Holiday Apron Swap

You may have seen the last Apron Swap I joined which resulted in some very cute and practical aprons. This time around the theme was all about embracing the holidays. Participants were allowed to choose a Thanksgiving or Christmas themed apron and my partner and me chose Christmas.

Sue from Arizona sent me a smock-type apron with big pockets and a tie that ties in just the right spot. It's got a lot of skinny-minny bias tape and I salute Sue for being such a pro at it. It's a really comfortable and cozy apron with little kitties playing with ornaments and I like it a lot. She also sent me a selection of chocolates - sweet!!




I made this curvy apron for Kathy in New York. The pattern didn't allow for a lining so I added it myself. It's *kind of* double sided but not really. The straps on the top are added a little strange. My boss and I brainstormed about how they could have gone on with a decorative button or something instead but hindsight is 20/20. I was cramming to finish it so I didn't have time to make any other adjustments. I really suggest this pattern. It's a great looking apron and the bias really isn't that bad.

A little bit of fall...

Did you happen to see the wonderful Fall and Halloween charm packs from Moda this year? Scottie Dog Quilts also had a really cute little pumpkin quilt up on the wall and I was inspired. I didn't get to adding borders - you'd think that I could have managed it, but no. Instead of stuffing this UFO away in a drawer I decided it could go up on the wall anyway. I love these colors. So cute. :)

Doll Quilt Swap IV

The About.com Doll Quilt Swap IV ended in October and I am finally getting around to posting photos of the quilts I made and received.

First up, the quilt I received. Wanda made this adorable little star quilt in Tula Pink's Full Moon Forest fabrics. She really did her homework and chose wonderful prints. The colors are perfect and I feel so lucky to have this little gem. Look for the cute little owl in the middle block. It's such a happy little quilt and I love it. Thanks Wanda!!



My partner was Patty in Oklahoma. She's actually friends with Shelly who made my quilt in the last swap. Patty had many different likes and not too many dislikes but she was absolutely sure that she didn't want anything PINK! She really said it like that too. :)

I really struggled with an idea for this quilt and ended up making "Mini Asian Bowties." The pattern is from About.com and was fun to make. The little teeny triangles weren't that hard. I played with the order of the blocks for about a week and due to my need for colors and patterns to be "in order" I ended up with straight rows of color. No scrappy mix and match for me, thank you very much. The background fabric I think really makes the quilt with beautiful fans of all colors. Thanks Scottie Dog Quilts for carrying great Asian prints. I actually used the fat quarters I won in a raffle a few years ago. They were meant to be used to make a Bento Box quilt but I had to use them in this quilt. I only needed to use a couple of small strips for the bowties so I be able to still get some Bento Box blocks out of them.

My name is Lisa, and I surivived paper piecing.

The second birthday block for August was the Broken Heart block (from Quilter's Cache), chosen by Margaret. She asked for the block to be done in off-white / cream / beige and 30s reds and yellows. There were two sets of instructions provided for this block - traditional piecing and paper piecing. I tried the traditional piecing but I couldn't get the final blocks to measure up right. Onto the paper piecing.

While at Scotty Dog QS for fabric I received a little paper piecing pep-talk from store owner, Brenda Lou. If I remember correctly, she said she taught the very first paper piecing class here in Eureka seventeen years ago! So I headed home... thought about it for a couple of days and finally took a deep breath and dove in. Five or so hours later it's finished. This block stretched my abilities in quality of work and my attention span. I'm glad it's done and I'm glad Margaret chose it.

Rigby and Lil' Sgt. Pepper

Here's Nell's birthday block for August. She chose a pet theme and I had originally planned on making a turtle but time was running out and I wasn't happy with the turtle pattern I had. I actually got the orange striped fabric from the Obnoxious Fabric Swap I participated in a few months ago! I think it's not quite so obnoxious now. ;)

Apron Swap

So the apron for my partner in the Apron Swap was finished on Sunday and mailed yesterday. She should be getting it by Thursday at the latest. I hope she likes it! I used a Butterick pattern that was at times quite challenging to read. After just as much ripping as sewing it finally came out just right. I added a second pocket and some lace trim in a few places. The pattern called for a back strap between the shoulders in the back but they felt constrictive so I took them out. The straps don't seem to have any problems staying on so I hope my partner is okay with that.

In the end I forgot to take a real finished picture other then a half-way photo and one of my husband modeling it for me. At first he insisted that I was not to post it on my blog, but after begging him I think he feels okay about it now. ;) Perhaps my partner will take a picture and I can remove his incriminating photo.

I also received my apron from Randi from Italy. It's so cute and very useful. I love the pattern and fabric. It has straps that criss cross over the back and then button on the sides. I'm thankful that Randy included multiple button holes so I could button the straps on the shortest length possible. The double pocket is great, and the front pocket has a couple of channels in it that are great for a marking tool, seam ripper, or rotary cutter. I had asked for an apron that I could wear while sewing because I'm always losing my tools!

Birthday Block Swap

I joined the "Birthday Block" swap on About.com. I signed up into a group with 23 other swappers. Everyone is assigned a "birthday" month (may or may not correspond with their actual birthday). They list their preferences for what they want and then when their month comes they receive blocks from the rest of the swappers. For example...

My month is March and I chose Hawaii as a theme. Make any block that reminds you of Hawaii. When my month comes around, the other 23 swappers will each make a block for me. It's a really neat way to get blocks of all different techniques, talents, and fabrics. Then in turn I make blocks for everyone during the year. Each month I only have to make two blocks and that's it! I'm probably not doing a very good job at explaining it so if you're confused then I apologize. You'll probably figure it out as I post the blocks I've made each month.

July was assigned to Christine and Diane. Christine asked for garden themed blocks, flower or vegetable. I made a little tomato block with machine applique. Diane asked for 12'' star blocks with blue and white fabrics. The block is called Amish Star (from Quilter's Cache) but I made a mistake when sewing the corners on and got a different design. I was a little bummed, but by the time I was finished with it I wasn't up to taking it apart.

So far the swap is a lot of fun. It's really not so bad to make just two blocks a month. I've got to get cracking on August's blocks and I'll post soon. I'm also finishing up an apron for an apron swap I joined. Expect pics from all of these swaps soon!

Mamma Mia!

So to get back in the swing of blogging I will do a mini review of Mamma Mia. I'd really wanted to see this since I saw the previews months ago so I took the girls on Thursday. I wasn't terribly sure that they'd like it so much but they loved it just as much as I did. In fact, I can hear them in their bedroom singing along with the soundtrack right now, "Don't gooo wasting your emotionnns, laayy all your love on meee!"

We liked it so much that we dragged Gabe with us on Saturday night to see it again. Isabella was sure to keep her dad from falling asleep; but even he is now finding himself singing the songs all the time. If you think you might like it, or even if you think you might not like it, my suggestion is to go see it in the theater right now. It's a really *great* movie.

Now off to see what my little dancing queens are up to....

Road to Oklahoma (Doll Quilt Swap)

My new best friend, Sherry, was my mystery doll quilt-maker in the doll quilt swap. The quilt came on Thursday and it's beautiful. She titled it, "Road to Oklahoma" after the style blocks she chose. It's kind of hard to see, but most of the fabrics have little shiny gold detail and the background/border fabric is fabulous with vibrant teal, green, and purple. Isn't it pretty???

I was so happy to open the package that I didn't realize she sent a letter along with it until later that night. Her letter mentions that she knew I am from Oklahoma and that I've never been able to go back to visit. My father is buried there and I've never had the chance to go visit his gravesite; something I've always wanted to do (I had talked about this on the forum before). Because Sherry is from Oklahoma herself, and also put so much thought into my quilt, "Road to Oklahoma" is very special to me.

Thank you Sherry! And thanks Ginger for hostessing this very fun swap. I can't wait for the next one.

Doll Quilt Swap III

I finished my mystery partner's doll quilt last night. It's going in the mail tomorrow to her, I hope she likes it! There's a few mistakes in the quilting but I hope it's charm makes up for it. It has at 25 different fabrics all from a Flutterby (by Tula Pink) charm pack and jelly roll. The circles are appliquéd on, it has a pink flange border, and I made the bias strip binding from four noodles. I went looking for a video on how to do a blind stitch and thankfully I found this one. I have always had a hard time with any kind of hand sewing but this video was a life saver. The binding came out very well and makes me very happy.


It's quite pink, but in person it all blends in together well. All the colors kinda remind me of a candy factory or something. It's hard to see this little quilt go but I know it will be happy in it's new home.

I haven't received my quilt yet, hopefully it will come before the end of the week. I'll post pictures as soon as it comes in. :)

100th Post Giveaway...

It's taking forever to get to 100 posts, and I posted my poll ages ago. So just a heads up, I'll start the giveaway sooner then post #100... it'll be some random date, so make sure you keep a look out!

New Ironing Board Cover

I had the urge to change my ironing board cover. The old one was... really bad. It was my mom's board and just icky. Taking it apart was unpleasant as I soon found out that this cover was just covering an even older cover. Bleck. Anyway... here's the before and after.


Old cover: bad.

New cover: good.
I bought this fabric a really long time ago at Joanns and have never found anything to use it for but I just have always really liked it. I think it finally told me what it wanted to be. :)

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

I know that a lot of recipes claim to be the best, but in all honesty, this is THE best chocolate chip cookie recipe I've ever tried. Everyone that has tried them agree (except for the time that I accidentally doubled the chips!).

I like my cookies just like the what I call, "Fake-Bake" cookies from Toll House. You know the kind, just break them apart, stick em on a sheet and voila! 10 minutes later you have cookies. One could say that I could just go the easy route and make those, but for the sake of actually baking something and sharing that fun with the kids, here's the perfect recipe to do just that.

These cookies come out thin, chewy in the center, and just a bit crispy around the edges. Oh, and they don't call for eggs but they do call for a lot of butter so I'm not claiming they are healthy by any means. If you're a vegetarian, however, these are the cookies just for you.


Thin, Crisp, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup salted butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
6 Tbs water (Yes, water. Don't leave it out!)
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. With an electric mixer combine butter, brown sugar, and sugar until well blended. Add water and the vanilla until smooth.
2. In another bowl, mix flower, baking soda, and salt. Beat into butter mixture until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.
3. Drop dough in 1-tbs portions, 2 inches apart, onto buttered baking sheets.
4. Bake in a 300 degree oven until edges of cookies are browned, but an area about 1 inch wide in the center is still pale, about 14 minutes.
5. With a wide spatula, transfer cookies to racks to cool. If hot cookies start to break, slide a thin spatula under them to release, let stand on pan to firm up, 2 to 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely.
6. Makes about.... well I don't know how many it makes because my family always eats them as I take them out of the oven! But it seems like I put about five batches in, so maybe about 60 cookies. Of course you can cut this recipe in half, but I always make a lot and take them to work or give some to friends.


You want to take them out of the oven when they look like this... because if you leave them in until they look done then they will be way too crunchy when they cool. Yes they will look gooey when you take them out, but trust me, fifteen minutes later they are perfect.

I hope you try the recipe. I can't remember where I found it but kudos to whomever posted it. It really is the best.

Enjoy! :)

Doll Quilt Swap

I am very excited to say that I've joined the Doll Quilt Swap III with my About.com Quilting Forum friends. I've got my partner and have drawn her quilt out already. I made a practice block last night and will have to make a few adjustments before I really get started. This weekend I hope to get a majority of it done.

If you don't know what a Doll Quilt Swap is then I'll tell you. :) A doll quilt is just a little decorative quilt. The size specs for this swap are 20x20 or 16x20 max. You are assigned a partner to make a quilt for and then someone else is assigned to make one for you. It's all a secret of who is making who's quilt and lots of fun. The mailing deadline is at the end of June so it wont be too much longer before I get pictures of that put up here.

I can't share what it might look like until it's done, but I will say that it's going to be using a lot of prints, very colorful, maybe a little busy, and with some of what I call, modern bohemian flare. I hope my partner likes it! :)

Family Visit & Updates

Gabe's family came to visit over Memorial Day weekend from Southern California. We went to Sequoia Park and the zoo, the duck pond, and to see the new Indiana Jones movie (Ohh Shia! Be still my beating heart!). We wanted to go to the Kinetic Grand Championship but the weather was too cold for them. While at home we watched movies and played with the kids. It was a fun weekend.

Lydia chose the kind of bag she wants me to make for her. She chose this messenger bag pattern from McCalls. I was going to try and make it while they were here but didn't feel confident I would be able to turn it out under pressure! I promised to have it done within the month... keep your fingers crossed for me. ;)

I've made one top for Kaylee out of the Tutti Frutti fabric but it still needs some buttons and buttonholes. It came out really good I think but a little tight. I meant to make a size 7 and accidentally cut part of it out as a 6. I'm not sure if my abilities will allow me to make the next one bigger by just adjusting the seam allowances or not, so I might end up buying the pattern again. I bet I wont be able to get it for 99 cents this time. =/

I got my hair cut last week. I went from really long, to medium, to short with highlights. You can't see them all in this picture, but they are really caramelish-blonde.

Baby Things for Dominic

The baby shower for Dominic was on Saturday and I was naturally cramming to finish his gifts. I had to finish a quilt, a small receiving blanket type quilt, and some bibs and burp cloths. Most of this stuff I did on Friday night after work. I picked up a triple shot white mocha on the way home and planned for a long night. Just how long it was going to be was unexpected.

The bib on the left side of the photo didn't turn out after it went through the wash. I guess I didn't get the binding on just right and some of it came unraveled from the fabric. It was my favorite one too. =(

Dominic's mom likes the "bean" shaped burp cloths so I drew up a shape and made some. The one in the middle has brown binding, and the one in the back is one that didn't fare well after the wash. *sigh* Nevertheless, I enjoyed playing with the burp cloths in the middle of the night in front of my bathroom mirror as they resembled the eye covers you wear when trying to sleep. Had I lost my mind? Yes, yes, I think I had.

Onto the quilt. I want to first say that I love this quilt. I'm really proud of it and it was a little weird when it came time to let it go. After all, I have been working (and not-working) on this thing for seven months. I finished the top in a couple of weekends in November and then the top sat until February because I was scared to quilt it. I finally quilted it by machine and then it sat for about another month before I got serious to finish it. I was hesitant to because of the furry fleece, but fear doesn't get you anywhere.

Cutting the furry fleece is like exploding a feather pillow and watching the feathers float around the room. I joked that the stuff was in my mouth, my nose, and in my eyes (but it really was!). Forging on, I tied the fleece on with embroidery floss, basted the edges and then attacked the binding. I started with a double fold binding (premade) but failed to make sure it was wide enough. It wasn't. I attached the thing to the front but it wouldn't fold over all the layers to cover the raw edges on the back. It was if the quilt was saying to me, "I wont go down so easily! Muahaha!" So I sat for about an hour and a half ripping it off. I tried to preserve it but ended up cutting it with my seam ripper (argh!). "You lose!" taunted the quilt as I stabbed myself in the finger with my seam ripper. With the black binding not usable anymore it left me with Brick Red binding and I wasn't happy about it - I had envisioned black and that was all I could see finishing this quilt. But I was pleasantly surprised with the red and it didn't even look that bad on the back. I suppose I could have made my own with the Kona black fabric I have... but I just didn't need one more thing to add to my to-do list.

At 4:30 am I was finished with almost everything. I had bibs, burp cloths, the quilt kit I bought from Joanns (I didn't take a picture!) and 98% of the quilt finished. I still needed to attach the binding to the back of the quilt and wash everything since Terra is allergic to cats. The picture will explain...

A 5am, after trying to hand stitch the binding on the back I decided that it just wasn't going to be strong enough and did it by machine with transparent thread. You can see it on the front of the quilt, but that was the price I was willing to pay to: 1. Make sure it was attached really well and 2. Get it finished!

The birds were beginning their morning songs as I threaded my machine for the 100th time. I thought to myself, "7 months Lisa?! How could you let this take 7 months?!" What can I say, working on a deadline is when I am the most productive.

At 6am it was finished. I took my pictures and was ready to crawl into bed. Wait a second, I've been enjoying looking at this thing for so long I was going to take a few minutes to sit and spend some time with it. It balked at me for all the work it made me go through and then I had a talk with it about being a good quilt to Dominic. Finally we said goodbye to each other and with that I went to sleep.

Saturday morning I woke up and took everything to the laundromat (my washing machine broke on me through this whole ordeal). After the wash I realized the mishap with the bibs and burpcloths so while everything was drying I made a couple more bibs out of some white and blue surfing flannel. I should have used this easier pattern all along since they whipped up in no time (I didn't get a picture of those either). Finally everything was finished and we rushed to get this thing wrapped (in the Walgreen's parking lot) and off to the shower we went.

In the end watching Terra, my best friend of 16 years, finally see in person her's and Dominic's gifts made all the work worth it. Her husband looked at the back of the quilt and jokingly said, "We didn't order shag!" "It looks like hair," some people said. "It's sooo soft," commented others. Whether other people liked it or not was not my concern. I wanted her to like it - and she did. While the other gifts got put away, Terra held onto the quilt until the shower was over.

I forgot my camera so I didn't get a picture of her with it but once the baby comes I'll post a picture with them together. :)

X-Bag

My boss saw an X-bag on display at the LQS and wanted to buy it, but it was just for display to sell the pattern. I've been wanting to make something for Cindy for a while now, but I couldn't figure out just what to make. After she said she liked that bag, I got the pattern and some coordinating fabric to make one.

The pattern is interesting.. you start with two fabrics and sandwich them so they are double sided. Then by way of folding and flipping the pieces around you get a bag with three pockets on the inside. The fabrics criss cross each other and you get a really neat design.


There is no real lining or anything that gets turned right side out and you have raw edges on the handles that need to be covered with bias tape. I didn't make my own, I bought it at Joanns. It was my first time working with bias tape and I have to say it was a lot easier than I had expected. I'm certain my walking foot was the real solution to what could have been a nasty, puckered problem so I'm grateful I have that.


The inside of the bag also has raw edges. The pattern calls for zig zagging the edges to cover them. Initially I wanted to cover them with bias tape, but after the bag is sewn together you end up with eight layers of fabric, all with interfacing so it's pretty thick. I did go ahead and cover them with a zig zag stitch, but with the stitches very close together so they covered the edges almost completely.






The pattern also called for a velcro dot closure, but I wanted to use a magnetic snap instead. I had to make the tab larger than the pattern because the snap wouldn't fit inside. The tab has one layer of interfacing, but next time I'll add two to reinforce it a bit, although I do use buttonholes when inserting magnetic snaps to make sure the fabric doesn't tear from the stress of opening and closing - especially since these particular magnetic snaps are super magnetic. I also had to insert the snap on the body half way through the project to keep it from showing on the other side. The sample in store had a magnetic snap as well, but the backside was completely visible on the back of the front pocket. Being the perfectionist that I am, I couldn't have that.

Anyway, the bag was fun to make. Not hard at all. You just have to be careful when adding the bias tape and when sewing the bag together along the side edges, making sure you catch all layers. And I think there is a way to cover those raw edges on the inside and I'll have to figure it out when I make it the next time.

"The Last Lecture"

I've been anxiously awaiting the release of "The Last Lecture," by Randy Pausch and Jeffery Zaslow. If you aren't famliar with Randy's last lecture and story, you can read about his book here.

As soon as I heard about Randy, I had to buy the book. I pre-ordered it on Amazon and it came a couple of weeks ago. If you like to read, I encourage you not to miss this book.

Just another little bag

Over last weekend I made this purse out of some noodles I had cut and sewn all together about four years ago! Maybe I shouldn't put things off for so long. ;)

Honestly, I just didn't know what to do with them. Originally I had planned on making a rail fence lap quilt with the noodles, but I knew I didn't have enough fabric to do that so I sewed them together ... then I really didn't know what to do with them. So they have sat ...and sat ...and sat. But then I thought it would make a cute purse, so I tried it and I really do like it.

30s & White-on-White HST Swap

There's a new swap on the About.com Quilting Forums... half square triangles and for the month of April it's 30s prints and white on white. I made ten sets, ten to a set. It will be exciting to get the swapped ones back I'll probably make something with pinwheels.

Here's the ones I made, my choices on 30s prints was limited to only a few FQs. This cleared out my 30s stash (if you can call it that.)

Tutti Frutti Anyone?

While shopping the McCalls pattern sale Isabella came across a form with the cutest little summer outfit for girls. We got the pattern and went home. The next day I found myself at Joanns again and happened to walk through the apparel fabric section and their "Tutti Frutti" fabric was on sale for $1.99 a yard down from $5.99 a yard. Since this was the same fabric the outfit was made in I bought a bunch of it. I'll start on these soon. :)

Pattern Sale at Joanns

Did anyone notice that the McCalls patterns were only 99 cents at Joanns last week? I picked up eight patterns for eight bucks.... normally at about $15 a piece they would have cost me $120! (There's only six in this picture, the seventh is a tote bag pattern that I forgot to include and the eighth is in the next post).

Mmm. Jelly....... Roll, that is.

Well my goodness it has definitely been a while since I've updated this. Most of April I've been away from my sewing and quilting projects because I've been either sick or playing Mass Effect too much. But I realized I better get back into the swing of things... Dominic's baby shower is on the 5th and I've got to get that crib quilt and a few other things finished. I went to GNO on the 11th and finished the quilting on his quilt. Now all that is left is the backing and binding - I'll get that all done this weekend and post pictures as soon as I can.

Anyway, the sale at GNO was 20% off Jelly Rolls and Charm Packs. Yay! I bought my first Jelly Roll as soon as I saw the "Flutterby" fabrics. I love everything about them and I can't wait to see how they look worked into a quilt. If you ever wanted to define my personality with fabric, it would be with these prints. With the advice from the girls at the LQS I also picked up a couple of charm packs and the pattern, "Roll Out the Charm," a pattern that makes one throw and a tablecloth with the leftover pieces.

I'm making myself wait before starting on this one... but I feel it coming soon!

Photos of String Blocks from About.com Swap

Here are photos of the string blocks I got back from the About.com Quilting Forum swap. I only made two sets so I'll have to make some more to make this into a quilt. I'm thinking of making a square wall hanging size that can be draped across a table, but I'm not really sure. I'm undecided on what to do at this point because I don't want to make a lot more of these as I didn't really like adding the little squares on the corners. The look is great, but that part is just tedious to me. We'll see. :)

Nevertheless, the blocks are great and one of them is from Brazil! :)


Starting from the top, from left to right: Wanda, Wanda, Susanna, Laurie, Helen, Louann, Alexis, Lisa N. Patty, Grace, Ivani (from Brazil!) Louann, Sylvia, Laurie, Grace, Patty, Ethel, Lea, Lea, Susanna

Photos of Jar Blocks from About.com Swap

After over a month I have finally taken photos of the jars I received from the jar block swap on About.com's quilting forum. This was my first swap, and I think it was a great way to get me hooked! It was so cool to send in a bunch of jars of only a few fabrics and get back a ton of jars of all kinds of fabrics. I sent in 54 jars and out of the 54 I got back there were no repeat blocks. I'm not sure what's better, the variety of fabric or the many places they came from. Most are from across the US, but there are some that are from Canada as well.

I'll post three from each swap... click on the blocks to view the rest of them in my Webshots albums.

Bug Jars
Sent 18 blocks w/ 3 different prints
Received 18 blocks w/18 different prints

Novelty Jars
Sent 12 blocks w/2 different prints
Received 12 blocks w/12 different prints



Fruit & Vegi Jars
Sent 24 blocks w/3 different fabrics
Received 24 blocks w/24 different fabrics

Pictures Are Up

I just wanted to be sure that everyone checks out the More Updates post since I have added photos to it. We can thank my husband, Gabe, for finding my USB cord. Thanks Gabe! :)

Pincushion Swap

I received my pincushion a little over a week ago and it's so cute and quite pink. My swap partner also included a pink fat quarter with pink daisies, what a sweetie! :) I really like the decorative stitching, and I like that it has a quilty look to it. Thanks so much Marlou!





I also finished the pincushion for my partner on Sunday. I had made the pink one initially but after reading my partners likes, I decided to make a different one; and I like it better. It's not quite as thick as I had hoped, the pins poke out the bottom of it so I really could use a little leather bottom but hopefully my swap partner doesn't mind. This was my first encounter with rick rack, and I think I'm hooked. I wasn't quite sure how to use it, or how to make it go round the corners, but it seemed to work well. Love the stuff. I see many colors of rick rack in my future. ;)

More Updates *Photos Added*

Oh my goodness it's been a while since I've posted but we have been so busy this is the first weekend we've had a chance to really do anything fun. I still haven't been able to find my USB cord so I can upload pictures from my camera, but I promise to upload them soon. (ETA: Photos are here!)

We are all moved in now (finally!) and still have a few boxes to unpack. Things are getting set up around here and it's feeling like home. Yesterday, after a trip to Joanns, I spent some time quilting the crib quilt for Dominic. It's the first time I've machine quilted anything bigger than a mini quilt and shoving that crib quilt through my machine sure is a chore. Thank goodness the spray baste holds well! I managed to get the outlines of the main blocks and the middle of one block finished yesterday. I still have to fill in the rest of the quilt so I'll work on that through the week. Dominic's mother has requested furry fleece (aka poodle fleece?) for the back of the quilt and after much discussion someone suggested I quilt it with a cotton backing and then tack on the furry fleece before I complete the binding (much like what I did on my satin string quilt). I loved the suggestion and will be finishing this quilt up this month.



I also bought a cuddly quilt kit from Joanns (I'll post a photo asap) for the baby. It has some really great green and brown fabrics, but after opening the nicely folded package up I was a little disappointed in the amount of fabric that comes with the kit. There is NO room for fudging when cutting the squares out, so I better make sure I have a few cups of coffee and plenty of light before starting on this thing. I also thought the backing was going to be the brown cuddly fabric, but it's actually the green flannel (which is okay I suppose). The instructions call for no batting, and to sew the top to the backing, right sides together, and then turn. Instead I will add batting and quilt it and finish with a binding. I just can't bring myself to turn a quilt, it doesn't seem right.



I also have another quilt idea for Dominic (why am I making so many? I don't know!) using the Aunt Grace Ties One On scottie dog fabric. I bought 1 yard and am planning on combining it with red, black, and cream Kona solids to make a square playing quilt for the baby. It should be pretty darn cute.



I finished the pincushion for the pincushion swap today. I really love it and will be making a second one for myself. I didn't use a pattern online because I wanted it to be a little different. I hope my swap partner likes it! (Again I'll post a picture asap).

As far as any other ongoing swaps I'm in... the pincushion swap is the last of the sewn swaps I've signed up for. The only other swap I'm involved in right now is the Obnoxious Fabric Swap. I have a few obnoxious fabrics I will be happy to see go... but I am also wondering why I am asking for other uglies in return. *shrug* I guess it will be fun to see what everyone else comes up with.

That's all for now. I hope everyone has enjoyed the extra hour of daylight today, I know I have... tomorrow morning I may not be to appreciative.