Monthly Archives: December 2019

The Robe of Many Colors

Back in October my daughter told me her friend was wanting a new bathrobe. To which I replied (as you would I am sure) “Oh, well why don’t I make one for him?” Any excuse to sew something, am I right? Anyway, Balam (her friend) was excited and even told me no one had ever made any clothing for him. I certainly didn’t need to hear anymore than that.

A few weeks later, Balam and I met at Ben Franklin to choose a fabric. I had hoped for a thick terrycloth or a nice fleece. No luck finding either one. I steered Balam over to the flannels. You need to know Balam has some wild taste in clothing. He is often wearing really bright Hawaiian shirts. He and Julia like combing thrift stores for fun clothes and both of them usually have on some pretty crazy socks. When Balam spotted a section of tie-dyed flannels his eyes lit up. I tried to steer him over to the blue and green tie-dyed flannel but clearly it was far too subdued for him.

I have been calling this project the Coat of Many Colors or the Robe of Many Colors since I started working on it. I got home with the fabric and washed it with several color catchers and then dried it in a hot dryer. After cutting out the pieces, Julia and I were looking at it. It felt too thin for a bathrobe. With the one layer of flannel, it just didn’t have a cozy feel to it. This was over Thanksgiving weekend. We hopped on-line to see what was on sale at Jo-Ann’s. There was a teal blue flannel for $2.99 per yard and it was a great match. Score!

The lining made the robe so much cozier and it matched really well.

When the solid flannel arrived a few days later, I cut out the same set of pieces (front, back and sleeves). I had already constructed the outer portion with the tie-dyed fabric and now I put the blue lining together. It went together very quickly as this was a super easy pattern. Inserting the lining, wrong sides together with the outer fabric was simple. Then I carefully pinned the edges together along the neckline and all the way down the front opening. I top-stitched the outer robe and lining together at the shoulder seams to anchor everything. Then I ran a basting stitch around the entire open edges, up each side of the front and around the back of the neck.

I was ready to finish the open edges in front when I realized I didn’t have quite enough of either the teal fabric or the brightly colored fabric. So I used both. I put the bright portion around the back of the neck and slightly extending into the front. The rest was finished in teal.

A pop of hot pink in the pockets.

For fun, I used a hot pink flannel for the inner pockets, which Balam really liked. He was so appreciative when he received the robe yesterday. All smiles and he wore it over his jeans all the way through dinner. Isn’t that the best?

Julia modeled for me even though this is a bit too big for her.

This was a super fun and very easy make. Balam is really happy with it which makes me so satisfied. Most likely this will be my last finish for 2019.

November’s blocks.
December’s Flying Geese blocks.

Today I worked to get caught up on my piecing for the Mosaic Mystery QAL. I have to say, I am tickled to have these finished up. For one reason or another, it seems like I rarely keep up with these quilt alongs. Because I was sick a lot in late November and early December, I fell way behind. But with a few nice, long sewing sessions, I am all caught up! Now I can begin piecing this quilt when the next set of instructions are released. WooHoo!!! Since I am on top of this QAL, I think I will go ahead and start the Push-Pull QAL with Quilting Jetgirl in January. I keep looking at fabrics for that one and haven’t quite made up my mind yet. Decisions, decisions…

Here we are at the end of 2019! I would love to reduce the inventory in the shop for end of year and tax purposes! How about a huge sale? Just in case you are inclined to help me out with this??? For today and tomorrow only, 20% off all yardage! Even better, 50% off Clearance, Remnants, Bargains, Winter and Autumn fabric, and End of Bolt pieces. This is a sale not to be missed!

Happy New Year everyone! I am looking forward to all sorts of fun, creativity and quilting in 2020. How about you?

Looking at 2019 and 2020 – Setting and Meeting Goals

Our community has a thing for setting goals for ourselves each winter. I enjoy hearing what others decide to focus on and also like to look at the recaps people post on what they did or did not accomplish during the year. It is a bit like setting New Year’s Resolutions except in the sewing/blogging/quilting world. Thank you to Yvonne (Quilting Jetgirl) for hosting a link up each year, reminding us to create some sort of organization to our making.

2019 was a year of change for our family. Julia graduated high school and started college. My husband retired last summer which has been just fantastic. Last year, I set five goals for myself for 2019. Let’s see how it went:

  1. Continue to grow my shops. This was a success. Sales in the fabric shop grew by 30% and the pattern shop sales increased by 14%. As I had planned last year, I started offering kits for existing patterns as well as QALs (such as the Beothuk QAL by MMM!Quilts, Mosaic Mystery Quilt by Meadow Mist Designs, and Quilting Jetgirl’s Push Pull QAL which is just starting. Kits are new for me as I personally had never purchased a set kit for a quilt. However my customers like them and they are a lot of fun to develop.
  2. Stay involved with charitable projects. Another success. Mercyful Quilts was a recipient for quilts made during the Hands 2 Help event hosted by Confessions of a Fabric Addict. We received so many stunning quilts. I am touched by the beautiful works of art donated to Mercy Hospital. I am hoping to continue coordinating this project and receive more quilts this year.
  3. Finish UFO’s. Epic fail here! I finished only one UFO. The rest sit exactly as they were at the beginning of 2019.
  4. Practice garment sewing. This was a reasonable success. I made one dress and two t-shirts for myself. Also a Halloween costume for my grand daughter, a pair of pajama pants I gifted to a family friend and a bathrobe for another friend. I don’t know why but I feel like I wanted to make more clothing for myself so I don’t consider this a total win. I have fabric and patterns ready to go – but they didn’t happen.
  5. Same as last year….  strive to accept my limitations caused by chronic illness.  I feel like this was a bit win. I am doing so much better at planning life around the migraines. I was able to work as a vendor at two quilt shows this year. I also started a medication that is a monthly injection I do at home. I think it helps? Nothing earth-shattering but I feel like the frequency is slightly less than it was before.
Projects Made in 2019

While I didn’t actually make too many quilts in 2019, I did make a lot of different items. Table runners, tote bags, and treasures for my grand daughter were a lot of fun and took time away from quilting. Additionally, I made 52 Chemex covers and 18 French Press cozies as orders came in through the shop. I like having a variety of projects as it keeps me from getting bored of doing the same thing over and over.

I started and finished four quilts this year. Three baby quilts and a memory quilt for my friend, Susie. I also made two quilt tops but they are in the unfinished pile at this point.

Ok – so what about 2020? Honestly, the goals aren’t terribly different!

  1. Continue to grow both of the shops. Kits have been a lot of fun and I would love to continue working with pattern designers to develop this portion of the business. I strive to add more selection so customers are more likely to find what they want. Recently I was asked to carry some repro or traditional fabrics and have just added a number of them to the listings. Also I have been trying to develop my selection of solids. Finally, notions and patterns have been added and the selection of those will increase over time as well.
  2. Scrappy Projects – I made only one scrappy project last year. The bins are packed full. I plan to do one scrappy project over the year. I am thinking it might be the Monthly Color Challenge which is hosted at Patterns by Jen. She held one last year and I liked watching everyone’s progress. This certainly won’t clear out the scrap bins but at least I will use a few.
  3. Garment Sewing – I will continue to focus on this as I really enjoy it and want to improve my skills. I have a plan sketched out in my head and will share that plan with you soon.
  4. UFO’s. They were on the list last year and I sure hope they aren’t here next year! The number increased by two (making it a total of five quilt tops) since I made two tops this year but didn’t finish them. What can I say? Having them quilted is too costly so I hope I can balance my time well and get these finished up!

Of course, this list could go on and on. However if I do a good job with these four categories, I will be satisfied. I know myself and will surely make things not on the list but that is all part of the fun. Those squirrels come by on a regular basis. It can’t be helped! 😉

Wishing each of you a happy new year! (2020 sounds so crazy to me.) I hope the year holds great things for each of you!

Linking with #2020PlanningParty

The Holiday Season

Happy Friday everyone! It has been a long time between posts. Without whining I will just say I caught a bug just before Thanksgiving, it moved from a cold to bronchitis to pneumonia and set me back a bit. Thankfully, all is well now!

Our house is decorated and the lights are up. This always makes me so happy. I love this time of year. Julia and I have made a few batches of cookie dough and froze the cookies raw. We can then pop them in the oven a bit closer to Christmas.

I also made two batches of these amazing Sweet and Spicy Walnuts. A friend of Ray’s gave us two huge bags of (shelled!) walnuts. They are addictive and the three of us have been eating them constantly. Yesterday Julia had a few friends over and they went through them as well. I wanted to gift some so I will likely need to make one more batch. Fortunately, they are super easy to make. You want to give them a try, trust me.

When Julia’s friends were here yesterday, they made some gingerbread cookies. This one is my favorite.

Sewing…. This is my busy season with my shop. Meaning the majority of my sewing has been Chemex Cozies for my customers. I only have one left to go and hope to finish that one today or tomorrow. Nothing too exciting to show you there.

I also made doll clothes for my grand daughter. Of course, in my rush to get that package mailed off, I totally forgot to take any pictures! I found a template on-line for making little diapers for her doll. With her little sister coming in March, I though it would be fun for her to have diapers for her own baby. I am not sure she will be able to put them on and off herself? They have velcro closures but still might be a trick for her. I made them in a few sizes because I wasn’t sure what would fit her baby dolls. We don’t want them to leak, do we?? Haha. I also made her a set of flannel pajamas and a little set with shorts and a t-shirt. All were made with scraps and bits of elastic and it was a fun sewing session. If you want to give this a try, here is a great link to several free patterns for doll clothes.

There are a few gifts in process as well. Those will be shared after the holidays. Finally – I am working on the November piecing for the Mosaic Mystery Quilt. When I got sick, I really got behind with this project. So I have to get the November and December piecing done. It is looking really good though. There are a couple of other QALs and BOMs starting soon that I want to join but if I am behind on this one, it will be a challenge. So wish me luck!

Incredible Stitches!

While I don’t have any work of my own to share this week, I do want to pop in and show you something pretty! As program coordinator for our guild, I have scheduled Cindy Needham to come teach a workshop in February for us. I scheduled this a long while back and felt fortunate even then to be worked into her full teaching/speaking schedule. Luckily for us, Cindy lives only two hours from here which made her very affordable for our guild.

Mini quilt pieced and quilted by Cindy Needham.

Anyway, on to the good stuff! When I schedule someone to teach, I always request a sample of the project they are going to teach. Guild members love to see the samples, as opposed to a picture, when deciding if they want to take the class. I believe most guilds provide samples for this reason. Cindy will be teaching a workshop on planning quilt motifs and quilting feathers. The sample above is pieced with silk. The mini measures approximately 20″ x 28″ or so (I didn’t actually measure it.) This particular piece is labeled as a Gaudynski sample as it looks to be stitched in the style developed and taught by Diane Gaudynski.

Up close, quilting by Cindy Needham

This sample is just incredible. I knew Cindy was an extremely talented quilter. But seeing it up close is such a treat. She free motion quilts and for the life of me, I cannot imagine ever quilting like this. I thought it would be a fun thing to share this beautiful stitching with you.

Quilting by Cindy Needham.

The motifs are so tiny and so detailed. It is hard to imagine having this sort of control. I tried to watch her lines, where she traveled to and from. Jaw dropping work!

Check out these feathers! Quilting by Cindy Needham

The feathers are beautiful but to me the most impressive are the petals to the right of the feathers. Those tiny spaces between each petal are stitched down with minute stitches causing the petals to pop. Same for the flat space between the feathers. Such teeny tiny stitches!

Quilting by Cindy Needham.

These look like tulips to me. I love them because they show off the silk beautifully. The whole effect overall is elegant. Pale colors of pink, rose and a really light gold all worked together. Cindy collects vintage linens and textiles and works them into much of her art. I am so looking forward to her trunk show and listening to her lecture. I will post an update in a couple of months after our February guild meeting.

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving holiday. Thanks to so many of you who shopped my Small Business Saturday/Cyber Monday sales! The last of those shipped out yesterday.

I am still cutting kits for the Push Pull QAL. My customers have been really patient as I ran out of the darker fabrics for both kits and had to re-order. An interesting thing of note – I offered four kits. Two teal blue kits where the quilter could choose a light or dark background and two orange kits with the light or dark background.

Every single kit sold so far has had the dark background. Not sure why this catches my attention but it does.

I am curious what your thoughts are? Maybe the transparency effect is shown better with the dark background? I like them both but clearly that is not the opinion of most! I still have a few kits left if you are interested. Click here to check them out.

It is going to be a rainy weekend so tomorrow I should be able to find some time in the sewing room. I have several holiday gifts I am working on and I need to make some progress with those! Sunday we are driving over to my son and his wife’s house for lunch. We haven’t seen them in a long while so I am excited about that! How about you?

Push Pull QAL has Begun

You may have seen the promotions of the Push Pull Quilt Along on social media over the past couple of weeks. This quilt along is being hosted by Yvonne Fuchs of Quilting Jetgirl. She is well known for her striking use of transparency technique to achieve a look of layered colors in her quilt design. Her Push Pull design also uses transparency to achieve that effect.

I like the pace of this event. She is sending out instructions approximately every three weeks. It is different in that this is a purchased pattern. I bought mine this week and look forward to participating. At this point, I am debating using a dark blue palette and making it as a crib size quilt.

A couple of weeks ago, I chatted with Yvonne and we thought it would be fun to put together some kits with fabrics that create the transparency effect for this pattern. Yvonne chose two different sets of solids.

One collection runs from teal blue to a very pale mint green.

If you preferred the lighter tones, you can choose to use the mint green as the background. Isn’t it fun just to look at how the quilt changes based on the light versus dark backgrounds?

The other includes three stunning shades of orange. Again, this one uses the darkest orange as the background.

Here you see the kit utilizing the lightest orange tone as the background. Which one do you prefer??

These kits make it easy for quilters to work with this sort of color play without making the decisions about value or depth of the shades.

Yvonne’s pattern includes three sizes to choose from, small/baby, lap quilt or queen size. This quiltwould make a really dramatic statement on a queen size bed! I appreciate Yvonne taking the time to do the math to allow quilters to make whichever size works best for them. The kits are also available in each of the three sizes. Click here to shop.

Are you going to join in? I hope so – I love this sort of social on-line QAL. Looking forward to interacting with other Push-Pull QAL participants on the Quilting Jetgirl Facebook page or Instagram. See you there!

Today is the last day of my Small Business Saturday & Cyber Monday sale. If you were debating picking up a kit, today is the day! It is 20% off through the end of the day, along with all other yardage, pre-cuts, notions and patterns. The sale may end tonight but kits will be available while supplies are available.