blankets!

Well I was more productive today than I ever imagined. All of the baby blankets are posted in my shop & ready for sale. Which one would the baby in your life love to have? Take a peak & let me know what you think...

Here are the girl blankets....

and these are more for boys (although truthfully, I think the sweet penguins could go either way)...

Which one is your favorite?



in my sewing room

Well, I had the best intentions yesterday. My plan was to machine stitch the binding onto Steve's quilt so I could sit & hand sew in the evenings & finish it up. I got the quilt all trimmed & ready. Went to the drawer where I neatly keep my projects in process. Whenever I cut out a new quilt I always cut the binding pieces, put them into a ziploc bag & label them. Otherwise, the fabric gets lost. Or used for another project....

Which is apparently what happened to Steve's quilt binding! There was only a scrap of the fabric left in the drawer. Sigh. It would appear I used the binding fabric for the witch project. If you look closely at the witches shoes, you will see that they are lovely black mottled.... yup, the fabric that was supposed to be the binding for Steve's quilt! Sometime this week I will travel to the quilt store for more. Meanwhile....

What to do? I decided to stitch up some baby blankets for my Etsy Shop. My goal is to get them in there in the next day or two. Here's the stack I have ready....

I'll show you some more pictures when I get them into the shop. These are the same blankets I have been making as baby gifts for years & years. They are much bigger than the ones you buy at the store (approximately 43" square), double layer of quality flannel with all finished, rounded edges & a double row of topstitching. They wash & wash & last forever (I think there are still a couple wandering around this house somewhere!). If you have a new baby coming into your life, or the life of someone you love, they make a wonderful gift!

Just thought I'd give you a little peak.... off to work on my shop! I'll let you know when they are available.

Happy Quilt!

One quilt finished! This is one of the two quilts Mom brought back to me from Connie the wonderful longarm quilter in Arizona. I finished the binding yesterday... and even got the hanging sleeve on it!

This quilt is called "A Peaceful Life" and it is from the book The World as it Should Be by Anni Downs of Hatched & Patched. When I saw the sample made up at Market Review last year, I knew I had to make it! It just made me smile. I did all of the applique blocks by hand, sitting in waiting rooms & carpool lines. Almost all of the fabrics came from my stash.

Next up.... Steve's college quilt. The quilting is done & all it needs is binding. I can't wait to share it with you!

sneak peak

one quilt almost done! Hand sewing the binding is my favorite part....

Happy Birthday sis!

Today is my sister Diane's birthday!

Her card is going to be late. Because of all the company & chaos here. Ok, that's a lousy excuse. It's just late! No more excuses. Happy Birthday Di!

When I was in Arizona about 6 weeks ago, Mom was working on some pillows for Di's birthday & she recruited me to help her finish them up. Check these out....

 The pillows are made entirely from recycled denim dresses & jumpers that Diane gave to mom a while ago. Mom had already done all of the patchwork for the king sized pillow covers when I arrived. She also had the butterflies cut out & ready to applique. I just helped get the handwork done & borders on. We had so much fun working on them! & you won't believe what we did with the backs of the big pillows....

we used the buttons from the dresses! So they can be opened up & switched out/washed if need be. Isn't that clever? Mom's idea.

I really enjoyed working with the recycled fabrics to make something new & useful. There are some new ideas spinning in my head & hopefully soon you will be seeing some of them come to life. Stay tuned!

Girls love cars too!

The day Mackenzie arrived at our house was the day after her first birthday! I gave her....

Cars! Bet you thought I would make her something girlie, didn't you? Well, as you can see, she loved them. I wish you could hear the noises she was making as she drove the little cars all around the town! Too funny.

I found this adorable panel at my local quilt shop several months ago & knew I needed to make it!

I backed the panel with lime green hippos from Ikea & attached ties, so they can roll it up sleeping bag style & stash it in the tote bag I made to match. All the little tonka plastic trucks & cars I found (at Target & Walmart) fit in the bag too.

And when Mackenzie got tired of driving the cars, she picked up the city by the ties & dragged it all over the house! Ahhhh I had forgotten how easy one year olds are to amuse!

Everyone has gone home now.... Mackenzie & her parents left Monday night & Mom & Dad left this morning. It's very very quiet here! I spent the morning machine stitching the binding on one of my quilts that Mom brought back to me. I should have it finished up by the end of the week to share with you!

why I haven't been blogging

I have visitors. Here's miss Mackenzie, modelling an outfit I made for her this summer. She just turned one! She & her mom and dad are here until tomorrow. My parents are also here until Thursday.

Sorry, we're too busy to blog. One year olds are busy people. I had forgotten! More soon....