baby on a budget: circle quilt

It's done!!!

I started this quilt on Monday morning and it went so much faster than I thought it would.  Here it is two days later and it's complete.

I decided to just stick to a circle design.  Originally I had a lot more fabric colors to choose from, but in the end it just looked too busy and random.  I finally set aside six fabrics that I thought went together best, then looked up pictures of other circle quilts online to get a good idea of what kind of layout to do.

That zig-zag turquoise fabric in the upper left-hand corner was leftover from the crib bedskirt I made a few weeks ago.  I chose that black and white chevron fabric to continue that theme, then chose the green and light turquoise prints because they have little stars on them.  I chose the yellow print because I figured the quilt would need another pop of color, and then the navy blue print was used because navy blue and grey have been the main colors used in the nursery so far.

Once I had everything sewn together, I added a navy blue border to the quilt top.  I made it wide enough to where it would still show when I added binding later on.

As for the backing, I found an awesome grey chevron print.  I cut it a little wider on all sides so I could fold it over as the quilt's binding.

And just like that, I was done!

I'm loving it.  Of course it's not without its little imperfections, but once it all came together I realized that any mistakes I made weren't all that noticeable anymore.  It means something to me because I designed it myself and made it specifically for this little guy we've waited for for so long.  :o)

quilts for kids

Sometime ago I found out about a wonderful program from Downy called "Touch of Comfort."  They send out quilt kits to willing volunteers in order to distribute quilts to children in hospitals all over the country.  It's a great opportunity to bless a child during a confusing and scary time, especially since they may not have their own blanket or lovey to comfort them.

I felt a stirring in my heart to help out.  Lately I've wanted to sew something for the babies I've lost.  But I was afraid that if I made a quilt in their memory, it would end up in a closet rather than be out on display.  This program seemed to fix that worry.  I could make a quilt and it could bless someone else as well as me.  Even though I wouldn't get to see that deserving child's face when they received the quilt, just knowing that it would help in some way was enough for me.

Another reason why I decided to take the plunge: our son had his own hospital stay when he was just under two weeks old.  Thankfully he got well, and will never have any memory of that time, but I sure do.  One of the memories that sticks with me is seeing older children walk down the halls while dragging their IV carts with them.  The pediatric floor was actually pretty cheerful for a hospital, but I remember thinking that no matter how much they dress it up, someone's kid is in the hospital, and it's just plain scary.

So I signed up online, and the kit came two or three weeks later.  I actually didn't get to really do anything with it for another three weeks; right around the time it came in the mail, I became slammed with Etsy orders.  Fortunately once things slowed down, it was no problem at all to piece together and sew.  The kit comes with pre-cut fabric (which I loved; the most tedious part of any sewing project is cutting the fabric!) and some instructions.  You donate the low-loft batting, coordinating thread, and the postage to send it back.  I found the instructions pretty straightforward, but I also consulted this tutorial at Make It and Love It since I'm more of a visual learner.  Here's the result!

 
How cute is that John Deere fabric???

The kit also contains a tag so you can personalize it a bit.  They let you name the quilt, so I went with "Built Strong!"

Whatever little guy uses this quilt, I'm hoping he'll know he's tougher than he thinks and he can get through anything, even the hospital.  :o)

I will definitely do this again.  Keep in mind that this is technically the first quilt I've sewn completely on my own, and that's saying something for how easy it is.  My only regret is that I waited too long to start it (they request that you send the completed quilt back within four to six weeks of receiving the kit), so I can't include a second quilt, something they also suggest since they're always in short supply.  Next time!

For more information on the Touch Of Comfort program, visit here.

christmas crafts: quilted table runner

Here's a quick table runner I made out of some cute striped fabric and some bias tape.  I'm not sure if that fabric is supposed to be Christmas-y, but I think it fits the bill.  I already had the fabric and batting on hand, so all I had to buy was the bias tape!  Not sure what kind of centerpiece to try...a fake poinsettia plant or maybe a bowl full of ornaments?  Or maybe this runner will just hang out by itself.  Who knows.  :o)

Linked up to Creations by Kara and A Little Tipsy!

finished quilt!

It's done!  Thanks to my awesome mom, we got this quilt done in essentially one weekend by working just a few hours per day.

We decided to just do one wide brown panel on either side of the center panel since the other panels I had made weren't really lining up (see this post).  We sewed the top together and made our quilt "sandwich" on Friday.  Then on Saturday afternoon we used painter's tape and a water-soluble marking pen to quilt straight, even lines.

Let me just say that the painter's tape idea is genius.  It stays on when you want it, and comes off cleanly once you're done.  And miraculously, neither of us accidentally sewed over it!  We got the whole thing quilted in a few hours.  Then on Sunday afternoon, we used the discarded panels from the original quilt top to make the binding and managed to finish the whole thing up before my son woke up from his nap.

My husband and I slept under this last night, and it was very comfortable.  So pleased with the results!

Now we just need new pillows and a brown bedskirt.  :o)

Here is the tutorial where I got the idea to make a quilt out of large panels, and you can find the tutorial for using painter's tape to aid in quilting here.

Sewing your own quilt for your bed certainly takes some work, but I'm so happy with how it turned out.  It was fun sewing with my mom, and without her I know this would have taken me much longer to do on my own!  Thanks, Mom!  :o)

Linked up to Creations by Kara!

quilt top {almost} done!

Remember that quilt I mentioned pretty much a MONTH ago?  I finally buckled down this afternoon and started sewing the top.  I had mostly everything cut out a few weeks ago, then realized the green fabric I had picked out for the skinny panel looked horrible next to the main center panel.  I have just decided to accept the fact the designers behind Michael Miller's Dandy Damask fabric collection must have created this crazy shade of green themselves, if only just to mess with people like me.  And yes, the pattern is actually called "Dandy Damask."  Not so dandy if you can't find anything but brown to match it!


Anyway, today I decided just to do all the side panels in that solid brown.  And once I got everything sewn together, I realized it actually looked good.  Not as plain as I was expecting, yet not obnoxious either. The only other thing I need to do before the actual quilting process is to sew the brown panels to the center panel; I only hesitated to do it since the center panel ended up a few inches longer than everything else, and I wasn't sure how to proceed from there.  Luckily my parents are coming for a visit, and I'm sure my mom will help me with lining everything up....and quilting it....and binding it.  Or at least show me how so I can get it done once they leave.  :o)

and so it begins...my first quilt.

Um okay, so technically I made my "first" quilt in my ninth grade sewing class.  I was the very last student in the class to finish, and that was even with the teacher telling me what to do at every step.  Kinda embarrassing.

Lately I've been wanting to try another quilt, but all the blocks and piecing seem a little daunting to me.  And I have a toddler, so other than naptime I didn't see a way to get a lot of it done with him running around. 

My husband and I recently upgraded to a queen-sized mattress, and since I couldn't find a comforter set for it that I liked (except one that is apparently "back ordered" at JCPenney's website and not available at this time...grrrr), I googled "queen quilt tutorial" on a whim.  And discovered that there was a way to make a nice, modern quilt for our bed without it taking a year to complete (as well as taking an additional year off my life due to stress).

So I've decided to do this tutorial since it involves using big panels of fabric rather than a lot of little pieces.  Awesome.  Here are the fabrics I'm going to use!

Our bedroom already has a green and brown theme going, so I wanted to stick with that.  Just enough prettiness while mixing in some masculine tones for the hubby.  Remember these valances I made to hang up in there?  Well I had the hardest time finding that fabric again.  Probably because I got it on clearance to begin with.  I thought about going in a different direction for the quilt and then just making new window treatments later on (because really, it's smarter to do it that way anyway), but I really liked the damask pattern on the valances and wanted something similar for the quilt. 

So after searching a few stores, I finally decided to try Ebay, and lo and behold there was something very similar to the fabric I had used for the valances.  Not an exact replica, but close enough to coordinate and not be too "match-y."  I usually don't buy fabric online, but the price wasn't too bad so I went for it.  So that bottom fabric is for the main panel.

I knew I wanted to use solid dark brown for the bigger panels off to the side (see that fabric in the middle?), but I had a heck of a time finding any kind of green fabric for the skinnier panels.  Turns out it's very hard to match that shade of green.  But finally I found it at Hobby Lobby, and it's that last fabric in the picture.

I also have the batting already too since it was on sale this week, and as for the back of the quilt, my sister clued me in on how to save time, money, and your sanity.  Use a flat sheet.  Wow, why didn't I think of that?  So I'm just going to get a brown queen-sized flat sheet at Target or something and use that for the back.  As for the binding, still thinking on that one.  That's where my mom comes in.  :o)  Guess I should get started before she visits again....