valentine's day project #2

Another new project that wasn't on the list... When I saw this cute wall hanging over at Nostalgic Cafe, I knew I wanted to make one. I had some 5" squares left over from my pink triangle quilt, and thought they would be perfect! I cut them into 2.5" squares, and used one of each print to make this little cutie!

The only bad thing was that I now had 3 more squares of each print! Following my new "create no UFOs" rule would mean tossing the extra squares into the scrap box. I couldn't bring myself to do that, so I went ahead and whipped up 3 more hearts (they don't take as long as you would think!), and sashed them together to make another wall hanging... In this shot, I have it laid out on the cutting table while I mark the diagonal lines (using one of the kid's washable markers - works great!).

I love how they turned out! For the little one, I used stippling in the white areas (dense in the heart area, more loose around the edge), and just some simple diagonals around the heart. I think this one will end up in my sewing room!

For the long one, I did an all over cross-hatch design.

This one will be hung on the narrow wall in the hall by the guest room. Probably year-round, until I can make more wall hangings to swap it out with! It's not TOO valentines-y, right?

And guess what... I still have more 5" squares left! To celebrate the finish of this mini project, I'd love to give this 'charm pack' to one of you. There's one each of 30-ish prints (a couple more than I used to make the wall hangings). Of course you don't have to make the same project that I did - it would make a cute little patchwork quilt for a baby girl!

Just leave any old comment (and I'm happy to ship international). I'll pick a winner on Thursday night, so hopefully I can get it in the mail on Friday! Yay for finished projects!!!

Happy 4th of July!

[First of all, thanks to all 3 of you who raised your hand for the flannel scraps giveaway! I was happy to have any takers at all! Congrats to #2, Pam of Warm Hugs Design! Send me your address and I'll get those scraps in the mail to you!]

And now, another finish!! I'm only a little late on this one... It's a table topper that I started way back in July - a birthday present for my stepmom, Claudia. I'm so happy to have it done in time to hand-deliver it when we visit my family in Texas later this week. Claudia loves to decorate for holidays, so I think she'll really like it. My dad is a former Army guy, so he should at least appreciate the theme!

I'm so proud! It's really my first traditional quilt project, with REAL blocks, and sashing and cornerstones and everything! And I kinda love it - all the fabrics came from my stash, but they came together so nicely. Every bit (except the star points) has stars - even the cream has a tiny star print! The design (such as it is - it's pretty simple!) is my own - I just made it up as I went.

I liked it so much, I made a tiny version to go with it!

I considered giving them both away together, but I'm going to be selfish and keep the little one. I want to start a wall of mini-quilts, and this will be my first one. Yay!

I love the stars... I was going to go wonky at first, but I'm glad I kept it traditional. Well, maybe they're slightly wonky anyway... :-)

The quilting is just a free-motion stippling. It's been a while since I did any of that, so it was fun to get back in the groove. And nice to only have to do these small sizes! The mini is about 20" square, and the big one is about 36" square.

I thought about trying to make it dual-purpose by putting something Christmas-like on the back. After much mental debate, I settled on this snowflake print that matched the color of the binding, and did a plain back. I added little pockets on the corners, in case they want to hang it on the wall instead of using it on the table. I'm not sure it will work (I've never tried to hang a quilt before!), but I'd read about it somewhere and figured it wouldn't hurt to try! Hopefully the corners are subtle enough that the quilt can still be used upside down on the table at Christmas time.

So, it's a finish, and you know what that means - another giveaway!

How about a kit to make a little mini quilt of your own? Everything you need (except for batting) is included, and it's all cut to size and ready to piece. I'm not including any instructions for how to put it together, because I'm sure you can figure it out (you can always email me with questions). Oh, heh - I was just about to say that international shipping is okay, but duh! Oh wait, maybe some ex-pat would like a little reminder of home? Anyway, everyone is welcome to enter, just let me know if you're interested in your comment!

up to my ears in flannel!

When I go out thrifting, I always keep an eye out for flannel fabric. I'm happy to find either scraps (usually left over from someone's pajama project), or whole pieces (pajama projects that never happened!). But a few weeks ago, I went to a garage sale and got a HUGE box of flannel for something like $5 or $10. It was a crazy amount of fabric - about 40 yards in all! It's not the most exciting fabric in the world, but I knew I could give it a good home and put it to use right away...

I collect all my flannel in a big bin, and every once in a while I go through and process it. This huge addition pushed me over the edge, and I felt like I was working on nothing but flannel all last month!

As I've blogged about before, I love to make swaddling blankets (look, a tutorial!), or use flannel for the backs of "quiltlets". So I first took all the big pieces of printed fabric, and cut them into swaddling blanket size (about 42" long) or quiltlet size (about 60" long). Then I took all the printed scraps, and cut them into 7" (if possible) or 6" (if not) squares. Then I cut up enough solids into 6 or 7" squares, to match up with the prints, and made rag blanket squares. I tried to find a tutorial for exactly how I make these, but all the ones I could find showed how to use batting inside. I just use a third flannel square (same size as the outer two squares), and sew a big "X" from corner to corner, through all 3 layers. I was an X-sewing machine!!

After I had a bazillion squares, and it was time to sew them into blankets. Here's the first one, with all unique squares. It's a 9x12 grid (so 108 different prints!), with about 3/4" seams, so about 50" by 70" in size, I think. This first picture is after snipping the seams, but before washing.

That one had a lot of girlie prints, so I wanted to do another one for a boy. I didn't have nearly as many boy prints, but I did have multiples of the prints I did have, so I grouped them into 9-patches.

And here they both are, after a couple long washes and dries. You would not believe the amount of lint these things generate when you wash them! But they are so soft and fluffy. And heavy - I love that!

Unfortunately, these blankets can't be given to Project Linus (because the lint can get into wounds and equipment, etc.). So, I'll soon be taking them with me to Texas when we go for a family reunion. The highlight of the reunion is an auction of handmade goods, and the proceeds from the auction fund the reunion for the next year. I love that! Last year, I donated this quilt, which sold for $84. The year before that, I did another rag quilt (like the girlie one here, but with 6" squares), and it sold for $125! I'll surely be lowering the price by bringing two quilts this time, but whatever. It's for family. :-)

Even after making these two quilts, I still have enough squares left for at least three more. I know, it's crazy! AND, I have a huge pile of swaddling blankets just waiting to be sewn up! But, yay, all my flannel is processed, and all I have left is a crate full of scraps less than 6 or 7" in one or both dimensions. My plan is to someday turn those into coin quilts for Project Linus.

Speaking of which... remember my idea about always having a giveaway when I have a major finish? Well, is anyone out there up for a grab-bag of flannel scraps? You could whip up some cozy patchwork rice warming bags, or some smaller cold/hot packs for kids for Christmas gifts! If you're interested, just say so in your comment, and I'll draw a name on Monday. This one is for US folks only, because it will be a big chubby flat rate envelope... The next one will be international, I promise!

pink quilt #2 done!

It's officially finished... Now I just need to stop procrastinating, and get it in the mail!

I went with Psalm 91:4, which Amy suggested:

"He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart."

Thanks, Amy!

I ended up having to redo the label, and I was so bummed!! For my first few quilts, I used the Sharpies I had on hand (green and black), and had no problems with the label fading in the wash. So, I ordered a whole set of Sharpies in pretty colors. I made the label as usual, and washed and dried the quilt like normal, and this is what came out. The lighter the ink color, the more it faded!

Oh well. Looking on the bright side - I didn't really like the shape of the label anyway, so it gave me a chance to redo it. I went back to my trusty old Sharpies, and tried again. This time I washed and dried the label by itself before I attached it to the quilt (once bitten, twice shy - I hate ripping out stitching!). It looks so much better, with no fading at all. From now on, I'll just use the pretty colored pens for decoration and not for the actual text!

I was thinking it would be fun to start a tradition of having a little giveaway with each major quilt I finish. I love doing giveaways, and maybe it will help motivate me to finish what I start more quickly. I can only hope!

So, how about a charm pack of 70 6" vintage linen squares? You can add a "solid" (like the gingham I used here) and make a quilt just like this one! If you're interested, just leave a comment about what color(s) you'd like. If you choose a single color (pink, blue, green or yellow), I'll pick two each of 35 different prints. If you choose more than one color, I'll pick 70 different prints. International shipping is fine, and I'll pick a winner on Thursday evening.

Now I'm off to catch up on some bee blocks...

productive procrastination

My in-laws are visiting this weekend, and I needed to clean out my sewing room so that it can be used as a second spare bedroom. First step - the seriously overflowing bin of flannel. Instead of just putting the excess in a bag like any sane person would do, I decided to pull out all the large pieces and whip up some swaddling blankets....



Possibly not the best use of my time! But, now I have 15 swaddling blankets sewn, turned and pressed. And I'm happy that I'll be able to work on the hand sewing part (just blind stitching the openings) over the weekend - I hate the thought of three days without any sewing! I'll top stitch them next week, and then I'll be all set for the Project Linus meeting next Sunday. And that's about 40 yards of fabric out the door - whoop!



Check it out - wide open space in the sewing room! No, I didn't take a before shot - I'm not sure I would be brave enough to post it anyway.



There are so many unfinished projects tucked away in those shelves!! Cleaning everything up has motivated me to make a list and start working through it before I start anything else. Seriously. Don't laugh! I might even post my list here, so you guys can cheer me on!



Here's the other side of the room. That closet is packed with the rest of the stash - flannels, novelties, sheets, small cuts, etc. I know, it's a little crazy. But at least it's organized crazy now...



Speaking of too much fabric... I fully intended to do my usual "second chance" giveaway after the Sew Mama Sew giveaway day last week, but just never managed to get around to it.



But it just so happens that while I was cleaning up, I put together some flat rate envelopes of some leftover FQs from my stash sale.



One might be spoken for, but at least two of them are up for grabs, and I'm giving them away! Leave a comment here, and I'll draw at least two names on Monday whenever the in-laws leave. Hope everyone has a great holiday weekend!

the big winner!

Is it weird that I actually get a little nervous before I pick a giveaway winner? Yes, yes it is. Oh well - I asked random.org, and it picked....



Lucky #307 is Meg - The Mad Quilting Librarian!

Meg said...

I've been wanting to make a vintage sheet quilt for the longest time, but I never seem to have any luck at my local thrift shops. This would be a great solution!

So happy to oblige, Meg! Hope you have fun working with them!

Thanks to everyone for entering!! And a great big welcome to those of you who took a look around and decided to subscribe/follow!

Here's what I've been working on lately - more string squares. It's all Rachel's fault - she picked string blocks for her bee month, and I got a little addicted. Yes, there's one missing - I didn't pay close attention to how many I was making, and ended up with an odd number!

I'm not sure if I'll go for a sort of traditional layout...



Or all one direction...

Or maybe I'll try a zigzag? Must go consult Flickr for some inspiration... I'll most likely add some sashing in there somehow, since the blocks I have right now would make a pretty small quilt all by themselves (and I'm quite sure I'm done making them, if you know what I mean)... It would help if I knew what I was making it for, I suppose! At least I'll have plenty of time to think about it while I pull all the paper off the back!!

Happy giveaway day!

I love giveaway day! I hope everyone is having a blast visiting blogs all over blogville...

If you're new here, welcome! I'm a crafter who loves thrifting in all forms (garage sales, thrift stores, swapping, bartering, you name it!). My current obsession is quilting with old sheets (or vintage linens - that sounds a whole lot nicer!).

For my giveaway, I'm offering a set of about 140 6" vintage linen squares, all different prints.

With this set of squares, you could make a fun patchwork quilt like this...

Or add some squares of your own and make a couple quilts like this...

Or maybe half a dozen awesome table toppers like this one from Marit!

To enter, just leave a comment here. Any old comment will do, but if you're feeling chatty, tell me about what crafty project you did last - I love to hear what people are up to. International folks are welcome to enter.

I wish I could reply to everyone, but I tried that last time and it was a full-time job (and I already have one of those!). So, thanks in advance - I appreciate you stopping by and entering!!

And lastly, PLEASE make sure you have contact info. If you don't want to leave your email in every comment you write, please make sure your profile settings are correct so that people can find it there. If you're not sure, go here to learn how to change your settings. Even if you think your settings are correct - if you've never had a direct email response to one of your comments, GO CHECK them! Otherwise, your entries may just be a big fat waste of your time!!

Thanks to Sew Mama Sew for hosting the event!

The giveaway is closed now - going to draw a name! Thanks everyone!!

two vintage sheet giveaways...

For all you vintage sheet fans - there are two fun giveaways you should check out.

Rachel at my tiny robot heart is giving away this huge envelope of scraps.



And Emily at Creative Chicks is giving away two sets of scraps.



Go and enter!

loot, swaps, and someone else's giveaway

Just because it's been the holidays doesn't mean I haven't been hitting the thrift stores! Here are some of the pretty linens I've scored over the last few weeks...

Man, I'm really looking forward to garage sale season! If you're looking for a vintage linen fix, I've started several more Swap-bot swaps - one each for January, February and March. For each swap, you'll send (and receive) two packages containing 2 FQs each (for a total of 4 FQs). If you're new to Swap-bot and have any questions, let me know.

And speaking of vintage linens, you should hurry on over to Brown Paper Packages, to enter to win this lovely set of FQs. Better hurry - the giveaway ends sometime tomorrow!

good news, bad news...

First the good news - my second winner is #23 - Beth of Needles, Threads and Crafts, who requested squares. Yay! I was curious about what was more popular, so I tallied the votes - it was 18 for FQs and 15 for Squares (and a few with no preference). So there you go! I'm excited about setting up some swaps, and will be following up with the folks who said they'd be interested after the holidays.

Now the bad news.... all those wonderful awesomeness points my husband earned with that fantastic cake last week? Totally wiped out by his failure to remember that our daughter is allergic to penicillin when asked by the doctor! It wasn't caught by the doctor, who prescribed Amoxycillin for an ear infection, or the pharmacist who dispensed it, or the mama who gave her two doses of it (even celebrating that she was SOOOOO crafty about using pink food color to trick her into taking the "yucky" medicine) before she actually read the label. Luckily, her allergy is not the anaphylactic type, but a serum sickness type of reaction - just a delayed but really nasty rash (that last link is to some photos of her last episode - poor girlie!). She's fine right now, but the previous reactions she had to Amoxycillin only started a full 10 days after taking it, so we'll wait and see.... Ug.

Anyway, on to happier subjects.... I whipped up a little paper garland for the tree this week. Here's a link to a tutorial that's similar. I used three different punches - a 2" scalloped circle, and 1.5" and 1" plain circles. I think I used about 14 sheets of 12" scrapbooking paper, and it made a pretty long garland. My paper was only single-sided, so I paired up the pieces (just using a dab of glue stick, letting it dry overnight) before chaining them together with the sewing machine. Super quick and easy! And cute on the tree!

I went to my Project Linus meeting last Sunday, and volunteered to bring home a couple quilts that needed binding. This scottie dog one has a wavy edge, and I thought I might be able to use the extra binding I had made from that challenge fabric, which has lycra in it. But the stretch is cross-wise instead of length-wise, so I don't think it would work very well. The chapter coordinator suggested I just trim it straight, and I think that's what I'll do.

I love the simple design on this next one. I think I'll jot down the measurements and try it myself someday!

dessert! (and... how about another chance to win?)

Now that all the dust has settled from the SMS giveaway day, I'd like to reward all you awesome peeps who are still hanging around. So, how about another chance for the same loot? Just leave me another comment saying "squares!" or "FQs!". I'll make this one quick, and pick a number on Thursday evening, so I can hopefully get it in the mail on Friday.

And I just wanted to say, in case anyone else is wondering but hasn't asked, I'm definitely up for swapping (or selling, I suppose) if you don't win and are just dying to get your hands on some of these vintage linens. I have way more than I'll ever sew up, and would love to share them. It would make me AND my husband feel better. :-)

Speaking of my husband, check out the awesome cake he made me for my birthday! It's the triple chocolate mousse cake from last month's Cook's Illustrated. Absolutely decadent!!

I hate to admit it, but he's such a better cook than me. I think it's because he actually follows the instructions. Me, I just wing it. Take my latest loaf of pumpkin bread - I couldn't find my normal recipe, so I just used a banana bread recipe and swapped pumpkin for bananas, and threw in some cinnamon. Um, yeah. It's edible, but requires a liberal application of honey!

winner!

Here's my favorite part of giveaway day! My lucky winner is #97, sb, of the blog that might be called Bigg Knits, or Random McRandompants, or [insert title here]. Hard to tell. :-) She wrote:

97. sb said...

I love FQs - they give so many options! In particular, those of the green/blue colorways. :)

December 2, 2009 10:39 AM

And this is what she'll be getting:

That's 11 FQs of pure vintage loveliness - one of every purely blue/green print that I have!

And wow, what a week! 521 entries! I'm excited that there are so many other crafty folks out there who like to work with vintage linens too. I replied to every reply-able comment I received (411!). Even after my nagging, there were still 110 of the dreaded "noreply-comment" folks. But I did have quite a few who mentioned that they changed their settings, so that's progress. :-)

Thanks again everyone for entering, and for all the other folks having giveaways!

Happy giveaway day!

It's time to celebrate - I'm pretty much over the flu, yesterday was my birthday, and today is the Sew Mama Sew giveaway day! Yay!

So, what's up for grabs over here? Well, I love to quilt with vintage linens, and boy do I have more than enough to share! I'm giving away your choice - either a set of FQs (however many I can cram into a flat rate envelope, and you can even suggest a color scheme)....

OR... a set of 140 or so 6" squares, all different.

So, you just have to ask yourself - do you feel like making a fun patchwork?

Or do you feel like making something more fancy with a set of FQs? What's your pleasure? Just leave me a comment, and let me know! International folks are welcome. I'll pick a winner randomly on the morning of Dec. 7.

[Edited to add - I already have SO many comments from people with no contact info! Please, people, I'm begging you - go here to learn how to change your settings. Even if you think your settings are correct - if you've never had an email response to one of your comments, GO CHECK them! Otherwise, ALL your entries are just a big fat waste of your time!!]

Thanks to Sew Mama Sew for hosting the event - have fun checking out all the other giveaways!