Return to My Roots

My life as a sewer/crafty person started with quilting. The first quilt I can remember making was peach and forest green (blech!) and true to the country decor of that decade (I'll let you do the math!). I don't know what happened to that quilt, but it started a life long obsession with "projects."

I once spent an entire summer (yes - summer...don't ask) quilting a massive navy blue and white quilt that the entire family, including the cat, still fights over.

But somehow, in recent years, I have strayed from my quilting roots. Clothes, toys, orders, and gifts have monopolized what little time I have. And I'm beginning to miss the joy of watching tiny scraps grow into beautiful patterns.

So #2 on that prominently displayed list of goals is, "Return to my roots." Get back on the quilting horse.

First project - A quilt for Belle's big bed.

I spent some time combing through Flickr for ideas and then called Belle over to help me pick the final design. I had 4 relatively simple examples to show her, and after scanning through them all once, I got ready to show her each one again so she could decide. Unfortunately, she caught sight of all the other favorites I had marked and fell in love with a huge, rainbow, string-pieced, diamond quilt and that was it. She had to have THAT one.

"Are you sure? Don't you love this one? Or this one?" NO! So, diamonds it is...I guess. I sketched out a color plan and figured up dimensions with the resulting number of blocks to be created...

48!

This may take all of 2011 to finish! But, she loves it...and I'm beginning to love it too. I decided to work in sets of 8 blocks at a time. Yesterday afternoon, I prepped the first 8 and began to sew, hoping to finish 1 or 2. I was so excited by the results of the first one, that I dropped pretty much everything else so that I could do the other 7. Thank goodness for Chinese take-out!

But with 40 still ahead of me and all the quilting to be done after that, it's going to be a long time in the making. I guess the longer it takes me to finish the quilt, the longer she has to sleep in her little girl bed...this quilt is looking better and better every minute:)

2011 Sewing Goals:

1. STOP HOARDING!

2. Return to my roots.

Pips on a Roll...

The Pips and I have been on a roll! But, I do have a confession to make...I hoard fabric. When I get my hands on fabulous fabric, no project ever seems worthy of cutting into it. It sits there for weeks, months, even years...untouched. One of my goals for 2011 is to stop this ridiculous practice. Repeat after me, "Fabric is intended for use. Fabric is intended for use. Fabric is..."


So when the first set of Pips arrived, I immediately made these skirts. The fact that I started with charm packs definitely helped me begin to conquer my hoarding ways. There was no pristine yardage that had to be butchered. Just neat, little squares that were already cut for me.



But I'm no fool. I knew when that second charm pack arrived that it would be filed away for future use. I mean, this fabric hasn't even been released! How could I possibly use all of it???

Luckily, I've written down my sewing goals for 2011. A short list, in a prominent location, that must be faced every day. At the top of that list....STOP HOARDING!

So reluctantly, I planned out a few projects and got right to work.

I must admit, I'm really glad I didn't hoard these...and I even have a few left over for that "perfect" project down the road. But just a few, and I'm already making plans for them...I PROMISE!

And just to prove that I really am trying to rehabilitate myself, I'm not even going to hoard the finished products. Both of these will be for sale in my shop when it reopens on 1.4.11. Use the coupon code PIPS10 for 10% of any order.

2011 Sewing Goals:

1. STOP HOARDING!

Pips in Action

Coordinating Christmas Eve outfits from the yet-to-be-released Sherbet Pips.


I only wish my models would have cooperated enough for me to get a shot of both of them together with no one crying...oh well!

I love these skirts because they were perfect for a holiday family gathering, but the "not red and green" color palette will last them through the winter too.

More pips to come, I promise!

Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night!

'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The mama was nestled all snug in her bed, while visions of AMH flannels danced in her head. Wishing you and all of yours a warm and snuggly holiday. Merry Christmas!

Distracted

I might have been a bit of a distracted Mommy for the last week...


It's a good thing Bee is good at entertaining herself....



Maybe you'll be reading her blog before long....

Looks like she's a natural:)

Making Do Monday - Cover Those Stains

Somehow with all the holiday hullabaloo, I just forgot about Making Do Mondays. I promise to at least try to do better:)

We're a messy house...clementine juice running down our arms, paint splattering across our chests, garden soil ground into the knees of our pants. It just happens. We seem to have no control over it. So we make do:)


Both of these shirts featured lovely stains on the front (strawberry and chili if I'm not mistaken).

A quick sketch, a light iron to fuse, and a few rounds through the sewing machine and they were good as new...actually, better than new!

All you need are a few scraps of fabric and some of this.

Handmade Holiday Update

After much debate and more than a little searching for inspiration, I finally decided to make Bee a baby play set for Christmas. She's really gotten into loving on her dolls and stuffed animals and this gave me a chance to make something really special for her that I hope will grow with her in the next few years.

I used the string-pieced swaddling blanket pattern from Anna Maria Horner's Handmade Beginnings. She is my sewing crush afterall! She also has an adorable baby pattern in the book, but I wanted a doll that would look a wee bit older.

So I turned to my other sewing crush, Hillary Lang. This is the Tag-A-Long doll from Wee Wonderfuls. I omitted the pigtails and hair in exchange for just a few embroidered curls, but I'm seriously considering going back and adding some wool felt hair (no pigtails though...I want it to look about the same age as Bee).

I also made the dress as a separate entity, so that it could be removed for diapering...Did I mention the SUPER easy diaper pattern in AMH's book??? I'll have to show you pics of those later. It turns out that I am out of Velcro. I could have sworn that I bought a package last week, but apparently not:(

There are still a few more pieces to add to the set...a bib, some diapers, maybe some cloth wipes,

and a sweet, little teddy bear for the doll made of some faux fur I grabbed from the remnant bin this morning. You didn't think that obnoxiously large pocket on Baby's dress was just for decoration did you??? It had to be large enough to hold her tiny teddy:)

Every baby needs a bottle, right? I seriously considered making one of felt, but then remembered that we had three bottles that we bought before Bee was born that had maybe been used once each. It took some searching, but I managed to find one and whipped up a quick cloth cover just for cuteness.

Belle gave the whole set a test drive this afternoon. She promises me that Bee will love it. She also promises to teach Bee how to wrap her baby. I think this translates to stealing the whole kit-n-kaboodle, but we'll see.

To keep the whole set together I made this little bassinet. Belle thinks it is hilarious that we are going to carry the baby in a "bag." I've given up trying to explain the difference.

I really hope Bee loves it! If not, I may take it myself...it's just so cute:)