Christmas Frogs

I’m getting the last of my Christmas sewing finished!  (Yes, next year I will start earlier.)  But for now, I’m playing with my froggy friends before I give them away.  Every year the girls in the family make a fun craft/toy/trinket to give to each other at Christmas.  Last year I made elephants and this year I made frogs!

I think they are so cute.

I’m having a hard time keeping my kids from taking off with them.  (They have already put in their requests.)

This one is Lucy.  I decided to keep her.  She’ll be my new quilting buddy.

I used the pattern from “Frog Patch” by Me and My Sister Designs.  I shrunk it in half then added a 1/4 inch back on to make it a little bigger.  I also filled them with plastic crafting beads to give them a fun bean bag feel.  They are extra fun to toss around and play with.

Stormy

Broken 9 patch quilt

One quilt down and one to go!  I’m running out of time too.  Luckily, the next one is small. Anyway, I have named this quilt “Broken 9 Patch”.  Unoriginal I know, but I don’t have the time to be imaginative this close to Christmas.  I designed this pattern and at some point will post the instructions.  But for now, it’ll make a great Christmas present.  (I decided to give another one away.)  It is made from the line “Pure” by Sweetwater. (Also, a slightly older fabric line.)

The lighting outside wasn’t the greatest, but it was afternoon lighting or nothing.

The binding, backing, and sashing are Hobby Lobby fabrics (because that’s the only fabric store I have here).  I really like how it turned out.

Sigh.  Will it always be this hard to give away quilts?

But now, I must make labels, frogs and a mug rug.  I’ll show ya later.  Gotta run….

Stormy

Vintage Rose Quilt

Christmas is getting closer and I’m sewing constantly.  But, what better way to spend your time?  I’ve decided to make a quilt for a family member every year for Christmas.  This year, I decided to make one for my husband’s dad and step-mom.  I LOVE how it turned out!  It is made from the fabric line “Vintage Rose” by Nancy Odom that I bought years ago.  I used the pattern “Family Tradition” from the November/December 2012 McCall’s Quilting Magazine.  I thought it was appropriate!

It looks so pretty framed by the fall leaves.

At first, I was worried about putting on such a dark binding, but now I love the contrast.  It frames the quilt beautifully.

I also love how the green floral on the back contrasts with all the solid cream on the front.

Oh, and one more love…. checkerboard quilts. 

I may need to make another one of these for me…

Stormy

My Mug Rug

I had no idea what a mug rug was two weeks ago.  I must be out of the loop.  My sister called me to tell me how fun and easy it was to make one.  My thoughts?  I’d rather make a quilt.  Until…. this week the same sister introduced me to herbal teas.  Yum!  I didn’t know what I was missing.  Now, I’m afraid I’ve gone a bit tea crazy.  Of course I wanted a mug rug now! (Or, maybe I should call it a tea mat…. or tea quilt?)  What else would I use to go along with my collection of cute little tea cups?

It was so fun to make!  I designed it, pieced it, quilted it and sewed on the binding in just over two hours.

Stats: Riley Blake fabric – Felicity

Size: 10in x 12in

Fabric pieces:

Large floral  - 3 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches and 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches

Plaid  -  2 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches

Medallion – 3 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches and 2 1/2 x 7 1/2 inches

Polka Dot – 3 1/2 x 10 1/2 inches

Geometric – Border around large floral – (2) 1 1/2 x 6 1/2 in. strips and (2) 1 1/2 x 3 1/2 in. strips.  You will also need a  1 1/2 x 10 1/2 inch strip and for binding a 2 1/2 x 50 inch strip.

I used a light weight batting and for the backing, a slightly larger rectangle of the large floral.  About a 12 x 14 piece.

It was fun quilting it too!  Some of the lines are not as straight as I would have wanted, (the side strip on purpose) but considering I had a three year old in my lap, I think it turned out pretty good.

This won’t be the last mug rug you see here…..

Stormy

Mom’s Block of the Month Sampler

I’m finally posting a finished project!  Yeah!  My husband (one of my most avid followers) pointed out that many of my recent posts have been from the past.  There is a reason for that.  I have been in charge of a church Christmas dinner, and have made a wedding jacket for a friend.  I’ve done most of my Christmas shopping, and have cooked Thanksgiving dinner and made six pies!  I’ve bottled about 40 jars of blueberry and blackberry pie filling, and helped my husband bottle 40 lbs of chicken and chicken soup.  I’ve had kids home from school for a week and have been cutting out a new quilt.  On top of all of this I’ve been being a normal, busy mom of five kids.  I just haven’t had a lot of time!  But, now many of my time consuming activities are in the past and I have lots of more time to quilt and more time to post about it!  Wahoo!

I believe that if you have a long to do list, you should start with the hardest, most time consuming item first.  On my list, that item was my mom’s block of the month quilt.

My two sisters, my mom, and I all belonged to a Block of the Month group.  We signed up two years in a row and added all the blocks together.  My mom is the only one of us to finish.  Yeah mom! The quilt ended up being quite large, so she asked me to quilt it for her on my mid-arm quilting machine.

She was specific on how she wanted it quilted.  (I normally just quilt an all over pattern.)

I have never quilted this much on a quilt before.  I think it turned out great.

I’ve had it since July and I’m taking it back to her when we go home for Christmas. 

I hope you like it mom!

Stormy