100th DAY OF SCHOOL

Today is the 100th day of school for my boys.  To help celebrate I made my littlest monster a simple little shirt, using my Silhouette (of course!).

I used white heat tranfer vinyl and the font is called Applause.  If you haven't ever used heat transfer vinyl before I highly recommend it.  I was able to whip this up this morning in less than 10 minutes!

Happy Friday!
Smiles~Beth

CHRYSALIS QUILT BACK~FINISHED!

Remember this quilt?  Well, I added a couple borders and finally got the back pieced together.  I absolutely LOVE how the quilt top turned out.  

The back, on the other hand, isn't exactly how I invisioned it. 

I am just OK with the finished result but I decided the front makes up for it ;). Besides, I will be sending the whole thing off to Natalia of Piece N' Quilt to be custom quilted and I have NO doubt she will bring life to the back. (Seriously, have you seen her work? Besides running a great blog, she has also been featured in magazines and did all of the quilting in the Modern Basics book by Amy Ellis of Amy's Creative Side. How cool is that?!). Needless to say, I am super excited to have Natalia working on my quilt!

Hope everyone's week is going fabulously!

Linking up to these wonderful blogs

Finish it up Friday @ Crazy Mom Quilts


Smiles~Beth

A FINISHED QUILT FOR MY SUNSHINE

I was almost too embarrassed to post about this quilt but the feeling of getting it crossed off of my to~do list after it had been there for 3 1/2 years made me not care how long it took me to finish it!   I am so excited that it's FINALLY done and will soon be in the arms of my middle monster...yay!

Backing fabric is solid black Robert Kaufman flannel

I bought the fabric at Hancock Fabrics 3 1/2 years ago in West Des Moines, Iowa.  I was there for the week visiting my bestie and she had just taught me how to sew.  I was super excited to start a quilt and couldn't pass up those adorable little pirates.  I started off strong but when I ran out of the red sashing & couldn't find it ANYWHERE I put it away and forgot about it.  After some prompting from my bestie I went on a mission to find something that would work.  Can you believe I had to go back to Iowa to find it?!  It's not a perfect match but it's close enough that most people won't notice (can you tell?).  I wish I could remember the name of the quilt store I got it from, they were so friendly and helpful there. 

I was a little nervous that my son wouldn't like the fabric anymore since he is a big 9 years old now but when I asked him recently about it he simply said "I still love it Mom, please finish it soon!".   This baby is going in the wash and should be ready for him when he gets home from school today :)

What's the longest time you have had something on your WIP list?

Smiles~Beth

 

$30 FOR $50 OF SILHOUETTE PRODUCTS!

Just wanted to pop in and share this great deal for Silhouette products from Plum District.  You can purchase a $30 voucher for $50 worth of Silhouette products (excluding the new Cameo & gift cards)...whoo hoo!!  If you are a new member of Plum District you will get a $5 credit...bonus!  Also, if you enter promotion code FABULOUS you will receive a 10% discount.  To get yours, click here.  Be sure to come back here after registering with Plum District and use this link.  Happy shopping!

Smiles~Beth

A PERFECT ZIP BAG

A good friend of mine celebrated her birthday yesterday.  I wanted to get her a little something but wasn't sure what to get her.  She seems to have everything a girl could ask for... great nails, the most stylish clothes & the most amazing shoes (seriously, she has quite the collection!!).  I thought about getting her a gift card but it just didn't seem personable enough.   Instead I made her a Perfect Zip Bag, pattern by Elizabeth Hartman of Oh Fransson!

I made Style C in the large size

Pretty darn cute if I do say so myself ;)   I used fabrics from my stash for the patchwork.  There are too many different fabric lines to list but if you want to know the name of one of them feel free to ask in the comments and I will reply back.  The main fabric is Kona Cotton in Medium Grey.

Lining is Cheery Circles from the All Star 2 collection by Riley Blake.

A couple of weeks ago I saw these 'THIS TOOK FOREVER' woven tags over at OCD~Obsessive Crafting Disorder and couldn't resist ordering some for myself.  They crack me up and simply let the recipient know just how much you love them ;)  You can purchase your own here.

Linking up to these fabulous blogs

Finish it up Friday @ Crazy Mom Quilts

Smiles~Beth

ONE THING, ONE WEEK CHALLENGE

Last week Amy over @ Amy's Creative Side challenged her readers to pick 1 thing and get it finished.  I love when she hosts these little challenges because she makes it simple and without stress.

I chose to try to get 2 quilt backings pieced together.  Yep, 2.  I am a rule breaker ;)  The first is for my youngest little guy, Adam.

You can see the quilt top & read more about this quilt and the fabrics used here.

The original design for the back didn't include the thin strips at the top & the bottom but once I got it all pieced together I realized I was off about 3 inches, ugh!  This was the easiest way I could think of to add the length needed and not make it look like a mistake.  Quilting is so forgiving :)

The second quilt back is for a quilt I am working on for myself.  

You can read more about this quilt, see the quilt top & learn about the DP QAL I joined to make it here.

As you can see I didn't get this one finished.  Can you believe I ran out of the solid fabric, seriously?!  My local quilt stores don't carry Bella Soilds so I ordered some on Etsy and will hopefully be able to finish it up this week. 

Even though I didn't get my goal completed I am still happy with my progress.  A big thanks to Amy for pushing me to get some of WIP's done!  You can check other finishes from Amy's readers here.

Hope you are all enjoying your Monday.  It is an unusally beautiful & sunny 65 degrees here.  What a perfect day to be out of school! 

Smiles~Beth



ALL STAR QUILT FOR MY LITTLE STAR {IN PROGRESS...STILL!}

I have been working on a quilt for my littlest monster for about 2 years now (you can see my slow progress here & here).  I have decided that it is time to get all of my WIP's done ASAP.  Usually I put anything without a deadline on it at the bottom of my long to~do list but not this year (well, at least that's the plan).  It's time I get some quilts made/finished that are meant to live in our house. 

I didn't get Adam's quilt finished quite yet but I was able to get the last border sewn onto the front and piece the back together...whoo hoo!  Now all I need to do is get a label on it and send it off to the quilter's (it's a twin size quilt & I am not ready to tackle one that size on my sewing machine).  Adam's birthday in in a month, I am hoping to have it all ready for his bed by then.

Zigzag pattern is a free tutorial by Crazy Mom Quilts

All of the fabrics used are from Riley Blake's original All Star line (which is no longer in print) except for the orange stars on the back, that is from the Fox Trails line by Doohikey Designs for Riley Blake.

Amanda Jean over @ Crazy Mom Quilts has been hosting Finish it up Friday's on her fabulous blog & Amy from Amy's Creative Side has given her readers a chance to participate in one of her One, One Week Challenges (I love Amy's challenges!). I will be linking up with both of them along with Amylouwho's Sew & Tell Friday fun.

Happy Friday!
Smiles~Beth

THE INTREPID THREAD

 I order a lot of my quilt fabric online.  Recently I made a purchase from The Intrepid Thread on Etsy.  I don't usually post about my online purchases (mostly so the hubs doesn't find out about all of them...ha!) but this was the perfect transaction.  Julie was on top of everything. She sent me a message almost immediately after I made my purchase to let me know she received my order and would be mailing it out the next day.  It arrived 2 days later and was packaged very nicely.  It's so good to know that if there is yucky weather and my package gets wet that my fabric will be protected.  I am just loving this Half Moon Modern bundle!

Picture courtesy of The Intrepid Thread

She also added these cute little squares of fabric.

The one on the right will be a perfect addition to the I SPY quilt I plan to make this year (well, at least it's on my 2012 list!).  Thanks, Julie!  I hope you will check out The Intrepid Thread next time you are in need of fabric.  With close to 900 listings (including a sale section) you are sure to find something you want need.

In case you're wondering, I was not compensated in any way to write this post.  I just wanted to share my pleasant buying experience with you.   Happy shopping!

Smiles~Beth

Edited:  I forgot to add this photo of how perfectly Julie cut this zig zag fabric (which makes for no waste when I go to use it...yay!)

SUNKISSED {A FINISHED QUILT}

Almost a year ago I jumped right into the Bloggers' block~a~palooza quilt along hosted by Quilt Dad.  I stayed on track, for the most part, but when it came to the back of quilt I went blank.  I had a ton of fabric left over but none of the pieces were big enough for the back.  I didn't really want to buy more either.  I also wanted to incorporate something very special into the quilt but didn't quite know how.  The quilt was supposed to be a gift for my Grandma Dee's birthday in August but that came and went.  I was determined to get it finished by Christmas and I am happy to say that I did (who cares that it came fresh out of the dryer on Christmas Eve morning, it still counts!). 

Fabric is Sunkissed by Sweetwater for Moda along with some Bella Solids

You can view close ups of each block and find links to the patterns here, here, here, here & here.

I decided to piece the back with mostly solids I had in my stash and added some windmill blocks.  I just love windmills and I think this fabric line suits them perfectly. 

You can see a close up view of the windmill blocks here .

I wanted to add something very special to this quilt so I rummaged through a bag of old hankies my Grandma had given me a while back.  They were mostly her mother's.  I was a little worried about cutting them up but I am glad I did.  Now they can be seen and appreciated.

Please pay no attention to my very wonky quilting lines, I was a little rushed!

I am happy to say that my Grandma loved it!  And it felt so good to finally be able to give it to her.

Linking up with

Finish it up Friday @ Crazy Mom Quilts

Smiles~Beth

DIY CANVAS PRINTS

Some of you know that I watch 2 little boys a few days a week.  They are 2 very sweet little guys.  I starting watching them when they were only 10 weeks old.  We consider them family, along with their Mom & Dad, and are very blessed to have all of them in our lives.  Luke & Cole's parents always treat me so well around the holidays and this year I wanted to give them something very special in return.  It took me a while to come up with something but once I saw this tutorial on Pinterest by The Sassy Pepper I knew it would be perfect.  Actually, I am so happy with how they turned out that I am going to make some for myself. 

I used my Silhouette, some vinyl & black acrylic paint to make the "a few of our favorite things" canvas. I want to note that although she recommends using matte mod podge I used a gloss.  It was what I had on hand.  When I make more I will definately take her advice and use the matte.  Don't get me wrong, they turned out beautifully, they are just a little shiny and in certain lights show imperfections.

A big thanks to The Sassy Pepper for this easy and fabulous tutorial!

Smiles~Beth

AN OZ TOTE BAG

My mother-in-law is going to Hawaii in February.  I know, what a lucky lady.  For Christmas, she asked that I make her a special bag to take along on the trip.  Originally she wanted me to use a Hawaiian print but I couldn't find any I liked.  Plus, I thought it might make her look too 'tourist-y'.  Luckily I have quite a bit of stash (ok, so I might be a fabric hoarder) and was easily able to locate (what I think is) the perfect print, Oz Poppy Field in black by Sanae for Moda.

3 pockets great for water bottles, keys, etc.  1 pen pocket
Lining is Robert Kaufman Kona cotton in grey & Oz Flower Basket in red

Zippered pocket
Pocket lining fabric is It's A Hoot Eggs by Momo for Moda

I was happy to make this special bag for a very special lady.  Looking forward to seeing pics of it in Hawaii too!

Linking up with

Smiles~Beth

LOTS OF JAMMIES (CHRISTMAS GIFTS)

Every year since I started sewing I have made the boys Christmas jammies/pj's.  They are always made of snuggle flannel.  This year I discovered some fabulously soft flannel at JoAnns called Plaiditudes.  It washes up wonderfully without balling and somehow gets even softer after each wash (so soft that I even bought some for myself!!).  And they just happened to have a perfect plaid for Christmas jammies...yay!  In addition to those I had a few special requests by my nephews for their own pair. Some even asked for matching shirts :)

You can't see them but those Christmas jammies looked great paired with these plan tees (can't believe I didn't get the jammies in the pic...geez!)

For Logan
I made the soccer ball with Silhouette soccer_C00212_20387 & Silhouette fabric paint

For Zach
I used Silhouette skull_C01416_17986 & Silhouette fabric ink

The jammies were all a hit. I have another pair on my list for one of my nephews who has a birthday coming up in early February (he had requested a monster shirt for Christmas but immediately knew he wanted some jammies for his birthday after seeing his brother Zach's set).  It always amazing that these boys look forward to their handmade Aunt Beth gifts.  It makes my heart happy :)

Happy Tuesday!
Smiles~Beth



EPIC MONSTERS ROBOTS & MORE {FOR CHRISTMAS}

I hope everyone is having fun so far in 2012!

I had wanted to get pics posted of these before Christmas but just getting them done was a big enough accomplishment for me...ha! 

For Connor

For Brandon

For Kyle~made with my Silhouette and Silhouette fabric ink

For Luke

For Patrick (he specifically asked for a robot shirt)
Made with Silhouette orange_robot_C00080_31857
& heat transfer vinyl

For Gage
made with my Silhouette & Silhouette fabric paint

For Logan

For Cole

For Owen

For the hubs :)
Made with my Silhouette & Silhouette fabric ink

I will be posting more Christmas gifts this week!

Smiles~Beth

A NEW YEAR!

Well, another year has flown by!  I honestly can't believe it.  2011 brought our family many blessing and some fabulous memories.  Of course, there were the occasional bumps in the road but they only made us stronger (or just caused me a few more gray hairs...ha!!). 

This is usually when I would set a few resolutions for myself.  This year is no exception but I prefer to call them goals instead.  I will continue a few from last year like eating healthier and being more active (I got a little off track over this long Christmas break!).  I will also try to get more quilts done.  I have several WIP's that are going straight to the top of my list!

I hope your New Year is off to a fabulous start!

We brought in our New Year celebrating another Christmas and then playing Catch Phrase with my in-laws and our nieces and nephews.  It was perfect! 

Do you have any new goals for 2012?

Smiles~Beth