I Spy

I spy a pony, a doggie, a heart, an Easter egg, a snowman, a flip flop, etc. Can you guess what I am working on? I'm making an I Spy quilt. It is a surprise for a little girl who was diagnosed with multiple tumors and will be undergoing chemotherapy in the coming weeks. She is just a year old, and I thought she and her mom and/or dad can play I Spy with her while she is in the hospital.

See, I wanted to get involved with Project Linus. That was my original plan for this coming year. However, due to yet another change in my work schedule, attending the bimonthly meetings is not feasible. I have come to realize that there are enough people in need right around me that could be blessed through a handmade quilt or blanket. I don't have to be a part of an organized group to be able to do this. As I see a need, I will make a quilt/blanket to meet the need. It will be more of a Linus ministry because rather than it just being community service, it can be done as a ministry.

Getting My Feet Wet Again

It's been over a year since I last made a quilt. My last quilt was Kurt's Cowboys quilt for Christmas last year. This year has been a bit busy with planning a wedding, getting married, and settling into a new way of life. Now, life is settling down. I am only working part time, we're getting the hang of married life, and now it's time to quilt.

I've never been a great quilter - I've always been a beginner. I decided that before I jump in with something big, I needed to get my feet wet with a small project. I have a very special Vermont Teddy bear - a sewing themed bear that Kurt gave me as a wedding gift. I decided that she needed a quilt to keep her comfy during this long cold winter. I dug through my scraps stash to see what I could find. I had a few charm squares and a few strips from a jelly roll that were all from the a similar fabric family. I decided to see if I could pull them together to make a miniature quilt for my bear. I loved the tape measure charm squares because Sew Bear wears a tape measure for her headband.

I started on the quilt Sunday evening, and guess what? It's finished!! I had *sew* much fun with it that I am very eager to move on to my next quilting project.

My "Sewing Center"

My dear sweet husband bought me an "Ott" lamp for Christmas. It's wonderful!! My sewing corner in our bedroom gets very little light. This lamp is perfect. I am so excited to have my "sewing center" all set up and ready for me to get to work in. In the next couple of days, I am going to making a list of my sewing/quilting goals for the new year, and I will share them on my blog.

Who Would Have Thought....

Who would have thought that I would be making a Barbie outfit for a Christmas gift for Hannah now -- at 15 years old?? I wanted to have a little fun with Hannah at Christmas time this year and let her enjoy pretending she was a little girl again. I bought her a basic cheap Barbie, but decided to make it special.

Hannah loves the University of Alabama. Her dad's whole family are huge Alabama fans, so.... that was the inspiration behind the outfit. I wanted it to be something she would enjoy displaying in her room.

I made the outfit, and then put the Barbie back in it's original Malibu Barbie packaging and wrapped it. When she unwrapped it this weekend (We had Christmas early because they will be in Florida for Christmas), she loved it. Her first question was "Where did you find this?" Then when I explained I made it, she couldn't believe it. It was a cute moment!!

Sew Busy!!

This has been a busy week so far. Yesterday was a very cold morning. I was *sew* inspired by the cold, that I made myself a fleece hat. I have had this pattern (Butterick 4324) for years. When I was leading a homeschool girl's sewing club, we used this pattern to make capes. I was digging through my patterns and noticed the hat. I thought it was cute and decided to give it a try. I had a small scrap of white fleece that I used. It went together in about 15 minutes or less (not counting the machine embroidery). Since it was a plain white fabric, I decided it needed a little something to perk it up - and of course machine embroidery was the answer. The possibilities are endless with this little hat. I can make them with novelty or sports fleece. I can make them in various colors and add personalization with embroidery. The pattern calls for 1/3 yard of fleece, but you could make at least 2 out of that (because of the width), possibly more. I wish I would have discovered this a little sooner so I could make more as gifts for Christmas, but time is running short.

I also finished up Timothy's Christmas PJ pants. I didn't work too hard to get the stripes to line up. I probably could have, but I bought just barely enough fabric to make the pants, so I couldn't fussy cut too much. They're just PJ pants after all, and Timothy doesn't care. He thinks they're great!!

So, lastly, my current project is Hannah's Christmas PJ pants. I have had this fabric for several years. In fact, I am pretty sure I bought in January 2008 when my friend Susan came to visit in Pensacola. We went to A&E Pharmacy together. They have an amazing fabric department. This fabric had to be incredibly cheap because I bought 6 yards of it. I have no idea what I was thinking then, but now it's enough to make Hannah's PJ pants and a pair for me too - and maybe even a pair for Bridget too.

CHRISTMAS JAMMIES

I went to JoAnns this morning to get a Barbie clothes pattern, but got something else too! I found adorable Disney Cars Christmas flannel on sale for $3.49 a yard. It's perfect for PJ pants for Timothy for Christmas Eve. Sadly, he won't be with me on Christmas Eve night. He will be with his dad in Florida (1,100 miles away), but this will be a way that I can feel closer to him and he can feel closer to me. I am going to use Kwik Sew #3042, size medium (7-8) for him.

Better Late Than Never

I had planned to have my dress ornaments finished by Saturday - or Monday at the latest. However, I ended up working 13 hours over the course of this past weekend, so it just didn't happen. However, last night, I finally finished them all. This was probably my most favorite ornament I have made for the Martha Pullen Fan Club ornament exchange through the years. It felt good to smock again.

Now I am free to move on to my next sewing/quilting project. I have a couple of things to do. I am going to JoAnns this weekend to get a Barbie clothes pattern to make one or two Barbie doll outfits for Hannah. She (almost as a joke, but she will still have fun pretending she is a little girl again) is getting a Barbie doll for Christmas. I am making a couple of pretty outfits for the doll so she can use her as a decoration in her room. I don't have any more Barbie doll patterns. I got rid of them through the years, so I will have to get a Simplicity one this weekend when it is on sale.

I am also going to attempt cosmetic bags for the women on my Christmas list. The pattern looks easy enough. I will probably start those tomorrow.

Lastly, I am making a quilt for my teddy bears. Now that sounds strange to some of you, but I have teddy bears in my room as part of the decorating/charm. I've decided that just as many people dress their dolls for the seasons, my bears are going to be done the same way, and right now, they need a quilt. It'll just be a simple quilt, but still fun.

First Smocked Dress Ornament Finished!

I sat down this morning to begin smocking my little dress ornaments. I decided to go for the metallic thread, even though I knew it would be a challenge. I am so glad I did though - it looks perfect with it. Now, this first one is a tad whompy, but it was a learning experience for me. I've never smocked anything on such a tiny scale before.

I will get two more smocked today and then have two to smock tomorrow, and then I will be finished. I have to work on Saturday, so I will have Kurt take them to the post office Saturday morning. This is the most excited I have ever been about an ornament for the ornament exchange. I had more fun with these than any of them in the past. It is so nice to smock again - even if it's a miniature dress!!

Mini Bishop Dress Ornaments

Oh this was *sew* much fun. For the past several years, the ornament swap has been such a stress due to the fact that I was working full time. This year, I knew that I would be working part time beginning the end of November, so I would have more time to make the ornaments. I decided to do something I have always wanted to do - make miniature bishop dress ornaments. I found the pattern in an old issue of Sew Beautiful. The pattern was designed for making bishop dresses for tiny dolls, but it was just the right size for hanging on a tree. It really wasn't that hard - although sometime it was a bit intense trying to work with something so small.

I have finished all of the sewing for all five dresses. All that is left is the smocking. The dresses do not have a lot of smocking, so it won't take too long. I am still not settled on what color floss I want to use. The fabric is red with gold sparkles. I would love to use a gold metallic, but that can be a night mare to smock on. I must decide soon though because they need to be finished and in the mail by Saturday!!

As soon as these are finished, my next project is to make cosmetic bags for the girls/women on my Christmas list. I have some cute quilt cottons that I am going to use to make these.

It's *sew* nice to feel as though I have my life back with not being tied down to a desk 8-9 hours a day!!!