Happy Halloween

I love Mrs. Bobbins.  There is a book if you are interested. The Pickledish Store.

Flying Geese

OK I will confess I am a short-cut quilter and everything by machine.  I love the flying geese quilt block, but have never built one.  Laugh yourself into Stitches has me convinced that I can tackle this block.  Best part is you end up with four blocks with just a few cuts.  I have my material picked out and my plan for a table runner drawn up…I will post a picture when I get it all finished.

Quilt Block Pincushions

I found these pincushions at Pretty by Hand.  She had done up a few small quilt squares  then didn’t know what to do with them.  When inspiration struck she came up with these sweet little pincushions.  They would make a lovely gift.  I like the idea of stuffing them with ground walnut shells. (which can be found in your local pet store-used for reptile bedding)

The Renegade Seamstress

Do you have a favorite blog? or blogs?  One of mine is The Renegade Seamstress.  She is a master at  refashioning old garments and I find her blog to be great inspiration.  I love how she worked this ugly sweater into an attractive cardigan.

Doll Twin

So cute I had to share.  I love making dolls, but sewing the doll isn’t much fun in my book.  A Beautiful Mess started with a blank plush doll they picked up from the craft store.  Then went to work to make it look like her niece.  The niece and doll have matching outfits made by aunt. What a great gift. (matching shoes too)

Doodles

Are you a doodler?  I always have little pictures on my notes.  I have heard tell that it helps you listen.  That probably came from a doodler, but it sounds good.  Here are some fun YouTube videos on doodles from Dangerous Doodles .

Arts and Crafts Keep You Sane

I am a big fan of Mary Engelbreit and I just thought this picture says it all.  So I am sharing.

Recycled Jean Bag

Do you have a pair of old jeans that don’t get worn anymore?  Here is a tutorial from Ulla’s  Quilt World to show you how to recycle those jeans. Remember 2.54 centimeters to an inch, so 27cm would be about 10 5/8 inches. This blog has some wonderful bag ideas that you may want to check out while you are there.

Embroidery Tea Towels

The other day I pulled out the manual to my sewing machine and reading through it I caught a few things that I hadn’t notice before.  My machine has a memory key so you can group stitches together and make a repeat pattern.  Who knew?  You might just want to reread yours and see if there is something your machine can do that you didn’t know about.

Sew Mama Sew has a nice PDF for cute tea towels for you to embroider.  I like the white thread on the bright color towels.  These would make a nice, useful Christmas gift.If you aren’t into hand stitching you could do this with your machine.  There are a lot of pretty threads out there to try, and most machines have decorative stitches.

Or add a little fabric.  Look at this great retro design from Sew 4 Home.

Admiring Quilt Art

Today I thought I would post a few inspirational quilts.  It amazes me how quilt artists can manipulate fabric into such beautiful designs.

This first one is by Susan Strickland of Yellowstone.Fire by Terry GrantI See the Moon by Susan Brubaker KnappThese are just a few of the wonderful quilts that are out there, I will be posting more for inspiration.