the year ends

Here we are, somehow, at the very end of 2012. What a strange feeling. This year was such a mix; by far one of the most stressful years in recent memory, with lower lows then I could have imagined. It was a hard one, no two ways about it, but we are coming out the other side {I hope} and the coming year looks bright. I don't want to pretend there were not plenty of very good moments, though. Parenting a 2-year-old is hard, but so much fun and she is definitely a bright spot on even the hardest of days. We also had a truly lovely vacation, and lots of other good moments to get us through.

Through it all, my sewing kept me sane. I learned and developed so much this year, I find it kind of incredible.  I finished 16 (!!!!) quilts, and 3 of them were queen sized! To be fair, some of them were simply wrapped up this year, but still.

I really worked on learning, at least on a basic level, how to make clothes both for me, and the little one and I am looking forward to continuing with it. I made so many bags, both big and small, some pillows, and even found time to knit a few things. This is just a sampling of my favorites.

I am really pleased with all I accomplished this year, and while next year isn't entirely clear at this point as we are still getting settled into our new lives, I think it will be a big one. I have so many things I am itching to start, but I still need to finish setting up my craft space and get my thoughts in order so I'll be back with that one in a few days. In the meantime, I hope everyone has a wonderful time ringing in the new year! I can't believe tomorrow is 2013! Here's to a fantastic New Year!

the final gift

I guess it's been weeks now, but this is the final gift I managed to get made this holiday season. It was for my mother and I am happy to be able to report that she loves it.

I used a pattern I have used a couple of times before, and I still love it. This time I lost my mind a little and decided that since I didn't have any single pieces big enough, it needed to be patchwork. and of course the squares needed to finish at 2". To be fair, I then got lazy and did solid pieces for the pockets, but that's okay. I used all home decor weight fabric that I had scraps of, and I still have way too much left. I probably should have quilted it a little more to make it sturdier, but it still works. I don't even know where the purple from the handles came from, but I was happy to find it. I used some damask that I still have lots of for the lining. I could have used it for the outer, but I didn't want it to match mine plus I would say my mom is more of a patchwork kind of gal.

So that's that. The next time I post it should be from our new southern home. I can't wait to be settled in and feel like we have a home again. Hopefully both the kid and the cat do alright on the long drive to a strange place.

I'm still alive!

I thought while I had a few minutes I would pop in and say hi :)  Things are crazy around here, to say the least. All of our belongings have been successfully moved to the new place of residence, and in another handful of days we will actually get to go join them.

Crafting has been very limited. I managed to start my socks, but that is about it. I really can't wait to get back to my sewing machine though. In the mean time, I have some definite fabric shopping plans for the future.

In other news, my sweet, sweet husband got me this pattern I fell in love with

Source: amitie.com.au via Cassie on Pinterest

Along with Sunday Morning Quilts, so I am a very happy girl. I hope everyone is having a lovely holiday season. I'll be back in a few days with the other duffle bag I made as a gift and maybe a little recap of the year as soon as I can wrap my head around it.

a hummingbird

It's finally moving day. And guys, I. am. tired. It has been so crazy trying to get it all packed up and organized, but it is over now. At least the packing part, we'll worry about unpacking another day.  I am hoping by New Years we will feel like we have a new home and be at least a little settled, but I guess we'll see how quickly it goes. We still don't even know exactly what date our things will be delivered and even after we go meet the truck, we'll be heading back to spend the holidays with our families. So we are still looking at over a week until we are officially moved in. *sigh* Fun but stressful.

Enough about my moving woes, on to the little bits of sewing I have managed to do recently. I am most proud of finishing that stinking needlepoint, so I thought I would show you the final product. I seriously dislike needlepoint I think. And I guess it looks okay in the end, but I certainly wouldn't like it for myself. Thankfully I think my grandparents will adore it, and clearly that is what matters.

I am glad it is done, especially since I bought it to make for them probably 5 years ago and never did. Once I realized it was needlepoint and I had no idea how to do it, it got shoved in a box. And now I can go ahead and never make another one :) I even had that perfectly sized frame sitting around! It was pretty impressive.

So that's that. I have a couple more things to put up here, hopefully this week. I have to really get to thinking about my goals for next year and do a little reflection on this one, but that is something I always look forward to. I can't believe there are only 2 weeks left of this year! Hopefully everything goes smoothly today and I'll have something pretty in progress to show you Wednesday :)

WIP Wednesday {12.12.12}

Yes, I am excited about the date :) Anyway, I'll be honest, in all the crazy I almost forgot to post this today. Somehow I did remember, but I'll keep it short and sweet. It appears I did get a good amount done this week....

Completed:

feathers! - my most epic finish. I am so in love. If I didn't know it was going to such a great house where it will be loved, I wouldn't have wanted to let it go.

bag for mom- obviously I still need to take better pictures of it, but it came out well and I think she'll like it

seat belt cover - it ended up so cute! And she loves it!

lanyard - Easy and lovely.

Still to do:

key fobs - fabric is picked out, I just need to do it
needlepoint - I am almost done! But I forgot to take a picture...
gifts for the little one - better luck next month


Waiting:

*lilly belle - this is getting moved down here until I have time to get supplies and think about it again.
*wedding quilt -I think I know what I am going to do. But it might have to wait until I knock out some gifts....
*wedding quilt II- I know exactly what I am going to do, I just need to find out what colors would be preferred.
*baby quilt - still an idea just waiting for me to come play. Once I find the perfect fabric I will be on my way. Someday.... 

So, the list is almost done! Good thing since I am drowning in boxes and trying to explain to a 2.5 year old what the heck is going on. I am pretty much just waiting for February at this point, when things will really be more settled. For now, I am just trying to take it day by day and finish everything that needs to be done without losing my mind. Hope everyone is having a good week!

feathers!!!!

Ahhh!!! One week til moving day *cue panic*. So much packing still to do, but I suppose it will all get done. Makes me wish we didn't have so much stuff....and we've already gotten rid of so much! At least I am just about done all the things I need to sew with my machine. I made good progress this weekend on all that stuff, so soon I will pack it up and just have my hand work. I have mixed feeling on that; I do so love my sewing machine, but it will be nice to be making some things by hand like hexies, and socks, and cross stitch.

Anyway, on to the point! The feathers quilt is done!!!! I am so happy to be able to finally share this quilt! It is my first commissioned quilt and I have been working on it for quite a while now. It was made for the wonderful woman who took our family photographs over the summer. She requested the AMH feather bed quilt. Queen sized. This, my friends, is a very large quilt. It ends up 90" x 108" making it my largest quilt so far. And possibly my most epic :)

These blocks, while certainly beautiful, are a whole lot of work. Especially 57 of them. I used field study as the prints (15 out of the 36), kona charcoal as the stems, and a cream colored flat sheet from target for the background. The sheet got so soft after washing! The back is also a target sheet, this time gray, with a stripe of kona curry. I used a new-to-me batting this time, and I think I love it. It is nature-fill or something that I picked up at joanns. It is a blend of bamboo rayon and organic cotton and it is incredibly soft and has a great drape. I actually picked it up because I needed king size batting for this one so it needed to be packaged, and this was the one where I could quilt the furthest apart, but I ended up loving it and will definitely try it again.

The quilting is a zig zag in cream thread that follows the angles of the feathers. Since we decided to flip every other row of feathers, it worked out absolutely perfectly. It may be one of my favorite quilting jobs, I just love the way it compliments the feathers. I quilted random distances apart and it is certainly not perfect, but I love it.

I am happy to say that it has been received and the recipient loves it! It is also my final quilt finish of the year, which is kind of exciting. Now I just have a few more gifts to finish up and then I start wrapping! I do love that part a little :) So hopefully by Wednesday I will be finishing up the things I have left to sew and then the serious packing shall commence!

WIP Wednesday {12.5.12}

The race is on! I am furiously working to get as much done as I can in the next 1.5 weeks, and it looks like I am going to get all the important things done. I am going to have to wait on the gifts for the little one until after we move I think, but that's okay, I know she won't mind.

Completed:

bag for dad

Finished and I love it. I hope he does too and can use it.

Must Do:

feathers- I finished up the binding last night and it is currently being washed so I can photograph and send it out. Look for a reveal sometime next week!
bag for mom - I have one more piece to make and then I can quilt them and put it together. By the end of tomorrow I hope I have a finished bag.

seat belt cover - requested as a gift. I need to do this. soon.
lanyard - a graduation gift for my nursey friend
little ones gift - I know what I am making, but I need to pick fabric. It will probably wait until we move though.
key fobs - little gifts for everyone
needlepoint - Hasn't been touched since I have been focused on binding all week. I will pick it back up very soon though and hopefully finish it up pretty quickly.


Want to do (most of these will be for all the time traveling and away from my machine):
christmas pjs for the little one - clearly I will not have time. Unless I bring it and make it at my in-laws while we are there.....
hexie pillow - another thing I haven't touched all week.
hat for me
socks
cross stitch 


Waiting:

*lilly belle - this is getting moved down here until I have time to get supplies and think about it again.
*wedding quilt -I think I know what I am going to do. But it might have to wait until I knock out some gifts....
*wedding quilt II- I know exactly what I am going to do, I just need to find out what colors would be preferred.
*baby quilt - still an idea just waiting for me to come play. Once I find the perfect fabric I will be on my way. Someday.... 

I am getting there. Slowly but surely. And all the fabric I don't need right now is packed so that is good. Still too much to do and not enough time, but it will all work out in the end. I seriously can't wait to be unpacked and start some new things! In the mean time, here's hoping for a very productive week!

One more down

Happy Monday! I think. 2 weeks until moving day, but at least I have one more thing crossed off my list. This weekend I finished the bag for my dad and it came out really well. It took longer than I was hoping, but at least it is done.

I used the getaway duffle bag pattern again, and like the last one, I quilted it. This time I used a layer of felt for the inner layer and it worked out well. I was a little worried about it, but it seems to have a good deal of structure. I decided not to use the piping this time, which made it a bit easier and I thought worked better with the plaid, although the edges aren't quite as nice. I also added a snap for the outer pocket I added, which I think was a good call. It does get a little easier with each one I make and I am happier with the way they turn out. Even machine stitching in the lining went pretty well!I used a black fabric with brown dots for the lining. I originally bought it to use for my farmers wife because I thought the dots were gray, but since they weren't, it has been sitting around for a while now.

So at least that is done and I have started cutting for my mom's bag and I am over halfway done binding the feathers quilt. After that it is pretty much just small stuff. I can't believe how the time is flying. I have way too much to do. And I totally bought myself the weekender bag pattern so that is on my list for the new year. Along with a bazillion other things. I also can't decide which hand work projects to have ready for moving time. I really want to do my kawaii winter wonderland cross stitch, but I also have my hexies and a bunch of things to knit and I am trying not to start too many at once since then they will never get finished. But enough about all that for now. I am crossing my fingers that by Wednesday I have the panels for my mom's bag all ready and can begin construction!

friday things

Ahhhh!!! Tomorrow is December!!!! Now that I got that out of the way, I did something ridiculous this week. I had been planning on quilting the feathers quilt one day when my husband was home so he could take the little one and I could really focus and get it done. And he came home the other day and told me that I could have all day Wednesday to quilt and he would take the little one out and to swimming lessons and such. I was so excited, and I got the whole thing done. That's right, an entire queen sized quilt quilted in one day. That is 7 hours of quilting in case you were wondering. And I am still super sore from it. In retrospect, I really should have spread it out a bit, but I am glad now that it is done and I can just work on binding. The only picture I can show is this one from my phone that I took while I was quilting. I promised no more sneak peeks until it is in the recipients hands.

I am loving it though. It came out so well! I am hoping to have it done and delivered in the next week.

In other news, I am slowly starting to pack up all my sewing stuff. I decided to start by refolding all my fabric and this is what I have done so far.

This is almost all of my quilting cottons, but unfortunately, my closet is still full of various other fabrics and yarn and all kinds of goodness, so I still have a ways to go. But isn't it just so pretty?!?! If only it would stay that way in the cabinet! Maybe I'll work on it some more this weekend. I am sad to see it packed up, but I know I won't be needing most of it for a while. I already have the stuff I'll be needing to finish piled around the house, so I should be good to go. Now that the monstrous quilt is finished I can focus on the other {smaller} things that need to get done.

WIP Wednesday {11.28.12}

So much to do, so little time! After the better part of the week away, I am feeling ready to get some of this stuff done and off my list. I did make some handwork progress, so that is good. I just need some good movie time to keep going on that. I can't believe that December is so close; it keeps giving me little panic attacks every time I realize it. I am hoping by next week I can relax a little.


Completed:

napkins- finished. again. washed and looking lovely, ready to be wrapped and mailed.

hubby's gift- I finished it yesterday and I love it! I hope he does too. I can't show the whole thing until I give it to him, so here is a peek until then.

Must Do:

feathers- it is basted and I am going to start quilting today!
bag for dad - I started quilting the pieces yesterday so I'm on my way.
bag for mom - still a nice pile to be cut
seat belt cover - requested as a gift
lanyard - a graduation gift for my nursey friend
little ones gift - I know what I am making, but I need to pick fabric
sisters gifts- I have a couple of little things planned
key fobs - little gifts for everyone
needlepoint - well underway. I just need to not lose momentum and get it done!

Want to do (most of these will be for all the time traveling and away from my machine):
christmas pjs for the little one - If I have time, I already have fabric and a pattern picked out.
hexie pillow - I started these little buggers while we were gone. I have some nice little stacks going on and am almost 1/4 done what I have.

hat for me
socks
cross stitch  

Waiting:

*lilly belle - this is getting moved down here until I have time to get supplies and think about it again.
*wedding quilt -I think I know what I am going to do. But it might have to wait until I knock out some gifts....
*wedding quilt II- I know exactly what I am going to do, I just need to find out what colors would be preferred.
*baby quilt - still an idea just waiting for me to come play. Once I find the perfect fabric I will be on my way. Someday....


I guess finishing 2 things while gone for a holiday week really isn't too bad.  It just doesn't make the list seem much shorter. This week I'll make a dent in it though, so maybe I'll feel better about it next week. And maybe I'll start folding and packing up my fabric. I already can't wait until January when I can unpack and get set up and get back to business :)

A hummingbird

Well I'm back, and of course more tired then when I left. Still, I am feeling ready to tackle everything, so that's good. 3 weeks from today our house will be packed up and the move will happen, so I am feeling the crunch. I am going to start out easy today with some napkins to get me started, and so that I can mail them to the bride and groom. I am hoping to mail them out this week so I need to get on it.

While we were away, I spent a lot of time chilling on my mother-in-laws couch working on a needlepoint. I have had this thing for years, but when I bought it, I thought I was buying cross stitch or something. Then I found out it was needlepoint, which I have no idea how to do so I tucked it away. In my cleaning, I found it and decided to make it for the original recipient I had in mind.

I didn't do too bad. It feels like I have been working on it forever and it should be done by now, but there are a lot of stitches in those 5 square inches. I got the bird completely done and the bigger flower almost done. I am going to try and finish it up pretty quickly if I can. Because really, when it comes down to it, I think I really dislike needlepoint. I don't know why; I mean I like cross stitch which is fairly similar, but I really dislike it so I really just want it done and out of my way. I think it is the colored canvas which I find really hard to follow.

I also managed to get a few hexies basted while we were gone, but I don't have a picture of those yet. I have really missed my regular sewing time though, so I am really looking forward to getting back to that today. I hope everyone had a lovely holiday weekend!

WIP Wednesday {11.21.12}

Happy Wednesday! Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and I must admit I am pretty excited! Since we are traveling this week, I don't have as much done as I would like, but I did a pretty good push before we left so I have a couple of things done and even more prepped for when we return.

Completed:

feathers quilt top - Ready for the next phase!

hat - Done and I am in love and need to make one for me.

zip bag -Obviously I needed a little bag for some of my hand projects while we travel. And no, of  course I didn't already have one I could use.

Must do:

finish feathers quilt - quilt.bind.give.

napkins - all cut out and ready to be sewn.

hubby's gift - I am hoping to work on this while we are gone.

bag for dad - all cut and ready to be started

bag for mom - fabric pulled, now to get cutting and sewing.

seat belt cover - requested as a gift
lanyard - a graduation gift for my nursey friend
little ones gift - I know what I am making, but I need to pick fabric
sisters gifts- I have a couple of little things planned
needlepoint - if I can figure out how to do it, it will be a gift for my grandparents
key fobs - little gifts for everyone

Want to do (most of these will be for all the time traveling and away from my machine):
christmas pjs for the little one - If I have time, I already have fabric and a pattern picked out.
hexie pillow - I have my supplies and brought this one with me to start if I have the chance

hat for me
socks
cross stitch 

Waiting:

*lilly belle - this is getting moved down here until I have time to get supplies and think about it again.
*wedding quilt -I think I know what I am going to do. But it might have to wait until I knock out some gifts....
*wedding quilt II- I know exactly what I am going to do, I just need to find out what colors would be preferred.
*baby quilt - still an idea just waiting for me to come play. Once I find the perfect fabric I will be on my way. Someday....

I'll be honest, for once, it didn't seem as bad until I wrote it all down haha. And really I'll have only 3 weeks to do it all. In light of this, I am now going to go prepare to gorge myself for the remainder of this long weekend and come back prepared to get down to business. And don't forget I also have to pack up a house in that time. No prob. I just keep telling myself that there is an end in sight!

Have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

feathers!!

I finished the feathers quilt top!!!! Not only is it all sewn together, it is basted too!! It feels so good to have gotten this far and actually reached the timeline goal I set for myself. I am so glad it is basted before we go so that I just have quilting/binding to do when we return. It was so hard to get a picture of such a large quilt top (90" x 108"), but I tried. I had to clear out pretty much my entire living room to have space to baste it and I was still up against furniture that I couldn't move. Definitely my largest quilt.

I still have a ways to go to get this beast quilted and bound, but I have the binding fabric and even some quilting ideas. So hopefully I will get that done fairly soon after thanksgiving. It looks like I may even get all the gifts done *crosses fingers* but more on that Wednesday when I actually write it down and see how bad it is.

Now I am off to go to story time at the library for the last time here, and then drive to visit family for the week. I can't believe that when we get back, we will pretty much have 3 weeks until we have to be packed and out of here and begin the transition to down south!! It is coming too fast, but at the same time I am ready for it to be over! I'll be back Wednesday with my list of insanity :)

thistledown hat

Hello and happy Friday! I am still working on turning my feathers into a quilt top, but I did manage to finish the knit hat this week! I am so in love with it, it is going to be so hard to give away. If only you could feel the softness of the yarn, it is really quite incredible. Now if only I knew what it was.....

It was a pretty quick knit. The pattern was only $1.99 through knit picks. It is a really simple pattern with a really impressive result, the best kind of pattern. I went up a size for each needle, actually out of necessity since I already had the smaller needles a size larger and the store only had a size larger for the bigger ones, but I knit tight and usually go up a size anyway so it worked out just fine. I am already planning another that I can keep :)

Now I need to go hide it in the gift pile so I don't keep wearing it. Have I mentioned that it is the softest yarn ever?!?!  Hopefully I will be back next week with an amazing finished feather quilt top to show off. It is looking really good so far and I am quite excited. I also hope that we make good progress this weekend on the cleaning out of all our crap so that after thanksgiving, the packing can begin. Ahhh so much to do so little time!!

WIP Wednesday {11.14.12}

Is it really Wednesday already??  Amazing how that keeps happening....I am still trucking along with my feathers. I should finish them today, so by next week I hope to have a basted quilt ready to be dealt with after the holiday travels. Other than that, not too much to report. I am hoping that once the feathers are done things will start to move more quickly and I can get out of panic mode.  I have nothing completed and nothing new so....

Still Going:

feathers!

Only 10 more to go!! I should finish them up today and then figure out the layout, and put together a quilt top. I really want this together and basted before we leave next week so that when we get back it is just quilt and bind.

husbands gift
I need to sneak in some time to work on this. Soon would be good. 

napkins (round 2)

This is just sitting around staring at me, begging to be made. The wedding is in a month so I am hoping to get them done {again} and mailed in the next couple of weeks. 

hat

I am almost 2/3 done! I love this so, so much and I'm going to have a really hard time giving it away. 

lilly belle
Yep, still need a back and some batting before I can do anything with this, and then I'll need hand quilting supplies. So maybe one of these days I will get around to it. 


Waiting:

*wedding quilt -I think I know what I am going to do. But it might have to wait until I knock out some gifts....
*wedding quilt II- I know exactly what I am going to do, I just need to find out what colors would be preferred.
*baby quilt - still an idea just waiting for me to come play. Once I find the perfect fabric I will be on my way. Someday....




Man, there is so much to do and just no time to do it at the moment. I am starting to look forward to planning out what I want to do in the new year. I can't believe it is getting to be that time already. But one thing at a time. First feathers, then everything else. By next week I really hope to have at least figured everything out for my parents gifts and hopefully started some prepping on that and the napkins. I just keep telling myself that there is a deadline and an end in sight for all the insanity. It will be replaced with other insanity {like moving} but that is not the point. The point is many many car hours of hand work :)

drowning in feathers

This is how my weekend sewing started:

And it has progressed to this:

Actually I have more than that done now, but that was when I took a picture break. The killer: I am not even quite halfway done making these things! I think I can get them done in about 3 days if I can stay focused, so hopefully by mid week I will have all the feather blocks finished and can start working on layout. I believe this will be my largest quilt to date, just a touch larger than my farmers wife and skill builder quilts. Now, where I am going to lay thing thing out is an entirely different issue...

I just keep realizing how tight time is to get this done and all the other little things I need to do before we pack everything up and move. I am honestly not sure I can get it all done, especially with almost a week with family for thanksgiving next week, but for now I will remain optimistic. I have high hopes of having the feathers basted before we go next week, and maybe even prepping some of the other things. And how the heck is thanksgiving next week already?!?!? Ahhhhhh!!!