A Lovely Year of Finishes....MAYbe I got it done!

A Lovely Year of Finishes

Three short days ago I was expecting to write a post full of lame excuses about why I didn't get my May project done......

Then a whiny inner voice got the better of me, and I got to work on it!

The top was already done in 2012, so I don't know why I had such a hard time getting this little quilt finished.. It is made with vintage striped sheets, a few solids, and is a disappearing 9 patch pattern.

I had this cotton/poly sheet purchased quite a while ago for another project, I think. So, I washed it and used it as the backing.

The leaves inspired the quilting, and I remember seeing a FMQ pattern somewhere on a blog, and stored it in my tiny brain!

 I Love, love this FMQ pattern! It is very forgiving, and you can easily get out of any corner you find yourself in by just adding some leaf vines or pebbles! The only time I broke thread was when the bobbin ran out!

I used my favourite Aurifil thread #2021 in the 50wt.

I really like the kind of squared off flower petals too. This is definitely one I will use again.

I wish I could remember where I saw it, to give credit...I really should write that stuff down!

I can lead you to some FMQ tutorials from Lori Kennedy @ The Inbox Jaunt..... seriously, she has some amazing, detailed, and fun tutorials.

Go check them out! the turtle!!!!

After squaring it up, I decided to try the rounded corner approach for the binding. I did cut the binding on the bias, which takes no longer than regular cutting.

No mitered corners is a really nice change!

I don't know what the fabric is, just something taking up space in my much too cluttered stash! It definitely has a vintage look to it, so it seemed appropriate for this quilt. 

So, here it is all finished, and I must admit, looking kinda pretty!

I think I like it after all!

Measures 45"x54"

And, of course, the obligatory cat on quilt photo!

I don't know why it is always Kissa and not Sheriti, but she is very photogenic!

Well, that's it for today. 

I have to start thinking about my June goal!

Giveaway Winners....and other stuff

My first time participating in the Sew Mama Sew Giveaway, and I received so many lovely comments on the Sew Together Bag I was giving away. It appears that I was not the only one who had some difficulty with this bag!

The winner of this bag was Lisa E, and it is already in the mail and on the way to her!

Another giveaway I was hosting last week was for an amazing pattern called Canvas by Leanne @shecanquilt

Here is the cushion I made using the pattern.

The winner of this pattern is Crickets Corner, and I have sent her an e-mail.

Thanks so much to everyone for stopping by for these giveaways.

We are finally getting some Spring like weather here!

Although it rained yesterday, we have some beautiful sunshine today and the flowers are loving it.

So I won't be spending the day at my sewing machine!!

Over the week-end I did a bunch of sewing. I don't know if anyone else is like this, but I have probably a hundred tutorials for different crafts bookmarked on my computer. It seems I just keep adding to the pile and rarely get back to them. I have decided it is high time I either did them or deleted them!

Hence, The Tutorial & Fabric Busting Project

The first one I did was actually a new one! Well, I had to start somewhere, right!

I really liked this sturdy basket called Scraptastic Basket by Janelle.

All of my perle cotton and embroidery stuff fits in it easily.

#2

I've been wanting to make this triangle pouch by Elnora for a while now.

This was fun and easy to do! I am using it for my Wonder Clips and the fifty I have barely cover the bottom! 

#3

I was fortunate enough to win a scrap bundle of Liberty from Camille of

queenbeefabrics on Instagram!

I also purchased some lace zippers ages ago that have been sitting in a bin waiting to be used!

 I called it Come Sail Away, because the Liberty twists reminded me of sails!

A great tutorial @ Shocking Hocking for the twists.

The rest of the pouch was just winging it! I should have made it a little smaller to hide the metal ends of the zipper, but too bad! 

Maybe next time...I have 4 or 5 more zippers!

I also found this tiny piece of Liberty in a small 2.5" bundle I purchased ages ago and haven't used. See....it's sails! I felt compelled to add it to the pouch as a hexie! 

I know, you're wondering if I'll ever be done with this post, but that's what happens when I am a lazy blogger...

#4

Now these are just toooo cute for words!!!

Am I right, or am I right!!

Fabric Berry Baskets....one large and two small.

I already have the large one filled with cords for phone, ipod etc...

One of the small ones is holding keys at the front door.

Seriously, a million uses for these, and they were pretty easy to do too. The binding on the small ones were a bit of a challenge, but certainly doable.

Okay, that it for my TTFBP (I'm certainly not writing it out every time!)

I'll leave you with a last look at the two Sew Together Bags I have made so far.

While they are not part of my "official" TTFBP, I just love them and the first one beat the crap out of me....so I'll take every opportunity to show it!

first one......

 second one...(for the giveaway)

 That's all for today....

maybe bee blocks next time!

Blogger's Quilt Festival 2014 Spring-entry#2

Since we can enter two categories in the Blogger's Quilt Festival, I decided to add

Elementary!

For this quilt, I used Eclectic Elements and Textured Solids.

You can read more about it HERE.

It measures 57"x68" and will be entered into the 

Small Quilts Category.

Thanks for stopping by, and have fun checking out all the amazing quilts in this years festival.

Blogger's Quilt Festival 2014 Spring Edition

How did this sneak up on me!

AmysCreativeSide.com

I was really unprepared, but this is always so much fun, I decided to add a recently finished postage stamp, scrappy quilt.

POSTAGE PAID

Sorry about the photo bomb by Kissa!

I had mounds of fabric on the floor of my sewing room while putting this together....and still, it seems like I hardly used up any of my scraps!

I add a few envelope blocks to the top of it, using the pattern by Ayumi in her book Patchwork, Please!

This quilt measures 60"x51"

I am entering it into the Scrappy Quilt Category

Thanks for stopping by!

Canvas...a pillow, a pattern and a giveaway!

A few short weeks ago, Leanne @ shecanquilt ,shared her pattern called Canvas and asked me to test one of the sizes!

The choices were amazing! There are 13 different size options in this pattern, and Leanne has made charts for fabric requirements and cutting of each size.

There is everything from a mug rug to a king size quilt.

I wanted to make a new cushion/pillow and followed the chart.

Picking colours is always fun and nerve wracking at the same time for me!

Because I wanted to make mine in solids, I went with colours that I had in my stash!

Believe me, solids isn't the only way to go.

 Take a look at Leanne's fabulous fabric choices on her blog, and if you are on Instagram check out #canvasquilt

So, here is the cushion I made....

Love the colour play of light and dark! Leanne gives lots of help for picking colours in her pattern.

When it came to quilting, I really wanted to be a copycat and do the matchstick quilting that Leanne does so artfully.

So, I did some rows of matchstick in the borders, and then did more of a grid for the centre.

A beautiful Aurifil 40wt thread #2566 was used.

Gosh, I love this colour!

 You can see a bit of the Chicopee I have hoarded to use for backing!

I used my always favourite covered zipper closure. Sorry, didn't take a photo, but you can find the tutorial at Sew Mama Sew.

Now, on to the GIVEAWAY!!

Thanks to Leanne, one lucky person will win this PDF pattern for Canvas!

Leave a comment...maybe tell me which size you would like to do first!

For a second entry follow Leanne, or even me!

I will pick a winner on Tuesday May20th, and will notify the winner by e-mail. 

Please make sure I can reach you!

More great news!

Leanne has her Canvas pattern on sale right now...so if you can't wait !!

From now until May 24, it is for sale on Etsy and Craftsy at 50% off. The Craftsy version is just listed at 50% off, the Etsy version needs a coupon code which is CANVAS50. Both shops are under she can quilt.

Lucky Leanne is at Market right now, and I am sure she is having a blast!

I've been following the fun on Instagram.

Hope everyone here in Canada has a great long week-end. We are expecting rain here!

Thanks for stopping by, and good luck in the giveaway

This contest is now closed, and the winner picked by a Random Number Generator is #3 Crickets Corner
I have sent an e-mail to the winner.

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day....it's here!

Yes, the day has arrived!

Sew Mama Sew giveaway day...

I finally got organized enough to participate this year!
 I am pleased to be offering up this 

Sew Together Bag from the pattern by Sew Demented. 

The first time I made this bag was about a week ago, so I thought I'd better get a second one done before I forgot how to put it together!!

Definitely not the easiest of patterns, but the end result is worth the angst!

I sewed some fabric strips onto batting for the outer layer, and then proceeded with the pattern.
A little Tula Pink love for the pockets!

I did the pocket zippers a little differently. Using a 12" zipper, I marked 9", and then sewed a fabric tab to each end. For me, this looks neater and avoids the possibility of hitting the metal ends of the shorter zip. After the zippers were sewn on, I then trimmed off the excess zipper. 

Don't forget to move your zipper pull to the centre before putting on the tab!!

I also added a little dragonfly charm as a zipper pull.
On my first bag, I sewed the binding to the front and then handstitched it to the lining. So, for this one, I did as the pattern says and machine stitched to the lining, and then also machine stitched on the front.
I think it turned out pretty well, although I like the cleaner line of the hand stitching.

So, if this bag appeals to you, please leave a comment making sure to include your e-mail address if you are a no-reply blogger!

I am happy to send this anywhere!
The giveaway will be open until May 16, 2014 @ 5pm MST. I will draw a winner the next day, and contact you by e-mail.

There are going to be so many wonderful blogs with giveaways to visit during this week, so please follow the link back to Sew Mama Sew, and check them all out. 

I know what I'll be doing with my spare time!

Thanks for stopping by, and good luck everyone!

This contest is now closed and the winner, Lisa E, has been sent an e-mail.
Thanks everyone!

A Lovely Year of Finishes...look out May, here I come!

Well, I'm still basking in the happiness of finishing my April goal, but it's time to put that aside and get busy with May's goal!

I had this one languishing in the WIP bin since last year, so it's earned a spot in ALYoF!

This is Vintage Nine Patch and is made with striped vintage sheets.

So, the top is done, but it needs to be quilted!

That's my goal. I may have to find a full sheet to use as the backing for it too.

As always, linking up to 

A Lovely Year of Finishes.