Henry's playmat...

Henry's gotten a lot of use out of his ikea playmat lately. He wants me to pull it into any room that he's playing in and then he likes to drive his matchbox cars all over it. Best $15 I've ever spent to be sure...


Henry's increase in independent play time has led to an increase in my sewing time, hence the messy sewing desk and open cupboards below. I must say I'm quite liking this new arrangement :)

Sewapalooza 2010...

...that's what John titled our 2 full days of nothing but sewing. Denise, my mom, Henry, and I were supposed to be in Morro Bay this week (Denise & me to sew and my mom to watch Henry), but mom got the flu, so we had to stay home. We did not let mom's sickness ruin our plans, though. Denise came down and we set up her machine at my house and worked on our quilts there. Sure it wasn't quite as nice as being at the beach, but it's all about the people you are with anyways, right? Mom recovered from her flu and came over to watch Henry, (she also bought us lunch and cleaned my kitchen for me :) so it all worked out in the end. Hopefully we'll have some completed quilt tops to show you soon, but we didn't quite get them finished. We've already begun thinking of quilt ideas for 2011. Any suggestions?

A library tote...

I used this Little Golden Book fabric to make a simple library tote bag. I figure it won't be too long before Henry starts bringing home his own stash of books, so this bag will help keep them corralled during their 3-week stay at our house. I can't wait to start using it!

2 Wedding present aprons...

I had no fabric to match the body fabric, so a patchwork waistband & ties it had to be. I quite like it, actually.

Completed Quilt Top...

...now I need to figure out how to quilt it.

Sidetracked...

I had lots of time to sew yesterday, but unfortunately I was at an impasse on my master bedroom quilt (I needed my Grandma Net to render a quality assessment before I continued on). So, with lots of time to sew and no project to work on what did I do? Oh you guessed it...I started another project! I've had this little owl quilt in the hopper for quite some time, but now I'm finally getting around to working on it. It will be made using scraps from Henry's nursery quilt. This quilt will play second fiddle to the bedroom quilt, but I'll finish it eventually.

New Headband...

Denise and I wanted to do a simple sewing project while she was visiting last week. This little braided headband fit the bill nicely...it used up my scraps and took about 10 minutes to complete. It doesn't get much better than that. This would be a perfect project to do with little girls. Almost instant gratification. Project idea found here and tutorial here.

Bookcase curtains...

I made 2 sets of curtains to cover up the lower 3 shelves of our bookcases. I'm not a huge fan of open storage. I love the look of it, but when it comes right down to it, looking at too much stuff makes me feel a wee bit claustrophobic. Thus the curtains.

I used fabric from Amy Butler's Nigella line on the top, and a painter's drop cloth for the bottom. (I saw the idea of using a drop cloth for a curtain here first). They were a simple project to sew and I love the way they turned out.

Handmade Christmas...

I tried to make as many gifts as possible this year. I've come to realize that I best express my love and appreciation for others through creating. Whether it be a sewing project, fresh baby food, or simply a meal for my family, I do all of this to show that I care. Thus the motivation for my Christmas sewing.

This year I made 6 sets of napkins (8 napkins/set). I went to F&M fabric last summer and bought 8 yards of tablecloth material and cut it into 18" squares and then bound each square with fabric that best represented each intended recipient. Picking the fabric was my favorite part of this project (I think it's my favorite part of every project :) I really like the way the napkins turned out. They are far from perfect, but they are just perfect enough I think. I'd like to make some for myself soon, but these took so much time to make that I think I'll take a napkin break for awhile.

For Denise & Jill I made bias tape out of all of my favorite brown fabrics. I think the scrappy binding looks super cute and youthful.

For Kelly, I used some of my favorite green fabrics and made more scrappy binding.

For Sharon, I used Joel Dewberry's Deer Valley collection.

And for Julie, I used some spunky green with white polka dots. I love this fabric.

For my mom, I used a brown, blue, and green floral home dec fabric. Learn from my mistake...it's a pretty bad idea to use home dec fabric for binding. Way too thick, but I persevered and I like the way it turned out.

And, here I am with all 6 napkin sets. I've been working on these off and on since July, so it was a bit hard to part with them, but I'm sure they'll be well loved in their new homes.

For Ryan, I made a car roll. I saw the idea here first and knew immediately that I had to make it for him. He loves cars and this would help his mom keep his cars contained while on the go. A win-win.

I made a set of blocks for Jack. I still just love these things. So cute.

And lastly, I made a tie for Jay. I rarely sew for men, simply because I usually can't think of something to make for them that they would actually enjoy/use, but this year was different. Jay has to wear a tie to work everyday, so I seized the opportunity to try something new. This tie was fairly simple to make, although it does use a whole yard of fabric (cutting on the bias makes this so). Jay is such a fun-loving guy, so I took the opportunity and made the tie out of a fantastic Amy Butler oxford stripe print. I love the way it turned out.

So there you have it, my handmade gifts for Christmas 2009. I'm already collecting ideas for Christmas 2010. Any suggestions?

A little bucket...

...for Henry. For Christmas.

I just really love this little bucket. It would make a great gift for anyone, young or old, depending on the fabric you use. I got the idea from Shelly, who found the tutorial here.

The stockings are hung...

Christmas Stockings (in progress)...

Denise & I worked on new Christmas stockings this weekend. Unfortunately for me, I left my lining fabric in Fresno, so I won't be able to finish them until after Thanksgiving, but I think they are looking pretty good so far. The idea and tutorial were found here.

A new apron pattern...

I used the apron pattern from Lotta Jansdotter's book, Simple Sewing. I like it, and just as the book implies, it was very simple to make.

A Fall Banner...

...I felt the need to add a small dose of seasonal decor to the house. Here's my new fall banner:

A Flag Banner...

I was trying to use up some scraps, so I made this flag banner. I love it! I posted lots of pictures because it's quite difficult to photograph it all at once. If you have a surplus of fabric scraps, you should make this too.

Recycled Bibs...

I made Henry a few bibs out of an old pair of jeans & some leftover fabric scraps. I got the idea from this tutorial. A very rewarding *free* project. You should try it sometime.

And just because I can, I decided to give each of them a name...

"vintage appeal"

"almost Christmas"

"my favorite"

"homage to my elementary years"

While I sew...

...Henry plays. (Notice his entanglement in my binding). John likes the idea that his son is already learning how to "roll around on the hardwood", and I like the idea that he's content long enough to let me sew a few seams :)