Friday, January 30, 2009

Sharing a Shangri La Giveaway!

Judi of Green Fairy Quilts is having a giveaway. Make that a lovely giveaway! She has a quilted bag as well as some gorgeous fabrics from the Shangri La line. So beautiful! Go check it out on her blog: http://greenfairyquilts.blogspot.com/

Saturday, January 24, 2009

A monkey for my little monkey


Peanut is growing up so fast! He's about ready to be moved into his 'big boy' room. *sniff* *sniff* The upside to this is that I'm having a blast planning projects for his new room. Too many ideas, actually :). I'll have to tackle the major ones now and get to the other ones over the next year or so.

This is just one of the many projects I hope to complete for his new room. I bought Amy Butler's "Little Stitches for Little Ones" last year, and ever since I saw the "Cheeky Monkey", I knew I had to make him a part of Peanut's new room. I'll be venturing out of the theme a bit (the quilt and most of the decor will be bug and nature related), but I couldn't resist adding this cute laundry bag.



The brown stripe fabric will be incorporated in the new quilt as well. I thought the chocolate brown would wash out Mr. Monkey, so I used it for the lining fabric instead. I also LOVE the blue diamond fabric for the outside fabric. I'm so glad I could put it to good use. The monkey is made out of micro-fleece, so he is cuddly and soft despite his inevitable home on the bedroom door. :)

Friday, January 23, 2009

A Little Bit of Christmas in January

This evening I decided it was about time I updated my blog. I love reading about all the projects and happenings in blogland, but seem to put off posting about my own. Funny how that works. :)

After the rush of sewing orders in November and early December, my family and I enjoyed the holidays in a lovely (warm!!!) place. We had a marvelous time visiting family, and we also spent quite a lot of time relaxing and enjoying ourselves. The sun did it's work and has rejuvenated us for the new year.

Over the last several weeks I was able to finish knitting two sweaters for me, begin a sweater for our little one on the way, and start a purse. Yes, I'm attempting to knit a purse. I'm still trying to decide if I'll keep it or sell it. I think I'll wait until it's finished before I determine if it is even 'sell' worthy :). Pictures will follow when (a) I am satisfied with the blocking and fit & (b) I remember to ask my hubby to take a few pictures. No more taking photos in the mirror - I just can't get it to work!

One of the projects that has been in my 'to finish' pile is a Christmas quilt I started two years ago (yipes, I can't believe it was that long ago!). I bought it as a kit since I was new to quilting. I cut the fabric, stitched up the quilt top, but got nervous when it came to the actual quilting and binding. So, I put it off until I could take a class. Well, it was year before I took a binding class, but boy was it worth it! I pull those directions out every time I bind a quilt. I'm so nervous I'll cut a strip the wrong way or mix up a mitered corner.

I finished the class and even sewed up the binding, but once Christmas passed, I lost the motivation to hand-stitch the binding. Back on the 'to finish' pile it went. Even though we were away for Christmas this year, I was determined to finish my Christmas quilt. I almost took it with me on vacation so I could finish it and add a little Christmas decor to our rental condo. But I decided it was not worth the effort or expense (baggage is not so cheap on the plane these days!).



During our first full day back home I finished the quilt. My pregnant body was a bit annoyed that I spent one day traveling and the next rushing around the house like a mad person trying to recuperate from vacation. (Isn't it funny how we seem to need a day or two to recover from vacation???) In between tackling loads of laundry I tackled the quilt. By the end of the day it was complete and already part of the decor. (Did you notice my loverly bench?! Definitely a keeper. Sorry all you fans of the bench, I don't think I'll be parting with it anytime soon :))



[I took these photos this evening. Yes, that means my Christmas decorations are still up. Is that weird? Apparently I put off finishing quilts AND taking down holiday decor.]