Quick Baby Blanket

Hi Again!

I've been staying busy "playing" with different projects.  Last night I made a Mitered Corner Blanket.   The pattern is from the University of Utah.  A lady from a local quilt shop made it and it looked like a fun baby project.  I have a new great niece and a new grandbaby on the way so this should come in handy.

You use 2 pieces of flannel.  One piece is cut larger than the other.  I cut the print flannel 32" square and the pink flannel 42" square.  The pattern explains how to make it better than I can explain.  Once the pieces are sewn together and the corners are mitered, I ironed the blanket and used a decorative stitch on the seams to hold the two pieces together.

Here's a better picture of the stitching.  I washed the flannel before I cut the squares.  It pilled pretty badly.  I found out that I need to use fabric softener with flannel.  I'm going to try and "shave" the blanket and rewash it.  Hopefully, it will look a little better.  I plan to make a couple more for the new little members of our family.

I've also been working a crocheted blanket.  I'll post a picture soon.  So how have you all been?  What are your favorite projects right now?

Making a few new tops

Hi Everyone!

How's your summer been?  Did you take any fun trips?  Did you see friends and family you haven't seen in a while?  Did you get to sew or craft more?  It's flown by for me.  Work was busy for me the first part of the summer, but we managed to get away for a couple of weekends recently.  We have a few trips coming up too and they'll be a lot of fun.  It's 103 today and I know we have a lot more warm weather to deal with, but it's August 23rd and that means we're closer to cooler days.  Think positive, right?

I've managed to sew a little.  I decided I needed some new tops and set out to make a few quick ones that I could wear to work.  I tried Kwik Sew #3003 and loved it.  I made size Medium and increased out to a large fit my hips.  Perfect!  It's a nice fit, not too tight and not too boxy.  I didn't even have to adjust the sleeve width.   I used fabrics I bought from Gorgeous Fabrics last summer.  They're all polyester/lycra fabrics.  I may make another one or two soon.  I think I'll change the neckline to a V neck  just to change things up a bit.

I also made the tank top from Kwik Sew #3232.  I made size Medium again, adjusted for my hip measurement and lengthened it an inch.  I made this turquoise top and another red one.  The fabrics are cotton knits.   These are great weekend tops for the weather here and I like wearing them under blouses if I need to.

Hope you all are doing great!  Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Finished Quilt

Hi Everyone!

I want to show you a picture of the quilt I started last summer and finally finished.   I'm happy with how it turned out.   I saw this quilt design somewhere on the net and don't remember where.   The fabrics are all from the Sangri La fabric line from Moda.  I worked on the quilt top over a couple of months and then I sent it out to be machine quilted.  I added the binding and made a dust ruffle out of one of the red floral prints.   I'll have to post a picture of the dust ruffle later.   The picture I took didn't turn out very well and it's getting dark now.    I made the shams several years ago.   They're made out of a textured home dec fabric I found at JoAnn's.   I want to make a few pillows for the bed.  I'll get to them soon.

I have a busy and fun week ahead.  Work will be crazy this week.  I could work lots of overtime, but this week, I'll just give up my lunch hours.  I plan to exercise a couple of evenings this week, I have a quilt class on Tuesday night, I'm getting together with friends Thursday night to make some cards and I may be going out of town next weekend.   That makes for one crazy week.   I don't really like being so busy, but it's just a week and it'll be fun.  

What's going on with you this week?   Whatever it is, I hope you fun!

Hello Again,
I've been catching on blog reading this afternoon.  It always feels like I get to catch up with all my friends.  Check out Sheila's post today.  She made some beautiful pillows and has plans to do some more home dec projects.  Lori has also posted pictures of the projects she's done in her home recently.

Sheila asked readers what type of home dec projects they like to sew.  I've always liked to sew for my home.  I've moved around quite a bit and planning a few new things every time we moved was fun.  This is one area of sewing where I'm usually happy with the results.  I never seem to find exactly what I want when I shop for home dec items and I have fun planning what I want to make.  I've made valances, curtains, pillows, comforters, and bed skirts.  My parents always did any home dec/renovations themselves.  You name it, I think they've done it.  My mother is an amazing sewer and has recovered and refinished a lot of furniture too.  She came to visit me a few years back so we could recover my (their) couch and a (their) chair.  I learned that's it not as difficult to recover a piece of furniture as I thought.  LOL!  I can say that because she was here to tell me what to do every step of the way.

Well, after all of this, I thought I'd show you a couple of things I made recently.  I bought a bench with baskets for our bedroom because I wanted a little more storage.  It came with a plain muslin covered pad so I covered it with this red tone on tone print.  I a lot happier with it.  The quilt in the picture is almost finished.  I just need to bind it.  I'm also going to make several throw pillows for the bench and bed.

The last picture shows pillowcases I made.  These are great.  I like these so much better than pillowcases I've bought.  Of course, it's been awhile since I bought new ones.  Anyway, I like them.  I just used some of the cotton fabrics I used in the quilt.  You can find several patterns for pillowcases on the web, but here's the one I used.  I'll show another picture when I finish the quilt and pillows.

Oh, just one more thing.  Do you like chocolate?  Try these.  The dark chocolate pieces are my favorite, but they have many choices.   They're too good!

Have a great week!

How was your weekend?

Did you have a good weekend?  Are you ready to go back to work tomorrow?  I'm not, but then I rarely am.  

My friend Lorrie came over this afternoon and we made a few cards.  We usually work on cards for a couple of hours and then have a glass of wine and dinner with my DH.  He cooks for us.  Are we lucky or what?

Here are a couple of cards we made.

I can always use birthday cards and I like this one because it can be used for anyone.

This one is hard for you to see.  It's a trifold card.  Lorrie brought this dress form stamp and I had to use it for a card.

Hope you all have a great week!

A Night Out

Hi Everyone!

DH and I had a night out at the Bellagio.  We had dinner at the cafe, at chocolate crepes for dessert, walked through the Atrium decorated for the Chinese New Year and watched the water show outside.  We had a great time!

Card Share

Hi Everyone!

I used to make cards years ago and got away from it.  I also used to spend a lot of time looking at stamps and paper and ink and trying to figure out what to do with them.     I found Sherrill, a Stampin Up demonstrator.  I went to a few of her events and made a few cards and had a great time seeing what everyone made.   I've been buying supplies from Stampin Up ever since.   I like that they have papers and inks that match.  They also have a lot of great stamps and accessories for cards and scrap booking.   I thought I'd start showing you what I've made.

Here's what I used to make this card.
Stamps:  Oval All stamp set
Card Stock:  Whisper White, Rose Red and Rose Red Designer Series papers
Ink:  Rose Red
Accessories:  Rose Red 1/4" ribbon, rounded corner punch, larger oval punch, scalloped oval punch and scalloped edge punch   (I love punches!)

Check out Splitcoaststampers
It's a great site with all kinds of ideas for cards and paper crafts.   What's that saying? ... Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.   I copy of a lot of cards I see so I flatter a whole lot of people!   You can click on my Stampin Up website link on the right side of my blog.  Let me know if you have any questions and I'll do my best to help you out.