pretty little birdie...

actually...the term "little" really should not be used in this post's title...because this bag:

is not little!  Not by any stretch of any imagination. (forgive the pics..the bag is on a road trip right now, so I only have my instagram pics of it).

I made this bag for Girl (who picked out the fabric (with a little help from me) and the pattern (pattern was all her)) and finished it up Monday.  The pattern is Amy Butler's Birdie Sling and man oh man...best pattern directions ever!  Very little time spent trying to figure out what it was saying/what I was supposed to do.  Made two changes: added a magnetic snap closure and did not double interface one of the pieces, but that was it. 

Seriously...the bag is huge!  I'm really tempted to make this one again...for me...maybe even the same fabrics...but Girl might not like that so much.  Maybe in Carnaby Street...hmmmmm

I spent a total of 7 hours making this bag...and the first 3 were spent getting pattern pieces ready (I use freezer paper) and cutting out all the fabric and interfacing and attaching all of the interfacing.  I'd also consider the magnetic snap added about 20 minutes because I had to dig around for my reference book (A Bag for All Reasons by Lisa Lam) as this is only the 2nd magnetic snap I've ever installed.  I figure to do it again (make the bag again), the time would probably be cut down a little...but I definitely see myself making more as the finished product is GORGEOUS!

Details:
Pattern: Birdie Sling by Amy Butler
Fabric: Prince Charming by Tula Pink, Moda Bella Solid (unsure what specific color)
Interfacing: Pellon SF101 and Thermolam Plus (fusible fleece)
Thread: Mettler

Tis Done!

Woohooo!  I struggled getting this one finished...but finished it is!  I had issues with the quilting...issues with the binding...but I pretty much just went with it, and here is my finished Synchronized Squares Quilt:
(modeled by Girl not on a chair...seriously...she's getting way too tall!)

I used Kona Eggplant for the backing, and threw in a leftover set of squares I had just to break up all the purple!  Thankfully my SIL likes purples, so I hope she enjoys this!

I have finished my first quilt along!!  Well, completely finished a quilt from a QAL...I finished the quilt top way back here...and now I've finally got the entire quilt completed!

and now...time to crash on the couch!  Hope your Sunday evening is great!

Work in Progress!

Wow...definitely long time no post!  I have been sewing...a bit here...a bit there...so figured it was time to catch you all up on a few of my projects.

First up...SILs quilt...which I built the quilt top following this:

and here is the completed quilt top:

which has been finished for about 5 weeks or so...and that's pretty much the state it remains in...haven't gotten around to picking out backing fabric or getting it all quilted.  But it is August...and we have some time before it gets chilly enough that my lovely SIL will need it!

and then there is OUR quilt...which has finally started coming together.  (Please forgive the terrible pictures!) Got all of my strip sets sewn together and cut:

and now I'm actually assembling the quilt top:

thankfully it's a project that can be picked up an left off fairly easy.  I really need to just sit down one day and keep at it until it's done...hopefully in another few weeks it will be completed!

and last...but not least...the FWQAL...which I have made zero progress on since my last post.  Hopefully I'll get caught up between the rest of today and tomorrow!

and now...off to sew!

WIP (with pictures!)

Wow...ok, so this is going to be a long post!  Not sure where to start...but I guess I'll start with this:

which is SIL's quilt,  I worked through the first step and got my layer cakes trimmed down to this and made my binding:

(do not let the top print scare you!  it did me at first...but the entire collection is fabulous and even this louder print works fabulous in the quilt squares!)

 and then the next step got posted...so here is phase 1 of the that step:

and then phase 2:

don't they look a little like cocktail napkins???  LOL!  anywho...now I'm working on phase 3 which is sewing the blocks together, so after that, in phase 4, I piece together the quilt top...so i'm about 70% of the way through phase 3...hope to be on phase 4 by tomorrow evening sometime.

now...the progress on OUR quilt...took this fabric:

got EVERYTHING cut (for the entire quilt top...my poor little rotary cutter!)

 and got to sewing all of the strips together:

and that's where I'm still at...so still I count this as progress!

and now...just because I've likely lost my damn mind...I joined in on this:

and here's my book:

I have totally drank the kool-aid!  Just in case you might be interested in dipping in the fruit punch too...check this fab Flickr group out...and the two fab folks that kicked it all off...Amanda and Angela!

Ok...got some Phase 3 work to do on SIL's quilt...have a few strip pieces of OUR quilt to get stitched together...and now that I've ordered this fabric to add to the remaining stash of OUR quilt fabrics...time to get going on my Farmer's Wife blocks!

somewhere in the middle I'll remember to breathe!

i may be a fabric junky...

without trying that hard...it was really easy to become one!  I joined the Fat Quarter Shop Moda Fat Quarter and Jelly Roll clubs...so once a month I receive some lovely fat quarters and a jelly roll...and I didn't even have to go shopping!  So far I have received Pom Pom de Paris, Lilac Hill, and I have the fat quarters for Strawberry Fields (jelly roll will arrive closer to the end of the month).   Not to mention my Layer Cakes arrived today, plus the massive pile of fabric I picked up over the weekend. Whatever will I do with all of these??

To start...here are my Layer Cakes for SIL's quilt that I should hopefully be starting tomorrow:

Then we have the stack of fabrics I picked up for OUR quilt:

which is mostly Denyse Schmidt Picnic and Fairgrounds that I picked up at JoAnn's.  I have added in the gray prints, and I think I want a few solids (red, gray, lime, pink, navy...maybe) and then I will have what I need...it may seem like a ton...but...I will only be using a small amount of each for the quilt; or once I start really planning it out...it may all go out the window...but I'm thinking I have plenty of fabric...a few pillows or pillowcases would be great too!

and then I think this:

with a modified version of this pattern (the main image on cover):

will become T's quilt.

this:

will just have to wait for now...and haven't even taken pics of the Strawberry Fields yet (or some of the other bits and pieces I have picked up here and there)...I'll wait til the Jelly roll arrives!  I also now need to redo the sidebar of fabric on deck...maybe it will become Works In Progress....if I post too many photo's of the fabrics I have laying around waiting to be used...Guy might start to catch on that I am a fabric junky!