When quilts grow up...

I have a long list of unfinished quilts.  Some are at the flimsy stage...some are in pieces...some have a single block complete with no idea where I'm going after that.  I'm very proud to have such a list...I enjoy sewing for the act of creating something...it keeps me sane.

Some of these quilts are made just to make them.  My Starburst quilt is one such project.  The quilt-a-long looked neat and I wanted to try it out and I had plenty of fabric...so I made a quilt top.  I even purchased a few yards of fabric for the potential backing...but it was just going to sit there for some time as I hadNO IDEA what the quilt was for...who it might go to...or if it would join the pile of sofa quilts that I, Guy and Girl rotate through.  But, last night I decided...this particular quilt is going to go off and do something really awesome.

My red, white and blue Starburst quilt is going to grow up and become a Quilt of Valor.  An instagram friend was looking for some donation blocks as their local chapter, Operation Sew Thankful, has been invited to present quilts on November 11 - Veteran's Day.  Well…I had planned on making some blocks and sending them on to her.  And the more I thought about it…the more I thought…why not see if they want your quilt top.  Many of you may not know that I come from a long line of Military Veterans.  Both my husband and I served in the US Navy (10 years for me!), both of my parents were US Air Force, my grandfather on my mom's side was Navy, my grandfather on my dad's side was Royal Canadian Air Force, my aunt was Army Reserve, my brother-in-law also Navy.  I'm very proud to be part of such a long family history of military service.  And now I'm over the moon to be able to give in some small way to other veterans.

I am nervous as heck that my flimsy will arrive and they not be able to use it for some reason.  I read up on the requirements on the website, and mine looks to fall within the rules.  As always…we are our own worst critics and I see some flaws…but in the end…it doesn't matter.  This quilt has grown up and is about to head off to do something really and truly great.

Super love for a Supertote!

Had a great weekend spending plenty of time sewing (Saturday was a bit of a bust, but there was fabric shopping done that day...so it's all good in my book).  Sunday was the big sew day...I finally got to work on a Supertote (pattern by Noodlehead).  It took me a grand total of 8 hours to get this puppy put together!  The first 3 hours were spent on cutting and fusing interfacing...that always seems to take forever, but once I got past that...it was pretty clear sailing.  The pattern is so clearly written and easy to follow.  I had a problem with one part...and that's all me, not the pattern itself.  I don't know what it is with me and zippers...but every time I use a pattern that calls for a zipper...I have to read the instructions 20 times.  The first time I read the steps for this one...I could not understand it...and then I read it 5 more times...still didn't get it.  I had to take a break and then come back and read it to finally understand what it was saying...I think it's mental...I see "zipper" and my brain shuts down. 

Anyways...like I said the pattern was really easy to follow, and I am thrilled with how this bag came out! (all pics from instagram because I've gotten lazy and haven't been getting out my real camera lately to capture some good pictures)

"Front" side (the pink panel is a pocket, I made it fully lined and am so thrilled with how the piping looks!)

Back side

Sort of picture of the fully finished tote (love the recessed zipper!):

Inside

This particular bag is not for me...I'm making this to serve as a diaper bag for my friend (that I've been working on the other baby stuff for).  But I already have (at least in my head) planned a couple more of these!  Now that I know how it all goes together, I can definitely see it taking less than 8 hours per bag, and I will add the magnetic snap that is listed as an option in the pattern.  I didn't add it this time because I just didn't want to take the time to do so.  I know they don't take long...but at hour 5-6...I just didn't feel like it!  LOL!

And now I'm off to work on a different bag...Girl would like a new one, so I'm going to try out the 241 tote (pattern also by Noodlehead).

Details:
Supertote pattern by Anna Graham
Fabric: Kona Cotton in Bright Pink and Med. Grey, the rest are prints picked up from Hancock Fabrics and a black denim also from Hancock
Thread: Coats and Clark universal (worked great, a bit linty, but my machine didn't balk at all!)
Interfacing: Pellon 808 (I used what the pattern recommended)

15 minute challenge...

Let's get down to it...my weekly results for the 15 minute challenge...

Tuesday: none
Wednesday: none
Thursday: baby stuff
Friday: none
Saturday: baby stuff
Sunday: Supertote
Monday: none

Only 3 of 7 days.  Not exactly what I was hoping for, but some of it was pure laziness on my part!  And after the marathon of Super-tote-ness on Sunday...I was a little in need of a break yesterday.  (speaking of which...my Supertote post will come along here later today!  have it all written, just gotta add pics!).

I'm definitely feeling the urge to be sewing right now instead of at work...so that's a good sign.  I've started thinking about Christmas presents I'd like to make...and a family member recently got engaged, so perhaps a quilt as a wedding gift...and I still have some more baby stuff I want to get done...so lots of plans...so little time...best get busy!!

because it's so cute

to work on baby stuff!  Last night I polished up my plain onesie and made it into a Ruffle butt onesie!...using this tutorial.

I'm just hoping that the thing holds together for at least one wash so that the baby that will be coming along before the end of the year actually gets to wear it!  (Just once is all I'm asking for...if it lasts beyond that...AWESOME!).

I now have 3 onesies (size 0-3 months) complete.  I have a stack of burp cloths to work on, some more onesies in a slightly larger size, a couple hats and a little pink outfit to polish up.  And since I've been doing these, I've found only like 100 more things I want to do...so I better get on it!

15 minute challenge...

Happy Tuesday!  I'm feeling so great right now having gotten back in my sewing space over the past week!  I wasn't 7 for 7...but let's see how it all worked out in the 15 minute challenge this week:

Tuesday: none
Wednesday: none
Thursday: the slab, Starburst
Friday: Starburst
Saturday: Starburst, applique
Sunday: appliqued baby stuff
Monday: none

So...4 of 7...not bad at all!  Plus I started working on a new skill...and learned a tiny bit about applique.  So far I'm enjoying it, but I want to learn more! 

Taking a bit of time off (even though it wasn't by choice) was both a blessing and a curse.  It was great because I felt invigorated...I was ready to conquer the world and get all kinds of stuff done...at the same time it was terrible because just starting on anything was a bit overwhelming.  All I could see was piles of UFOs staring at me (not really, many were packaged up and out of the way).  So I faced them...pulled out several and decided on one to finish up.  So my Starburst quilt top got finished.  Of course who knows when it will get quilted and bound and officially finished...but it's not sitting in pieces any more...so moral victory!!!

A weekend's work

I have so enjoyed some quality time in my sewing room this weekend!  It started Thursday night and hasn't really stopped since (I have taken breaks to spend time with the family, do a little eating, a little shopping...a little running).  And as of this afternoon...here is what I have gotten done (since my last post of course):

Finished Starburst quilt top (which for some reason blew my mind when I realized how large it was...not that making 32" blocks would have been a clue or anything):

Tried appliqué for the first time and made this crazy skittles-looking pillow for Girl (this was my test piece):

and then took those skills and tried them out on some baby gear:

(Is it odd that I have a thing for pink elephants...I love pink elephants!)

A good friend of mine is expecting a baby girl before the end of the year...and for whatever reason I got it in my head that I should appliqué some onesies for her...hence the need to learn how to do some form of appliqué...I used this tutorial.

In my search for onesie ideas...I came across a ton of flipping adorable outfits...so I picked up some bibs (ridiculous how difficult it was to find plain white bibs) to play with too!  I'm excited, and hope it all comes out cute...or I'm going to have to figure something else out for my friends gift!

Later!

Late night stitching...

So here is what I did last night (all pics via instagram @lesleyworth)

Pulled out some scraps to try out the slab "method" for perhaps a new quilt (Missing U from Sunday Morning Quilts)

got one block done

then went digging through my bins and stuff and pulled out a UFO I haven't seen/touched since February

and got to work trimming the last 32 HSTs (which is why this project was a UFO...I hate trimming HSTs!)

and laid out 1 of the last 2 blocks

and now I'm off to get it pieced together!  Hope to be back with a finished quilt top later today!

Excuses.

As in...I'm all out of them!  I got my computer back on Friday (and let's just say I'm not yet convinced it's 100% healthy again)...got new phones on Friday...got a new soundbar on Saturday...so we have the electronics all straightened out...but not necessarily me and the sewing yet.

I had great intentions of sewing over the weekend...didn't happen for any number of reasons...big thing is...it didn't happen. 

I'm starting to get the itch and think about sewing non-stop...so I really just need to sit down at my machine and get going!

So I'm back on the 15 minutes a day bandwagon starting today.  I WILL make time to sew.  Even for only that short period of time if that's all the time I've got.  My creative side needs to be fed!

Kryptonite

It appears I have acquired magical powers capable of destroying electronic equipment just by coming in contact with said equipment.  My iMac is deader than dead.  The crash and subsequent wipe of the hard drive I reported in my last post did not last longer than a week.  And the good folks of Apple were very helpful on the phone in letting me know that there was no hope.  The hard drive is a goner.  Thankfully it is covered under warranty and I won't have to pay for a new one.  Unfortunately it's now in the shop and won't be home for close to a week if not longer.  And that's what I managed to mess up on Friday night.  I won't discuss the cell phone issue that occurred on Friday afternoon other than to say I did not manage to break a cell phone, just couldn't get mine replaced, for now...I hope.

Sunday afternoon, my electronic kryptonite like powers returned and the sound bar for our TV went poof completely unexpectedly.  The helpful people of Vizio let us know that it was a goner...however this one is no longer under warranty...so we'll get around to replacing it when we get around to replacing it.

In the meantime I have done zero sewing.  My mojo has fled.  And I'm also a tiny bit scared that if I turn on a machine it too will go POOF! 

I gotta get this turned around!  Perhaps I'll try working on some x plus tonight...or maybe I'll just mope a bit longer...I'm actually kindasorta hoping that the longer I keep typing the sooner my work computer will go bye-bye.  One can hope!