More Random Stitching

 Does this happen to you when you clean your sewing room? I found a bunch of small projects that required some quick stitching and now they are done! Why do they sit in piles for so long?

The lovely folks at American Made Brand sent out tote bags after the 50 state blog tour. I saw that another participant had used her scraps to trim the top of the bag. When I found my tote and pile of scraps last night, I knew just what to do.

 I used the bits and pieces leftover from my license plate block to piece a strip. Again, I feel like I have more scraps now than before! How do scraps multiply?

Then I found some coaster kits leftover from a beginner quilting class last Spring. We used them to help teach 1/4" seam accuracy.

 Not long ago, I bought some bandanas from The EGA Shop. This morning before breakfast, I stitched two together into a throw pillow for Pete's bed.

I love this room! As I was editing this pic, I noticed that I put up the flag backwards. Oops.

Not bad for a few hours of random stitching!

Edited: I never posted a pic of Debbie's completed placemats. I just wanted a record of them here. My niece is renting an apartment with a lavender dining room. When she came to visit in August, she picked out some fabric from my stash. This was a two day project only because I had to run out and buy fabric for the binding. Why did it sit for over a month?

Scattered Tuesday

This is what my kid did at work today! OOHRAH!

(He's not in the picture. I'll probably never get a picture of him doing anything this cool.)

I couldn't focus on any one project today, so I worked on four! I made this cute drool bib/bandana for Mollie. It was a request from her mom, and I'll make more if this one works for them. I used the dimensions in this post from Begin with B.

 

I quilted a few rows on this donation quilt so I could remove most of the pins. I'll need them for my father-in-law's quilt.

 

Speaking of my FIL, I pieced the backing for Garnet and Gray, but no picture. 

I picked up this quilt from a customer who wants me to replace the worn out binding. This is one well-loved quilt! Judging from the calicoes that I recognize from my own wedding quilt, this log cabin was pieced in the late 80's. Other than the binding, it's in fairly good shape besides being very faded. It's super soft and cozy, so I can see why she wants it repaired.

I'll let you know when Pete starts jumping out of helicopters, instead of just dangling from them!

Random Monday

My blocks are done for the first round of our guild's Friendship star swap starting next week. I like the high contrast of two fabrics, as opposed to the scrappiness of the block I made for the instruction post. That block may be destined for the spare block bin.

 Pete wanted to replace a worn out pair of cammies, so the name tape needed to be moved to the new pair. Three months of boot camp was enough to wear a hole in one knee.

My reward for sewing for him is that I get to keep the old cammies! I'll be surfing the web for ideas on what to make. I'm thinking tote bag, zippered pouch, key fob...

 

On New Year's Day, hundreds of brave souls plunged into the freezing water to raise money for charity. Don't let the beautiful view fool you. It was only about 20 degrees!

 

 Bill and Pete were two of the crazies. I had the camera and Julia had the towels. I hope this is one of those things they only need to do once.

 

 

 There are uniform pieces all over the house. I hope he remembers to pack it all!

I'm trying to get back into the swing of things. I've loved having both kids home, but I had really gotten comfortable in our empty nest! Julia will be home for two more weeks, so we're hoping to get started on a New York Beauty block of the month from our local quilt shop. We've wanted to make one together since we met Karen Stone in 2005. I think we're ready!

Totally Random

A little bit of everything today!

Twirly Girl skirt pattern and a jelly roll of Birdie.
Hoping to make 2 of these this week for my niece's little girls.
We can't wait to see them on Saturday.

A baby quilt for Bill's coworker's new baby boy.
Fabric is On the Go by Jill Webster for Clothworks.
Many thanks to Fat Quarter Shop for the speedy delivery!

Big news!
My nephew Christopher proposed to his girlfriend of 8 years yesterday at a covered bridge in Vermont. We're so happy for them both! And you know what this means: Wedding Quilt!!
(photo swiped from Jamie's facebook page)

Bill bought Julia a bouquet of roses for her birthday that faded to an incredible velvety purple-red. Of course, impossible to capture on our cheap camera.

Thank God for the lilacs!
A farmer nearby dressed his field with cow manure.
If not for the lilacs, we wouldn't be able to go outside for a week!

Pete's first at-bat of the season! Yay! I love baseball season!

An osprey family holds court over the baseball and softball fields.
We watched mama bird deliver a couple of fish to the babies during the game.

The Baltimore Oriole couple has returned home to our backyard for the summer. No pics yet. I just caught sight of them this morning. The oranges are out at the feeder for their lunch.

Happy Star Wars Day!
May the Fourth be with you!
(get it? May 4th?)