Blogger's Quilt Festival Time

It's Blogger's Quilt Festival Time!  Welcome to any visitors hopping over from Amy's Creative Side!

I'm sharing a quilt that I recently finished after being my longest WIP ever.  During the summer of 2007 my family drove from our home in Ontario through the States to British Columbia with our family of 5.  It seems like almost every little town had a quilt shop so my very enabling husband would stop, I'd hop out, take a quick peak around and pick out a blue and/or yellow fat quarter.

I took a picture of the fabrics with where they were from - turned out to be a very good thing :)

Alisa had given me a Bento Box pattern that year too, so my plan all along was to use the fabrics from our trip with it.  Other projects (including a couple more additions to our family!) kept interrupting any progress and after 5 years I finally finished it!

I love the back!  I made a block from each place (or person) with the fabrics I got there. 

 I quilted it with organic straight lines.  Doesn't that sound way better than not-so-straight and slightly wobbly? ;-p 

Well...five years later, with that trip a distant memory, it doesn't have quite the exciting factor but it's done just in time for the cooler weather and we can definitely use a "snuggle quilt"!

You can't read the places on the quilt very well on the picture but I'd love to hear if one of these places is "your" quilt shop! 

Fern Hill Gifts and Quilts - South Amana, Iowa

Hamels Fabrics - Chilliwack, British Columbia

Cotton Capers Quilt Shop - Choteau, Montana

Old Alley Quilt Shop - Sherburn, Minnesota

Country Fold & Quiltessentials - Abbotsford, British Columbia

Big Horn Quilts - Greybull, Wyoming

La Grande, Oregon (don't know the shop name)

The Quilt Shop - Custer, South Dakota

Idaho Quiltworks - Buhl, Idaho

Quilters Quarters - Spring Valley, Minnesota

Willow Ridge Crafts - Rock Springs, Wyoming

Heritage Designs - Amana - Iowa

Blogger's Quilt Festival Stats

Finished quilt measures: 60″x 60″

Pieced and Quilted by me

Best Categories: Throw Quilt, Two Colour, Home Machine Quilted

The world's ugliest muslin!

(I have one fitting question close to the end of the post - I'd love it if you have any tips for me!)
 
Inspired by a couple of friends I have jumped headfirst into making a dress for myself!  I made one dress a loooong time ago, back when I was in high school, and that was with a lot of help from a great sewing teacher.

I picked Simplicity 1882 (I'm making view B) because I really like the look and because the pattern has different cup sizes as well as slim, average and curvy fit for the bottom - isn't that fantastic?!

I love the collar and pocket details!

The pattern directions are very detailed but they tell you to baste the whole dress with the seams on the outside, then fit it, take it apart and sew it the right way.  That's how I understood it anyway!  So instead I decided to just make a muslin out of an old, ugly sheet :)

Ok...super ridiculous but I hate pictures!

And with a small adjustment under the bust and in the waist it fits very well!

**There are a couple lines pulling from the waist to my bum...any experienced sewer's who'd know what needs to be adjusted to fix that?**
 

Now, to be brave and cut into the real fabric...

 

It's a very drapey fabric so hopefully it fits as well as the muslin!

Handmade Bias Tape - In the shop!

So excited to finally have some bias tape in the shop!

If you've been reading my blog for awhile you know my love of bias tape or bias binding.  I've used it on so many projects.

I have done tutorials on how to make bias tape but I know many people are still scared to make it themselves or don't want to.  You can now buy it from my etsy shop.

It's all nicely wrapped around beautiful cards with my name on it. 

The colours make me happy.  Especially these dots.

I had to make a bib with the leftover piece.  You can find the dots here or here. :-)

I've also listed the bib in the shop.

Next week I hope to show off another project or two and look for a give away too!

My video tutorial on how to apply your bias binding.

Enjoy your weekend!

A Fall Tablerunner - Thanks SS!

Back in September I got a table topper quilt kit from my Secret Sister.  A very nice gift and it got me to make a runner for our window sill (albeit a little on the late side!) that I probably wouldn't have made otherwise. 

It was a kit for a square topper but I had to make a quick, simple project more work because a long runner would work better.  I ended up cutting the 5" squares into 4 so it would be a bit more patchworky.  The appliques came with the kit with the fusible stuff on already!

Almost all the leaves are gone already except for this Mountain Ash Tree.  It looks like winter out there but I'm not going to take out my snowmen yet so I can enjoy this for another month yet!

Clothes for Carolin

I had so much fun sewing up this outfit for Carolin.  She loves it and so do I.  I do like bright colours though...

Leggings are copied from some Old Navy leggings I took apart.  The shirt is from a Burda pattern with some changes.  I did not use ribbing on neck, but rather just surged the neck, folded it over and stitched with a straight stitch.  It is stretchy enough to get over her head without breaking so I'm happy.

I also wanted to have a bit of gathering or pleats on the shoulder.  I sort of used this tutorial from Made by Rae but I didn't add 2 inches to the whole length of the sleeve.  I added 2 inches to the top portion of the sleeve and tapered it back to the original sleeve width at the wrist.

Appliqued a heart with some rib knit.  It's a very happy heart don't you think?

Love, love, love the trim on the skirt!  I've been looking for the perfect project for it and I love it!

Fabric for the shirt and leggings was a knit I picked up at Fabricland quite some time ago.  They very rarely have nice knits but I just came across this one.  It is thick and sturdy and has a bit of lycra in it.  I just wish they had nice printed knits.  With polka dots and such.

And the sun popped out for a little photo shoot.  I'm not much of a photographer, but the sun sure does lighten things up!

Have a good day!

KCWC: Fail

One of Benjamin's expressions lately is "What a fail!"  He says it to himself or someone else.  Today I'm using it for Kid's Clothes Week Challenge.  "What a fail!"  I sewed one thing.  And cut out a few others.  I was feeling utterly human last week with a sore shoulder and an inability to sleep more than 4 hours per night.

But, I got my shoulder fixed up (kind of) with a steroid shot into it and I've had two good nights sleep in a row.  (If you've ever dealt with insomnia you understand me, if not, then you think I'm a whiner.  I'm trying not to care what people think of me.)  So today I decided to do the basics around the house and the rest of the time I spent in my sewing room.  And it was lovely!

I actually sewed up 5 pieces for Carolin today.  Three pairs of leggings, a shirt and a skirt.  I'll show the outfit tomorrow.

Carolin is super skinny scrawny slim so not a lot fits her.  She likes skirts but hates tights.  So I thought I'd make a pile of leggings to go with her skirts.  I had all of these knits in my stash (some for a long time) so I'm calling these free.  This is the second pair I made so I made them even slimmer than the first one.

For the pattern I used a pair that she had a hole in the knee.  I really liked the fit on her so I just cut them up and used it for the pattern, adding seam allowances.  Very easy!


I'll be back tomorrow with the other three pieces I sewed today!  Thanks for reading!

Bee Blocks

Just for my own record, I like to post my bee blocks.  First up a block for Kris.  She chose this Octogonal Orb block by Elizabeth Hartman.  This is going to be one gorgeous quilt when she's finished!  I loved trying this block as I've had it pinned for a long time.

And secondly (should be first) a block for Sue.  She requested this Spider Web block and sent us the fabrics to make one.

So, my September block is late (I completely forgot about it until this week) and my October block is early and I'm caught up again.

KCWC: Nightgown for Carolin

When I saw this fabric at Hamels a couple of months ago, I just had to get some.  I'm not usually drawn to character prints, but this one was calling my name (and it was in the sale section.)  I read these books all the time as a kid.  And Carolin reads our Bernstein Bear books all the time too.

I was going to make a regular pair of pyjamas but she requested a night gown (a long one) so that's what I did.  I used a McCalls pattern but I changed it quite a bit so I could get it cut out of the 1.25 metres I had bought.  It's not quite as flowy (is that a word? it looks funny.)

She is thrilled with it and wants it to be regular clothes so she can wear it in the day time. :-)

This particular illustration speaks to me.  It could totally be my Zachary and Carolin!

And here's my Bernstein Bears today.  So exciting!

Thanksgiving

The last week of September I had the sudden urge to make a table runner for my big kitchen table. I did some pulling out of my stash and started cutting strips.

After sewing them all up, I didn't really like the look of it, so I cut it up into three sections, did a bit of seam ripping and sewed it back up again.

And because my arm doesn't hurt enough, I decided to quilt it to death.

But I like it with all that quilting.  And now I have a table runner that colours my kitchen with fall.

And I like the back too.  But the boys in my house think it's too yellow.

We are experiencing an autumn like no other.  Glorious sunshine, no rain, warm temperatures.  Quite unbelievable, really.

This photo was taken on Thursday out at the Vedder River.  It was like August!

And a bonus photo.  Gord and Benjamin went hiking in Manning Park today to see the larch trees in all their glory.

One more thing...  Are you participating in Kid's Clothes Week Challenge at Elsie Marley?  The idea is to sew an hour per day for the full week on clothes for your kids.  I plan on sewing but my week will be cut a bit short.  I don't sew on Sundays usually and Monday is Thanksgiving Day here in Canada.  But after that, I sure hope to get an hour per day in!  I have some plans...

Have a good Sunday and, if you are Canadian, a good Thanksgiving Monday!

A Well-Traveled Bento Box

The actual Bento Box hasn't traveled but the fabrics all come from a cross-country trip 5 years ago.  Yep, you heard that right.  5 years!  I started piecing the blocks over 3 years ago, finished them last summer and then stalled when my machine wasn't quilting properly.  Then this August I got the back made and I quilted it in September.  This has got to be my longest WIP and I finished it!

During the summer of 2007 we drove from our home in Ontario through the states to BC with our family of 5.  It seems like almost every little town had a quilt shop so my very enabling husband would stop, I'd hop out and take a quick peak around and pick out a blue and/or yellow fat quarter.

I love the back!  I made a block from each place (or person) with the fabrics I got there.

I quilted it with organic straight lines.  Doesn't that sound way better than not-so-straight and slightly wobbly? ;-p 

Here's a list of the Quilt Shops.  Do any of these happen to be your local quilt shop?

Fern Hill Gifts and Quilts - South Amana, Iowa

Hamels Fabrics - Chilliwack, British Columbia

Cotton Capers Quilt Shop - Choteau, Montana

Old Alley Quilt Shop - Sherburn, Minnesota

Country Fold & Quiltessentials - Abbotsford, British Columbia

Big Horn Quilts - Greybull, Wyoming

La Grande, Oregon (don't know the shop name)

The Quilt Shop - Custer, South Dakota

Idaho Quiltworks - Buhl, Idaho

Quilters Quarters - Spring Valley, Minnesota

Willow Ridge Crafts - Rock Springs, Wyoming

Heritage Designs - Amana - Iowa

Well...five years later, with that trip a distant memory, it doesn't have quite the exciting factor but it's done just in time for the cooler weather and we can definitely use a "snuggle quilt"!