a baby quilt~

well, i certainly didn't mean to stop quilting.  really.  i just find this season of my life to be particularly challenging.  the demands of motherhood keep me hopping, and although i thought i would have more time for sewing as my kids got older, i find they need me more as a presence... to take a walk with, to read to, to take skating or swimming, etc.  they need me to be more present in their lives... available.

making this quilt was pure joy.  a lovely couple in our church expecting their second child, a girl.  i was completely inspired by emily of mle knits and her crosses quilt. i raided my stash and found a kona curry and some prints from the innocent crush line as well as some others that really seemed to work well together.  i pieced the crosses section with three inch squares and bound it with signals, from innocent crush.

Edited to add: I'm entering it into the Blogger's Quilt Festival at Amy's Creative Side.

margaret bag

with a snow day yesterday, i was happy to sit down with the sewing machine.  there is something so great about loosing yourself to a project.  it's like reading a book... i'm lost to all that's going on around me, focused on the project... the process.  i love that.

 

i'm a little late with teacher (christmas) gifts, but i still love giving something that is handmade to those who mean a lot to me and who i know will appreciate it. elizabeth hartman's margaret bag is a perfect bag.  large on the inside with two pockets.  i  made them both with the longer strap option for a cross-body bag.  i used some duck/twill type fabric for the exterior and some fun prints on the inside.  a pretty quick project and very satisfying. 

and now i need to clean up the havoc i've wreaked around here!

a new year....

just last year i began writing occasionally here in this space.  i wanted a place to write about the quilts i made, and the things i sewed.  sometimes i wrote about places we went.

i started a 365 project last year (flickr collection here) and then during the summer and fall joined two self portrait photography courses, called NOW YOU.  suddenly more time was spent taking pictures than sewing.

i have learned so much this year about taking pictures, and have been doing lots of thinking about myself and my place in this world.  but i long to sew, to put strips of color together, to make something out of scraps...  to have the concentration sewing requires.

this is my word for this year. thanks to sarah of urbanprairieforest, i can't get this word out of my head. here's a link to the 'earworm'. rhythmofthehomeblog.com/10/being-persistence/.  i want to have persistence in choosing gratitude, in choosing patience, in being gentle with my family, in carving out time for myself. it's just the right word.

and for those of you that quilt....  there may just be a scrappy trip around the world coming...  i don't know how much longer i can resist.  it's like a siren.

~b

Market Tote for Mom

I love giving handmade items to loved ones.  It's one of the things that got me back into sewing in the first place!  Unfortunately, I'm rarely on time with gifts!  This year, I asked my mom what she wanted me to sew her and she mentioned a tote bag, "denim with some colorful accents".

I looked around my pinterest sewing board and found a pin that was perfect!  Bijou Lovely's Market Tote tote is just great!  The instructions are very clear and simple.  I referred to another pin, by Sew La Vie and her Market Tote, where she used heavier fabrics and made some alterations.

I used a 'duck' canvas from Jo-Ann's (with the upholstery/outdoor fabrics) and a print I've had my eye on for some time ~ I love the pairing.  I turned the handles in 1/4 inch and pressed them, topstitching along each side, instead of turning them inside out.   I added a key clip and inside pocket.  I didn't have enough colorful fabric to have a layer of it under the canvas, so I sewed the two pieces together (the canvas measuring 9.5" x 21" and the flower print measuring 10.5" x 21").  I used the flowered fabric for both the outside and the lining.

This is a great size for lugging things around and it fits nicely over your shoulder.  I can't wait to send it off to my mom, although I hope I can pack it so that it doesn't get all wrinkly..!!

Chincoteague ~ Why I Love Virginia!

We met my sister and her kids, as well as my parents for part of a week in Chincoteague.  Although I've been birding there long ago, I've never gone in the summer.  We rented a lovely house on Little Oyster Bay, about 4 miles from the beach.  Our weather started out cool, but got REALLY hot by Friday.  The cousins crabbed, took rides in kayaks and canoes, and boogie boarded like nobody's business!   

  

A beautiful, beautiful place to go.  Although the beaches got somewhat crowded later in the week and in the day, we had some great beach time.  This little place really has the feel of a small town that remains almost pristine.  There is some good local food - including ice cream, and a very local grocery.  The beach itself is within the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, which keeps it from being built on and which protects the land around it.  There are miles of beach.  Phil and Nate were even able to surf.  I think we'll be going back!

There is nothing like time with family ~ I cherish time together and wish we lived closer!! 

Wonky String Star Quilt

After seeing Sew Katie Did's Quilt last week and her reference to Denyse Schmidt's string star quilt, I couldn't get it out of my head.  I have a tendency to collect ideas and become paralyzed by their execution, so this time, I just jumped in and started collecting reds, yellows, and oranges, with a little bit of purple.

I cut strips thinking my blocks would be smaller.... maybe 6 inches, but they turned into 10 inch blocks, so that the center block was about 19 inches square.  I used left over pieces from the center blocks for the star points.  (Instead of paper or muslin piecing, I made long slabs with strips that were 14 inches tall, and then cut them into squares on the diagonal - using the center square on my cutting mat.)

I had a time piecing the star points, until I finally realized I could trace the shape with a water soluble marker.  I traced the line having the triangle hanging off about 1/4 inch, then I flipped it over and sewed a seam using the line for placement.

This took much longer than I planned... there was a lot of seam ripping.  The neutral I used for outside the star was really thin and hard to work with.  I won't use something like it again.

This quilt had a mixture of washed and unwashed fabrics, but after a wash and dry came out perfectly fine.  I threw in a Shout color catcher because none of the reds had been washed (except the binding) and that worked great!  There was absolutely no color running.

This will go to a lovely young couple in our church expecting their first baby in the next few weeks!

And just to remind myself and anyone else who may also have serious trouble EVERY TIME they attach the binding.  (I usually do this part several times.... ) Here's what it should look like:

Stats:  finished size 48 X 48

Blocks:  9 patch-ish, middle block 19" square, middle blocks 19 X 15, corner blocks, 15 X 15

Linking up with {Sew} Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations.

241 Tote

I've made this tote before for my sister.  It's the fabulous Noodlehead's 241 Tote.  This year, she requested one for a dear friend, who loved the one I made for her.  I am always so happy to make something for someone else... I love thinking about who they are as I make fabric selections.  Actually, that part takes more time and mental energy than cutting and sewing!!

This pattern is so fantastic and easy to whip up!  I love the finished look and the size.  The outside pockets are great for little things.  The only change I made was to add interfacing to the strap sew five lines of stitching along it.

The yellow fabric is a "Sew Classic Linen" from Jo-Ann's - it's a great mustardy yellow that is an exact match to the yellow in Cloud 9's Cut out and Keep.