This Moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Inspired by Soule Mama.

Speed, I Am Speed...or maybe not



 

Nice hiatus from the blog huh?  Honestly I never meant to be away for so long.  Sometimes life just takes over and runs rampant.  I have a bunch of projects to post so get ready!

 

Lightening McQueen is finished!!  These cross stitch kits were so fun to put together.  It felt like it took a decade to finish, but it's done and now hanging in Thing 3's bedroom over his dresser.  His room had a little makeover.  All the baby items were removed and big boy things went in! 

 

Completed cross stitches just make me happy.  Of course I love having a project finished, but I love the look of cross stitch.  It always makes me want to run out and get another one to start.  Then I remember the pain of how long they take and I resist the urge.  Besides, I have a stack of unfinished projects calling my name.  Maybe there will be another in the near future.  We'll see.

 

Sweet Baby Girl Quilt

Being a mommy of three boys with 4 nephews and only two nieces, it's not very often I get the pleasure of making something girly.  In fact, when the opportunity came up to make a friend of mine at work a baby girl quilt, I jumped at the chance!  I do have some pinks and purples but they are very dated and mainly scraps.  What's a girl to do?  Go shopping!!

 

 Aren't those just yummy?

There are a handful of traditional patterns I have yet to make that are on my "bucket quilt list".  I have always wanted to make a double wedding ring and the dresden plate.  Those two patterns are high on my list to make at some point in my life.  The dresden plate pattern has always felt overly girlie to me so I haven't chosen it...until now. 

The plates are machine appliqued with an invisible thread so it went together quickly.  I kept the quilting very simple.  A sweet flower in the center of the plate, a quarter inch stitching around each petal, a repeat of the sweet flower with a leaf vine connecting them around the plate and a simple zig-zag thru the pieced sashing. 

Many of my projects in recent years have seemed to have a need for speed.  I have always been a girl for tradition.  Especially when it comes to quilting.  Hand quilting and hand applique were the only way to go.  Insert three young men into my life with a career that keeps me hopping and there just isn't time if I ever want to complete a quilt in less than a year...or several.  I started machine quilting after "Thing 2" was born and haven't looked back.  I hope that someday in my future I will be able to get back to quilting my work by hand.  For now pieces will need to be done for speed, and functionality. 

I hope this quilt sees many spit-ups, diaper blow-outs, drool and many, many washes.  It's just as sweet as the baby girl who will use and abuse it.

Absent

As anyone and everyone can witness, I have been MIA for a while.  There are stretches of time in one's life where life takes over.  Time for simple pleasures like this blog, sewing, peeing, are just not there due to being over-committed.  The amount of hours needed for work has increased dramatically over the past several months.  Kid activities and volunteering for said activities has taken the rest of the hours in the day.  It has been months of running from sun up to sun down every day, all day long.  I know we are all busy and say yes to more than we should. This has just been a stretch of time that got a little out of hand.

I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel however and am excited to post about some of the great things that have happend over the past few months from closing out the Farmer's Market to a finished baby quilt and new projects! 

Travel Bag

When we decided to take a family trip this summer I started giving much thought to the logistics of course.  I'm a planner and list maker.  The logistics of traveling with 5 boys and 4 adults was the first thing that needed my attention.  How to pack for 3 boys ages 13, 8, 3 plus two adults was at the top of my list. 

Since we were flying I needed to figure out how to consolidate items and pack only the necessities. One of the easiest to combine was my purse and the all important diaper/snack bag.  After perusing the closet of bags I realized all the backpacks were, well, manly.  Most of them are logo'd bags from work so they are designed primarily for men and to hold a laptop.  All the other bags were tote bag style.  Anyone that has traveled with a three year old boy will know, you absolutely must have both hands free.  Not one hand free and the other trying to hold your tote from swinging and hitting your kid in the head. 

What's a designer to do?  Make your own cute backpack of course!

I found this lovely pattern for the backpack.  I did add the side water bottle pockets for mine that a drafted.  There must be a spot for the sippy cup after all.

I made this matching clutch for my wallet and lipgloss. 

Cute and functional.  Win win!

This Moment

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Inspired by Soule Mama.

Shop Hop

Shop Hop.  One of my absolute favorite days of the year!  My bestie and I have participated in the old lady road rally, or Western Washington Quilt Shop Hop for several years.  What could possibly be better than spending an entire day driving from one quilt store to another until you drop! 

For those of you that have never experienced a shop hop, let me explain.  All quilt stores in a certain region participate in Shop Hop.  Each store creates a block all using the same line of fabric.  At each store you receive the block pattern, and the fabric to make the block.  You have a passport that gets stamped at each location.  If you visit 16 stores you can turn in your passport to be entered in a drawing for multiple prizes. 

For us it's not about the blocks, it's really not about the prizes.  It's about spending time with my bestie.  Having time for girl talk.  Visiting some fantastic quilt stores and being filled with ideas and inspiration.  It absolutely feeds my soul.  I wish I could run thru these stores snapping pictures of everything we found, but they tend to frown upon that.
This year I managed to keep myself to three new projects.  Two of which I already had on my list of upcoming projects.  I just found the inspiration and fabulous fabric for them.  I only picked up one new project that wasn't on the project list.  This adorable fabric just jumped out at me to make a travel sewing case. 

This was a leisurely year only making it to about 13 stores in one day but it was filled with wonderful conversation and creativity.  I'm inspired to lock myself in my sewing room and not come up for food or screaming kids outside the door.  No matter how loud they or my stomach are.