My second quilt is completed!

I finally finished my quilt! It is a "mystery quilt" which I started in July and finished this month, just in time to ship it to England for the holidays. The instructor for my quilting class told us to buy dark, medium dark, medium, and light fabric is specific quantities. Each week she would give us another step, but we had no idea what the end product would look like. I am so happy with my color choices!

This is going to be a gift for my mother in law, who means the world to me. Blue is her favorite color, so I used a lot of blues throughout and incorporated tropical looking fabrics because I first met her in Hawaii.

 

I have put the most time and effort into this quilt, much more than any other item I have made and I am so proud of it!!  I must say, it's hard to give this away, but it is going to someone that deserves it and will appreciate it. This is my second quilt and there will be many more to come. If you would like to see more photos please stop by my blog. Happy Thursday!

Patchwork Tote Bag

Hi there!  This is Karen from Renegade Homestead, happy to report that for the first time ever I've finished one of my Christmas presents before the start of December.  And it's thanks in part to the Crafty Christmas Club!  After my first post, one lovely reader suggested I make my quilt-loving mother-in-law a quilt-themed tote.  This was my first quilting endeavor and though it's not perfect, I'm very happy with how it turned out.

I whipped right through this project by modifying a tutorial from noodlehead.  The fabrics include leftovers from my wedding last year and one of my husband's old work shirts.  I think it will be just right for summers on the beach... and my mother-in-law may need that reminder by the time winter is in full swing around Christmas.  

Thanks again to Sandra for the excellent idea suggestion and thanks to everyone reading for providing the motivation to complete this present in record time!

Miscellany table runner finished!

Okay - last post on the Miscellany table runner! Post-Thanksgiving I'll have to seriously get to work on some other projects. But I'm really excited about how this came out and wanted to share a final snap of the finished table runner.

If you want to see it in full glory covered with our Thanksgiving dinner, after I give it to my mom as an early Christmas present, check my blog in about two weeks!

Next time you hear from me, I promise to have a new project!

Miscellany table runner pinned and ready to quilt

I finished the top of my Miscellany table runner and it's pinned and ready for quilting. Which I hope to find the time for tomorrow. We're a week away from flying home so that's plenty of time to get this done. Right?

If you'd like to see the progress, here are some snaps!

This has been such a fun process. I geekily love the math involved with getting everything to fit the way I want it and if I make a mistake, I just add another piece of fabric. See what I mean?

I LOVE the way it is looking so far and can't wait for it to be covered in yummy Thanksgiving food!

Miscellany table runner update!

Hi everyone! I wanted to share an update on the table runner I'm making for my mum for Christmas (but giving to her at Thanksgiving). I put in a lot of time over the weekend on these improvisational blocks.

Here's a look at the blocks laid out and numbered. Our table is a unique size because my dad made it years and years ago, so it's going to be a bit wider than the Purl Bee version I'm using as inspiration.

I've never pieced like this and it's so much fun. I started building the blocks by cutting strips and then it became a game to see how I could use up scraps. After I lined up what I had I did a lot of math to see what I needed to do to get to the finished size I wanted and added to some of them as needed. I decided to put a border around each of them because I felt the combination of scrappy piecing and the eclectic collection of prints needed some consistency.

Here are a couple of blocks up close. Taking these gave me a chance to use our new tripod!

I just love this fabric collection!

First on the list: A Thanksgiving table runner!

Hi everyone! I'm Annie and I'm new to the Crafty Christmas Club. My blog is called The Daily Stitch and it's part of my (soon-to-be) online shop, The Village Haberdashery. I live in London.

I've already been so inspired by your ideas which is good because I need to get started immediately on one! My mum and I host Thanksgiving every year for as many as 30 family members. It's my favourite holiday and we love planning the menu together and cooking, which is a lot of work but so much fun. I always see beautiful tutorials for napkins but I can't imagine making that many and she'd never use most of them the rest of the year. So I thought I'd try a quilted table runner.

The idea came from this project I found on the Purl Bee:

But I'm not so into applique so I'm going to piece the front instead. My idea is to make some improvisational blocks like Ashley at Film in the Fridge did in this stunning quilt:

I'm going to use Miscellany by Julia Rothman for Cloud9. Isn't it pretty? I'll sash and back it with the linen.

The catch is that we leave for Seattle for Thanksgiving on the 14th of November AND I'm going to Quilt Market next week! I wanted to give it to her as an early Christmas present since I won't be there for Christmas and so it can be used for Thanksgiving. So it's going to be very, very busy for the next few weeks. I'm hoping to get some hours in on this at the weekend, so I'll be back with an update after that. Wish me luck!

Nice to meet you!

My Totally Achievable Christmas Crafty List (Fingers Crossed)

Hi everyone!  I’m Lindsay and I blog at Lindsay Pindsay.  I just learned about Crafty Christmas Club last week and I am so excited to see what everyone is making for the holidays.  Hopefully you all won’t inspire me to pile more projects onto my list!

Here is what I have planned:

Each year my husband and I print calendars that feature photos from our adventures during the year.  This year’s calendar will feature photos from our recent roadtrip out west to Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.  I’ve been recapping our 23-day trip if you want to check out our adventures.  This picture of the Grand Prismatic Spring will most likely make the cut.

Explorer Vest from Oliver + S Little Things to Sew book for my nephew.  Our little guy is turning 5 in February and I thought it was time that he had something official to wear on his excursions.  Isn’t it adorable?  I’m so excited to start it.

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I’ve been commissioned to make a personalized superhero cape for my sister’s nephew, much like the three that I’ve made for my nephew and a couple of cousins.  Kids these days are nuts for Lightning McQueen!

I’m using the leftover fabric from a set of potholders that I made my mom last year and making a tea cozy for the host of our annual cookie exchange, who always makes an array of different flavored teas for the event.

Last year I made peppermint soap for my co-workers and they have been talking about it ever since, some begging me for more.  I used the recipe from How to Make Soap: Without Burning Your Face Off by Raleigh Briggs which includes peppermint and basil essential oils and sand for exfoliation.  I’ll be making it again since it’s a pretty easy gift to put together for the 35 people in my department.  I know, I’m nuts for making a small gift for each of them, but I just love to spread the holiday cheer!  Last year I wrapped up each bar in plastic wrap and kraft paper and delivered them with a holiday card from the American Cancer Society.  Store-bought holiday cards aren’t in this year’s budget, so I’m going to try and find a way to incorporate the “card” into how I wrap up the soap.  Suggestions are welcome!

I’m whipping up tissue holders as stocking stuffers for all of the stockings that I will have access to on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning (the total is 15 in case you were wondering).  Last year I made reusable bags using this adorable Jay McCarroll fabric.  This year I’m using the leftover fabric to make the tissue holders using the JCasa pattern on Sew Mama Sew. 

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Lastly, my mom’s birthday is December 28^th and this year I’m making her a quilt.  I ordered the City Green quilt kit from Mad About Patchwork to help me out with all of that cutting!  This is the second quilt that I have planned to make in the next few months (the other is a baby quilt for a baby that will arrive any minute!), so I’m a little worried that this won’t get finished until January.  

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I started the tissue packets yesterday and have promised myself (and my husband) that I won’t work on any other projects until all of the gifts are finished to avoid crazy last-minute sewing marathons.  My fingers are crossed that I finish everything in time!

Making a start

So I've got the first of the mini quilts top done...

I've got some basting spray I'm keen on trying out, but I dont have a table or even floor space big and flat enough!  Does anyone have any advice to give me on the best way to do it?