Car Seat Cover Completed

I completed a reversible car seat cover. I skimmed a few online tutorials but didn't feel the need to follow any of them very closely - it's just a rectangle with velcro straps. I added a layer of flannel between the quilting cottons to give it some weight and perhaps aid in a future use as a playmat. I like this side the best - the blood orange color on the tree blossoms is gorgeous and the Park Slope leaf dot couldn't match it any better. I may have made this on the bigger side - but what else is new?

The fabrics don't really match the apple green of the car sear - but it doesn't bother me.

This Heirloom print is probably one of my most favorite fabrics - it's so graphic and appeals to my penchant for monochromatic prints.

Thanks for visiting :)

WIP Friday

This is the beginning of a unisex car seat cover - I am planning to make it reversible. I thought about making two (one for a girl, one for a boy) - but that is just too much work and the clock is ticking. Several months ago, I made a sleep sack and stupidly added a few pink fabrics. Now I do have to make another one that is more boyish. I found this Robert Kaufman flannel (far left) in my stash and some other coordinating prints. I would've preferred to have a geometric, non-themed flannel to work with but I am trying to use what I have instead of buying more. Oh, and those brown prints in the picture? That selection pretty much accounts for my entire stash of browns - I guess it's not really a go-to color for me! I couldn't resist a few cuts of the new Aunt Edna for the DS collection at Joann's. Those corporate monsters raised the price to $12.99 per yard! With a coupon and a sale - I bought a bit for $7.28 per yard. I agree with a lot of the chatter online about the price hike - if they are going to charge quilt store prices- they ought to provide quilt store service (e.g. no 1 hour lines at the cutting table, use a rotary cutter instead of a hack saw, employ people who have actually sewed, etc. etc.). I do love this line though - it's extra soft and goes perfectly with Hope Valley.

"Here We Go" Diaper Bag

I finally finished a diaper bag I started over the weekend. Thankfully, my son has returned to sleeping at night and taking his naps - so I am feeling much better and sewing like a maniac.

I have wanted to make the "Here We Go" bag from Anna Maria Horner's Handmade Beginnings book for ages. Finding the best combination of 3 different fabrics proved to be the hardest part - I had the Viewfinders and Echino - but could not find another print to use as the handles, accent strip, and interior. I even bought 2.5 yds of a golden yellow polka dot that I thought would work (luckily it was on sale) - that is now added to my stash. Finally, over the holidays - I came across a red home dec pin dot print from the 2007 Denyse Schmidt County Fair collection. I bought it with the intention to use it in a Multi-Tasker tote, but was happy to learn it would go well with this project. I altered the pattern a bit by not including a divider (I've made one before for this diaper bag and found it very cumbersome to put together as well as not very useful in general), adding a key fob/tag, and skipping the bias tape option of finishing the bag. I am happy I made those alterations - much less work and it looks fine.

This bag uses a lot of that very stiff interfacing- Peltex. I love how it gives the bag such a sturdy shape. It will be interesting to see how it lasts over time.

I am planning to make a matching changing pad/diaper case soon.

Giveaway Winner and Weekend Accomplishments

Thanks to all those who entered the Quilter's Way giveaway. The random number generator chose #3: Rosa - who said she loves "Ruby." The most popular response for everyone's favorite collection from 2011 was Windham's Echo.

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My son finally graced us with two uninterrupted nights of sleep over the weekend, so I finally found some energy to work on a few projects. Here they are on my design wall: The plus quilt was a dream to make - one evening of cutting and arranging, another evening to put it together. It was so quick and I love the way it looks. My only regret is adding that "Swell" bird print - I realized too late that it is very "off white" while my other white prints are very bright.

To the side of the plus quilt is a quick beginning of a table topper I needed to make in preparation for the weekend's BMQG meeting. Unfortunately, we had to cancel the meeting due to the snowstorm on Saturday.

I also started a diaper bag that I hope to finish today. "Nesting" via sewing projects is a lot of fun.

Blog Tour: Last Stop for the Quilter's Way Kit Designer

Thanks to Quilter's Way for allowing me to participate in their Kit Designer blog tour. In case you were unaware, some of my friends from the BMQG have participated in this event earlier in the week: Alice, Jen, Aimee, and Pippa. We were all asked to review a new tool on the Quilter's Way website, Kit Designer, which allows you to design a custom quilt kit using templates and images of fabric from the shop's inventory.

I was immediately drawn to the Snow Stacks pattern and had fun adding fabrics from Lark, Modernology, Taza, Children at Play, Mod, and Kona and Designer Solids. You all know that I am trying to branch out from creating quilts solely out of one collection - so this is a great way to see how a bunch of prints work together that are not normally grouped together.

I have to say that I was impressed with the ease of the Kit Designer. I have had more trouble figuring out how to use a gift card code online than I did in designing a twin-sized quilt with this online tool. The only real trouble I had was in trying to figure out how to embed the image of what I had created into this blog post - but the link is here. I am not the most computer literate person, so I don't blame the QW software for my confusion!

I am pleased to host a Quilter's Way sponsored giveaway: four fat quarters of Amy Butler's Lark collection. I wasn't too sure if I liked Lark when I saw previews of it last year - but I can honestly say that it is one of my most favorite collections from 2011.
To enter the giveaway, please leave a comment on this post and tell me what your favorite collection is from 2011. International entries are welcome, no-reply blogger comments will be deleted. A winner will be chosen randomly on January 23. Good luck!

Progress

Thanks for all the love on my spiderweb quilt and encouragement to see the light at the end of the tunnel with this pregnancy. Gregory is continuing his torturous nocturnal shenanigans - BUT - instead of napping when he naps - yesterday, I decided to put together the spiderweb top. I am finding that if I nap during the day, I can't sleep at night - no matter what happens! I am so happy with how it came out and I am proud that I finally kept to having it be a reasonable size - a newborn does not need a twin sized quilt! Now I am ready to start my plan for a boy quilt. I sketched out my plan last night on some graph paper and referenced my friend Meaghan's tutorial. I have never done a "plus quilt" before but I am excited. I am using the fabrics I had pulled a while ago- post seen here.

Pink Spiderweb

I have had these triangle spiderweb pieces on my design wall for at least a week but no energy to blog about them. I am six weeks from my due date and admit to counting down the days at this point! Being pregnant is no picnic when you have an energetic 2 year old who has decided to keep an erratic sleep schedule lately as well as dealing with gestational diabetes. Denying a pregnant woman occasional indulgence in harmless cravings - like cereal, chocolate, and bread..... it's just not fair! (And lets face it - I never crave steamed broccoli or scrambled eggs - which is basically what I have been living on since October.)

Anyway - this is my second attempt at making a small baby girl quilt - I used a Sherbet Pips dot as the background and scraps from my stash to make it: I love the spiderweb block, I have only made one before (for a bee). I am predicting that maybe it will become my "dresden of 2012".......