A Special Gift

 Isn't this quilt amazing?  My friend Sarah surprised me by sending it to me last week.  It is so perfect for Owen and our family.  I am overwhelmed by the generosity of friends and family with the birth of this baby.  We've been so blessed!

I love this quilt and what it means. I have made many meaningful friendships through guilds and sewing connections and they are so rewarding and precious to me.   I know Sarah won't be offended when I say that I hope Owen will use it frequently, nearly wearing it out!

Le Challenge Entry: Method

"Method" was the theme for Le Challenge this month.

When it comes to sewing apparel, there is definitely a specific "method" I adhere to.  I am very much a beginner when it comes to making clothes and I am reluctant to deviate from the method I have found to enjoy and used.  I almost exclusively use one pattern designer (Oliver and S), I stick to the instructions with exactness, I only use quilting cotton, and I only sew for my daughter.  I prewash my materials and almost always have to make a quick shopping trip for notions.

Quilting is a lot less "prescribed" for me.  I never prewash, sometimes I follow a pattern (and I am willing to try all sorts of different designers), shopping is rarely necessary since I have such a "healthy" stash, and I have made quilts for many people in my life.  I am willing to experiment, deviate from the instructions, and try new things.  I am sure that with more experience and practice, my approach to garment sewing will become more adventurous.

Thanks for sticking with me!  Here's the dress I made this weekend:

This fun print is a Clover Sunshine print designed by Alison Glass.  I've got the kids calling it the "eye spy" dress because there are so many fun little designs in the fabric: an octopus, paintbrush, jet, rainbow, etc.  The pattern I used is the Library dress by Oliver and S, in a 4T.

Sometimes I spend inordinate amounts of time in the button aisle at the store but not this time!  I am in love with the glitter-y buttons I found at Joanns.  They match the dress perfectly.

Even though this dress did not have cats on it, Charlotte loves it and I am so pleased.  She wore it all day today and had to be bribed to take it off for a few minutes for me to get a garment-only picture.  Success!

Linking up with Le Challenge and Finish it up Friday.

I haven't caught up with my stash fabric tally in a few posts, so here's the catch-up:

Total stash fabric used in the past three posts: 3 yards
Total stash fabric used since 1/1/15: 82 yards
Total stash fabric used to date:  85 yards

Purse Palooza Sew Together Bag

Last night, in just a few hours, I made a Sew Together bag from start to finish in just a few hours!  It was so fun for me-it's been a while since I've found the time and energy for any project.

One of the most fun parts of any sewing project is choosing the fabrics from my stash.  The far left floral print in the below picture is one of my all-time fabrics designed by Anna Maria Horner.  Matching fabrics to coordinate with it was somewhat difficult: it contains some very unique shades of green, orange, and blue that didn't find friends within my stash- so I chose fabrics that were "close enough."  This is a strategy that I have learned to use often.  Avoiding perfectly matched combinations is a style I like anyhow.  

I had three 9" mustard colored zippers set aside for this project, but I could not find them!  I finally settled on using some other zippers in my small zipper stash.

This cute bag is off to a dear friend who hopefully will love a little surprise in the mail.  I love this bag pattern SO much and I think every sewer needs to have one.  I use mine all of the time!

Lining up with Purse Palooza 2015 and Finish it up Friday.