Swallowtail

For the first time, I finally finished a handmade gift before the intended day. A miracle in its own right. This was my first foray into lace knitting and I have to say it was pretty fun. It's the Swallowtail pattern by Evelyn Clark. The only problem is it turned out much, much smaller than I thought it would. It's more of a scarf than a shawl and I'm not sure its recipient would like something scarf-size. Since I have more of this yarn, I'm knitting another one with larger needles and probably adding more repeats. This probably won't be done in time, so I'm right back to giving gifts late. Oh well, one can try, right? And this picture of me? Taken by Isaiah, our new house photographer. Not the most flattering, but I'm impressed that it's pretty much in focus.

Pattern: Swallowtail Shawl
Needle size: #4
Yarn: Malabrigo Yarn Lace Emerald

doll quilt received!

One of the best and worst parts of joining a swap is the anticipation waiting for your little package to arrive. For the last week I've been waiting and stalking my mailman for my quilt to arrive from the Doll Quilt Swap. I love this swap. I've received several fabulous quilts in the past and this round is no different. Today I was delighted to see a package in the mailbox after returning home from working out with the trainer at the gym (ouch, but that's a whole other story). I knew it had to be my doll quilt! I was so happy to open up this little gem and couldn't help but notice that my partner, Jennifer, was from VA, just stone's throw from me. Small world, right!??! I hung it up on my bedroom wall, a spot that's been empty since we moved here 3 years ago. I just love it! Thank you so much Jennifer!!

more thrift finds

I can't believe it's only Wednesday. This week feels like it has been so long! We went up to NY on Friday for a quick weekend trip. It was beautiful & fun, but way too short. Of course Isaiah and I are both sick, which is not fun since I've had class this week and an interview for nursing school. Hopefully we'll start feeling better soon. One thing that is brightening my day is these great thrift finds. Lately I've been having a lot of luck in the fabric/linen department at my thrift store. I found these 3 sheets and 2 pieces of wool/nylon/acrylic houndstooth still with the tags on!

Some of this will probably end up in my vintage etsy shop. I can only hoard so many vintage sheets here. I just have a major problem passing them up when I see them. If anyone's interested in any of them, let me know and I'll set up something for you on etsy. Hope you're all having a good beginning to your fall!

Little Houses PDF patterns ready!

I just wanted to pop in and let you know that the Little Houses PDF pattern is now available for sale in my etsy shop. The pattern includes templates for 6 different houses all using the paper piecing technique. Thank you to my testers, who made some very cute houses. Tammie has posted some pictures of hers on her blog and you can see them here. Mary also tested the blocks and finished a doll quilt which you can see here. It's soo cute! Each block is about 5.75" square finished so 6 of them together makes a perfect doll quilt. Of course you could make a whole bunch to make a larger quilt. I swear, once you make one house, it's hard to stop. They are so cute and addicting!

Also, to celebrate my newest pattern, I'm having a 2 for $10 sale. You'll get the house pattern and the ruffle wristlet pattern. Happy Sewing!

want to make your own house?

Thank you for all your comments on my little house quilt! It was really fun to make and very addictive. So much so that I'm working on some paper piecing patterns for the houses. Mine was not paper pieced, but I figured that it would be easier for people to follow. I've created one that I'll be sharing with you all for free. It is the same pattern I used to make the block of the pink house. The finished block is approximately a 6" square. I have a couple more blocks in the works and I'll be offering them for sale in my etsy shop as soon as they're ready. ** Update-- They're available now in the shop!*** If you've never paper pieced before here are two sites that have pretty good tutorials.

You can print on regular printer paper or use freezer paper, whatever you prefer. Also remember to set you stitch length to a smaller length so that it will be easier to tear the paper off in the end.

Here is the link for the free house pattern. If you have any questions, feel free to ask and I'll try to answer them in the comments section. Paper piecing can be tricky, but the more you do it, the easier it will get. Scraps are fine to use for this project, but make sure you have enough fabric to cover the piece it will go on.

I'm also in need of a couple of testers to try them out to make sure everything works out. If you're interested and can get back to me quickly, let me know!

Finished Doll Quilt

You may remember me asking your opinion on how to finish my doll quilt for Doll Quilt Swap #7. I was finally getting ready to finish it yesterday and started making a pieced house for the back. The house turned out so cute it became addictive and before I knew it I had made 5 more, just perfect for a doll quilt. So what did I do? Yep, I started a brand new Doll Quilt and actually finished it this afternoon. I tried my hand at some free motion quilting and I think it came out pretty well. I still have a lot of practicing to do but I'm happy with the way it looks. I was really inspired by this amazing quilt, which I'm sure many of you have seen already. It is so cute! My houses aren't nearly as small and I can't imagine how that woman managed to sew such tiny pieces. It felt good to work on this project because I actually started and finished something within 2 days. I can't remember the last time I did that!

I hope you're all enjoying your weekend. I'm hoping to squeeze in a little more sewing time and hopefully have a few more projects finished!