In the Sewing Room ~ Dolly and Me Dresses

When our little Anna (age 5 then) was visiting with us a few months ago, she came out of the sewing room with two pieces of fabric and asked me to make her a dress. She had chosen the fabric she wanted for the top and the one she wanted for the skirt. How could I resist?

Of course there's not much time for serious sewing while the grands are visiting, but I told Anna that I would have the dress ready for her when she visited the next time. So in anticipation of their expected visit next week, I made her dress adding a third fabric for the lining and at the waist to visually tie her two chosen fabrics together. Added a little embellishment and made a matching dolly dress. Just need to hem it when I see how much she's grown between visits. The kiddos are always inches taller with each visit!

Even though we have to postpone getting the grands for a few weeks now (distance is no friend to families), I know Anna will love the dress when she comes in a few weeks. Anna has dress love. Can't wait to see her in it!

Craftsy Class Marathon

Craftsy offered a 24-hour all-you-can-watch free online video classes today, so I watched and listened and sewed and learned a lot of new-to-me techniques. I didn't do the entire marathon, but I did put in as much time as I could.

If you aren't familiar with Craftsy, it's an online platform for classes, tutorials, projects, and supplies for just about anything creative you can imagine. Most of the classes I've taken have been sewing, quilting, cooking, and baking, but they have many more to choose from, like gardening, art, knitting, photography, woodworking, jewelry, weaving, spinning, upholstery, furniture upcycling, and on and on. 

Classes are taught by well-known experts in their field and have downloadable materials lists and class information. Once you purchase the class, you can watch anytime forevermore. If you'd like to know more, you can click on the image and it will take you to Craftsy. Hint: If you decide to take a class, begin with just one. They frequently offer sales on classes, and once you're on their email list, you'll be getting offers you just might not be able to resist!

From the Sewing Room ~ Flannel Sheets for Anna

Finished the bed sheets today for our little Anna. It's cold up north this time of the year, and she had asked her mommy for some flannel sheets. Since those are hard to find for her toddler-sized bed, Elizabeth asked if I could make them for her. I was happy to do that, of course! A labor of love!

I had made crib sheets when Anna was younger, so I just adjusted the size a bit and followed the tutorial I had done back then. The bottom sheet has scattered hearts. The top sheet is a pink and white pin stripe, and the pillowcase matches both sheets.

If you'd like to make sheets for your little one, just click on the image and it will take you to the tutorial.

Thinking about our Anna as she snuggles in the for the night.
Sweet dreams, my dear little one!

From the Sewing Room ~ Refurbished Vintage Quilt

I've spent several days over the past couple of weeks refurbishing a quilt that I had made for our daughter when she was a little girl. I didn't think about putting a label on it back then, but I made it sometime in the 1980s. She had a similar baby quilt that a friend had made back in 1978, which my daughter loved until it literally wore out. She wanted another like it when she was older, so I made a similar one, only larger so she could use it on her bed. Her baby quilt had a green ruffle, but when I made the larger one, I used yellow and white eyelet to match her bedroom.



 

The quilt is twin size with 8-inch gingham blocks, cotton eyelet and gingham ruffle. I had originally just tacked it with embroidery thread at the corners of the blocks, but after all the years, the thread had pulled holes in some of the blocks, and I needed to replace a few. I didn't know much about fabric quality back in the day, so the quality of my fabric choice wasn't what I'd use now.  I found a few colors in a couple of quilt shops, but that fabric quality didn't blend very well with what I had originally used. I did find some similar quality at JoAnn's and Walmart, though, and it's difficult to tell the old blocks from the new ones.


I pulled all of the embroidery thread tacking out and took the quilt layers apart. The batting was in need of replacement, so to make the quilt lightweight since we now live in the south, I used flannel as the batting in refurbishing. I left the eyelet and ruffle attached to three sides of the quilt top, and sewed the layers together as if it were a big pillowcase. I kept the original gingham backing and quilted in the ditch so there wouldn't be as much pulling on the corners of the blocks.



The original quilt had the eyelet and ruffling all around, but I removed it from the top edge and replaced it with binding made from the new gingham fabric. I decided to add a little of Nana's personal touch there and do a little hand quilting to cuddle my little granddaughter's neck as she lies beneath it. :-)  I've put it on the bed that she sleeps in whenever she's visiting.









We'll get to see our sweet Anna again in a couple of months, and I think she'll like the new-to-her quilt. :-)  (Love your smile, Sweetie!)

From The Sewing Room ~ A Puppy Quilt

Sharing a picture today of my latest quilt, made for our newest grandbaby. His bedroom theme is puppies, and his mommy sent a photo of her "imagined nursery" with a similar quilt hanging on the wall behind the baby bed. I'm supposing it was a quilt, although I couldn't see any quilting on it. That quilt had three other animals, which I changed to puppies. The center background is a light gray, which coordinates with her rocker. Below is a close-up of the quilting.

The puppies are quilted in mini-meandering, with a medium meandering in the gray background. The orange stripes are sort of a ziggy-zaggy quilting, and the white stripes are a flowing vertical back and forth quilting. I tried a new-to-me quilting design in all the navy negative space. It's a variation of tiling filled with meandering. I learned this design in an Angela Walters Craftsy class. She showed how to do it on a long arm machine, which looked pretty simple--on a long arm machine. It was much more of a challenge on my home machine, but I was able to make it look pretty good as I struggled along. I probably wouldn't use that design again, though, unless it was a smaller quilt that was easier to manage. If you'd like to see a bit more of an explanation of Angela's design, you can see it here.

In the Sewing Room

We had planned to meet some new friends for breakfast, but I woke up with a bad cold this morning. Started feeling bad last night at bedtime, and had hoped to sleep it off, but that didn't happen. So it was disappointing to wake up feeling like this and not be able to meet up.  

I haven't felt like doing much all day. Not much except for spending a little time in my sewing room between naps. I've been blessed in our new house with a bonus room that has become my sewing room. I've been unpacking boxes in there off and on since we moved in, and it's coming together little by little. Still lots to do, though. Lots of sunlight pouring in through the windows, but that's one thing I love about the room--lots of windows and the morning sun! I enjoy seeing the room of the morning, but I sew in the afternoon when the sun is on the other side of house. My machine is right in front of the middle windows, so sewing in the direct sunlight would be difficult, anyway.

I unpacked a couple of fabric boxes today and did some sorting and arranging. I like having my fabric out as part of the decor and seeing it as I come into the room. It inspires me! I still have my blacks and whites to pull out...not sure where they're going to go, though. Looks like I need to get busy sewing and use up some of that fabric! I've heard that there's a sewing group at our new church that sews for charity. Hoping to get involved with them after things settle at the house a little more. 

A bright spot to my day--Elijah lost another tooth and texted a picture with a special note: "I loooooooove y'all superb much!!!!!!!!" Sure wish we could take him out for a doughnut to celebrate! Too many miles between. 

I'm sometimes asked what I like about sewing / quilting, and if I'm "very heavy into it." I do enjoy the labor of love in making things to give and it reins in my thoughts when I get to missing my precious grandchildren. So some days I'm very, very heavy into it.

Sew, Nana, Sew!! 

Small and Simple, But Oh, So Essential!

There it is, right where I left it. Small, but sew essential!

I wasn't sure if I would go to quilt class today. We were under a flood watch with heavier rains expected toward the afternoon, and I don't like driving on the interstate in the rain, even though it's just a 20-minute drive. But since the class was in the morning, I figured I would be back before any flooding. Wanting to spend some time at the quilt shop outweighed my concern on the highway. Some of you know how that is!

So, after driving carefully (and being annoyed by all the trucks throwing water and making it difficult to see), I arrived at the quilt shop, got everything unpacked, my little iron and sewing machine plugged in, and sat down to thread the machine. What's this? No bobbin case? Ugh!! I had absent-mindedly forgot to put it back into the machine in my preparations to leave. No bobbin case, no sewing.

So, I chatted a bit, drooled over some fabric, purchased a fat quarter, and headed home, thinking that, at least, I would be getting safely home before any flooding. Hauling my gear back upstairs to the sewing room, there it was.... I had left the bobbin case on the sewing cabinet as I had packed up to head out this morning.

Some things are essential, no matter how small or simple. A bobbin case...not much to it. A Bernina machine (er, excuse me, a Bernina computer), that I'm sure I don't understand a fraction of what it can do. But it wasn't capable of doing anything at quilt class today without that one simple, small, essential part. 

We're all essential in some way, even if it's a simple, small way. Some things just don't function without us. And if you're a child of God, you're gifted in some particular way. There's purpose in your gift that's bigger than you.

As each one has received a gift, 

employ it in serving one another 

as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 

~ 1 Peter 4:10 ~

I spent some afternoon time in my sewing room, alone, working on today's quilt class assignment. Here's my progress .....

From the Sewing Room ~ Prairie Star Posies

I had completed Kim Diehl's Prairie Star Posies wall quilt recently, but wasn't quite satisfied with it after it was hung over the bed. Looking at it day after day, I realized that some of the stamen in the posies just weren't the right fabric choices. So, I replaced a few of them today, and I think it looks much better.

Here's a little closer view. 

The quilt measures 40 x 40 and is made up of squares and half-square triangle units. It was an easy pattern, with the bulk of the work in the applique. I used Kim's applique technique using freezer paper. It's machine appliqued with monofilament thread, which is practically invisible and allows the fabric to be seen and not the thread. When I replaced the few stamen, I hand appliqued with silk thread. Silk thread is almost invisible, too, and gives a nice finish to the applique.

I enjoy hand quilting small projects in the evenings, which is what I did on this quilt.

The back shows the quilting better.

 

There was one quilt in Kim's selections for the book that there wasn't room for,. If you click on the book, it will take you to the Martingale site for a free download of the 60 x 60 quilt Buttercream Crisp, with checkerboard blocks, as well as a free bonus download for a table runner.  Now that's pretty thoughtful!

Linking up today with crazy mom quilts for Finish It Up Friday. If you're a quilter, you'll want to check it out. Lots and lots of inspiration over there!

In The Sewing Room

I spent some time this afternoon in the sewing room while My Beloved had an appointment and ran some errands. I made some progress on my kaleidoscope quilt that I'm gifting, but alas, I think I'm going to take it out. I don't care for the tan that I added. I was trying to use fabric that I had in my stash and not go out in this cold weather, but it isn't working.

I'm not quite sure what to use in the secondary blocks instead. The color wheel says a mauve. Maybe that's what I should go with. The carpet I laid the kaleidoscopes on to take a picture is mauve, and it highlighted them well.

Hmmm. Maybe the green I have them set in should be mauve instead. No, no. Too much ripping. And her favorite color is green, which is why I chose it. Maybe I shouldn't have a secondary block going on at all, just the kaleidoscopes and sashing. But I think the secondary blocks would give the quilt some variety.

The weather forecast is calling for dangerous driving conditions here tomorrow, so I won't be able to go to the quilt shop until Tuesday (closed Mondays). You'd think in all the fabric stash I have that I would have something that would work!
 
This is one of the kaleidoscope blocks that shows the colors. Any ideas on what to switch out the tan for? Maybe the mauve?  Well, I have a few days to think about it. I'll work on something else in the meanwhile.  Like maybe catch up on my quilt class homework!

If the weather is keeping you inside, I hope you have something pleasant to do as well. Stay warm and safe!
                                                                  ~ Vickie

The Simple Woman's Daybook

Today I join with others in The Simple Woman’s Daybook group, a weekly journal page that focuses on simple thoughts and simple living. My leads are somewhat similar to others in the group, but somewhat different as well. You may also like to read what some other simple women are saying and doing these days. Hope you can stop by again soon!

Outside my window....

Light snow falling and birds at the feeder site outside my kitchen window. We do enjoy watching the birds feed while we have our own meals. A constant reminder that if God so cares for the sparrows (and cardinals, towhees, tufted titmouses, chickadees, finches...), He cares even more for all of us.

Thankful for....

A warm home. It’s a verrrry cold  9 degrees this morning!

Noticing the sound of ….

The furnace. My Beloved had the electricity off for a little while working on the generator wiring. (Making sure all is reading in case we need it!) Sooo good to hear the furnace back on!

Looking forward to….

Hearing from my mother about her doctor’s visit today.

Learning…
I tried to put music on my blog. Couldn’t figure it out, and learned, anyway, that it competes with other links that I might want to include in a post. Decided against it. Still trying to learn why the formatting goes wacky on my posts sometimes. Arghh!!

Pondering these words....

“There's no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one. “
        ~ Jill Churchill
(I think the same would be said of a grandmother or a mother-in-law.)

A Peek Into My Week…

My sewing room, where I spend some afternoon hours.

Looking to the ways of my household....
Changing bed sheets today. Ironing pillow cases. Sometimes I like to iron the upper half of the top sheet. (Don’t want to give time to the lower part that’s under the cover, though.) Think I’ll do that this morning. Nothing like a freshly changed bed to crawl into at night!

Reading.... 

Just finished The Quilter’s Daughter by Wanda Brunstetter that a friend gave me. Light reading for winter evenings. Encourages me to quilt on! 

The fruit of my hands …

I finished hand-stitching some kaleidoscopes this week for a throw quilt and got some of the corners done. Lovely! I’m hoping to finish it all in hand-stitching, including the quilting. It’s going to be a gift, and I want it to be extra special.

Growing…

I want to continuing growing in what true love is—not the gushy kind and not the lusty kind. Still pondering the 23 Things That Love Is.

Thinking…

Praying that everyone stays safe on the roads today. We're under a heavy snow warning here. My Beloved went out in the truck earlier this morning to run an errand. More folks than he expected were out. 

In the Sewing Room ~ Hourglass Blocks

I've been working today catching up on homework for my quilting class next week. This is what I'll have when I'm finished. It's True Blue, designed by Kim Diehl, and uses her fabric line. I hope mine looks just as nice when I get it all sewn together! It's 23 x 23, and small piecing is a challenge for me.

I have the 20 two-and-a-half inch hourglass blocks made.

The pattern calls for a different method of construction for the hourglass units, but I like to oversize and cut down since that helps me keep the units more accurate. I knew there was a formula for oversizing, and I found a chart at Vicki'sFabricCreations blogspot that gives cutting measurements for several finished hourglass block sizes. It's printer friendly, so I printed it out for future referral. :-)  She also has a tutorial on a couple of methods for making the hourglass blocks. I like to use the second method that she shows because it gives two blocks at a time. Two birds with one stone.

Thought I'd share a tip with you today that I discovered as I was doing some hand stitching recently and needed to mark the diagonal. There was a tissue box nearby, I grabbed one, and found that using a tissue to lay the fabric on as I marked helped to keep the fabric from slipping. Using a tissue is easier on my fingers than using sandpaper to lay the fabric on, and it's just as effective. Handier at times, too!

I hope to post a picture of my finished wall/table quilt soon. I'm getting so behind in my homework!

From the Sewing Room ~ Crib Sheets

The grands have been at their other grandparents for a couple of days, so I took the time to make Anna another sheet set for her toddler bed. I've made a couple other sets, and this one matches a quilt I had made for her. The set includes a fitted bottom sheet, a top sheet with a fitted bottom to keep it tucked in, and a matching pillow case. Thought I'd share with you how it all comes together, if you'd like to make a set for someone special in your life. It isn't difficult to make at all. You can use a favorite themed fabric or any fabric that coordinates.

The mattress for Anna's bed is 52x22x6. I used two yards of fabric for the bottom sheet to allow for the thickness of the mattress. If your mattress is a different size, buy enough fabric for the length of the mattress plus twice the depth and a couple more inches for the casing. Typical cotton fabric is 42-44 inches wide, which works well for the width of the mattress. Be sure to pre-wash the fabric. You don't want any surprise shrinking after the sheets are washed. Depending on where you buy your fabric, it may be a good idea to buy just a bit more than your measurements.

I purchased another two-thirds yard to make the matching pillowcase. Or, you could get the extra two-thirds of a yard to match the top sheet. Your choice. I chose the coordinating fabric for the band on the pillowcase. You will also need 3 yards of 1/4-inch elastic.

For the bottom sheet:
(1) Cut out a square (mattress thickness +2 inches) from each corner of the fabric. I cut an 8-inch square. I did this by folding the fabric in half to cut two corners at a time, or you can fold the fabric in fourths and cut all four corners at once.

(2) The corner seams are French seams that help to keep the inside seams from raveling. (The corners seams are shown vertically in the pictures below.) To do this, fold the fabric so the 8-inch corner cuts are wrong sides together (below left). Pin and stitch with a 1/4-inch seam. Trim to an eighth inch. Turn the seam right sides together (below right). Stitch with1/4-inch seam, being careful to enclose raw edge. Repeat for each corner.

(3) Make a casing all around the edge of the sheet. To do this, I folded and ironed under 1/4-inch all around, then folded and stitched 1/2-inch hem, leaving a couple of inches unstitched to insert the elastic. Cut a piece of elastic 80 inches. It's a good idea to pin the end of the elastic near the opening so it doesn't slip through the opening as the elastic is being moved through the casing. Work the elastic around to the other side of the opening. Overlap the ends of the elastic about a half inch and join with a zigzag stitch.

(4) Stitch the opening closed, being careful not to catch the elastic. Adjust the fabric uniformly along the elastic. That's how simple it is to make the fitted bottom sheet!

For the top sheet with a fitted bottom:

(1) The top sheet is cut the length of the mattress + the depth of the mattress + 2 inches to allow for tucking under the mattress with casing + 3 inches for the top hem. The width is the width of the fabric.

(2) Cut squares the depth of the mattress +2 inches from the 2 bottom corners. Sew the two corners the same as for the bottom sheet.

(3) Fold and iron under 1/4 inch on the flat top part of the sheet, then fold again and stitch a 2.5- inch hem.

(4) Cut elastic about 6 inches longer than width of mattress. I used what I had left in the package after cutting for the bottom sheet. Elastic will be inserted only in the lower portion of the top sheet, so make a hem/casing down the side, across the bottom, and up the other side of the sheet, leaving about a 2-inch opening along the sides, 10 inches from both of the bottom corners.

(5) Insert elastic into one opening, using a zigzag stitch to secure it before working it through the casing. Zigzag the other end of the elastic to secure it when it reaches the other opening. Stitch openings closed.

 

There you have the fitted top sheet to stay put during night time tossing and turning!

 

Add a coordinating pillow case, and you have the complete set!

The best tutorial I've seen on making a pillow case is done by Vanessa at CraftyGemini.com. There are French seams, and the border is sewn with a hidden seam inside. It's super simple, and Vanessa walks you through it step by step here. 

I got the idea of a fitted top sheet from Deborah at whip-stitch.com. Do take a look here for inspiration!

I hope these instructions have been clear to you. Happy sewing! Would love to see what you made!

Vickie  

Kaleidoscope Quilt Blocks

From the sewing room

I’ve started working this week on blocks for a kaleidoscope throw-sized quilt. Thought I’d share a brief tutorial today on making kaleidoscope blocks from squares. They’re really easy to do. Once you get the basic measuring and cutting the strips done, you’ll move quickly through cutting and sewing the blocks. You'll have quite a lot of variety from just one single fabric. 

I suggest that you read through the steps before beginning, to get the overall picture of where you’re headed.

I used some fabric from my stash, and as you think about what fabric to use, choose fabric with medium to large motifs, with minimal solid background. Small motifs won’t give much variety, and a lot of solid background won’t give much of a kaleidoscope effect.

This fabric would give lots and lots of variety and color to the blocks, if you're going for a wow effect.

The fabric below is what I chose to use for my purposes. I'm making this throw to match a bedroom, so I'm looking for a more subdued effect.

(1) To cut the fabric for your blocks, first measure the repeat (like wallpaper) from one motif point in the fabric to the same next motif point. You’ll need a repeat of at least 8 inches. The longer the repeat, the more fabric will be needed. As the picture to the left shows, I measured from the beginning of a flower petal to the beginning of the next same flower petal. This fabric has a 14¾-inch repeat. I rounded up to 15 inches to make the math easier.

(2) I needed 60 (15x4) inches of fabric. I cut a couple of inches extra for some wiggle room, measuring at 62 inches. (My cutting mat starts with "1 inch" on the right, so I measured from the right, cutting on the left edge as the picture below shows.)

(3) Cut all the way vertically across the fabric, from the selvage to the fold.

(4) Then I snipped the fabric at the fold line and tore it in half lengthwise. You can cut down the fold if you choose. Tearing gives the straight of the grain and is faster, but it really doesn’t matter whether you cut or tear for this step.

(5) Iron the fabric.

(6) Cut fabric strips at your repeats from the selvage to the top. My cuts were every 14¾ inches. Yours will be whatever measurement your repeat pattern is. You should now have 4 pieces of fabric strips as wide as your repeats, all the same repeat pattern.

(7) Stack the four strips on top of one another, selvages together. 
  
 





(8) Choose a point about a ½-inch to an inch from the edge and stick it with a pen that will be your guide as you go. 






(9) Stick the pen through all four layers, making sure it enters each fabric layer at the same point on your motif.

 




(10) Choose another point with another guide pin and stick it through all layers. Stand the two pins vertically and smooth the fabric. 

 
(11) Anchor beside those points with additional pins. Slide the pins in at an angle so as not to scoot the fabric as the pin goes in. Flathead pins are a good choice here so your ruler will lie flat as you straighten the edges in the next step. Continue pinning all around the perimeter of your 4-layer fabric strip set.

(12) If the long edges of the fabric set are uneven, trim them so they will be even. I'm cutting from the back side of the fabric in this picture because my shortest piece was on the bottom. When I trimmed the other side, the shortest piece was on the top, so I trimmed from the front side of the fabric.

 

(13) At 3½-inch intervals, cut the fabric into 4 strips, from the selvage edge to the top. You may need to readjust the pins so as not to run over them with your rotary cutter.

 

 (14) Trim the short edge of each strip set. 

(15) Choose one strip set and put the others aside for now. Cut the strip set at 3½-inch intervals, which now will give you 4 layers of identical 3½-inch squares.

  

(16)Take one set of squares and lay them out so that a particular part of a motif is pointing toward the center.

(17) Rotate them a quarter turn to see the change. Do that for 4 (or 3 if you count the first layout) rotations and see which one you like best.  

I chose the first rotation above for my block.

 

 

(18) After choosing the rotation you like, sew the top two squares together with a ¼-inch seam allowance. Press the seam allowance to one side. Then sew the bottom two squares together in the same manner and press. 

 

  
(19) Sew these two units together, being sure to keep all four motifs pointing toward the center. Press the seam. (Click here for some ways to press your seams. I like to press the seams away from each other to reduce bulk in the center.)

You’ve just completed one block!

Continue making as many blocks as you want for your project. I like to lay mine out as I finish them so I can try to get as much variety in new blocks as possible.

Sometimes a block just might not be one you’d want to use, like the one on the left. I think there’s just too much white in the center for a kaleidoscope look. But I’ve got plenty of others to choose from.

Check back next weekend, and I’ll show you what I’m doing with my blocks this coming week. I won't be finished, but you'll see the progress I've made on it. That will encourage me to set aside some time during the week to get back to the sewing room. :-)