Namesake fabric...love it!

Pink Strawberries!  How positively perfect.  I found this tiny fat quarter (a contradiction in terms, huh?) at a craft shop.  I'm on the lookout for more of this eye candy, for sure.

I'd love to make something out of this wee bit of cloth, and if I had a yard or two, perhaps I could make a tablecloth?  I've put on my thinking cap for this future project.  It's just too sweet to sit in my stash for long.

Drunkard's Path Quilt, final

Whew, the quilt was finished in time for Christmas giving to my little granddaughter.  I barely made it.  I apologize for not having very nice pictures of the finished project, but my camera was acting up just in time for Christmas....grrrrr.

Above:  You don't want to see this, do you?  It shouldn't happen, but alas, I knew it would be a tied quilt, and my rush to finish out-ranked my quality control.  These things happen.

The centers should match perfectly, as evidenced by these four blocks. 

I think it's impossible to start planning Christmas projects too early.  Next year, I tell myself, next year!

Quilt, part 2

Fabric shopping is addictive.  Did I buy more than I was shopping for?  You just know I did.

Since the quilt top I pieced was sewn using old scraps from other projects, there was no way to find anything to use for a backing that would match perfectly.  If I'd planned this quilt from the beginning, I'd have selected one of the pieces of the top to use for the backing.

I did find this adorable flannel with little Olivia prancing about, and since the top has some black and white pieces scattered throughout, I thought it might work well.  The green fabric above will be used for the binding.  This Olivia flannel is very black....the lighting was very bright.

One thing is clear; even though my husband has seen me make many quilts over the years, he has no knowledge about the differences between the terms, backing, binding, border, or basting.....imagine that!

Drunkard's Path

This is another of those forgotten projects found lurking on the bottom of a dusty sewing box.

Now, with Christmas closing in, I've decided it's time to complete it, and I'm hoping the end result will be nice enough for gifting.

When I dug through my slowly depleting stash, I had some completed 7 inch squares and the rest were in various stages of piecing madness.

All of the fabrics used in this wee quilt were left over from other projects.  These aren't the prettiest choices, and some are faded and old.  The colors are not at all what I would choose today, but 20 years ago, my taste was less refined, and my pocketbook was more in tune with raising a family, and less with crafting and sewing for pleasure.

After piecing enough blocks for a small coverlet, I sewed the blocks together and added a border.  I was running out of fabric scraps and hopefully the pieced border will add a cohesive touch to this long lost UFO.

Stay tuned!

UFO Sighting

This square was my first attempt at  making a Baltimore Album quilt.  The colors used in these type of quilts vary, but green and red seem to dominate most patterns.  Some quilts use green and red alone.  I didn't copy this pattern, but combined some of my favorite aspects of several really pretty quilts to create my own little design.

You can see the itsy bitsy stitches used in this 'fold and pin' technique.

Even the wee rosebud was given extra special care.  It's so cute.

I have 3 of these completed 14-inch squares.

The flip side of each square must be trimmed of excess fabric, otherwise quilting would be nearly impossible.  Just look at the layers, and this is prior to adding batting and a backing.  Yikes!

Trim, trim, trim.

Oh oh, where's the center?

The center of the 4th hibernating square needs love and attention. 

I began this project about 12 years ago ( yes, I am very naughty).  The colors and the flowers are very nice, but my enthusiasm has waned for this bold color and very bold style of quilt. Now, I'm thinking a nice little coverlet folded at the end of the bed, is the smart way to go.  After adding a generous border, it'll look sweet.  Any thoughts? 

UFO Sighting (UnFinished Object)

While going through one of my storage boxes, I came across this forgotten set of napkins.  There they were, being crushed between other stored fabrics and odd cut-out pieces of felt, linings, paper patterns, and old tablecloths.  I do remember putting these napkins together when my youngest daughter was little.

You can see, in this picture, I'm nearly finished.  All this little napkin needs is finishing up the handsewn border.  Why did I put them away?  There's only about 15 to 20 minutes more sewing to go.

I remember, at the time, my goal was to make these entirely by hand, including the appliqued flower and leaves, and even the blind stitched hem.

It seems silly, and I offer no explanation as to why these cute little unfinished napkins were languishing in the bottom of a storage box.  Thankfully, there was matching embroidery floss placed between the napkins.  It's time to set things right.

There is knitting going on, but alas, I'm not a very speedy knitter.  I'll post results soon.

Sorry for the improper lighting during this photo shoot.  I think I forgot the flash.

The Beginning and the End

The pattern for my project bag had some sweet little crocheted flowers adorning the attached handles.  The flower idea is cute, and it does add a bit of color and interest, but crochet flowers aren't really my thing.  I borrowed another inspiration from Pink Lemon Twist, who blogged that she might try buttons.  I used red mis-matched buttons, since I couldn't find four red buttons that matched, and the bag turned out just right.

A new project is on the needles.  It's a shawl I'll be knitting with Dream In Color Smooshy, in Ruby River.

I'll be sharing the details of this shawl at a later date, but isn't the color bright and rosy pink?  This yarn is pure joy to knit, so I'm eager to watch it grow.
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Needle and Thread

So, I dusted off my old sewing machine, and finally began putting together the lining for my project bag.  You remember that blue crochet bag from several weeks ago, right?  I won't mention how long it's been since I've used my machine, except to say, I had to re-train my brain on how to thread her.

After measuring and seaming, came the ironing.  Even though it's just a lining, I wanted to do things right. 

I had forgotten how pretty the fabric is.  With little honeybees flying around the little yellow blossoms and sweet strawberries.  How cute is that?

Just before sewing the lining to the inside of the crochet bag, I decided - at the last possible moment - to add a wee pocket.  This might come in handy for stitch markers, a cable needle or some other small necessity.  Truth be told, I should have added the pocket before seaming, but how unlike me to be traditional!

This close-up shows the smallest hand stitches used to attach the lining all around the top of the bag.  No other attachment was used.

The fabric is somewhat roomy, bunching up a little around the bottom.  That's OK with me, since the outside of the bag is sure to be stretched , and I didn't want the inside to be tight at all.

The addition of a lining really helped stableize and give the bag needed structure.  It's not quite so floppy now, and will be perfect for small projects, such as socks or scarves.  Now, all I have to do is add the handles.  I'll be sure to post the final results soon.

A project bag ...eventually

So I've been working - on and off - on this project bag for a while now.  Yes, it should have been finished sooner, but crocheting isn't my bag, hah!  The problem is, crocheting is fun, but my right thumb gets sore very quickly, and I have to keep putting it down...(um, the project, not my thumb!)  I crack myself up.  This doesn't amount to very productive work.

The bag is an idea I borrowed from Pink Lemon Twist.  Her bag is oval and I am making mine circular.  I finished the handles, and have decided to line the bag with fabric from my stash.  My stash of fabric has been in hiding for a very long time, and I wasn't sure if I had anything appropriate.

This is just a portion of my collection that survived our big move last year.  I tried sorting through the jumble of prints and solids, and was delighted when I came upon this little beauty:

Strawberries!  How delightfully sweet.