Melissa's Doll Quilt

This is a really fun post for me! Melissa finished her first doll quilt. It started out last year, but it was kind of painful for me. She wasn't too coordinated with the sewing machine and I was doing most of the work. So it was put away for a year. We took it out again this summer and away she went!



She picked out the fabrics herself. She arranged them herself. She sewed the seams together herself. And she quilted the lines by herself (I drew them on with washable marker.) I did the cutting and pressing and we basted it together.




She also hand stitched the binding down herself. This took her hours. She never once complained or wanted to quit. She just kept on going. I'm pretty proud of my girl!



She wanted to take pictures of her quilt. "I know how to take pictures myself, Mom. I can do it!"

Yes, she certainly can. There were 13 pictures of her little quilt on my camera. All different angles, the back, closeups. I wonder where she gets that from?!



A question for you mothers out there. When did you start teaching your kids to sew? What types of projects did you start with? I'd like to do one more sewing project with my oldest two kids this summer. What should we make?

After reading some of the comments I thought I should specify that one of my older children is a boy. I'm not sure he'd like to sew a skirt for himself! :-)

Sewing with Knits

This week I have the priviledge of guest posting on Melanie's blog, Above All Fabric! See today's post here.



This week, Melanie is offering a 15% discount on all of the Michael Miller knits, so now is the time to order them!

On My Sewing Machine Today

It's making my heart swell!

Us

After reading Alisa's post about having a hard time posting a picture of herself I thought it would be fun to share with you our "us" pictures from camping...hehe...

Good times!  I love you Alisa!

Emmeline Apron

The Emmeline Apron was and fun to make. I'd make it again, that's for sure!

The spring/summer side. Or is it the Sunday side?

The autumn/winter side. Or is it the everyday side?

I had a great night with my sisters. Hopefully next time more of them will be there!

Girly Apron Night

We're back home again now too. After a wonderful week camping with Alisa and family we spent a week visiting with our families. We snuck in a night away to Whistler (just the two of us!) and on the last evening Alisa and I along with our younger sister Karen and sister-in-law Jen got together and sewed ourselves aprons! Lot's of fun!

Me and Jen, gathering the bodices...

Karen, hard at work...

I made this apron as a "thank you/I love you/Happy Birthday" gift for my Mom without her knowing :)  I left it hanging in the kitchen that night so she got it when we were gone.

Alisa helped me finish it up as the clock was ticking and it was taking longer that we thought.  Here's the other side...

We used the Emmeline apron pattern. My own isn't finished yet and I haven't got the sewing bug back since we've been home. I'm trying to settle into summer "routine" or lack there of and am realizing that some things just don't happen when you're living outside! I'll gladly take it though - gotta get our vitamin D before the loooong winter :)

Here's a shot I have to share with you.  Mount Robson in the Canadian Rockies taken on our trip. Awesome and Majestic!

Outside Crafting

What better time of year to let your kids paint. All the mess is outside and Benjamin can shoot baskets between coats.

Summer Pyjamas

A couple of my daughters needed summer pyjamas. We finally have (had? - it's cool again) summer here in Southwestern BC. This was a good way to use up some of my knit stash.

I found I had an easier time sewing with knits this time and I am looking forward to sewing with the new Michael Miller knits soon!



I took a basic t-shirt pattern, lengthened it and made it A-line. Very easy!



These are super comfortable for the girls. So much so, that Carolin doesn't really want to change out of it in the morning. She's worn it outside a few times...



She does such a fine job posing, doesn't she?

So Long, Summertime Fun Quilt

It's time to say good bye to my Summer Fun Quilt. It's being shipped today to the southern USA to be enjoyed by someone else. I sold it! I just about fell off my chair but it's real, I sold my first quilt on etsy!

Home Again

This is a photo post of our great camping trip. We had so much fun being together, watching the kids play together, being outside in the sunshine (and wind!), flying kites, kicking soccer balls, swimming, building sand castles, playing games, roasting marshmellows on the campfire, eating smores and catching mice (that part wasn't fun.) I'm posting it here for the benefit of our family and friends who are nosy about us.



It was so windy that we couldn't even play games at night. Gord set up a tarp over the table to protect us from the wind and we played Lost Cities right through the howling wind.
We so enjoyed the fires we could have every night. Last year there was a fire ban the whole time we were camping.
An osprey nest. It was so amazing to watch the osprey, even seeing them dive to the water to catch a fish.
We lock our kids up and feed them oreos to keep them quiet!
Trying my hand at embroidery. I haven't the foggiest idea of what I'm doing, but I'm having fun.
Our family. This is the best shot.
Suzanne, intensly reading. As intense as you can get with Sophie beside you, anyway.

We're Off!!

Suzanne is on her way, we are leaving shortly and we hope to meet at Monck Park this afternoon! We're very excited to spend a week together with our families.

Here's a photo from camping last year at Arrow Lakes, BC.