Sally Said Sew

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

Earlier last fall, my local quilt shop had a tote bag made up that I really liked. It is perfect for retreats. You can take your project (or two or three), your 6x24 ruler (fits in one of the side pockets), your cutting mat, and more! There are four outside pockets and another large pocket inside, plenty of room for STUFF! I decided I needed to make one for me to carry supplies back and forth to our weekly open sew sessions at the shop. I followed the pattern pretty much to a tee on this one. My First Tote Bag I liked my new tote bag so much, I decided my mother and sister each needed one. Back to the quilt shop for fabric for theirs. For my mom's, I saw this lovely group of cabbage rose type prints in pink. They really reminded me of her. I decided to modify the pattern and use the stripe in the one fabric print as the "border" on the outside pockets. I also decided to add a zippered pocket inside the tote bag to hold smaller items that might get lost in th...