It's done! (FNSI Results!)

Well, my Friday Night Sew-In turned into a Saturday morning sew-in, due to some unexpected houseguests last night, but I have finished up all the goodies that are going along with my pillow for the Pillow Talk Swap!
There's the pillow, a mug rug, a drawstring bag (I used this tutorial--so fast and easy!), and some leftover triangles cut by my Go! Cutter for my partner to use however they see fit! Believe it or not, ALL of these were made using less than a fat quarter of each of the prints!

Now I am not sure if I am more excited to receive my own pillow or for my partner to receive hers! Making a trip to the post office on Monday! Should be a nice Christmas surprise for her :)

Some more finished stuff and a giveaway with a CAUSE!

So I finished the last two Halloween totes... I played around a bit with the measurements on each one, so they aren't all COMPLETELY identical.And here are all three:
And my niece got the dress I made for her yesterday to celebrate her first day of preschool and she loves it! I am just so glad it fits (it ended up a little longer than I intended but thats okay), since it was a surprise, I couldn't just ask her measurements, and living several states away makes it hard to get them on the sly. Here she is enjoying her dress:

Okay, so usually I only blog about giveaways I enter that I REALLY want to win.... This time, (although I would really love to win the charm packs) it is more about loving what she's doing. Jennifer is having a giveaway here for THREE charm packs and a pattern.... but what I find more impressive is that she is also training to participate in the Nike Women's Marathon coming up VERY soon in San Francisco, benefitting the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society... Her info and support page is HERE. I am waiting until Shaine gets home to see if we can spare a little more to donate, but seeing as how we already donated to support my old Army friend, Reinalyn, who is preparing for the same race, he may say no.

Trick or Treat Bag! (and in just one naptime!)

So I finally got around to making the trick or treat bag I said I was going to! Here it is all finished:
(I know I still gotta work on finding some beautiful background spot for showcasing my finished projects!)

There are TWO great things about this bag.... 1- I made it with the Halloween Night fabric I won in a giveaway at 44th Street Fabric and some leftover black linen I had from the laptop bag I made my sister (which means I didn't SPEND anything!)... and 2- I finished it all except the top stitching around the top during one naptime!

I am going to make two more, each using a different print of the Halloween Night fabric, one for each of Cullen's little friends, since we are planning on taking them all trick or treating together.
Cullen likes it (sorry the picture is so dark! Probably better that way, since as you can see the room is still "under construction" and getting ready for the new baby, so its a bit of a mess!) It's the perfect size for him to be able to carry around, especially since there's still another three months to go :)

Here is an in progress picture that I took, you can sort of see the angled wavy lines I did for the quilting. I used flannel in place of batting, simply because the only batting I had on hand was super puffy extra loft, and I like how flannel still allows the bags I make to be "quilted" and flexible, without being TOO flimsy (like the first pieced bag I did, with only super light interfacing).The "C" is raw edge applique, and was supposed to be "drippy" (think the old titles of the Goosebumps books), but I am not 100% pleased with how it turned out, but after fusing it on, and stitching it, I decided to stick with it. Anyway, as always, the first one is a "test run", and I made a few mistakes while "flattening" the bottom, but it still works, and only other "crafters" would ever notice. I know what I did wrong, though, so the next two will be perfect. I am really pleased all my measurements worked out, since I sketched it all up this morning on the sketch pad I FINALLY bought myself. I also sketched out the layout and measurements for the I Spy quilt I want to make. Who knew it would be so hard finding diverse scraps worthy of an I Spy Quilt??

Christmas in July!

I am signed up to partake in the Christmas in July Blitz over at Monkey Dog Quilts, to work on Christmas-y projects for people on our list (I could use the time and headstart, that's for sure!) Well, we are supposed to post updates and progress every Thursday, so here goes :)


This is the laptop bag I am making for my sister. I know, I know, it's not a CHRISTMAS project, but its the only thing I have been able to work on lately. It is all finished now but the picture is from before I put it all together:






My first try doing a zipper pocket... You can see it's puckered a little bit, but since it's on the inside, I am not too worried about it ;) I can not for the life of me find "carbine hooks" for the straps ANYWHERE... Michael's had ONE, and Walmart, Joann's, Hancock's, and Hobby Lobby didn't have any... So, I haven't done the strap yet. I might just do a simple one with bias tape, like the tutorial does, and then if/when I ever find the hooks I can make one, send it to her, and she can cut the other one off.

What I DID do that was Christmas related, however, is I decided on what to do with my Fruitcake jelly roll! I am going to make a Christmas quilt, inspired a little bit by this tutorial at MBS, and of course make it more Christmas-y... I bet you can figure out my plans already! So I apologize for not having any Christmassy pictures to show, but that is some PROGRESS, right?

And on a non-Christmas related note, I am now almost 35 weeks, and the doctor has taken me off of the bedrest (ha, like I really got any rest as a SAHM to an almost two year old and two big dogs!) and says if the labor happens now, they won't stop it. Honestly, I am terrified! Yesterday was one of those days where everything was irritating me (and it was all stuff that would have whether I was pregnant or not, the hormones just made it far worse), and I just keep thinking how if sometimes just ONE child tries my patience in such a hard way, what am I going to do when I have two and both are in monstermode?

34 weeks with Aubree:
I AM ready to get my body back, however! I am hoping the weight loss this time will go like it did last time! My weight GAIN is just about the same for both, although I think I am at just a little bit less right now than I had gained at the same point with Cullen... 35 weeks with Cullen:
My pre-pregnancy weight was the EXACT same (based on first dr visit, both at about 6 weeks along) for each (163), and I was 185 at Cullen's birth (and 145 a week later!!) so I put on 22 lbs, and most of that was literally THE last week--coincidentally also when the stretch marks *gasp!* showed up.. I am at 174 according to the Doc's scale on Tuesday. To those who think that isn't enough, please understand that I had weight to lose in the beginning (I SHOULD be between 140-155 lbs for my height and muscle content), and horrible morning sickness the first SIX months last time, and FOUR this time! I had an Ultrasound on Tuesday as well, to check on the baby (last time around I had an emergency one at 30 weeks because I had only put on 6 lbs at that point, they were worried he wasn't growing), and she's head down and nearly 6 lbs already. They are estimating she will be around 8.5lbs at birth if I go to full term, which is more than a whole pound more than Cullen, who was 7lb 4oz! (I was 8lb 10oz, my poor mom!) Either way, I don't think I will make it past Mid August... Due date is Sept 5, my stepmom is betting on this Saturday (yikes! we are not ready for THAT soon!) and everyone else has scattered their bets throughout August/early Sept. Anyone want to put their vote in?

I'm still around!

It's been awhile since I posted! Things have been hectic lately: out of town visitors, doctor's appointments, playdates, and now Shaine is getting his wisdom teeth pulled today! Poor baby... I know he is not going to take it well. I tell him it's a good thing he only gets sick once or twice a year, because the moment he experiences the slightest pain, sickness, or discomfort he turns into a big baby!

I have managed to get a few things done in the last 11 days:

A purse for my stepmother. This one is SO much better than my last one! I also used a thicker interfacing so it's still a "fabric" purse, but alot less flimsy! I even tried my hand with a zipper for the first time, and I made this:












Then, I decided to finally try something I had been eyeing over at Moda Bake shop, and I made these using this tutorial:The first picture is brighter because we finally got a new digital camera, so I don't have to take all the pictures with my phone! Anyway, Aubree's was the first time I tried free motion quilting, and I did just wavy lines. Aniya's I tried a wandering "pattern". I didn't draw it out first either time, and I'm sure some of you more experienced quilters can tell, but I still absolutely love both, and am really proud of them for a "first try". I can't wait to keep making stuff to get better at it! I still have to work on seam allowances, apparently, because it ended up being a bit smaller than it was supposed to be :/ I am hoping to have them finished up in the next week or so, but I have lots of other stuff going on.

I also won another giveaway at 44th Street Fabric! Great Halloween Night fabric (and Bev is doing another AMAZING giveaway right now, too!):

I think I may just have to make some cute "trick or treat" tote bags for Cullen and his friends, since this year he will be able to get into it alot more! He was a zebra for Halloween last year, but we didn't go trick or treating, he just helped pass out candy to the kids that came by... At 12 months old, he didn't need the candy, and neither did mommie!

My first bag!

So I finally broke into the Moda Freebird Charm pack I won. I had been planning to use it to make a bag/purse, but just didn't know what I wanted to do. I love following tutorials, and I think it's amazing that people are nice enough to take their time to show beginners like me how to make great things. For a long time, I had this tutorial from MBS open in an extra tab, planning to use the charms to make that bag, but decided that it didn't completely fit what I had in mind... So, while I was debating about it, I happened to find an old purse of mine in the garage:


I bought it in Chinatown in San Francisco back in 2005, and as you can see, it was VERY well loved and well used for a long time! So, without actually FOLLOWING the tutorial, I took ideas from that purse (the pieced top and placement of the straps), and ideas from the Chinatown purse (the solid border and more "rectangle-ish" look) and voila!- this came together:


It is definitely FAR from perfect, but I absolutely love how it came out, and since it is just for me the imperfections are okay. I love tutorials, but sometimes its even better to just sketch out some ideas, work out some measurements, fly by the seat of your pants, and see what comes of it! A very small part of me wishes I had used some.... less loved.... fabric, and not immediately used the charm pack, but there is still about half leftover for something else... Hmm Maybe a matching coupon clutch? Those are so fun to make!

I did learn a few things I will have to remember for the next bag I make, however:

• I need stronger/thicker interfacing. I thought it would be okay since it worked so well for the coupon clutch, but I guess because of the way it was folded, it already was much thicker than this simple tote.
• I need a new technique for the straps (probably SHOULD have followed the tutorial for that part, the way it is done there is much easier, and would have come out much nicer, but I wanted to use fewer charms)
• Stronger fabric for the interior lining. I used a pale yellow from my stash that coordinates with the exterior beautifully, but I am worried that it is so thin, that even my keys might one day poke a hole in the bag.
  
• The brown I used for the borders is from Moda Marbles, and I absolutely love it! It came in a box from Heidi (from Handmade by Heidi) when she was giving away loads of fabric and scraps when she was getting ready to move. I only have scraps of the brown left now, but I do have lots of blue on the shelf. I love how great patterned fabrics look mixed with solids, but I just don't like buying solids alot. The marbles, to me, are a great alternative! You still get the one color, but with some illusion of texture!

There were some other things when I was thinking about it in my head last night, but of course I can't remember now! Oh, and -once again- I apologize for the picture quality... Best I can do right now, but SUNDAY Shaine comes home with the new digital camera he bought. Did I mention that he broke my old one (the one who had been through a deployment, a pregnancy, cross country move, and the birth and first 18 months of my sons life). I was quite partial to it, after more than two years, desert, sand, and international trips, it still worked great, held a charge for a long time, and had GREAT picture quality (12MP). Somehow Shaine thought it would be a good idea to put it in his checked baggage-- the big duffel bag with all his shoes, clothes, and random uniform items-- on his way back from Italy. The conversation when he got home and turned it on to try to show me the pictures was actually quite amusing...

Shaine-- "Babe, I think you're going to be mad at me?"
Me-- "Why is that?"
Shaine-- "Because I think I broke your camera..."
Me-- "Oh no, sad, but not mad, because now you get to buy me a new one!"

That was about a month ago, and we would have gotten a new one sooner, but Shaine graciously allowed me to switch around our "wishlist" priorities so that I got my sewing machine sooner. Until he gets home though, we have to settle for iphone pictures. Now, I just have to find some beautifully scenic area in my house/yard that I can display things when I take pictures.... It seems all of you bloggers live in houses that look like they came out of magazines! I see beautiful furniture, hardwood floors, fabulous decorations, amazing patios, green GRASS (we just have weeds. It's green, at least, and better than the dirt patch we had for a back yard a few weeks ago, but still mostly weeds). I'm jealous of you all!