Uppity-Mama

Christmas Quilt Finished... and Happy New Year!

It feels like this quilt took me forever!  Hand sewing the binding to the back is really a bitch.  Not my thing at all.  But there's no getting around how much nicer it looks than machine sewn binding.  Maybe I just need to practice my machine binding techniques...?

It is made up of fabrics primarily from Riley Blake's Be Merry line.

The red and white striped fabric I used for the binding is by Michael Miller...I love the candy cane effect it offers.

 

This is the first time I've quilted with these wavy lines and these pics are pre-washing so it may look quilte different later on.

 

I wish you all a happy, healthy, fun, safe new year!

Breathe

Just breathe.

We are digging the desert.

 

 

 

Hope all is still merry and bright where you are.

Some Gingerbread

A little gingerbread village from a kit we got at Target.  I'm not much of a baker and really, do people actually eat gingerbread houses?  Anyway, fun was had in making these.

The only reason Beckett has grapes on his is because he kept eating all the candy I gave him and I had to stop him somehow!

 

A Few Things I'd Like For Christmas...

Yes, yes, world peace always comes first...but after that...I'd like

one of these from Cotton Monster...

 
and one of these from Amazon or wherever...

and also one of these...

 

with some of this to make it with.

Doesn't that seem incredibly reasonable of me?

Handmade Holiday Banner

Most fabric from the Riley Blake Be Merry collection .  Coordinating quilt to follow!

Merry Christmas To Me...FABRIC!!!

Yes, I bought it for myself, but I feel the same excitement opening up a box of ordered fabric as I do on Christmas morning. 

The anticipation of finally seeing the colors in person, feeling the weight of it in my hand, the way it just sits there...plump with possibilites. 

Just as good as a wrapped gift with something completely surprising inside. Sometimes...better.

Look at these four beauties, a splurge from Spoonflower.  Just a little bit of each.

The paper boats absolutely kill me. And birds on the birch trees are from the same fabulous designer, Isabelle.  Check out all her designs.  I love them all.

The yellow flower fabric is by Caitlin Youngquist.  Again...no brainer...had to have it.

The groovy waves are by Kari Kail.

Now these are from another package from Pink Chalk Fabrics. I don't know if you can tell from my photo but those are hands on a baseball bat and red balls.  The bicycles are even more unbearably cute in person.

And these were on sale:

I'm even excited by these Kaufman Kona solids in Snow, Eggplant, and Coal.  What a geek I've become.  Are you with me?

LAMQG Meeting and Potholder Swap!

I am so excited.  I finally got to go to a meeting of the Los Angeles Modern Quilt Guild held at Home Ec in Silverlake.  What a great group of women and how amazing to meet others who are all equally fabric, quilting, sewing crazy.  We did a show and tell of quilts we'd made and then we had a potholder swap.  Here is the one I made:

And here is the adorable one I got!  Jolene made it and it includes some of my favorite fabrics! 

 

I absolutely cannot wait until the next meeting!

Holiday Slice

Lights and decorations have started to go up!  I love the big Christmas balls from Target that we hung from the trellis.

And do you like the wreath with the bow (from Joann)?

Or without?

Gray Can Be Happy

I am starting to love gray.  Not gray skies, really, but gray stuff.  Especially mixed with yellow like in this fabric I just ordered from Scarlet Fig:

Or with snowmen like these jammies I made for Beckett:  (fabric available here)

and how it looks in this beautiful quilt in Parallax Quilts shop on Etsy:

 

What's gray and happy in your world?

A Bit of Knitting

This hat is actually not for Beckett.  One of our skating coaches, Stephanie, loved this hat of Beckett's and she asked me where I got it.  I told her I made it and would make one for her if she wanted one.  The yarn is from my stash and I wish I could remember what it is because it is very soft and nice to work with.  The hat is just a rectangle with K1 P1 ribbing at the beginning and end, then sewn up the sides. I cast on 40 stitches for this one and was worried it wouldn't fit an adult but it does!  Hopefully Steph will let me take a picture of her in it on Saturday.