A Ballet Bag : :

This past Saturday afternoon my girl and I made a little, dance class bag together. This is her first year doing ballet and we're both so excited! I've been patiently waiting for her to reach this time where she feels comfortable enough to join teams & take on extra classes without wanting me to coach or volunteer. We made it and I'm thrilled!!

She picked out the fabrics -- several of Sarah Jane's Children at Play prints left over from the pillow & crown set I made my niece Molly, while I tried to find the blog post for when I had shared the ballet class bag I made my niece Ceci for Christmas. Rather than trying to remember how that bag was constructed, we decided to just go for it and make something new. It's a little big, but we think it turned out pretty cute!



We had fun making up the design as we went along including a large, front pleated pocket, an inner smaller pocket, an inside drawstring for cinching, and the handle design was definitely inspired by Anna Maria's Multi-Tasker Tote. For a little extra sturdiness I used a light weight fusible interfacing by ThermoWeb. A medium to heavy weight would have worked much better, but the light weight is what I had on hand. I'll need to stock up soon, I've been going through my interfacing, stabilizers, and adhesive like crazy!





Besides all the crowns & fox pillows I've been making, it was so nice to start and finish this smaller sewing project in just a little over an hours time. Now that I've been busy making all these quilts, I've let all my smaller project ideas fall to the wayside. I really need to work on finding some project balance. While there's nothing quite like making a quilt, creating something small & special can certainly be just as rewarding!



Happy sewing!!  ♥  Maureen

Sewing Gifts : :

First, I want to say THANK YOU to everyone who has entered my Handmade Giveaway so far! Yesterday was such a great day all around!! So Thank You! The giveaway continues through Wednesday, so there's still time if you're interested!

Over the weekend and during my sewing time yesterday I mostly worked on sewing up gifts. A couple that came through my etsy and a few that I'm planning to give as gifts myself. Wanna see?



This sweet pillow and crown set I just made to give my little niece to have on her birthday a few days from now. Just like this train pillow and crown set I made for her big brother. I had all my nieces and nephews choose their own fabrics from my stash when they came to visit over the holidays. Molly chose these Sarah Jane fabrics herself, I really hope she loves them!



I actually just made a new train crown via etsy order yesterday.



And, an I Love Pink Crown, too.



Now that I just have to add the binding to both my Scrappy Improv and my Bottled Rainbows quilts, I decided it was ok to began work on a new quilt project! This one will be a surprise gift for the time being! I told you I wasn't done with those Improv Chevron blocks yet!



I really loved the colors March hostess Natalie for do. Good Stitches Love Circle chose for our improv chevrons, so I decided to stick with the turquoise, robin’s egg blues, yellows, and greys -- adding in some navy, brown, and that wonderful chartreuse-y green. I think these colors together are just..cool. As is the design, an Improv Chevron tutorial created by Six White Horses. Yes, cool! That's the simplest way to put it, I think! 



I love the earthy, vintage-y vibe of this block and it just so happens that when I think of those words -- cool, earthy, vintage-y -- they also describe perfectly the person I have in mind to receive this quilt.

Today, I plan to finish up my next Design Team project with those lovely Riley Blake Chevrons and then hopefully begin one more sewing gift -- a baby blanket for a new little one who will be joining our family anytime now. The mother's due date was on Sunday, EEK! I guess I best put a rush on that one!

Happy sewing, friends!

♥ Maureen

A New Sponsor {Giveaway} : :

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It's Friday Giveaway Day!



My sponsor Cotton Blossom Farm is a real working family farm in central Mississippi where cotton was grown not too long ago. Their fabric business is a family business that grew out of a love for beautiful, fun designer fabrics. They started their little venture on Etsy, where they still maintain their shop and have now grown to the entire world wide web. Their fabric family -- Cathy, Robin, and Heath enjoy picking out the best collections each season and displaying them here on this great new web site. They also carry basics, solids and fun fabrics like chenille, flannel and fleece. The goal of Cotton Blossom Farm is to provide the highest quality fabric, the most pleasant shopping experience, and the best customer service on the web!



The Prize!

Cotton Blossom Farm is offering this lovely 1/2 yard bundle including seven of the boy Children at Play prints from the new collection by Sarah Jane. Wow!

• Chasing Airplanes in Blue
• Pinwheels in Cream
• Making Paper Hats in Yellow
• Rocket Launch Club in Cream
• Rockets in Blue
• Chasing Airplanes in Cream
• Racer Stripes in Blue

 Aren't they sweet!

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Enter to Win!

Here's how,

1. Simply add a comment to this post. (one entry) you can include what you'd make if you won.
2. Follow Cotton Blossom Farm on their Facebook Page. Just let me know that you do by making a separate comment to record that entry.(one entry)
3. My followers get a third entry! Whether you follow me here or on Facebook, just let me know that you do by making a separate comment to record that entry.(one entry)

That’s 3 possible entries! Enter now through 10 o'clock pm (EST) Sunday, October 2nd. I will announce the winner this Monday morning in a new post here on the blog.

* Note * This giveaway is open to EVERYONE! If you're a "no reply" commenter, remember to include your email address in your comment so that I can contact you should you win!

Good Luck!!!

Thank you and a huge thanks to my new sponsor, Cotton Blossom Farms!!!

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Sweet Deliveries : :

I just finished up a very special order for the nieces of a friend, three Personalized Pillows and three Secret Garden Crowns that I just had to share. I love seeing them all stacked together!






You can find details for both my pillows and my crowns in my shop. 

From the lovely shop of my Sponsor Moona Fabrics, there was a sweet delivery for me too! Six 1/2 yard cuts from Sarah Jane's Children at Play. I love this fabric! It's an adorable and whimsical fabric collection full of story-book style illustrations of the sweetest childhood memories.


The Balloons in Aqua is my absolute favorite fabric from this bundle, it really inspires the illustrator in me! There are a few others prints from this collection that are on my "must have" list, as well. I'll be using these for my daughter's bedroom, since she loves them too!


I also received a little of Pat Bravo Oval Elements in Crocus and Amethyst, my very favorite shades of purple.

Wishing you some sweetness, too on this beautiful Tuesday!

P.S. Don't forget to enter my Giveaway to win an Accuquilt Go! Baby Fabric Cutter!!!