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Showing posts from 2014

Rescue Me! Tote Bag

I purchased some fabric not too long ago made by Windham Fabrics called Rescue Me! It is a small collection of fabrics about rescuing and adopting cats and dogs. Very cute line of fabrics! One of the animal rescue groups I support is S.A.F.E. Sanctuary (Save Animals From Euthanasia) in Faribault, Minnesota. They are having a fundraiser in February so I decided to make a tote bag from the rescue fabric and donate it to them. Hopefully someone will bid a lot of money on the tote bag to help support their efforts in animal rescue. I have another color way of fabric in the dog print and then one in cats. I plan on making more totes and donating them to a couple of other shelters I support. I love this fabric and it is being put to use for good causes!

Christmas Quilts

In addition to the bags and wallets I made for Christmas, I also managed to get a few quilts done in the last two months. My mother pieced and did the binding on this quilt for my Aunt Sally. I did the quilting on it for her. It was all free-hand work. Around the Block My mother also did the piecing and binding on this quilt for my Aunt Wendy. I used a pantograph pattern for the quilting. Bewitched My mother and I also teamed up to complete a quilt for my sister, Carrie. The pattern is Radio Way by Jaybird Quilts and the printed fabrics were a jelly roll from a designer named MoMo and her "It's a Hoot" line produced by Moda fabrics. I especially love the backing on this quilt. I was inspired by Jan over at Janice Elaine Sews . She always does something special on her quilt backs and I had enough left over strips of fabric to bring a touch of the quilt front to the back. I used a pantograph pattern for the quilt design. Quilt Front Quilt Back Cl

Christmas Bags and Wallets

Now that Christmas is over, I can share several of the projects that were gifts that I worked on. Barbados Bag by Pink Sand Beach Designs. The fabrics in this have gold metallic that don't show up very well in the photos. This was for my sister-in-law. I also made a matching Fiona wallet (pattern by Clobird Designs). One of these Seahawks wallets (a variation on the Fiona pattern) was a gift to my mom. The other one I will keep since the quality wasn't up to my standards. I also made a really nice tote bag from a free online tutorial. It is called the Market Tote from Bijou Lovely ( http://www.bijoulovelydesigns.com/2010/05/market-tote-tutorial.html ). It is a heavier duty tote than some of them out there. This bag also gifted to a dear friend. I just love the cat fabric! Then I made up a few more runaround bags out of Seahawks fabric, but wouldn't you know, I forgot to take pictures! Lastly, although not a bag or tote, I made a hexie

Runaround Bags

I tried another new pattern this weekend for small crossbody bags called the Runaround Bag by Lazy Girl Designs. I followed the directions as written for my first bag, the navy/purple one. Yeah, I was not impressed with the handle and the fact that you can see the seams inside, even though you zigzag stitch them to clean up the raw edges. I thought the strap was downright ugly as designed. I didn't like the "openness" of the one side of it. Bag #1 Time for another modification to a pattern which meant I would be making another bag. I used my Dritz Quick Turn tool to do the next strap.  It made for a much cleaner and nicer looking strap.  Another thing I did differently from the pattern when I made the strap was to use just one WOF instead of piecing it. Mistake. The strap was too short in my opinion even though the instructions said to make the strap 40-45" long. I also had access to a set of instructions to modify the liner to hide the seams. Incorpor

Wave!

My local quilt shop is carrying a pattern called the Versatile Wave by Susan Rooney Patterns. I really like the ability to change the look of the bag by changing the bottom cover. Versatile Wave Pattern My problem is that I do not like bags with two handles or short ones either. The pattern as is would not work for me. What to do, what to do?? I put on my thinking cap and did some modifications to change it to a one handle bag. And here it is! I used a simulated tooled leather fabric for the bag and quilting cottons for the cover. Currently, my cover, although sewn to be reversible, it not removable. My button is too big to fit through the button hole so I need to find smaller buttons. I also want to add a snap to the side seams to help keep the cover attached to the bag itself (since the handles won't do the trick as the pattern intends). I wish I used the invisible sew-in magnets but didn't think of it until the purse was finished. I also modified the inter

Introducing Fiona!

I purchased the neatest little wallet through Craftsy this weekend. It's called " Fiona " by Clobird Designs . Two fat quarters, a magnetic catch, a zipper and some interfacing and you are ready to sew! I will admit I struggled with my first one, mostly because the written instructions didn't match up to the pictures on the same page. Once I figured that part out, the wallet went together fairly well. For this one, I used a faux leather material with high quality quilting cotton for the flap and interior fabrics. I also fussy-cut the flap, both inside and out, but didn't do a very good job with interior layout. Outside of "Fiona" Wallet Inside it has six card slots, a zippered pocket for change or whatever, and place to put your checkbook. You can also add a pen holder but I never use them in other wallets so I did not include it in this one. Inside of Wallet I posted this in one of the Facebook groups I am in and made a comment about the l

I've Been Busy

I've been busy quilting and sewing but I can't share any of the pictures yet! Gifts, you know. Hopefully after the Christmas holiday I can work on my own stuff. I've been gathering fabrics for projects just itchin' to start stitchin'!

Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion Mystery Quilt

My friend, Heather, has talked me into doing Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion mystery quilt project. I have never done a mystery quilt before so this is all new to me. This project starts off with a set of Valspar paint chips from Lowe's that Bonnie has specified along with a list of yardage needed. Then you start gathering your fabrics. You also need a variety of black and neutral fabrics. Paint Chips From what I understand of Bonnie's work (and it is extensive!), she likes scrappy quilts. The Grand Illusion quilt can be done with a single piece of fabric in each color (yellow, pink, green and aqua) or scrappy in those colors. I am going with more of a scrappy style for my mystery quilt. It has been fun going through my stash looking for fabrics. I found a few but my stash is fairly small so I have had to go shopping. Oh, how terrible! Shop for fabrics! The agony. LOL. The yellow is the one constant fabric used through the quilt and I have a fabric selected fro

Meet Harold Bear

This past summer, my Aunt Sally (who I am named after) contacted my mom and I to see if we would be interested in making a memory bear for a dear friend of hers. The bear was going to be a surprise. Since I didn't know what a memory bear was, I had to do some quick research. To sum it up, it is a bear made from the clothes of a loved one. After talking it over, Mom and I agreed to take this project on. We found a pattern by Simplicity to use and then waited for the shirts to arrive. Our bear was named Harold after the father who had passed away. The shirts that came were favorites of Harold. We looked over the patterns and colors and decided the placement of them on Harold Bear. Then it was time to cut and sew. As Harold was coming to "life", Mom decided he needed a ball cap. We found one at Hobby Lobby in Wenatchee and with a few modifications to allow for the ears, a cap was added. It's a little big but still cute. Harold Bear Every now and then you cre

More Kennel Quilts

My mom and I decided to do a TQPM Small Kennel Quilt Sew-a-thon a few weekends ago. We churned out twenty-four more for the Carlton Complex fire victims and then dropped them off at the Okanogan County Sheriff's Office for distribution. Such a rewarding feeling knowing you are helping both people and animals.

August Doll Quilt Swap

The theme for August was "summer".  This is my interpretation that came to me in the middle of night. Here I was thinking I was doing something original only to learn that many "Polaroid" quilts exist. Oh well. :-) "Summer Memories" Finished size was about 19" x 19" (I forgot to record the finished dimensions). Because my longarm was waiting on a part, I ended up using my domestic sewing machine to quilt it using an echo pattern on elements found in each square. I liked the way it turned it for the most part.

My New Ironing Board Topper

I hated, hated, hated my ironing board. Always felt too small. I had seen those ironing board toppers at a couple of quilt shows, but when your way of getting one home is on an airplane, that isn't going to work. A half sheet (more or less) of plywood, a few wood strips, some screws, staples and ironing board covering fabric were all the materials needed. Using instructions found online here , it didn't take me long to make my very own topper. The finished size of my topper is 22" wide by 60" long. I can iron an entire fat quarter on it not to mention how much easier it is to handle yardage. Now I love, love, love my ironing board.

Introducing Hope

A couple of months ago I purchased a used HandiQuilter HQ16 set up to replace Patience, my Voyager 17 longarm machine. Why the change? I couldn't get my stitch length regulator to work properly and was getting frustrated with my machine. After doing some research, it seemed that this was an issue from the start. I could upgrade my electronics and stitch length regulator but that would cost me several thousand dollars. An investment I wasn't willing to make. On a whim, I started searching on craigslist for a "new" machine. That is when I found Hope. Yep, I named her Hope because I hope to improve my longarm skills on her.  I figure the cost of buying this set up less what I will sell my Voyager for is about the same as what the upgraded electronics would have cost. "Hope" I was able to transfer over my Red Snapper system, light bar and batting cradle that I made. I float my batting and like to keep pet hair off of it. The clear vinyl cradle does the t

AnglePlay - Block of the Month

Earlier this year, I joined an AnglePlay® group on facebook. "This is a community of beginning through advanced quilters who love to "reach for the unexpected " using Margaret Miller's AnglePlay® templates." I haven't done much with templates and was looking to branch out and add to my quilting skills. I joined the group, bought the templates and started in with the Block of the Month, "Ribbon Rhythms", for 2014.   Oh my! It was quite the challenge for me at first, but the online videos were very helpful. I just completed Block 6 out of 8 and am getting the hang of this now. We make two of each block every month.  I can't wait to start quilting this project when we finish in the next couple of months. Block 6 BOM Project Taking Shape For more information on AnglePlay, visit the facebook group (linked above) or go to http://www.millerquilts.com/.  

TQPM Small Kennel Quilt Team

My mom got me started on a new charity sewing project. No, I'm not abandoning Quilts Beyond Borders - far from it! I am adding in a new one - TQPM Small Kennel Quilts .  The TQPM Small Kennel Quilt Team is a volunteer organization that is available when disasters strike. It is a way to join a larger effort to help our animal friends in times of need by doing what we love. They supply kennel quilts to shelters in times of need. With the recent Carlton Complex fires here in the Methow Valley in Washington State, over 300 homes were lost in the firestorm. Families, pets and livestock were displaced. My community has been severely impacted and was the impetus for me to give back to those in need. These are small little quilts that don't take much material or time to make. I have been able to use scraps from my QBB quilts and one I made for my son. Our local quilt shop is getting in on the action, too. At our Open

Christmas in July - Doll Quilt Swap

I recently signed up for a facebook group to exchange doll size quilts. I enjoy participating in swaps including one I already do to exchange 1 yard of fabric each month with a new swap partner. July's theme for the doll quilt swap is Christmas in July. I had fun planning my quilt layout and then making and quilting it. I especially enjoyed the quilting part since I did it all freehand and used it as a learning experience for doing filler patterns. I am pleased with how it turned out and I think my swap partner, Sandy, will like it, too. Christmas in July Doll Quilt

2014 Minnesota Quilters' Show & Conference

About a month ago, I had the pleasure of traveling two hours each way to attend the Minnesota Quilters' Show and Conference in St. Cloud. Two hours? Each way? Are you nuts, Sally? Uh, yep. But if you were able to see those gorgeous quilts, you would do it, too. The show had a juried section, a non-juried section and another section with various groupings. Plus they had rows and rows of vendors selling fabrics, quilting supplies, and machines. I only had my cell phone with me so many of the photos I took didn't turn out. I will share some of the ones that did. Under each photo, I will share what was written on the information card for the quilt. Juried Quilts This was one of my favorites. The details were simply amazing! Look closely. "Breaking Wind" by Peggy Kragnes - Felton, Minnesota Pieced by Peggy Kragnes, Quilted by Peggy Kragnes. Not necessarily a Sunbonnet Sue fan, the idea for this quilt was born during a sleepless night. I enjoyed every aspect o