Teacher's Pet Mug Rugs

One of my blog's most popular posts

has been "Be My Valentine,"

featuring heart-shaped mug rugs.

I've made a few different versions

of these ric-rac trimmed sweeties,

and they never fail to make me happy.

Here's one I made in earth tones - quite different!

When I finished making my hexagons

for my guest posts at Bear Creek Quilting Company,

I had lots of nice scraps of Elementary by Sweetwater.

I patched together this little heart...

perfect for presenting to a favorite teacher.

I really enjoy the process of making these

mug rugs, edged in ric-rac.

The black looks so sharp against the fabrics in this line!

I made a matching one...
they will make great teacher's gifts.

{Whoever gives these will be an instant teacher's pet!}

The backings are pretty, too.

These mug rugs look especially great with a cup of coffee.

Oh, and a cookie really makes the difference between

a good coffee break and a great one!

I found these chocolate-coated biscuits,

and they are soooooo delicious!

Do you have these where you live?

These cookies made great props for my mug rug photos.

{I don't have them any more...not sure where they went...hmmm.}

Luckily, I've still got quite a few of those Elementary scraps.

Maybe a few more of these Teacher's Pet mug rugs will

pop out of my Elementary scrap box.

Central Park Squares Baby Quilt

There's a new baby in my world...

one of my friends has waited for a very long time

for the safe arrival of little Samuel.

I just had to make a quilt for this special little boy!

{ALL babies are very special, but Samuel is truly a miracle.}

Samuel's nursery is filled with animals,

so I started with an animal print

from Kate Spain's Central Park line for Moda.

I found most of these coordinating fabrics at Rose Room Quilts.

I had recently stocked up on polka dots,

and they were fun to use in this quilt.

I love the Ta Dots in Sea...

 the small cream dot in orange from Riley Blake...

and the solid olive green.

My favorite print, though,

was the Random Pencil Check in Linen,
which I used instead of a plain background solid.

I labored {hee hee} over what pattern or design to use,

and in the end, I decided to use colorful squares,

set off by the neutral pencil-check blocks.

Before I knew it, I was ready for the quilting step.

I kept the quilting very simple, 
just stitching 1/4" on each side of the seams.

{I wanted to give this quilt to baby Samuel before he is ready for kindergarten.}

This quilting looks so cool on the back, too!

For the binding,

I chose those happy orange polka dots.

I finished the binding by hand-stitching,

and that is a process I really enjoy.

{Do you like that part, too?}

So there we have it...

just 5 different fabrics, made into a finished quilt, 

ready for a bundle of joy!

Some Guest Posting - Hexagons and Elementary Fabric

Maybe you've noticed already...

I've been doing a bit of guest posting

over at Bear Creek Quilting Company blog!

I just finished a 3-part blog series,

using a fat quarter bundle of Elementary

by Sweetwater for Moda.

I had been drooling over this line of fabric

since the first time I saw it...

it must be because we have so many teachers in my extended family!

In Part 1

I test-drove a new-to-me specialty ruler,

called the Creative Grids Hexagon Trim Tool.

I can only begin to describe how FUN this tool is to use.

You can make such a variety of hexagons,

each one using similar simple steps.

There's a video here, that I referred to for lots of ideas.
Sometimes the simplest designs are really stunning.

These hexagons are a lot like snowflakes...
each one unique, and also beautiful.

{Oooooh! I just inspired myself...I think I'll have to try making some in wintery fabrics!}

In Part 2

those hexagons were put to use

when I created Textagon Mug Rugs.

Each of these would make a great gift

for a teacher or a student,

don't you think???

For Part 3

I decided to design a Library Book Bag,

featuring hexagon blocks on the front and the back.

Like it???

You can follow the tutorial to make your own

Library Book Bag.

I've got some leftovers from my fat quarter bundle,
just begging to be made into gifts
for teachers and students.

Stop back soon to see what I'm going to make
with this A+ Elementary fabric.