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Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Quilt for Violet

 

Finished quilt

     In November our newest grandchild was born, a little girl.  That now makes 6 grandkids for us, 4 boys and 2 girls.  I had this quilt ready to go for a girl and after she was born I just had to make the baby info label and finish up the binding.

Block detail

Border

     I used the Pathways pattern, a Three Yard Quilt pattern.  I have used this pattern many times now for baby quilts.  Aren't those monkeys adorable?

Quilting detail

     My friend Joni did a great job as usual with the quilting.  Nice soft flannel for the backing.

Baby info label

Makers label

     I made the labels with my software and then stitched them out.  I like this design of baby shoes for the quilt label.


Tuesday, March 5, 2024

Antrim Dress

 

Antrim Dress

     I had bought this fabric at an ASG Conference, maybe a few years ago.  I was going to initially make a skirt and top but when I saw the pattern for the Antrim Dress, I decided to make a dress instead.

Getting started

     The pattern is from Itch to Stitch.  I printed out the sizes I wanted and then taped all the pieces together.  That usually takes me a couple of days.  Then I had to get my cutting table cleared off so I had room to cut  out the fabric.

Don't eat my fabric!

     The fabric is a soft knit and I was having problems with the machine 'eating' the fabric when I started stitching.  I tore small pieces of tear-away stabilizer and used those to begin the stitching.  Problem solved!  At times the instructions seemed hard, but I just did it step by step and it turned out great.

Side gathering detail

     The 'waistband' of the dress is two layers with the inner layer smooth and the outer layer gathered at the side seams.  Because the knit is so soft, I'm not sure how well the gathering will hold in the middle of the band.  
Bodice detail

     It has a pretty crossover bodice with just a bit of gathering where it attaches to the 'waistband'.  It also has pockets!
Pattern

     I'm looking forward to wearing what I hope to be a flattering and comfortable dress.

Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Quilt for Kate

 

Finished Quilt

     This past summer our daughter-in-law turned 40.  For her 30th birthday my son had sent out puzzle pieces for people to write on.  This year he decided to have me make a quilt for her.  He sent out fabric squares to family and friends.  He even included a postage paid envelope for them to return the square.

Our block

Her parent's block

     He wound up getting 32 blocks back, including his and those of their two little guys.  I found some fabric in my stash that worked well for the sashing.  He came by and we arranged the squares, opting to put in blank corner ones to keep it 6 x 6.  

Cross-stitch block

Appliqué block with sequins

     It was fun to see all the different techniques people used to decorate their square.  There was machine embroidery, photo transfers, cross-stitch, fabric pens and iron-on appliqués.  I sent my son photos of sashing and border sizes.  After putting it together, I then found some backing fabric in my stash.  He bought the binding fabric that worked out well for both the front and back fabrics.  

Quilting detail

     Took it to a quilter who did an amazing job working with all those different elements.  Then I did the labels and binding and had it done in time for her birthday.  Big thanks to my son for starting the project early so I had time to do my thing.

Label 1


Label 2


     I'm glad I was able to be part of this special gift.


Backing

Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Tooth Pillow for Sam

 

Tooth fairy pillow for my grandson

     I got a text from my daughter-in-law that said she had taken the kids to the dentist and it turned out Sam, the 5 year old, had some loose teeth.  She wanted to know if I could make him a tooth pillow like I did for his older brother.

Stitching the design
 
     I pulled up the design in my computer and added his name.  I then found some nice blue with stars fabric in my stash for the main part of the pillow.  The shorts are a denim scrap and the shirt is some t-shirt knit fabric I had left from other projects.  

Sewing the opening closed

     It took a couple of days for me to finish it and they came and picked it up that weekend.  About 9 days later, my son sent me a text with a picture of my grandson missing a tooth.  The pillow was going to be used that night.  So happy I can make things for my grandkids.

Ready for that loose tooth



Tuesday, February 6, 2024

Equipment Bag Pillow

 

Finished equipment bag pillow

     This pillow is from an old equipment bag.  This is for the same client that I made a pillow out of a library book bag.  We wanted to use the grommets in the pillow design.  There wasn't enough to put all the way around like a flange.  The next idea was to use them as a part of a pieced front.

Equipment bag

    The problem with that idea was that the grommets were very close to the top edge which meant I couldn't sew a seam there.  The final design was really a combination of the first two.  I pieced the grommet panel to the front but left the 'top' edge free.  I then cut the cord in half and re-wove it through the grommets, tacking it down at the top and bottom of the pillow front.  I lined the front and back pieces and made covered cord from the same black fabric that I had used on her other pillow.  

Front detail

     The back had a lapped zipper opening.  I just then sewed the front and back together, taking my time at the areas that were multiple layers of the canvas fabric.  I really like how this one turned out.

Pillow back


Tuesday, January 30, 2024

Challenging Seat Cushions

 

Finished seat cushion

     I had a client that wanted two seat cushions made.  She had an old one that she wanted duplicated.  It was in such bad shape I told her she needed new insides because I couldn't just make a new cover for the old one.

Original cushion

     She wanted it tufted with a button in the center so that meant no zipper.  I would have to hand sew the cushion closed.  

Layered insides
      
     She insisted on buying the materials herself, so instead of a nice two inch piece of foam covered with some Dacron, I had to work with one inch pieces of foam that I glued together after cutting them down to size.  Then I glued on the batting that she had bought which I had to split in the center because it was so thick.  Mess #1.


Wavy selvedges

Wavy even after cutting straight sides

     The fabric she chose for the top and bottom of the cushions had extra threads woven in in stripes.  This caused the fabric to be tighter across in places.  Mess #2  You can see from the first photo how wavy the side is.  After cutting a square, the edges still pulled in.  I did add a lining fabric to get better wear from the face fabric and to also prevent those threads from catching on the batting.

Too many loose threads

Fabric backed for the button covers

     The fabric for the boxing strips also had loose threads.  Mess #3  This wasn't a problem for the boxing strips, but when I cut the first button cover, I could see that those loose threads would be a problem when trying to cover the button.  I ironed on a fusible interfacing to prevent those threads from getting in my way.

Drawing the button covers

     I then used my round templates to draw the covers for the half ball button covers.  I was able to center a 'dot' in each one.  I then applied double sided tape to the dome of the cover to hold the fabric in place while putting on the back.

Using tape on the button cover

     After making the four covered buttons, I marked the center of each side.  Then using my long button needle, I sewed the buttons in place.

Button needle

    Even with all the problems I had with the fabric and such, I think they turned out pretty god.

Banding detail

Button detail

Corner detail



Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Christmas Jammies 2023

 

Pajamas for the boys

     For St Nicholas Day, I make jammies for the grandkids to get from St Nick.  Some years I make top and bottom, sometimes I buy ready made ones and add embroidery and sometimes, like this year, I make the bottoms and buy tops to embroider.


An added cuff for length

     Now that the kids are getting bigger, I am finding I don't always have enough fabric.  For my oldest grandson, I had to add a cuff to get enough length.  I didn't have any fabric for my granddaughter, so her pajama bottoms were a different fabric that I had in my stash.

Pajamas for the granddaughter

     I bought the tops from Old Navy and the embroidery design is from Designs by Juju.  I need to start planning for next year.  When the grandkids came for a sleepover right after the Feast of St Nick, I had their gifts here, explaining that St Nick left them here since he knew they were going to be coming over.

Trimming the tree in their new pajamas
    
      A couple of the grandkids put on their pajamas right away and wore them the next day while trimming the tree.