Pin It Wednesday #46

Happy Pins!  These are new pins from my "modern, quilts" board.  I found most of them this afternoon while resting from my nursing duties.  My husband had neck surgery yesterday.  We just got home today, so there were visits from concerned loved ones.  I'm really late getting this post out... please forgive me.








This one is a Denise Schmidt beauty!








Did anyone else notice that I'm pinning mostly scrap quilts?  Well, I'm not sure that's the correct term, but they remind me of my grandmother's big scrap quilts.  Her early quilts were made of big pieces of fabric sewn in all manner of ways with no rhyme or reason to the pattern.  They were also very heavy!  I remember sleeping under them as a child and teen.  After Rich and I got married, we used lighter blankets on our beds.  I had a difficult time adjusting to the blankets because I wanted the weight of the quilts I grew up under.








Good night, all.  It's definitely time to get some sleep.  Last night's rest on the very hard sofa bed in the hospital was not good.  Of course, the nurses came in every couple of hours to do their jobs. Plus I woke up at 4:30 a.m. to help Rich and didn't get to go back to sleep.  I'm wiped out!

Happy whatever,
Mary

Lola Pink, baby!

Photo from makeitperfect.com
Sweet Dreams pattern. 

I will soon have the pleasure of teaching a few sewing classes at 

Lola Pink Fabrics on The Boulevard in Lafayette.  Although Lola Pink is offering many classes, some in the mornings and evenings, my classes will be on Saturdays.  Since I teach all day and will have to drive a little over an hour, I chose to teach on Saturdays only for now.  

I'll be teaching the Make It Perfect Sweet Dreams pajama pants and had fun picking out fabric yesterday.  Today I cut and stitched my own version of the pj's using "Blue Birds" fabrics from Alegria by Cloud9 Geninne D. Zlatkis.  I picked up the pattern and fabrics from Lola Pink, but the elastic and ribbon came from my studio stash.

Didn't this fabric work really well for my project?  I fell in love with it the moment I saw it in the store.  I plan to pick up a plain tee to add a couple of fussy-cut appliques from the left over fabric to make a matching top.  Since I don't have a tee, that will have to wait till later in the week, but I think it will be worth the wait.  I really like these pj's and enjoyed making them.  

The entire project took only about one and a half hours, but that includes tracing out the pattern.  It comes in sections with printed patterns on both sides of the paper, so you can't cut into the paper.  

Instead, you have to trace the pattern onto freezer paper or, as I did, onto large sheets of newsprint.  I purchased an end roll from the local news paper office several years ago.  For $6 I got enough paper for many patterns.  I expect I have enough for at least 4-5 more years.  Definitely a worthwhile investment!  

Now when I'm ready to make another pair, the pattern is ready to go.  I'm thinking grand-daughters here!  You know how teens today love a funky pair of pj's!  What do you think?  Would you consider this project?  Leave a comment.....we haven't heard from you in a while!

New Etsy Listing--Kinder Mat

My niece, Stacy, of Stacy Burkhart Photography has been such a sweetheart about helping me to attract customers to my Etsy shop.  When she asked me a few days ago whether I could make a kinder mat for her son, Seth, who starts kindergarten this fall, I gladly agreed to make one for him.  She's a great photographer and has taken photos for me on several occasions, so this is a little way to return the favor.

Isn't Seth a cutie?  He's so ready for kindergarten.  But he needs a mat cover.  When they came for lunch last Sunday, we took him into the studio and let him pick out his own fabric for the cover.  His favorite color is green.....can you tell?  


He wanted this plaid but there was just a small piece of it and I don't think I can get more, so we had to choose another color.  He finally decided on solid green.  Since the two colors work so well together, I decided to applique his name on the front using the plaid.  She tells me he loves it.

My plan now is to make more of these and offer them in my Etsy shop. I'd like to have them available in a couple of ways: as custom orders in which customers can choose their own color(s), prints, closure and as ready-made covers that customers can simply purchase and have delivered in a few days.


Seth's cover is quite plain because that's what he wanted but I am aware that most youngsters today, especially girls, prefer the louder, brighter colors and prints available today, so I'll have to make a few in hot pink, purples, oranges, yellow and so on.

Of course, while out shopping today, I picked up a few yards.  Afterall, I mostly buy half yards and fat quarters these days, and there's no way I'm going to make a mat cover with a fat quarter!


What small projects have you been making lately?  

If you're new to my blog, go to the anniversary post to find out about my giveaway planned for June 22.  Only one week left!  All you have to do is become a follower and leave a comment.  Every comment you leave increases your chances of winning!