Sneak Peak at Grayson's Quilt

Owen's Tent

A visit to the library this spring ended with bringing 3 different sewing books home. I figured why spend $20 on a tutorial book when typically I make 1item from it before it collects dust on the shelf. One of the books featured this tent on its cover and I immediately thought of my nephew and how much he loves forts and hiding behind couches and cushions. So I thought it would be a good gift for his 2nd birthday (which was in May). I had all of the fabric cut out before his birthday, but with the busyness of school and work the project was lost in the shuffle...until yesterday. A burst of energy and motivation came over me and I was able to complete it in less than 24 hours! woohoo! It feels good to have it off in the mail. I hope that it brings so much joy to Owen and more kids to come :)

I made a new resolution, now that my thrifting challenge is over...I cannot buy new fabric until I use up what I have on projects and scrap quilts. Now there are a lot of new babies just around the corner, so hopefully I'll have plenty of projects for those smaller pieces of fabric cluttering my closet. Hopefully, summer will also grant the extra needed time to get them done. I'll be sure to post pics of my work...still looking for that breakthrough craft that I can sell on etsy and become a millionare...or even earn just a few hundred dollars here and there :)

summertime

I purchased this end-of-the-bolt fabric on sale from my favorite ballard shop, The Quilting Loft. I've been hanging on to it since the fall and finally have the motivation to get a little crafty now that school is soon over. I though I'd start off easy and found this simple reversible napkin tutorial through the Sew, Mama, Sew Blog. To get started I cut out the 13 1/2 in. squares of coordinating fabric. Tomorrow I hope to sew them together with a lime green ric-rack trim. I'm pretty excited...they will be the perfect touch for the table during summer entertaining!

Christmas Gift - Summer Tote Bag

I made a simple tote bag for my Mom and Kendra this year. I hadn't sewn a bag before, but found this pattern simple and easy to follow. The bag is perfect for carrying school papers or groceries and I like it because you can wear it on your shoulder or you can carry it in your hand and it doesn't brush the ground. Lucky for me I had time to make them during the snow days before we left for California! Of course, I chose bright summery prints...thinking it would be a great bag to take to the beach! I made the two simultaneously and it took me only a few hours (and I'm pretty slow!). I think to improve the bag for carrying groceries I would make that base a bit wider and add something to maintain its shape. If you're interested in making one for yourself, I found the tutorial at the Sew, Mama, Sew blog (one of my favorites!). I'm already dreaming of warm summer days...rain, rain go away!

dressmakers

Sunday is designated dress making day. My mom and I are the official dressmakers. I picked out the pattern and fabric and she is lending her sewing expertise...translating the sewing terminology, sewing the difficult seams, and double checking all my work. good thing...it would probably be a disaster without her, or it would never get done!

The dress is for a project runway party. A friend invited me to join a group of women who like to sew and want to try something new. The deal is you are supposed to make a dress...making your own pattern and using material you don't usually use. Well, since I am new to sewing (I just received my first machine last Christmas) and haven't made an actual article of clothing before, I figured I could bend the rules.

So, I recruited the help of Vogue (by using one a pattern) and my mother. Hopefully, with the two of them, I'll make it work.

Mermaid Quilt

Today was the first day of my quilting class! I had so much fun picking out fabric and sewing simple straight stich seams...and cutting with my special rotary cutter. 4 hours went by so fast! I am going to learn 12 different styles of blocks and piece them all together at the end of the class. I just finished the rail fence, 9 block, and log cabin. I have one more to finish as homework this week. It is my first real quilt on my own...my mom and I made one (well, she mostly made it) for Christmas one year!

Rail Fence


Log Cabin


9 Block