April Giveaway

I know, I'm really late with my giveaway this month. I've had a busy month finishing my quilt, sewing Easter dresses and keeping my shop stocked.
This month I am giving away a pink and brown dot large tote. It is great for when you have a lot of stuff to carry and makes an excellent diaper bag.
Just post a comment below about anything you like or don't like in my shop, any fabric that you are loving right now or any sewing or quilting blogs that you love (I'm always looking for new blogs to read). I have two bags to giveaway this month. The contest will end at 9:00 P.M. EST on Sunday May 4th.
Good Luck!

Finished Quilt

As I said in my last post, I have finished my quilt for the quilt along. I used my favourite fabrics from Amy Butler's Belle collection. I cheated a little on this quilt. The quilt along was for a throw size quilt and used 6 different blocks I think. I wanted a quilt for my bed so I made mine queen size and I wanted a simpler design so I only used 2 of the blocks. For the back I just randomly pieced all my leftover fabric together. I love how it turned out and I really have two quilts in one. I had a lot of fun and also a lot of stressful moments with this quilt. I have made a few quilts before but this was the first time I had ever done free motion quilting. It was easier than I thought and I'm lucky to have a sewing machine that can sew automatically without the foot peddle so this made it easier for me to maneuver the bulk through my machine. I have never really loved quilting but after learning some great tips from this quilt along, I am now hooked. I am going to do it again but I will make the one using all the blocks this time. I will probably make a throw for the couch. I think I would like to use some vintage fabrics for this one though. If you have wanted to try quilting but were afraid to, I highly recommend this project from
Oh, Fransson! She really has a gift for quilting and teaching.
Here are some pictures. They are not good pictures at all. It is really difficult to take pictures of a quilt.

New Bags

My productivity seems to have gone up tremendously. It figures since my vacation is almost over. I have finished my quilt for the quilt along and I am very happy with it. The free motion quilting was easier than I thought it would be although mine is far from perfect. I thought it came out very well for my first attempt. I haven't taken any pictures yet so I'll go into more detail when I'm ready to post them.

I have also finished a new style of bag for my shop. I have been wanting to do a larger purse version of my patchwork wristlet and I have finally come up with one I like. I actually love this purse. It has a classic a line shape. It is soft to the touch but yet sturdy enough to stand on it's own when empty. What I love about the patchwork is that each purse is one of a kind. I will be doing some without the patchwork but I'm having too much fun with these ones right now. I have 4 finished. 2 are already posted in my shop and I hope to have the other 2 posted tomorrow. Check them out when you get a chance.

Weekend Sewing

I made a couple of dresses for my niece for Easter. The first was made with a McCalls pattern and Alexander Henry fabric. It's cute, but not my favourite. The second dress I love! I bought the pattern from a store on Etsy called Frog Legs & Ponytails. It's a pillowcase dress and I have made a couple of these before, but this was by far the best pattern i have ever come across. The dress took me less than 1/2 an hour and is super cute. I made it with fabrics from Amy Butler's Midwest Modern II collection. I am seriously thinking of using this pattern to make tops for my sister and I. I highly recommend this pattern.

(The pictures are not very good but I will post more later, with my adorable niece modeling).

I also finished doing the free motion quilting on my quilt today. It is not perfect but I am very happy with my first attempt. It hurt my wrist after a while so I had to take a few breaks, but I was surprised at how little time it took. I have the binding pinned on and ready to sew tomorrow and then it's done. I have to admit, I cheat with the binding. I don't hand sew it on, I never hand sew. I hate doing it and avoid it at all costs. I don't think it makes it any less nice and I like to use a decorative stitch around the edge.

Vacation!

I started vacation on Thursday. I really thought I would get a lot more done already. I know it's only Saturday but I really haven't done anything for my shop. One thing I really wanted to get done by the end of the weekend was my quilt from the quilt along I mentioned in my last post. I got all the layers sandwiched and pinned on Friday and that's it. I'm afraid to start the free motion quilting. It looks so pretty right now, I'm afraid of messing it up.
I did make my 18 month old niece a couple of dresses for Easter tomorrow. They are really cute. One was a pillowcase dress that I'm very happy with, and it has matching bloomers. I will post it tomorrow with a link for the pattern. I made it in less than an hour. It's great for a beginner sewer or an advance sewer who wants a quick and easy project.
Since I have family dinners for the next two days, I don't think I will be getting anything else done this weekend. At least I have the whole week off.

Quilt Along

I have been following a quilt along hosted by Oh, Fransson! on her blog. I have been wanting to make a quilt for my bed for a long time so I decided this was the perfect time. I have made a few quilts for other people but haven't been very happy with them. Everything goes well until the actual quilting part. This one has free motion quilting which I have never done but I'm very excited to try. I cheated a little on my quilt as well. The quilt pattern in the quilt along has six blocks I think but I decided to use just two of them. I am using fabrics from Amy Butler's Belle collection and any of you who have visited my shop, know how much I love these fabrics. My quilt top is finished and I start holidays tomorrow so I am hoping to get the back done tomorrow and then start the quilting. I am behind in the quilt along because I wanted to wait until I had a lot of uniterrupted time before I started the quilting.
Here are some pics of my quilt top. The pictures are not very good as it's been cloudy and snowy here the last few days.

March Bag Giveaway Winner

I am sorry for the delay in announcing the winner. I picked a winner using Random.org and the winner is KelliAnn. She also has an Etsy shop so if you have some time check out her shop here. She makes adorable little headbands for babies. If you didn't win this month don't worry, April's giveaway will be posted soon. Since it's my birthday this month I have decided to have two winners so check back often.