Scrappy Christmas Quilt-finished!

 

This past weekend I finished Zerah's scrappy Christmas quilt!  I quilted it during Zerah's nap on Thursday, and I sewed the binding on during the Auburn/ Alabama game on Friday and Saturday night while rewatching the game.  We won!  I think we watched the game three times this past weekend. We are huge Auburn fans because my husband and I both went there, as did my brother, his brother, my dad, his dad, all of my aunts and uncles, most of my cousins, and really the list can go on and on.

I am very happy with the way the quilt turned out.  It is about 46" by 46" square. It is backed with a soft green flannel sheet that I have had for a while.  Six of the blocks were made from the Scrappy Christmas block swap I participated in last summer.  I made the three blocks on the diagonal from the bottom left corner to the upper right corner.  Zerah has already been sitting on it looking intently at all of the fabric, pointing at everything, and saying, "Dis" and "Dat".  She likes it!

Scrappy Christmas Quilt

I stayed up late last night finishing piecing this Christmas quilt together.  It is going to be for Zerah.  Last summer I participated in a Scrappy Christmas Block exchange, and I am just now getting all the blocks put together.   I received six blocks from the exchange, and I made two last summer with one more added last night.  I like how bright and happy it is!  It is 46"x46".

I have been thinking of the Christmas traditions I want to start with my family, and I want to make a concerted effort to start establishing the ones passed down to me from my family and new ones I develop as well.  One tradition I want to start is having a Christmas quilt that you sleep under starting Thanksgiving night leading up to Christmas day.  I think that will be a fun way to start anticipating the season each year.  I don't know if I will have this one finished by Thursday night (probably not), but hopefully it will be finished during this holiday season.:)

I need to finish making my Christmas presents, too!  I have one almost finished and several more to go.

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

I finally fiished my postage stamp quilt!  I am so excited that it is finished!

 

  I started working on it during the spring of 2008, so it only took two and a half years.:)  It is made with 3,800 1 1/2 inch squares-3,000 on the front and 800 on the back.

 Each block contains 100 squares.  The finished size is 80" x 91".  I started piecing it on my mom's vintage 70's Kenmore sewing machine and finished with my Bernina.  I stippled all over for the quilting; I used eleven bobbins of thread, which is the most quilting I have ever done on a single quilt.  I really like the dense quilting on this one.

 I started collecting squares way back then, and I participated in two rounds of a postage stamp swap on Craftster to get an assortment of colors. I knew I wanted to make blocks of one color, but I wasn't sure about the arrangement.

  I tried a couple different variations, and I really liked some of them; I may go back and make another one in the future based off one of the variations I tried.   I wanted it to be big enough to fit a full size bed when it was finished, so I quickly realized I would need a border or to separate the blocks.  I am happy with the way it turned out. 

 I went with my daughter to the park to take pictures of it, and it is a little wrinkled from being squished in the bottom basket of her stroller.  I kind of like the wrinkled look because it shows it will be loved and used.:)


 I have always photographed my quilts in my backyard, but it was fun trying to get different pictures of it.  It is currently back in the washer because it did get dirty from lying on the grass; we have a lot of geese in Colorado.

I actually sewed the binding on by hand on this one.  It was the first time I have ever tried that!  It felt like it took forever; it was about two weeks sewing for 30 minutes to an hour at night with a marathon sewing session during the Auburn vs. Old Miss game last night. 

It is definitely one of my favorite quilts I have made, if not my favorite.  I love that it is my own design and that it turned out just like I wanted.

If you want to see in-progress pictures, follow the links below:
May 28, 2008-starting, July 14, 2008, September 8, 2008 (layouts), February 23, 2009 -top almost pieced, May 29, 2010 basted and started quilting and then started ripping stitches out, and October 15, 2010-quilting.

I am entering this into Amy's Quilt Festival.  I look forward to this event every spring and fall.  There are some amazing quilts every year, so go look if you are ready to be inspired!

You can see my previous entries by following the links below:
Spring 2010 and Fall 2009

Thank you for stopping by!

Patchwork Dreams

This past weekend I finished this patchwork sleepsack for Zerah. Ever since I first received Handmade Beginnings by Anna Maria Horner this summer, I have been wanting to make one!  I decided I better make it soon before she was too old for sleepsacks!  She is borderline too old at 13 months, but I love how she looks in them.  I am not ready for her to have a blanket in the bed because that means she is no longer a baby.:)

So she gets to wear a sleepsack a little bit longer.  I used the pattern from Handmade Beginnings but added about ten inches in length.  The pattern is for a 0-3 month old.  I also added another inch to the sides, but I don't know if I needed to do that.  I can't wait to see her bundled up in it tonight ready for bed.

I also finished the quilting on my postage stamp quilt last weekend, and I am slowly handsewing the binding on.  It is taking forever!  I have put in about 5 hours, and I am not finished with one side yet.  I have been working on it a little each night after Zerah goes to bed.  It is nice to have a project to work on in front of the T.V.



In addition, I recently stumbled upon the Front Range Modern Quilt Guild!  Modern Quilt Guilds have been popping up all over the country, but there wasn't one here yet.  Friday, I stumbled upon it, and signed up immediately!  So, if you are in the Front Range area and like modern quilting, go sign up!  I am so excited there is a chapter nearby!

I hope to finish this weekend...

Well, I may not finish the whole thing, but I hope to have all the quilting done! I worked on it this past weekend, and I am so happy with the way it is turning out so far. I have used five bobbins, and I have been to the store twice for thread. I don't know why I bought a little spool-what was I thinking?

It has been busy around here this past week. We had parent-teacher conferences Wednesday and Thursday, so I was at work from 6:30 am didn't arrive home until 8:30 on Wednesday. Thursday was 6:30 in the morning until 6:00 at night. I am so happy it is almost the weekend!

Keep those little legs warm!

This past weekend I made fifteen pairs of legwarmers for Zerah for this upcoming fall/winter. She has so many cute dresses that she needed something to keep her little legs warm when it gets cold outside. I had a lot of fun picking out the socks to make these!



I don't think we will lack for choices for legwarmers for her to wear! I couldn't decide, so I kept making some, and making more, and finally I stopped at fifteen. I used this tutorial on how to make them. I found all the socks at Target for $1 each. So this project cost me about $15, which is pretty good for 15 pairs of legwarmers. I estimate the retail cost of these to be around $150-200. She now has a spiffy little collection.


Don't those little legs look cute in their argyle glory? I love argyle.
They go together so quickly, too. I think each pair took about 10-15 minutes. I may need to make some more for quick baby gifts!


I am off to go take our daily walk. I am trying to walk around 3 miles a day! It is so nice to just be outside in the sunshine-enjoying fall weather!

Baby Legwarmers!

I love legwarmers on babies; they are so cute! I don't like paying at least $7 a pair for them. I was so excited to find this tutorial the other day on making legwarmers from knee socks, and I had to try it out!

Yesterday, I went to Target in search of knee socks, and I found these for $1 a pair! They were on sale from $2, which isn't bad either. So I picked up many pairs, so I can make legwarmers for Zerah to wear under all her cute dresses when it is cold and snowy here this winter for $1 each. I made the pair above in about ten minutes.:)

I had to share quickly, so all the pictures were taken at night when the light isn't great. The sale ends on the legwarmers at my Target on Oct. 2nd.

Little Woo

This past week I made Zerah another Auburn outfit. I think this will be the last one for this fall because she now has plenty of Auburn themed clothing items: A-lined Lucy Aubie dress, Polka Dot Crossover Dress with orange ribbons, an Auburn T-shirt, a cheerleader outfit, and a bubble suit! She could wear a different Auburn outfit for six days straight!

The top in the picture is the Little Woo by Patterns by Figgy. It is a very easy pattern to put together; although, I managed to assemble it with the slit on the left side instead of the right side that the pattern calls for! The hardest part was cutting out the knit material; it kept sliding and wrinkling up. I love how woven cotton stays flat. used some scrap Auburn material that I had in my stash for the cotton on the left that peeks out of the side of the shirt. I made my own fabric covered buttons with little tigers for the buttons. That is my favorite part! I also love the orange binding around the collar. It is a 12 month size and the sleeves are super long on Zerah. She is petite, but they are possibly 6 inches too long! I am debating cutting off the length or saving it for when she grows into it.

The pants went together quickly on Saturday. I added an Auburn themed cuff to the bottom of this stretchy chambray material I had to make the little pants. They are a little short, so I am going to lengthen this pattern next time.

Last week was Kid's Challenge Week at Elsie Marley, and I did finish these little pants and top for Zerah. The challenge is to sew for an hour a day for seven days. I failed miserably at this! I spent an hour Wednesday night preparing the pattern (tracing the pattern, cutting out fabric) and two hours Thursday making the Little Woo Top. I only managed to finish the top on Thursday because I took the day off work, so I could sew during Zerah's naps. Saturday, I made the pants in about an hour. So I spent about about 4 out of the 7 hours of the challenge this past week sewing.

I think the next project I work on will be finishing up some old ufos. Hope everyone is doing well!

Zerah's First Birthday!

Zerah had her first birthday last weekend! I can't believe it has been a year already since she was born. The time goes by so fast! I spent the week before her birthday getting some crafty items ready for her party.



I want to start certain traditions with her that stay the same as she gets older. One of the things I want to do is hang a birthday banner that she has her picture taken with every year on her birthday so you can see how much she has grown. I also like the idea of the banner being reusable and a non-plastic item, so I made her one for her birthday this year!




The pennants are about nine inches long and eight and a half inches across. Most of the fabric I used is leftover from dresses that I have made her this past year. I like that as we pull it out in years to come will be a reminder of all the little dresses that I made her this past year. There are a few pieces that haven't been made into clothing yet but will be soon. I took pictures during the process, so if anyone is interested in how I made this, I will be happy to post a tutorial soon.


One of Zerah's favorite things are ducks! It is one of the first words that she said and she loves rubber duckies, so I had to make her duck cupcakes. I have never tried making "fancy" cupcakes before, so I was super pleased with how these turned out. I watched this tutorial on youtube, which really explains how to make these 3-D cupcakes. My mom and I had a good time putting these cupcakes together the night before her birthday. I made Hershey Extra Dark Cake for the cupcakes following the directions on the extra dark cocoa powder container. I over filled the cupcake pan, and they overflowed in the oven! My mom and I were able to salvage them by trimming the excess off the sides, and it turned out fine.

The best part was as soon as Zerah saw the cupcakes, she said, "Duck!" and proceeded to suck on one of the duck's beaks. She got excited everytime she saw one of her cupcakes, which was my intention all along.;)


For her cake, I used the Great Big Cupcake pan from William's and Sonoma. It went together very easily. For the liner, I melted candy coating in the pan, and once it hardened, popped it out of the pan. I had to cut the bottom of the cake down to make it fit in the liner. I read that you can use small round pans for the bottom, and the cake will fit easily in the liner that way. I followed instructions that I found here for the liner. The cake was Vanilla with Vanilla Buttercream icing found on the package for the cupcake pan.

We used sprinkles to decorate it and a "1" candle for the top!

I need to get another picture of her birthday dress. My mom found it for her, and it was so cute. It is a smocked, light purple dress with cupcakes around the collar. So cute! It was a great birthday! She received so many beautiful handmade items for her birthday that I will share later on in the week.

Anna Tunic in Midwest Modern

I finished another Anna Tunic this past weekend, and I wore it for the first time yesterday! It is a little wrinkled after being worn all day, but I wanted to snap a picture to share. I used Amy Butler's Midwest Modern line, and I made a small this time. It fits much better every where except under the armholes. It is a little high but wearable. I am debating cutting it a little lower and redoing it.
I love how it turned out!

Auburn Dress

I made this dress this past week for a potential customer on etsy, but I think I may need to keep it! If I do sell it, then I am making one for Zerah, too. It is perfect for watching Auburn football games this fall. It will be cute with a long sleeve onesie underneath, too!

I like the way the back crosses over!

I sewed buttonholes on the ribbon, so it can be attached to the buttons on the front of the dress. That way the ribbon can be taken off for naps or for when it is being washed!

Circle Skirts!

This past week I finished up my circle skirt class at the Fancy Tiger in Denver. I made two circle skirts! These were actually pretty easy to make once you figured out your dimensions. Since they are made using your own measurements, they fit perfectly! They have a jersey band waist so they are super comfortable, too. The class was a lot of fun, and there were only two of us taking the class so I received as much help as I needed. I do love small classes.

I am really happy with the way they came out!

Hoot! Hoot! Part 2

I am making clothes for Zerah for her first birthday, and this past weekend I finished another owl inspired dress. I have been admiring applique recently, but I don't have an embroidery machine; my mom and my mother-in-law both do! So, I decided to try appliqueing an owl the old school way. I used some scraps from other dresses, my Anna Tunic (for his head-Zerah and I can match!), and some from my hourglass quilt. I fused the scraps on, and then zig-zagged around the owl. Although there are a few places where it isn't perfect, I am happy with my first applique experience!

I went a little crazy with the jumbo ric-rack, and I used my ruffler on the highest setting to make some serious ruffles. The ric-rack looks crooked here, but the wind was blowing the dress a little; it is straight!

This is the last owl dress that I will make her for this fall, but she may need one next fall, too!

Anna Tunic

I finished a shirt for me this past week, and I finally got pictures this past weekend. It is the Anna Tunic by Amy Butler. I found it pretty easy to construct, although I thought it would be hard to do. It is fully lined, and it can be worn with the belt or without. I really like the collar area, and the way it closes in the back.

It is easy to slip on over my head without fastening the buttons, which is nice. I will be able to wear it to work or on weekends. I think it will look cute with either jeans or khakis, and I am really excited about wearing it. That is pretty good for one of my first handmade shirts for me!


I am definitely making it again, and I already have some fabric for a version out of Amy Butler Midwest Modern in green

Details:
Pattern: Amy Butler Anna Tunic
Size: Medium-I may try the small next time, as it is a little big.
Fabric: Joanne's

Hoot! Hoot!

I have started making Zerah some clothes for fall/winter out of corduroy. I love corduroy. I found some really cute corduroy at Joanne's this past week, and I made her a little owl dress. I added some ribbon I had and a ruffle along the bottom out of some scrap fabric leftover from one of my quilts. It matches well, doesn't it? I love being able to use fabric that is leftover from previous projects, and it reinforces the desire to keep every usable scrap because it might come in handy. That is, of course, why my scrap bins are a wreck.:) I also found the cute flower buttons there as well.


I think it will be cute for October and for Thanksgiving. I really like the dark brown and orange together. Here are the details:

Pattern: Lucy by Children's Corner
Size: 12 months
Fabric: Joanne's

Rapunzel Dress

When I saw that Heather Ross was coming out with more of her fairy tale prints in the Far Far Away 2 line, I knew I had to make a dress out of them. So I picked up the Rapunzel print and the coordinating roses to make this little dress out of for Zerah.

I have made this pattern before, but it about drove me crazy this time. I kept sewing the sides up in the wrong order enclosing the straps; I ripped out the sides no less than three times, but I like the way it turned out.

Pattern: Bonnie Blue Madison
Fabric: Far Far Away 2 by Heather Ross
Lining is orange and white gingham
Size: 18-24 months

I have been taking Zerah for three mile walks everyday this summer while I have been home trying to be active. It is nice to get outside in the fresh air. Here is the view on our walk today:

It was beautiful out!

McKenna Playsuit with Amy Butler Midwest Modern

While I was down in Mobile, my mother-in-law, Shelia, gave me some of her scraps from her sewing projects and this pattern. I had to sew something last week because I had been away from my sewing machine for so long! I was suffering from withdrawal symptoms... So using some of the scraps and the pattern, I made this little playsuit for next summer. I am trying to make things ahead because Zerah has plenty of clothes for right now.:)

I like the way this turned out! The top fabric is one of my favorites. I really need to pick up some of this fabric for a shirt for me.

Pattern: Bonnie Blue McKenna
Size: 18-24 months
Fabric: Amy Butler Midwest Modern