It's in the Bag - Island Batik Blog Hop

Welcome to my day of the hop! For this blog hop, Island Batik Ambassadors are showing off new Island Batik fabrics lines hitting shops now or heading that way super quick and to show them off this month were were challenged to make bags! And not just any bags. Bags by byAnnie.

I got to choose the bag pattern I wanted to make and Annie graciously sent all the items needed to make it. I was super excited for this project.

I chose the Divide and Conquer pattern because I was really wanted to make those mesh pockets on the inside and also thought it would be fun to have a cool quilted over night bag.

To make the bag, I was sent three fabrics from the Mandala Magic collection by Jackie Kunkel of Canton Village Quilt Works. Check out all the prints in this line, each one is fabulous! 

This pattern comes with an add on video, which I highly recommend watching. It helps oodles when trying to make this bag. Particularly on nights when your tired and the words on the pattern start to blur. The videos are your new best friends.

When I first picked the pattern I didn't think about all the work that would go into this bag. Later when I watched the ad on videos and saw all the steps and tough parts, I thought, "What did I get myself into!" But in the video at one point Annie tells you to take a break if you need to and to take it slow. Best advice ever, specially for those tough binding sections.

At some points I thought this bag would conquer me, but I came out victorious and it was worth it. I do have some boo boos in this but they will stay. My major boo boo happened when I started putting the bag together. After I made all the pieces for the bag I was so excited to sew the bag pieces together, that I didn't realize I sewed the mesh pocket on the back side of one of the vinyl pockets, so the zipper is on the inside of the pocket.... ugh.

While I was making it, I didn't think anything of it because I could open and close the zipper the whole time, that is until I put the front panel on and then I realized what I had one....oh boy, I wasn't about to take all that out. I can still open the zipper though so I am good.

The saying measure twice, cut once should go along with double check your layout twice before sewing. Haha! Even with my boonked up zipper placement the bag still looks fantastic and I have a one of a kind over night bag.

I used a nice peach Aurifil thread and a nice bright purple to put all this together with.

And of course a schmetz needle. I only broke one needle during this whole project, and it wasn't even when I was sewing through all the layers. By a fluke I hit the teeth on the vinyl zipper in just the right spot and snap, the needed was a goner. My machine and needle handled everything else super nice. It even went through all the layers of everything no problem. Of course, I did go super slow as suggested in the videos.

Check out all the patterns at byAnnie, and her supplies. I really liked using the zippers by the yard. They were fun and easy to work with. 

Go visit Connie today too to see her Mandala Magic bag.

You can also check out all the other bags being made for the hop by stopping by the Island Batik Blog. Also this week Island Batik is giving a chance for someone to win their lovely Island Batik fabrics. Use the Rafflecopter to enter. If the Rafflecopeter is not working on my site, you can enter on the Island Batik Blog site as well. It is the same Rafflecopter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Sewing!

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Pastel Dresden Plates

I finally got back to my sewing machine.  I finished up my Black and White Plus One Quilt and then didn't sew anything for weeks. Now I am back at it and have been working on my pastel dresdens.  

I found a new layout I want to use for this quilt which uses 18 dresden blocks.

 I only had 12 so I had to make six more. 

I didn't have enough of the same fabrics I used in the first 12 dresden plates, so I improvised.

When it is all together I doubt anyone will know I have a few different greens and yellows.

I also put together another lined drawstring bag.

I initially made this to deliver some cookies, but I all the cookies didn't fit,

so I will save this for another gift giving occasion.

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End of the year Wrap Up

Wow, a whole month has gone by with no blog posts.  The month of December had very little time at the computer, which is a rare thing for me.  I did get a little sewing done but not as much as I would have liked. I haven't even completed any goals on my Fourth Quarter Finish-A-Long list.  I was so busy with work and vacation and holiday stuff that I didn't even get a chance to blog or have time to to take fancy photos.  Instead I have some late night cell phone pics, not the best, but still better than no photos at all.

So this post will be a December Recap and a 2014 recap. 

Before we left on vacation, I finished up a few sewing projects.  

First up is the first of two T-shirt quilts for a client.   (I'm finishing up the second one this week)

This is a small quilt using only four shirts. The backs of the t-shirts had some words printed on the back as well so I added them in the quilt.

Next up are the items I made for the "Twas the Night" blog hop:
a foldable needle holder, some small snap bags, crochet dish scrubbers, and a cute little Christmas bag to put wrap them all. These all went to Jane for the blog hop. She posted them on her blog during the hop, but I wanted to post them here as well.

  

I also made a few more snap bags as Christmas presents for some special friends of mine. 

Then it was time to hit the high seas.  We took another cruise this year for our family Christmas present and had a wonderful time.  We went to Jamaica, Grand Turk, and Nassau.  

We got back in time to spend the holidays with extended family and before I knew it December was coming to a close.

Even though the last quarter of the year was slower behind the machine than usual, I was very productive for the rest of the year.  Here is my collage of Finished Quilts for 2014.

Next up is my collage of the Smaller Projects I completed in 2014.

I'd say the year as a whole was a pretty good one at the machine.

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Rush Hour Blog Hop

Lets jump right into to the Rush Hour Hop!

Red and Black is one of my favorite color combos. Add a little white and gray and you have a marvelous color palette that begs to have quilts made out of it.

I ordered several different half yards and some full yards of the Rush hour line and used up almost every bit of it.  These first two quilts were both made in five days.  Now that is rushing it for a quilter!

First up is my Strip Tube quilt.   This quilt went together pretty quick.

I cut out and sewed the top in one day.

Then I quilted it the next day.  A two day quilt!

It is a nice lap size measuring 64 x 46 inches.

I grabbed some Red, black, and white from my stash for the back.

Far away it looks like gingham, but a close up reveals that it is a slightly different pattern.

When I made my strip quilt I cut up this light gray building fabric to go in it, but it was too light and didn't mix well in the strip quilt. Instead of putting the strips in my 2.5 inch scrap bin I decided to come up with an idea to use them right away.  They ended up being the perfect color to go in the center of the long and short blocks of my "Smell the Flowers" Quilt.

 It is originally called "I'm Blushing" and is a pattern on Moda Bake Shop designed by Natalia from Piece N Quilt.  I cut and sewed the top in one day.

The applique took another day - I'm slow with that part.  Then I quilted it on the third day.

That is what you call quilter's rush hour!

I had to add some extra red and blacks from my stash to finish up the top of this quilt.

I am happy that all the fabrics play well together.

This one measures 74 x 56 inches.

More black, reds, and whites from my stash for the back.

The quilting shows up really well on the back.

I still had a little more fabric so I made some bags.

You can never have enough bags.

When I am rushing to get out of the house for weekend trips it is nice to have all my stuff packed in a small bag for me to grab and head out the door.

The first bag is the Jet Set Bag from ByAnnie.
I was drawn to it right away because of its shape.

I love the inside fabric with the clocks and people on the move.

The next bag is a recreation of my old Avon makeup bag that had seen better days.  It was my favorite makeup bag to take on trips because it fit everything I needed in the makeup department. Instead of chucking the old bag in in the trash, I took it apart and used the pieces as a pattern to make a brand new bag.

The clock lining up on the inside was a happy coincidence.

Phew! The sewing machine has been rushing this month for sure.

Check out the other bloggers who are Rushing along with me today.

Friday, September 26

The Quilting Queen Online

Quilting Quietly

Vicky Myers Creations

Grammie Q’s

From This to That

Quilted Delights  (Me)

Check out the whole schedule here.

Thanks to Carol and Mdm Samm for hosting this great hop!

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See You in September Blog Hop

My summer was mostly spent making memories with the family and playing in the lakes and waterfalls of South Carolina. We took several weekend trips and had one full week of camping fun.

As far as making things at the sewing machine, I spent a lot of time finishing up some UFO's, which I have been blogging about throughout the summer. I am always trying to whittle down my UFO pile but I always like to start new projects - probably why the UFO pile never gets smaller. Luckily this hop gave me incentive to start and FINISH three new projects this summer.

First on the list, I made another Ruffle tote with pockets.  The first one was made in March for the Ruffles blog hop and I made it to carry my drawing pad. When my Mom saw it, she told me if it was just a couple inches bigger it would be the perfect bag to carry her iPad around.
So I made another one this summer and made it a couple inches bigger just for her.

I also took some pictures as I made it and turned it into a pattern. It is my first attempt at making a pattern so I am offering it for free at Craftsy just for this blog hop. You can click the link at the top right on the blog or click here to go to Craftsy to get the pattern.

The bottom.

Here are both totes together.
You can see the new one is slightly taller, it is also an inch wider,
Perfect for iPads or any other tech pad.

For my next project I started out with this pile of lovelies.

This was my first time working with Riley Blake Gingham and I must say it is wonderful fabric to work with.  In the past I would avoid gingham in my projects because every other gingham I came across was flimsy, very light weight, and would cut all wonky.  Riley Blake is just the opposite.  It is soft and thick and wonderful to work with.  I will definitely be using Riley Blake's gingham the next time I need more for a project.

I turned some of that yummy goodness above into the quilt below.

I first saw this quilt block on Geta's blog. She calls it a modern dresden, but I like to call it Wagon Wheels or Steering Wheels because that is what I think of when I look at it. I've seen others call it windmills, dresden fans, and sunburst.  No matter the name, I love the block and when I first saw it, I put it on my quilt "to do" list.  It stayed there a long time though because I could never decide which fabrics to use.  During the summer I found out that gingham makes a wonderful Wagon Wheel quilt.  

When I was working on the layout of the blocks I split the quilt in two and put one of each color on the top and one on the bottom, but my son said if I move the red and yellow around every color would be opposite each other in the same way a knight moves on the chess board.  So I swapped the yellow and the red blocks and now each color can find its mate if it goes over two and down one or vise-verse.  I suppose I could also name the quilt "Knight's Movement".  So many names to choose from.

The quilt is 47 inches wide, just a few inches wider than most fabric, so I went for an easy pieced backing.

While cutting the strips for my Wagon Wheel quilt, each strip left me with two scrap dresden plates.  Just enough for one more mismatched block.  I decided to turn that into a pillow.  I finished it up with a band of dark blue gingham and stuffed it, leaving just enough room for it to squish up nice and soft when you hug it.

 My final project was a hedgehog coin purse.  When I first saw this on Craft Passion I knew I had to have one of my very own.  I think she turned out fantastic with her pink gingham quills.  

Thanks for stopping by to see my summer projects.
Be sure to check out the other hoppers today and see what they have been working on

Wednesday, September 10
Secretly Stitching
Buzzing and Bumbling
Quilt n Queen
Quilted Delights (Me)
Grandmama's Stories 

To see the whole Schedule, wonderfully hosted by Shari and Mdm Samm, click here.

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