{Sew} Modern Monday

Thanks to everyone who entered my first For the Love Of... linky party. The winner of my birthday giveaway will be announced tomorrow.

In the meantime I wanted to share some fun things for {Sew} Modern Monday with Megan at Canoe Ridge Creations. I was lucky enough to meet Megan at the Sewing Summit last month. And although I didn't get to talk with her long she is very sweet & I look forward to seeing her again next year. Yesterday was her birthday so get over there and wish her a happy birthday. Plus, she might just be having a giveaway right now. ;)

Friday I came home to a couple goodies in the mailbox...

What could they be???

The first package I opened was from Bree. I was expecting this one because I knew she was sending a bee block, but I didn't know there'd be more in there. A frame pouch made from the same fabric she used to make my very first swap purse.

I "met" Bree last fall (2010) when we both signed up for a bag swap at Sew Mama Sew. We have kept in touch with email and texting since. And we even spoke on the phone the other day, which is a big deal for me because I'm NOT a phone person! Someday we'll actually meet in person. :)

String Me Along bee block & frame pouch.

Isn't it great???

The next package I opened was from Liz. She decided to set up a Post Sewing Summit swap to keep the excitement going. Personally, I hope there's another one after this. There is some amazing talent out there, you really should check out the photo pool. Anyway, this is what was in the package...Oh my gosh!!!

Neptune amazing-ness!!!

Our options were to make either a mini quilt or zippy pouch for our partner. Liz made both! Plus she sent some leftover Neptune FQs. Thank you so much Liz!!!

I made a mini quilt for my partner too. I can't tell you too much about why I chose to make this design because my partner hasn't received her package yet, but I did want to show off some pictures.

I used this Spiderweb block tutorial. I had a hard time deciding which color thread to use to quilt this, and then I remembered I had recently picked up some glow-in-the-dark thread. Bingo! I used an overall stipple because that's all I really know how to free motion right now.

OK, I'm really proud of this mini so I had to share another shot of it. :)

I was having a heck of a time finding backing fabric. Until I found this! Isn't it beautiful?? And I decided to piece together a rainbow-y binding.

I added a couple other goodies in the package too.

Handmade graph paper sketchbook & gift card made by my mom.

There is also a drawstring bag in the package for my partner, but I think the fabric will give it away so I'll share once my partner receives her goodies.

Thanks for visiting!

Linking up to amylouwho's mini quilt linky party. Go check out the other gorgeous minis!

{Sew} Modern Monday

It's October! Yay! That means I can start decorating for Halloween. :)

(1) My 10 minute table runner that took several weeks. Only because it sat half finished on my shelf while I worked on other projects.

A close-up of the fun fabrics.

I also put up a giant spider web in the window & I have a wall hanging that's ready to be quilted. When I'm at The Sewing Summit this weekend I will be on the lookout for glow-in-the-dark thread.

(2) Remember my Jelly Roll Race quilt top? Well, it too sat on my shelf for weeks (months really). I thought it was going to be a tablecloth, but when I rearranged the dining area & tried it out on the table it was just too busy for my taste. So I changed direction slightly & decided to cut it up and make placemats & oven mitts.

But now I need your help. I don't know how I want to quilt it. I know I don't want to stitch in the ditch. Besides that I have no idea. For an extra incentive to get lots of quilting suggestions I will send a little thank you gift to the person who's suggestion I choose to use. So post those ideas!!

Here are the placemat tops. Fun, huh?

I'm still debating on the backing because I'm not really a fan of yellow, but it goes so well with the top AND I already had it in my stash. 2 will be bound with strips from the black jelly roll & 2 with the off-white.

(3) I made a new camera bag for my point & shoot. It's such an awesome camera and needed a truly awesome pouch to live in. I used some of my Terrain charm pack for the fun and colorful bag.

Be sure to stop by Canoe Ridge Creations if you haven't already to see what everyone else has been up to.

{Sew} Modern Monday

Last weekend I got a couple bee blocks finished and I finally got around to photographing them yesterday.

Follow the Leader block by Ryan Walsh Quilts

This block was for the June block of the String Me Along bee. I know, it's July 31st, but as I mentioned before this fabric got hidden underneath my tabletop ironing board. She sent us some Hope Valley and asked for flying geese. I have been wanting to make this block for a while now so this was the perfect opportunity. I did (accidentally) place the geese in the wrong order, but I liked it this way, so I kept it. :)

Avignon Picnic block by Andrea Harris

Lee sent us some pieces of Central Park and asked us to make the above block for the July String Me Along bee. The pieces were already cut up, but it went together so quickly! I love this pattern & I've decided this is the one I will be using to make my sister's wedding quilt. I have a couple jelly rolls of Sunkissed and will be using navy as the solid. Can't wait to start working on it, but there are several projects that need to be done first. Luckily the wedding is still over a year away, so I have time! :)

I'm linking up to {Sew} Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations. If you haven't been there already be sure to stop by for a visit & say Hi!

{Sew} Modern Monday

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Monday.

I've been home from visiting family in California for almost a week now & we've had visitors nearly every day since. Not that I'm complaining, I love having people visit.

I have had some time to make a few things though. I made several sketchbooks. 2 are for a couple of my giveaway winners, the other 2 are going in with swaps that are being sent out tomorrow. I am loving these books and have the paper ready to bind for a few more books that should be ready by the end of the week.

I love the third one from the left. It is covered with vintage feed sack fabric that I found in an antique/thrift shop during the winter.

I prefer the graph paper (shown), but I also make sketchbooks with blank paper as well.

I also made some needle books to go with each of the sketchbooks. The vintage buttons are from my husband's grandmother's old button collection.

This weekend I also prepped some Sunkissed charm squares to be made into some Wrapped Candy Pincushions. Sadly, that's the end of my Sunkissed charms because my other pack is going to Mary, who was also a giveaway winner this week.

Thanks for stopping by. If you didn't come over here from Canoe Ridge Creations {Sew} Modern Monday be sure to head over there to see what everyone else has been working on this week.

{Sew} Modern Monday

I can't believe it's be TWO WEEKS since I last posted! Where does the time go? Really? I haven't a clue.

I've followed {Sew} Modern Monday over at Canoe Ridge Creations for several weeks now and I thought it would be fun to join in this week.

This week I finished two bee blocks...

House block for Rebecca- Fat Stash Bee

I had never made a house block before, but I skimmed over several house block tutorials and watched the group photo stream to see what my fellow hivers were posting. They came up with some amazing blocks so I knew I had some work to do. I started by finding a house that had nice simple shapes. Obviously, my house looks nothing like the one I chose, but it inspired some of my design. I love how you can see the reflections of the neighborhood trees in the windows. I thought the woman's silhouette would make the house a home.

While searching through my stash trying to find the right fabrics I decided that instead of a daytime block she needed a sunrise/sunset scene. I also found the leaf fabric and thought it would look fun to have the vines crawling up the outside of the house. And of course, a house isn't a home without flower beds a green lawn and a stone walkway to the front door. I originally didn't have the walkway, but something was missing so I some unstitching, cutting, and restitching and Voila! Much better. :)

Mod Mosaic block for Pam - MSQB

My first attempt at this block wasn't a complete failure, but I cut the pieces WAY too small and it took me as long to 6"x6" block as it did to make the full-size (12 1/2" square) above. Many of my fellow MSQBee'rs suggested planning the block out before sewing it up, but I decided to improv it. I wish the colors and the patterns were mixed a little differently, but I think it's a pretty good first (second?) try.

Back of mug rug for Jessica - Mug Rug Swap Adventure

This mug rug is headed to Australia! The rest of it is a surprise until Jessica receives it. One of her likes listed was fabrics from Sweetwater. Since I had just won 4 yards of the gorgeous Sunkissed I decided to use some for this swap. That's all I sharing on this for now. :)

And on a family note...

Here's my happy puppies after our walk to the mailbox today.

Look! There's a little bit of green grass!