Birthday = New Toys

My birthday was last week and I was surprised with a beautiful serger. My family bought me a Brother 1034d. From the reviews (and I think I've read them all) I feel that this is a great serger for the beginner. I've played around with it and so far it's great. I haven't had time to really play around with it though. I tried to just pop on the gathering foot and the thread kept breaking. So within an hour I was learning how to re-thread. I tell you the thing I don't like about threading a serger is that you have to do it in order. Blah. So if the first thread breaks I have to re-thread them all. Is this really necessary?

Photo Courtesy of Amazon.com

On my birthday I also went to Joanns (you already know about my love/hate relationship with that store) to stock up on supplies. All of their notions were 50% off and thread 40% off. I made out like a bandit! I had a fantastic birthday, but am hoping for a little extra gift from you guys. I'd love to hear about serging. How did you learn the ins and outs of your machine? Any must have serging guides you recommend. I'd love to get the most out of my machine. Thanks for the help!

That baby quilt is coming along and I also have a few other projects up my sleeve...

Upcoming Projects

Does anyone remember me mentioning that I have yet to make my daughter her first birthday quilt? Last month I was shopping around for fabric to back my mom's quilt with and came across a really cute pattern. The pattern is a basic 9 patch, but it has a really cute appliqué owl on top.  I've yet to try appliqué, but am super excited about this quilt and the pieces aren't that small, so I should be okay. The pattern is Remember Whooo' Loves You by Acorn Quilt & Gift Company.  I chose to use green and pink for the main colors with a white/rose for the background. The the main pieces have been cut and I'm ready to start piecing!

2.5" strips, 5" x 1.5-3" rectangles (for the border), & 6.5" squares

The other project coming up is the Family Reunion Dress Pattern by Oliver + S. The company mentioned that Above All Fabric is hosting a family reunion dress sew-a-long. Perfect. I can sew-a-long with others and have someone to ask questions if I have any. The sew-a-long starts June 13th if you want to get a copy of the pattern and join us.

This weekend I'm headed to Joann's for some basic supplies and their $1 Simplicity Pattern sale. Wonder what I'll come home with this time!?
 

Blogger's Quilt Festival

I stumbled on the Blogger's Quilt Festival just a few hours before it was over. I'm so glad I did. What a wonderful collection of quilts from many different people. Since my blog is pretty new I wanted to showcase a quilt you haven't seen yet. (Remember these pictures are before I realized I wanted to blog and therefore are not fantastic. Just good enough for me to remember what I've done.)

This baby quilt was made for my cousin's first baby. I wanted to give her something special she could use and that her son would always have. I found "The Little Box of Baby Quilts" by Jenny Wilding Cardon one day while browsing a local quilt shop. I knew this was a must have. And I was right! This little box has so many cute baby/children quilts. Now I just had to pick one for my cousin's baby. Fast Asleep on Cloud Nine was the pattern I knew she would love. The quilt uses two fabrics, white and blue with clouds. I didn't have a hard time finding cloud fabric as I imagined and I even found white fabric with baby items on it (pacifier, teddy, bib...) Perfect! Since this was for a baby I wanted the back to be extra cuddly. I found a light blue minky fabric that matched perfectly. Honestly, I couldn't have asked for this quilt to turn out better. The quilt was quick to sew and even the quilting didn't take too long. After it was all said and done, I realized that sometimes gifts made for others are hard to part with! The finished quilt is 54.5" x 54.5"

Doesn't that look huge for a baby!?

Soft Dot Minky

Hopefully you can still see how wonderful this quilt turned out even though the pics. are kinda rough. Don't forget to hope over to the Blogger's Quilt Festival to check out other great quilts!

Rag Time Quilt

My rag time quilt is one of my favorites. It's made with flannel, has a layer of batting for extra warmth, and has a homey feel that I love.  A rag quilt is one that is quilted as you go and the seam allowances are left on the outside of the quilt for a raggedy look.

For my pattern I used two different size squares with batting squares the same size. You place a square right side down, a piece of batting, then another square right size up. You just made a fabric sandwich. You can sew an X on the sandwich or another shape (hearts are popular). This holds the batting and fabric in place.  Make as many sandwiches as you need for the quilt size you want. Sew two fabric sandwiches together with a 1" seam allowance, having all the seams face the same direction when you sew them together. When you have sewn all sandwiches together, sew a 1" border around your quilt. You're almost finished! The back side of the quilt will be smooth and the front side will have all of the seam allowances. Snip the seam allowances (about 1/2" - 1" a part) with sharp scissors close to the seam, being careful not to clip the seam. Wash your quilt to give the seams raggedy edges and you're done!

Front/Raggedy Side

Back/Smooth Side

Smaller versions of this quilt also make great baby gifts. The flannel is super soft and warm for little ones. If you have any questions about how to make your own be sure to email me or leave a comment!

Quick and Easy Burp Cloths

Tonight I'm heading out to celebrate the birth of baby #3 of a friend. She definitely has a stock pile of baby items, so I thought I'd whip up a few burp cloths. Because who wouldn't love to have new burp cloths instead of old, stained ones? For these burp cloths I used two different patterns of flannel.  I usually stock up on flannel when Joann's is having a sale just for this project.  Two yards of coordinating fabric will make at least six burp cloths, roughly 11" x 17". Afterwards, I alternate the outer fabric to showcase both pieces and tie it up with a little ribbon or yarn. A little trick I learned from Rocks In My Dryer.

Dinosaurs and plaid

I love how the alternating fabric looks.

Tied and ready to go!