A Quilted Pillow for Grace : :

This past weekend we had lots of family here visiting, including my adorable baby niece, Grace Anne! It's such a treat when they'll come to visit, we all miss having a baby around so much, and she is just the sweetest, most smiley-est baby!



Early Sunday afternoon while we were playing Haila asked if she could make a new quilted pillow, this time just for Grace, so we dove right in! We picked out a few fat quarters from my stash of Lotta Jansdotter fabrics, specifically in prints to match up with the Glimma Quilt I gave to Grace at Christmas time.



We spray basted the fabric to a 15" square piece of batting, Haila chose a matching yellow Aurifil, and handled the quilting like a pro! I love the wonky-ness of her stitches so much! Part of me hopes that doesn't change as she gets more and more comfortable, but I know it's bound to. This time I hovered a little less compared to our last pillow making session, and by her last few stitches I had moved the speed up almost all the way!



I helped out with the trimming, backing, and finishing, and then she tied it up with a little twine bow before handing it over to Grace!



Another sewing finish for my girl and Yes, we think Grace loves it!! 



♥  Maureen 

A Glimma & Linen Quilt Finish : :

I'm so happy to have a quilt finish to share here today!

I made this quilt top back in January, yikes, when things had finally slowed down after our move into the new house and those busy holiday weeks. It came together quickly, in a late night sewing session, completely on impulse after I had laid out my Glimma Charm Pack to get a good look at this new collection by Lotta Jansdotter. I added in some white and medium gray linens from my stash and got to work!



I had shared last week that I was having some pucker issues in a couple of spots -- many thanks to those of you who offered up your advice! Well, I'm happy to report that after some heavy quilting and a good tumble in the washing machine and dryer, I think I'm the only one who would notice. In the end I think it started as a piecing problem that went unnoticed until I started my quilting. Lesson learned!



The unexpected bonus of my mistake is the crinkle effect that this quilt received right away from that washing. Usually I prefer my quilts to keep that flat look for as long as possible, but this quilt was made to be crinkly! It softened up beautifully!! I was a little worried throughout the process, having pre-washed my linen but not the Glimma pre-cuts. Thankfully it came out better than I imagined!



Using both a cotton Aurifil 50wt in white and a gray from my Tula Pink thread collection, I added my quilting stitches only on the linen -- with a dense quilting around the borders and inside the larger shapes, and some wider pivot quilting on the inside of each of the linen charm squares.



The back is finished in the Kulla Glimma print in Slate and for the binding I used Korkek in Dandelion.





The finished quilt measures a 44" x 48", a good size to keep on the couch I think!



I have to also share that these quilt photo shoots are becoming such a family favorite! I held this quilt up to Kevin and the kids and we brainstormed where to take it, together. It's pretty special and an awesome reminder of how gorgeous Potter County, Pa is!

You can find Glimma available in the shops of my sponsors -- Contemporary Cloth, Stash Fabrics, The Intrepid Thread, Pink Castle Fabrics, Moona Fabrics, & the Fat Quarter Shop!

Happy Monday, friends!!  ♥ Maureen

A Glimma & Linen Quilt Top : :

Yesterday, after packaging up orders and one long, very cold trip to the Post Office, I decided to treat myself to an afternoon of sewing something not on my list, because I'm really trying to stick to a list these days!

I put on The Lumineers, my new favorite! and laid out that beautiful Glimma Charm pack on our craft table. I had mentioned making a pillow, but once I starting planning out a project for them, I just couldn't get beyond wanting to combine them with some linen and make a quilt! Just for fun, for once!!



To begin, I started cutting 5" squares from both my stashed grey and white linen. The idea was to do a simple patchwork, with each block consisting of two Glimma prints and two linen. After I finished those blocks, easy, I did a little measuring. Lucky me, turns out I had just enough linen for some sashing! After the kiddos were asleep, with a clearer head than I've had in months, I thought it would be interesting to add the sashing to create points towards the center -- now that was fun! And, just before bedtime for me, I took a few quick photos. Right away I knew it wasn't done!





This was my favorite corner last night!



After one more border of linen, I still love this corner!



I tried my best to take some photos this morning, a little too early, just after the kids were off to school. I completely froze and it was a huge photo failure -- way too dark and dreary!



Yes, I much prefer the comfort and warmth of taking pictures indoors these days! Once finished, I hope this quilt will be bringing a little more of those things to someone?

For now, it looks pretty right here...



Now, I'm off to see who I'll be sending that Glimma, too! And, then it's back to work for me!
♥, Maureen

p.s. Oh, and if you happen to have any good ideas of what I could name this quilt -- please share! I am terrible at it! :)

Busy Girl : :

This is a bit of a mish-mashy post, I'm feeling kinda silly at the moment after so much assembly line sewing! Today, I managed to get almost all caught up, staying focused and busy all day! And wow, was it a lot of work!!



I finished up just as the sun began to set, so I didn't get great photos of my efforts, and I'm not going to make it back to the Post Office today -- definitely not, I think it's below 5 degrees out there?!

I did snap two quick photos of my personal stand-out favorites from the group! This Penelope crown, inspired by this Penelope Bedding, a super cute customer request.



And, this sweet, girly Piper crown. Yup, I like it!



I've been enjoying this new adventure of selling felt so far, as well! I might already need to restock the most popular colors -- that's a very good thing!



It was most definitely this happy mail that arrived from beautiful Michelle that got me through that mid-day hump! A Cloud9 Fabric bundle of Tsuru, by my friend, fellow gang member, and talent extraordinaire, Rachida Coleman-Hale. You'll be seeing more of these soon -- they are so, SO lovely!!



I was recently asked if I wanted to have some sewing fun with Glimma, a pretty and very calming collection by designer Lotta Jansdotter, by the folks at Windham. Of course I do!! I have a floor pillow planned for our living room for one charm pack, mixed with some solids. And, for the second... Well, I thought I would offer it up to one of you -- Just for those of you who are so sweet to stop by on a Tuesday evening -- Thank you!!



You can enter by commenting and if you want -- by sharing what your sewing plans are for this week? I'd love to read about them!!  ♥,  Maureen  

p.s...winner will be announced within this post on Thursday! The Random Number Generator picked : :

#175 -- Pinspot, who said...

I do love those crowns you make! Lotta is one of my favorite designers. I finally cut up my stash of Bella and Echo for a quilt. I'm just waiting to get my hands on some Glimma before I start sewing!