Special Olympics Scarf

 Long story, but the scarves I was making in the Michigan colors for the Special Olympics which I posted about here and here were ruined in my home disaster last summer. When I contacted Special Olympics, I was told they had enough of those and that I should knit using the National colors. So I managed to get one scarf done in time and mailed it today on my way home from school. Hope it makes a special athlete happy!

Done Just in Time

     Here's Sarah's quilt before washing. And here it is on her bed after:

     This was the first full-size quilt I machine quilted, and it was somewhat of a struggle pushing that big thing through my machine, but I am happy with it, my daughter loves it, and most importantly it was tremendous fun making it!! I got it finished last night, which was just in time since my classes resumed today.

Here's the back:



I love how soft and crinkly it is!

 Quilters are split into two groups, those that pre-wash their fabric and those that don't. I am of the camp that doesn't. I like the crispness of unwashed fabric for piecing and I am much too lazy to starch it all. I also like the extra shrinkage I get from using unwashed fabric, it makes my quilts more crinkly. I threw 2 Shout color catchers in with this quilt when I washed it, and had no dye run at all. In fact, I have never had a problem with dye bleeding in my quilts. Pre-washing or not, it's all a matter of personal preference, what's yours?

Quilt Basted

     Here's Sarah's quilt, all basted, my 15-year-old quilt inspector giving it the once over. I made it with  7 "pretty pansy" charm packs from Connecting Threads (thanks for the heads up on their sale, Dolly!),  along with a few fabrics from my stash.  I used the 10 minute block pattern and flipped the edges back so it resembles the cathedral windows pattern.

Here's the directions on a  YouTube video:

I've finished machine quilting it, all that's left is to finish up the binding and that should be done today. It goes perfectly in her room and she can't wait till it's hers!

Hot and Cold Packs

     Here's the last of the small projects I made while off from school. These hot/cold packs are simple muslin bags filled with about 2 c. uncooked white rice and some dried lavendar to make them smell good, then placed in a fabric "pillowcase" which can be removed for washing. You can freeze them to use as cold packs or heat them in the microwave for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes (depends on your microwave-check so they don't burn) and use as hot packs. They are great for sore, aching muscles and joints, and for migraines. I've read that some people also use them as bedwarmers. (I may take one along as a seatwarmer since I don't have heated seats in my car and it's going to be in the teens for the next few mornings!) I made some long rectangular ones for wrapping around the back of the neck, and some shorter, wider rectangles for use on other areas.

These get lots of use at my house, we all love them. It was time for some new ones though, they were long overdue for replacement.  The old ones didn't have removeable covers that could be washed, so they were pretty grubby after years of use.

I sewed channels into the muslin bags to keep the rice from shifting around too much, filled them a little, sewed, filled and sewed:

The "pillowcase" covers are just overlapped to make them removeable for washing:

 I was also organizing my fabric stash and this was a good way to use up some old small oddball pieces.

Memory Pillow

     One of the small projects I've managed to squeeze in this week is a gift; a memory pillow for the hub's aunt. Her hubby died a few years ago and she still misses him terribly.  I found this idea online somewhere while surfing. It was perfect since my hubby still had an old shirt that belonged to his uncle in the closet. I used it to make this pillow, using the snaps on the shirt front as the closure on the back to insert the pillow. Easy peasy, no zipper to insert!

I just cut out a square 2" bigger than my pillow form (pillow form was 14", so I cut a 16" square from the shirt front and back). I wanted a loose fit. If you want a snug fit, just cut 1" bigger than your pillow form. The front has a photo I printed onto computer photo fabric, then I added borders and then appliqued it to the pillow along with the heart. The pillow front could also be pieced if desired, but I'm not that good with skinny stripes and plaid, so I just appliqued it ;) Then I sewed it all the way around with right sides together, unsnapped the snaps , turned it right side out, and inserted the pillow.

Finally Some Creativity Time

     I have been working this week on a full-size quilt for my daughter, pics to come later. It's been a much needed release for me. Going for too long without working on something creative makes me feel like I am "starving", and I know that those of you with a creative bent understand this. Along with the quilt I'm making, I also managed to squeeze in a few small projects including the above pillowcases for my son. I only have a short break from school, so I am trying to squeeze in every last bit of creative time possible, it's good for my sanity ;) During the last semester I managed to get my creative fix by keeping watch on my cousin Dolly's blog and living vicariously through her. Thanks Dolly!!

     My son picked out the fabric, and who doesn't love Spongebob?! So I serged up the pillowcases for him in about 10 minutes. Simple, yet satisfying. And of course he loves them. I usually just sew pillowcases on my regular machine, but the orange fabric I used for the edging wanted to fray, so I used my serger. I like how they turned out and I think I'll do this all the time now.

     I have a few more small projects done that I'll post later this week, along with my progress on the quilt. Wishing you all the Happiest of New Years!

Found a Great Giveaway

Retro Mummy is giving away 20 fat quarters- yes you read that right, 20! For details go here.