Pretty neat, eh?: January 2013

I have been busy like Melissa getting Christmas presents sewn and have been enjoying the no-pressure sewing since Christmas too!

I made two quilts for my in-laws for their Christmas presents. Both were planned well in advance of spring but I didn't start either until about October...one was sewn completely on the day before Christmas Eve. Needless to say, that was given as a quilt top with an IOU. Its all ready for quilting now though..

Here is a peak at recent projects...

A 2nd Schoolhouse Tunic for myself.. this one a little more adventurous with the print.. getting used to having so much pattern going on. I love wearing these tops. Not only are they super simple to make, when made from lightweight cotton they are very light to wear and look great over jeans. Easy to dress up or down too.

Cabbage Patch Clothes for our latest 'family member' CHARLI. Macie got Charli for Christmas...who had one of these?! Unfortunately they are not as big as the original ones, slightly smaller and not so well made we have discovered. Lucky for us, Grandma is a dab hand at repairs in the form of french knots to secure wrist, knees and bottoms. Despite their shortfalls, Macie and Maddie's cabbage patch are officially the best dressed though with their new digs. I have used the original cabbage patch patterns that my mum had used to make clothes for my very own cabbage patch back in the 80's, just with slight adjustments to size. Of course, a simple elastic waist skirt to match Charli's own top was super simple... its hiding in the photo underneath the pink pinafore.

My other sewing crafts for Christmas included several pencil cases for special little girls, a card holder for a special friend of Cullen's and the cutest wee pincushions that I found on pinterest... Total bummer for me was that I misplaced my camera for most of December so have only a few pics... the others have already been gifted!!

I found the pin cushion tutorial here. It is easy, fun and takes about 4 minutes tops when you have all the materials ready to go. A girl cannot have too many pin cushions!

This is a picture of my the finished quilt top for my Mother-in-law Carol. I used charm packs from California Girl by Moda to make this quilt. The pattern was found in a quilting book of my Mum's and is a great random way to quilt.