Big Boy Quilt

I've been going through my photo files and came across pictures of my son's twin quilt. It's been done since last June, and he's been sleeping in it since then. So this is late in sharing, but with a project that takes that much attention, I have to share. 

His nursery had the following color scheme:

I had painted this canvas for his nursery. 

 I wanted to make the painting and the other details and pieces transition right into his big boy decor. Here's a picture of his nursery to give you an idea. I wanted to reuse the navy curtains and all the stuff on his shelves.

So I headed to my favorite local fabric shop Cabbage Rose to see if I could find some fabrics that would work. I needed 9 different fabrics for the design I drew up, and I came home with 8. I had some Heather Ross fat quarters at home that I thought I could use if I didn't find anything I liked better. So all together I had my 9 fabrics: 3 dark blue, 3 light blue, and 3 green.

I got to work cutting my squares . . . I needed 100.

 Then I laid them out on the floor. I didn't want the fabrics to repeat consistently, I wanted it random, so down they went.

Then I sewed each row together. Then two rows got sewn to each other. 

After sewing my five, two row pairings, I sewed in some gray sashing, and a gray border. Then it was time to quilt it. I considered machine quilting it, but since I hand quilted my older daughter's quilt, and loved the look so much, I finally decided that was the way to go. Up went the quilt frame, and the hand quilting began. I finished it in 3 days- a little here, a little there, till it was done.

Then, I trimmed down the batting and quilt back, sewed on some binding (machine sewed the first round, and hand stitched the top round to avoid seeing any machine stitches.) Then it was done and ready to get put to use! Our little guy wasn't quite ready to sleep in the big boy bed, and for the first week or so, he would ask for his crib. We put his crib in the toddler bed setting, and let him sleep there until he was ready. I think the little doggies, fish, and campers on the Heather Ross fabric helped him come around!

So here's what his room looks like today. We originally had the crib on the opposite wall from his bed, but we decided to give baby brother his own room for a while. So the room decor is in a transitional state for now. There are two of those bed frames that were my uncles' when they were little. Then my sisters and I used them, then our older daughter used it, and now it's the boys turn. I dream of the day when my two boys have their matching big boy beds lined up on the wall, but for now, at least one big boy has a cute quilt to sleep under.

Grandma's 80th Quilt

This past June, my maternal grandmother turned a beautiful 80 years young. My mom took part in organizing a party for her out in California. Part of the celebration was to be the presentation of a family heirloom quilt. Each descendent - child, grandchild, great-grandchild - contributed a square for the quilt. Then my mom pieced the quilt, had it quilted, then bound into one beautiful piece of art. One of the greatest parts was seeing the individuality of the squares. Some had pictures, some had patch-working, some had embroidery, some had drawings- together they made one unique quilt filled with the love of those who took time to show our mother/grandmother/great-grandmother our love for her.

Here are the squares that I made to represent our family:

For our family square I painted the shape of Texas. Then I cut little pieces of fabric to be our clothes, then I embroidered our bodies & our family name. For the 3 children's squares, I made a stencil and painted their silhouettes. Below each child's silhouette I embroidered their name and birthdate. (I blurred it for privacy.)


I wasn't able to be at the party when my mother presented the quilt to my grandmother, but I do have pictures. I love her facial expression as she lovingly touches the quilt.

I hope that every time she sees this quilt, she will know of the love her family has for her.

Happy 80th Birthday Grandma!

Handmade Holidays: Doll Quilt

I've decided that I want to do mostly handmade gifts this year. There are a few exceptions, but for the most part, homemade sewing, cooking, and crafting projects will be keeping me busy as I cross off my gift list. Here is the first one that I made, after being inspired by Amanda Jean's Tiny Ticker Tape Quilt over at Crazy Mom Quilts. I love how crinkly it gets after you wash it!


It was a great way to get rid of some of those itty bitty scraps I've been saving up, and I know my little momma is going to love it!

Not Too Shabby... or is it?!

I was going for a cheery shabby chic look for K's big girl bed/room and I am SO happy with the results. That's right, I finally finished her quilt and sham. You can see more progress here and here.

My mom and I hand quilted the quilt and then I sewed the binding by hand as well. All the hand quilting and sewing took a long time, but I'm glad I did it that way, because the result is lovely! (Thought I will say that I probably won't be hand quilting for a while, my fingers are still red!)

The sham is exactly as I pictured it to be in my head. I even machine quilted the front to add a bit more detail.

Before I go, here is one of the tricks I came up with as I dreampt up this quilt. I saved images of each of the 7 fabrics onto my computer. Then I created a photo document which allowed me to move around the fabrics into different combinations and positions. This way I could move it all around digitally before cutting and ruining my precious fabric. I could also see it all in one place rather than having to clear a big floor space in order to picture the future result. Check it out, this digital image is the exact placement of the final project pictured up above!

Now we are working on setting up her bed and room. I'll be sure to post pictures of it all put together!

Wrapped in Love

"It is by serving that we learn to serve. When we are engaged in the
service of our fellowmen, not only do our deeds assist them, but we put our own
problems in a fresher perspective. When we concern ourselves more with others,
there is less time to be concerned with ourselves! In the midst of the miracle
of serving, there is the promise of Jesus that by losing ourselves, we find
ourselves!"
-Spencer W. Kimball

Do you ever wonder how you can use your talents and abilities to serve the greater good? I must say that my mother has been a great inspiration to me of forgetting herself and putting her abilities towards something greater than a simple project. For over a year now, my mom has organized quilting to benefit those less fortunate. Every week for months at a time, she allows women to come into her home, open-house style, and work on quilts that are sent to those who can't afford one on their own. She knows a family who has adopted a village in Peru. Look at their beautiful little village on the mountain. Many of the quilts were sent vaccuum packed into luggage to give to these sweet people. Look at how happy they are to receive these soft quilts. Many of the people didn't own a quilt or blanket to help them keep warm. Can you imagine not having a blanket to wrap around your new baby? Currently, they are working on another batch of quilts. Not only is quilting day a great time for women to get together and socialize, but it's a great way to give of yourself for the benefit of others. How can each of us challenge ourselves to give of our talents and abilities for the service of others?

"May we ponder carefully, deeply, and prayerfully our roles in life, where we can give the greatest service, to whom we can make the greatest contribution, what we should do with our lives and with our special skills and training. Our success will be measured by what we can give of our lives and our contribution to others rather than what we can get and receive from others.
"The happy and abundant life begins from within and then moves outward to other individuals and to our communities. If there is richness and righteousness in us, then we can make a difference in the lives of others and in our towns, just as key individuals have influenced the lives of each of us for good and made us richer than we otherwise would have been."

-Spencer W. Kimball

Quilt Progress #2

More progress! All 175 pieces have been cut for the front of the quilt (minus two simple borders.) The worst part is done, now onto sewing!

Quilt Progress #1

As I mentioned in my last post, progress is being made on K's quilt. I bought the fabric forever ago, and finally got to it. I sketched out the final draft after thinking about it in my head and sketchpad for a while now. That required some math and some phone calls to the quilt tips expert that is my momma. Have you ever been so scared to cut your precious fabric that you delay a project or second guess your measuring and math a few times before you just dive in? That was me, but the excitement got the better of me and I cut away! I have almost all of the little squares cut, but I still have 150+ little pieces to cut before sewing can begin. I must admit, that I hate this cutting part and wish I could pay someone to do it so that I could just sew!

(I was enjoying the lovely natural light in the room as I cut, that's why the pic is a bit dark.)

I'll keep you updated on any big transforming progress- I can't wait for it to be done. K get's her big girl bed once this is done. Let's hope I'm speedy because she practically face dives out of her crib!