Scraps From My Sewing Room

FNSI Results

2012-01-21T14:54:00.001-08:00

A couple of weeks ago a friend put this post as her status on Facebook:

From a friend - not my idea, but I'm game anyway. Pay It Forward 2012...I promise to make something homemade/handmade for the first 5 people who comment on my post. You must then re post this on your status & make something for the first 5 people who comment on your status. *The rules are it HAS to be handmade by YOU & they must receive it before 2012 ends. It can be as simple as baking cookies for a friend! :)

Well I commented and re posted. She commented back on my profile. I made this little mug rug as part of what I would like to send to her. All that is left to finish it is to hand stitch the binding. Now to decide what to include with it.

Friday Nite Sew-In--January Edition

2012-01-16T13:41:00.000-08:00

It is the middle of January already and I have yet to get any sewing done since Christmas. The days just seem to fly by and I have not had any time to sit and sew. Here's hoping Friday night will change that with January's edition of the Friday Nite Sew-In. I am looking forward to getting something accomplished!

Camtica 4.3.67091 Review

2012-01-04T08:25:00.000-08:00

Over the Christmas and New Year's holiday I received an e-mail asking me to review this video recording software. Camtica enables you to create professional screen recordings, presentations, tutorials and more. You can record any desktop activity with voice, webcam and animated mouse clicks. The resulting video can be saved in various formats including AVI and WMV. To download this software click here. I have just started experimenting with this software and it seems easy to use and I am looking forward to exploring it more.

Peace on Earth, Goodwill towards Men-----

2011-12-24T14:55:00.000-08:00

Well Santa won't be delivering the Mp3 cover I was working on because I haven't finished it. Too many last minute Christmas preparations. I did, however, find a free download called Audacity that made it so I could read some of my son's favorite books and record them using the microphone in my web cam. I was able to save them as Mp3 files and them upload them to his new player.

I would like to wish all of the wonderful people who visit and read my blog a Happy Holiday's, Merry Christmas and a Happy Healthy New Year.

FNSI Results

2011-12-17T15:09:00.000-08:00

I was all set to sit and make a cover for the Mp3 player that Santa will be bringing our youngest son on Christmas morning. I found a pattern, fabric and then life got in the way and it didn't happen. Hopefully I will be able to work on it during the coming week and have it ready for Santa to deliver.

Just Sittin' and Knittin'

2011-12-10T09:38:00.001-08:00

Last night was the first of two Friday Nite Sew-Ins for December. I decided to work on this knitting that I started a few weeks ago. These will eventually become a pair of slippers for someone for Christmas.

Spoiler Alert!

2011-11-30T09:54:00.000-08:00

I was able to complete the baby quilt for my husband's co-worker and his wife this morning. Their due date is next week and my husband is on vacation next week so I wanted to finish this so he can deliver it this week. Thank-you to my son for holding the quilt while I took the picture. While quilting this the thread kept breaking so I took a break from it for a day or two and made these mug rugs as Christmas gifts for my sisters and my mom. I made them from the scraps of my late brothers shirts left over from making this rag quilt as a memorial to my brother. I plan on getting mugs and maybe some coffee to include with these.

FNSI Results

2011-11-19T10:31:00.000-08:00

Last night was the November edition of The Friday Nite Sew-In. A while ago my husband asked me to make a quilt for one of his co-workers that is having their first child. I thought I had plenty of time so it went on the back burner until I realized the due date is coming up fast so I better get a move on. After getting the house settled for the evening I put the quilt top that I put together earlier in the week in the quilting frame and started to machine quilt. I was able to get it almost finished.

A Double Finish

2011-11-04T04:56:00.000-07:00

Two quilts finished in two weeks. I think that is a record for me.

This is the quilt top I finished a while ago for my SIL. You can read about that here.

The backing fabric wasn't quite wide enough so I added a grey and white stripe in hopes it would look like parking spaces for the cars that some little one would play with on the road mat on the back.

This quilt top was made for a friend to give to her great-nephew. His room is painted turquoise and milk chocolate brown and she wanted the quilt in the colors of his room. This is the second quilt top I made for this friend because she liked this pattern better that the first one I made. You can see that one here.

The dad is a big Edmonton Oilers fan so I tried to find fabric with that hockey team on it but couldn't find any in my area. I went with the next best thing being this fabric with hockey players on it. I plan to deliver this quilt this weekend. I hope she is pleased with this one.

A Successful Night!

2011-10-22T07:44:00.001-07:00

My MIL will be 91 years old the end of November. She is a vibrant senior who still maintains her own home and still travels on her own occasionally. Last January her last surviving sister passed away at the age of 94 in England. When my MIL would visit her sister in England the sister would send back fabric that she had collected. I would put it in my "stash" and wait for inspiration for a project to use it. While surfing the net for a quick project for a Christmas gift for my MIL I found this tutorial for a shopping bag that folds to look like a wallet to store in your purse. A perfect project for a gift and to use some of the England fabric. I had started these earlier in the week and all I had left to do was put on the handles.

Earlier in the week I tidied up my sewing area and found some art work I had saved from my youngest son's school days. I am working on a picture slide show of my parents as a surprise for my mom for Christmas and I intend to make copies for each of my sisters and nieces and nephew. I decided to recycle some of my son's art work and make CD sleeves for the burned CD's. This way they will be gift wrapped and protected at the same time. Last night I made 20 sleeves.

Tonight is the Nite!

2011-10-21T07:44:00.000-07:00

This picture was taken on the 7th of October. I really enjoy the colours of autumn, they are beautiful and a stroll in the park with DH was just what was needed at the end of a week when life was getting a little stressful.

Another way I like to relax is spending time at my sewing machine creating. The October edition of the Friday Nite Sew-In is happening tonight. What will you work on? Christmas gifts, UFO's, quilting, knitting, the list of activities is endless. As for me I have a couple of UFO's started and I think I may work a while on those or maybe start a small project? Come on back tomorrow to find out!

The Quilting Slump is over!

2011-10-06T08:53:00.000-07:00

A friend asked me in June if I would make a quilt for her to give to her new nephew. She told me that the baby's room is turquoise and milk chocolate brown and the dad's favorite hockey team is the Edmonton Oilers and plays lacrosse on the local team. I spent some time looking for just the right fabrics and pattern but I just couldn't find anything that spoke to me for this project.

I finally decided to make an I Spy quilt using the room colours as inspiration. I first saw the pattern for this quilt on Treadle Quilt's blog and followed the link she posted to this tutorial on Obsessively Stitching's blog. The only thing I changed was I added a couple of borders to incorporate the room colours. This is the "flimsy" top I finished this morning. It has 48 different novelty prints and measures 50"x 62 1/2".

Still here and stay tuned!

2011-09-29T11:18:00.000-07:00

What happened to September? This month has gone by so quickly. I have been working on several projects but haven't finished any of them and haven't taken any pics lately. I seem to have been in a quilting slump lately but I think it is coming to an end. I have been working on a new project this morning (pics to follow at a later date) and I am excited to try a new pattern.

Playing with Scraps

2011-08-20T05:31:00.001-07:00

Last night was the August edition of the Friday Nite Sew-In that is hosted by Heidi from Handmade by Heidi and Bobbie from Crafty Vegas Mom. I decided that I wanted to make something from my scraps stash and this mug rug fit the bill. I found this pattern at Bejeweled Quilts by Barb. It was perfect for my morning tea on the deck this morning.

FNSI for August.....

2011-08-16T12:00:00.001-07:00

The Friday Night Sew In for August is coming up this Friday the 19th. Want to sign-up? Just click on the button in the right sidebar. Hope you join us!

New Project!

2011-08-14T11:20:00.000-07:00

My husband and I always take a week's vacation at the end of June. In previous years we have gone camping but this year we went to my Mom's house to help my sisters clear out one of the upstairs bedrooms that has become a storage room. There was a lot of stuff in that room! Some of the things we found brought back memories that evoked all sorts of emotion. In that room we also found a couple of bags that had some of our late brother's shirts and jeans in them. He passed away suddenly about a year and a half ago. Well I decided to bring them home and make something with them. Who will receive this and when I am keeping to myself for now because I know at least one of my sisters read this blog sometimes and I don't want to give away all of the surprise;)

I found this video tutorial by Eleanor Burns from Quilt In A Day on making a double pinwheel block so I decided to give it a try. I like this block because you make two blocks at the same time. These are the blocks I have made so far.

A UFO Finished!

2011-08-14T10:56:00.000-07:00

Last February I decided to sort out my scraps and found this UFO. (Click the link to read the details.) The great thing about this project was I didn't have to purchase anything extra to finish it and was able to use up a lot of scraps at the same time. I was hoping to have it finished to use on the patio table this summer but I let other projects get in the way and I didn't finish it until yesterday. I can still use it but my patio table is one that has the umbrella in the centre and the table is small so I am not sure if the table topper will work but I just love the matching mug rugs.

When it comes to learning something new I don't have very much patience with myself to practice to get better at something. I want to be able to just sit down and be able to get it right straight away. The table topper was a perfect practice project for freemotion machine quilting. I am not pleased with the results but it is a practice piece.

Christmas Crafting Continued!

2011-08-02T10:41:00.000-07:00

I decided to make something else to give to Mom for Christmas. I wanted to make something that was connected to the farm that she has lived on for the past 60 years. My niece took this picture of a deer at the bush line at the edge of the field of soybeans last spring. I wanted to make an embroidery pattern from this photo using this tutorial from Craft Stew.

Unfortunately I couldn't get the photo turned into a pattern so I went looking on the net for something similar and I found this.

With a little modification to the design I decided to make another pillowcase for Mom. This is the finished product.

A closer look:

Christmas Crafting In July!

2011-07-26T10:43:00.000-07:00

I finished stitching the panel for this pillowcase yesterday while enjoying a cooler breeze on our deck. This morning the day dawned with more seasonal temperatures so I took advantage and sewed up this pillowcase for my mom for part of her Christmas gift. After looking at the finished project I wondered if I should have flipped the embroidery design around but after laying it down as if it were on a pillow I think it should be alright.

My oldest son asked me to make him a pillowcase if he picked out the fabric. This is the finished project.

Late to the party.....

2011-07-23T17:17:00.000-07:00

Last night was the FNSI for July. It was just too darn hot to use the iron or even sit at the sewing machine. I started to embroider this panel last Saturday for the cuff of a pillowcase that I plan on making for my mom for Christmas. I worked on the rose leaves and started the butterfly while sitting in front of a fan and watching some T.V.

July FNSI

2011-07-21T04:20:00.001-07:00

July FNSI is happening this Friday! What to work on? I have too many projects started and I really need to focus and finish something. Stay tuned to see which UFO I pull out to make some progess on and maybe even finish.

Another I Spy Flimsy!

2011-07-12T10:51:00.001-07:00

My SIL asked me to make another I Spy quilt for her because she likes to use them for baby shower gifts. This is the latest quilt top I finished yesterday. It measures 45 1/2" x 54 inches. I am just waiting for her to give me the backing fabric she bought and I can get this quilt sandwiched, basted, quilted and bound.

What I Did On Our Summer Vacation.

2011-07-01T14:05:00.000-07:00

UPDATE: Thank-you to Jacqui and her husband from Treadle Quilts for finding out that this machine is a Model 66 one of 50,000 that was commissioned in December of 1916.

For our summer holiday this year my husband and I spent a few days at my mom's house. She is getting on in years and my sisters and I are trying to clear out some of her "treasures" that she has accumulated over the years. While clearing out one of the bedrooms we came across this sewing machine. Since I am the one who does the most sewing-neither of my sisters are quilters-this beauty came home with me. The problem is I have no idea of its age or history. Does anyone in blog land know how I can find out the age of this machine? Any help would be appreciated.

Beat the deadline!

2011-06-25T09:50:00.001-07:00

I gave myself a deadline of June 26th to finish my son's quilt and I did it! I finished putting the binding on it on Wednesday. I found a wonderful tutorial here by the Missouri Star Quilt Co. for putting binding on entirely by machine. It was much easier than I thought and hand sewing through denim would have taken me a very long time. By using the machine method for binding I had it completed in a little less than an hour.

The finished quilt held up by my husband. I was going to try to free motion quilt the borders but I found it just to heavy to control so I went with straight lines instead.

The jeans I used for the backing were castoffs from my husband, my oldest son, my youngest son and myself. The ones I had on hand were not enough so a friend gave me some of hers. They were not long enough for the width of the quilt so I added a panel in the centre using some orphan blocks I had in my stash.

Making More Progress

2011-06-18T09:51:00.001-07:00

Earlier this week I finally finished basting this quilt and was able to start machine quilting it. I was hoping to be able to put it on the quilt frame but it is too wide for the space I have so I am using my dining room table. I couldn't decide how I wanted to quilt this so I decided to a straight stitch across the width of the quilt and maybe try a little free motion quilting in the borders. Hearts and loops maybe, we shall see.

I can only work on this a little bit at a time because I am finding it quite heavy so I hope it will serve the purpose of a weighted blanket. I think I may use some of the left over strips of plaid for the binding. Anyone have any ideas?

Making Progress

2011-06-11T06:34:00.000-07:00

June's Friday Nite Sew-In is fast approaching! June 17th is the date and I can't wait. I have been making progress on my son's quilt. I hope to have it basted so I can start the quilting Friday night. Wish me luck!

A Flimsy Finish!

2011-05-28T16:08:00.000-07:00

The quilt top I started for my son is finished! Already! I am quite pleased with the results. (I have a habit of not liking my finished projects.) See previous post for information about the pattern. When it came to deciding on the borders I went through my stash of fabric and couldn't find anything that I felt suitable. I didn't want to buy any more fabric so I decided to use some of the darker denim from jeans that I cut up for the backing as the border. I am now working on putting together the backing and hope to have it ready to layer by next weekend.

Another Start...

2011-05-21T06:48:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know I have a 20 year old autistic son who sometimes has trouble sleeping. When he is up at night he enjoys bouncing on an exercise ball. The only problem with this is he has ripped every pair of pajama bottoms he owns.

His school teachers have told me that he seems to like deep pressure. That means he seems to settle down when he feels pressure on his body, something like a big hug. I decided to make him a weighted blanket. To purchase one it is very expensive so I am going to re-purpose his pj bottoms for this project. I found a Scrappy Trips Around the World block at Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville and thought this would be a perfect pattern for this quilt. For this quilt I am going to make 24 blocks using 2.5 inch strips from his pj bottoms and solid/tone on tone 2.5 inch strips from the scraps I just finished cutting and sorting. I am going to back it with denim from jeans that I have been saving. This isn't the way some weighted blankets are made but I hope this will be heavy enough for my son and it will be machine washable as well.

These blocks are the four I made last night. With the other blocks I have been working on that brings my total to 16 leaving only 8 more to make before I can assemble the quilt top.

May's FNSI

2011-05-10T06:21:00.000-07:00

The Friday Night Sew-In for May is happening on the 20th. I think I may work on something new even though I have many UFO's calling out to be finished.

FNSI results--a little late

2011-04-18T07:30:00.000-07:00

Friday night was the April edition of the Friday Nite Sew-In. The weekend was a little busy so I didn't get this posted until now. I sat in front of the television and worked on the quilt I started for my youngest son about 3 years. I have been hand quilting this quilt and I really love the look of it but my stitching isn't very straight sometimes so I end up pulling out almost as many stictches as I am putting in. No wonder it is taking me so long to get it finished! The batteries died in my camera so I had to use this older picture because I am now working on the block next to the one in the picture.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2011-04-10T18:53:00.000-07:00

The April Friday Nite Sew-In is happening this Friday the 18th. After all the planning and organizing for the vow renewal ceremony and party for my husband's and my 25th anniversary I am looking forward to getting back to my sewing machine!

A Different Idea...

2011-04-01T14:20:00.001-07:00

The vow renewal date is only a week away! The party is going to be small but there is still many details to work through. For our wedding we had a guest book for our guests to sign and I was going to put it out again for the vow renewal except I can't find it. So, after some exploring on the Internet I came up with this idea. I printed a couple of pictures on fabric and added borders to look like a framed picture. I have a fabric marker for signatures/comments.

I also made up a label and hanging sleeve for the back of this wall hanging so it is already to hang after the celebration.

This sign will be displayed with the wall hanging. I have been learning quite a few new things on the computer while arranging this party. My oldest son taught me how to make a DVD slide show of old pictures of my husband, me and the kids complete with music. I am looking forward to using it in the ceremony.

Friday Nite Results

2011-03-19T10:32:00.000-07:00

My husband and I will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary in a few weeks. To celebrate we are going to renew our wedding vows. My niece is a very good photographer and she will be taking pictures of the event. The venue we are using is a little plain so to add some colour to the pictures I made these drapes for a backdrop. Now on to the rest of the details!

Sidetracked again!

2011-03-15T10:14:00.000-07:00

I really have to finish one thing before I start another. It seems to be getting worse lately. I started sorting scraps when I was looking for fabric to make mug rugs to practice machine quilting. Now I have started making a DVD slide show of photos of my husband and kids to commentate our 25th wedding anniversary. My oldest son is teaching me how to use the computer program that you use to make these. To celebrate this occasion my husband and I have decided to renew our wedding vows in a quiet ceremony with family and a few friends. I have been busy trying to organize this event. Even though it is going to be very small it still is taking some time to sort out the details. I won't get the quilt finished for my husband so we decided it would make a nice backdrop for some of the photos. My niece is a wonderful photographer and she is going to take the pictures for us. I think sewing/quilting is going to have to wait for a little while.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2011-03-09T09:24:00.000-08:00

The Friday Nite Sew-In for March is happening on the 18th of March. Not sure what I will be working on yet. I started out this year with the thought of finishing off my UFO's but I get so distracted lately. I start one project that leads to another and then the first one gets left behind. As the saying goes, sew many projects, sew little time!

Free Motion Practice

2011-02-19T08:26:00.000-08:00

Last week I decided to organize my scraps and in doing so I found this UFO that I don't remember making or even why I made it. It is the perfect size for a table topper. I decided to make mug rugs to match and finish these off to use on the patio table this summer. I also decided that this would be a good way to practice my free motion machine quilting.

When I layered the top with the batting and backing I found that the sides were not straight so I ripped out all the borders and did a quilt and flip quilt as you go method to reattach them. This way it was basted and my seams were corrected at the same time.

On to the machine quilting! I have not done much free motion quilting so this turned out pretty bad. I am not to bothered because it is only a practice piece and I will be using it outside.

I noticed that the bobbin thread was showing through the top. I loosened the top thread tension but it didn't seem to make any difference. Does anyone have any advice how to prevent this?

I also progress on the four mug rugs to go with the table topper. I didn't have any of the original check fabric left from the topper but I did find this smaller check that looks good. I haven't used my scraps very much but I hate to throw anything away so it felt good to use all scraps for these.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2011-02-18T10:33:00.001-08:00

Tonight is the night! February's Friday Nite Sew-In is happening tonight. I am looking forward to practicing my free motion quilting or should I work on some hand quilting? Not sure yet but this is the type of fibre fix I am looking for. What will you be working on?

Have you ever gotten sidetracked?

2011-02-14T13:17:00.001-08:00

Time to start on my next project, but what should it be? Well I made a quilt top in June 2009 with the intention of finishing it to give to my husband this April for our silver wedding anniversary, so I thought that should be my next finish. I would like to try some free motion quilting on it so I thought I would practice on a small project first. I found a perfect project of a table topper and matching mug rugs at Bejewled Quilts by Barb. I thought "A perfect solution, use some of my scraps and practice my free motion quilting too".

Now my scraps are not organized in any way. When I am working on a project I put my scraps in bags.

I decided it was time to sort them at least by colour so I could get an idea what I could use for the table topper and mug rug project. This picture is only a portion of my scrap stash.

There are so many oddly shaped pieces of fabric that I thought it would be a good idea to cut them into more usable sizes and organize them at the same time. I started with red in honor of Valentine's Day. I cut them into strips and squares 1", 1.5", 2", 2.5", 3" and over. I left some of the bigger scraps to use as backing for smaller projects.

While I was sorting through my scraps and yardage I found this UFO that I made but don't remember when or why. It is a perfect size for a table topper. I also found some checkered scraps that although not the same as in the UFO it is similar to use for some mug rugs to go with it.

First Finish of 2011

2011-02-09T06:42:00.001-08:00

I started piecing this I Spy quilt in December when we had a couple of snow days here in our city. I finished stitching the binding down yesterday. It turn out pretty cute. It has 40 different fabrics for finding lots of objects. I didn't notice until I was quilting it but some of the fabrics have similar pictures even though they are different prints. For example there are two different fabrics that have cats, so you could also play a sort of matching game with it.

I backed this quilt with this "roads fabric" so that it could double as a play mat for cars.

Friday Nite Results

2011-01-22T10:41:00.001-08:00

I was able to quilt on this I Spy Quilt that I pieced during the blizzard we had last month. See this post.

Then I decided to practice some free motion quilting on my DSM. I put in an old needle, unthreaded the machine, and practiced on paper. I hoped to be able to practice getting my stitches even.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2011-01-20T08:57:00.001-08:00

January's Friday Nite Sew-In is happening tomorrow night. Today I finally made some progress with my free motion quilting by making a "sew slip" by using this tutorial from Jill at The Quilt Rat. I think for my project for the sew-in I will practice my free motion quilting. I signed up for the free motion quilt along (see side bar for link) from Christina over at A Few Scraps but I am a terrible procrastinator and haven't done much with it. I am hopeing to make some progress tomorrow night.

A Belated Happy New Year!

2011-01-07T05:29:00.000-08:00

I am a little late with the Happy New Year but better late than never. I have been reading in blogland alot about UFO's and WIP's (unfinished fabric objects and works in progress). I haven't made any resolutions this year but I think I will set some goals. This year I hope to finish 3 UFO's I have in my sewing room. Those would include but not be limited to the scrappy log cabin quilt I started for my youngest son's 18th birthday two years ago, a wall hanging I started for a wedding gift last year and then decided not to give it to them and a quilt top for an anniversary gift. I believe in setting goals that I have a chance in reaching. It helps booast my confidence:o).

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T06:39:00.000-08:00

May the warmth and love of the season be with all of you and your loved ones today and throughout the year.

Christmas Tree is Finally Up...

2010-12-20T11:36:00.001-08:00

This year I have been procrastinating about putting up our Christmas tree. I just haven't been able to get in the right frame of mind to enjoy this special holiday. As I was decorating I was able to get into the spirit a little. Each of the ornaments on this tree have either been given to my children or have been made by them.

I knitted each of these stockings for my kids when they were small. The pattern was in an old McCall's holiday magazine that I can no longer find. I did realize that I should make a runner for the mantle before next year.

This is the oldest ornament on the tree. It was given to my oldest boy for his first Christmas by his grandmother.

This is the newest ornament on the tree. My youngest son made it at school.

I made this tree skirt back in the mid '80's when I first started quilting. I never did finish it but I still used it each year since. I think it is time for a new one. Maybe I will get one done for next year.

Friday Nite Sew-In Results

2010-12-18T07:10:00.000-08:00

Last night was the 2nd sew-in for December and I stayed awake for this one! I haven't made many things for Christmas this year so I worked on a UFO that I started in September 2008 for my youngest son's 18th birthday the following February. Two years later I am still working on the hand quilting and am a little over half way finished. It would be nice to finish it and cross it off my list of UFOs.

Friday Nite Sew-In Results

2010-12-11T13:36:00.000-08:00

I fully intended to participate in the Sew-In last night but when I sat down to sew I promptly fell asleep. My youngest son has autism and has recently been staying awake all night again so I haven't had much sleep. Maybe next Friday.

Finally Some Sunshine!

2010-12-09T12:52:00.000-08:00

We finally have some sunshine after three days when we have received 90+ cm. of snow in my little corner of the world.

I had three snow days from work so to occupy myself I decided to start a new quilt. I found a cute toddler quilt call I Spy A 4 Patch from Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville.

On the first day I cut all of the fabric and on day two I stitched the four patches together.

Then I was able to finish putting it altogether on the third day. The fabric I intend to use on the back has roads and cars printed on it. It reminds me of the car mats that my oldest son used to play with when he was little.

Friday Night Sew-In

2010-12-02T12:51:00.000-08:00

Heidi from Handmade by Heidi and her friend Bobbi from Crafty Vegas Mom are hosting 2 Friday Nite Sew-Ins for December. The first one is on the 10th and the second is on the 17th. Hope to work on some of the Christmas sewing. I wonder if baking counts?

Eco-Friendly Christmas Wrap

2010-11-25T08:13:00.000-08:00

Okay, I tried folding and refolding but the I Spy quilts just would not fit into the boxes I had hoped to deliver them in so what to do? Make pillowcases that could double as wrapping paper! The girls love penguins and I bought this fabric last year because I thought it was cute. A perfect match.

Friday Nite Sew-In Results

2010-11-20T07:06:00.000-08:00

I haven't blogged in almost a month and now 2 posts in 2 days. The reason for this is one, we had to reformat our computer and I had to reload some of the programs I had on it and just didn't take the time to do it and two, I was concentrating on finishing the I Spy quilts (see previous post). For the Sew-In last night I made the labels for the quilts but didn't get them stitched on yet as my fingers are a bit sore from sewing the binding down earlier in the day.

After I finished the labels I decided to continue working on the child's hat that I started knitting last week.

I Spy My Little Eye.....

2010-11-19T12:12:00.000-08:00

On two finished quilts! These quilts are for my great nieces as a Christmas gift from their Mom and Dad. The girls share a room and have bunk beds so I thought making the quilts basically the same with a few subtle differences would be nice. I backed each quilt with flannelet to add to the "cozy factor." I plan on adding a label to the back of each of these quilts with their names and the date so they know whose quilt is whose.

Mail Call and A Finish

2010-10-29T09:21:00.000-07:00

I love it when I check the mail and there is a parcel instead of bills! I want to say a big thank-you to Erin over at My Patchwork Life for this wonderful prize that I won in her recent giveaway. They are wonderful.

I finished one of the I Spy Quilts that I was asked to make for my great nieces. (See this post.) The top for the second one is sewn and now I can start to sandwich, quilt and bind it. I am hoping to have it finished by the end of November. Lately I find if I set time goals for myself I seem to accomplish more.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2010-10-27T20:07:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I can't believe how quickly time goes by. November's Friday Nite Sew-In is happening on the 19th. I really look forward to these Sew-In's because I usually get a lot accomplished. I think this would be a good chance to work on some Christmas gifts. To sign up for this fun evening visit Heidi at Handmade By Heidi.

This is the Year!

2010-10-22T10:17:00.000-07:00

I did it! I finally finished this UFO (unfinished fibre object). I plan on displaying it this Christmas. I worked on this last Friday for the Friday Nite Sew-In and each evening since until I finally finished it. It is a good feeling to complete a project that has been sitting around for quite awhile.

I made this tea cozy this morning. I have made several in the past but I made this one slightly different. Sometimes I find the lining shows below the outside so this time I cut the outside 1 1/2 inches longer then the lining. This way when you tuck the lining inside the outside fabric folds inside and gives a neater appearance.

Friday Nite Sew-In Results

2010-10-16T05:39:00.000-07:00

I have been working on this afghan for a few years now off and on. Last night I was able to crochet some of the rows together. When it is finished it will have ten stripes. I usually work on it this time of year in hopes to get it finished in time to display it for that Christmas. Maybe this year??

A Quick Project

2010-10-15T07:48:00.000-07:00

This past Monday my mother-in-law asked me if I could make a bag for scrabble tiles. The existing bag had worn out and she needed a new one. She gave me the approximate dimensions and I worked on it this morning. I found a very good tutorial for a drawstring pouch. I set to work on it this morning and had it done in less then an hour. This bag can be made in any size just by adjusting the dimensions. This would make wonderful reusable gift bags for birthdays or Christmas.

A Strippie Finish

2010-10-10T08:35:00.001-07:00

I finally finished the strippie quilt that I made last month. This quilt top was a challenge to quilt. I wanted to put a flannelet backing on it to make it cozier for the winter. I had loaded the quilt on my frame to free motion quilt it but for some reason the thread kept breaking and I just got frustrated. (See this post.) I finally took it off the frame and ripped out all the quilting I had done. Then I decided to machine quilt it on my domestic sewing machine using a 2" diagonal grid marking it with painter's tape. Each time I sewed a line the back would pucker and I ended up ripping out the stitching to try to fix it. After about four goes at this frustration set in and I gave up on that.

In the end I ripped out that quilting and took the entire quilt top apart to put it back together using a quilt as you go method of "stitch and flip". I decided not to do any addition quilting on it and to leave it as is because of the frustration it caused. I like it as it is and I hope my friend who wants to purchase it likes it as well.

October's Friday Nite Sew-In

2010-10-04T12:17:00.000-07:00

October's Friday Nite Sew-In is happening on October 15th. Click on the link if you want to join in. I do look forward to this because it is time I set aside to sew. I am hoping to make some progress on my great nieces quilts.

Friday Nite Sew-In Results

2010-09-18T10:53:00.000-07:00

I didn't get a lot done this time around. I made a Quick Strippie quilt top from Mary Quilts with the intend to use it with the free motion quilt along. My best friend was over for a visit yesterday and saw it, she liked it enough that she would like to have it. I decided to quilt it on my frame. I spent last night loading it into the frame and started quilting it. My thread kept breaking so before I got frustrated I walked away to try again later.

Free Motion Quilt A-long

2010-09-12T17:02:00.000-07:00

In my adventures in blogland I like to read other quilters blogs. While reading A Patchwork Life I discovered a free motion quilt a-long offered by A Few Scraps. I visited her blog and it is a wonderful teaching on free motion quilting. I took a class about a year ago but I didn't practice so I thought this would be a good chance to take it up again. I am starting a bit late but I did my practice sandwich tonight.

A Mini Finish

2010-09-12T12:45:00.001-07:00

Since I was working on the bigger I Spy quilts I decided to make a couple of mini ones at the same time. I made them so they could be a doll blanket or a take along game to keep the kiddies happy.

A Double Flimsy Finish

2010-09-10T14:45:00.000-07:00

I have been working on the I Spy quilts for my great nieces and I finished the second top this afternoon. Since the girls share a room and have bunk beds I decided to make them the same pattern with only a few differences. I really like the outside border print. It has tree frogs, butterflies and lots of other creepy crawlies to find. My nieces love to collect all kinds of crawly bugs so I hope they will like these quilts. Next step is to layer, quilt and bind. I am hopeing to back them with flannelet as I think that will make them a little cozier. Their mom asked me to make them for Christmas so I think I am getting a good start on them.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2010-09-03T17:00:00.000-07:00

September's Sew-In is set to happen Friday the 17th. What shall I work on? I have quite a few projects to choose from. Will it be the I Spy quilts for my great nieces or the quilt I started for my youngest son's 18th birthday, (he is 19 now) or a crocheted afghan I started two Christmases ago. I have many UFOS around I really need to finished something before I start something new.

Mail Call

2010-09-02T05:30:00.000-07:00

I love getting mail that is fun. When I checked my mail box this morning I found this parcel. It was the prize from a giveaway from Heidi of Handmade By Heidi. Thank-you so much for the layer cake and needle case. I am looking forward to using the layer cake in a future project.

Progress!!

2010-08-26T09:05:00.000-07:00

Earlier this summer my niece asked me to make twin size quilts for her daughters see this post. After browsing through some of my quilting magazines and books I found a pattern called Tipsy Blocks That Tilt. The quilt maker is Debby Dratovil. It was published in the Fall 2005 issue of Quilt magazine.

After choosing 20 different novelty prints from my stash and a few I purchased for this project I started making the blocks. I am making both quilts at the same time as my intention is to make them the same. I have completed half of the blocks I need.

A Finish!

2010-08-22T14:17:00.000-07:00

I put the last stitches in the binding of this lovely little baby quilt about 5 o'clock this morning. My youngest was up most of the night again last night so I took advantage of being awake and finished the quilt. It turned out rather well.

Friday Nite Sew-In Results

2010-08-20T21:11:00.001-07:00

For the Friday Nite Sew-In I worked on the baby quilt that I started a few weeks ago. I finally got the machine to work properly so I was able to finish the quilting.

Then I put the binding on it.

Then I pinned the binding to the back side and started hand stitching it down.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2010-08-17T07:24:00.000-07:00

This Friday is the Friday Nite Sew-In for August. I am looking forward to making progress on the baby quilt that I have on the frame and maybe getting some of the cutting done for the I Spy quilts for my great nieces.

Fabric Explosion!

2010-08-14T13:32:00.000-07:00

I was asked to make two twin size quilts by my niece for my great nieces. She would like them for Christmas gifts. My great nieces are 9 and 7. I thought I Spy quilts would be a good idea so I went through my stash and did a little shopping and these are the fabrics I thought I would use. If I counted correctly there are forty different fabrics spread out here. Now is to decide on a pattern.

I also got the baby quilt I have been working on set up for quilting. I bought this frame awhile ago but haven't used it as much as I should. My problem is the thread keeps breaking and it gets rather frustrating. I can't seem to figure out what I am doing wrong. Any suggestions anyone??

A Flimsy Finish

2010-08-03T05:20:00.000-07:00

I have been working on this baby quilt for a little while now and I was able to get the top together yesterday. I saw a tutorial by Eleanor Burns on this pattern and I wanted to try it. I think it turned out well. Next step is to layer and machine quilt it. I am hopeing to get it done soon.

It's Done!

2010-07-25T17:19:00.001-07:00

I started this bag on Thursday and I completed it today. I didn't have a pattern for it just a picture, so with some Internet research and some guess work it turned out rather well. I am not sure what I am going to do with it yet but it is nice to have completed a project.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2010-07-24T06:38:00.000-07:00

For the Friday Nite Sew-In I decided to work on a bag that I had in mind for over a year now. I saw a picture of it and decided to try to make it. Since I didn't have a pattern and only a vague idea of how to put it together, I did some research on the Internet.

Using some scraps of fabric from my stash I quilted the fabric using a one inch grid pattern using painters tape as a sewing guide.

I was able to complete the front and back and make the handles.

This shows the inside lining of the bag. I was able to accomplish a lot because my youngest son has autism and because of that he doesn't sleep at night sometimes so to keep myself awake I work on my sewing sometimes.

July's Sew In

2010-07-17T12:12:00.000-07:00

July's Friday Nite Sew-In is happening on the 23rd. I am looking forward to working on a current project that I am having a bit of a creative block (excuse the pun). I have been working on a sampler quilt from some of my stash fabric that I was given but I have run out and am having trouble deciding what colour sashing, borders and bindings to put on it. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Back from Vacation

2010-07-04T16:36:00.001-07:00

Last week hubby and I went on a camping holiday in Mooretown which is a little bit south of Sarnia in Southwestern Ontario. On Wednesday we drove up to Sarnia and spent the day exploring.

We ate poutine under the Bluewater Bridge.

We watched the freighters come into the St. Clair River from Lake Huron.

I even had the opportunity to visit The Quilt Shoppe on London Line in Sarnia.

All there fabric is on sale for $10.99 a meter until the end of August. I was able to find a Clover Needle Threader which I have been wanting for a while.

A Memorial

2010-06-20T06:11:00.000-07:00

Last February my brother passed away suddenly from a massive heart attack. He was 59 years old. After his death I asked his girlfriend if she would like a memorial quilt made from some of his shirts. I also included fabric that represented some of his interests over the years. He enjoyed playing pool, fishing, camping, playing cards, and working on cars just to name a few. I choose to make a rag quilt because I felt it suited him the best. He lived on the family farm, he was a little rough around the edges but he has a generous heart. I wasn't close to my brother and we had some unresolved issues at the time of his death. By making his quilt I was able to come to terms with how things were left between us. A type of therapy I guess. I would strongly encourage anyone who has issues with another person try to resolve them as quickly as possible because you never know what the future holds.

It was in the mail!

2010-06-01T17:41:00.000-07:00

I participated in an Embroidery Mini Quilt Swap. I received a wonderful surprise in the mail this morning. My partner sent my mini this morning and it is beautiful. A big thank-you to my partner Linda from Hamilton. She did a marvelous job.

These are the minis I sent to my partner.

Bag Sew Along

2010-05-28T03:57:00.001-07:00

Through the Totally Tutorials blog I found this interesting Bag Sew Along . Check it out by clicking the link or on the button on my sidebar.

I finished the mini quilt for the embroidery mini quilt swap. I will post the pictures of the finished product when my swap partner receives them.

A Finish

2010-05-22T14:37:00.000-07:00

For the Friday Nite Sew-In last nite I finished the mini quilt I am sending for the Embroidery Mini Quilt Swap and one of two dishcloths I am making to include in a bridal shower gift later this month. One of the requirements for the quilt swap is that it must include a way to hang it up and I was at a loss as to how to do that until I found this video at http://quiltotaku.blogspot.com/2009/11/how-to-hang-quilt-on-wall-tutorial-for.html .

An Experiment

2010-05-14T10:21:00.000-07:00

One of my favourite type of cookies is homemade peanut butter cookies. When my youngest son was 4; he is 19 now, we discovered he has a severe peanut allergy which he has to carry an epi-pen with him at all times. This meant no more peanut butter in the house. Over the years we have tried different substitutes for it but haven't found anything that could duplicate the taste, until now. A co-worker of my daughters suggested this Soybutter. We have been having it on toast with jam and it really does taste just like peanut butter.

This morning I decided to experiment with it and I made some peanut butter cookies with raisins. I put in the raisins because they keep the cookies soft. I was amazed at how much they taste like the peanut butter cookies I used to make a long time ago. I even had a friend of my oldest son try one and he thought they were peanut butter. I think I have found a good subsitute this time.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2010-05-04T13:26:00.000-07:00

The May Friday Nite Sew-In is happening on May 21st. I am hopeing to make some progress on some of the projects I have started. Maybe finish the mini quilt for the embroidery mini-quilt swap.

Oh What A Beautiful Day!

2010-04-30T10:05:00.000-07:00

It is such a beautiful day here that I just had to sit out on the deck and do some hand stitching. I received my partner information for the Embroidery Mini Quilt Swap and this was an excellent opportunity to get a start on the embroidery. I haven't embroidered anything since I was a teenager so I am a little rusty. I thought a practice piece or two would be a good idea. I will post a few pictures after I get it done and the recipient receives it. I don't want to spoil the surprise. Have a great day everyone!

In my corner of the world...

2010-04-17T04:24:00.000-07:00

In my corner of the world, yesterday was a wonderful spring day. We had a few showers in the morning then a mixture of sun and cloud the rest of the day. The temperature was warm enough to sit out on the deck and relax. Something I have started doing lately is trying to keep my hands busy with sewing or some other craft so I am not thinking of what there is to eat in the fridge. (I would love to lose a lot of weight.) So in between loads of laundry I sat on the deck and started to hand piece the "treasures" I found in a thrift shop last May.

I wasn't sure what this block was called so I researched it and found the pattern in one of my old quilt magazines. It is called a Nosegay. As I looked at what the quilter(s) had already sewn I realized some were hand pieced and others were machine pieced all with a 1/8 inch seam allowance. As I have never made any blocks with diamonds or set in seams I have decided to hand piece them making them a good long term project.

Since last night was The Friday Nite Sew-In I decided to keep working on these blocks so I made a cup of tea, sat in my favorite chair and continued sewing.

I was able to stitch together 2 1/2 "bouquets" by bedtime.

And the Winner is....

2010-04-05T04:54:00.000-07:00

Thank-you to all that entered my anniversary give away. This morning I drafted my DH to help draw the winning entry for the tea cozy package. And the winner is Lisa from Lisa's Kitchen. I will be contacting her shortly to get her mailing information to get her prize to her.

A Year Already?

2010-03-31T12:24:00.001-07:00

Wow, it will be a year on Friday since I first started this blog. To celebrate how about a give away.

For a chance to win the tea cozy (tea pot not included), pin cushion and herbal tea pictured above leave a comment. I will draw the winners name on Monday, April 5. You can also leave/send me a comment on my facebook page for a second chance to win. Good Luck!

Aren't they cute!

2010-03-31T12:05:00.000-07:00

In an earlier post I mentioned a lady at my husband's work who crochets a top on tea towels that makes the towel look like a dress. I really like the look of these so I asked her to make a couple for an upcoming wedding as part of the gift. I supplied the towels, yarn and buttons and she made them up. To pay it for doing this I made her a tea cozy. My husband brought home the finished towels yesterday. Aren't they cute!

April's Sew In

2010-03-30T03:08:00.000-07:00

April's Friday Nite Sew-In is happening on the 16th of the month. This month they have added a new twist. To join in the fun click on the link in the sidebar and sign up.

Tea Anyone....

2010-03-20T03:21:00.000-07:00

There is a lady at my husband's work who makes the cutest crochet dress tops on tea towels. I have trouble following a crochet pattern. I read the pattern, do what it says but it rarely turns out. I asked this person if I supplied the towels, yarn and buttons if she would make a couple of these towels to include in a wedding gift for my husband's niece this June. She said she would so we worked out a barter of sorts. She would make up the towels if I would make her a tea cozy.

I have had this tea cozy pattern by Fran O'Neill, (http://www.fransquilting.com/) for a couple of years now and I have made it once before. I decided it would be the perfect project to work on for the Friday Nite Sew-In. (See link in side bar)

Where does the time go??

2010-03-14T15:36:00.000-07:00

The next Friday Nite Sew-In is happening on the 19th of March. It doesn't seem that long since the last one. I have made a little progress on the quilt top I started in February but I set it aside for a bit when my brother passed away at the end of February. While we were dealing with his passing my brother-in-law lost his battle with cancer in the same week. I have finally gotten the energy to work on the quilt again. I am hopeing to get the top done by the end of March.

My niece, Christina has been bitten by the blogging bug and has started a blog about her photography. She has taken some wonderful pictures of sunsets and I look forward to following her blog. Check out the link in my sidebar.

Friday Nite Sew In

2010-02-20T01:17:00.001-08:00

I was able to make a fair amount of progress on the Seven Shirt quilt project during the Friday Nite Sew In. The pattern for this project can be found on the blog Life is a Stitch(http://thethriftyquilter.blogspot.com/). I was able to get the nine patch blocks finished and the snowball blocks started. The colours look brighter in person. Some of the points don't quite match up so I will have to go back and fix them but I wanted to get an idea how the colours would look together.

New Project

2010-02-18T16:28:00.000-08:00

I haven't been sewing or crafting lately. A while ago I pulled a muscle in my arm and it made even picking up a cup of tea painful. It has been feeling better lately so I started a new project today and I plan to work on it for the Friday Nite Sew In tomorrow night. Nancy over at Life is a Stitch (http://thethriftyquilter.blogspot.com/) has a quilt pattern that uses seven shirts from the thrift store. I like the pattern and I think I will try to make it from scraps and yardage I already have in my stash. Stay tuned to see the finished top.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2010-02-01T05:40:00.000-08:00

February's Friday nite sew-in is slated to happen on the 19th of February. I am looking forward to seeing what other UFO's I can make some progress on.

Progress!

2010-01-30T08:12:00.000-08:00

I have finally finished crocheting the last of the strips for the mile-a-minute afghan and now comes the job of joining the strips together. As you can see from the picture I have the first two strips together and I hope to have the whole thing finished very soon. I am so glad to be making progress on this.

Friday Nite Sew-In

2010-01-16T09:05:00.000-08:00

Well I decided to work on a crocheted afghan I started about three Christmases ago. It is a mile-a-minute pattern made in a Christmas green, white and red. I have made this pattern years ago using up scraps of yarn that I had laying around. I wanted the current one a bit larger. This pattern is quite simple to add to. The stripe I worked on is the nineth of ten stripes that I am going to use for this project. I am getting closer to the end!

What to work on???

2010-01-10T16:23:00.000-08:00

I have several projects on the go right now. I just keep bouncing from one to another and not getting any of them finished. So I will be joining the Friday Night Sew-in to work on at least one of the projects on my to do list. Maybe I will even get one finished or at least close to it.

Baking Day!

2009-12-23T11:09:00.000-08:00

I took the morning off from my current sewing projects and did a little baking for Christmas. I usually don't bake very much at Christmas but I thought I would try a few recipes that I haven't done in a while. The stained glass cookies I remember my mom making many Christmases ago and thought I would give them a try. The whipped shortbread cookies I haven't made since last year and my daughter requested the rice krispie squares. All in all, a morning well spent.

Date Planner/Journal Cover Tutorial

2009-11-27T16:26:00.000-08:00

I was looking at various blogs on the net and found a blog called Totally Tutorials. This blog hosts exchanges between suppliers and crafters. I was choosen to receive this fat quarter of fabric from Sasha from Fabric Fusion to create a project from it. This fabric is called Dance with Me by Jennifer Paganelli.

I am pleased to share this tutorial for this Date Planner/Journal Cover

A Finish and A Start

2009-11-26T08:04:00.000-08:00

I started this Boxy Stars quilt from Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville last spring. I wanted to use up some of my scrap fabric but somehow ended up with more scraps than I started with.

I was looking at various blogs on the net and found the Totally Tutorial blog. (See link in sidebar.) This blog hosts an exchange program for suppliers and crafters. I applied for one of the exchanges and was accepted. I have to create a project and write a tutorial with pictures using the fabric "Dance With Me" by Jennifer Paganelli. The supplier for this wonderful fabric is Sasha of Fabric Fusion. Stay tuned for the finished project.

Binding Tutorial

2009-11-08T05:48:00.000-08:00

These instructions are for making binding on the straight of the grain of the fabric.

Cut 2.5 inch strips from the fabric you have chosen for your binding. To determine the number of strips you need measure your project vertically and horizontally through the middle, multiply that number by 2 and add 12. Take this number and divide by 42 (or the width of your fabric). This will tell you how many width of fabric strips you will need.

Sew your strips end to end using a 1/4 " seam allowance.

Press your sewn strips in half horizontally.

Starting half way down one side leave approximately a 6 " tail machine sew the pressed binding around the edges of the front side of your project using 1/4" seam allowance. Miter the corners by stopping 1/4" away from the corner with the needle down, turn project, back stitch off project, fold binding at a 45 degree angle up, then fold binding straight down and continue down next side. Repeat for each corner.

When you are approaching your starting point stop approximately 8" from the beginning tail. Remove project from machine, lay project flat and measure binding so it overlaps the beginning tail 1/4". Sew loose ends together as illustrated. Then continue sewing binding as before until you reach the beginning stitches.

Trim the edges even to the binding.

Pin the binding to the back of the project.

Hand sew in place using a blind hem stitch.

Post Card

2009-10-31T07:40:00.000-07:00

I wanted to send my husband's aunt something unique for her birthday. She likes foxes so I thought this would make a cute birthday card.

Getting a start on Christmas

2009-10-30T13:12:00.000-07:00

I know some people are well into Christmas preparations but for me this is early. I have never made a quilted Christmas stocking. A friend asked if I could make one for her to give as a gift. After some Internet research and looking through my existing patterns this is what I came up with.