Winter Dresden Plate Quilt

Spring has sprung,

 but I still have some Winter designs in my quilting thoughts.

I joined the fun with the Bunny Hill Scrappy Plates Club, 

starting in January.

This is my first time sewing along with a project like this, 

and I'm having great time!

{If you haven't discovered Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill, you're in for a treat!}

The project makes great use of Darlene Zimmerman's EZ Dresden Ruler, which I found for a great price here.

I knew I had one already, 

but I couldn't find it until AFTER I had ordered a new one. 

 {A glimpse into my "real world"...sigh.}

But that's okay, because I also ordered another new template, 

which will be featured someday in another post.

January began with a burst of activity.  

We gathered up our "scrappy" fabrics and cut dozens of blades for the plates.  I chose to use my layer cake of Winter by Minick and Simpson from Moda.

I sliced and sorted my blades...each plate needs 20 blades, 

and there are 12 plates in the quilt.  

I made some extras, because I want to make a couple of pillows, too!

{I even had a wee bit of extra layer cake fabric left, 

so this is a great choice of precut to use for this project.}

Here are chains of blades, stitched at the ends.

They were all pressed into the pointed wedge shape...

Here they are, stacked on my winter cake pedestal.  

Yummy, huh?

But we weren't finished yet!  The blades were stitched together in groups of 20, and pressed into beautiful "plates."

Now they really looked good enough to eat!

For February, the plates were appliqued onto the background squares.  Hmmm...since Winter is now out of print and hard to find, I chose a red gingham from Strawberry Fields by Fig Tree Quilts from Moda.

I ran short and needed to buy a bit more, just for that last block.

{AFTER that, I found one more yard of the gingham in my stash.  A theme emerges...}

But that's okay...I have so many big plans for that red gingham!

I straight-stitched my plates to the background...

Then I used HeatNBond to fuse my center circles in place.  

I used my machine to blanket-stitch the centers.

  

{My favorite stitch!}

  

Ready for the next step...uh-oh!  Today is March 31st, and I have not done the March step.  And I have to be at work by 2:30 p.m. today.

 Not to worry...

the Bunny Hill Scrappy Plate Club gals are very sweet, 

and they won't mind if I catch up later!

In fact, why don't you join us now, if you haven't already?

Catch some more inspiration at our Flickr group!

Easter Grass Wreath Project

I was inspired by this blog posting, from Capture the Details, 

to make a spring wreath.

I picked up the supplies I needed (at JoAnn and Walmart) and got to work.  

I used EXACTLY one skein of Fun Fur in lime green.  

My wreath form was white, not green, so I was careful to wrap the yarn tightly.  No white showed through.

I found some little lace flowers, but mine had yellow centers, not pink. 

That's okay...my pins were yellow, too.

I put my flowers into little tufts of three.

I chose a pretty pale blue ribbon 

and learned how to tie it from Martha Stewart's website.

I love it! 

I put it on Craftsy for their Spring Fling contest.

"Heart" it if you love it, too!

Featuring...Pinnies Pincushions

One of my most favorite things to make is a pincushion!

I hope to feature lots of them in upcoming posts.  

Today I'd like to introduce you to the Pinnie!

I made several of these, using a pattern from Details by Des on Etsy.

I chose some Tanya Whelan fabrics from two very pretty lines...

Delilah and Darla.

I'm in love with the polka dots and ginghams.

I gave one to my sister as a present.

Then I made a couple more for my shop on Etsy...

And this one is my very own personal pinnie!

The covered button looks like something out of a Cath Kidston catalog...

Don't they look cute, all together, like a bunch of little sisters?

They are so squeezy and plump, 

and they can hold lots of pins and needles.

I think I'll have to make some more soon...

Mother's Day is coming!

PDF Pattern for Linen Pocket Ereader

This is so exciting!

I just finished a brandnew Tutorial Style

PDF Pattern for my

Linen Pocket Ereader Cover!

A while ago, I had a request for a custom order 

from my shop on Etsy, eamylove.

She loved the red Eiffel Tower print by Michael Miller 

that I used for this ereader cover...

But instead of the black polka dots, she wanted me to pair it with a beige linen.  Hmmmmmm...Oh, and she would like a pocket on the front, please.

I found some more of the Eiffel Tower print at fabric.com, 

and they also had some awesome European linen with fabulous texture...slightly nubby, in a gorgeous shade of khaki. 

Before long, this beautiful ereader cover was born.  

I'm so glad my customer mentioned linen!

{Watch for more linen accents in future posts!}

I just adore the covered button detail!

I made another linen pocket ereader cover recently and took photos along the way...

and made notes...

 and today I've listed my new pattern at eamylove on Etsy 

AND on Craftsy.

This particular sample was made with Amy Butler's Sunspots for the lining.

The linen is a classy shade of Oatmeal.

I love it with the Deer Valley circles by Joel Dewberry on the exterior.

If you want it, my sample is for sale, too, at eamylove on Etsy!

Can you believe...I happen to own a Deer Valley mug that matches!

{OK...it's actually my son's...from a YMCA camp in PA.}

More elephants...

What is it lately with me and ELEPHANTS?

In my last post I shared my pincushion

from Heather Bailey's pattern,

Ollie and Effie Elephant.

And now, today's post is all about more baby elephants!

My husband's goddaughter recently welcomed a third baby boy into her family.

I made her this diaper bag...

And a matching baby elephant softie for the little sweetheart to cuddle.

Then I thought it would be fun to make a couple more,

for the two big brothers!

You have to admit there's something really sweet about baby elephants.

They're as much fun as a 3-ring circus.

This time the pattern is from Retromama on Etsy, called Tilly and Tommy.

  I just LOVE the little knotted tails and floppy ears!!!

Suddenly a lot of my work friends are becoming grandmas, 

so I needed lots of new baby gifts. 

Perfect!  And so much fun to make. 

They're my new "signature" baby present!

Watch for an extra or two in my shop on Etsy...OR...I could always make a custom baby elephant just for you...I'm just sayin'...