Cup Cozy's & Bibs

I have quite a bit of strips of fabrics left over from other projects so I decided to use them to make cup holders. I got the idea when I was in Alaska in 2008. My friend and I saw a lot of home made items in a small boutique that we visited and she had the idea to make these. I made some several years ago and gave them as gifts. Since I am on a goal to use up all my fabric scraps I decided that this is one of my new projects.

The other project is making baby bibs. They are easy and quick also. These quick items are just the break I need from my larger quilt projects.

Tote Bag #3

front

 Here is my latest tote bag. I followed a new pattern and combined it with a previous pattern to make a bag that is fully lined, quilted and has pockets inside.


back
 

inside

These pictures show the front, back and interior. I placed 3 pockets, one large at the back of the bag and two smaller ones at the front. I now have made three totes. I think I like the second pattern the best for size, will just adjust it to make the seams covered. I like the first one for its eas, but I need to change the demensions to make it just a tad larger.

The first one was the easiest, quilted, lined, no flap and had two shoulder straps.
The second one was quilted, not lined, had a flap and one shoulder strap.
The third one was quilted, lined, had a flap, one shoulder strap and 3 interior pockets.
Below is a picture of each. All were made from my stash of fabric. I am determined to use up all my fabrics before buying more. I hope I can do that!

First Tote

Second Tote

Third Tote

New Tote Bag

Hi all,
I have been busy sewing  in the last week since we have been inundated with snow and cold temperatures. I decided to make a different tote bag. I have 3 patterns and this is number 2. After I complete the third pattern I will decide which one I like the most and make several more to sell at my church's spring fair in March.








This one was a little more involved than the previous one but I think I like it better. It has more batting and thus makes it feel more like a purse. There are a few adjustments that I will make, like the way the shoulder strap and the flap are attached, but overall I like the pattern.

 I think I will keep this one for myself!

Cut & Fold Technique

My latest project was pillow covers. They are made using a technique called 'cut and fold'. I absolutely love this technique. It is not difficult, just time consuming since you need to topstitch all the cut edges. I will be making more of these using the different patterns that came in the book.

The photo on the top is the pillow cover itself. The photo on the bottom shows the covers laying on top of larger pillows. The actual size is about 12 1/2 inches square. I also like this method of making a cover that is removable. The back of the pillow cover has over lapping flaps which can be temporarily stitched or just left as is since they do overlap sufficiently.

 My girlfriends daughter is having a baby in two weeks and does not want to know the sex of the baby before hand, so I was forced to make two quilts. One for a boy and one for a girl. Here are the finished products. The boy quilt was made from scraps and followed the rail fence pattern. I put the blocks on the diagonal and added solid colors to fill in the gaps. I used the picture frame technique for the border. It is my preferred way of finishing a quilt.

For the girl quilt I used 7 1/2 inch squares. The fabric was tea dyed to give it an aged look. The squares were left over from the quilt that I made for my girlfriends daughter, so I am really hoping that she has a girl! It will be just like mommy's! I also had enough fabric to make a pillow.

I also had the time and extra fabric to make bibs. These were fun and quick.

 

And lastly, a tote bag. The only thing I found disappointing with this pattern is the size, so I will have to enlarge it next time. I used squares from a charm pack, but I will probably use squares from my scrap stash next time. This was fun and quick also.

 

This is my latest quilt.
 As with most of mine, it is made from scraps left over from other quilts. I used a diamond pattern that I found in a magazine. It went very fast and was fun to make.

I have just finished two baby quilts and a baby pillow.  I will post pictures of those later this week.

My next project will be baby bibs and a baby bunting. I really have to get busy. My friends baby is due in 2 weeks!!

Newest Quilt

I haven't posted in quite awhile, I have been so busy getting ready for Christmas and of course, sewing. These are my latest creations.
   The quilt on the left is a baby quilt. The person who ordered it (my sister-in-law) wanted something non-traditional. I love making the tumbling block quilt. It is a lot of work because you have to match corners, not just sew through, however the result is so wonderful. After receiving it she said that her husband loved the colors so I thought of making one for them using the same color scheme, but in an adult pattern.
   I love to use up left over scraps from other projects to make a one of a kind quilt. I happened to have many of the fabrics left over from the baby quilt so I decided to put them together using various patterns. Making pinwheels is the easiest and it is so versitile. The other patterns were determined by the size of the pieces that I had on hand. I used a black print  to border the squares and the backing is blue.
I sent it off to Florida today so they will have it in time for Christmas.