Ahoy, baby!

Well, something happens when you hit a certain age--you're suddenly surrounded by babies!  So far, babies have been the most compelling reason for me to quilt.  I can put down everything else to crank out a baby quilt. 

 

 

 

If you know me personally, then you already know that my husband and I led a young adult bible study for quite a few years.  Now, (not counting BabySchep) the first baby from that group is coming soon:

Well, of course Baby Anthony is getting a quilt!  I was short on time, so I needed something relatively easy.  I remembered how much fun I had making the Big Top quilt for a friend almost two years ago, so I pulled out my 10 degree wedge ruler again. 

 

I constructed this quilt top in the same manner as the Big Top quilt, but with navy and off-white, as Baby Anthony has a nautical theme going on in his nursery:

It's making me dizzy!

Like before, I appliqued a circle over the gap in the center.  This time, I embellished the circle with an anchor made of felt. 

 

Almost done basting!

I machine quilted the sandwich on my 9960 using a walking foot and Aurifil 50wt thread.  That, plus a brand new needle made for smooth sailing. 

 

I attached navy bias binding, and started on the label.  I tried out Sulky's Sticky FabriSolvy for the first time, and it was a hit!  I typed up the label on my computer, and printed it directly on the sheet on my laser printer.  It simply peels and sticks, and you're ready to sew!

I used three strands of embroidery floss with a simple backstitch to cover up the printed text.  Even with the white stabilizer, the white floss stood out just fine. 

When I was done, I simply submerged the label in water, and the stabilizer disappeared!  Amazing.  I will be using this stuff a lot.

 

Well, here's the finished product:

 

 

Love that Happy Home print!

Label turned out pretty nicely!

BabySchep, at 5 months old, modeling the quilt for the camera.

I think this photo belongs in a catalog!

I made a matching drawstring bag with the extra backing fabric.  Here it is amongst the other goodies at the shower:

 

So what do y'all think?  I'm pretty pleased with the outcome.  Love the fabric?  You can pick up the Happy Home collection in my shop.  (My husband and I own the company!)  Want to recreate this quilt?  Get what you need here. 

 

Until next time, God Bless!

 

 

Blocks on the Go, Quilts on the Grow: January and February blocks complete!

As if I didn't have enough craziness going on in my life, I started a new quilt-along: Blocks on the Go for Quilts on the Grow.  It's a quilt-as-you-go project where you turn over your backing pieces to become your sashing/binding.  I'm a fan of the red-black-white combo, so I thought it'd be fun to try it here. 

There are 52 blocks, so I got to chopping up some of my Art Gallery Fabrics Pure Elements fabric--this project will use up half of the bolt!

Silky smooth red <3

A friend at my local quilt shop graciously agreed to let me use her backing and batting acrylic templates, so I had a marathon cutting session at our EPP club one night:
 

That's what 52 pieces of backing and batting look like!

The blocks themselves are English Paper Pieced, which is still my favorite.  Now for the reveal!
 

Block 1, Marie:

Dear Stella stripes with MM Cotton Couture solid

Machine quilted.  FMQ in the sashing, straight line quilting inside.

Block 2, Carol:

Dear Stella stripes.  I <3 them!

Machine quilted.  Straight line quilting inside, FMQ in the sashing.

Block 3, Sarah:

MM Cotton Couture solid, and fabric from my stash.

FMQ machine quilting throughout.

Block 4, Lorraine:

MM Glitz and MM Cotton Couture solid

Machine quilted: FMQ throughout.

Block 5, Caroline:

MM Glitz, and MM Cotton Couture solid

Machine quilted: FMQ throughout

Block 6, Dolores:

Dear Stella stripes

Machine quilted: straight line quilting inside, FMQ in the sashing.

Block 7, Maureen:

MM Cotton Couture solids, stash fabric in center

Machine quilted: FMQ throughout.

Block 8, Marena:

Dear Stella stripes, MM Cotton Couture solid

Machine quilted: Straight line and FMQ throughout.

And my favorite part--let's see how they play together!
 

I hope the super-bright Florida sunshine didn't wash these out too much!

 

And some views from the back:

Thank you, Katja, for another wonderfully inspiring quilt-along!  I'm still working on my Millie, but maybe I'll keep up a reasonable pace on this guy.  I'm not ashamed to say that I've managed to impress myself this time.  I love the fact that it's such a great project to practice my free motion quilting on, so I am super motivated to get this one done.  Thanks for looking--until next time, God Bless!

 

Handmade gifts for Princess Jocelyn

Well, did you know that #babyschep has a cousin? My parents' first two grandchildren were born a mere two months apart!  Here's a pic of Princess Jocelyn:

So sweet!

This is my first niece, so I had to make as many handmade gifts for her as I could.  Just one obstacle: the fact that I have an infant of my own to care for.

First up, a quilt, of course! It began with fusible appliqué secured with a blanket stitch by hand:

#babyschep in the background!

I chose a simple Riley Blake pattern that called for strips.

Below-the-panel strip set

Above-the-panel strip set

I thought that the Happy Home collection would be ideal.  Super girly, you know?!

I chose this super luxe minky to back the quilt:

Love that color!

Here's the quilt sandwich all basted:

Is it just me, or do quilt tops look better before they're quilted? 

I opted to simply stitch in the ditch with my walking foot on my trusty Quantum.  Minky is tricky.  It was very messy to cut, and very shifty in the machine.  There were several snags, but I just told myself that it added to the homemade feel of it all.

And the finished quilt:

Thanks to the hubby for holding it up for me!

I hope she enjoys it!

Next up, burp cloths!  I used Simplicity pattern 2924 for the burp cloths and tummy time pillow that follow:

Yup, that's more Happy Home fabric!  I have plenty, lol.  I made some of these for #babyschep, and they've come in handy--they are very absorbent. 

Yours truly with my fav model :)

I also made some tummy time pillows.  Here's the version I made for my niece:

The pattern calls for toys to be attached.

Here's what #babyschep's looks like.

And of course, I couldn't resist a pic of #babyschep passed out after some tummy time on his new pillow!

Next up, a teddy bear!  I used Simplicity pattern #9524.  This was my first time using a mainstream pattern to make a softie, and it has its pros and cons.

Hehe, a little sewing humor.

This bear came together in two pieces, that's it!  That made it a very quick sew, but I also feel like it made a bit rudimentary of a bear.  Now, the pattern I used assumes you're going to be using some sort of furry fabric, but I just used quilting cotton.  I felt like it could have really used some interfacing, if you go with a lighter fabric like cotton.  

The obligatory patio shot.  

From another angle.  

I added some hand embroidered details.  

Yet another gift:  an embellished onesie:

So cute!

This was pretty straightforward.  I used fusible web to apply the letter, and used a straight stitch to adhere it permanently.  Because I used a straight stitch, I opted not to use any interfacing on the inside of the onsesie.  

The flowers on the socks were made using this little gadget:

I won this Kanzashi flower maker as a door prize at last year's expo, and found good use for it here.  If I had more time, I would have figured out how to make a headband, but that'll just have to go on my super long to-do list for now.  

And last, but not least, my niece has an older brother.  I didn't want him to feel left out, so I stitched up a composition book cover with his name on it.

What do y'all think?  Far from perfect, but the flaws are filled with love!


Until next time, God Bless!