I May Have A Scrap Problem... Another Block, and Inspiration!

Hi, all!

As you may have already read, I'm on vacation this week!  But I made some blocks for my Gypsy Wife quilt ahead so I'd have them to share, plus I've seen some beautiful stuff online to inspire you! 

So here's this week's Gypsy Wife block...

This one's called "Hope From Hartford".  I am really loving the way these blocks look in Kate Spain's Latitude batiks!  Next week I'll show you a picture of all my blocks together.

And now for some inspiration!  Last week I saw a really cute pincushion on Instagram and immediately dropped everything to make one.  Mine didn't come out quite right (probably because I didn't want to buy the pattern!) but I really like how this one turned out.

This tiny pincushion is made of four 2.5" squares and is the perfect size to sit on the bed of my sewing machine and contain the pins I use for piecing!  Stuffed with crushed walnut shells, it stays where I put it, too.

I also saw this cute pincushion made with orphan blocks.  Isn't that a great use for them?

Always on the lookout for good blocks for ministry quilts, this one caught my eye.  This would be a great scrap block and would make an amazing quilt!!

And how about this scrappy quilt?  I love the piecing, but even more amazing is the quilting!!

I love making rope bowls, and these particular ones, with the rope wrapped in bright scraps, are really calling my name!  

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That's it for this week!  I'll be hitting a couple of great fabric stores on my vacation, with the intention of restocking some basics, like Essex Linen.  I've used almost all I have on hand, and it's so perfect for scrap quilts!  Somehow it makes my "free" scraps look like they're worth so much more...

What scrappy things are you working on these days?

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - Time for Some Vacation Sewing!

Hi, all!

Well, Monday almost got away from me - I've been having so much fun starting on my vacation sewing that I nearly forgot to write a blogpost!  But I'm here now, so let's see how last week's list went...

1.  Keep working on the quilt for the Free Spirit Fabric project.
Done!   Or at least, still in progress.  Aren't these colors gorgeous?

2.  Quilt a top for a friend.
Done - but of course, I forgot to take a picture!

3.  Start pulling together a fundraising project.
In progress!  It's something I brought with me to work on during down time...

4.  Finish the flyer for our local quilt show.
Done, and distributed!  Whew!

5.  Quilt one of my UFO tops for the fundraiser.
Done!  I just love this quilt - and it was so popular on Facebook that I've already sold it!  Now that's what I call a fundraiser!

6.  Keep working on the Gypsy Wife blocks.
Done!  I started out to make one for last week and make two kits to take with me on vacation, but they were so much fun (just like potato chips) that I couldn't wait!  But I'll reveal them one each week... more fun that way!  Here's last week's block...

7.  Pull together projects to take on vacation next week.
Done!  I've got quite a pile with me, and who knows what I'll find to add to it at the two fabric stores I plan to stop at!

8.  Keep working on blog maintenance.
This one fell by the wayside this week.  Oops!

9.  Meet with the new client who wants a quilt made of her horse show ribbons.
We failed to get together again - so this is getting pushed back to mid-September.

10.  Keep up with any quilt ministry needs that come up.

Thankfully a quiet week - no quilts went out this week.

So not too bad - a few things I didn't get to, but I'm happy with the things I did get done.  Here's what's on tap for this week...

1.  First of all and most important, enjoy the beach!!

2.  Work on some of the components for the Free Spirit Fabric projects.

3.  Make two table runners for the fundraiser.

4.  Make a quilt top for the fundraiser.

5.  Work on getting the fundraiser ready to go on social media.

6.  Make a block for the Michael Miller charity block drive.

7.  Go visit two great fabric stores and replenish some basics!

8.  Keep up with any quilt ministry needs that come up (thank heavens for my iPhone! I'm never out of touch!)

So that's my list for the week - depending on how much rain we get from the fringes of Harvey, I'll either get all of it done and more, or not much at all.  

Speaking of Harvey, having seen the pictures of the devastation in Texas, I'm wondering if anyone has started a quilt drive related to it yet?  If you have heard anything, share - or if you know of a place or person that can accept and distribute quilts, let me know - I'd be happy to coordinate something on this end!  And above all, keep praying for all those folks....

So now the question is - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Finally Finished!

Hi, all!

Surprise!  It's Friday again - or at least, that's the feeling I had as I looked at my email very early this morning!  I saw someone's post titled "Tiny Friday Finish" and realized I completely forgot to write my blog post last night like I usually do - so my husband says maybe I should call today "Oops Oops Friday"!!  Whatever you call it, it's time to share and do a little happy dancing - are you ready?  Let's get started!!

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I am so very happy to say that I will be mailing the last of the Hands2Help quilts to Emily today for Quilty Hugs for Happy Chemo!!!

This pretty quilt came all the way from England!  The top was made by Margaret C., and it was my pleasure to quilt it for her. Margaret also donated to a local charity but wanted to send one for a US charity too.

And oh, wasn't it fun to quilt one made by one of my own patterns?  This bright happy quilt was made by Darlene H., and is sure to brighten someone's day and bring a smile!

This final quilt wasn't made by me - my friend Lisa H. made it - but it's joining the other two in a big box for Emily.  Lisa has recently jumped into quilting with both feet and has been making some beautiful quilts, both for charity and for family and friends.  It's been a lot of fun to see her progress!

Better late than never, right?  I'm awfully glad to have these off my plate, and especially glad that Emily takes quilts all year long!  Unfortunately, cancer never takes a break.

Can I get a whoop whoop??

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you dance a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you...

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

PS - Prayers for those in the path of the hurricane this weekend!  I'm watching the news this morning, and it looks like you all are in for quite a storm.  Stay safe!  And while you're thinking about it, say a prayer for my sweet little granddaughter Emmy - she's having her tonsils out this morning.  Maybe say one for her mom, too - she'll be staying home with her for a week, and trying to keep her entertained and quiet while she heals.  Unfortunately, we'll be on vacation so I won't be here to help.  I feel so guilty, I bought Emmy a whole bag full of goodies to help keep her occupied!

I May Have A Scrap Problem...Table Runners!

Hi, all!

After last week's post about pillow covers, it occurred to me that I have made a couple of table runners from scraps - it's another great, quick and simple way to use up scraps from a project and they make fabulous gifts!

This table runner was made with the trimmings from this quilt...

...so it was truly made from scrap - the pieces that would normally have been thrown away.  And yet it's one of my favorite pieces!

And this pretty little runner, made with what I trimmed away from the polaroid blocks in my daughter's birthday quilt, has been a very popular piece - two customers who came to talk to me about t-shirt quilts have ordered one for themselves!  Fortunately, there were a lot of trimmings from the original quilt!

Those are just a couple of examples that I've made, but here are some more that I found on Instagram and Pinterest to inspire you...

I love this use of a modified drunkard's path block!

And how simple is this?  Great for leftover layer cake pieces...

You all should know by now that I love the Charming Stars block pattern - now I need to make some of these table runners!  Maybe it will finally make a dent in that box of Christmas scraps...

And this is such a great idea - a table runner made using a full-size quilt pattern as a starting point!  This is based on Christa Watson's Sealed With a Kiss quilt pattern.  Just imagine - you could make one and use up the scraps from a quilt at the same time!

I love this simple but effective rope pattern - and I have lots of spare HSTs!

And folks, winter may be coming, but fall will be here sooner than you know!  Wouldn't this be a terrific table runner for Thanksgiving?

Table runners are an excellent way to use up things like the wide leftover fabric strips from your quilt back and batting scraps, too.  I bet you're eyeing all those scraps a little differently now - will you have a new runner on your table next week?

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And here's my Gypsy Wife quilt block for this week - this one is called "From The Heart".  I'm really loving how these are turning out, using my Latitude batik scraps from Kate Spain.

I had so much fun today - I was planning to make this block, then cut out kits for the next two blocks to take on vacation with me.  But, rather like potato chips, it's hard to make just one, so I actually made all three blocks - but I'll be sharing them with you one at a time over the next two weeks.

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Now I have a question for you - what is your favorite kind of scrappy sewing?  Do you only use your scraps for quilts, or do you use them for smaller gift or home decor items?  Enquiring minds want to know!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - Total Eclipse of the Sun!

Hi, all!

I sure hope you were somewhere you could see the total eclipse of the sun today - it was totally amazing!!!  It took a couple of hours out of my workday, but it was absolutely worth it.  I remember an eclipse when I was a kid, but back then we used pinhole "cameras" that allowed us to see the sun's image on a piece of paper - this was definitely better!!  Here's some pics I took from the event...

It was a little less sunny than usual at the beginning of the eclipse...

...but this is what it looked like at the moment of totality!

It's not a great picture, but you can see the moon blocking the sun in this picture...

And this pic is so cool!  It's amazing what you can do with filters on your phone!

And this last pic is the sun coming through the trees on our deck right after totality.  Isn't that odd?  But I saw lots of people showing the same kind of pictures.  Except for those few minutes of totality, this was the coolest part of the eclipse for me!

OK, now it's time to get back to the real world!  Let's see how last week's list went...

1.  Quilt the final two quilts for Hands2Help.
Done!  And apparently I was so excited to finish these, I forgot to take pictures of them!  But here's a pic of one right after I finished the binding...



And in addition to the two H2H quilts, I finished this quilt for Stash Builder Box's Heartbuilder program!

2.  Complete the Free Spirit Fabrics design and figure out fabric requirements and cutting directions.
Done!  And I'm well into the construction of the quilt.  This is fun!!

3.  Work on the next Gypsy Wife block.
Done!

4.  Meet with a new customer about a horse show ribbon quilt.
She had to reschedule, so that's on the list for this week again!

 5.  Mail the twins' baby quilts.
Done, and they've been received and she loved them!!

6.  Do some blog maintenance.
Done!  If you notice at the top of my blog, there's a button for 12 Days of Christmas in July Links - the hyperlinks for each of this year's posts are there now!

7.  Keep up with any quilt ministry needs that come up.

Done! It was a little bit quieter this week...

This quilt went to an elderly woman dealing with breast cancer...

This quilt went to a woman just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer...

This quilt is for a 2-year old girl with kidney cancer...

...and this quilt went to a woman having back/neck surgery.

A busy week and a list well-done!  Here's what's on tap for this week...

1.  Keep working on the quilt for the Free Spirit Fabric project.

2.  Quilt a top for a friend.

3.  Start pulling together a fundraising project.

4.  Finish the flyer for our local quilt show.

5.  Quilt one of my UFO tops for the fundraiser.

6.  Keep working on the Gypsy Wife blocks.

7.  Pull together projects to take on vacation next week.

8.  Keep working on blog maintenance.

9.  Meet with the new client who wants a quilt made of her horse show ribbons.

10.  Keep up with any quilt ministry needs that come up.

Definitely more than enough to keep me out of trouble this week!  So now, the question is...

What are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Twin Quilts for Twin Girls!

Hi, all!

It's finally Friday again, and you know what that means - it's time to get our whoop whoop on!!!  Are you ready?  Just a reminder, it doesn't have to be a finish (although finishes are good!)  It can just be something you're proud of accomplishing this week - making progress on a project, or even bringing some order to your sewing space!  So find something to whoop about and let's get started!

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This is my beautiful niece Ashley.  That baby bump she's showing off is twin girls, due sometime the last half of September!  Of course, when I found out we had twin girls coming, I went into quilt-y overdrive....

...and created a pair of twin quilts!  

I used the "Sparkle Plenty" pattern from Connecting Threads to create these two quilts.  The stars themselves are made using prints from the Tiger Lily collection by Heather Ross (don't you just love her whimsical prints?) and the backgrounds are two different Kona solids.  The binding on each matches that quilt's Kona color, with a bit of the sister quilt's background color added in for fun.  

I love the backing fabric I found at Joann's!  I originally went looking for a sweet simple baby print - something light and airy.  Couldn't find what I was looking for in the baby section, so I went over to look at some of the other quilting fabric.  When I spotted this print, I knew immediately it was perfect!  All the colors coordinated with the prints in the quilt, and it's fun but a little bit sophisticated, too.

I'm so happy I finished these before the arrival of two sweet little girls - and I can't wait to see pictures of them with their quilts!

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop??

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

via GIPHY

What's making you dance a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you...

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

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I May Have A Scrap Problem... Pillows!

Hi, all!

This week I found a great pin on Pinterest and immediately put it in my Oh Scrap! page - but it got me started thinking about another great way to use your scraps!

Isn't that a great pillow?  It's even finished in my favorite way - with binding, just like a quilt.  This is a quick, easy way to refresh your house, even providing seasonal pops of color.  Here are some scrappy pillows I've made recently...

This pillow was made literally from the tiny scraps left over from a quilt I made...

...and this one was made with bonus HSTs and narrow strips left over from another project!

This pillow and the one below were also made with bonus HSTs.  FYI bonus HSTs are created by sewing a second line when you are putting corners on a block, such as a snowball block, and creating a small HST out of what would normally be thrown away.

Here's another example of pillows made from bonus HSTs - are you sensing a theme here?  Seriously, though, I just can't bear to throw away perfectly good fabric...

And this pillow is made from the simplest kind of scrap block - an easy two-fabric block done large.  If you have orphan blocks hanging around, this kind of pillow is even easier!  Just add strips around your orphan block until it reaches the size you want.

The next two are a little bit different, but are good examples of up-cycling...

My daughter made the embroidered piece that is the center of this scrappy pillow cover - originally, a wall hanging set in an embroidery hoop.  When she redecorated, she wanted to save her handiwork, and asked me make it into something useful.  I had a lot of scraps left over from Emmy's pennant quilt and created a postage stamp "frame" for the needlework piece.  Definitely a win-win!!

And this pillow was made using a long-treasured piece of needlepoint I found in my grandmother's stash, turning a piece stored for years into a useful and beautiful pillow that reminds me every day of the woman who taught me to love the fiber arts and do them well.

A simple envelope closure on the back means you don't even need to find a zipper!  It's also a great way to use up those random fat quarters hanging around your stash - I usually make my backs by folding two 22" pieces of fabric in half so that the back is actually a double layer of fabric.  And there's usually binding scraps in my box to finish off the pillow cover.

And when you want to switch your pillow covers out for a fresh seasonal take, they store easily either laid flat on a shelf or hung from pants hangers in your closet, ready to be brought out again when your mood or the season changes!

Feeling inspired yet?

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And yes, I'm still working on my Gypsy Wife quilt!  This week I added Pershing to my Color Wheel block...

One more and it will be a party!  This week's block went pretty easily - I cut some of the pieces a little larger to allow for distortion and trimmed as needed to keep it square, and still used a very scant 1/4" seam, but other than that it's right by the pattern.  And I'm loving how the Latitude scraps are looking in these blocks!!

Take that, you little scrap monster, you!!!

Hugs!

Sarah

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