Welcome, Charles Peter!

 Drum roll, please!!  I am pleased to announce our newest nephew, Charles Peter has made his appearance!!  He came into this world at 2:42 pm on December 20th and weighed in at 11 pounds 2 ounces and 22 inches long!  Both momma and baby are doing very well!!  He has a sweet disposition and even opened his beautiful eyes while I held him.

And, if you were wondering, the burp clothes work very well!!

Burp Cloth Tutorial

 While waiting for our new nephew to be born, I had some nervous energy, so decided to make some custom burp cloths.  There are other ways of making these, you can find free patterns in a Google search, but my way allowed me to make seven in an hour and a half.

 What you'll need:

• Package of 10 cloth diapers (the kind with the extra layers in the middle)
• Fabric 7 inches by roughly 18 1/2 inches  (Pick busy patterns to camouflage any future stains)
• Sewing machine and basic sewing supplies

Wash and dry all the diapers and fabric, using hot water and mild detergent.  I ironed the diapers (there's a phrase I never thought I'd write!) and fabric since they are easier to sew while wrinkle-free.

Cloth diapers vary a bit, so you may want to measure--mine were 18 inches long, so I cut my fabric 18 1/2 inches.  You can decide what width you'd like, I liked 7 inches, but when the fabric had a nice motif, I let the fabric dictate the width.

A 1/2 inch hem is a nice width (1/4 inch is doable, but a little more work).  I marked an inch and brought the edge up to the line for a quick press.

I love my ironing board cover!!  Every project  I press (clothing is never on the list) is nice and crisp!

*Find the middle of the diaper and the middle of the fabric....

and line up the centers. I found it necessary to pin, but if you're feeling sporty, you can sew without any.  (This is the only time pins will be used!)  Sew 1/4 inch across the end. 
Repeat from the * on the other end.

Your burp cloth will look like this....

Turn so the wrong sides are together.....

If you measured right and sewed 1/4 inch seam, it should lay perfectly flat.

Topstitch around the fabric as close to the edge as you can.

Voila!!  You're done!!  

Thought this fabric was the perfect Christmas fabric--you know, Merry Christ-moose!  Ha ha ha ha!!

Here's one I made with narrower hems but included the entire motif....

Am still waiting for our little nephew to arrive, but will post a picture when he comes into the world!!

Wooly Wishes Finale

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

The final installment of 2012's Free Block of the Month "Wooly Wishes to Ewe" is up!!  Go to Ewes Quilting and scroll down to "Do Ewe See What I See?"" for the December templates.  Scroll down a bit further and get the finishing instructions.....

Thank you for following my BOM for the year--I enjoyed creating these little sheep and hope they warm your heart!  If you have any pictures of the blocks you created, please send them to Carole@EwesQuilting.com so I can post them for everyone to enjoy!!

It's Been Too Long.....

Certainly had quite a difficult time getting into my blog this morning!!  Seems if you don't post in a while, Google rebels a bit and makes signing-in a lovely mess!!

I have a good reason for not posting in a while and wanted to explain. In September, I was diagnosed with invasive lobular carcinoma.  Apparently, once one gets a diagnosis of breast cancer, your schedule is no longer your own and you run from one specialist to another learning about treatment plans and clinical studies, to the neglect of your quilting and blog.

But, I know it could be so much worse!!  God has been with me every step--He allowed me to find a cancer I wasn't supposed to find nor that show up on a mammogram, He put quilters in the waiting room of the surgeon's office and He gave me the strength to finish two quilts for Timeless Treasures right after my first surgery.  My age is to my advantage (shocker!!), so my prognosis is good and I have no worries that once I'm done with my chemotherapy and radiation, I can close this chapter of my life and move on as a better person for having had the experience.

To be perfectly honest, I'm struggling a bit with the loss of my hair.  Being a redhead, a lot of my identity is wrapped up in that fact.  Before I was born, my mother prayed for a little girl with curly red hair, blue eyes and freckles and God honored her request.  (Editor's note:  She could have left freckles off the list, but it seems to work as a package.)  In an attempt to work through my feelings, my block of the month for 2013 is dedicated to curly topped redheaded little girls....

The Curly Top on the tractor holds a special memory for me!  

The summer after high school, I worked maintenance at my Dad's office, driving tractors, scrapping and painting metal sheds and weeding a myriad of gardens.  I loved driving the tractor to cut the lawn--third gear was the best!!  The swallows would encircle me while I stirred up tasty bugs for them to enjoy and they always rewarded me with the most impressive aerial acrobatics!  To remember that special summer with my Daddy, this simple little block will be available in June to honor wonderful fathers everywhere.

Although this "new adventure" of mine has included many twists and turns, I'm promised, ".....that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)  Best of all, I've been enjoying  Hebrews 13:1-2 on a whole new level, "Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares."--have met more angels than I can count, each one filled with love, and am so thankful!!

So, I hope one or two of my little Curly Tops appeal to you and you'll join me next year!  As always, the directions for all my patterns can be found at Ewe's Quilting.

Bucket List Shortened A Bit!

It's been too long since I last posted!!  So much is going on in my life right now, it will take a few posts to get up-to-date!  

In the middle of August, we left for a family trip to the United Kingdom! Going to the U.K. has been a dream of mine for a very long time and it came true in a most wonderful way!!

 Our trip was extended to include the Twisted Threads Quilt Show in Birmingham, England.  We were pretty exhausted from the trip "across the pond" and rented a day room so our girls could get some sleep and a shower before hitting the exhibits and vendors.  I dragged Paul to the show as soon as it was open!!

The Festival of Quilts is GIGANTIC!!  Wear sturdy walking shoes if you ever go!!

My Paul had a fantastic idea--seeing an international quilt show was pretty exciting, but why not enter some of my quilts and double the excitement?  Seemed like a reasonable idea until you start adding up the postage and customs on the return trip....but Paul is a smoother talker and we committed to showing three of my quilts.

Love seeing the pride on our daughter's eyes as she shows off her handiwork!

This beautiful young lady is our younger daughter who painted the flower at the top when she was in fifth grade in art class.  Every child in her fifth grade class made a flower in the style of Friedensreich Hundertwasser.  The whole school got behind sending the quilt to England and were very proud to show off their artwork!

 This quilt was a challenge quilt for my guild, Love Apple Quilters.  Sorry about the quality of the picture--the colors are more vibrant in person.

Here is another Love Apple Quilters challenge quilt--the judges were very kind in their remarks concerning this quilt.

Now for some eye candy.....here are some quilts you are sure to enjoy!

This one is made up of thousands of tiny squares!

 Wow!!  I cam away so inspired by the color, quilting and vendors!!  I showed great restraint, since it was our first stop on our trip and didn't want to carry too much over London, Scotland and Northern Ireland.  Our schedule only allowed for one day at the quilt show, so we were off to London by train.  

Here are the girls waiting to go to London and then Warner Brothers' Studios, The World of Harry Potter!

The girls waiting for the train to London, luggage in tow!

Christmas in August

Have been noticing a fashion trend that warms the Scottish part of my heart--lots and lots of plaids!  Have petted bolts and bolts of various plaids in the quilt and fabric shops I've visited lately, along with racks and racks of clothing.....

and shoes.....

And your favorite pooch can even sport plaid!!

In the spirit of not being last-minute this Christmas, I made a boatload of table runners, you guessed it, with Christmas plaids!

By the way, it's not always easy to find Christmas embellishments in July.....

 

To celebrate the resurgence of plaid, I designed a quick and easy wall-hanging for you to enjoy!  You'll use a variety of plaids, which works out well since it's hard to just pick one!

If you'd like the pattern, post a comment (make sure I can contact you!!) and I'll send you the pattern at the beginning of September.  Start collecting those plaids!!

Wooly Wishes August BOM Posted!

Do you remember this advertisement for Coppertone? 

When I was little, there was no sunscreen, only tanning lotion.  Not the best option for a redhead and I was scorched on many occasions!  You should have seen me the summer I used baby oil so I could be like everyone else.....!!

 

Here's another ad from my childhood.....

I was marinated in Solarcaine, tea bags, aloe, Noxema and Silvadene.

In memory of all the sunburns I have received in the past, and probably will receive in the future, here's Wooly Wishes Block of the Month for August....

Hope you'll make this block--there aren't too many times you're going to see a sheep in a bikini!  For the pattern, please click here.