Progress

My table is built.  Here I am pretending to sew in the basement.  Ignore the fact that it's resting on sawhorses, the next step is painting so it's just hanging out until then.  (okay, am I the only one who loves a good pun?)

 And in non pretend sewing, I picked up a layer cake of good fortune by Kate Spain and am bricking it out for fun.  I'm still swapping blocks around, but it's mostly starting to settle, don't worry, the bottom left will get some darker blocks soon.

Blogger's Quilt Festival

My last couple festival quilts were for nephews.  I haven't had any new nephews, or nieces for that matter, so I had to branch out.  This one was for a brother.  It's not my latest and greatest, but it's pretty stinkin' awesome, says me. 

Behold, the Scrabble Quilt.

way too big for my house! no room to lay flat enough to not be wrinkled

 My brother was going to be turning thirty and I decided he needed something significant to mark the occasion.  He's not married, so I didn't have to factor in a wife's sense of style.  This one is all him.  I've since vicariously decorated for him, but this was the first time I did, I think.



 I am a detail person, so after bringing my Scrabble board fabric shopping and a lot of math I got to it.  I wanted the game area to be the size of the top of his mattress, a CA King.  (Yeah, it's that big.)  I couldn't quite make it to scale.  I decided to have the white sashing finish at 1/2' rather than 5/8.'  The squares finish at 5 inches. 

with my Scrabble board

 The little triangles gave me some trouble.  I had originally planned on piecing them into the sashing.  But with two little kids and then one on the way, the pieced triangles didn't happen.  They are all appliqued on.  By the end I was very much done with the triangles.  I counted them at one point, but I really don't want to know how many it was.  If you wanna do the math, here ya go: the red and dark blue each have twelve and the pink and light blue each have eight.  I zig zag stitched each one onto my quilt top.

I love seeing all the seams on the back of a quilt top

 Once it was assembled, I bust out my gigantoor hoop and got to quilting.  I'm a hand quilter and it wasn't exactly a fast process.  I think it took me a few months to go around every square.  And because of the sashing, it really was around every square, and I had to flare around all those stinkin' triangles.

I was torn on whether or not to include the DOUBLE WORD SCORE type stuff or not.  I decided not.  I went for subtle Scrabble; Scrabbelegance if you will.  I did put the star in the center though, it just needed it, the whole balance of the thing just felt off without it.
It's a CA King size bed quilt, which means it's gigantic.  I couldn't really find a place to take pics of it, there was snow outside, and I was way too excited to wait for my husband to get home to enlist his help.  I didn't take nearly enough pictures.  Someday I'll have to visit it, I mean visit my brother.
I only just this week figured out how I'll someday do the game tiles.  Felt! I had been brainstorming a zillion miniquilts, but then I decided felt is so the way to go.  And it will hide seams on the back piece so I don't have to worry about cheaters.  I decided that when my brother gets married, I'll send them Scrabble tiles. Now I'll just have to come up with some kind of little trays...

quilt measurements:102 x 102 inches
special techniques: applique, hand quilting
quilted by: me! by hand
best category: bed quilt
entry number: 140

be sure to head back to the festival to check out more, but remember to check your watch occasionally, just sayin'...

and for an added bonus, here's the pic my brother sent when I asked him for another for the festival.

See why we vicariously decorate?  Apparently I need to make him a headboard next.  Sigh.  Brothers.

Why Not

The table.  It's coming right along.  In all its 4 by 8 foot glory.  Pretty much I decided, why not.  It will super dwarf that room but really, why not.

I Made A(nother) Dress

Round Two of making dresses for the Girl.  When we bought the fabric I just kept telling myself she's four.  When I showed my husband he pointed out that I have a skirt "just like that."  To a boy, yes, but technically my polka dots are pink on pink.  The white seems more in your face for whatever reason.

After sewing with it, and getting to know it, I am totally in love with it.  It is so us.  The girl loves it.  She has a Minnie Mouse doll that is very important and she loves that they now match.  So much so that she has decided to be Minnie Mouse for Halloween.  So I guess it's a twofer; dress and costume.

The pattern was a simple Butterick from JoAnn's.  I think it cost less than a dollar.  It was pretty simple.  My favorite part is totally the pin tucks.  I added some length, it hits an inch or so below the knee when she stands up straight, which isn't too often, she's usually in motion.

And a quick Hustle update.  Yeah...  So I've shelved the quilt for my in-laws idea.  It was too much me and not them.  I was trying to use what I had and what I have is just not their style.  So it's not totally never gonna happen, but it ain't happening before Christmas.  Unless of course I get hit by guilt between now and then and decide I HAVE to make one!  Here's to hoping I can resist midnight sewing on the 24th!

linking it up! tgiff and whoop whoop and crazymom

Help! I Have a Question

Remember I mentioned my husband's gonna build me a fancy schmancy sewing table?  Well, my question is how big do I want it.  We bought a 4 foot by 8 foot (sorry metric users, I have no idea what that is in meters) piece of wood.  I'm keeping the eight foot, but the question is the 4 foot.  Do I keep it four feet deep or do we cut it down to just over three feet (a meter-ish, I know that one).  I plan on keeping it at least three feet so my cutting mat fits well, but four feet is a bit of a stretch.  Really, I mean that literally.  I can't quite reach the back without standing and leaning across.  Do I ever really need to reach the back?  Should I take all the space I can get?
Do any of you have big 'ol tables and love them or are they just a bit ostentatious?

With the humongo table came the acknowledgement that the guest room is really my sewing room.  I was a little embarrassed to have taken over an entire room just for little me, but my husband was the one who said it out loud and is okay with it.  So I guess I can admit it.  My name is Amanda, and I have a sewing room.

I'm Hustling

I'm doing it.  I'm joining the hustle.
Here's my goals in no real order and potentially conflicting.

My husband is making me a big 'ol sewing table for my birthday (it's a big one, I'll officially be starting the end of young) and I am setting the goal of achieving organization.  A place for everything and all that.

I need to get at least the top done on my youngest's twin sized quilt.  Otherwise he will be scarred for life.

My in-laws are Christmasing us in quite a big way this year and I wanna make them a quilt.  (it's like a disease, the "i should make them a quilt" fever is getting stronger every year; i suppose it will get me in the end when i'm buried under an avalanche of gift quilts.)

And I need to make my daughter's dresses before the daily asking makes me crazed.

I Haven't Made It Yet

It was coupon commotion over at JoAnn's recently so I took the girlie one and we looked at patterns.  Yes, that's right, I took her with me.  Our daughter is what one would politely call opinionated.  Others might call her very, very, very, very, stubborn and unyielding.  So my husband thought it best to bring her along to avoid her younger cousins getting some handmedowns in mint condition.  Admittedly, a wise precaution.
So we looked at patterns to decide what "shape" dress we wanted.  I pretty much go on the theory that if I say it enough times I can brainwash my kids.  I did not want her thinking we were making the dress in the picture so I talked plenty about choosing a shape.  We managed to agree on two patterns.  She loved the hunt to find the patterns in the drawers, especially with the added excitement of the number labels on the drawer front being only a jumping off point rather than an accurate account of what was in the drawer.
Then we were off to fabric.  I showed her the back of the pattern that lists what kind of fabrics work with the pattern.  And I reminded her as we walked past the taffeta and chiffon and fleece and terry cloth.  We made our way to the cotton and went immediately to pink and purple. 
You know the fabric that you see and just wonder how it came to be made?  The stuff that is so much too much that there's a whole bolt sitting on the shelf?  Well, apparently it was made for four year old girls.  After what felt like eternity, we managed to compromise.  I think I won a bit more ground on the purple which makes up for the ground I lost on the pink. 
We came home with a bright pink with decent sized white polka dots; think Minnie Mouse.  The purple is a medium value with a smaller white floral. 
In the parking lot on the way out she told me she wanted to wear the pink dress when we got home.  I told her it wasn't ready.  The next morning she woke up and told me she wanted to wear the pink dress to church.  I had to tell her again I hadn't made it yet.  Same thing yesterday.  And again today.  I'm noticing a pattern forming.