potholder

The holidays are long gone, but I still wanted to share some of the potholders I made to give away to friends and neighbors and teachers this year.  I told myself I wasn't going to make things to give away this year--I'm not sure why I thought that was a good plan, I'd rather spend time at my sewing machine than cooking and shopping.(Most of the time anyway).  

I used a couple blocks from Lori Holts book, Quilty Fun (such a great book), and then did a plus pattern.  I can't pick a favorite.

I'm not sure how many I ended up making, but there were several times I swore this batch (I make them in batches of 4-5) would be the last, and then I needed just one more...so I'd make another batch.

 finished size is about 8.5x10.5

Product Review: Rotary Blade Sharpener

I have always wondered if a product exists to sharpen rotary cutter blades, but had never really looked into it or researched the options out there.   So, when I was given the opportunity to review a sharpener and share my thoughts with you all here, I was eager to try it out.  

The sharpener is made by USA Sharpeners and is designed specifically for rotary cutters that we use in almost every quilt/sewing project.  

To sharpen a blade using the Orbital Rotary Cutter Blade Sharpener, remove the cover from the sharpener, remove the blade from your cutter (can be 45mm or 60mm), place the blade on the spindle (be careful!), put a few drops of oil on the blade, replace cover with appropriate grinder (there are two--fine and coarse), then sharpen the blade by rotating the wheel.

It really is very easy, but does take a little practice to get the right touch.  Admittedly, the first time I sharpened my blade I didn't do a great job...it was fine, but not great.  There were some unsharpened spots, so my fabric wasn't cutting smoothly. 

So I tried again using a firmer pressure and it worked much better.  There is definitely a learning curve, but it wasn't difficult to get the hang of.  

So, my thoughts on the product:  

I love that I can reuse expensive blades, I don't think it's the same as a brand new factory sharpened blade, and I did feel that the resharpened blade went dull quicker than a new one, but it prolonged the use of my blade, and ultimately that will save me money.

I was pleased with the safety of the product.  The scariest part is transferring the blade from your cutter to the sharpener.  Be careful, we all know the blades are sharp...but once it's on the spindle, it's very safe.

It's simple to use.  I will save the instructions, because I know that I'll forget what I am doing and need to reference them, but it's a pretty simple task.  (you can also download instructions on their website, there is also a video).

Overall it's a great product, I recommend it.  If you have questions, leave a comment.

Merry December

Can you believe that we are already in the middle of the holiday season???  I can't.  I've been sewing up a few things for Christmas, and started this cute Christmas sampler quilt along that was going on over on instagram.  Hosted by Lori Holt.  Many of the patterns are free, and some are from her book, Quilty Fun. 

I don't often sew such cute blocks, and I am enjoying them so much.  This is a pretty small quilt, so I am working on some extra blocks to make it bigger.  I want a quilt we can sit under.  So, the fun continues.  

pivots quilt

Oh, boy.  This is a colorful quilt, and I love it.  My first Christmas gift finish!  Yay!  I used my drunkards path die for my GO! Cutter to cut it out, and it went together so quickly and easily.  Curves aren't my favorite to sew, but I love the way they look. 

When I started cutting out this quilt, I knew that I wanted to use only solids, but my solids stash is embarrassingly small, so I quickly ran out of variety and color and added in some almost solids.  The overall effect is basically the same and I didn't purchase any new fabric for it.  Yay!

With the front so bright and bold, I knew I wanted the backing to be muted and mellow.  I really wanted one piece for the whole back, but didn't have the yardage, so I pieced a few together.

 I quilted the circles free motion in spirals, and I cannot bring myself to show you close ups, they are terrible.  It's a shame, I know nobody really notices, but I wish they were better.  I know that spirals are much better done with a walking foot, but I could not bring myself to push this quilt through my machine that many times. I also stitched in the ditch between each circle, so it's still soft.

 Black and White binding.  It was the best option with all that color!

 p.s.  bonus points to anyone who gets the pivots reference...(farmers will know)

Kaleidograph

Have you guys seen this new Kaleidograph Toy?  It was new to me, but once I started playing around with it, I'm hooked.  Basically you have different cards, all with different shapes and colors, and you stack them to create patterns.  (it also comes in black and white, which would be very cool too).

I love this sort of toy.  My daughter and I started playing around with them and we couldn't wait to share our creations.   We took pictures of some of our favorites.

  So, I had to make one into a quilt block...I sat down with my graphing notebook and started sketching and calculating, and honestly it made my brain hurt.  I put it aside for a few days and decided to just go for it.  Improv-style.  No planning--and it worked!  It's not an exact match, but I like it that way.  I'm not good enough for an exact match.  

Here's my block:

 Here's my inspiration:  

 What do you think?  I can see a few places I wish I would've used green...but I love that it got my juices flowing.  I would love to do a whole sampler quilt from these creations.

find it here.

Christmas Decorations Blog Hop!

The folks at Stitch Craft Create recently sent me a digital copy of this book, Handmade Scandinavian Christmas, and I'm excited to share it with you.  (Can you believe it is already this time of year??!!) 

First of all, this is a pretty book.  The images and photos are exactly what Christmas is in my mind.  In Texas, we just don't have snow, and usually we pretend it is cold enough to light a fire in our fireplace.  Despite the weather, we still like to decorate and make our home festive, even if the outdoors doesn't feel like a snow white Christmas.  

Many of the ideas in this book use natural supplies, things you can find in your backyard, and if they aren't found in your backyard, most can be found in your craft box.  And, there are A-L-O-T of projects in this one book.  It is chock full of ideas with directions for each, that really serve as inspiration.  You can take their ideas and make what you want.

I made a list of all the projects I wanted to try, and have 2 to show you.  My 5 year old helped with both of them, and loved it.  

First this wooden star, made from tree branches.  Mine doesn't look as nice as the one in the book, but that is the beauty of this type of project.  It doesn't really matter.  It still looks great.  We made both a 5 point star and a Star of David.  We also added glitter, because 5 year olds love glitter.  I also think these would be fun to spray paint.  Gold would be lovely.

  

Next we made these paper balls.  Let me say that these were EASY, and I think you could really spruce up a tree with them.  I didn't have any cool colorful scrapbooking paper, so we just used white, and I still like them.  I think I will purchase some fun paper and make these with my other kids over the Thanksgiving Holiday.

 I don't know that they will survive multiple Christmas', but that's okay.  We will just make more.  I think they would even be fun as garland.

 this image is from the book, to give you an idea of what colorful paper would look like.

You can find the book here. (or ebook)

and other handmade Christmas items here.

Stitch Craft Create has some really fun non-holiday books too, here.

follow along the blog hop:

Sat 1st – Crafts from the Cwtch (crochet candle holders)

Sun 2nd – Patchwork Posse (ribbon baubles)

Mon 3rd – Moogsmum (paper bird garland)

Tue 4th – Yarn Demon (crochet snowflakes)

Wed 5th – From the Blue Chair (Washi tape cards & baubles)

Thur 6th – Straight Grain

Fri 7th – A Quilt Is Nice

Sat 8th – Haak & Smaak

Mon 10th – Knits and Crosses

Tue 11th – A Bright Corner

Wed 12th – Imagine Gnats

Thu 13th – Thimbleanna

Fri 14th – The Creations of Crazy Dazy

Sat 15th – Ric Rac

Sun 16th – Chickpea Sewing Studio

Mon 17th – Ellison Lane

Tue 18th – Olivia Jane Handcrafted

Wed 19th – Boolah Baguette

Thu 20th – Made Peachy

Fri 21st – Pieced Brain

Sat 22nd – Rose Hip

Sun 23rd – Sewing Is for Girls

Mon 24th – Miss Print

Tue 25th – Feather’s Flights

Wed 26th – Follow the White Bunny

Thu 27th – Dotty Doily

Fri 28th – Guthrie & Ghani

Sat 29th – Cut to Pieces

Sun 30th – Molly Flanders Makerie

Pineapple quilt

I have nearly finished my pineapple blocks, and I'm really excited about this quilt.

tutorial found here (NO PAPER PIECING!) 

Fat Quarter Shop has a really great promotion going on.  All Art Gallery Fabrics are on sale.  Art Gallery has some really cool prints right now, with new designers all the time.  If you have never worked with Art Gallery Fabric, you are in for a treat.  Their fabric has such a great feel and drape.  Some of the softest fabric out there.  Check them out.

use code:  AG2014