Rainy Day

The quiet of a rainy day is so soothing to my spirit, and yesterday was no exception. Even with three little active girls in the house, it was a remarkably peaceful time. Michael Buble's Christmas album crooned cheerfully in the morning, Bunny and I enjoyed watching White Christmas in the afternoon while Bear and Mouse napped, and I got the chance to do a little sewing. Over the next few months, I plan to both replace all our old potholders with new ones and cover all the family room pillows. Rather than do it all at once, I'm trying to just fit in a project whenever time or inspiration give me the opportunity. It's far less stressful, and I figure that this way there will be a lot more variety in my designs over the long run.

I used Amy's tutorial for Japanese x & + scrappy quilt blocks which I've been wanting to try for a while. It's a great little block, and so perfect for scrap busting.

I backed it in a Suburbia print that I've been saving for kitchen projects. It has a cute retro vibe going on that I love.

My other finish yesterday was my project for the Happy Little Pouch Hop which I'll be posting about on Monday. I enjoyed it immensely and can't wait to share it with you. Look for two posts on Monday since it also marks the official start of Sew Mama Sew's bi-annual Giveaway Day. I'll be going through my stash this weekend to put together a little stack of goodies for one of you to win. This event is huge -- definitely check it out if this is your first time!

The rain is falling outside my windows again, and I have a stack of hexagons calling my name. See you back here tomorrow for Fresh Sewing Day...

Linking up to Finish It Up Friday.

O Christmas Tree

I always enjoy seeing magazine spreads on Christmas decorating. It's so fun to get new ideas, and once in a while, I see something that I can actually use. For our family, though, Christmas is steeped in traditions and memories that rarely change. We use an artificial tree in our home -- asthma, allergies, and other concerns make it a necessity for us. This one is particularly special to me because it's the one that my husband and I used at our December wedding reception seven years ago.

Over a decade ago, before Etsy mania took hold, my mother managed a small shop called Nana's Attic which sold handmade goods from all over the country. After my father became a pastor and she closed down the business, we saved some of our favorite holiday pieces including this Christmas tree skirt. The braided rag rug is actually a series of four upside down hearts sewn together to make a perfect circle.

These little dolls, also from the shop, are such a sweet decoration. My girls love them, and I think they look so cute on the tree.

As I've mentioned before, my mother is brilliant with cross stitch. This angel is one of several of her creations that we put on the tree each year. The little plastic apple was a Christmas gift from my sixth grade teacher, Ms. Bode. She was a tough teacher, but I respected her greatly. After she retired and I became a teacher myself, she gave her entire stash of bulletin board and teaching aides to me. Just a short while later, she passed away from a number of health issues, leaving behind no husband or children. I've always felt that it was important that someone remember her, and placing this little apple on my tree each year is my small way of doing that.

We have some fun little vintage treasures like this one. I don't know the history of every one, but they've become a part of the family collection over the years.

The angel at the top of the tree is one more find from Nana's Attic. I love putting it on top of that wreath of berries for a little extra color.

But the biggest Christmas tree tradition in our family is the bow at the top of the tree. My parents got engaged thirty-seven years ago this December. That year my mom told her mother that all she wanted for Christmas was my dad. So on Christmas morning when my dad came to visit, my grandmother tied this red bow and pinned it to my dad's collar before sending him over to see my mom. It's been at the top of our Christmas tree every year since. The creche always hangs below it to remind us Who should be at the center of the celebration.

I love this tree. I love everything it represents and all the people that it brings to mind. It may not be the flashiest or the most creative tree on the block, but there's love on every branch.

I wouldn't have it any other way.

Simplicity

A few months ago I won a gift certificate to the Fat Quarter Shop, and I knew exactly what I wanted to get: a layer cake of Tasha Noel's darling collection, The Simple Life. The patterns and colors in these prints are so perfectly sweet, and I knew that my daughters would enjoy the detailed drawings of children and animals. There's even a little bit of text included on a few prints!

If you've never done any paper piecing before, this pattern is a fairly simple way to get started, and it makes for a beautiful project every time. I love the simplicity of the design and the way it allows me to showcase my favorite fussy cut prints.

For the back, I used a Denyse Schmidt print from her Sugar Creek and Winding Road collection. I love that shade of dark aqua.

The pillow is now sitting at the end of my couch by the Christmas tree, making me happy.

What a great way to start the week.

Linking up to Sew Modern Monday and the Let's Get Acquainted Monday Link-Up.

Blessed

Today I found not one...not two...but three packages waiting for me when my parents brought in the mail. I was so excited that I had to sneak downstairs for a quick peek before my two youngest daughters went down for their afternoon naps.

This lovely set was made for me by Kelie (craftnursequilt) for Round 2 of the Modernista Swap, which had a kitchen theme this time. Look at all these goodies! I'm absolutely crazy about those potholders, which I needed desperately. They're now making all the other potholders in my house look pathetic by comparison -- a situation I'll have to remedy in the weeks ahead. I've already put that darling fabric basket and table mat to use, and I love all the sweet extras she included. My girls can't wait to get their hands on those cookie cutters. Can you believe that this was Kelie's first swap? She did such an incredible job!

I couldn't believe it when I found out that Lori -- my sweet friend and co-conspirator in our recent Long Weekend blog hop -- was my partner in Round 2 of the Modern She Made Swap. She could not have captured my tastes more brilliantly. Look at all the color, and the great text fabric accents! That pillow cover is absolutely to die for, and I'm completely in love with that armrest sewing kit. She also included a stack of gorgeous fabric and several spools of ribbon. I was totally overwhelmed as I looked at the contents of this package. Lori is so incredibly talented, and you can see it in everything she makes.

But if that wasn't enough, I noticed that Lori's return address was also on package number three. Inside I found the treasures you see above along with a thank you card for helping her manage The Long Weekend -- as if all the fun we had doing this blog hop wasn't joy enough! Lori, you're an angel...thank you!

After staring awestruck at all of these beauties for a few moments, I tiptoed back upstairs to the girls' room to find Mouse asleep and my sick little Bear (she's been fighting a fever for the past few days) asking me to rock her awhile. As I cuddled her in the rocking chair, I was reminded again that in the midst of all the ups and downs of life, I am so blessed. And isn't it amazing how these reminders come when we need them most?

May you receive the reminders that you need today as well. I wish you all a very happy weekend.

Monday Dash

Much to do today, but I wanted to quickly share the project I finished yesterday for the Modern She Made Swap. One of the hardest things about swaps for me is to remember that I'm making something for my partner -- not for me. This project was a good stretch for me, though I agonized quite a bit over figuring out exactly what would suit my partner best. In the end, I hope I made something that she will enjoy even if it isn't necessarily what I would have made for myself. Every new project is a new chance to grow, and I love that...

Be sure to stop by Lori's blog today because she'll be announcing the winners from The Long Weekend. You've got to see all the entries too -- absolutely incredible. My deepest thanks to Lori for all she put into this blog hop. She was the genius who came up with this idea in the first place, and I'm so glad she did. Thanks also to all of the lovely women who hosted giveaways and posted their gorgeous bags for the blog hop -- you can find links to their blogs here. I had so much fun working with all of you. You're amazing!!

Linking up to Sew Modern Monday.

Sunday Stash

If you're looking for the chance to share pictures of your favorite fabrics with people who understand why this is a big deal, you'll definitely want to head over to Fiona's blog at Finding Fifth. Every week she has a Sunday Stash link-up, and I've been meaning to join for a while now. Since I had a few fun fabric purchases in the last month, I thought I'd put them together in one post.

The fabrics put out by organic manufacturers like Birch, Monaluna, and Cloud 9 are some of my favorites. Their designs are so charming, and I particularly love their often retro inspired color palettes. Honestly, I would buy far more organic fabric if I could afford it! When I saw a fat quarter bundle of Fox Hollow on sale at Sew Me a Song -- an incredible place to shop if you've never visited before -- I couldn't resist. I also threw in a favorite Flea Market Fancy print and Alphabet from Books and Letters. I can never have enough text fabrics!

This bundle came from Pink Castle Fabrics, and when I pulled it out of the package, I was absolutely delighted. Though I didn't purchase them to necessarily go together in one project, I was surprised at how they all seemed to fit with each other so well. There are some prints from Odds and Ends, The Dressmaking Collection, Marmalade, and Sew Mama Sew. I also have a piece of yarn dyed linen and some of Melody Miller's adorable transistor radios. I can't wait to play with these fun fabrics!

This afternoon I'll be finishing up a swap project and delivering our church's Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes to the local distribution center. The little ones are still getting over the flu -- we're at the well-enough-to-be-crabby-but-too-sick-to-go-out stage. Hopefully we'll be doing better soon, since my husband's parents are arriving tomorrow night to be with us for Thanksgiving week. If we can just stay healthy, the week ahead has every sign of being a marvelous one.

Have a beautiful Sunday, my friends.

Linking up to Sunday Stash, guest hosted today at Blossom Heart Quilts.

The Unexpected Weekend

Last Friday I was so excited about the long weekend we had ahead of us. My husband was looking forward to three days of fun with me and the girls, and I had all my pieces ready to sew together for my Weekender in plenty of time to write my post. Everything changed, of course, when Bear came down with a violent case of stomach flu on Saturday morning. With seven of us in the house, we've learned to expect that if one person gets sick, everyone is going to get sick. As Mouse, my dad, and my husband all came down with symptoms during the next few days, I tried to work on my bag as quickly as possible during any free minutes I could spare so that I wouldn't miss my deadline, but unfortunately I just ran out of time before the flu hit me hard on Monday night. The bag as you see it here is almost finished -- it's just missing a lining. In my haste, I'm afraid I wasn't quite as neat and tidy as I normally like to be -- you'll notice plenty of imperfections here and there. The photos you see in this post were taken by my dear husband who stopped me before I tried to hobble outside to take them myself. As I look at them now I can see all the loose threads and wrinkles that I forgot to deal with before the quick photo shoot, and the perfectionist in me is mortified. Sometimes you just have to do the best you can and let it go...

When people say that this bag is a challenge, they aren't kidding. The cutting and prep work are endless, and you're fairly worn out before you even get started. Once you start sewing, though, it's not so bad. Things didn't really become daunting for me until I hit the dreaded step on the directions where you sew all of the exterior panels together. Yikes. I had to rip out seams more than once. A denim needle is well worth your money -- mine never broke even though I was sure it would a few times. You'll do well to go slowly and take your time, both as you sew and as you read through the directions. I read each step through at least twice before plunging ahead.

It's a nice sturdy bag, which I like. I followed several people's advice and made my handles longer than the pattern suggested, sewing them in a little more firmly down the sides as well. Since so many people were going the quilted route in our blog hop, and since I had recently made a quilted bag when I put together my Retro Library Case, I decided to try the standard Peltex version for mine. I used a lime green linen for most of the bag, accented with linen Nursery Versery prints by Heather Ross and some colorful scraps thrown in for good measure. I really love the way the paper pieced section turned out, and I hope to be making a pillow soon using this same pattern. My piping was store bought, and I have no regrets about that. It was easy to use and one less thing to have to make ahead. If you do use premade piping, be sure to cut carefully. It takes two packets to do the job, and each one has just enough for the one large pocket and the distance around the main panel. I almost had to go buy another pack because I wasn't as careful as I should have been at first.

Once I'm feeling a bit better, I'll be finishing the lining and passing this on to my sister who will be using it as her new diaper bag. I'm so glad that I had the chance to finally try this pattern -- it's been on my to-do list all year long!

Drop by Taryn's blog tomorrow for our last stop in the series before you can link up your finished bags at Lori's website. We can't wait to see what's in your Weekender!