Top done! Now - how to quilt it...

A friend of mine from highschool is about ready to welcome her 2nd child and 1st daughter to the world. We hadn't talked since graduation (I won't tell you how long that's been, haha) and reconnected not long ago via Facebook. She saw a couple of my quilts online and commissioned me to make 2 for her - one for her new baby girl and one for her 2-year-old son.

When she said the nursery colors for her daughter were pink and cream, I immediately thought of the Lily and Will collection by Bunny Hill Designs. I wanted to emphasize the very elegant, classic prints by creating more of a modern feeling with the piecing. I chose a simple framed squares pattern and got to work... Here's the finished top:

I'm torn on how to quilt this little gal's quilt though - I was leaning toward straight-line quilting, but I think stippling would look nice too. Suggestions??

The quilt for this friend's little boy is going to be really fun, too - she sent me a box of monkey t-shirts he's outgrown to work with, so I thought I'd do the same pattern and use the shirts for the center of the blocks and use some kona solids (classic palette?) for the frames - to give the blocks stability and let the cutie monkey shirts be the focus.

Have a nice weekend :)

What I've been up to... in photos!

Well, things continue to be busy, busy with family and custom orders!! Some exciting news is that I got a Vintage Bicycle Facebook Page up and running and also got some business cards printed!

Aaaaannnnd..... some photos of some recent projects:

A custom bag set for a birthday gift

My one and only original bag design :)

A custom order for a spa in Dallas, TX. The owner requested black, white, and purple pieces in various  styles.

Another custom birthday gift set - this one shipped off to Maui, HI :)

This is a custom bag based on Anna's 241 Tote - it's 25% larger and has 2 straps (one messenger strap and one shoulder strap), plus LOTS of added magnetic snaps and pockets.

Here's a shot of the shoulder strap

I added a little anchor stitch detail for this nautical-themed bag :)

This 241 Tote was for a 13-year-old birthday girl in Ireland who loves purple :)

And this one was for her 21-year-old sister who loves classic lines, black, and gray.

This complete birthday set shipped off to Belfast, Ireland!

A set of linen napkins for a housewarming gift

Another custom 241 Tote

I LOVE Anna's new Go Anywhere Bag pattern!

A custom toiletry bag for my sister-in-law

The inside - wipeable lining

Little curved-top make-up pouch with wipeable lining

This was a gift from a dear friend to brighten my workspace - SO special!!! It makes me happy every day.

WOW! That's a ton a photos - thanks for bearing with me if you got all the way to the bottom of this post :) As you can see, I've been doing a lot of stitching... and not so much blogging. I'm going to start blogging more about my process with my new projects on the horizon - complete with in-process shots and write-ups of the various issues I run into. This blog was intended to be a place where I can share my whole creative experience - not just finished pieces!! So... you can count on seeing more of that!

Also - I'm doing a bit of de-stashing. I've listed some bundles in my Etsy Shop, so pop on over if you're interested. Some Prince Charming, Munki Munki, and 30's repro. are what's left :)

Have a great Tuesday!!

Giveaway Winner!!!

Well, there's no need for the Random Number Generator when there's only one comment during the giveaway - haha!!

The winner is Deb who blogs over at Debz Days!!!

Congrats, Deb :) You're a no-reply blogger, so if you want to send me an email with your mailing address, I'll send off these beautiful FQs to you :)

I'll be back soon with a post FULL of photos of what I've been sewing up over the past several weeks!

Have a great Wednesday!

I'm baaaaaack - with a GIVEAWAY!!!!

Hi All!!! I suppose I should have said that SEPTEMBER would find me feeling more "bloggy" - haha! It's been a very hectic couple of months around here, but I am finally feeling a little more balanced after this very busy Summer.

A HUGE "thank you" to my 32 die-hard followers who have stuck with me through the dry spell! I'm going to express my appreciation with my FIRST *small* Giveaway!

I'm going to be giving away 4 Fat Quarters from the Petalicious collection designed by Nancy Thais! These beautiful prints would be a great addition to any stash!

2 Possible Entries - please leave ONE comment for EACH entry

***Become a follower of my blog (or let me know in your comment that you already are)

***Blog about the giveaway (and send me the link to your post in your comment) or share the link to this post on Facebook or Twitter (and send the the link to your post in your comment)

The comments will be closed and the winner will drawn by Random Number Generator on Tuesday, September 6th @ 12 noon! Thanks again and good luck!!!

Quick Post

Unfortunately, all I have time for today is a quick post of mostly pics to show what I've been up to lately (sewing wise)

I listed a few items on Etsy! I don't know if they will sell, as I have only sold my creations to people I acutally know so far... it will be interesting to see if they're even viewed. Etsy is a funny animal - it seems to be where everyone goes to buy handmade items, maybe because there are SO many Etsy sellers that the options for the shopper (depending on what they are looking for) are virtually endless... meaning each seller is therefore the proverbial small fish in the big pond! Overall, it certainly seems to be a better deal for the buyer than the seller - that's for sure... so we'll see!

Reversible Demi Hostess Apron for my sister-in-law using the Mod Kitchen collection by Helen Dardik

241 Tote for Sarah using the Green/Blue colorway of Tufted Tweets by Laurie Wisbrun. Bag pattern (by Anna Graham) can be found here

"Juicy" Reversible Demi Hostess Apron 

Indian Summer Modern Baby Quilt

Between custom pieces for people and some more items for our Bible School Fund-Raising Boutique in a few weeks, I may not be very 'bloggy'... but August should find me back in a more normal routine!

Happy Thursday!

On a Bag Kick ;)

Quilting is still my first love, let it be known - but let me tell ya, there is a LOT to be said for quick projects. I'm an instant gratification lover so - bags, placemats, mug rugs - all feed that need. Lately, it's been bags. It helps that people have been buying them as well! I love to make things people love. That has to be one of the best feelings. On that note, if you ever see anything here that you'd like - please feel free to email me or comment! Here's the photo overload of what I've been up to...

Pleated handbag for Veronica

241 Tote Bag for Shannon (pattern from http://www.noodle-head.com/)

Summer Canvas Tote for ???

I'm linking up to Fabric Tuesday again today - click the button over there ---> to see all the lovely creations being made with fabric this week :)

Heather's 241 Bag

I just finished this bag for my cool friend, Heather. When she saw another 241 Tote Bag I had made, she asked for a custom one. I sent her some pics of different fabric combinations I had on-hand and she picked the awesome Tufted Tweets by Laurie Wisbrun in the purple colorway. I adore these prints. I really like how his bag turned out - 'hope Heather's happy with it too :)

I'm linking up to QuiltStory's Fabric Tuesday again today! Click the button on my sidebar to check out all the other fabric deliciousness going on over there :)

 

Oh, Happy {Mail} Day

These delicious FQs of Tula Pink's latest collection, "Prince Charming", arrived on my doorstep today! I was thrilled, especially because I only ordered them 3 days ago! And yes... I have already studied, fawned over, and stroked all 30 of them ;) *Please ignore that pesky shadow on the lower left*

LOOK AT THE BIKES!!! Eeeeeep!

I'll be awhile before I get to cut into these babies - I need to finish up my W(s)IP! That will give me time to look for the perfect quilt pattern ~ any suggestions?!?



The Wrench - A Different Sort of WIP...

Okay - I hope I don't bore you too much with this, but I'm going to post about the rather large wrench that has been tossed into our life here, and has caused more than a few headaches (literal and figurative) and also has kept me away from my sewing machine and the laptop for a bit.

OUR WATER HEATER. The thing was apparently only a few years younger than myself... oops. It was "born" in 1987. It's not something we often checked (obviously) - if the water was hot, we thought the ol' water heater was A.O.K. As it turns out, it had developed a very slow leak, who knows how long ago. The result?! Water damage. Lots of it. Not only did the heater itself need replacing, but the stand it was on and the cabinet it was in (located in our garage) had been completely corroded and infected with mold. SO when the construction started on that, they found that the damage extended into the house. Bad. Enough gab, I'll just show you what we've got now:

So... we have our internet connection back (of course, the damage was in the "office/extra bedroom" where our cable was set up). We have our shiny, new water heater (1st pic). And sizeable holes in the walls. Finally, yesterday, I was able to sew up a couple more of these...

Over halfway done! And just so this post isn't completely useless - the tutorial I used is found here.







"Cozy Dreams" for Grandma

I'm calling this quilt "Cozy Dreams" :)

'Cozy' because I hope that's what it will make my hubby's Grandma (as I mentioned in my previous post, she is elderly and has trouble with always feeling cold).

'Dreams' because of the fabric collection I used: "Dream On" by Urban Chiks.

Quilt Stats

measures approx. 57"x57"

• Fabric used: "Dream On" (layer cake) and bound with a print from "Sugar" for Art Gallery Fabrics ( ---------->)
• backing is pieced with white super flannel and a row of Dream On blocks
• simply quilted with a crosshatch through the blocks
• batting is Quilter's Dream Delux (high loft) *Note* I hadn't used this batting before, but I wanted the warmest option for this quilt so I deviated from my usual Warm and Natural. The Quilter's Dream was fine, but I will probably just stick with Warm and Natural or Warm and White from now on. I found this batting to be a bit on the heavy side and it didn't seem significanly warmer than the "Warms" when I was under it stitching the binding.
• bound with 2.25" binding (straight-of-grain, double-fold) - machine stitched to the front and hand-stitched to the back. 

The Front

The Back (nevermind the Hubster's tennies/socks) 

The Quilt Roll

 The Chair Drape



I'm pleased with how "Cozy Dreams" turned out and I hope Grandma Liliane enjoys it! After this simple quilt, I'm ready for something a bit more challenging, which is why I joined up with the Kaleidoscope Quiltalong (see my new sidebar button) hosted by Elizabeth over at Don't Call Me Betsy. The fun starts with fabric requirements being posted this Friday (6/3)! 'Can't wait!!

WIP Wednesday #28

I'm linking this post up to WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced.

I'm currenly working on quite a few things, but I wanted to share a specific one today - this is a quilt that will be sent to my husband's grandmother. She is in her 80's and in poor health, so I thought a quilt made from this cheery, springy fabric collection would give her something happy to enjoy. It is just a simple patchwork layout, I went with this for a few reasons: (1) I love this fabric and wanted it to really shine, (2) I really like the look, and (3) I need to finish this quilt ASAP, as Grandma Lilliane lives in Switzerland and shipping packages there often takes quite some time!

I finished up the quit top this morning, so now all that's left is to piece the backing, layer, quilt (I'm thinking a simple cross-hatching through the patchwork), bind, wash, and ship! Well... in a list that sounds like a lot! I am glad to at least have the top done, though!!

Have fun checking out all the other projects in progress at Freshly Pieced!

Happy WIP Wednesday!

A Button!

A very quick Monday post to say... WE HAVE A BUTTON!!! Directly to the right of this post, on my sidebar, I now have a Vintage Bicycle button that you can feel free to grab and share on your blog, if you're so inclined!!

As a brief sidenote - tomorrow is my oldest girl's last day of Kindergarten! As she keeps reminding me, after tomorrow I'm going to be a mom of a 1st grader - yikes! I made a little wristlet pouch for her teacher and one for her teacher's helper. Here's the only one I snapped a pic of before she gave them to her teachers today.

Oops, not sure why the pic won't load upright!!!! Oh well, you get the gist ;)

Happy Monday!

Wordless Wednesday



Finally, A Finish!

It's a perfect rainy morning (thus the indoor photos) to share my recently finished quilt. I've shared about this quilt here before, but I've finally found the time to finish it up. This quilt is a gift for a special new boy who was just born to a family that we're close friends with. I used a Lily and Will charm pack by Bunny Hill Designs. I sewed up some pinwheels and scattered them in with some great Kona solid squares and backed the quilt with a really cozy blue flannel. I stippled pretty closely over the entire thing and bound it with Kona solid in Tarragon. This was my first time using bias binding and overall, I like it. There were a few hiccups, but I think the process will go a bit more smoothly next time. The pics were taken before washing, so the finished product will be more crinkly and cozy :)

This is a close-up of the back - the color isn't very true in this photo (the shade of the backing is much closer to the peek of it in the first photo), but it was the only decent shot I was able to get of the quilting.

I'm linking up to Fabric Tuesday again, so head over there (via the button on my sidebar) and see all the great fabric projects being shared!!