Superhero Gift Set finish

I'm so excited about the gift set I finished up this weekend!

Look at all those fun items!  So bright and.... awesome!  I had shared a sneak peek at this project almost two weeks ago for WIP Wednesday - - - my how time flies when the sun comes out!

This gift set includes: A quilted security / mini blanket, two minky-backed bibs, two burp cloths, and a tie onesie

Two burp cloths - practical but oh-so-fun.

Bibs backed in suuuuuper soft minky

A quilted security blanket - about 18" square - perfect for the car or for snuggling without dragging on the floor {my 1.5 year old sleeps with his every night!}

And of course - a tie onesie!

My customer is giving this set as a gift to a friend expecting the arrival of a lil' superhero.  What an awesome gift!  Practical, fun, and perfect for their superhero-loving family.

I packaged this set up and put it in the mail yesterday - I hope they love how it turned out as much as I do!

I also got this pretty stack o' fabric in the mail for the SMS Giveaway Day winner - Karen.  I'm thinking I need to sew something using these fabrics / colors ASAP!  Happy sewing, Karen!

An Alice quilt {finish}

A customer recently contacted me about sewing up an Alice in Wonderland baby quilt.  Something simple but cute.

I found a cute border print that she loved and placed the fabric order.  We were working with a pretty tight timeline - but that's okay!  The fabric arrived Friday and by Sunday night I had a finished quilt!

I'm loving how it came together.  I used squares cut from the Alice fabric and then various fabrics with purples / pinks / lime greens in them from my stash - including a few last pieces of favorite "scraps" I just couldn't get rid of - perfect!

The quilt measures about 30" x 36" (give or take a little).  I did a very small amount of straight line quilting - about 3/8" off of each seam - to give it some texture and hold all the layers together.   It is in the mailbox to head to my customer this morning!

After a wash or two this one is going to soften up and just be the perfect little snuggly blanket!

WWIT {a triangle quilt}

I am excited to share my quilt for the final Project Quilting Season 5 Challenge - inspired by triangles.

The challenge posted on Sunday..... but I didn't get to start working on this until Wednesday (briefly) - and most work was done Thursday evening and Saturday.  Well, and Sunday seeing as I finished this quilt at 2:15am this morning!

The name I'm giving this quilt is very appropriate - as it is something I kept saying all week / weekend - WWIT - what was I thinking?!

This quilt is 44" x 48".  It is comprised of 132 half-square triangles that finish at 4".  I combined two Moda charm packs (Urban Chik and Juggling Summer) that I thought worked well together (after removing a few colorways of one of the packs) - along with a sampling of white-on-white fabrics for the negative space.

I free motion quilted the white spaces using a variety of patterns - really just whatever came to mind.  I love how it helps make the colors POP even more.

The backing is a Blank Fabrics dusty aqua (is that a color?  I'm going with it!  It's a bit more green than the photos are showing) floral picked up at a local fabric shop.  It is bound in a rusty orange print from Jo-Ann fabrics.

I kept thinking "I should scale back.... I can finish this sometime soon, but can I really get it done by Sunday?!"  I thought about straight line quilting it to save time.... but I just kept thinking "I have put all this work in already, and I KNOW I want to do something softer and rounder to contrast with all the sharp angles."  Turns out.... with some LATE night (or early morning?!) sewing - it can get done!

I create in my home studio in Montesano, WA during nap time, after kiddos go to bed, or with two adorable boys "helping" me.

Make sure you head over and vote for your top four favorite projects from this week (hoping this is one of them.... but there are MANY amazing finishes - I know I had a hard time deciding on JUST four!) - Vote here

To vote, just click on the heart in the corner of the picture.  Clicking on the pictures will take you to the blog or flickr post to read more about the project!

Zoe's Quilt - a FINISH! {pic heavy}

Well.... it was a very productive weekend!  When I last left you, I had most of the rows of Zoe's onesie quilt sewn up.

This weekend - I FINISHED the quilt!

I sewed up the rest of the rows and the quilt top was done.  Then I pieced together the backing fabric - using an adorable mini flower fabric in greens & pinks - as well as a few "extra" squares that didn't make it into the front - and some pink & white polka dots, of course!

Then I made a "quilt sandwich" - - - backing, batting, top - - - and spray / pin basted it.

I had to move my sewing machine to the dining room table - to give me LOTS of room to work while quilting!  I used simple straight line quilting about 1/2" on either side of each horizontal seam.

When all the quilting was done, I basted around the whole quilt as close to the edge as I could - just so it didn't wiggle while I was trimming / binding.  This was my view for a few hours Saturday night after the kiddos went to bed {the hubby liked that I was busy - it meant video game time for him!}

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE the dual-feed foot on my Janome Horizon 7700???  Love it.  

Next, I trimmed it up and it was ready for binding!  Isn't the back adorable?!

{don't mind the front-loader photobomb!}

Originally I had a different fabric in mind for the binding.... but then I realized I didn't have anywhere near as much as I needed.  So I auditioned a few fabrics - and even got the hubby's input.  I think he made a good choice, don't you!?

Then I got back behind the machine and stitched the binding on.  LOVE using the foot of my table extension to hold onto that pretty roll of binding - perfect!  (I learned that trick from Maureen Cracknell Handmade - - - and honestly I geek out a little each time I do it because I am SO in awe of her work and I can't help but think "I'm quilting like Maureen!" - yep.... now you know how much of a nerd I am!)

And soon enough...... the quilt was DONE!

{It measures about 50" x 60"}

A big thank-you to the hubby who helped take pictures - even though it was POURING down rain! :)

How fun are those stripes?!  And the flowers?  Polka dots?!  So much girly fun in one quilt!

Then there are all the fun little details that I just LOVE!

Like a First Christmas onesie, little puffs of tulle on some adorable flip-flops....

Bows, ruffles, fan gear....

A special 1st birthday onesie...

Pockets!  LOVE the little pockets (there are a few on the front AND back!)

Each time they wash this, it will get softer and softer.

I hope Zoe and her family LOVE snuggling up under this blanket - and reminiscing about all the memories created wearing all these adorable clothes!

Today I boxed it up and put it on the porch - - - it will be home with their family later this week!

I am so honored to have been asked to work on such a special project - it was truly a joy to make!

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Want to read more about Zoe's quilt {this one took a while, for sure!}

Sort & Design

Cutting & Piecing

March ALYOF goal

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Linking up with A Lovely Year of Finishes - - as this was my March goal {finished well before the end of the month, SWEET!} - I'm entry #21 this month - can't wait to see what others have finished up!

Sharing on "Show Off Saturday" as well! :)

PQ "Sweet Treat" Challenge 3 - Finished!

Well... I did NOT intend on completing my "Sweet Treats" challenge item last night.... or really anytime before this weekend.... but last night I got on a roll and stayed up WAY late sewing away!

I finished the piecing and quilting, and was pretty excited about how my quilt turned out..... but knew I needed to wash it to see what would happen with the unfinished edges I was hoping to leave.  So this morning I got it washed up - - - and now I'm in love!

The colors... the textures... the soft-and-snuggly feel... how it is just going to get even more soft and "raggy" each and every time it's washed.... the fact I didn't use squares..... Love it!  I learned a TON during the construction of this quilt - trying out something totally different and pretty much "winging it" the whole time.  I had seen a tutorial by Amy Gibson (Cathedral Windows Playmat) at the Moda Bake Shop that was similar to what I was picturing - but my construction and methods ended up a bit different than hers.

I took a bunch of pictures as I was sewing - and plan on sharing a simple tutorial in the near future - but I think it would make MUCH more sense if I did a bit more "simple" color scheme / design - for the sake of a tutorial, at least.  So.... My plan is to create another quilt with this same design - but different colors (and fewer colors) - in the near future.... to make sure I don't lose people along the way with the tutorial.

The front and back are 100% cotton (quilter's cotton) - and there is cotton batting between the two layers (within each "square").  This one measures 40" x 45" - a great toddler / little kid size!

Oh wait... did you want to see pictures?! :)

A shout out / thank you to the hubby for helping me snap a few pictures before he headed off to work!  Seriously one of the most supportive husbands I know - - - he was so excited to see the quilt he actually pulled it out of the dryer for me!

Now I just have to decide on a name.......

.... and figure out if it's staying here or being listed in my Etsy shop (it will probably be listed)!

You still have time to join in on the Project Quilting fun!!!