i've been gone forever.

I didn't anticipate it, but I've been gone forever (thanks to those who have sent emails/comments inquiring about me).  We welcomed our new baby girl, Elsie, into our home on January 12th, and she has been such a delight.  She is so beautiful, and the kids love her.  She was a tiny thing weighing 6lbs 2 oz at birth, but has grown so much over the past few months.

She's 3 months old now, and I am finally starting to feel like we have some order in our home.  Routine has returned, and she is a welcome friend.

I have found little bits of time here and there to quilt, and even finished up my One Block Over quilting bee quilt.  I love this quilt, it's busy and colorful and fun.  

I quilted scallops, which is new for me, and they aren't perfect, but I like them.  I'll definitely be trying them again.  I had intended for them to be more like hills instead of valleys, but I was almost half-way finished before I realized they were going the wrong way, and there was no way I was starting over.  I think they look like roof shingles, so it fits in nicely with the theme--that's what I tell myself.

my favorite part of this quilt is probably the backing.  Growing up, my sister had a quilt with this print on it (but red).  it's Hollie Hobbie and totally adorable.  I found a steal on ebay, and snatched up 4 yards. 

 bound in a dark blue.

scraps quilt

 

I finished this quilt up before we moved in October, but just barely got around to taking any pics.  I'm not super in love with it.  I like it enough, but something doesn't feel right.  I'm not sure if it's the layout or the putty color...I can't put my finger on it, but that's okay, the point was to use up some scraps.

I decided to bind it in this small flower print (Children at Play) to make it a little more pretty, and it turned out to be my favorite part.  

  When I started this quilt I thought I'd make the whole quilt top scrappy, but changed my mind.  I felt like it was getting too busy.

I love this print for backing.  It also helps to pretty it up.  This is it for 2011!  (finally).  Baby #4 is scheduled to come this week, so I'm pretty sure I won't be at my sewing machine for a while.  Too bad, because I have really been feeling the itch!

ginger quilt

 

My oldest daughter is 7 years old, and just before she was born I made her this baby quilt.  She LOVED that thing (still does).  It went everywhere with us, church, grocery store, airplanes, bed.  It was her number one comfort item.  Over the years it has suffered from wear, and eventually she didn't "need" it as much.  But it was still always in bed with her. 

Fast forward 5 or so years and my 2 year old discovered how soft and cuddly it is, and pretty much stole it from her big sister.  Luckily she just likes it for sleeping, but it has always bugged her older sister.  I haven't been super fond of it either.  It's pretty ragged, and I don't want to see it completely wear out.

One day, my 7 year old suggested I make a new one for my 2 year old.  I thought that sounded like a fair plan, so we went to work making a new one for Christmas.  At first I wanted to make it as close to exact as I could, but decided I didn't want to buy any fabric for this project, so really only the pattern is the same.

I kept warning my 7 year old that this might not work.  Her sister might not care for a new, crispy quilt.  She might just want her older sisters quilt that is broken in and soft.

But you know what, it worked.  My 2 year old loves her new quilt and was even willing to give back the old one!  Yay!

I love both of these quilts, they seem so sentimental to me.  I keep wondering if I'll have to make another version for our next baby.

one more christmas project

I am making a quilt for my 2 year old for Christmas and for some crazy reason I decided to hand quilt it.  I was a little nervous that hand quilting wasn't a good idea because of time, but I finished it up last night and just need to bind it now. 

christmas projects

I cannot believe it is already December 20th.  My kids are getting so excited and we are enjoying the break from school.  I decided to make some more pot holders this year to give away.  I really enjoy potholders.  They are such a fast project, instant results (almost).

 I decided to try my hand at paper-piecing, I'm definitely no pro, but I enjoyed it.  See look at my apple, it got chopped on the side a bit.

I'm loving the black and white binding!

I also put together some ornaments.  These are great because you can easily slip them into your christmas cards.

 

I purchased the candy cane pattern here.  I shrunk it down to make the ornament, which was a very bad idea, the pieces were so small.

I hope you have a wonderful Christmas Season!

a few things

I feel like I've taken a quilting/sewing hiatus lately, and I have really started to miss it.  We actually moved a month ago, and it has taken me FOREVER to get settled.  Everything is finally unpacked, and I have even started to use my machine!  

Before my machine was packed away, I finished up some Dear Jane blocks, and even realized that I like paper-piecing.  It was fun.  They are definitely not perfect, and this one in particular is totally wrong. 

I either used white when it should've been red, or vice-versa on those outside triangles, but there is NO WAY I am redoing it.

In my move, I realized I have WAY too much fabric.  It almost made me sick.  I don't know how I have accumulated so much, but I decided to start getting rid of some of it.  I hope to eventually destash some of it, but for now I sliced up some Japanese charm packs and listed them in my shop.

I also have some baby bibs that I'm trying to get listed.  I made these just before I got pregnant and sick, so they got put on the back burner.  I finally got pics taken and am slowly listing them in my shop.

sew to swap

I was lucky enough to contribute to another book, Sew to Swap, written by Chrissie Grace. What a fun project this was.

I just have to point out what a great looking book this is, yes the quilts are pretty, but the instructions and directions are beautifully illustrated (by Ariel).They are one of my favorite parts of the book.

As the title suggests, the quilts are all sewing swaps. I was able to contribute to several of them, and it's so fun to thumb through this book and see all the finished projects!

You can find the book here, use promo code SEW2SWAP for a discount!  Also, follow along with the tour!

November 20 A Little Sweetness
November 21 House of A La Mode
November 22 I’m Just a Guy Who Quilts
November 23 Little Bit Funky
November 27 In His Grace