Holiday Gift Guide - Presented by It's OK to be WEIRD!

Come visit It's OK to be WEIRD! 

and explore the growing Holiday Gift Guide - 

great gift ideas of all sorts!

Fabric Coil Christmas Ornaments

I saw a picture earlier this week, and I KNEW that I had found a new project to work on.  The photo was of some Christmas ornaments made from coils (rolls) of fabric.

So, without a pattern, and only the picture to follow, I thought I'd give it a try.

This is the result of my efforts today:

Angel, Christmas Tree and Snowflake Fabric Coil Ornaments

Aren't they cute?  I like them.

I liked making these a lot, so I think I'll be making some more.  Here are some more photos in a slideshow:






When I get a few more made, they'll be going up on my Creations By Sweet Mummy Artfire shop.

It's only 76 days until Christmas now, you know! :)

Camo Overalls

Last spring my sweetie had me go to Fabricland and buy a bunch of their camouflage fabric to make him some overalls for hunting.  We're in new territory, and none of his camo matches the foliage around here and none of it is heavy enough for some of the winter hunting he'll be doing up here.

SO, I made him a camo hoodie a while back and ventured to put together a pair of overalls for him to take up north with him for the moose hunt this week.

The fabric of choice for this project is Mossy Oak Forest Floor camo, and I believe it's treated with some kind of waterproofing.  It is a heavy material, soft and a bit nappy/fuzzy on the outside, but not very soft or smooth on the inside.  As they were to be overalls, the weight was what mattered, and not a comfy material for wearing against ones skin.  I was unable to iron the fabric at all without using a pressing cloth between the iron and the fabric.  Otherwise it would stick to my iron (that was a bit messy to clean off!), so that slowed me down a bit.

But, it was a doable project, and my sweetie is thoroughly pleased with the finished product.  He probably couldn't buy a better made pair of overalls!  I didn't count hours, but I spent a few days working on it.  So he probably can't afford to pay me for my time and skill either!  LOL!

Here's a slideshow of the finished project:

I'm not sewing anymore clothes for a while if I can keep from it. I have some quilting projects that seriously need to be completed! :)

A Different Kind of Wall-Hanging

Who needs a $160 antler mounting kit? Not my sweetie and I. Just give us the pieces of an old oak table, some screws, wood filler, varnish, some quilt batting and camo fabric - all things we had on hand around the house. Then VOILA!

Axis Deer Antlers

My Sweetie mounted these Axis antlers from our friends' wild game ranch down in Texas. We babysat the ranch for them 2 summers ago for a week so our friends could go on holidays.  My husband shot an axis deer buck while we were there, and we never found it... In reward for his efforts, though, he got to choose a set of the antlers that they collect around the ranch every year after the shed.  So, he calls this, "The One that Got Away".

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The Nativity No. 2

My FIRST ever item posted on ArtFire.  What fun!

The Nativity

This is a stylized version of the Nativity, completed as a paper-pieced quilted wall-hanging.  Perfect for smaller spaces, it's only 15 inches wide x 14.5 inches tall.  The smallest pieces in the quilt are less than 1/4 inch.

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This Blog is Carbon Positive

It seemed like the right thing to do.



I have a tweep (someone I follow on Twitter) who told me about the "Plant a Tree" initiative.  This program plants a tree for every blog or site registered in the program.

Why plant a tree?  Because trees use carbon dioxide and replace it with oxygen in the air.

Still not clear?  Think about this:  visiting a blog uses electricity, and making electricity (to power the servers, computers, etc, as well as the cooling systems) discharges carbon dioxide, having an overall negative impact on the environment.  They've figured out that 1 new tree planted for each blog will actually use more carbon dioxide than the blog creates, essentially negating the carbon dioxide effects of the blog on the atmosphere.

I'm not sure how it all works, but I do know enough about science to know that planting a tree is rarely (if ever?) a bad thing.  If my blog is contributing to the mounting carbon dioxide discharge in the world, and I can do something to minimize or even stop contributing all together, then that's a good thing too.

Ixpo will plant a tree for my blog, just because I added the button to my blog, and told you about it!  Cool, eh?

So, this blog is carbon positive!  It just seemed like the right thing to do!

Behind the Scenes

Lots going on around here, in the creations department, but nothing completed yet to show for it!  I am oh-so-close to being finished with another Nativity, and when it's done I'll also unveil another thing I've been working on behind the scenes - my ArtFire shop.


So excited for both of these things, and have several projects scheduled already - hopefully shorter ones that I can crank out pretty quickly.  Plus a few series of posts on some of these projects (like the Grade 3 Class Project Quilt).


I also feel the need to apologize for weird formatting and font issues here on the blog.  I'm sorry if any of the posts are hard to read.  I have NO idea how to fix it, but the first sections of my posts keep coming out in tiny font, so I change it to Large and now it's ENORMOUS.  I can't figure out the coding stuff to know why it's doing it.  A behind the scenes thing I don't get and need to work on sometime.  


Summer is supposed to mean more time, right?   Well, around here, not so much!  HA!  But that's OK.  I'll get some of these things up, front and center, soon, and you'll be able to see what's been going on behind the scenes!

UFOs - quilts that is...

disclaimer: I'm not sure WHY it's happening, but I AM aware that the first section of all of my blog posts is coming up with smaller font than the rest. I can't seem to find the coding or formatting error, and can't fix the problem. I apologize for the smaller print. Still working for a solution! Thanks for your patience! :)


In the world of quilting, a UFO is an Un-Finished Object (or  something like that).

Well, I posted all my UFOs as an entry for a giveaway a while ago, but I have finished a few of those, so I thought I'd update things.

As I went through my collection a few weeks ago, I didn't have as many UFOs as I thought. I have lots of patterns, and LOTS of ideas, but haven't started as many of them as I originally thought I had. That's a good thing. It means that I can maybe actually catch up with these projects...... nah, what what I thinking! LOL!


UFO #1 - Girls of the World

 

part still together

 

parts coming apart and sashing bits removed already

improper sashing

This is a quilt that was done with fabric paint (Tri-Chem if you remember them) by my mother and pieced by my Granny.  The piecing was done improperly (note how the sashing is incorrect), and it they didn't use batting (just an old blanket on the back) and I'm taking it apart to put together again.  (SHH!  Don't tell Mom and Granny, they don't know.) I love the girls, and want it to be properly quilted.


(more projects and lots of pics after the jump)

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Grade 2 Baby Quilt

My youngest son started his school year off with 2 teachers.  His afternoon teacher was having a baby, and meant to work until May before having her baby hopefully late in May.  She ended up having to leave work early for bed rest and had her baby a bit early.  The children in class love this teacher and have missed her VERY much.  Having done a similar project with a grade 1 class a few years ago, I offered to help the class make a quilt as a gift for the teacher and her new daughter.

The children each colored their own block with fabric markers and then I put it all together!

TADA!  The finished product!  A VERY girly, very bright baby quilt! (names smudged for posting the pics here - not just messy coloring!)

A bit of a close up of the quilt

The children are in French Immersion so many of the greetings are in French, which is fun!

The back of the quilt - a nice polka-dotted fabric with a marbled binding.  You can see a bit of the machine quilting here as well - just stitch in the ditch along the blocks and sashes.

I can't wait to give it to the teacher.  She is going to be so surprised... she has no idea we're doing this! :)  I think she'll be pleased!  (If I remember correctly, the last teacher cried when she got her quilt like this!)

side note:  (the first paragraphs in the post are coming out with smaller print and I can't quite figure out why.  It shows FINE in the html of the post editor here in blogger and when I try to change it, it doesn't change anything.  I apologize for the small print.)

Grade 3 Art Quilt Project

My son attends an integrated arts school, so art of all kinds is used in nearly every aspect of learning.  I offered to do a class project with his Grade 3 class this year for their Art block in May and June.

Stage 1 was learning about quilts, selecting a theme and choosing blocks to make. 


Stage 2 was making the blocks (piecing/sewing and fabric coloring). 


Stage 3 was cutting the sashing and setting squares. 


Stage 4 was piecing the quilt. 


Stage 5 was quilting.

The children were active in every stage but Stage 5 (partly because of time constraints).

It's all finished now, and it's GORGEOUS! They are so proud!

I'm going to publish a series of posts describing each stage of the project, because I learned a lot doing this, and will likely want to do something like this again in the future.


It was LOTS of fun (and lots of work) but the kiddos LOVED doing it and were a great group to work with!  What great memories!  The finished quilt will hang in a common area of the school.

Quick Little Gift Bag

Yesterday we got a present for my Daughter's friend for her birthday.  She picked 2 great big velvet coloring posters.  In fact, she got her this exact same one shown at YouColorPosters (cute little puppy dogs) and one that has a big heart with the word LOVE on it.

We got home and realized that we didn't have any gift bags big enough for the big posters.... And all the wrapping materials are up in the attic.  (I don't go into the attic unless I absolutely have to, and I can't find anything up there when I do go...)  And no time to go back to the store.  HMPH.

So, being crafty, I measured out some fabric I had from some other project and put together a cute little gift bag.

There it is, leaned up on my couch to snap a quick pic.

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The Nativity

My latest quilting project is completed.  I donated it to our church youth group - they are doing a Silent Auction for a fundraiser to raise money for the team to go on a missions trip to Mexico.

Presenting:

The Nativity

This is a small wall-hanging, about 15" x 18".  It was pieced using the paper-piecing technique.  A nice little project, with quite a few teeny pieces to put together!  (Pattern by Sweet Peas, Inc.)

This is the back of the hanging - a fun tie-dye fabric I had from something else I had taken apart.  You can see on the back better than the front (in the photos anyway) that there are stars quilted in the stipple stitch in the 'sky'.

It was a fun project to do, and I have another one about 1/3 completed.  I hope to post it on my Artfire or Etsy shop when I get it done.

I've donated a few quilts to auctions now, and I'm quite happy to contribute in this way.  I hope the bidders are pleased as well!

Pattern: Silent Night (#630), by Sweet Peas, Inc.  Redmond, WA, USA

Quilt Index (21)

Right now, these quilts 'live' on my original blog.  They'll be moved over in time.  But for now, you can click the links below to view them on the other blog.

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(index will be updated each time I add a quilt)

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Bits of Coral

Sampler Quilt I made to keep for myself.







Purple Pizzaz Quilt

Sampler Quilt Made for my Sister.






Custom T-Shirt Quilt

T-shirts provided by the customer, designed together to highlight these precious memories.






* Heralding Angel Quilt *

Stained Glass Wall Hanging











Teacher Gift Quilt

Reversible Table Runner





Teacher gifts 2007

Reversible table runners






Sleepover Doll Quilt

Little Girl's Quilt with handmade dollies and their own little beds





Simple Baby Quilt

Small quilt for putting over car seat / infant carrier or just tucking into the diaper bag to use on the floor or lawn.





Noah's Ark Baby Quilt

Crib Quilt





"Gathering Stars" Quilt

Queen-sized patriotic patchwork quilt - Patience Block pattern inverted





Reversible Holiday Table Runner

Thanksgiving / Christmas themes





Kokopelli Themed Quilt

Southwestern style Ohio Star pattern - wall hanging





"Funny Farm" Quilt

Lap Quilt made from pieced blocks and printed panels





I Love You T-H-I-S Much Quilt

Appliqued wall hanging - a fun children's quilt





Two Forever Stars

A shorter table runner, with paper-pieced nautical stars





Teacher's Baby Quilt

Tribute / Memory Crib quilt made using students drawings as a gift for teacher and her new baby





Camping Out Quilt

Wall-hanging or table top quilt in an outdoor theme - appliqued flannels





Katie's Laundromat Quilt

Wall-hanging to hang in a laundry room - applique with fun details





Plains Indian Quilt

Queen sized quilt made with printed panels





Silly Sewing Machine Quilt

Paper-pieced wall-hanging with button embellishments






1st Sampler Quilt

Chicken Quilt - a bit larger than lap size - each block is different!






Now taking orders for quilts like these
as well as custom made-to-order quilts of all sizes.

for more details!

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