Some Recent Projects

Aren't these just the cutest booties? The pattern is here. The little brown ones were the first pair I made, and they fit my 5 month old a little snug, so I made the others a tad bit bigger. My 5 year old loved the red and yellow ones with the mouse fabric, so I made a matching pair in his size. by tracing one of his shoes and making a pattern on my own. These go together so quickly and only take a scrap of fabric. These will definitely be part of every baby gift I ever give. Too cute!

I found the pattern for this a pacifier pouch here. The original pattern called for fusible vinyl, but being in the middle of nowhere, I couldn't find a fabric shop that knew what that was. So I bought the lightweight stuff used for tablecloths. It worked alright, but the fusible stuff would have been much better because it would have held the structure of the bag better. It would have kept the regular fabric stiffer and I think would have produced a better result. Either way, I'm happy, but have one small problem. Since the bag is vinyl on the inside and the pacifier is plastic, it is hard to slide the pacifier into and out of the bag. But overall, it's a great idea. It sure beats letting the pacifier float around in the bag and get covered with who-knows-what.

I made this cute hedgehog pincushion from this pattern, for a contest at my local quilt shop. They were offering $5 to everyone who entered, and $25 to the winner, so I figured I couldn't lose either way. I'll have to let you know later if I win or not. Everybody that makes a purchase during the month of April gets to vote on their favorite. I don't think I will win. There is a cute chicken pincushion with a beaded beard and comb, sitting in a tiny bird nest that is absolutely adorable. That's okay though. I'll gladly spend my $5!

Sew and Tell

Like I said in the last post, I started this blog mainly to have a place to record all of my sewing projects, past and present. This is the first quilt I ever attempted. I found the pattern in a magazine and knew I had to try it. I wish I would have known how difficult triangles are to match up, but instead, I had to learn that for myself. I sort of have a habit of doing things the hard way. This pattern was for a wall hanging, which meant I had to figure out how to make it big enough for our double-size bed. By the time I got around to finishing it years later (the top that is - it isn't quilted yet) we had switched to a king size bed ... hence the large borders. I think it works though. I will need to trim a little from the top and bottom edges though. I haven't mastered getting my dimensions right yet.


My next quilting experience was on a much smaller scale. I made this wall hanging - which would also work as a crib quilt. I'm just not sure how well my applique will hold up in the washer, so I think it is destined to be a wall hanging. It is currently hanging next to our 4 month old son's crib. This is the first quilt I actually finished - quilting, binding and all. I made the top years ago and was always afraid I would ruin it if I tried to quilt it. Finally, I decided just to take the plunge. Not bad for a first attempt, I think. I practiced my quilting on some custom changing pads I made for the baby. I would really like to take a free motion quilting class, but they are so expensive. I guess it would be worth it though to learn to do it right.

(By the way, this quilt is square, I just had a hard time getting a good angle to take the picture. I should have waited to take it until I had it on the wall.)