Castle Peeps Giveaway!

June 21, 2010 in Etsy, Fabric | 117 comments

Welcome to my very first giveaway!

I am thrilled to be working with my friends Peg and Becca at Sew Fresh Fabrics.  Peg and Becca are a pair of fabric-loving quilters who recently opened an Etsy shop, specializing in modern designer cottons and Kona solids (a shop after my own heart!). I have crossed quilt-y paths with them in various places – Flickr quilting bees, the blogosphere, and even our local quilt guild.  That’s right, I might be shopping online, but I’m also shopping local! It’s more than just fabric, though.  Not only are you supporting a pair of wicked awesome gals by shopping with them, but you know you’re working with people who love it just as much as you do.  You can tell when the package shows up at your front step (or, in my case, when Peg knocks on my back door – lucky me!), pressed and folded and packaged with great care.

Anyways, today I’m lucky enough to give away one fat quarter bundle of the new Lizzy House collection, Castle Peeps! This will be six fat quarters in the green colorway.  How much do you love this new line?!

To enter, visit the shop and leave a comment telling me your favorite color Kona Cotton that they have currently in stock, and what color you think they should order next!  (Seriously, people. Solid obsession over here. Stage an intervention.)

Comments will remain open until this Friday at 5pm.

And if you want to keep up with all of the great stuff they have in stock, you can also check out their blog, as well as “like” them on Facebook.  They’ll have another shipment of Tufted Tweets next month (squee!), and a continually expanding selection of solids.

Thanks to Becca and Peg for doing this giveaway with me, and for being such a great (local to me!) resource for beautiful fabric!

Edited: comments are now closed, but if you want to order some fabric or suggest new colors of Kona to Becca and Peg, you can always reach them through the Sew Fresh blog!

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The Bean

June 14, 2010 in Finished Objects | 16 comments

For some reason, I had it in my head when she was really little that my daughter would be a tomboy.  She was very spunky and clever and agile at a young age. I didn’t put her in many dresses and ruffles, and I absolutely refused to put any of those ridiculous headbands on her little peach-fuzzed head.  I even dressed her as a ninja for her first (technically, second) Halloween. Trust me, it was fitting.

And yet I got ticked off if people asked me if she was a boy.  Yeah, I get it now.

Anyways, somewhere along the line, she decided she loved butterflies and “spinning” dresses and anything involving “beautiful colors.” Most specifically, pink and purple. What can I say?

I knew that Far, Far Away was for her.  And, thankfully, she loves finding the unicorns and snails and frogs in the different blocks.  She’s been pestering me for ages, any time she sees me sewing.  “Mama, are you making my quilt?”  Yes, my dear.  Yes. It’s finally done.

Becca's Big-Girl Quilt

The double gauze is a little tricky to work with. It really wants to distort in shape and fray a lot, so I handled it really gingerly and breathed a little easier once each piece was enclosed in a ring of Kona.  I used ten different solids for borders: violet, periwinkle, petal, lime, cactus, amber, peach, carnation, salmon, and melon.  Part of me thinks it was too busy, that I shouldn’t have used that many colors.  And maybe if I was making it for someone a little older, or as a lap quilt for my house, maybe it would have looked a little classier if I had toned it down. But somehow I think all the different colors work well for a little girl’s quilt.

Becca's Big-Girl Quilt

Sashing is Kona Cerise, which I am completely in love with.  It’s such a great, bold raspberry color.  Rebecca is tickled because she can’t quite decide if she should call it pink or purple.

Becca's Big-Girl Quilt

The back is mostly Kona Petal, which is a very pretty shade of pink that has a hint of purple to it as well.  I quilted it in my favorite loopy stipple, except I did a double-loop instead of a single one.  I saw Amanda Jean do it once, and I agree with her that it’s somehow a little fancier or more girly or frilly or something. But still playful.  And FAST!  There’s something about the motion of the loops instead of a “standard” stipple that feels so natural. I did the whole thing in a single sitting.

Becca's Big-Girl Quilt

The binding is Kona Cactus. I saw several other Far, Far Away quilts with the cerise and a kind of lime-green contrast, and thought it was so perfect.  Looking at the other solids I used, I didn’t want to do another shade of pink for the binding. I wanted some contrast, but the blues weren’t doing it for me.  Green was bright and it popped, a little something different and interesting. I love it.

Becca's Big-Girl Quilt

But nothing beats my sweet, sweet girl who bounced up and down when she saw it was finished.  “Mama! Is it done?!”  She immediately pulled it upstairs to put on her new bed.  Two nights later, as she cuddled up for our song before bed, she said out of nowhere, “thank you for my unicorn quilt, Mommy.”  You’re welcome, my Becca Bean.  You’re welcome.

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Big D

June 14, 2010 in Finished Objects | 4 comments

Included in the long list of things people love to ask moms twins, everyone always wants to know who was born first. I’m not sure why. What’s the fascination? They were born within moments of each other, does anyone think that makes such a difference in the “firstborn?”  That said, I’m not the kind of person who plans on hiding it from my kids if they want to know.

My son, Daniel, was born first. A whopping 45 seconds before his sister (they don’t mess around in the operating room!).  And so, for today, he gets the first post on his quilt.  Think that’ll cost me much in therapy later on?

Daniel’s quilt is primarily sock monkey prints, from Erin Michael’s various collections for Moda (5 Funky Monkeys, Goodnight Monkey, etc.).  I’ve been slowly collecting a bunch of them over the last year, and they all went into this quilt.  For good measure, I also threw in six coordinating Kona solids (buttercup, cornflower, tomato, school bus, grass, green tea).  The blocks are crazy nine-patches, made using this tutorial from Oh, Fransson.

Daniel's Big-Boy Quilt - front

It’s easy to follow and very forgiving. I started out with 10″ squares of fabric and had plenty of leeway in trimming them down to end up at 8″ (finished) blocks.  It goes really fast, making nine blocks at a time.  If you’re usually one to press seams to the side, however, this is one time when you’d benefit from pressing open.  Those last two cuts through the entire stack of fabric are a little tricky, and would be even worse with the extra thickness of side-pressed seams.

Daniel's Big-Boy Quilt - front detail

I sashed it in a great shade of blue (Kona Evening).  I was a little lazy when I basted it, though. I figured the top was “good enough” and didn’t iron it again before basting.  That was a stupid, rookie mistake, and I ended up with some annoying puckering when I quilted it. Not the end of the world, but it bugs me, for sure.

Daniel's Big-Boy Quilt - back

The back is mainly Kona Grass green, with a single strip of the remaining crazy nine-patches.  Quilting is intentionally wobbly vertical lines, roughly 1/2-3/4″ apart (I used my walking foot as a rough guide).

Daniel's Big-Boy Quilt - back detail

Anyways, I love it, and I love that my son loves it.  I love that it is fun and silly and appropriate for an almost-three-year-old, without being excessively babyish and something he’ll outgrow in style before he outgrows it in size.  I love seeing my big boy snuggled up underneath it. My Daniel / Dan / Mr. D / Big D (and, formerly, Señor Fussy-Pants).

Daniel's Big-Boy Quilt - label detail

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Fraternal

June 13, 2010 in Finished Objects | 13 comments

You’d be amazed how often people ask me if my boy/girl twins are identical.  Apparently no one was paying attention in high school biology.**

Fraternal Quilts

Being a mom of twins has, to state the obvious, shaped my parental world-view in countless ways. One notable thing is that everything in my world comes in pairs.  I never pour a single cup of juice or get a single snack from the pantry.  I always ask if there’s a “twin discount” when I’m buying two big-ticket items, like carseats or cribs.  Most recently, we bought a pair of toddler beds and moved my big kids into their own rooms and big beds.

Having two kids of the exact same age makes me a little obsessed with keeping everything “equal.” I don’t want them to always have two of the exact same thing (though sometimes that’s the easiest way), since they’re two very different little people with different interests.  But we do try to keep things fairly equitable.

Fraternal Quilts

And, so, you’ll notice that my kids’ new quilts are indeed very similar, but hardly identical.  They are both made of 8″ blocks with 3″ sashing and 5″ borders.  Lots of solids, including the binding. Similar strip of blocks on the back.  The layout, the structure is the same.  And yet, the actual quilts have very different looks and personalities.  Both suited to their recipients.

I’ll give them each their own post in the next two days.  Much like my beloved kiddos, they are certainly their own individual quilts.  And yet, I cannot ignore the fact that they are, and always will be, a pair.

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** OK, here’s your mini biology lesson for the day, in case you want to actually know the difference between identical and fraternal twins.

IDENTICAL or MONOZYGOTIC twins occur when a single fertilized egg splits in half, generally in the first couple of days after fertilization.  Therefore, the two resulting babies have the exact same DNA.  Having the same DNA means they will be the same sex and will likely be almost impossible to tell apart to the casual observer (barring things like different haircuts and the like, of course). Boy/girl twins, therefore, cannot be identical. (No matter what the crazy lady at the grocery store tells me. There is also not, as she would have liked to believe, such a thing as “almost identical.”  WHAT?) Identical twinning is a random occurrence, and there is no scientific evidence of it “running in families.”  It just happens.

FRATERNAL or DIZYGOTIC twins occur when two separate eggs are individually fertilized.  When they occur spontaneously (i.e. without fertility treatments), it means the mother has ovulated more than one egg in a single cycle (or, as I like to say, “double-dropped”).  The resulting babies are no more genetically alike than any other pair of siblings, and can be same- or different-gender.  Because they are the result of multiple-ovulation, fraternal twins can and do sometimes run in families, as the mother might have a genetic pre-disposition to double-dropping.  But, as you can now tell, it only matters if there is a history of twins on the woman’s side of the family, as the man obviously has no influence on how many eggs she’s going to drop.  So it does not matter in the slightest whether or not there are twins on my husband’s side of the family (there aren’t, but everyone likes to ask). There are other factors that can give a woman a higher risk of multiple-ovulation, even if there is no family history.

Sorry, I couldn’t resist this mini rant. As you might imagine, we twin moms get a lot of very strange comments.

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Chop, Chop

June 12, 2010 in Fabric, Piecing, Quilt-Along | 6 comments

Really, who needs to finish one project before starting another?

My kids’ quilts are in the dryer as we speak, actually. Just hoping for the rain to let up tomorrow so I can take pictures and show them off.  In the meantime, I spent some quality time in front of the DVR with my rotary cutter to start two new projects.  The first is for Amanda Jean‘s new quilt-along.  I cut from a fat quarter bundle of Nicey Jane that I bought a few months ago.

Fabrics cut!

But here’s my question to you, friendly readers… I would like to use some of the remaining Nicey Jane to make a coordinating full-size quilt.  (The ultimate destination for both, I think, will be a bedroom in my mom’s lake house, hence the desire to have them match.)  What would you make?  Would you do a near-duplicate of the twin-sized one from the quilt-along?  Something else with a similar feel?  Please please share ideas, as I can’t decide. I’m leaning towards something either very simple or with very large blocks, you know, so I can actually complete it sometime this year. You know how it goes.

Stack o' coins

The other bit of fabric that went under the knife this week was a pair of charm packs.  I think I’m going to make another stacked coin quilt, and it’s sort of a surprise for someone I don’t even know, who I thought could use a nice quilt in their life.  Will share more of the story when the quilt comes together and makes its way to its new home.

What about you? Have you felt the call to chop fabric to bits recently?  I’ve been focusing so hard on several finishes, it feels nice to start fresh.

We Sprang, We Finished

June 2, 2010 in Finished Objects, Piecing | 1 comment

Man alive, that six weeks FLEW by! Spring to Finish feels like it just started, and it’s already “over.”  Let’s see how I did on my list:

1. Baby Mia’s Quilt

OK, this one was kind of a “gimme” on my list. It was close to done when this started.  But whatever, it totally counts as a finish! Wohoo!  I called it “In Full Bloom,” and I was very happy with how bright and cheerful it was.  Word on the street is that everyone back home loved it, too. I am trying to convince my cousin that it truly is meant to be used and loved (and thrown in the wash), and that she doesn’t have to hang it on the wall.

2. Cobblestones

Procrastination station, I can’t believe I took so freaking long to get going on this quilt.  I think I was just intimidated by piecing 75+ blocks, and the four bits of border that had to go on each one.  In the end, I took it about eight blocks at a time, and that felt less overwhelming.  I was really happy with it, and am still sad I barely got to see it before it was whisked out the door.

3 & 4. Bed quilts for my kids

Well, I didn’t quite finish in time for this weekend’s big bed/room transition, so their old quilts will have to suffice for now.  (Oh, if you could see those quilts close-up… not my finest work, by a long shot! At least I’ve improved since then…)

Rebecca’s quilt top is done, and I’m waiting for some fabric to arrive for the backing. She pesters me about it on a regular basis, to keep me honest.  Every bit of fabric I sew together, “are you making my quilt?” Working on it, sweetie. Working on it.

Sandwiched

Daniel’s quilt is sandwiched and ready for quilting.  I even have the binding ready. Wohoo!

Orange Binding

And yes, my addiction to Kona solids is reaching a clinical level.  I expect the intervention team to show up any day now.

5. Pinwheel Sampler Quilt

Alas, since this one has no recipient and no deadline, it’s at the bottom of the list right now. Top is done, some fabrics cut for the back, but there it sits, and probably will sit for a little while.

6. Keep up with Bee blocks.

What? Just because I did nearly all of my May blocks on Monday afternoon… it was totally still May, right? Truth be told, there is one (April!) block that I’m behind on, because I foolishly left the fabric at a friend’s house and haven’t gotten around to picking it back up yet. Doh.

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All in all, I’m happy with the progress I’ve made over the last six weeks.  I knew when I wrote it that there was no way I’d get all of those quilts finished by the end of May, but still nice that they’re all getting darn close to done.

Now, what’s next on the list?  Oh, where to begin?  Two baby/toddler quilts, Amanda Jean’s next quilt-along, finally assembling one of my Bee quilts… the list never ends, does it?

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Cobblestones

May 28, 2010 in Fabric, Finished Objects | 33 comments

When my sister-in-law first asked me to make this quilt, she knew that the couple she was giving it to was moving across the country from Boston (where they had all gone to medical school together) to San Francisco.  I asked if she had any requests or ideas, and she said it might be nice if it could remind them a little bit of their time in Boston.

Visions of lobsters, baked beans, and novelty Red Sox prints ran through my mind, and I shuddered.  What would make a quilt say “Boston?” I mean, I’m sure there are some neat colonial designs out there, but that’s not really my cup of tea any more than fabric with sports logos on it.  So I sat and I sat and tried to think of something, and I procrastinated and put it off.  And then, unsurprisingly, inspiration came via Ashley.  Her “Postcards from the Park” quilt reminded me of something – Cobblestones.  It instantly reminded me of one of Boston’s most iconic neighborhoods, Beacon Hill.  I knew what to do.

Cobblestones

I had also been gathering a whole bunch of Hope Valley, which I admit to not loving at first, but it slowly grew on me.  And there was something about it that said “California” to me.  No, not in the sense of present-day Hollywood or Silicon Valley.  Something almost pioneer-like, about moving West for a new life.  Maybe I’m the only one, but it works in my head.

And so, we have these very subtly wonky bricks that remind me of those old, imperfect, bumpy streets and sidewalks here on the East Coast.  The wonkiness is more subtle than I had pictured it in my mind, almost to the point that I worry someone would just look at it and think, “can she just not sew quite right?”  But I’m happy with it, and I still think it gives it a softly (intentionally) imperfect feeling.

Cobblestones

There are 16 prints from Hope Valley in this quilt, and no fewer than 12 solids (13 if you count the sashing).  Because I’m the kind of person who would want to know these things, the solids are: zucchini, raisin, deep rose, sweet pea, teal blue, stone, plum, sage, rose, amber, moss, and eggplant (all Kona).  Sashing/border is Kona Snow.  I am on a HUGE solid kick right now, and have a new favorite color every day.

Cobblestones

The backing is Kona Stone, with a strip of bricks.  Again with the solid kick, especially with backings.  Be prepared to see a similar theme through the next few finishes.

Cobblestones

I was nervous to do it for the first time, but ultimately decided to go for large pebbling when I quilted it, and I’m glad I did.  I went through some frustration with running out of thread, regretting a cheap substitute, and needing a new needle before I thought I would. And when I first started, I worried that I was totally ruining the quilt by practically scribbling on it with thread.  But the effectiveness is in the whole picture, not in each individual pebble, and I do think I love it.

Cobblestones

My husband, of all people, gets credit for the scrappy binding.  I really wasn’t sure what to do, and he was the one who suggested bits and pieces. And wouldn’t you know, he was totally right. I love it, especially the way it looks against the back.

And so, it is finished.  Just in time for the wedding, just in time for Finished for Friday, and just barely under the gun for Amy’s Spring Quilt Festival. Wohoo!

The only sad part about always making quilts for other people is that I rarely get time to sit and savor the finished product.  That is most definitely the case with this one, as I took the photos at about 6AM, it goes with my husband to work this morning to make the handoff to his sister, and tonight it flies to the other side of the country.  And that’s why, even if I wasn’t blogging them, I’d have to take pictures of every quilt I make!

Cobblestones

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Nothing like a deadline

May 27, 2010 in Binding, Finished Objects | 7 comments

My sister-in-law leaves for San Francisco tomorrow evening. She probably asked me to make this quilt for her soon-to-be-married friend about six months ago.  I’m almost done.

Almost done...

Quick poll, though, it needs a name! I’m trying to be good about naming my quilts this year, but am not terribly creative.  So I’d love to hear if any of you can come up with something better.  I’m not going to show a full picture until it’s finished (tomorrow!), but here’s some info for your naming task:

  • It is all Hope Valley (with coordinating solids)
  • The pattern is slightly-wonky bricks, inspired by this quilt.
  • I did a large pebbling design for the quilting.
  • It is a gift for a couple about to be married (this weekend!).  They:
    • are both doctors (residents)
    • have recently relocated from Boston to San Francisco

So… any good names jump out at you?  Gotta make the label tonight so it can go in the wash before delivering it tomorrow! Yikes!

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Spring to Finish Progress

May 13, 2010 in Finished Objects, Piecing | 4 comments

So. Spring to Finish. It’s going…. well…. it’s going. Let’s check the white board shall we?

Spring to Finish - Progress

Yes, I have a white board in my sewing space to help me keep track, and it is vaguely color-coded in the status column. I’m a geek. Roll with it.  Black ink usually means I haven’t quite started.  Green means the fabric is at least cut, and I’m probably working on blocks. And red means FINISH THE DAMN THING ALREADY.  There’s a lot of red on there right now, and it’s freaking me out just a little.

I’ve got one complete finish, the quilt for my cousin’s daughter.  Admittedly, by the time I even put it on the list, the binding was nearly on. But still, it’s a finish. Check!

All of the mini pinwheels were totally worth it for my Pinwheel Sampler, the top for which is complete, and the backing is planned and fabric mostly cut.

Big-kid bed quilts for my kids have come together very quickly. Or, at least, the tops have.  Lots of wide sashing made it big enough without having to do a bajillion individual blocks.

Spring to Finish - Progress

So, that leaves me with three flimsies.  Three red statuses.  Two of which feel like they need to be done rather soon, since they’re for the big-kid beds, the transition to which is rapidly approaching. Excuse me while I go have a small heart attack.

Spring to Finish - Progress

Speaking of heart attacks – you’ll notice that the Cobblestone quilt has a green status on the board.  Not red. Not a completed top. You may also notice it has the most specific (and earliest) due date.  That’s a problem, since the current progress on it looks like this:

Spring to Finish - Progress

I’ve really been procrastinating on this one, for a number of reasons, and it’s getting to a rather critical point.  The extra crafting for Mother’s Day didn’t really help the situation, nor did having my in-laws staying in our guest room (aka my sewing room), meaning I did not have access to my machine for a solid two days.  Eeek!  Gotta get cracking.

And please, don’t even ask me about my Bee blocks. But it’s not the end of May yet, so they can’t be overdue, right?  Except, you know, that one left over from April. Sigh…

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Last-minute Mother’s Day gifts

May 7, 2010 in Crafts | 5 comments

I don’t have a great track record on Mother’s Day. I have a tendency to not think of a great gift, get some flowers at the last minute, and generally feel like an ass for under-celebrating my mom.

But hey, when you set the bar this low, it doesn’t take too much to exceed previous expectations.  And so, headed off in the mail today to my mom in Chicago is this:

Last-minute Mother's Day

It’s a rice heat therapy bag, pattern at Sew, Mama, Sew! I made one for my husband, and one as a grab-bag gift for my aunt for Christmas, and my mom thought it was great and said she’d love to have one, too.  If you’re still scrambling, I highly recommend making it.  It was done in under an hour, and I had all of the supplies already in the house (minus the essential oil, which I simply omitted).  In fact, I made this one first because I have to ship it. It’ll arrive Monday, but it’s OK because my mom is out of town for the weekend. And, in case you’re wondering, it fits in a flat-rate Priority Mail envelope just fine.

I’m making a second one later today for my mother-in-law, who actually happens to be coming to my house over the weekend, so I can deliver it in person.

Whew.

Edited to add the second one, completed just in the nick of time…

Last-minute Mother's Day Gift, 2

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