Crib Set Request

I had an unusal request for this crib bedding~ use the colors & style of my logo (you can see it in my blog title)! Samantha also wanted me to choose all the fabrics, but include 2 strips of the same fabric on all items to tie them together. I still have the quilt to make which will include more fabrics, but I don't have to get that finished for another month. I can tell you I had SO MUCH FUN picking everything out and sewing it up! A snippet of Elizabeth Rose in ice (main fabric on skirt) is in my logo, (with Jennifer Paganelli's permission!) so I based everything around those colors.

Cute Boy Fabrics!

As soon as I saw this fabric line from Monaluna called 'Circa 60', I knew I had to get some! It is hard to find cute boy fabrics, so this was a must. Its organic, so its a little more expensive, but I have combined it with prints from Momo, Valori Wells, Kate Spain & Patty Young . I put it in my shop as a custom minky blanket order, but it could be anything! I just love that color combo. :) I purchased mine at http://fatquartershop.com

Dresden with Sis Boom Fabrics

This is my first Dresden Plate block ever! I am having so much fun with it! I've been wanting to play with my new Honey Child fabrics, so I figured this is a great way to mingle them with other lines Jennifer has. I won't tell you yet what this will eventually be, but something fun! :) I used the pattern from Anna Maria Horner's Handmade Beginnings book from the Center of Attention Quilt. Some of my points didn't get as pointy as I'd like, but I'm sure I had some error in sewing them. I was really careful about the 1/4" per Anna's recommendation. We'll see if it lies flat when I'm done. So far, so good!

Honey Child Has Arrived!!!!

I am beyond excited!!! Those of you who have been reading my blog know that I am a HUGE Jennifer Paganelli fan. Her newest fabric line called Honey Child is simply amazing, as usual! I was on Twitter on Valentine's Day & fatquarterly (the downloadable magazine) asked, "If you could have one stack of fabric for V Day, what would it be?" Of course, I said 'Honey Child' knowing it wasn't coming out until May~ and Jennifer got the message & sent me a FAT QUARTER STACK!!! Who knew I would get my Valentine's wish come true?? I just got the stack today and immediately dropped my paint brush and pulled out all my Jennifer fabric to see what went with what. I have posted all the fabrics with coordinates on flickr, but put 3 of my favs here on the blog. I'd say my absolute fav is Danielle in purple (top pic, left side) & my fav combo is the top one as well. Here colors glow, making everything vibrant & beautiful! You definately need to get this one. BTW, I heard on Jennifer's blog that sewmamasew has the prints in already! Heres the link: http://tinyurl.com/4ztr9fz

New Quilts

I just finished the quilt pictured above, size 50x70 for some newlyweds. I think it has a nice combination of his & hers prints and it was so fun to swirly quilt it all! The top picture is a quilt I am just starting for Carla. We are finalizing the prints and I love the colors so far. Can't wait to get sewing on it!

Hexagons

Hexagons intimidate me on so many levels! I have always loved Grandma's Flower Garden pattern, but felt it wasn't something I could do. Hand sewing, crazy seams, the block laying flat, hand sewing (I know I said that already, but its my least fav part of sewing! ) Many people say they can't sew because they don't have enough patience. I'd say I'm in the middle on the patience level & this really pushes my patience~ all that hand sewing and hand cutting takes FOREVER! I think what helps is that this is a 'side project' with no end date. I tend to put end dates on everything. If I'm leaving on a trip, if my mind decides I need to leave at 9am & if I go past that time~ even if there is no reason why I can't leave at 9:15, I get stressed. So, in order to enjoy this project~ because I will really love the end result~ I force myself to not put an end date on it. To be honest with you, I'm really not planning a whole quilt with hexagons. Probably just some instant gratification projects~ pillows, etc. I adore finding the perfect flower to capture inside the hexagon shape. I'm using 1" hexagons in a paper piecing package I bought at http://sewdeerlyloved.etsy.com because cutting out all those hexagons would just set me over the edge with boredom!

Now the Fun Begins . . .

There is my faithful MIL painting my sewing room 'Ionic Blue' by Behr. I am trying to juggle my orders, finishing the rooms in our house & 2 sick kids, so she was really helping me out. I can hardly wait to get in this room!! My inspiration piece is Jennifer Paganelli's Loopy Vintage Floral in turquoise & it is a great match. Most likely it will be President's weekend that I can 'move in' as our family room is a higher priority. We are really squished eating and trying to relax in our living room with floor to ceiling stuff. We will feel like kings in our new space!!!! I am dreaming every night of the possibilities in decorating this room. Can't wait!!

Felix

Today my daughter made another of her super cute fuzzy friends. Instead of using felt she used fleece as the base. I was so impressed with the finished product. I hope this one ends up in my sewing room! =)

Tips for Working with Minky

I work with minky ALOT, and I've seen how many say its really difficult to work with. It is, but its not impossible! Here are some tips for success when sewing with it.

*First, pin. Then pin. Then pin!!!

Minky wants to shift, so this is really helpful. I like to pin going in both directions~ see top photo.

*Pin on the floor or a surface where none of the minky will hang over the edge. When transferring, try not to bunch it, but keep it straight as much as possible. Sometimes once its on my sewing table I carefully fold the outside edge over. You don't want the minky to hang over the edge and then become distorted. This is important the whole time you are sewing it.

*Give yourself some wiggle room, just like when layering a quilt.

I cut my minky at least 2" larger than the cotton fabric I'm sewing it to.
Some shifting will occur no matter how careful you are pinning, so if it gets a tad askew, you won't end up without minky in a corner.

*A walking foot helps stabilize the layers as well, but sometimes I used my regular presser foot & it works well, too.

*Don't pull the minky as you sew it or you will definately be off by the time you finish sewing that side.

*If you find that you are REALLY off as you are sewing, you are better off ripping the seams out and starting over or your whole project will be off.

*Remember not to iron on the minky directly or it will melt! :)

Hope these tips are helpful. Its so soft and cuddly and the end result will be your reward!

My WIP

The ripple effect of adding on 2 rooms to our house is that you want to redo the other rooms! My family room has similar colors to the wip above, but is darker. I want to brighten it up with a lighter paint and livelier fabrics. I started with Amy Butler's Twilight Peony in saffron and started adding fabrics from there. I am fussy cutting the Cameo fabric from Parisville as the face on that fabric doesn't go with my theme, but maybe I'll add one just for fun. :) This is going to have to go on the back burner for awhile as I am overloaded with orders that were due YESTERDAY :O and my sewing room should be ready to paint a week from this weekend!!!! So, I've got to crank for the next week in order to have time to paint it and speed up the process of moving from the dining room to my new room. I can hardly fall asleep at night with all the thoughts I would like to implement in my creative space!!!!!