New Goodies!!

So here are my new goodies.  I bought just a couple of things from Burgundy Buttons when they were having a 15% off everything sale on the same day that I found out I got my new job.  I think it was kismet.  Me a new job and a sale all on one day. YIPEE!

I don’t really have plans for everything.  I want to make a quilt for my daughter out of the the Riley Blake Summer Song fat quarters.  I don’t really know how yet but I am thinking of something like this.

I am working with the Robert Kaufman christmas fabrics right now so I will show that one soon.  And the for the rest of the Moda fabrics I’m really not sure.  I am thinking a simple square baby quilt with the Freebird charm pack and then we will see about the Tweet Tweet charm packs and jelly roll.

Oh, and in case you care my new job is going great.  They bought me shoes and a coat on Monday!  Well, steel toed shoes and a lab coat, but still I got to go shopping on company time with company money.  I think I am really going to like working for this company.  It is great to be back at work but I am really missing my snuggle time with my little girl.  She is actually at my mom’s for the week so I have two more days til snuggle time.

A New Purse And A New Job!!

I start my new job tomorrow so I figured I needed a new purse right?!!  I am so excited about this job it is finally a job in my field.  I will be a GC Chemist!!  I have been home for the last 5 years with my kids and recently decided I was ready to go to work.  And somehow I got so lucky and found an awesome job in like 2 weeks!!

But back to sewing……..So to celebrating getting this awesome job.  I bought some fabric, of course. :)  I’ll have pics soon.  But then I decided it was time for a new purse.  This purse is by ithinkisew.com and the instructions were fabulous.  I got the cheaper version with basically just pictures and some notes and it was perfect.  I saw this purse on another blog Mary of Pin, Sew, Press (I love her blog) and went and bought my own pattern and finally made my own purse!

Fun in the Sun!

My daughter has been wearing her bathing suit around the house all week waiting for it to be warm enough to play in the sprinkler.  Well, today was finally that day!  She was so happy.  Well what she really wanted  was to go to the pool but she was happy enough in the sprinker.

 Don't you just love the goggles?! They really add to the look. As do the two missing front teeth!

Enjoy your weekend!

Teacher Gifts!

So here are my teacher gifts I made. The room mom is putting together a basket with all things summer. So I decided to try to make my own Practical Bag. Again I was too cheap to buy the pattern so I figured it all out myself based on a picture.

I think they turned out pretty well.  They look almost exactly like the Practical Bag although I think they are a little bigger.  Which is okay with me because I was thinking they would be great pool bags or beach bags!

I ended up putting interfacing on the outside fabric of this bag and not the inside. I think it gives it just a little bit of shape without it being too much.  And I think the coordinating lining is perfect.  I hope they like them!

  Now that these are done I have about 4 more to make for my son's teacher and all my daughter's elective teachers.  It is her last year in preschool so I want to give everyone a present this year.  We have been at this preschool for 4 years now and I will miss them all dearly next year.

Big Anniversary Sale!!

Check out this awesome fabric shop that is having a big anniversary sale!! Fabrics are 20-30% off.  Now that is huge.  I am checking out Fabric Flair right now because they have some awesome prices plus she is willing to combine shipping costs so that you get the best price possible.  Now who can beat that?!!

A Fun, Family Weekend!

I didn't get any sewing done, but we had a great family weekend! It started on Friday with my daughter's Wheels On Parade at her preschool. My little angel is the one in the blue shirt. She decorated her wagon all by herself! Did you notice the scraps of fabric taped to the side?!! Gotta love it. I was very proud!

Saturday was soccer day. No pics as I am the coach and my husband isn't very good at taking pictures. And our fridge stopped working too. Luckily, it is still under warrenty for 2 more months. YAH! The repair guy is here now so hopefully he will fix it.



Then Sunday was this little guys 1st birthday! Happy Birthday Connor! He was the perfect baby for his first birthday. It is my cousins son and he is such a great kid! I just can't believe a year has passed already.

Well, that was my action packed weekend. Hopefully I can get some sewing done this week. I have a purse I need to order the fabric for and make. A wholesale order that is in the works. And some smaller purses that are still in the design stage that I need to continue.

I've Been Sewing

Although I haven't posted in a while I have been busy sewing. This bag is my latest completion. It is copied from Tonya Wheelan's Practical Bag. I was to cheap to buy the patter so I just guessed on the size and made it up. I think it looks pretty close to the real thing. It is a little bigger but it is going to be a beach bag so that is actually good.

I am planning on making more of these bags for gifts for my kids teachers. I think they are perfect for summer.



This is the other purse I am working on. It is the first time I have sewed in a zipper and I can tell I still need some more practice. But for the first time designing a clutch I think it came out pretty well. There are a couple of alterations I will make to the next one but I think this one is along the lines of what I want.

My WIP's of Today

I worked on several quilts today and even started a new one. But I didn't finish any of them. Maybe tomorrow.



This is one of my minky quilts that I put together and then flipped and turned it right side out. I did a boys one too but didn't get a picture.



Then I pinned my wild jungle quilt together. Then I put it aside. I just don't know how to quilt it. I am not good enough to free motion quilt it so I put it aside to think about it and decide.



Then I put together the start of this cute sailboat quilt with my charm squares I got this week. They are Natical and Nice by Moda. I really like this one!!

I Hate to Redo Things

I have decided to remove the border that I put on. This is not something I would ever do, but it needs to be done. I originally was going to put on a wider border, but at the last minute I decided to put on a smaller border and then add a second wider border

Well, that didn't work. I don't have enough fabric to put a wider 2nd border on and I really don't want to go buy 2 yards more just for 16 inches. So I am actually going to rip out the border and replace it with a wider border in the same fabric.



It really didn't take much time at all to take it out and redo it. I am much happier with it now. Maybe I will even put it together and start quilting it tonight. I did say "maybe" so we will see.

Mail Day!

I've Got Mail!! Well actually I got this yesterday but I am still excited today. I saw that Cathy over at Quilting on Turtle hill bought this fat quarter pack of "Dolce" by Tanya Whelan for Free Spirit at Burgundy Buttons online for a great price. So of course I had to jump right over and buy one for myself too!! And a couple of more things....a honey bun with the Neptune collection and a Nautical Nice Charm Pack, which I already have plans for. Check out this quilt, Anchors Away. Isn't it cute. I think I know what I will make with the honey bun but I haven't really decided yet.






I love honey buns and jelly rolls from the top when you can see all the colors together. I love getting fabric delivered right to my door, it really makes my day. (Just don't tell my husband I bought MORE fabric too. That should be arriving in a couple of day. Eeek.)

Patience Was My Word of the Day

Okay I think my patience has finally paid off. Let me say I just spend the entire day attaching the binding to my quilt. Wow what a process. When I put the quilt together I acted like the back was the top and vise versa. It worked great for me and I centered the truck perfectly on the quilt.

But......then I had to attach the binding to the front. Ughhh. First I had to trim down the brown corduroy to 1/4 inch. Usually not a big deal but this quilt is so fluffy it was quite a taste. But not difficult. Then I went to attach the binding. I thought I was on the home stretch, this is usually the easy part. I didn't account for how fluffy the quilt was. I guess I am used to flatter ones. So this is where my pictures come in to explain.

First I had to put pins in the quilt top to keep the fluff down and so that the corduroy didn't bunch and get sewn into the binding.



Then I had to pin down the binding on top of the already pinned quilt. I know look at all those pins!!



This is what it ended up looking like before I sewed it on. CRAZY!!



But in the end it did work!! It was a lot of work and had to remind myself to go slow and it would all work out. But it was a long, long day. I think for once I will enjoy the easy process of hand sewing the binding down. There can't be any complications there.....can there?

A Very Busy Sunday

This project was very daunting to me. I have had it for a while and have been nervous every step along the way. It had a lot of first for me, my first applique, the first time working with corduroy and the first time figure out my own size measurements for the quilt based off the toddler's bed. It is a custom order and the design was totally her idea. Although the quilt itself looks simple it was really time consuming. One of the hardest parts for me was to figure out how to center the truck applique when I sandwiched it all together. It was very nervewracking and very time consuming. I just didn't want to mess up. I have a lot of time and money invested in this and I would hate to mess it up.







But I think it turned out awesome and all that is left is to put on the blue corduroy binding. So hopefully I will have the entire order finished any shipped off to its new home this week!! That will be very satisfying.

Finally I'm Getting My Work Done

Well, I finally feel like I am getting some stuff done. This quilt was a custom order from someone who wanted an only pink and white quilt. I think it turned out very cute!! The flannel backing is actually a Robert Kaufman flannel that I found at Joann's. I love finding good deals at Joann's.



These pillows are just part of a big custom order for another customer. It is for her son's toddler bed. But I thought these pillows were so cute. They are the first pillows I have ever made and I quite enjoyed making them. I just finished the last pillow today which was another applique of a truck which is a small replica of the quilt I am still working on for her.

I am hoping to finish the quilt this week and mail it all to her. I know she has been waiting a while for it all to get done and I am almost there. The entire design and color schemes are her ideas I just created them. I think the entire bedding set is going to look really good together.

Whew, I have been busy....

Well, I have put my last project on hold. I actually picked the border fabric and backing fabric, but I haven't done anything else with it. I really do want to get it going again, but I have had several customers contact me with new projects to do.

Here is one that I just finished for a friend of mine. It is for her nephew and she picked out the cute puppy dog flannel and the pale blue and white minky. I actually took it to get it embroider as my machine is not that fancy. Maybe one day.





Ihave a girls quilt that I am starting today and hope to finish this week for another customer. I love the flannel she picked out and can't wait to see it all come together.

I need more help deciding....

Well, surprise, surprise I am still undecided about how I should finish my rectangles. I hope someone out there in blogland will help me. Eeekk. I really love the rectangles and would hate to ruin the whole quilt because I don't pick the right background and backing.

So I took some pictures and laid out some options. I even took my husband with me but I really think our thought process and taste are totally different.

Option #1:
The dark brown as the border inbetween the blocks and the blue/teal fabric for the backing.




Option #2
This blue background and the brown geometric type flower for the backing.


Option #3
The brown geometric fabric for between the blocks and the blue for the backing.




I know this is a little confusing, but how about one MORE option...

Option #4
Any of the fabrics above without a border between the blocks and just a border around the outside with the blocks but up against each other. I guess I was specifically thinking about this with Option #3. I like the brown flowers but thought it might be too much between the block.


I sure hope some one can help me or at least tell me which options to throw out. I like process of elimination just as much as picking my favorite.

Here are my rectangles!!

Okay so this quilt is a little bit of a learning experience for me. I thought I was so smart that why would I need to buy a pattern. I mean I can figure out the math and do it myself......Well, I think it would have been the best 8 bucks I ever spent if I would have just bought the pattern.

It's not that I don't like the way it turned out it is just not how I pictured it. Each rectangle is about 4 x 5 inches. So now I need to decide whether I should leave the rectangles right next to each other and just put on a border.

Or should I put borders around each rectangle and as a border. Like this.

I know they are terrible pictures but you get the idea.

It's coming along...

Well, I think I am going to love this quilt so I had to show you a picture so far. Or maybe I am stalling because the pieces are so small and I haven't done small pieces before. I just don't want to mess it up.

SNOW DAY!!

It's a snow day here!! I mean it is coming down and is supposed to all day. But the best part is my kids are at my moms. Yeah! And after all this snow they might not be able to come back tonight either. Don't get me wrong I love my kids but being stuck in the house with them, putting snow gear on and off, not having time to sew....ugghh. But I cut all my fabric last night for a new to me baby quilt and I am going to lay it all out and start sewing. And with no interuptions how great!!

Here's a sneak peak.......

My Finished Nursery Rhyme Quilt!!

This was a custom order for someone from my etsy site. She wanted a nursery rhyme rag quilt and when I saw this fabric I knew it was perfect. But it was cotton and I always make my rag quilts out of flannel, so I was a little nervous.

But it turned out perfect. I have to say I really love it and I think the cotton worked just as well as the flannel it just didn't shed everywhere, which was great! I hope the recipient loves it as much as I do.

Nursery Rhyme Back

I am getting real close to being done. Here is a look at the back. I will post the finish quilt tomorrow once it is washed and dried.

Sneak Peak

Here is a little sneak peak of the fabrics I am using in my current project. I think they are so cute!! It will be my first rag quilt made with cotton fabrics so I am excited and nervous about it. Eeekk

Satin Binding on a Large Lovey

Isn't this the cutest lovey!! It was a custom order I had and I think it turned out really, really cute.

But I spent a lot of time fiddling with the binding. I like it to be perfect. Is it just me or is it just that tedious putting on a satin binding? Are there some tricks I am missing that make it easier?

Taking Pictures!

Okay, one of my big goals for this year is to learn and perfect how to take awesome pictures of my stuff. I have really struggled with this. I finally learned that I could take great pictures outside. So I was able to take some decent pictures of my quilts and now it is winter. So I feel like I am back at square one and need to figure out how to take decent pictures inside.

I have tried to still take them outside, but it is winter and the sun is never just right. Plus it is cold outside and I HATE being cold. So I acted really pitiful today when my husband was home and he decided to help me. Yeah!! So, here is my lovely setup. I know it is nothing spectacular but it seems to be working pretty well. I have a small stack of baby quilts and lovies to take pictures of and to post to etsy, maybe 4-5 of each. I still don't think the pictures do my quilts total justice because you really need to feel how soft and cuddly they are to really appreciate them, but the pictures are 100 times better than before. (Thanks hubby!)