Random Crafitness

I can’t tell you how many blogs I’ve STARTED to write these past two weeks and haven’t gotten around to finishing! So sorry. I’m a slacker!

So…update.
The niece’s birthday was this past weekend. My sis-in-law loved the quilt! As did many of the other ladies. My niece could have cared less about it, but that’s to be expected for a 1 year old. She was too busy playing with the toys that lit up and made noises to even notice the quilt :) That’s ok. She’ll [hopefully] like it someday. Amanda sent me a picture of it on her crib already. It looks really cute. I got a lot of good feedback on the quilt…which has inspired me to start mine finally! Well, not quite yet. I have to wait for the fabric to come in the mail. I ordered it online. Want to see the swatches? I won’t tell you what pattern I’ve got in mind yet…it’ll be a surprise, but here are the fabrics I chose:

What do you think? Do you like them?? That grey is going to kind of be the background color and the middle purple (Kona Violet) is going to be the backing. It’ll make an appearance in moderation on the front too, but I just loved the color! And then I’ll use a mix of all the fabrics for the binding like I did with my niece’s quilt. I’m pretty excited to get my hands on these beauties!


But BEFORE I start my quilt, I have to be a good girl and get going on my Mother’s Day projects!! My mom LOVES flowers, so I’m getting her a nice hanging basket and making her a collapsible grocery tote (from the One Yard Wonders book) and some coasters. For mom-in-law, I got lucky at the bookstore in Portland and found her an old copy of Anne of Green Gables and another Louisa May Alcott book (can’t remember which one). She collects old books. And then I also plan to make her some fabric napkins because she likes using those over paper napkins. And THEN I can start my quilt :)

I’m super excited for it! Can you tell??

I head to California in 27 days to see my best friend, and we’ve got a trip to San Francisco planned so we can stop at Britex! I’m so excited. I have to start saving my allowance NOW so I can buy amazing fabric and notions. They have the coolest lace and buttons there! I am seriously considering taking an extra suitcase with me…think the hubby would kill me? Probably…but what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him, right? Just kidding. I don’t hide that stuff from him. He knows the plan. We just have to set a spending limit for me before I got. And I’m going to give my debit card to the best friend so I don’t go over budget! We have plans to get crafty too. It’ll be fun. And crazy. And I’ll probably blog all about it!
I’ll post pictures of my finished quilt later tonight. They’re at home on my MacBook. I’m writing this blog from my work computer (I know, bad me, but whatever…it took me all of ten or fifteen minutes to write, and considering I don’t take my two fifteen minute breaks every day, I think it’s justified, right?).

I think there are a lot of run-on sentences in this blog. Sorry about the terrible grammar!

Weekend Summary

Sorry, I'm a slacker! Again...I haven't posted in a little over a week. I can happily say that I am OFFICIALLY done with Kahla's quilt! I will post a final picture this week sometime before I wrap it. I'm a little under the weather with a nasty sinus infection and can't get myself off the couch at the moment.

This past week was a bit (that's a huge understatement) chaotic with my boss being on vacation, so the last thing I wanted to do after work was come home and get on the computer again. That's my excuse!

This weekend Corey and I went to Portland to do a little shopping and just spend some time together - despite my being sick. I'm feeling now like I probably should have stayed home and rested, but I really didn't want to cancel our plans since I know we won't have the opportunity to reschedule until June. We got home late last night and then had a photo shoot today. Our good friend Kim asked us to be her models for a couples photo shoot. She's trying to get back into photography and needed a little practice...and we don't have any nice pictures since our wedding, so we happily obliged! I'll share some when I get the edited photos. I hope they come out well! She's really talented, so I'm sure she did great.

While we were in Portland, we got over to Powell's and I found a couple of great books. Powell's is this amazing 68,000 square foot bookstore. Yes, it's HUGE. I love it. If you're ever in Portland, you must go! Anyway, so when we were there, I picked up these books:

So far, I'm loving them both and can't wait to make some of the stuff in them! I'll be sure to document my projects :)

That's it. Sorry, a bit of a random post, but my head is literally in a fog. More soon (including pictures of the quilt!). Good night all!

Almost done!

I thought it was about time I updated you on the status of my quilting project! I'm nearly finished! But first, here is a picture of my adorable niece for your enjoyment:

 

Isn't she just precious?? Well, I think so anyway :)

And without further ado...

I went for the straight line quilting, but made it purposely not totally straight and did them in random increments

More of the straight lines on the quilt top

The backing and my binding, which I'm clearly JUST starting to hand sew to the back

Quilting on the back

The completed quilt top...Tada!

 All that's left on this project is for me to finish hand-sewing the binding to the back and then a good wash and dry to give it that "worn" look. Yay! I'll post another picture of the completed product! It's far from perfect, but I have to say, I'm pretty happy with my very first quilt. I kind of wish I could keep it...


And here is the unfinished banner that my sister-in-law and I made. I have to sew the strips along the top for us to hang it still. The "happy birthday" is in pinks and reds because her birthday party is going to be Minnie Mouse themed (her very favorite character). Her name ("kahla") is in black, white and purple because my sister wanted to be able to hang it in her room later on. Her room is decorated in black, white, purple and green (hence the colors of the quilt). I'll post another picture of the completed banner when it's done.

ramble

I worked on the quilt last night. I ended up going for the straight stitches to look pretty similar to the quilt from the pattern I originally used. It’s not going so well. I had no idea it would be this difficult to sew in a straight line with that walking foot on my machine and the quilt. First, something got stuck. I got about 5 stitches into my line and it stopped and just kept sewing in the same spot. So I had to finagle the thread and machine and rip out what I had just sewn. This happened three times. Finally, I got the hang of feeding the fabric through. I guess I was expecting the walking foot to actually just pull it through like a sewing machine does when you’re using the regular presser foot and sewing curtains or something. But that’s not the case. There’s just too much bulk with the two fabrics and batting. It pulls it some, but you really have to push it through too. And at a constant speed so your stitch lengths don’t vary. Yeah…it took me about 3 lines to get the hang of the constant speed thing, so my stitch lengths kind of vary on my first couple lines. And then my needle bent. I guess I should’ve put in a fresh one anyway. They say to change your needle after every project, but I figured I’d only done some minor sewing for my last two. So that made it sew all crooked. Another line to be ripped out. This quilting business is no easy task! Once I got going, I decided that I actually think the free motion would’ve been the better way to go. You don’t have to sew in straight lines, and it would be easier to cover up your mistakes. Oh well. Too late for that. I’m nowhere near done, but I did make some progress. I’m trying really hard not to be a perfectionist, but it’s in my blood. So of course I got extremely discouraged after looking at my sort of crooked lines and decided I needed to call it quits for the night. I know it’s going to a baby who won’t know the difference between straight lines and kind of crooked lines, but still… I wish now that I would’ve made myself one for practice before giving one away. I guess the next one will have to be my free motion practice. And it will be for me. So that I am the only one who has to look at the imperfections. Oh well. No going back now. And it’s not like after all this work I can just not give it to her. So she’ll just have to accept an imperfect quilt. Sigh

I’ll post pictures a little later after I make more progress. I was so mortified last night by my horrible quilting skills (or lack thereof…I know, I know, it just takes practice) that I couldn’t bear to snap a picture. I don’t want to go back and look at it later and nitpick how bad it is. I think I’m really making it sound worse than it is. I hope. I guess you can be the judge after I post the pictures. I still have to get back together with my friend Jenny who’s going to show me how to sew the binding on. I hope she doesn’t laugh at it. I’ll probably cry.

On to happier subjects. It’s Thursday. Which means Saturday is one day closer. It will be good to do an easy sewing project. This weekend. I need something easy to make me feel more confident after this quilting stuff. I seriously had no idea how hard it would be. I might be the world’s worst quilter. But I’m determined to get better and master this craft! Ok, I’m off the quilting subject now. I so so SO need that manicure/pedicure right now! I can’t tell you how excited I am to have a relaxing morning with the sis. Then it’s down to business afterward and a day of crafting, but hopefully the morning will get us through it without going insane. Who knew planning a one year old’s birthday party would be so much work? It’s not even like they’re going to know the difference. I think I’ll stick with the immediate family for our kids’ birthdays. At least until they’re old enough to figure out what they want to do. It’s like planning a wedding all over again! Invitations, place to host (because their teeny apartment will not fit 40 people), food, cake, presents, decorations, etc. It’s a lot of work! Ok, maybe not as bad as a wedding. But close. Or maybe it’s just because my sister and I are big “do-it-yourselfers” and want to save money by making everything ourselves. Plus we like crafting and that homemade look. You can’t buy that look at a store. I feel a Mastercard commercial coming on… Ok, I’ll spare you the cheesiness and keep it to myself.

Life is just crazy lately. Crazy, crazy busy. Crafting and quilting this weekend. Our church’s women’s retreat next weekend – which I’m still struggling with whether or not I want to go. I know in the end, Corey will drive me there and leave me if he has to, so I probably don’t have a choice. And I’ll have fun once I’m there. But I just always hate the getting myself there part. I don’t know why. It’s a big internal struggle for me. Maybe it’s Satan’s way of keeping me home so the Lord can’t speak to me. I’m sure I’ll go. I just don’t want to at the moment. April is Easter weekend, the niece’s birthday party, family up from California, an Esterlyn concert our church is hosting (which my husband is very involved with, so I better be too if I want to see him at all that weekend). And that brings us to May. May is mother’s day and Ocean Shores with the in-laws and visiting the best friend in California to work on wedding plans. Wowie! I need a vacation. Soon. Maybe in June? We’ll see. My motor might burn out before then.

If you’ve read this far, thanks for bearing with me. My mind is on overload right now with all we’ve got going on for the next 3 months. I know I’m rambling. I’ll end it here. Goodbye for now. And Happy Thursday.

In a stitch

So…this quilting stuff is tricky business! I have not yet attempted to actually free motion ON my niece’s quilt yet. I’m trying to practice on scraps, but I’m not very confident. I’m thinking I might just go for a straight stitch this time until I can get more practice in. My problem is that I love all my fabric, so I need to go to Joann’s and by some cheap fat quarters in ugly prints to use. I hate wasting beautiful fabric. My thought is that I’ll just use my walking foot to straight stitch the whole thing and then go back over the smaller sections with a free motion pattern – if I can practice enough to feel confident. I only have a few days to get this part done and then I need to get my binding all pieced and sewn together. Making a quilt is a lot of work! And this one is only approximately 40” x 40”! I can’t imagine how long a bed-sized quilt is going to take me! A year?! I plan to sew myself one next (for both the practice and just because I want one). It’s going to be big. I’m thinking finished…60” x 72” or so. Something big enough that I can use to snuggle up on the couch with a book. Or share with my man when we’re laying down and watching a movie. And it’s going to be more detailed than my niece’s. I made up my own pattern already. I couldn’t find one I liked, so I just drew it out. I have to transfer it to graph paper so I can get it to scale. And then select my fabrics. I just ordered 1 yard of 6 different fabrics (for a total of 6 yards) out of the Authentic Collection from The Quilted B. And I’ve already got a couple more fabrics at home I can use. I’m not sure if it will be enough though. I think I need some bolder fabrics so it’s not so cream colored. Both the fabrics I have at home are that same natural colored background. I might incorporate some of what I’m using for the niece’s quilt too. It’ll just be a big mishmash of fabrics. It won’t match anything in my house, but I don’t really care. As long as I like the way it looks. :) I’ll be sure to post some pictures here pretty soon of my progress with my niece’s quilt. I plan to [hopefully] get my quilting done tonight and begin on the binding.  

Sorry, I don’t mean to ramble about quilting. I just love it. My new hobby. Unfortunately, nobody my age shares in my enthusiasm. Everyone I know that quilts and can offer me tips/advice is at least twice my age. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. It would just be fun to have someone close to my age to do it with. I’ll have to do some blog searching, I think!  

In other news…I am really ready for the weekend! I think getting through the week has been especially hard since I know I’m getting an amazing spa manicure/pedicure with my sister (in-law) on Saturday, and I am so looking forward to it!! It’s Wednesday, so it’s all downhill from here (I hope).  

I know most of my posts lately have been about sewing projects, but I wanted to leave you with some pictures from my “inspiration quilts” folder. Are these not amazing??  

[caption id="attachment_445" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="LOVE this quilt and the colors"][/caption]

 

  

New growth and weekend plans

[caption id="attachment_430" align="alignnone" width="459" caption="plum tree blossoms in front of our place"][/caption]

 

I live in Washington State…about 30 miles south of Seattle in a little town called Puyallup. In all my years here (15 to be exact), I have never seen a winter quite like this one. By that I mean that I have never seen winter come to an end so soon. We didn’t even break any rainfall records this year! It was actually a rather dry winter compared to normal, and we only got one dusting of snow. Quite unusual. A little over two weeks ago I was on my way home from work when I thought I saw flowers budding on one of our trees by the driveway at the office. “Naw…I must be seeing things…it’s still FEBRUARY for Pete’s sake!” On the contrary. I think by the end of next week all trees will be in full bloom. My allergies started taking notice shortly after my observation at work, and that’s when I knew: SPRING IS HERE! Don’t get me wrong. Washington and I were practically made for each other. I love rain. And wind. And gray. But I must tell you, there’s no place like Washington on a crisp and clear day when the tiny green sprouts are starting to come out of the ground, the bare trees are getting that green-ish tint at the end of their branches, the sky is a magnificent blue, and that mountain. Mount Rainier. Beautiful and white. *sigh* I love Washington. It’s so gorgeous here when the sun is out. The rain keeps our skies clear and smog-free, so on the sunny days everything seems to just glisten and sparkle. Days like this make me happy inside. I just wish my body agreed with my love for spring and flowers and new growth. Darn these allergies! It’s supposed to be 63 degrees tomorrow. 63 degrees!! I plan to break out the flip-flops and Bermuda shorts. Granted, I’ll be inside all day, but maybe I’ll set myself up by the window… 

Tonight we’ve got the in-laws (well, my in-laws, Corey’s mom and stepdad) coming over for dinner. I wish I could say I was making something delicious and mouth-watering, but I’m not. I don’t even get home from work until almost 6pm, so that doesn’t leave much time for cooking. AND his mom and little sister have Celiac Disease, so everything has to be gluten-free. And I’m lactose intolerant, so I need lactose-free. Yes, we’re quite a bunch. Cooking gluten-free is no easy task. So we’re just going to take the easy route and pick up some salad and rotisserie chicken from Costco. They make it gluten-free. I wish it was as warm out as it looks to be. I would move everything outside for dinner, but I think 53 degrees is a little too cold. Plus, it’ll probably be back down into the 40’s by the time they come over…and it gets dark by 6:30. So I’m out of luck. Oh well. They’re watching my niece tonight too, so I’ll get to see her adorable little face again. Should be a fun time. I love having people over. I love BBQs particularly. I can’t wait until we have a house of our own and can BBQ most weekends in the summer and invite family and friends over. Right now we can barely seat 4 (and there will be 6 of us). That’s the challenging part of our current living situation. But maybe sometime later this year we’ll have a house. Lord willing. 

Tomorrow I’m going to hunker down (of all days, I pick the nicest day of the weekend to do this) and finish up my niece’s birthday quilt. My Pastor’s wife is helping me with the binding. And I’ve decided to go outside what the pattern calls for. It’s a quilt made from strips, and they tell you to “stick in the ditch.” After talking it over with Jenny (Pastor’s wife), I think it would look much cooler free motioned. Except I’ve never done free motion quilting before. Well, I’ve actually never done a quilt before. This is my first one. So Jenny’s going to help me with the free motion stuff. It looks scary. I hope I don’t screw it up!! I’m super excited to see how it turns out. But I’ll probably cry if it looks terrible. 

Ok, I better quit typing and tidy my house up before the fam comes over. Happy Friday, all!

letting the creative juices flow!

The Saturday after next (so the 13th), my sister and I will be going craft crazy! Well, after we get some manicures and pedicures, of course. :) My wonderful hubby got me a Gene Juarez gift card (it's a really nice spa/salon in Washington for those out-of-state followers) for Valentine's day, and it's enough for me to take a friend to get their spa mani/pedi treatment. Who better to take than the sis? Woo! SO excited! We both REALLY need the relaxation. 

Afterward we're going to be up to our necks in crafts. Literally. My sweet little niece will be one on April 17th, so we're busting out on the homemade decorations for her party. We plan to hand-make all the invitations (Minnie Mouse themed of course since Kahla is in LOVE with Minnie). And then we're going to make one of these banners with thanks to this wonderful etsy shop. Except ours will say "happy birthday" and then there will be a second smaller one hanging below that says "kahla." Amanda wanted to be able to hang the "kahla" one up in her room afterward. Should be an insane day, but oh so fun! I love homemade decorations. So practical and reusable! 

 

Isn't that seriously the cutest banner ever? I'm thinking about making one for my house. Without letters. And maybe making it with triangles instead of rectangles. I think I'll hang it either in the eating area/kitchen or in my office/sewing room. Or maybe I'll make two. Who knows. But I have to finish the quilt first! Let's not get ahead of ourselves here... 

I seriously have an obsession with etsy. I'm thinking of starting my own up eventually. When I have a little more time. But that's a whole different post... 

Check out some of my favorite shops/products: 

 

[caption id="attachment_420" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="http://www.etsy.com/shop/DearGoldenVintage"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_421" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="http://www.etsy.com/shop/annajoyce"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_422" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="http://www.etsy.com/shop/annajoyce"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_423" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="http://www.etsy.com/shop/RevisionDesignAus"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_424" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="LOVE these baby clothes - http://www.etsy.com/shop/cocosailore"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_425" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="http://www.etsy.com/shop/cocosailore"][/caption]

 

Can you see why I adore Etsy??