Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! Hope everyone has a great day and weekend. I wish I could spend it sewing, but work is calling my name. We're headed to my mom's and then I work at Operation Christmas Child Friday and Saturday. If you haven't done a box and live in the area, we are accepting and processing boxes until December 6 (possibly as late as December 10). Check out the EZGive option to track your box as it travels around the world. This year's boxes are going to different regions. In the past, we've sent boxes processed here to Central Asia and Eastern Europe, as well as Iraq. This year, boxes are going to Trinidad, several African countries, Nepal and a couple other countries.

Quilt #3

I finally finished this quilt. This is the first quilt I put together. I decided to use it to practice stippling. Not the greatest, but hey, I'm still learning. One thing I wasn't thrilled about, but is growing on me is that palm tree print that I used for the background on the star blocks. The info for the quilting class (taught by Liz from Scottie Dog Quilts) mentioned background material. I thought it meant the back of the quilt and by the time I realized my mistake, I was sitting in class. I decided I would rather get some blocks done than sit around watching everyone else sew, so I used the palm trees for my background. It seemed really busy and disorganized, especially since I like things to match (I'm a little OCD), but I bit my tongue and now I like how bright and funky the quilt is. Plus, I found some even cooler fabric for the back and border. It's for my son, who was so excited that he took it on a sleep-over at his Nana's as soon as it came out of the dryer.

New books

I rarely win contests. I'm just one of those people... I always laugh when I put my name in on something. So it was even funnier when I logged on this morning and found that I have won 2 giveaways in the last month. Bring on the books! I'm looking forward to reading this book from Cari once I can get it away from my husband who snagged it while I was quilting in WI. And these will be fun to read with my son, thanks to Clair.

To-do list

My to-do list is slowly shrinking. I got a lot done in WI, at least I think I did. We ended up staying up until 4:30 a.m. our first night there and 2:30 a.m. the second night. Needless to say, we were all exhausted by the end, but are looking forward to doing it again sometime. I'm finally starting to get the hang of free-motion quilting and stippling. A friend's mom gave her pointers and she passed them on to me. I finished a doll quilt for a friend's daughter, a quilt top for my younger niece, and a pair of flannel pants for my older niece. I started and have since finished quilting my son's quilt and baby Noelle's quilt. Now I just need to finish binding the two quilts and I can cross them off the list, too. I still need to layer, quilt, and bind my nieces' matching quilts (for Christmas) and get going on my pile of homemade presents (almost all my gifts are going to be homemade this year).

Back to WI

I'm off to WI again. The Crafty Chicks are congregating at the cabin to make a big mess with fabric and paper, watch lots of movies, eat junk food (and hot meals...seeing as how we're all moms...whoever heard of a mom eating a hot meal?), and stay up until odd hours of the night (we're talking 3 a.m.). See you next week!

Bag obsession

The women in my family are really into bags. Not purses, bags. I mean we appreciate a good purse, but what really catches the eye is a fun tote, messenger bag, or regular bag/purse. Last summer, I noticed a friend with small children constantly struggling with a plastic bag of snacks, diapers, etc. It turned out she didn't have a good bag to fit everything, but she didn't need a full-blown diaper bag. I decided to buy her a bag, but couldn't find anything I liked. As a mom, it's nice to have a bag you can hook over your head so you're not fighting a purse slipping off your shoulder while dealing with kids. Everything on the market was either too big or only fit on one shoulder. So I came up with this bag. You can tie a knot in the handle to fit on one shoulder or leave it long and wear it like a messenger bag. Added bonus: It's reversible and totally machine-washable. The downside is that there aren't enough pockets, but I'm sure more and better pockets will begin to appear on future versions. I made this second bag this weekend for a friend. Her newborn finally came home after two weeks in the hospital. Who couldn't use a good cheering up after a stressful time like a new bag, especially one with a matching receiving blanket?

Side 1

Side 2

Pocket

Bird's eye view

Finito!

I love that I actually got stuff done this week while on vacation! I did some decorative sewing on a pile of receiving blankets; now I just need to handstitch a small area on each one (the thing I dread most!). I started (and finished!) a flannel blanket for one niece and flannel pants for the other niece, as well as a nursing coverup for a friend. I started (but haven't finished) a receiving blanket and matching purse for a good friend. The weather was cold, but we had several gorgeous days. We woke up to a dusting of snow this morning.

The cabin in WI

My corner of the sunroom (by the fire)

The view over my sewing machine!

The best part was catching movement out of the corner of my eye and looking up in time to see a bald eagle (or 2 or 3 or 4) soaring and diving over the lake. (They have a nest around the corner.)

I can't wait to be back here in 2 weeks for a craft retreat with some friends!

Vacation!

I am off to Wisconsin to sew (and have a much-needed family vacation). I have a long list to work on: a nursing cover-up, receiving blankets, 3 quilts, 1 flannel blanket, and a purse. We'll see what I get finished...

Red and cream

I'm messing around with some scraps. We'll have to see what comes out of it. I'm making a very large quilt for my sister and new brother-in-law. I should have it finished in time for their 5th anniversary. The top is a pinwheel pattern (red and blue) on a cream background with a red-blue-red border. The back is a yummy chocolate brown. (I may just keep it for myself...) So I have hundreds (maybe more like a thousand) little triangle scraps. I've been sewing them together (cream and red). Each pair makes a small square (I mean less than 2 inches when you figure seams to sew the squares together). Now I just need to figure out how I will put them all together. Maybe I'll just make them a lap quilt with these and keep the big one.

Daisies and more

I'm trying to figure out this whole free-motion quilting thing. I feel like I'm totally off somehow, maybe I just need to keep practicing? I have this quilt for a friend's baby (a girl after 2 boys). I already showed it to her, so it's okay to talk about it. =) The entire thing is basted together, just waiting for the quilting and binding. I made the top and back in an afternoon. It was inspired by this quilt by AmandaJean. (By the way, if you haven't been by her site, go there now, seriously. I love her choices of fabrics and patterns.)

My friend, Laura, loves daisies! I had found some daisy fabric and made her a receiving blanket with it. Then I got an invitation to a shower for her. The shower was a couple days before my baby sister's wedding. The budget was tight, due to tux rental, gifts, etc., and while I knew she would understand the lack of a gift, I really wanted to bless her. Laura is one of those people who is quick to encourage you, but is totally ready to give you a kick in the butt if you need it. In other words, she is a very honest person and doesn't hide who she is inside. Laura has been such a godly example to me as a woman, a wife, and a mother! (She is also a quilter.)

So anyways, back to the quilt. I called Chris (my very handsome husband) and told him he got to choose a gift. Option #1: I spend the day cleaning the house and I leave as soon as he got home from work to buy a present on the way to the shower. Option #2: I spend the day sewing and make a quilt out of scraps and fabric I had in my stash. He thought about it (the house needed cleaning...mostly the kitchen) and went with option #2. (He knows how relaxing sewing is for me and I was pretty stressed out that week...I love my husband!) So I pulled out the fabric and went to work. I would love to quilt daisies on each large square, but first I have to learn how to free-motion quilt. Oh, and that baby was born almost 3 weeks ago, so I'd better get this done before she's too big for it! Did I mention that in addition to daisies, Laura is a sucker for polka dots?Here's what half of the squares on the front look like. The back was pieced in 3 sections with the pink/white and white/multi-colour fabric. The purple makes me think of Van Gogh.