Mini 9 Patch Pin cushions

 

On Tuesday Amanda Jean over at http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2013/06/mini-9-patch-pin-cushion-tutorial.html posted  a tutorial for these adorable little pin cushions.

 

 

She did note that they were addicting.

 

And she was correct.  The finished pin cushion is 3 1/2 inches square.  The 9 patch is 1 1/2 inch square.  Sew easy, sew quick.

 

Here they are from the back.  They are totally from the scrap bin.  The largest piece of fabric is the bottom which starts at 4 1/2 inches.  Of course you could piece that too.

 

I ran out of time before going out to dinner to finish that last one sitting to the side.  Had to take the pictures before dinner because I had to take the cushions with me for show and tell.  Left with 5 came home with 4.

I'll be back on Monday for the Stamp on it Blog Hop.  Please come back if you get a chance.

More Bowl Buddies - Hello Kitty

This is a picture heavy posting.  After making the Bowl Buddy and Trivet set I posted about in my last post

I had a special request by my sister to make a set in Hello Kitty fabric for a friend of hers who is having a house warming next week.

These are the bowls. Cute fabric.  The bowls have no in or out and can be flipped accordingly.

I made 2 Trivets, different sizes based solely on the blocks in the fabric design. 

The Trivets are reversible.

One is about 9 inches square and the other is about 9 x 11

They are very perky.

I took them to work to show my crafty friends and immediately had someone request I make her a set, same fabric, for a friend moving into her first apartment.  

I guess I know what I'm doing this weekend. Well actually it's what I'll be doing one evening this weekend.  I put this group together in under 3 hours.  They took a little longer than the original set because I needed to fussy cut a a little and I made the second trivet.

Bowl Buddy

Last week I was visiting Linda at   http://flourishingpalms.blogspot.com/2013/06/stitchin-and-dishin.html  where I saw her posting about Bowl Buddies.  She found a tutorial for making them here  http://www.seamshappy.com/2012/08/13/microwave-bowl-pot-holder/ .

This is my go at a Bowl Buddy.  The idea is that you put a bowl into this quilted fabric bowl and do your micro wave thing.  Once your whatever is heated you can just remove it from the micro wave without benefit of a potholder because that’s pretty much what the bowl buddy’s job is.  Not to mention that it looks great micro wave to table.

So as we all know I don’t do one of anything. I kinda thought that 2 would make a better gift.  I also thought that if I were making them as  gifts they should come with  a bowl already inside.  Friday on my way home from work, I found myself at the Crate and Barrel outlet.  

I went in with Buddy in hand and found what I think is the perfect bowl at a great price.  4 bowls for $9.95 .  Well the more I looked at the 2 bowls in their Buddy’s I thought they would look great on the table if they were joined by a Trivet.  Yes there is only 1 Trivet  but if I were making this as a real gift I would make 2.  Truth be told I ran out of time.  Only got the idea for the trivet at about 9:30 Friday night. I was meeting an old friend for breakfast on Saturday morning and I wanted to give her the set and get her feedback on receiving  them as a gift.  She is one of those blatantly honest people.  She loved them and had no problem taking them home with her.  She does want the missing Trivet.

I attached tags to the pieces because the Trivet is lined with Insul Bright which can’t be micro waved. and  Buddy who can be micro waved. 

                                               

The batting Linda and I used in the buddy is called Wrap N Zap by Pellon.  It is designed for micro wavablity.   I read somewhere along the line that it is best not to use regular cotton batting for micro wave projects because it sometimes contains impurities that can burn in a micro wave.  I don’t know if that is true or not but I decided not to risk a fire or melt down. 

 The Zap and Wrap wasn’t expensive and I got it at JoAnns with either a discount or a coupon because heaven forbid we pay full price for anything we can get at Joanns.  I know I am among the fortunate, I currently pass Joanns coming home from work and have lunch in the same shopping center at least once a week.

Anyway, I am see several of these sets in my future.  I already have a request to make a set for my sister to give as a house warming present.  Can’t wait to see how that one turns out as I’m making it using HELLO KITTY fabric.  And I will be making a more traditional set for friends of mine for their new home.

Be productive. me

Tammy Bag Blog Hop

The time has come for the big reveal, our wonderful Tammy bags and their contents.  The great pattern by Mdm Samm was a joy to follow. Lots and lots of photos for us visual types made the process mistake proof.

My biggest problem is that we were asked to take pictures of the contents of our bags to show how we intend to use them.  The first bag that I made (of course I made more than 1) is so darn cute that I really don't intend on using it. I just want to place it on a shelf and admire it.

That was the response I got from everyone I showed it to.  My sister has a shelf  full of the bags I have made for her over the years that she admires on a regular basis and she assures me that there would be a space for this one if it needs a home.  Of course I don't know what the 7 Hexies hop will be about and I may just need this bag for that.

When I gave serious thought to bag 2 I thought about contents before construction and I determined that I needed a bag to put my "socks in progress" in.  I always have a sock on the needles for when I just need mindless busy hands.

I tried out the current skein of yarn and the started sock and as you can see it just wasn't going to work out as I envisioned it.  Solution to the problem, enlarge the bag.  I can't imagine life without the magnify button on the copy machine.  1st I found a larger closure.  Then I took the original closure and blew it up on the copier till it matched in size the new one. It turned out to be 130%.  I then took the pattern and blew it up to 130%. Perfect.

Above and beyond the fact that the second bag is bigger than the first, Bag 2 is slightly different from bag 1 because miss know-it-all didn't bother to open the instructions. I just played it by ear. I did intentionally not trim the outer pockets because I didn't have a fabric I liked with the fabric I choose for the bag. I did forget to sew the seams in the pockets. 

Then, if you look at the picture of the inside you won't find pockets at all.  Found the pieces for the inside pockets on the floor under the table much later.  Not much of a mistake for my intended use.  I will probably make a matching zip pouch if I find that I really need to have the pocket inside.

See the whole skein fits just fine, I think I could fit another in if I needed too.

Here is a picture of the girls, Tammy and her big sis.

I hope you have enjoyed this stop on the hop and that you will find the time to visit all of the participants of this great event.  Thanks to Mdm Samm for her pattern and her never failing energy as the head cheerleader.

Here is a list of todays players.  June 14th ( friday)

 Bente

Jane

Wendy

Geta

Julia

Jan

Loralynn

Selina  (You are here)

Mara

Jan 

Hands 2 Help 2013 - Done before the deadline

                                   Two weeks ago I was in major doubt if I was going to make it.

 Don't know what my problem was, well yes I do, I just kept changing my mind as to what I wanted to make for my 2nd top.  I have 1 other top 2/3's of the way done, and 2 tops cut out, but not started.  All started with this project in mind.

I'm blaming all of you out there in blog land.  If you weren't all making such great things I wouldn't be in such a decision tizzy.  Anyway, I had my 2 tops done 2 weeks ago and had a vacation to work around. You can read all about it and how I got my tops quilted in my previous post.

Last night I sat down and finished the hand sewing of the binding.   They are both backed and bound with the same sheeting. It was amazing just how much orange I had in both of these quilt tops.  I don't think of myself as an orange kind of gal.

            I just need to run them through the wash and dry them and then into boxes they will go.

Back from a very productive vacation

I've been on vacation for the last 5 days.  I left with a heavy heart believing that I was going to miss the deadline I had committed to for H2H.  I have 2 completed quilts due by June 2.  I had the tops done when I left but no time to get the quilting done.

We have a retirement home in Florida, since we're not ready to retire yet we have not done much in the way of furnishing.  Currently we have blow up beds, blow up chairs, blow up love seats and a patio set doing service as a kitchen table and chairs.  Oh yeah, we have tall chairs for sitting at the kitchen counter.

What we do have is plenty of floor space.  But I'm getting ahead of myself. 

I packed the 2 tops, who knew what kind of time I would find to do my thing.  For Valentines day MJ offered to get me a sewing machine just for the house in Florida.  He pulled up machines on Amazon and said pick one.  No fool am I, I picked a small Brothers with 72 or so built in stitches and several feet and best of all it was light weight.  While I was at it I ordered a Fiskars  Mat, ruler and rotatory cutter, some aurifil thread and a couple of pair of scissors.  No time like the present to see if the toys would work.

We landed on Friday and Saturday morning I was at Joanns getting batting and then Target to get a sheet set for backing.

Now over the years I have envied all of you who sandwich quilts on the floor.  I have never had a floor to do that on. In Florida I have lots of empty tile floor.  It worked out wonderfully until I tried to get up. I couldn't walk right or sit down properly for 3 days.  But I did sandwich both tops.

Next challenge was where to use the sewing machine.  Remember I don't have a real table.

I quilted the first top at the table on the right,  The chair was way to low to work from but I already hurt all over so I just plowed through what was a little more pain in my neck and shoulders. Top 2 needed to be worked at a better angle.  So I planted the machine on the raised counter but the foot pedal didn't make it to the floor. 

One thing we have plenty of is boxes, so I dragged one in and made great use of it. I know that you are supposed to wear your shoes when sewing but I didn't want to muck up the new walls. Electrocution or a dirty wall.  Priorities!

Got this top quilted too.  The only disappointing part of the whole thing was lack of access to my stash.  I ended up using the left over backing for the binding.  It looks fine if just a little boring.

I started hand sewing down the binding on the first quilt last night before bed.  Before putting it away I threaded a bunch of needles  and on the flight home I finished the entire thing.  

When I was young I used to commute into the city and was always amazed at the way people could read the news paper without bothering the person sitting next to them. It was all in how it was folded.  I managed to fold the quilt into a square approximately 18 x 18 and then just kept refolding. Pretty good if I do say so myself.

So here is quilt number 1 completed.  Tonight I will start to hand sew the binding on quilt 2.  I see it being done in plenty of time to beat the deal line.  Big Whoop for me. and especially the H2H project.

Great shirt(s)

After spending Saturday working on the woven quilt, Sunday I just wasn't in the mood to sew. So Sunday afternoon I sat down and skipped around the blog world checking out what everyone was up to.

I came across the blog        http://www.uberchicforcheap.com/2012/01/refashion-diy-color-block-tees.html       with this wonderful idea for refashioned tee shirts.

Monday lunch hour I spent shopping for tee shirts. Tuesday evening I spent just under an hour cutting and putting back together 2 new shirts.  It would have taken less time if I hadn't been soooo excited about the project that I missed the fact that 3 inches into the second shirt my bobbin ran dry.  I noticed it at the end after having sewn completely around the top and having removed every single pin.

If you look closely you can see the rain on the orange part of the shirt. So we got no picture of the other one you know I'm just a little too old to do the wet tee shirt thing ; }  Also, the seam does lay flat if I wasn't in such a hurry to beat the rain, I didn't bother to check in the mirror and my photographer didn't want to get wet either. The other shirt has the beige top and orange bottom, just in case you didn't guess that part.

I went into this project thinking I would use them as nite shirts if they didn't turn out. So happy it was a complete success. I love the way they turned out.  I live in tee shirts in my free time.  This shirt, I actually wore to work.  I spent $5.99 for each shirt.

Have a great week.

Another Hands 2 Help top done

Last Saturday I was checking my quilting committment calander and discovered that I am wofully behind on my promise of 2 quilts for the Hands 2 Help Challenge for 2013.  I have one top finished and several ideas started but no second quilt top finished.

I came across the pattern Simply Woven by Jessica Kelly over at the Moda Bakeshop.  I fell in love with it at first sight. Very scrappy and made primarily of 2 1/2 inch strips, my favorite size of fabric to work with.

Have you ever fallen head over heals for a quilt and found out that you really hated making the blocks. I spent last Sunday evening cutting the strips from my scrap box from the last 6 - 9 months. Plenty of 2 1/2 inch tidbits. Monday night I started to make blocks, the finished block is a 12 1/2 inch square.

I sew in the evening after working all day to relax. I am one of those people who loves to chain piece. When I started these blocks I thought they would be a great Chain piecing project.  Not So Much.  You sew a little, you iron a little, you cut a little and start again to get the woven effect.

2 nights this week I went to my sewing room and put things away because I just couldn't work on the blocks. No sewing at all.  At least I did accomplish some movement on the other 3 nights.  So today (I'm writnig this late Saturday night) I buckled down because I am approaching a dead line.  I finished the 20 blocks I needed and but them together. 

I really do like the outcome as much as I hoped I would. I'm holding off posting this until tomorrow in hopes of getting a decent picture.  The quilt is a wonderful scrap buster.

             (I waited and I guess raining is better than dark, but you can see how happy a quilt it is.)

 All of the fabric with color is as I mentioned scrap from the last few months projects.  I did cut the white from my stash.

I would  recommend this quilt to others. It really was easy to do, just not what I like to do. A personal preference.

Now that I have the 2 tops done I will  need to get my act together and get them both quilted. I think I have 2 weeks which would not be bad with the exception of a trip tossed in to chew up a few days.  I do love a challenge.

Have a great week.

 

It's for the Birds

This is a very fun hop.  The postings so far have been terrific and I have no doubt that the ones to follow will be just as wonderful and creative.

When this Hop was first posted I knew exactly what I was going to make.  I had made my sister and my niece quilts with birds on them several years back and I swore that when I got some time I would make one for me.  A perfect opportunity.  We all know about the best laid plans.

In the mean time I participated in the “It’s All About Me” hop in late February.  I was one of the extremely lucky winners of the Amy Bradley patterns and fabrics.  Well one of the patterns is “Meet The Tweets”.  Definitely love at first sight.  Here are a couple of the little guys.

If you have never used an Amy Bradley pattern, you must.  I have done fusible appliqué before but her step by baby step walk through and tips and wonderful pattern pieces made the whole process speedy and seamless. I managed to whip up this top in under a week and I work full time.

Wed night I pulled fabric from the stash and I traced all the pieces onto fusible and ironed them onto their fabric.  Thur night I cut them all out and stacked them on their background squares ready to be put together.  Friday night and on and off Saturday I ironed the pieces to the background and did the detail stitching.  Sunday I put the blocks together and viola, the top was done.  Good thing because on Wednesday I left on a trip and I needed Monday and Tuesday night to pack.

The only place I deviated from the instructions was the eyes.  The eyes  were supposed to be tiny little buttons.  Since my quilt will be going to a 5 month old I thought that was a bad idea.  My dilemma was how I was going to get that beady eyed look.   I ended up using  little paper lifesavers, you know the kind you used as a kid in a loose leaf book so the pages didn’t pull out.   I stuck them to the face, really mashing them into the fabric the best I could and then filled in the hole with a black pigma pen. I gave it a few minutes to dry and then removed the life saver.  My fear was that, that much ink would run, but as you can see, it didn’t.

I have done just very basic quilting in the ditch so far. I plan on going back and doing some echo quilting  around the boys in the very near future, as soon as I have some free time and can decide if I can do it by machine vs. by hand.

Isn't this just the perfect backing for the guys.

Now I want to thank Madame Samm and Mary for the great jobs they have done in setting up and running this wonderful hop.  I also want to thank Amy Bradley for the wonderful pattern.

You now need to fly off and visit all of the other contributors for today.  For your continued convienence I have them listed below

 

 

Wednesday, May 8

 

http://sunshinequilting.blogspot.com

http://feltfree-p.blogspot.no

http://busyascanbe.blogspot.com

http://quiltdoodledesigns.blogspot.com

http://buzzingandbumbling.blogspot.com

http://patchouli-moon-studio.blogspot.com

http://ecoughlindesigns.blogspot.com

http://mywhittleadventures.blogspot.com

http://SewMuch2Luv.blogspot.com

www.natilittlethings.blogspot.com

http://justletmequilt.blogspot.com

http://ncweekendquilter.blogspot.com

http://Selinaquilts.blogspot.com  (me)

http://saneandcrazy.blogspot.com

http://abis-scrapsoflife.blogspot.com

http://roseprairiequilts.blogspot.com

http://marlarockscrafts.blogspot.com