Fabric Projects

Why, Hello Miss Alcott!

May 26, 2013 By JulieK

Here’s another installment of “Oh, the quirky places we go!!”

It started out with Kathryn and an assignment at school where each student was assigned to “be” a famous person from Massachusetts… Kathryn was assigned Louisa May Alcott. They worked on the report at school, and there was going to be a presentation where the students dressed up as their person, gave the audience clues, and you had to guess who they were. So, on a random weekend, we were driving to the Concord Armory for an antique show… And, don’t we drive past the Orchard House, the home of Louisa May Alcott!! So, of course, we went in and took a tour!! The tour was really great!! Honestly I was a little nervous when it started because our tour guide looked like she was 12 :) but she was terrific!!

Of course we took a couple pics of Kathryn at “her” house for the report!

And, then of course, we “had” to make her a costume!! I took one of her old school shirts, that was just a little too small to wear comfortably all day, but still kinda fit… Then we went to the store and bought a flat sheet in blue and some pink hem lace… Make a skirt, overlay, and then some ruffles and lace to the shirt, and…

Voila!! Meet Miss Louisa May Alcott!

(not bad, but I’m pretty sure that Miss Alcott didn’t have neon orange and yellow sneakers)

and here’s a shot of Miss Alcott with her teacher… How much do we LOVE Miss Kasey!!

The costume was REALLY easy to make, and so much fun!! You can do so much with a sheet, a pack of lace and a sewing machine :)

Welcome Baby

May 1, 2013 By JulieK

I LOVE making presents for new babies…

In fact, I firmly believe that EVERY baby should have something handmade for them :) Mike’s cousin just had her beautiful and healthy baby boy, so I thought I’d share the little quilt that I made for him.

I forgot to measure it before I gave it to them, but it isn’t huge, it’s the perfect size for playing on the floor or for a crib. I used Moda Lil Rascals Quilt Cotton Fabric
… I just love the “old-timey” look of the fabrics!

This quilt was the very first that I quilted on my new sewing machine, and the first that I’ve free-motion quilted (so don’t look too close :)

Here’s the whole front…

Here’s a full shot of the back… Isn’t that fabric adorable??

JulieK, Julie Kelley, Quilt, Baby Quilt, Baby gift, FMQ, Moda, Lil' Rascals

The front is a Disappearing 9 patch made with a pack of charm squares, and then a border added around the edge. Here’s a closeup of one of the fabrics :) love that little kitty!

And here’s a close up of the backing fabric… Aren’t those pups adorable?

And a close up of the finishing touch :) the tag…

We just got the sweetest thank you note from them, and they just had the baby last week… I can’t wait to meet him in person!!

Here’s a link to the fabric I used for the border…

I have a bunch of projects that need to be posted… Now that the weather is nice, I’ll get them outside to take pictures and post them soon!

Speaking of “Happy Easter”… Patchabilities!!

April 1, 2013 By JulieK

I was recently at one of my Local Quilt Shops, Sew Together in Tewksbury, MA… MaryAnn carries the Patchabilities patterns and also kits! I’ve pieced and quilted lots of blocks and projects, but I’ve never done applique work… Well, she has the kits and patterns, plus all the samples there for you to see… I decided to try a couple of them because they were just so cute!! I went home and made this one right away, it was super easy to follow the directions and I think it came out really cute!! My Mother in Law loves to decorate for all the holidays and was hosting Easter this year, so I made it for her!! Take a peek (click the pics to make them bigger)!! Here’s the front and back… I have 3 more kits to make, an adorable sandcastle, the “April Showers” and the May one!! I can’t wait to have a few minutes to sew :)

Sweet Little Pretties Pincushion Swap

March 28, 2013 By JulieK

I was scanning through my Facebook news feed a few weeks ago, and noticed a post from Sweet Little Pretties about a pincushion swap she was hostessing… And, although I’ve never made a pincushion in my life, I decided to join in!! I started scanning the web for patterns, and then remembered that I had made a set of 4 quilt blocks, just trying out a pattern… I thought that using 2 of the blocks and a coordinating strip for the middle would make a cute pincushion, and here’s what I came up with… Kathryn helped me pick out a matching button… The sides came out a little bit lumpier than I thought that they would, but I really like it!! I thought the colors were bright and fun (Moda’s Flirt line). I really hope my partner liked it!!