Ramblings

No photos today.  Just some thoughts.  I have been thinking really hard about a lot of things.  One of them is that I want to take this blog to the next level.  That would mean more posts and more followers.  But on the other hand I have limited time.  And when I have free time I always want to sew more then I want to fight with google blogger to get my photos and my words on this page.  But I think I am going to try. I like to see my projects on the web.  And my kids think it is fun to see photos of things I made on the Internet.  Another thing I have been thinking about a lot lately is how am I living.  Is it just for today, tomorrow, or for the next week. I try to slow down and enjoy moments and see them for what they are.  I realize my sewing can help me with that.  My quilts make people happy and that offers me a change to make a difference.  Sometimes we have to think small to see the big picture.  So what am I working on right now: a butterfly quilt for my college roommates 8 year old daughter.  She picked out all the fabric herself.  And she keeps shyly asking her mom to ask me when it will be ready.  I love that.  It is a fun motivator.  I am also making a quilt for someone at work.  It is going to be made our of her husband's dress shirts.  She lost him sometime back and this will be a way for her to keep connected.  This quilt will be a very emotional thing for both of us.  I also have plans to make more scrap quilts.  I want to use up some of my stash and I love the idea of making more strip quilts.  They are easy and fun.  I think I can even get the boys involved somehow.  Sewing has become a quite contemplative thing I do on the weekends now.  I use to be able to sew at night during the week but first grade homework and reading lists did away with that.  At first this really bothered me.  But I have settled into a weekend sewing routine which I really enjoy.  Baseball season wills start soon and I will be driving little boys to practice and sitting on hard bleachers.  That will take time away from sewing too.  And I think this is a good thing.  Because now when I get those rare times to sew I really enjoy them more.  I just relax and let my thoughts drift.   Thinking also led me to the idea that I don't have to have a photo to post a blog entry.  I can just talk.

Teacher Gifts

Here is a quick posting of two teacher gifts I did this year.  This is a cute table topper and is very easy to make.  I made this pattern once before so making these gifts was quick.  The boys chose which quilt would go to which teacher.  I also used recycled batting that I had saved from two old ironing board covers.  I love that.  I hope they get lots of use and bring a smile or two. 

First Quilt of 2012 - String Quilt

Happy New Year and welcome to 2012.  During winter break I finally found some time to sew and I finished up this cutie.  This is a string quilt and I love it.  It is one of my favorite quilts that I have made.  It was made with scrap pieces.

These are 8 inch blocks.  I drew a one inch line down the middle of each and then wrote what color I was going to sew.  This is actually a very important step because at first I was just making blocks and when I went to match them up I didn't have enough of certain colors.  At that point I had to pull blocks apart and start over.  So I got organized and starting writing out colors and pining blocks together.  So to make this you just start sewing strips together, one after the other.  Then when you have a completed block you turn it over and cut off the excess.

 After a while you have tons of blocks and your quilt starts to take shape.  I read somewhere on the web that this was a hard quilt to make but I just found it so much fun.  I loved finishing a block and then adding it to the quilt to see how it looked.

Before I new it I had a finished quilt.  I used some left over strips to make a binding and added a backing.  Since I was using scraps to make this quilt I also used some scrap batting.  This quilt is going to a special little girl who will love spending time with this burst of color.  If you have kids then you are familiar with the Jack and Annie series.  Two sibs who find adventure in their magic tree house.  Well while reading the Winter of the Ice Wizard to my boys tonight I came across this great line,  "for wisdom is knowledge learned with the heart as well as the head."  I like that and it is a great lesson for old and young. 

Accuquilt GO!

The accuquilt GO! is here. I have waited two years for this. I really have nothing else to say. I am too excited for words.

Fall Madness

Happy Post Thanksgiving to all. I hope everyone had a great holiday. We had a great 4 day weekend and filled it with lots of fun projects. We made this turkey veggie platter. I think people actually ate more veggies then normal with this guy around.

We made a tree house out of cardboard. This was super hard and took a long time. And it really only lasted one day. But it gave me one hour of good free time.

We had fun decorating with egg crate furniture. These lego mini men moved right in and got settled on the couch. Presumably they are watching a lego movie.

While the tree house was being played with I got started on a winter wreath. I saw this in a magazine and new I had to make it. I cut out all the snowflakes with the cricut. Then I glittered them up changing the color of my fingers in the process.

Here is the finished product on my door. I really love winter decorations but living in Southern California we don't get too much cold weather. In fact it was 85 degrees today. But this wreath is so cute and was super easy to make. I recently went on a sewing frenzy and made a lot of projects that need backing. So I hope to be posting some of those soon.

Learning to Sew

Who knew that having boys would be so much fun. I was expecting girls. Actually I was down on my knees praying for girls. At least one girl. When I got two boys I thought my days of arts and crafts and ribbons were over. Luckily I like action movies and Star Wars as much as my boys love arts and crafts. So I was overjoyed when my oldest son (I have twins, but since he was born first, he is technically the oldest) asked me to teach him how to sew. He chose the fabric he wanted, picked out the colors, and designed his very own pillow. I sat him at the machine and after reminding him not to sew his fingers we got started. Sitting directly behind him and monitoring everything he did (he is only 6 after all) he sewed this pillow. He even chose the thread. He did really well. I did some of the hard parts like closing up the pillow and sewing on the button. He was so proud of himself and immediately told me what he wanted to sew next. DH was not so excited. He thinks sewing is for girls. But when I explained that this project took patience, coordination, and required some complex thinking he agreed that it was a good experience. My younger son (by three minutes) wants to learn now. How exciting. I have visions of my two sewing machines lined up while my boys sew all sorts of things. I think next we will make pajama bottoms. I love having boys.

Halloween Countdown Calendar

This is my Halloween Countdown Calendar. (I know the e's are on backwards!!) I have been wanting one of these for a long time. Someone donated yards of black felt to me and I searched the Internet for a pattern. I found this one at Tip Junkie. Each square is actually a pocket that will contain a small Halloween treat. I had fun making this and the boys had fun counting and making sure I put the numbers on in order. Apparently no one was around when I hot glued the letters on. I am not sure what I am going to do about those backward e's. I can't wait to put this up October 1st.