Somehow, with the munchkin back at school yesterday, I managed to not only find the inspiration for my pouch for the third round of Pretty {little} Pouch swap, but I also managed to finish it!  I'm really happy with how it turned out and super excited to get it to my partner, who I'm pretty sure is going to adore it.

I was on a bit of pouch roll yesterday morning, wrapping up the pouches I'm making for The Sewing Summit, and I decided on a long rectangle pouch with a half dresden on each side of the pouch.  I pulled some aqua, yellow, green, and pink scraps from my stash for the petals and a green polka for the dresden center, but I was unsure what kind of background fabric I wanted.


I initially wanted to use natural linen, but I couldn't find mine (more on that later), so I used a gray quilter's linen, which created a nice contrast that I wasn't expecting.  I think I even like it better than had I used the natural linen!  I decided I wanted to box the corners for the pouch, to make it able to stand on its own, which worked out really nicely.


I really love how this pouch turned out, and I have to say, I'm a bit jealous!  I kind of love it too much!!  But I will give it to my partner, no worries.  I just might find myself making another pouch for me at some point :)

Another week gone already?  Wow!  Somehow it never ceases to amaze me how quickly Wednesday comes every week.   Between gearing up for the Sewing Summit next week (eek!!!!) and dealing with a sick kiddo, things have been nonstop busy this week.  Thankfully, the kiddo is back off to school today, fever free, and I'm planning to really start checking things off my list this week, with just over a week to go before I get on an airplane!


Finished:
100 Quilts for Kids


Nikki Tote for the Sewing Summit - I went with the purple, thanks for the feedback!


Baking - Stay tuned for more on this one soon, but here's a sneak peek!


Angel package for the For the Love of Solids swap - We unfortunately had to work up two angel packages in the swap, but I just wrapped mine up and Megan's close to finishing hers as well.  I'm sending this lovely tote and zippy pouch out today!


Still going:
Ryan's guy quilt - This bad boy is getting basted tonight so it will be ready to quilt, but Ryan's been sick the last few days, and home from preschool, so there's been lots of snuggling on the couch and not so much sewing, but I will definitely finish this off before I head to the Sewing Summit - which will be the first time in his entire life that he will be without me overnight.  At least he'll be able to have his quilt, hopefully that will help...

Sewing Summit swaps - I am almost finished with these lovely things, but because I want them to be a surprise, I need to keep them under wraps for now...but here's a sneak peek!


Farmer's Wife Quilt-Along - I took this last week off from the quilt-along, but hope to hop back in the saddle...soon-ish...

New:
Pillow Talk swap - I have zero resistance when it comes to this swap.  I love quilted pillows and I adore the amount of talent in this swap, so naturally, when round 6 was announced, I was all for it.  Here's my mosaic, and I'm starting to sketch some ideas for my partner this week, though I suspect I won't start sewing until after the Sewing Summit...

Pretty Little Pouch swap - I also adore a good cute pouch, so I signed up for another round of the Pretty Little Pouch swap.  I had a lot of fun in the first round of this swap, missed the second round because I was busy at the time, so I'm happy to join in again here.  I've got a fabulous partner, who just happens to be going to the Sewing Summit, and I've pulled some awesome fabrics for her.  I'm looking forward to sketching this one out and getting started soon.  I might even try to finish this one up to hand off in person at the Summit next week, we'll see!


My first pattern - Now I've received the fabric from my favorite fabric fairy, I'm officially working on my first real quilt pattern.  I'm working on writing the instructions this week, and hopefully starting to iron and cut the fabrics before I head out for the Sewing Summit next week.  I can't wait to get started on this, I'm really excited about the design, and I can't wait to share it with you all!!!


WiP Wednesday #45 Recap
Finished: 3
Last week's total: 6
New this week: 3
This week's total: 6

What are you waiting for?  Hop on over to Lee's to link up your progress this week and check out her super gorgeous 4x5 Bee blocks!

Thank you everyone for all of your awesome comments on my blogiversary post.  Each and every one of them made me smile and I appreciate all of the great feedback you all shared as well.  I will definitely keep it in mind as I plan future posts!

And now for our winner of the awesome Circa 1934 layer cake...

Comment #28, BaileyGirl5, who said...

28 

BaileyGirl5 said...

Happy Blogiversary! I'm always excited when I see you pop up in my reader and look forward to seeing what you're up to now. I love your quilt a longs and am hand quilting my kaleidoscope quilt as we speak. I may win the award for the latest finish but I'm chugging along. I would have never made such an intricate quilt (well, me for ....) without your guidance and the support of your peeps. Thanks for encouraging others to push past their barriers. I love you!!

Congratulations to BaileyGirl5, I can't wait to see how you use your new layer cake.  I'll be in touch with you today for your address information.

Thanks again to you all, and because I can't have a post without a photo, take a look at my finished tote for the Sewing Summit...well, it's almost finished - it still needs some buttons on the straps, but I'm debating between two different buttons.  Tell me what you think...wood (on the left) or purple (on the right)??

So which do you like best?  See you tomorrow for WiP Wednesday!

Looking for my blogiversary giveaway?  It's right over here...

I finished up my quilt for the 100 Quilts for Kids campaign this weekend!


This quilt will be donated locally within my area, to my local Ronald McDonald House charity, who provides a home away from home for families of pediatric patients in area hospitals.  This is the second quilt I've made to give away, and I have to say, it feels good (the first was donated via Margaret's Hope Chest earlier this year).


Do you have a quilty bucket list?  I sort of do, though it's entirely in my head.  There's lots of quilt blocks that I love and want to make, and the classic bow-tie block was on that list.  I used a half-yard bundle I've had in my stash pretty much since the dawn of my stash, and I'm really glad I finally used it.  In using it, I fell in love with it again, which was a nice surprise.  For the binding, I used Kona Regatta, one of my current favorite blues.


It's been a while since I finished off a baby quilt - I forgot how quickly they can be quilted and bound!  Not to mention how quickly they can be basted :)  This is the first quilt in a long time that I basted without my husband's help, which I think he was quite relieved about.  Given some of the other things I was working on this weekend, I didn't expect to finish this quilt, so it was a happy surprise.


Quilt Stats
Name: Calming Seas
Size: 48" square
Fabrics: MoMo Odyssea prints
Quilting: All-over meandering stipple by me
Binding: Kona Regatta, machined on
Pattern: My own personal chicken-scratch, but Megan wrote an awesome bow-tie quilt block tute for do.Good.Stitches that I highly recommend!

In other news, I finished another quilt this weekend, but you're going to have to be patient to see more of it!  Trust me, it will be worth the wait :)

Holy cow, I cannot believe it is officially my first blogiversary today.  It doesn't feel like an entire year has passed since I created this little blog, but the day has indeed come.  I actually almost forgot - I happened to click the "oldest" button on the Edit Posts page in Blogger, and saw the date of my first post, and just about fell off my chair.  Really?   Has it been a year???

It's been a wild first year, but I have to say, I can't imagine my life without this blog now.  I've "met" so many wonderful people through my blog, learned so many new things, and enjoyed every minute of it.  I feel like I've grown so much over this last year and tackled so many things I never thought I'd be able to do, from making 28 quilts to writing tutorials to hosting two quilt-alongs to participating in super cool Flickr swaps.  Thank you to everyone who visits my blog, leaves me comments, and all of you who have inspired me over this last year in this virtual world of quilting.  I am having so much fun!  Here's a few of my favorite highlights over this last year:



And what's an anniversary without a present???  To thank you all for being a part of my blog over this last year, I've got a lovely Cosmo Cricket Circa 1934 layer cake up for grabs, thanks to the lovely Brenda at Pink Castle Fabrics who is generously celebrating with me today.  Isn't it adorable?  I love Cosmo Cricket, and Circa 1934 is a super unique new line for Moda.  Personally, I'm a big fan of the reds in this collection, and the black prints are super fun, too.

Do you tweet?  I'm trying to, and given Facebook's recent update, I'm really enjoying Twitter.  It's so consistent.  :)  You can find me on Twitter right here.  Come say hi!

I kind of promised myself I wouldn't start any new projects before the Sewing Summit, figuring that I'll get all inspired and want to sew new things when I get home...but I couldn't help myself this week.  I finished a boatload of things on my To Sew list, and it was looking a little barren, so I added a few new things to the mix.

Finished this week:
Weekender bag

Laptop bag for Sewing Summit



My Sewing Summit nametag!


String Me Along bee block



{Sew} Beautiful bee block


do.Good.Stitches bee blocks


Tetris Mug Rug tute


Other ongoing projects:
Farmer's Wife QAL - Officially 34 blocks finished now...but block #35 requires needle-turn applique, which is not exactly on the top of my To Do list...


Sewing Summit swaps - I've got all my plans sketched out for the various zippy pouches I'm putting together for some Sewing Summit pals, and my fabric is in lovely little stacks now.  I'm looking forward to digging into this one this week



100 Quilts for Kids quilt - All quilted, just need to bind it now.

Ryan's Guy quilt - Oh yes, it's still sitting in my sewing room, all folded up nicely, on top of the backing I made, with the binding fabric on top.  As soon as I can get over this newfound bag addiction, I am hoping to wrap this one up.


New this week:
A little baking - I'm cooking up a super yummy solids project, stay tuned for more!


Tote bag - After finishing off that Weekender, I felt the itch to make another bag, something less labor-intensive, but still pretty, so I picked up Michelle's awesome Nikki tote pattern and I'm looking forward to having a cute everyday bag to use!

I really haven't forgotten about the farmer, it's just been busy around my sewing room, getting ready for the Sewing Summit, meeting some behind-the-scenes deadlines, and so forth...so this is my first Farmer's Wife update this month.  I'm now 34 blocks into this quilt, and I still really enjoy the hour or so I spend on two blocks a week.


This week's blocks were a test in random fabric selection, and a bit of an epic fail.  I attempted the brown paper bag method of fabric selection, as I was feeling a little blocked, trying to figure out what the quilt needed more of.  I forgot to follow my usual mantra with fabric selection for this quilt - use what inspires me, use what I'm drawn to.  The paper bag experiment was fun, in a way, but I'll definitely be going back to the old way next week.


Block #33: Farmer's Puzzle
This block used some of my least favorite templates - the parallelograms.  I like squares.  I like rectangles.  I even like triangles.  But a rectangle that's got angled sides?  Not a fan.  I know, it's weird, I dislike a shape, but there you have it.  I'm pretty sure this isn't the first odd thing you've learned about me ;)  Anyway, this is the block that worked out pretty well as far as the fabrics are concerned.  There's a good bit of contrast here, which is what makes this block work well, and I'm happy with how it turned out.


Block #34: Flock
I kind of felt like I'd already done this block, but it's really a variation on another block I did a while back, the watermelon-esque one, Birds in the Air.  This one was easy enough to put together, but this is the block where the random fabric selection just plain didn't work.  There needed to be a bit more contrast between the two fabrics in the larger HSTs, but oh well.  I think it gives the overall quilt some character, maybe a place to rest your eyes amongst all the bright colors in the quilt.

So...just another 77 blocks to go now!  It's starting to really look like a quilt!  If only block #35 didn't involved needle-turn applique...it's quite possible I may skip that block, at least for now.  Maybe at the Sewing Summit, someone will teach me how to do needle-turn applique.  I can't really see why I need to have two different basket blocks for this quilt, anyway...

And check it out, I was interviewed by Angie at Stitching by Starlight for her 10 for 10 series.  She's got a super yummy stack of fabric up for grabs, too, so hop on over!

The final score? Me: 1, Weekender: 0

Victory is mine!!!   I finished off my Weekender bag yesterday afternoon/evening, and I couldn't be happier about it.  I love how it turned out, although there were definitely plenty of bumps along the way.  I will probably never ever make another Weekender, but I'm really proud to have finished this bag.


Adding the zipper wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  Once I sat down and truly read the directions, without a three-year-old tugging on me or asking me his thousandth question of the day, it made perfect sense.

During evil step #11, I seriously considered giving up a few times, but Megan saved the day when she texted me a handy dandy tip - use clothespins instead of pins or binder clips. That worked infinitely better while trying to sew through multiple layers of Peltex, and I was able to keep going through to the finish line.


Rather than slipstiching the lining by hand, I chose to basically topstitch the lining top panel to the exterior top panel, which worked beautifully for me.  I feel like this will be much sturdier in the long run, given that I feel my hand-stitching skills are pretty weak.


This bag is all ready and set to go to the Sewing Summit now!  Only problem is, now I'm thinking about making a handy-dandy laptop case to go with it!  I'm linking up with Sew Modern Monday today, hop on over to find more modern finishes!

I think mug rugs are a super fun way to work on new techniques and try out different things with quilting, in a small, practically no commitment needed kind of way.  When Erin first asked me to join in, I was completely idea-less.  Until one fateful day at Wal-Mart, when I came across a copy of Nintendo Power magazine in their magazine section.  I had no idea they were even still publishing that magazine, but I hadn't seen one since I was a kid.  Naturally, given that I hardly play video games these days, it reminded me of the good old days of video games, back when the Nintendo NES system was the coolest thing on the block.

I was the last kid I knew to get a Nintendo, but from having played at my friends' houses, I'd gotten pretty good at several games.  I loved playing the Mario games, especially Super Mario 3, but my most favorite game was Tetris.  From the music to the colorful blocks to the way the game was like an interactive puzzle, I loved every minute of it.  My mother would sit and watch, and kind of act like a sportscaster behind me, narrating what I was doing and interjecting her two cents as to where I should put a block or how I should flip it.  I spent many hours of my childhood with that game, and quilting has always kind of reminded me of Tetris.

At first, I thought about using my Tetris idea in the For the Love of Solids swap, but my partner didn't seem to enthused about it.  No problem, I transferred the idea over to Mug Rug Madness, and an adorable little mug rug was born.


This mug rug is super easy to put together, and if you were as big of a fan of Tetris as I was, you'll be able to come up with your own interpretation, using the basic blocks of Tetris.  Here's a super simple way to make one just like mine.

Tetris Mug Rug
You'll need:
Scraps of 10 different fabrics
~ 36" of binding
6" x 9" scrap of batting
6" x 9" fabric scrap for backing

1. Cut four 1.5" squares from each of your fabrics.  Each Tetris block is made from four smaller blocks, arranged in a certain way.

2. Layout your squares in a way to match the diagram below.


3. Stitch your squares together row by row, left to right, in pairs, until each row is complete, using a scant 1/4" seam.  Press your seams open.


4. Seam your rows together, again using a scant 1/4" seam, and pinning as necessary to ensure your blocks line up.

5. Press all seams open.  Back, quilt, and bind as desired.  Ta da!