small children without knowing their age.

My daughter is just under 42 inches tall. That's 97th percentile for kids her age group, which means she's taller than 97% of kids her own age. She's more than 1/2 her adult height at 3 1/2 yrs of age. Which I know is the basis for how she is judged.

Honestly, to me she appears closer to a 5-6 yr old in appearance than a 3yr old. (and I don't mean by dress, as her wardrobe is very age appropriate). It's just that I'm amazed sometimes when I'm out the way other people react negatively when she's having a fit or has her binkie with her. Really it's just amazing that anyone would judge a small child at all, knowing their age or not.

My rant is this... when did it become okay for people with or without their own children to think they know better? As a society when does the judging stop? I'm amazed at where it apparently starts. I always try to look at things like 'you never know someone else's situation and have no right to judge them'. It's unfair to a generation barely of school age to already feel they have to live up to others ideas of 'what they should be' and it's things like this that make me even more anxious to get away from the crowded city we live in. Less people=less influence.

Anyone have similar experiences with their children?

Old skirt makes new bag.

2011-01-08T11:28:00.004-05:00

It's snowing. Again. I had to go buy eggs, to make a cake for a family dinner tonight. When I stepped outside, there were these adorable bird tracks on our step. Just wanted to share that. It has nothing to do with the bag...

I'm really getting into finding clothes/textiles at the thrift store and using them in new projects.

Like this bag, which came from a skirt I picked up for $1.50 from the Goodwill store.

I used Amy Butlers' pattern from her book "Style Stitches." The pattern and instructions were pretty easy to follow. My main complaint is the color of the text. As a stitchers, we're usually squinting to find needle eyes and threads and stitches, so it would be nice to not have to squint to read the instructions. But the page looks pretty!

Anyway, aside from the skirt, I used some gray twill I had on hand from a failed dress--that you will never see.

Things to think about when reusing materials:
1. What the hell is it made of? I picked this skirt for this pattern, and realized that was a mistake when I had to iron the pleats. The fabric looked and felt like cotton, but it was a polyester blend (the materials tag was gone). So ironing it was less than fun, and the fabric kept shifting.
2. Condition. Because of the all over pattern, I didn't realize there were small holes in the skirt. I had to work the pleats around these holes. So check your fabric carefully and find the best pieces to use.
3. Use fun combos! I'm sort of disappointed in myself for using the gray twill. It looks nice and all, but I think I could have picked something more fun.

4. Reuse! The skirt had a small, metal brand label: GEIGER. I set that aside, and placed it on the front of the bag, just as a decoration. I also saved the zipper and button for future projects.

I love this AB book! So get ready to see more projects posted.

Happy snow day!

Vintage and solid dresden

2011-01-02T17:22:00.003-05:00

This was my last sewing project that I worked on for 2010. I hand-quilted furiously trying to get this finished in time for a New Year's birthday party. I was still sewing up until a few hours before the party on the 1st, but I'm still counting this in 2010, lol.

The dresden plate pieces are made up of Kona solids and vintage sheet fqs/pillow cases, that I bought from Jeni's shop.

This mini quilt is for my blog partner Jess, who loves purple and vintage.

I love giving special gifts for milestone birthdays. I won't tell you which milestone, I'll leave that up to her =P

This was my first time doing these dresden pieces and I LOVE it. So you may see more popping up soon! The larger plate template is from 'Handmade Beginnings' and I just shrank it down for the smaller plate. I stitched in the ditch through the seams and than hand-quilted with perle cotton. There are two tiny hexagons in the center, this was the hardest decision part for me, cause honestly I was not liking the usual round center.

I also made her a cloth doll! I was so excited about this, cause it's the first one I've made and it was a total success! I'm only showing her feet (which I adore!!!) cause I replicated one that Jess had liked on Etsy but it sold, so I didn't want to step on anyone's toes since it isn't 100% my design =) But I'll be sure to share the next one that I will be making shortly, since my daughter wasn't too happy about saying goodbye to this one, lol!

Working well under pressure.

2010-12-23T22:24:00.003-05:00

Ok, I know it's Christmas Eve Eve, but yes, I'm still working on things.

The good news is I'm super happy with the thing I just finished!

Here's the story (there's always a story):

I traded with a seller on Etsy (Edge of the Wildwood) for this apron.

(Photo from Edge of the Wilwood, Etsy, Listing.)

And after careful thought (ok, totally stumped), I decided it would be an adorable bag for my mom for Christmas.

I purchased handles from the local fabric store. I didn't know what shape or size, but I really liked these handles. And they were on sale.

Not to get all Dickensy on you, but I literally woke up one morning with the plan for this bag.

1. Cut off top waist tie.
2. Cut apron body in half, leaving hopefully a full pocket.

Ok, you have to trust me--there is a pocket in there. I swear.

I cut so that I would have the original pocket on the inside.
3. Sew 3 sides of outside and lining, leaving hole in lining to flip. (I actually sewed on the hemline of the apron, for something different and to remember what was.)
4. Using apron ties, make loops to attach handles, these should go, evenly, on both sides of the outside, and baste. (Normally, I hate to baste. But these handles need it.)
5. Put outside of bag into lining, right sides together and sew together.
6. Turn right-side out; stitch hole in lining.
7. Top stitch.
8. Tie remaining ties in square knot.

Here it is! Sideways...but I was working with my iPhone, which rarely works with me.

...I was just too excited not to post.

Things I may have done differently:
-I may have used interfacing. But I wasn't sure I wanted to subject the fabric to that. I would have to test on a less attractive apron, honestly.
-Ok, the real reason that there is a tie on the front for decoration is to hide a stitch thing. The fabric has a pretty large, worn out weave, and the fabric kept shifting. And I hate pins. So I ended up with a screwy stitch. Always good to find ways to cover up mistakes.

Mendocino Overload

2010-12-23T11:44:00.003-05:00

This post is quite image heavy, but lets be honest you're all here for the photos anywho ;)

This was a month long project that will be my 3yr old's main Christmas gift...

Before

We got this lucky find for $5.00!

After
A bit of sanding, several coats of white spray paint and a few clear gloss coats.

A piece of MDF board cut to size. I chose MDF because it's sturdy(in case she tries to sit in it) and didn't need to be sanded.

Bed skirt.

Mattress and minky fitted sheet.

Pillow and mini quilt to match her own bed.

Completed. I didn't have time to make the cloth doll I wanted, but realistically I know this won't be used for dolls...

My daughter is going to LOVE this fancy cat bed.

Here's the doll crib next to her full size bed.

I had a few blocks left over from the front of her Mendocino quilt so I cut them up for the mini quilt. I still have 2 blocks left, which will eventually be made into throw pillows for her room.

The back is more Mendocino, I just used larger scraps that I had.

Hope everyone has a great Merry Christmas!!! =)

Progress!

2010-12-17T15:08:00.003-05:00

I got 4 more bags done! And here they are:

These 2 little guys were total experiments--and I'm so excited they came out ok!

I used some scraps, from Holly, for the lining of this one:

I used a curtain ring to potentially add a strap. These are much cheaper than the metal purse rings, but seem sturdy enough. We'll see...

This was the first time I used these add-ons. Again, sooo excited it worked! It wasn't difficult, either.

And 2 more tote bags:

I'm now at 10 bags (varying sizes)!

2010-12-16T11:20:00.007-05:00

Shhh, I have a secret...

I don't but it's cute to think that these guys do ;) Aren't they adorable!!!

They are finger bunny slippers! They like to walk across my desk once in awhile, hehehe. I bought these for myself awhile ago, and I LOVE THEM!!! I also bought a mary-jane pair for my daughter when she was an infant and they are still my favorite baby keepsake of hers!

I finished my 'Scrappy Nap Pillow', the pattern is Anna Maria Horner from her 'Handmade Beginnings' book. I had been wanting to make this for awhile and than saw Cara's awesome version and had to start my own! I finally got to use my Munki Munki flannels that I've been saving up =)

I machine stitched-in-the-ditch at every seam and than hand-quilted the long seams with white pearl cotton. Because I wanted to quilt mine, each side of the pillow is made like a mini quilt with top, batting and backing.

For the back I wanted to keep it simple so I only stitch-in-the-ditch around the seams of the plaid. The back is Munki Munki flannel also but both the snowmen and the plaid are from the same set of flannel pjs. The plaid is the trim on the cuffs of the pjs. I joined the front and the back with an invisible zipper instead of the envelope closure like the pattern called for.

Christmas Garland Complete

2010-12-15T11:41:00.008-05:00

The above stacks sort of look like poker chips, lol, at least they felt like that when I was shuffling them around in small stacks =)

Love how much color there is though

Here we are all strung up!

295 stitched circles

11.5 yards of garland

A mix of old, new, handmade, and store bought.

Aw, fairy feet =)

For anyone interested in the specifics in the garland...there are 3 shades of green, 1 white, 4 shades of blue, 3 shades of purple, 1 red, 2 shades of grey, 2 shades of orange and 1 yellow. All embroidery thread was chosen at random, however there are no blacks or browns in either thread or felt choice. Circles are about 1.5" across. We have a 9ft tree with a 5ft base, and 11.5 yards of this garland only crisscrosses the FRONT of the tree, ha!

So after all that wanna know what I remembered? I don't like garland on my Christmas tree, lol, I NEVER use it! hahaha! So next year it will be the room decoration for Christmas but will not be gracing my tree again ;)

A Stitcher on a Mission

2010-12-13T21:56:00.010-05:00

So first, let me apologize. I have no WIP pics. That's because I was a Woman on a Mission this past weekend.

Mission: To make bags/gifts for the ladies (and some gents) on my gift list.

Resources: Totes; Small bags; Infinite Scarf

(The aftermath)

I needed to make about 13 items. I'm 6 down. I'm pretty happy with that.

4 totes, 2 small bags, 1 scarf

Oilcloth = yuck.
I'm sure there are some great tutorials about oilcloth. And they may convince me one day that it's an awesome material. But there was no joy in sewing that stuff. I'm glad I finally found a use for it--but I'm also very glad I'm giving it away. I'm so ready to move on from that fabric, you know? It was haunting me. Use me. Sew me. Unfold me. Gah! Stop talking to me, fabric! Oh no, I've said too much...

So the clutches were FUN! Fun fun fun. Fun. Fun fun fun fun, fun fun. Loved making these! Going to make more. Can you be in love with a clutch? Is that considered cheating?

I used the AMH "Figuring 8" tutorial to make these scarves. Oh wait, I only pictured one. That's because I LOVED the first one I made, and am wearing it now. Sorry. This one I'm going to try to get my dad to wear. He lives in Northern PA, and spends most of winter wearing layers. He might like this, we'll see. Oh, but you probably noticed that these fabrics are not voile or velveteen, let alone AMH. That's because I didn't have the money/time to buy those (they are on my list though! Enjoying Innocent Crush...oops! back to...), but I was at JoAnn's, and fleece was 50% off and flannels were like $3/yd, and they're both so stinkin' warm! Hence, these scarves.

Those next 2 bags are totes I sort of pulled together from my bag making experience. I used about 1.5 yds/bag. Thanks to yards, and yards, of duck cloth, I didn't bother using any kind of interfacing. Worked out well. I'm pretty excited about the pocket I made in the one bag:

I'm not quite sure how to explain this. I sort of made an overlapping pocket, that I then sewed into the lining. So the pocket sort of hangs by itself, rather than being attached to the lining. That probably made no sense--and I'm sorry. But even I was amazed that I made that. It's going to take a few times before I can truly explain it.

So that's where I am. I have about 7 more bags to make, plus a chair to recover, cookies to bake, presents to wrap...ah!

Overwhelming, isn't it all? Of course I should have planned ahead. But I don't call myself a procrastinator for nothing. Here's a moment of happiness for you: http://etsy.me/dI0pSL.

Racing the clock

2010-12-10T11:09:00.005-05:00

My husband will often complain that I can't just sit still and the below picture is the perfect example of this. I sew, watch tv(currently streaming Farscape on my computer) and maybe chat by IM all at the same time. Extreme multi-tasking? lol

I've been trying desperately to catch up with December this past week. The above project is one I'm trying to finish that I started ehem, 9mnths ago to get a jump on this years Christmas. Well it was started with good intentions at least, ha! The only problem with picking up a hand-sewing project 9mnth later is my stitches look completely different, and being the me that I am, I would like to redo the first 152 circles so the stitches match, lol.

I am helping hubby out this Christmas by taking the guess work out of my gifts, lol! This stack of lovely Anna Maria Horner voile and flannel arrived this morning and even though, yes it's a Christmas gift, I had to check to make sure I got what was ordered. lol ;)

Now to finish the above two hand-sewing projects and than I can finish sewing my daughter's main Christmas gift, which I'll post soon! =)

Hello Kitty Christmas Countdown

2010-12-05T10:37:00.003-05:00

So here's the sneak peak from yesterday all finished up! I had seen SO many Christmas countdown calendars popping up online and really wanted to make one but was quickly running out of time. I had seen this amazing ide a but didn't have the time to do it so I used the template for the stocking and made up my own little wall quilt.

I arranged the stockings in the shape of a tree and added a cuff to the top of each stocking to centralize the small print on the stockings. Next year I will embroider the 25 numbers on the cuffs. The calendar is for my 3 year old who doesn't understand counting down to Christmas anywho, especially since it was filled almost instantly with these guys...

The Hello Kitty at the very top of the tree was made out of the 'Hello Kitty fabric' that I used for the stockings. She's a 'flat cat' and is meant to be moved to each stocking as the days of December progress.

My daughter has a thing for cats, bunnies, foxes and hamsters, in case you can't tell, ha! =)

Bestest Friend EVER =)

2010-12-04T13:16:00.006-05:00

That would be my blogging partner Jessica ...she's the 'bobbin' lol While visiting her Dad up north she texted me an image from a thrift store of plates with 'do you want any of these?' I typed out 'SURE' as quickly as I could, ha!

Aren't they lovely?!? I don't have any Pyrex dishes yet, so this is fun!

(Note: the sizing numbers are now listed)
The pattern slowly descending =) Starting from the left, dinner plate 795, dinner plate 703, bread & butter plate 704, 'stacking' saucers 796 and sauce dishes 706. The cups are 721.

As if that isn't enough, look at the above shiny! Such a beautiful color! And she asked me 'do you want this?' my response of course was 'AHHH YESSS!'

This is my first piece of this type of Pyrex pan.

Oh yea, I'm also working on about 4 sewing projects at the moment. The above pictured one is getting finished up today, so here's a peak =)

Unexpecting Decorating Dilemma

2010-11-30T12:34:00.003-05:00

We took out the Christmas tree and decorations this weekend to start decorating the house and yesterday while adding additional lights to our pre-lit tree I happened to notice the warning label on the string 'Prop 65, handling the cord exposes you to lead, wash hands after contact'. WHAT?! ...Now we've had these lights and tree for a few years, and I never noticed the warning before. I understand that California has different laws than other states but this honestly does not sit well with me, especially having a toddler in the house. So I stripped the tree of the lights and dumped them in the trash. The only thing that stopped me from dumping the tree in the garbage as well was lack of help(the tree is 9'). My husband thinks we may be over-reacting, so the tree is still sitting in the living room, undecorated. Anyone know if you can buy string lights that are NOT PVC coated? I haven't had any luck finding any yet...

These are quilted stockings I made last year and at the time LOVED them. But this year I really am not feeling them. I would like to try something different and perhaps embroider our names on the cuff. Not sure if I'm going to have the supplies or time to do this before Christmas this year. Perhaps these might end up being the cat's stockings, lol!

A peak at the project I'm working on =)

Trying to get back in the holiday mood, the whole 'lead' thing really put a damper on things for me.

2010-11-26T10:20:00.008-05:00

Hope everyone had a fun and relaxing Thanksgiving! We did here, even if it was a wet day, snow to rain, to just cold. My sister and her wife just bought a new house and moved in the week before Thanksgiving. They hosted Thanksgiving dinner at their lovely new home, yes, just 1 wk after moving in! I wanted to give them a house-warming gift but wasn't sure what to give since this isn't their first house and they didn't need any kitchen items, lol. So I opted for my current addiction, these wonderful folded fabric star ball ornaments...

This is my first attempt at embroidery so I was a bit nervous doing it as a gift, but I wanted to personalize it as a remembrance of purchasing their new house. So I Googled monogramming letters, traced them off my computer screen onto a square of paper and than free hand drew the letters on my square of fabric with pencil. Than I attempted the embroidery, lol, I had a few false starts but thankfully it came together in the end. I had gotten this book awhile back and it was a great reference for learning the different stitches since I'm new to this =)

After embroidering the initials and numbers to the squares I just pinned the squares on the styrofoam balls as the tutorial tells you. Since the middle square is a color on color print, I kept all the rest of the prints I used the same, keeping white out of the mix and only using green and red solids as additional accents. I'm very happy with the results and they liked it, so yay!

Yea, I know...I'm nuts, but I can't stop myself, these are just too fun!!! The fish print above is the opposite side of the 'gnome' ball that I showed last time and is pictured below, this time it's finished, lol! The little fox on the bottom left is flannel and all of the other fabric on the ball are also flannel. All from Munki Munki flannel pjs, his opposite side is the little girl below.

Isn't she adorable?!? Some of those Munki prints are just too cute!! If you are looking for these fabrics or are just wondering what the heck I'm talking about Kerri carries them in her Etsy shop. The flannel ball has velvet rickrack instead of ribbon since it goes better with all the flannel. I love rickrack, why is NEVER on sale at Joanns? Am I the only one that notices that??

If you've read any of my previous posts you know I just HAD to make one with Garden Party fabrics! This is my favorite FAVORITE line of fabric, by the lovely Anna Maria Horner. So I got out my AMH scrap bin...what you don't have a scrap bin dedicated to you favorite line of fabric? no?, ok, moving on...and made this lovely ball, SO MUCH COLOR!!! =D

Here's the opposite side =) This ball is not finished as I didn't have any grosgrain ribbon wide enough to cover my center seam. So I could add more squares and shrink the center seam I suppose, but I'm loving using up my drawer full of assorted ribbon.

I had a few questions about the ones I've made so I wanted to add some notes about assembling. The directions in the tutorial say to 'press' each square prior to pinning. I'm usually obsessive with the iron but these are 2" squares, so I just 'finger pressed' them ALL as I went along. I believe her directions also mention not stretching the square in the center...um, I stretched and fudged every bit of these things to made them look like I wanted, lol. I also noticed that if the pin was showing at the center point to just take it out and move it back a bit from the folded edge and than fold down each corner and see if it's still showing. I used bias tape to cover my center seam. I had 1/2" bias tape on hand, so I used 2 pieces, one on each edge, which made it's own seam in the middle. Does this make sense? Than I put on whatever ribbon I liked and that covered it all up nicely. I pinned the bias tape in place, but just knotted the ribbon in place tightly. You can see this the most clearly in the photo of the 'fish' ball, the bottom vintage sheet ball has pink bias tape and white grosgrain ribbon.

Note added: I would suggest getting the smooth styrofoam balls if you're going to do a fussy cut center so it's not bumpy behind the fabric, like mine was. =)

$10 Bag

2010-11-24T15:55:00.007-05:00

Yup. That's how much my 'new' bag cost:

$1 for the fabric (about 3 yards, from the flea market)
$8.00 for the pattern

= Well, ok that's $9. But I'll throw in the cost of the lining/thread to make it about $10.

So the pattern was pretty nice--once I got over the initial confusion of where all the pattern pieces were (dimensions were given for the inside pocket and straps, rather than pieces to cut).

The pattern was a haphazard find at JoAnn's Fabrics. The fabric was from one of my favorite sellers at the local flea market (he always has such great stuff!). The selvedge says Waverly, and it's a heavy weight fabric. Lining is just some yellow duck cloth I had on hand.

Completed, the bag is pretty large, more tote, less hobo (if that makes sense).

I think one of my proudest moments on this bag is how well the fabric pattern lined up. Sort of intentional, once I realized it was possible.

The bag went together easily enough, but again, I was very confused about what pieces I needed and where the pieces were. I find it kind of annoying that patterns don't include all the pieces needed to cut. Thanks for giving me the dimensions, but what if I'm a new sewer and don't have a ruler on hand? Or maybe I'm not good with a ruler, and would rather follow the pattern piece? Plus, I paid $8 for this. Would it really have been a big deal to add these 2 pieces?

I like the bag, and I'll probably make another one (or 4)!

My New Addiction =)

2010-11-22T13:47:00.003-05:00

I am so excited! SO excited about these that I didn't even finish the Gnome one above before taking this picture to share with you all! I have 4 more set out and ready to make! I can't get enough of these!!!

These are SO EASY to make, seriously! They look complicated but aren't! I used this tutorial, but only used 2 inch squares for them because I wanted to use up some of my extra squares from my Tokyo Subway quilt along oopsy. The one on the lower left is made from vintage sheet charms that I received from Jeni, she has an Etsy shop with tons of vintage fabric goodness. The 2 on the left are my favorites! I think because instead of doing color groupings I did totally random pieces and just tried to distribute the color evenly.

Another bonus of this!...they're all made from SCRAPS!!! Minus the vintage charms =) I have 4 more groupings all laid out and ready to be made, I seriously love these! They make great ornaments and quick gifts for the holidays or even any celebration made in your favorite fabrics =)

See if you can restrain yourself to only making 1, ha! The piecing is a bit reminiscent of making origami folded fortunes from grade school, lol!

A Munki Wreath

2010-11-20T14:15:00.003-05:00

Last year I went a bit nuts tracking down Munki pjs to use for quilting. I was recently cleaning out my scrap bin and had set these waistbands aside, not sure what to do with them, but not wanting to throw them out.

Then the other day Jeni posted this awesome tutorial on making a vintage fabric wreath and as soon as I saw it I knew exactly what I was going to use to make it with. The above pile is the waistbands from Munki Munki pajama pants, cut on the seam with the elastic and drawstrings removed. I left my strips ruffled and wrapped them a bit loose to keep that ruffled look on the wreath.

A super simple project with the wonderfulness of almost instant gratification! No sewing required and I used up scraps that I wanted to find a use for, it doesn't get better than that! =) Plus now my adorable bunny has a new perch, LOVE him!

More Mug Rugs

2010-11-11T09:04:00.008-05:00

Are you tired of Mug Rugs yet? I'm getting there, lol. Although these are gifts and were made entirely out of scraps (bonus points for using scraps!), except for the white binding. =)

I started making these mosaics in Flickrtoys in an effort to condense the amount of images I have uploaded to Flickr. Thus trying to avoid getting a pro account, do I really need to have more than 200 images loaded into Flickr? (This might be my typical liking to clean out/trash/delete/rearrange things) So what do you think are the mosaics annoyingly small and hard to see or a fun grouping?

Here's a close up of the turtle mug rug, this was made for my Mom who loves turtles. I love how fresh this color combo is.

Here we go again, Flickr mosaic of two pink mug rugs. The pictures sort of get cropped, not sure how to get around that.

This one was made for Jess' Mom Maria. Hope you like it Maria, if you're reading this, lol =)

This one was made using the cut-offs when I squared the previous 'mug rug'. My Sister said she'll take this one =) Hooray for things getting used.

Here is an 'in progress' shot of how I made these. Just a bunch of strips from my scrap bin, randomly sewn together in the same direction, all coming to one point. Looks a bit like a fabric fan, huh? lol See the bottom fan-ish piece that was cut off, that was cut straight down the middle and than turned to make a square and that would be the above mug rug that now sort of looks like a squarish leaf.

Not so complicated right? Also a great way to try some small-scale quilting techniques you've been hesitant to do on larger quilts. Have a bunch of scraps you're needing to move out of your sewing area? Maybe make a few 'mug rugs' for holiday gifts, stocking stuffers, office pollyanna?

Tokyo Subway Map First Row Completed

2010-11-08T20:05:00.004-05:00

Yes, these are pictures of the back of the first row. I'm a bit obsessed with seams!

Can you tell? lol I just LOVE the design and three-dimensionality the seams create!

And if it wasn't for the fact that this would fray like crazy I would seriously quilt this side up =D

In case you're wondering what this is supposed to actually look like, since I didn't take any pictures of the front of the row yet, hop on over to OhFransson's Quilt Along page or check out the amazing progress in the Flickr group. I was late starting and am hoping to make more progress before she starts the tutorial on how to make the back. It's never to late to join and this project is a great scrap buster since the squares are only 2inches each!

I realized after drawing the winners from my last post that there was no reason I couldn't also giveaway the 4th 'mug rug', after it was all washed up it really looks great! So using Random.org again, the winner is... #7 Jenny who said, 'great job holly! these are lovely! im thinking these would make great christmas gifts! with a lb of coffee and some homemade cookies!' Congrats Jenny, I'll email you shortly! =)

Ok, so 3 out of 4 winners randomly selected were all named a variation of Jennifer, lol! What are the odds of that!?! So next time I enter I giveaway I might have to ask them to call me 'Jen', hahaha! ;)

Mug Rug Giveaway Winners!!!

2010-11-08T10:19:00.006-05:00

Okay the winners are...

#4 Jennifer, who said ...'Oh gosh these are so cute! I think they are all great looking and would appreciate winning any of them. I think we are our own worse critics!' Jennifer you will receive 'B'.

#2 Digital Misfits, who said ...' These are lovely! I have wanted a mug rug since I first saw them on Flickr. Yours are fantastic - love the patterns and colors.
I think my favorite is A, but I would welcome any one of them.' Heidi you will receive 'A', since you were the first drawn to specify which one you'd like.

#11 Jeni, who said ...'Gosh this is such a great fabric line! These are seriously adorable! I think my favorite is A! :)' Jeni you will receive 'C', since you were drawn third.

I will be emailing each of you ladies shortly to get your contact info and get these shipped out to you asap! Thanks so much for entering, hope you enjoy them!

Thank you all for the lovely comments!! I completely agree with you all, 'we are our own worst critics', so true! 'done is better than perfect', what a great line!! I am, ehem, a bit of a perfectionist and am trying to just do things to the best of my ability without freaking out too much on the small details, lol! I also love Jenny's idea, these would make lovely Holiday gifts combined with a pound of coffee or some homemade cookies!

I wanted to show that these wash up really nicely as you can see 'D' no longer looks 'wonky'. 'D' was made from the trimmings of 'A', I just couldn't stand to throw out all the tiny piecings, lol and now it's crinkly perfection ;)

Here's the back, I love all the random stitch lines.

Mug Rug Giveaway

2010-11-05T10:11:00.005-04:00

How about a giveaway? A handmade giveaway? Would anyone be interested in that?

Kelly was nice enough to offer up her fabric scraps from a quilt she's working on and I thought I would keep the good karma going by offering up some freebies made with all the scraps =)

This is my first time making a 'mug rug'. If you're unfamiliar with these guys, they're basically a large coaster for a cup of tea and a muffin. A fun breakfast companion.

They are all quilted in straight line quilting and backed with solids.

I just realized 'A' is upside down, lol. These guys are not washed, so they'll crinkle up when you wash it, just an FYI.

I'm not giving away the top one in this picture because it has a TON of mistakes. I drew my stitch lines with a pencil and soaked it to get the lines out (before adding the binding) and that's why it appears 'warped'. So I'm hoping after I throw it in the wash it'll look a bit more normal.

I'm happy to say I used every scrap that Kelly sent, as you can see by the added pieces in the binding. Here's the disclaimer ;)...these are not perfect by any means, and the longer I look at them the more 'mistakes' I'm seeing. This is the first time I'm giving away something I've made so be kind ;) Hey, free is good right? =)
To enter just leave a comment and if you'd like to you may add the letter of the one you would prefer. There will be 3 winners chosen at random.

2010-10-31T10:31:00.005-04:00

I've been seeing a lot of discussions popping up on sewing machines and quilt sizes. If you should bring larger quilts to long-arm quilters and just stick to smaller sizes for your home machine and such. My above picture is a range of quilt sizes from mini - king, all quilted at home on my old Kenmore, nothing fancy. Not that I wouldn't LOVE a Bernina or two, lol, but I'm working with what I have for my price range right now. So I say give it a try at home =) This is my first year of quilting and the above is all my progress minus a few that were gifted and a few minis that are hanging on the wall. So if I can do it, anyone can! =)

Sometimes multi-tasking doesn't pay off (but don't tell my husband that ;), while watching the Xfiles the other night I may have cut a few dozen extra solid squares for my Tokyo Subway Map quilt by looking at the wrong column of numbers! So instead of 11 red solid squares I cut 71, and so on...lol!

Saturday's thrifting finds...the bottom bowl was only $1.00, whut?!? After the elderly gentleman manning his booth responded to my question of 'how much for the green one?' I stood starring blankly when he responded with 'a dollar' until my friend nudged me and said 'ask him how much for the pink gooseberry (444)', which he also responded with 'a dollar'. Of course I said 'we'll take both!' LOL! This is by far the cheapest pieces of Pyrex I've ever found! =) Oh, the mug...I finally have a Pyrex mug for my daughter to call her own, choo-choo!

Another Saturday find...I feel like I'm now auditioning my fabrics for Pyrex pictures...oh you lucky devils you! ha!

I swear I'm being good with my fabric shopping, cause at $5.00 a yard I really wanted something between 3-5, cause how awesome would this be for backing?! but I only bought a yard...so now I just have to find a project I can use 3-5 yrds of this and than rush back and get it, ha!

Happy Halloween!!! =)

2010-10-24T13:45:00.005-04:00

A month ago yesterday my 3yr old laid out this quilt design from my scrap pile, as I was working on a larger quilt.

I really can not tell you how much I LOVE this design! The flow of it, the simple lines, the modern feel...it's really just so awesome!

Originally I was going to straight-line stitch in the ditch from edge to edge but after doing one row I decided it was never going to come out as straight as I'd like. So after ripping the stitches out (minky is HORROR to seam rip!) I decided to stipple the entire thing. I think it worked out nicely as it does not distract from the design of the quilt.

The back is charcoal grey minky-dot! It's YUMMMMMM. I am trying to decide if I am going to do my large Ghastlies quilt with this minky also. Grey seems to be a harder color to come by locally, I ordered mine from Fabric.com. This is the first time that I've ever finished a quilt from my scraps before the actual quilt, lol! Bonus!

Rosie thinks she can blend in enough with the fall decorations to escape my 3yr for a nap. Notice her ears though, she's quite alert, lol! Or maybe it was the click of the camera that got her attention =)

Hexagon Finish

2010-10-18T13:08:00.006-04:00

I cut out these hexagons back in March when I joined the Hexagon Quilt-Along...wow, didn't realize how long it had been! That pile grew at least double since than, yikes! All the prints are from Heather Ross' fabric lines... Lightening Bugs, Mendocino, West Hill, Munki Munki, Far Far Away, and Rabbits & Racecars.

I LOVE this picture, in all it's crinkly glory! =D

I put a tiny border of white Egyptian cotton around the hexagons and binding is Kona Ash? ...I believe.

Close up of 1 of 3 selvedges blocks I made into hexagons. They show all the different fabric lines that compose this quilt.

Finished size is 36X33"
Hexagons are cotton poplin, double gauze, corduroy, twill, denim, knit, voile, and flannel.

The back is Kona Coal and you can see the quilting much more clearly here. I stitched 1/4 next to the seams vertically. I debated on washing this since it will most likely hang on a wall but it doesn't really feel finished to me until it's all soft and crinkly...and I am happy to report I love this project again. =D

This ENTIRE project was machine pieced for those not familiar with my earlier progress. If you're wondering how to do this, Kristen has a great tutorial with pictures and a link to Lady Harvatine's tutorial video, doesn't get much easier than that!!!

Oh no, what have I done

2010-10-16T12:36:00.002-04:00

So I went in halvsies w/Holly on some AMH Innocent Crush. Love this stuff!

But what to do with it?

Holly's usually the go to girl for all pieces micro and mini. And here's my first tiny square project:

Berger doesn't look convinced yet...

I'm going to follow the Tokyo Subway quilt along--sort of. I haven't quite figured out the logistics yet.

Look, I have no clue how this is going to come out. I'm just going to go for it.

I'll keep you posted.

Fabric Winner!

2010-10-15T10:02:00.004-04:00

Ok, first I have to admit that since this is my first giveaway it took me about 15 minutes to realize that on Random.org the little widget thing on the right hand side is what I needed to use to get a random number. No downloading required, lol!

Winner is #6 ... Me? A Mom?

Congrats Cara! I'll be emailing you shortly to get your shipping info!

Doing a giveaway was fun! So I've decided to do another shortly! Munki Munki charms anyone? =) Oh and I revamped the blog a bit, thought it would be fun to liven things up a bit with some color!

Fabric anyone?

2010-10-13T14:14:00.004-04:00

I've wanted to do a giveaway for awhile now and just couldn't decide what from my stash anyone might want to win, so I hope this is of interest to someone...

From left to right:
1 yard Alexander Henry Raindrop Stripe (unwashed)
3 fqs of Heather Ross' Wildflowers (washed)
4 f8ths, 1 FMF Brown tiles(unwashed), 1 Mendocino Underwater Sisters (washed), and 2 Mendocino Mermaids (washed)

All you have to do is leave a comment in this post and make sure your profile has your email address or leave it in your comment. =)

***This giveaway is now closed***

1296 down, 304 to go...

2010-10-11T09:44:00.002-04:00

I've been debating on what to do with the 3 quilt backs I need to finish so while my brain is figuring that out my hands have been busy with this project...

I REALLY wanted to join in on the Tokyo Subway quilt-along over at OhFransson but was so busy with my other projects that I couldn't squeeze it in. But now that my major piecing of those projects is wrapped up I finally got to cutting from my scrap bin! One MAJOR bonus of this project is I used almost every single scrap of white from my scrap bin!!! WOOT!

I cut a bit more every night so I hope to have more to show you soon! Anyone else working on this awesome quilt-along? =)

Tori's Quilt

2010-10-08T10:22:00.004-04:00

Approximately 31X43"

A while back I made a small blanket out of the Alexander Henry 'Birdseed' fabric for my Niece and it's her favorite bedtime blanket apparently. So this new one is something to replace her blanket on wash days, lol.

I used white minky-dot on the back, YUM, this stuff is super soft! Plus the stippling on top makes it extra bumpy, lol.

Kitty feet in the window just because =D

Halloween is fast approaching

2010-10-04T21:01:00.003-04:00

...and I might actually finish this in time to enjoy it during October!

Alexander Henry's 'The Ghastlies' quilt top is all finished! The tricky part about doing this pattern with a fussy cut print is the stretch of the fabric since they are cut on the bias.

These photos are taken at night, so they're a bit dark =/ I did a few split-color blocks for this quilt top, you can spot one in the photo above 2nd block from the bottom right, lady with witch hat and house. I literally took the same print in two colorways, overlapped them and joined them together as seamless as possible. I really enjoy the result of drafting the blocks this way but it is super tedious and takes a lot more fabric to make each block.

Now I really need to go get some batting as I have 3 quilt tops ready to be basted now, lol.

Progress

2010-10-01T21:20:00.004-04:00

My Heather Ross hexagons are all assembled and ready for their border. I'm really liking this much better now =) I currently have 3 quilt tops in progress so I need to make a run for some batting soon, lol.

Ok, I fell off track of my 'fabric diet' but with good reason! Anna Maria Horner's new line 'Innocent Crush'! Isn't it just wonderful!!! Quilthome.com was having a sale so I couldn't resist. If you don't already you really should sign up for their newletter and you'll get the 'newsletter only' coupons. It's the ONLY newsletter I kept signed up for, can you see why?!

My Husband brought me this lovely surprise on his way home from work. He stopped in at the Goodwill and this little beauty was just sitting there. Not a scratch on the entire thing, it was dirty but cleaned up nicely as you can see by the reflection of Innocent Crush in the enamel, lol!

2010-09-29T12:05:00.006-04:00

Having a SALE in the Etsy shop, everything is 15% off!!! =)

Castle Peeps Mini Quilt

2010-09-28T09:40:00.006-04:00

I've been dying to try this out for awhile and realized the other night that Castle Peeps fabric would show lovely in this pattern!

First time I've done this and I didn't have a pattern, so I'm SUPER happy that it came out exactly how I imagined =)

Note: I got the inspiration from this pillow I bought my daughter a bit back.

Hi Monday

2010-09-27T13:03:00.008-04:00

Castle Peeps WIP

Hubby bought me these lovely golden yellow Corelle mugs =)

Antique store was having a sale, 2 Pyrex bowls, the bottom is a lovely golden yellow similar to the mugs.

Found a large black gooseberry bowl to match my small one =)

Finished Laney's Design quilt top, sorry pic is a bit dark. Netflix is getting me through my late night sewing, currently I've rewatched the first 5 Seasons of the Xfiles, lol.

This week was more productive than I realized. I went from having one quilt in progress to having 4 I'm working on at the same time. I'm almost done piecing my Heather Ross hexagons and liking it much more now =)

Castle Peeps

2010-09-26T23:49:00.004-04:00

(Castle Peeps by Lizzy House.)
Isn't that just a lovely sight! I <3>

Working on a small project with my Castle Peeps stash, just a peek for now! I am having trouble deciding on a quilt pattern for a larger quilt so I'm making a mini/doll quilt so that I can finally cut into these lovelies =)

While I was working on this quilt...

2010-09-23T11:25:00.003-04:00

(Alexander Henry's 'The Ghastlies')

My daughter ran off with my scrap pile and laid out this...

(I was seriously excited to see her do this!)

I extended each row with white strips from my scrap bin...

(But it just looks too 'neat and tidy' now)

So I'm working on translating her design...

I just have to say how IMPRESSED I am with my 3yr old's design, it's modern and straightforward and I just LOVE it! While I was going around in circles trying to figure out how to use the scale of the Ghastlies fabric she laid out her design in a matter of minutes. Maybe Mom is over-thinking things in her own projects? lol The above pic is only half her design, but I was too excited not to share this with you all! It requires the use of the iron after every stitch so it's not something I can work on while my toddler is around and who currently refuses to nap. This will be the first time I've completely something with my scrap before the actual quilt the scraps came from, lol! =)

Pepper Vintage?

2010-09-20T09:40:00.004-04:00

Ok, so aside from sewing a few buttons and smaller things, I've been a deficient seamstress. After finishing the last quilt, I guess I just felt...content? At least, for a while.

Instead of sewing I've been spending. But the good news is, I'm working on selling the overage. I can pass some items up! They just look so lonely there, on a dusty shelf. They must be treasured by others. And well, I'm running out of room on my shelves...hence:

Pepper Vintage (http://www.etsy.com/shop/jessicajon)

If you're looking for the old, the cute, the quirky and the well priced, stop on by!