Mini Granny

I have been dying to make a granny quilt but haven't had the time.  Instead, I made a mini granny table topper.  I have a large Ikea box with small scraps and another large box with large scraps.  Not to mention all the other fabric I have, but right now I will concentrate on my scrap boxes....lol!  I rummaged through my box of small scraps and cut l l/2" squares of reds, pinks, blues, greens and yellows.  I wanted  an  orange block but unfortunately, I don't have many orange scraps.

It takes 26 squares of colored fabric for each block, and 25 squares of white.

I love my design boards, I really really love them!  I used the tutorial from Lori's blog.  I also made two large ones which I use a lot too.

I think I only had to duplicate one print, I have a lot of scraps!!!

There is something so satisfying about cutting pretty fabrics and sewing them up, especially in miniature!

Something else I find very satisfying while I'm cutting and sewing, is chocolate :)

.....and more chocolate, until.......

.....all the chocolate is gone!  Yes, this bag of m & m's was my friend while I constructed this mini granny.

Yeah, all of my blocks are done, little mini 6 " blocks.  They are so cute and I enjoy looking at each and every print and remembering what I used them for.  Kennedy's dress, Lindsay's bag, Comforts of Home quilt, Christmas table topper, rainbow charm pack swap, swoon quilt, Rebecca's quilt, the farmer's wife quilt, Bridger's baby wall hanging, and on and on and on......the journey of a quilter :)

It almost looks like lace, doesn't it?  Now I am going to trim the blocks, leaving a l/4" seam allowance on all four sides.

This is my larger design board.  I love it and I use it a lot!

Now the blocks are ready to be attached using l " sashing.

I see more memories in the squares :) 

The quilt is pinned and ready to quilt.  I am going to hand quilt it, so it may be a while before I finish it as I have so many projects going at the same time, and I keep adding new ones.  I will get everything finished, it makes life more interesting when there are so many things to work on :) 
I am going to hand quilt this little table topper (25" square) with colored embroidery thread to match each block, in an outline stitch.

I love it, it's really colorful and happy!
By the way, I didn't make a dent in my box of small scraps...lol

A change of color

Years ago I bought this wood shelf/quilt hanger.  It was unfinished, I painted it black and finished the edges with sandpaper to give it a distressed look.  

I was tired of the black shelf next to the black table, so I decided to repaint it.  I love the color of this little green shelf, so I took one of the drawers to Walmart for a color match.

Yes, the color looks just like the color on my little shelf.

I lay my trusty drop cloth "brown paper" on the driveway (don't want to risk getting paint on the floor) and am ready to get started.

The green paint is not covering the paint very well.....

I decided not to be lazy and spray the black shelf with white primer.

The green paint looks so much better on the white.

A cheap paintbrush does a great job with this project.

I'm not very pleased with the results after the first coat of paint.

The second coat of paint looks really good.

I like a distressed look, so I asked the man in the paint department to put some black paint in the glaze.  He said that he wouldn't be able to put much in, because the can is so full of glaze.  That would be perfect, just the look I want!

I lightly brush the glaze where I want it, and wipe it off with a damp cloth or sponge.  

It looks a little blotchy, but definately distressed.

This was the first project that I used a paintbrush to paint the wood.  I have always used spray paint in the past.  I think I will use spray paint from now on, it has an even coverage, no brush strokes and I love the results.  The only drawback is that your finger gets sore from holding the nozzle!

I really like the results.  The shelf is quite high up on the wall, so no one can see the little imperfections.  I hope I have inspired you to paint a piece of furniture in your home :)

Winner of the Zipper Pouch Giveaway!

The winner of the zipper pouch and 3 fat quarters, is Teresa!  Congratulations Teresa, I will send you an email and get your mailing address.

CladdaughquiltingJune 21, 2012 6:25 PM

I am a happy follower and love all the beautiful creations you share with us!

Thank you so much to all those who have signed up to follow my blog, I appreciate your support :)

I hope you will enter my next giveaway.

Giveaway!

Don't forget to enter my giveaway!

A lined zipper pouch with 3 fat quarters to make your own.

All you have to do is sign up to follow my blog and leave me a comment telling me that you did.

If you are already a follower, tell me in a comment.

Good luck, the winner is open until Sunday evening.

I will be announcing the winner on Monday morning.

Time for a Giveaway!

Hello friends ♥  It's about time that I have a giveaway!
I love Randi's blog and etsy shop, fresh squeezed fabrics.  She has a 
monthly sew along that I follow.  In March, she had a "bottomed" zipper pouch tutorial and sew along. 
I made one of the zipper pouches and would like to give one to you, along with three coordinating fat quarters so that you can make one of your own!
All you have to do is sign up to become a follower on my blog, and leave me a comment telling me that you did.
If you are already a follower, leave me a comment telling me that you are.
The zipper pouch is really nice, it has a coordinating lining that doesn't show up that well in the photo.  The zipper is pink.

This giveaway will be open until Sunday night, June 24. 
The winner will be announced on Monday. 

Doll Dress class

I taught another Doll Dress class and the students were delightful!  They made the apron dress (in the middle)from "Vanilla House" designs.  This doll dress pattern is easy to construct because the pattern pieces are all rectangles, cut with a rotary cutter.  There is no fussing with inset sleeves, and the back of the dress is fastened with an 8" long piece of sew on velcro.

Mickey brought her grand daughter, Makayla.  

Donna  brought her grand daughter, Kate.

The girls chose their two coordinating fabrics all by themselves.

I love the pleased look on Makayla's face as she shows off the dress she sewed for her doll Julie. 

Kate is really pleased with her dress too, her doll's name is Taylor.

The girls learn how to measure and use a rotary cutter, with strict supervison of course!  They also learn how to use an iron, and how important it is to press for good results.

It is very rewarding teaching young girls how to sew.

Isn't it cute how much each of the girls' dolls looks just like them!

Paper doll blocks

I started taking the Paper Doll quilt class from Lori Holt at Material Girls quilt shop  in the fall of 2009, with my daughter Lindsay.
I was only able to attend two or three classes because we moved to Florida.  I put this quilt on the back burner because it was a memorable and busy year for us....four grand daughters were born within seven months of each other.  I made each of them heirloom blessing gowns with matching bonnets, and flew back to Utah for each of the births.  One of them lived with us, so that was really nice!
I have been working on the blocks here and there.  The blocks are appliqued and hand embroidered.  I just finished one this past week.

Isn't it adorable?  I named the paperdolls after my two oldest girls, Rebecca and Lindsay.  They were born 16 months apart and did everything together, wore matching clothes (thanks Mom!) and even shared the same friends most of the time when they were young.
I only have three blocks to go, so I decided to complete the applique on both of them and I can just take them with me and do embroidery on the go.

This quilt will be so gorgeous when it is finished!  The border has little white pom pom trim, and each outfit the paperdolls wear and each activity they go to, are so detailed.

For instance, look at the jumprope.  It looks like rick rack with handles.

I use two strands of embroidery floss and stitch each rick and each rack, and the jumprope has dimension!

We have two road trips planned in the next month.  I hope to get a lot of embroidery done so I can show you the rest of the blocks and maybe actually finish the quilt!