Quilt for Amie's princess

 As you may know, in the past two years Amie (Kitty Cats and Airplanes) and I have become regular craft buddies and now friends. As soon as I found out Amie was having a baby, I knew I was going to make a quilt for her, and as soon as she told me she was having a little girl I went to work. I started a classic pinwheel quilt in bright colors back in May but everything was put on hold with the house sale and all the craziness that ensued. 

A couple of weeks ago it dawned on my that I needed to finish the quilt soon since Amie's baby shower was fast approaching. Then I stubbled on an adorable floral in chocolate and aqua. I matched it up with a simple chocolate polka dot fabric and a damask print in aqua to make these fun pinwheel blocks.

A white paisley border completed the design 

And since I had some left over strips from cutting the blocks for the front, I used them up for the back for a fun 9-patch

I used the same cute floral for the biding

I think Amie likes it, and I can't wait to meet her little princess  :)

Trading posts - Paper piecing and sweet bunnies

 In good trading post fashion, we did tray something new and out of our comfort zone again. This time around we were joined by another fellow blogger, Morgane from Bear, Dolly and Moi, that graciously agreed to school us in the art of paper piecing. Both Amie and myself were a bit nervous but very excited to try out this technique. Morgane made it easy and fun. She brought a pattern selection and great tips/expertise for a successful first experience. 

Morgane adding embroidery details to a lovely paper pieced panda and supervising our efforts

Morgane demonstrating the technique and Amie attentively observing

Euuuhh I swear this mess will turn out good

See Amie proudly showing her completed bunny

Yay! We made it!

Not bad for a first time :)

Now I'm working on turning my bunny into a small Easter quilted wall hanging.

Trading Posts - Conquer the zipper

Amie and I decided to challenge ourselves out of our comfort zone this time around... and get over our zipper apprehension to make a couple of  zippered pouches following an Amy Butler pattern I dug up from my stash. After fabric selections, we had to run to JoAnn's to buy the zippers we needed.

    

Back in my studio, we got too busy to take pictures until it was all done.

Here is Amie taking a picture of her pretty make-up bag

I think we both did great !

 

Amie made the larger make-up bag

 

I picked a smaller pouch

 

And a coin purse

Here they are all together .. Pretty !

Trading posts - Bead party

My studio saw another crafty party with Amie (Kitty Cats and Airplanes) and Meg (In the Loop). This time we went all out beads with a bit of Valentine in the back of our minds. Amie brought her stash, we spread out the combined loot on the floor, sat down and got started. It was an epic bead explosion! Jewelry making is a bit out of Meg's comfort zone but she went along, with a bit of assistance for the more technical parts. designed those adorable pink bracelets:

Amie made a long chain necklace

And I finally used this glass heard shaped pendant I bought last year with some braided seed beads and hematite heart earrings to go along.

The three of us had a great time as usual.

Trading posts - Shopping bags and a wreath

A couple of weeks ago, we had crafty playdate with Amie (Kitty Cats and Airplanes) and Meg (In the Loop). We were all pretty tired but Amie was excited to try out her new sewing machine so I decided to take it easy with my projects and have fun helping the gals out with their sewing. Both Amie and Meg wanted to make a bag, so I helped each of them out making a tote bag. Amie's is a denim upcycle, and Meg an interfaced fully lined tote. I think they both did great. 

Look at these gals hard at work ! Amie is learning to use the new sewing machine she got for Christmas.

TADA All done ... So cute and so different!

I started a winter wreath that day ... that I finished a couple of days later

Envelope clutch revisited

Another Chrisms gift now revealed. This past summer,  Amie (Kitty Cats and Airplanes) taught me how to make her adorable envelope clutch. 

I recently found a different type of interfacing than we used back then: stiffer and thinner. This prompted me to make a new version of the clutch that would be a bit bigger too, with a gusset to make access easier. 

I ended up making two .. . one for myself and one for a friend that has a soft spot for yellow and grey.

I will definitely reuse this form for more cute little clutches :)

Trading Posts - Christmas Bunting

 Another Trading Post... this time Amie (Kitty Cats and Airplanes and myself were joined by a third crafter, Megan. The 3 of us whipped together something festive and simple to put Megan at ease with her brand new sewing machine: Bunting. We were able to finish one for each of us all the while, Megan learned some sewing tips, how to use a cutting matt and a rotary cutter safely and how to make custom binding. I think she left with a new sense of confidence on her new sewing skills and we definitely had a good time

I still have to find a good spot to hang the finished product...

After Megan left, and while waiting for a pizza (and Amie's husband), I helped Amie putting together a cutie little pincushion in shades of green. She did a great job !