9 Patch Quilt

While I'm on a kick of showing you old pictures, here's another one!  A pretty 9-patch I made for my sister-in-law when she went to college in 2004.

Quilt for my sister

This is my second ever quilt - for my sister, in colors that reminded me of her.  It's a simple log cabin, quilted with invisible thread in a starburst pattern.

Back (again, sorry for the picture quality):

First Quilt

Way back in the early 2000's, my family got together and gave me (and my sister) a sewing machine for Christmas.  It took a year or two, but I eventually found quilting - and I LOVE quilting.  I pulled out a few of my VERY old photos, and found my first ever sewing project.

This is a small lap quilt (4' x 3') that I had NO idea how to put together.  I had no pattern and no directions.  I gave it my best go, and it turned out alright!  I figured a bunch of squares would be easy to put together - I was wrong.  Lining up a bunch of corners - especially before finding out about rotary cutters - is really difficult.

But here you are, my first quilt, from 2004:

And the back was plain maroon flannel - the photo is terrible, sorry:

Rainbow Jello Treats

Last week, for Miss A's FIFTH birthday, we made these very cool looking layered Jello treats for school (I found them here):

Yes, they do look VERY cool, don't they?  They also took 4.5 hours.  Each layer has to set, and, as a word of caution, don't just dump the next layer on.  Oh no, you have to veeeeery gently pour the next layer over top.  And those cool whip layers?  Take a little bitty spoon and veeeeery carefully spread it on each and every one of your treats.

I originally tried to pipe some of the cool whip on top to make a neat swirl like the picture in the blog where found the instructions, but decided it looked a bit too much like poop to give to a bunch of preschoolers.  So I spread the cool whip out a bit and liked that much better.

They were a big hit, but I'm not sure they were worth the effort!  16 of these babies later, and I'm not ready to think about Jello again any time soon!

Spiderweb Tablerunner

Two years ago, I ran across this spiderweb table runner tutorial on The Crafty Cupboard, thought it was about the cutest, easiest thing I've EVER seen and whipped one up for our house.  It is, by far, my favorite Halloween decoration. 

I don't know about you all, but we do nearly all of our arts and crafts at the table, so I usually keep a piece of plastic over the table.  Glue spills?  No problem.  Sharpie accident?  No biggie.  Yes, it's very 1950's housewife, but for now, it works.  I promise it's the only piece of furniture in our house covered in plastic.

This project was very simple, it just took a bit of time and some very tiny, very sharp scissors.

LOVE!

Travel Bag

The problem with knowing how to sew is that you can't help but re-invent everything you see to suit your needs better.  Take my new travel bag, for instance.

I wanted a good size bag to use as a carry-on for an upcoming trans-atlantic flight.  I LOVED this bag from Luckycann.  Unfortunately it was a little undersized for what I wanted, and it lacked a cup holder on the outside.  I really, REALLY wanted a cup holder.  So I made one.

Front:

Back (love me some zippers):

I also have a long removeable shoulder strap that clips on to the sides of the bag for hands-free carrying.

Inside (with perfectly sized pockets for my Kindle and sunglasses! - the top zipper closure is tucked out of the way):

An inside zipper pocket for my wallet and a divider.  On the left you can barely see a key fob.

I made a cup holder for the inside and outside ('cuz really, where would I put my empty teacup?).

This is a closeup view of the top of the bag from the outside.  I wanted a zippered top that wouldn't get in the way.  It's a separating zipper on flaps that cover most of the top of the bag.

I love my new bag!  Unfortunately the hardware alone cost me nearly what it would have cost to just purchase the bag from Luckycann.  Too bad the Luckycann bag wasn't a smidge bigger!

Crown

For a special little girl on her birthday:

Ever heard of a 5 year old not loving rainbows?  Me either.

Happy Birthday Willow!