WIP Wednesday {2.15.12}

Someone please explain to me how the days are so long but the weeks are so short! I wish I was a bear and I could just hibernate for the winter...ah well. Instead, I will sew away the winter :) I have a long list of things to sew to get me through the next few months. Of course it would go a lot better if I stopped adding things every week....


Completed:

Embroidery 101!!

So happy to have this done! I love the way it turned out and I am pretty stinking proud of my embroidery. 


E-reader case

I decided to go ahead and make an e-reader case for the hubby for valentine's day. He picked the pac-man fabric and I kind of love it. This pattern is seriously wonderful and I love the way it comes out!


Stuffed birdie

This was a valentine's day gift for my little love bug. She totally loves it and I had quite the time getting a picture of it after I gave it to her! I'll do a full post on this one Friday.


Ikea quilt II top

I finished this the other day and I love it. Even more then the red/orange version from before. That could be because I like blue so much....but I am amazed how different they look even though they are the exact same design and print fabrics.

Still going:

Quilt for my aunt and uncle
I haven't gotten the chance to touch this one. Hopefully this week I'll at least get it laid out so that I can start sewing. 


New:

Zip pouches
I am making some zip pouches for birthday gifts. And I need them done by next weekend. So I hope to do it this week if I can manage it.  I do have the fabric {almost} all cut, just no picture.


Waiting:

*echo quilt {I finally got the rest of the fabric!}
*scrappy string quilt {still deciding on a design}
*dresden toddler quilt
*scrap mini for the wall

 So that's my week. This week I will hopefully get the ikea quilt quilted and sew the binding on the front, and lay out my aunt and uncles quilt, and make 2 zip pouches. I doubt I'll be able to do it all since we have more guests this weekend, but I can sure try. Today I'll make a good start and get the quilt back done and if naptime goes really well, it will even get basted :) Have a good week everyone!

Embroidery 101 - A finish

It is done! Not only done, but gone to it's new home too! I didn't get to do much in the way of sewing this weekend, but I did manage to finish up the binding on this Friday so I could send it to it's new home Saturday. It was a pretty great weekend. A day-long date on Saturday was a lot of fun; a bit of shopping, a lunch date, a movie, and a bit more shopping before having a great dinner/dessert with my sister and baby girl :) It definitely put me in the mood to get a lot done this week. Of course today is the only day I have to make a couple little valentine's day gifts for tomorrow so I hope I can manage to get that done.

Anyway, on to the quilt! I started this one in the fall. Well it has been on my list since the QAL over at Clover and Violet this past summer, but I found the fabric while quilt shop hopping in October and had all the blocks together in November I think, and then they sat, waiting to be embroidered. I am glad I finally made myself take the time to do it. It was so much fun. I loved learning all the stitches and I'm so happy with how it turned out. My blocks are a bit small since I pre-washed my fat quarters so they weren't quite 18" so instead of 3" strips mine were all 2.75" giving me 16" finished blocks. I added some 2" sashing (4" on the outside) to bring it up to a 60" square. I quilted straight lines to the side of each seam and I love how it came out. I'd love to tell you what the fabrics are, but I'm not sure. I know the blocks are mostly from the Central Park line and the sashing/back/binding is from the DS quilts lines at Joanns.

This was a quilt I never intended to keep, although I wasn't sure for a while exactly who it was going to. It is delivered and loved though. And I am glad to have my second quilty finish for 2012. Now I just need to get one done start to finish this year instead of finishing up last years haha. I am on my way though, my ikea quilt is almost ready for basting! This week for sure. And now, I better go think loving thoughts and get some gifts done for tomorrow :)

Honey Cowl

My Honey Cowl is finished! Oh man, it is so perfect and warm...I used it yesterday morning on my way to work and it was great. Better than the lighter scarf I've been using, but not as bulky as my heavy scarf. I am just glad I actually got it done to use this winter.

This pattern has been going around blogland for a while now. I saw it here, and here, and probably a few other places and somewhere along the way it seemed like something I needed to make. I actually had a different cowl pattern in mind that I like a bit better, but I had the right weight yarn for this and would have had to buy bulky yarn for the other. That's okay though, I'm going to make the other for my sister so if I like it enough I will make one for me.

I started this right before Christmas when I ran out of yarn for my legwarmers. And it goes pretty quick, I just kept getting distracted working on other things. I did consider quitting at one point when I realized the yarn was twisted when I joined it in the beginning....so it has a big twist in it. But since it gets wrapped around anyway I don't mind. I don't know how I managed to not notice for at least 16 rounds, but I guess there are just so many stitches crammed on there that I missed it.  I made the larger size because I wanted to be able to wrap it twice and I am glad I did because I love it that way. I used Encore DK yarn, because that's what my dad had for me to steal, and it is nice and soft and warm. I think I did end up making this 10 or 11 inches instead of 12 because I really wanted it done and it seems plenty wide enough.

The pattern is available for download here if you are interested. And I started using ravelry so you can find me on there as well! Not that I've put much up there, but it's a start. And now I go kick off a weekend by {hopefully} putting a quilt top together! I am so excited about this weekend, I get to see my sister, have a day-long date with my hubby, and finish up my embroidery 101 quilt! Next week I really need to make a couple valentine's day gifts real quick.....that kind of snuck up on me. Anyway, happy weekend!

WIP Wednesday {2.8.12}

*Whew* halfway through the week. And I am beat. But I am looking forward to this weekend when hubby and I escape for a day child-free....something that hasn't happened since she was born, if you can believe it. It does mean less sewing time this weekend, but I guess I'll survive haha.

I've been fairly productive this week, but it has been spread out over multiple projects instead of focused on one. I'm going to try and focus though for the rest of this week and just work on one thing. We'll see how my attention span holds up.

Completed:

Skill Builder Sampler - block 25

Wonky log cabin variation. I like it, but I don't love it.

Still Going:

Embroidery 101

Quilted with the binding sewn on the front. A few peaceful movie nights and this one should be done!

New:

Ikea quilt II

Pieces all cut and ready to be made into blocks. I am hoping to get this top done this week but that might be too ambitious. We'll see.

Quilt for my aunt and uncle

I have the fabric mostly cut. Now I need to lay it out so I can start sewing.

Waiting: {This is my new category for my list of things that are waiting to be started }

*echo quilt
*scrappy string quilt {still deciding on a design}
*dresden toddler quilt
*scrap mini for the wall

And that's my week. Also, honey cowl is pretty much done so hopefully I'll snap some pictures soon. I love it; it is warm and wonderful. After my embroidery quilt is bound and finished I'll get to work on finishing my legwarmers. And I guess for a while I will have to get used to doing more projects that take a bit longer instead of all the small stuff I've been doing recently. I'll probably sneak some small things anyway. It will be good though. I am really excited about these quilts and can't wait to see them come together. Well happy Wednesday! I think I hear a little love bug calling for some reading time :)

just keep knitting, just keep knitting

Just keep knitting, knitting, knitting. Clearly you can tell what I've been up to :) There is something about winter that always puts me in the mood to knit. It starts in about November and goes on through at least March usually. The thing is, it just takes me a long time to finish something I knit. And unlike when I sew/quilt, knit projects have a tendency to sit around for a long time and become ufo's. So I thought I would do a little round up of things I am working on/going to work on and maybe that would help me push through to actually finish it all. And I made a deal with myself, if I can get everything done this year, next year I will try to make the sweater I fell in love with. I really want to, but I have to prove to myself I can finish knit things...plus I need to clear out some space to store the yarn.

Working on right now:
    I am hoping to have both of these done by the end of the month.

Honey Cowl

I caught the bug on this one. I love it and I can't wait until it's finished and I can wear it. I should finish it up in the next couple days, maybe even tonight!

Legwarmers

I finally got the rest of the yarn I need to finish these up. So as soon as my cowl is done I will get back to these.

To Do
Cowl for my sister- I have everything ready, I just need to finish the other things first

UFO's {that I am determined to finish]
Patchwork afgan

I started this um....over 3 years ago now and I really need to just use up the yarn I have and make it whatever size that brings it to. It has been sitting around way too long. I don't even know why, I just think I got bored.  The rectangles go pretty quick, so hopefully I can get myself to start working on it.

I guess it's really not that bad, but it feels like it is, probably because I know how long it will take to do it all. I am a pretty slow knitter and my hands get sore pretty easily, but I do love it. I have some other things on my someday list, but I'll save them for now. So you'll probably be seeing an occasional knitting update from me. Hopefully. We'll see if I ever decide to actually make a sweater....I have such a fear of it not fitting and never wearing it after hours upon hours of work....

Anyway, I am working on creating a ravelry profile (with stuff actually on it), so we'll see if I get it done. I'll let you know!

Nook Love

It's Friday!!!! Hello weekend! I am so glad it's here and I am hopeful about getting some quilting done tomorrow :)

I thought that I would share a bit about the nook cases I made and posted a bit about on Wednesday. I don't remember if I mentioned it {and I'm too lazy to look} but I got a Barnes and Noble Nook for christmas. And so did my sister...and my grandmother...and my aunt and mother already had them actually. So naturally mine needed a nice little home to keep it cozy and warm and I thought my sister might enjoy one as well. Maybe at some point I'll work my way through the rest of the family too.

Anyway, I was debating whether I wanted one to hold it while I read or just to store it in. In the end storage won and so far I am incredibly happy with that decision. Seriously, this is one of my favorite things I have ever made. Ever. I admit it has something to do with a love of whales and polka dots, but the design is perfect and the zip pocket in the front keeps my cord from being lost in the office. I used the tutorial that Faith put up at Fresh Lemons Quilts during the 12 gifts of christmas blog hop and just altered the dimensions. It worked beautifully. I am already planning to make another for my husbands e-reader {which is not a nook} once I get some sweet fabric; not as sweet as whales obviously, but still awesome.

But the real insanity came from the case for my sister. I asked her what kind of case she wanted and she told me about one that also stands up as an easel. Like this one.

And I thought, sure, I can do that, no problem. So off I set to figure it out. I tried to even put in a magnetic closure but in the end the magnet I got wasn't strong enough to go through all the layers and I was not about to go looking for a stronger one. So I settled for velcro which I think works fine. I put pieces of thick chipboard in so that it could stand upright and it seems to work very nicely. I tried to use the hairbands for all 4 corners to hold it in (I got the idea from here), but it really wasn't working so I added that pocket at the bottom as an afterthought just to try and make it work. Thankfully it does work, quite well in fact. Also, I was going to top stitch on either side of the center to hold the chipboard in better, but I didn't think it through and couldn't get it through the machine once the chipboard was sewn in. It seems okay though.

I am super happy with the way they both turned out. And I am proud of myself for figuring out the one for my sister and it actually working. And there we have 2 beautiful new Nook cases. I can't wait to give my sister hers :) Now I believe I have some fabric cutting to do.....

WIP Wednesday {2.1.12}

Wow guys, can you believe it's not only Wednesday already, but February as well?!?! Insanity! I am getting back into my groove so time has started flying again. Which is good. I got so much done this week and I am so happy with it. And today I am ready to jump into some quilts. I have a pile that I want to do in the next 5 months or so, which means I better get a move on. At least now I have cleared out most other things and can focus on them. Until I add more to my list again haha!

Completed:

Embroidery 101 top

I didn't think I would get this done this week, but I managed it! That is correct, I finished the 5 embroidery blocks I had left and put it all together in the past week.  And I love it! I just need to go get some fabric for the back and quilt this bad boy! Maybe this weekend....

Nook case [for my sister]

I'll write more on this later in the week, but my sister told me what kind of case she wanted and I made my own version of it. It isn't perfect but I think it will work and I hope she likes it.

Nook case [for me]

This is quite possibly one of my favorite things I have ever made. It makes me happy every time I look at it (thank you whales and polka dots!) and it came together wonderfully. I used the tutorial at Fresh Lemons Quilts and seriously, I am looking for an excuse to make another :)

Still Going:

Skill Builder - waiting for the next block
Embroidery 101


New:

I am just going to list the quilts I have planned even though I haven't started cutting yet
*ikea quilt II - a second version of the plus/tumbler one I made
*quilt for my aunt and uncle
*echo quilt
 *scrappy string quilt - probably an ongoing project since I doubt I have enough string scraps at the moment.
*dresden toddler quilt


And those are just the ones I have piles of fabric sitting around for. And I'll probably add another scrappy quilt, but we'll see. I think I'll get some of this done first. We'll see what I start first, probably the ikea quilt.

And now that I am done embroidering, I can spend some nights knitting and reading until I have a quilt to bind :) Happy Wednesday!