Oh Deer!

I just finished up this darling 37x37 quilt for a friend's baby boy who arrived this past week.  The fabric is from Moda's Oh Deer line.  I used charm packs and arranged the charms in plus signs throughout the quilt. For the back, I used the same line of fabric - brown with blue deer.  For the binding, I used blue with brown dots fabric from the Oh Deer line.  I love love love it!  It's a smallish quilt that will be perfect for tummy time.

Sweet Baby Girl

I just finished up this sweet little baby girl quilt, onesies, and burp cloths for a dear friend of ours who just welcomed a baby girl.  It's been a few months since I have had the opportunity to sew for a baby girl so I had a lot of fun with this.  My friend is very sophisticated and has a classic sense of style so I opted for a more vintage look with the pinks on the quilt and burp cloths then threw a splash of the red polka dot on the appliques for the onesies.  I love it! 

 

Mission Accomplished

or rather the queen quilt that I sent off to the long arm quilter a couple of months ago.  I finished binding it by hand last weekend and worked on it on the drive down and back from Port Aransas.  I love it.  It's so colorful and looks beautiful in our bedroom. For those non-quilters out there, the blocks are square dance blocks.  There's a lot of fabric in this quilt which measures out to be around 99" x 108".  Most of the fabrics are from Amy Butler collections.  I tried to stay in the blue family with some red to give it some pop as our bedrooms walls are blue.  The binding (border that holds it together) is scrappy and is made from a collection of all the fabrics used in the quilt.  The back is a simple cotton material that is similar to a bed sheet but super soft.  I love how the scrappy binding stands out on the back.  It will be a while before I commit to another large scale project like this one.  This involved a lot of cutting and piecing which is difficult when I don't have a lot of "me time" these days.  I literally spent time on this quilt in 10-15 minute increments before Ella would come in and wreck my sewing room. Occasionally I would get a longer block of time if Ella was asleep or I could talk my sweetie into just a few hours.  Of course, I'm already working on another quilt for a special little someone who is arriving in September.  Pics to come.

New Hot Spots in Wimberley

I found two new places in Wimberley that I will have to visit when I go through Wimberley - the Sugar Shack and Wimberley Stitch Studio.

The Sugar Shack is on RR12 between Dripping Springs and Wimberley.  My husband and I stopped there on our way to San Marcos for breakfast to go.  We were blown away by the variety of delicious pastries and finally settled on croissants, cinnamon rolls, and coffee.  I had the raspberry filled croissant and my husband had the jalapeño, bacon and cheese croissant.  They were AMAZING.  Warm and light.  Delicious.  This will be a new must stop every time I go to Court which is quite a bit!

 The Wimberley Stitch Studio is a relatively new quilt shop that opened in 2013 and is across the street from the Market Days.  It is very small but adorable.  I love the fabrics they offer and it was a pleasure meeting Linda who was working away on a quilt on the Long Arm machine that resides there.  Truly a studio.  I of course couldn't leave without purchasing some fabric and a couple of patterns.  They also offer classes and a block of the month program is starting soon.

Another Work in Progress

My queen quilt is now being finished at the Long Arm quilters as we speak.  So, last night after Ella went to sleep I started work on this beauty.  I really didn't have a plan, I just started with the flying geese squares that I had already pieced and sewed them together to make a block.  Then I reviewed what I had in leftover fabric and started adding borders.  I'm not sure where I'm going to go with it just yet.  I don't have enough scraps for another big border so I may have to opt for smaller blocks.  We'll see.

A Gift for the Sports Fan and Coffee Fan Too

I have been meaning to make this mug rug for some months but finally got busy on it when I realized that my husband's birthday was just a few days away.  His favorite team of course is the Patriots.  I scored the fabric in Maine back in September.  It's much larger than a coaster and is supposed to be big enough for a mug of coffee and a pastry.  My husband has decided to use it on his nightstand for his water and his iPhone.  It was super simple to make.  Hopefully, I'll get around to making one for myself.

Let's Play

I finally finished it! I started this gift project several months ago for a dear friend's little toddler boy but parenthood took over and I had to put it down for the last few months. It felt great to be sewing again and I finished it in record time with Miss Ella watching from her bouncer. She was such a sweetheart letting mommy work in 30 minute increments! I call this quilt "Let's Play" because it features all the things that little boys love to play with - helicopters, cars, robots. It will also be fun to play I SPY with this one at bedtime. I didn't use a pattern. Instead, I just let it organically come together with rows of 5inch squares and 2inch white sashing. I used the big red dots as outside "Side" borders and the binding is green fabric with red dots. The back is primary color dots on a background and I quilted it with horizontal and vertical "in the ditch" lines using red, green and blue thread on the back and white on the front. I loved how it turned out and especially enjoyed the bear hug and thanks I received from my sweet and gracious friend!

Sweet Baby Girl Quilt

We're in the process of decorating our nursery and have been struggling on colors, a theme, etc. I'm really not into matchy matchy themes so the nursery is coming together in an eclectic mix of new and old. I instantly fell in love with Aneela Hoey's Little Apples collection and I had to make something for Sweet Baby Girl so I designed this little baby quilt that include a couple of fabrics from the Little Apples collection (center panel, binding). Size: 32 x 34 1/2 Fabric: Little Apples, Polka Dot, Grey Leaves Binding: Little Apples Blue with red apples Pattern: Center panel, two borders Quilting: Machine Quilting - Diagonal

Skully Toddler Quilt

My soon to be three year old nephew is a bad boy who LOVES Halloween and skulls. So, I made this quilt for him using fabrics from Alexander Henry's collection and a Jolly Roger long arm pattern. I love how it turned out and can't wait to give it to him for Christmas. Don't spoil the surprise! Size: 40 x 48 3/4 Fabric: Alexander Henry Skulls Pattern: Panel plus 2 outer borders Quilting: Jolly Roger Long Arm Binding: 1/2 Black solid, 1/2 Gray solid

Peacock Lap Quilt

This quilt was inspired the colors of a peacock feather. I used a pattern called Saratoga and some of the fabrics from Amy Butler's Lark Collection. I love how it turned out even though it took me a long time. This was my first quilt and I essentially taught myself from a book and youtube videos. About three months into the project, I took a Beginner Quilting class and learned some tips to finish the back and the binding. I outsourced the quilting to local quilter with a long arm machine and I personally handstitched the binding which turned out to be one of my favorite things about the quilt. I debated over using a navy blue solid fabric for the binding but I'm so happy I went with the print. It really sings. Size: 47 1/4 x 64 Fabric: Amy Butler Lark, Navy, Others Binding: Amy Butler Lark, Hand stitched Pattern: Front - Saratoga; Back - Panel with border. Quilting: Long Arm Flowers and Vines

Perfect Ride

I had the perfect ride at Slaughter Creek on Saturday morning. I love that trail. Admittedly, I am not in the best mountain bike shape but I somehow managed to sprint the entire 5-mile loop and had a blast doing it. Then yesterday, I started on another quilt for my 2 1/2 year old nephew who absolutely LOVES skulls. This one was a lot more fun than the wedding quilt and cute too! Stay tuned!

A Lesson in Humility

For the last few months, I have been working on this "Peacock Wedding" quilt. It's my "third" quilt. The first two I made were rag quilts for a toddler - my niece. This new quilt was inspired by a friend's wedding invitation. She loves the color blue and her extravagant wedding invitation featured a peacock feather and a beautiful deep blue. I decided right then and there that I would make a quilt for the couple as a wedding present. I chose the pictured Amy Butler fabrics and a pattern called Saratoga. I was, shall we say, ambitious. In other words, I bit off much more than I chew or ahem, sew. This project was a lesson in humility. But, with the help of the kind ladies in my quilting class and the best quilting shop - Valli & Kim, I conquered my fears and acquired some skills. What you see in the picture is just the top. I have also completed the back which is a very simple pattern. No frills. I dropped off the quilt yesterday to another quilter who will use her long-arm machine to "quilt" the entire quilt in a lovely pattern. I can't wait to see the end result!