December Quilting Bee block

In my quilting bee we are doing house blocks this month. Malama sent us bright, saturated prints and an aqua blue sashing to make any type of house we wanted, as long as it wasn't tiny. It was to be 12.5 inches high and any width we liked. My house block is 12.5 square. I hoped to put a tree on one side, but I ran out of the sashing. Hopefully she can add sashing and join the tree to the block, if she wants.

Finished Scarf

I'm a novice knitter, so this scarf is just a simple seed stitch.I liked how the variation in color in the yarn made a pattern. I think it looks like a zigzag.

Merry Christmas!

We have a white Christmas and two excited little boys, so the holiday feels extra festive this year. 'Course I'm not the one shovelling the deck in this picture so the dogs will go out!
This stack of fat quarters from Sally Henderson's Ginger Blossom line made one of my wishes come true. Thanks Val!

More Gifts for Boys

I've been meaning to make a crayon and coloring book carrier for my older son for a while now. I couldn't find a tutorial or directions, so I just plunged in. It turned out well in that everything fits and works, but there a few things I'd do differently next time.

It needs interfacing or maybe even innerfuse for the front cover. It needs to be a little stiffer there. The back is stiff because of the notebook, but the front sags a bit and the crayon shapes show through. No biggy, but it would be nice if it looked more notebook like.

Next, some easy felt beanbags. I filled mine with lentils.

Toddler Stay-On Scarf

I saw something like this on Sew Mama Sew a while ago, but no pattern or tutorial was offered. I had the idea in the middle of the night (why does that happen anyway?) to make one using charm squares. This went together so quickly! I just cut the charms in half (I only used nine) and sewed them together in a long line. Sandwiched with batting and a soft white flannel, I had a cute scarf to quilt. I just used straightline quilting and sewed a loop onto the front of one end. This makes a great closure for toddlers, as it keeps the scarf snug but not tight and best of all - it stays on!I don't have any little toddler girls to give this to, but if you do, it's available in my etsy shop.

Edited to add: Someone on the SewMamaSew forums asked for more explanation of how to make this, so I thought I'd link what I wrote there in case anyone is interested.

A Return to Knitting

I went through a knitting phase a few years ago, but I haven't picked up my needles since. A special lady asked for a scarf for Christmas though, so I dug out my supplies and got some new yarn. Boy was I rusty. I had to unearth my instruction book. After a few false starts, I'm back in the groove, and I'm really enjoying it.

Yes, that's snow out the window, and I find there is something really cozy about knitting in this cold weather. With quilting, which I normally love, there is so much up and down: sit to sew, up to cut and press, in the closet to find something, etc. With knitting, you just get to sit. And in this weather, all I want is an excuse to just sit.

26 Completed Blocks

That means nine more to go. I don't think I'm going to make it in time for Christmas. Oh well, there is always his birthday :). The 26 finished blocks seem like quite a stack to me at this point, having sewn on sashing two nights in a row. I like the negative space, but boy have I used a ton of Kona white!

More Christmas Gifts

A coffee cup cozy for a friend. Great gift for anyone who drinks hot coffee or tea in disposable cups. They get hot! This fabric cozy keeps hands warm, not burned. I can easily do a little tutorial if anyone is interested in the pattern I came up with.

And here's another felt monogram pillow.

Gifts for Boys

Here are a couple of projects I've whipped up for my little guys. I've been meaning to make these snack sacks for a while. The tutorial is simple and these are really quick to make. Who doesn't need reusable sacks too? I'm hoping they will be quieter than ziplocks (rustle, rustle) for church-time cheerios, etc.

This color book for toddlers also comes from a great tutorial. Actually reading and following the tutorial would be a good idea. You'll probably get better results than I did :).Here's what a couple of the pages look like.

Scrabble Tile Pendants

As soon as I saw a tutorial online about these scrabble tile pendants, I knew I had to make some as Christmas gifts. What a fun project. Loved making these! KristenKrafts on etsy sells great kits for making just a few (five, I think) if you want to try your hand at it. She even did a custom supply set for me. There are a lot of free tutorials available, but she also includes instructions with her kits. I'm not affiliated with her, just happy with my experience, so I thought I'd share in case any of you want to try it out. Diamond Glaze makes them appear to be ceramic or glass-like.
Fun, fun, fun :).

Jewel Toned String Quilt

The light isn't the best on this drizzly day, but I only had a few minutes to take a picture before this got packaged up and sent off to its Christmas recipient. It is a lap sized quilt. I found a vibrant paisley for the binding, and the quilting is done in a random wave pattern which was super fun to do. It has a free motion feeling, but I didn't have to use the free motion foot (which is still a big challenge for me).

String Quilt Preview

Just hand stitching the binding left on this Chrismtas gift. Here's a sneak peek at the fun new quilting pattern I tried. More later.

Also, making way for new items in my etsy shop. Need Christmas gifts and want to support handmade? Check it out on my sidebar.

Finished Commissioned Baby Quilt

This was my first time doing a quilt on commission, and I like the results. It ended up being 36" by 54". You can see the process I went through in my previous posts. I'm just kind of holding my breath now to see if she likes it.

Another Monogram Pillow

And another Christmas gift done! Now that I think of it, I know a lot of people on my list who have last names beginning with H. There may be more of these. For more info on how to do a super simple monogram pillow, see my previous post.

Wonky Star Label

Since I have to piece the back of the jewel string quilt anyway, I thought why not piece a quilt label to put right in? I even did some string piecing in the points of the stars.

Starting to come together

I've still got ten more to make, but I'm taking a break to work on other projects. Before I do though, I wanted to get an idea of how the quilt as a whole will come together. I blanket stiched in black around the tires, which made them appear to have tread - cool! I made five blocks into 12.5 inch blocks to see how they will look together in the final quilt. I think it's going to be cute.

Next up, quilting my jewel toned string quilt.

Still Plugging Away

I took some of your many great suggestions and made a few more blocks. Citricsugar's idea of a crane really struck me, so here's my attempt. And I really want to see the blocks you have made Linzi!

Three more down

Thanks for all the ideas and encouragement! I got three more done tonight, although I'm not sure this really looks like a road roller.

A digger, a dumper and a convertible

So I've been chugging right along with these tiny vehicles, houses, treees, etc. thinking I was making great progress on my son's quilt. I then made the mistake of estimating how many blocks I'll need for a twin sized quilt: 35. That means I still have 16 to make, and that's if I include all the ones I've made so far. I was hoping to have the luxury of relegating a few odd balls to the back of the quilt. Sigh. More construction vehicle inspiration may be needed.

Tackled the Backhoe

So I tackled the backhoe digger (bet no one else has used that title) that has been intimidating me. It's not exactly what I was going for, but I think it's as good as I am going to get. The little red house is my favorite house so far.

Tiny Bulldozer etc.

More pieces for my tiny construction vehicles, etc. quilt. Next up, some more intricate houses, and I think I need a church, like in the inspiration quilt. I'm saving the most challenging vehicle for last: backhoe digger! I have no idea how I'm going to pull that off in this small scale.

Commissioned Baby Quilt, Pieced Top

Well after three different attempts at borders, I finished piecing the top of my commissioned quilt. These colors were a challenge to work with, but I'm pleased with the results. I used the circle quilt tutorial here, but did use a fusible web for the outer edges of the circle to prevent fraying (which adds a lot of work cutting each circle by hand, rather than with a rotary cutter), and I chose to use a blanket stitch. I tried the striped border on my quilt that you see in the tutorial, but with these fabrics, it was just too loud :). I opted for a thin strip of stripes instead.

Now I've got to decide how to quilt it!

Two Trees, One House, a Mixer and a Forklift

Quilting Bee Blocks for Linzi

Linzi asked for improvisational log cabin blocks. This was a lot more work than I thought it would be! It's a fun style of piecing, but it is a lot of work: cutting, piecing, ironing for each piece.

The block is 12.5 inches square. The second block has no sashing because I ran out, but Linzi will add it on her end.

More Tiny Vehicles

I've tried making a dump truck three times now with no luck. Can't seem to get the angles right, so I've stuck to these simple shapes. I wonder if I'll need to draft paper foundations for the more complex construction vehicle shapes.

Has anyone tried making paper foundations?

Another New Project

There is the most fabulous and unique quilt over on flickr. It has inspired many people to make similar, tiny house blocks. I'm going to do that too, but I thought it would be fun to add vehicles to the mix. Construction vehicles mostly, since that is the obsession of my eldest. How cute would a quilt with tiny vehicles, house, tress, construction cones, etc. be, I thought? Here's my first attempt at improvisional piecing of a big rig. It is four inches long, mind you, and it may not make the cut, being so large. I think the cuteness lies in the tiny scale of the objects. My 4am flash of inspiration - fussy cut the tires out of black and white polka dot fabric! That makes the white centers of the tires. Brillant. I fused the wheels, but I'll stitch them down as well. I'll surround this block with white to make the total block 12.5 inches square. More cuteness to follow I'm sure.

Oh, and I'm almost done piecing the top of my commission quilt. Photos soon.

My First Quilted Pillow

I love how the quilting turned out.