Another baby quilt

Lots of my friends and family are having baby boys this winter.  I’ve made quite a few little boy quilts the past two months.  The latest is a little different than the log cabin quilts I’ve been making.

Of course the fabric is elephants!  The line is called “Bungle Jungle.”  I love the primary colors.  Each sashing strip is from a line by Jenn Ski that I just had in my stash.  The binding is a polka dot on blue by Connecting Threads.  The finished quilt measures 42 x 46. 

I was able to pick up some matching backing fabric at a great price at one of the many Black Friday sales events. 

I used the seams for a guide and quilted a 1/4” inside all the seams.  I like the look of the straight lines across the backing.

Who couldn’t use a ginormous bottle of wine and cute baby blanket to celebrate the birth of baby boy #2????

My daughters sang in church this past Sunday.  Bea stood by Esther even though that meant she had to stand with the preschoolers (which she wasn’t thrilled about because she is in first grade, don’t forget!). 

Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your day!  Linking up to Tuesday at the Table and Freemotion by the River.

Quilts at the Table

A few days ago my daughter and I whipped up a set of pretty placemats to go with some dishes we got for one of our relatives for Christmas.

Most of the charms are from Connecting Threads and a few are from my stash.  They were so easy to put together, just 3 x 4 charms.

The plates are not actually Christmas designs.  They are more Mediterranean looking and can be used all seasons, but look great with the Christmas fabric.

The mats consist of the top, batting and backing.  So to keep it all together, after turning the layers inside out, I sewed 3 evenly spaced lines around it to hold everything together, which is an idea I got from Svetlana (thanks!).

The fabrics are pretty.  I love that cute deer!

Here are the placemats all tied with a ribbon and ready to be put in a gift bag with her new dishes.

And I finished up my November Beejeebers block last night.

This block is called Cherie’s Carpenter Star and it’s made of a jillion hsts.  A few months ago this block would have reduced me to tears, but I’m happy to say that this one turned out A-okay and is exactly the right size, a first for me!  The bee mama asked for bright colors, so I hope orange and teal fit the bill.

I’m also getting ready to bind another baby quilt. This has got to be my fifth log cabin jungle animal-themed quilt.  I guess I will never tire of making log cabin quilts.  I just love picking the fabrics and chain sewing the blocks together.  It’s so easy, fast, and fun!

Hope everyone had a relaxing and fun Thanksgiving.  I’m officially done all my Christmas shopping (a few days before Thanksgiving even) and now I’m ready to sit back and enjoy the next couple weeks, hopefully making a few things from the book Pretty in Patchwork Holidays.  Come back on December 3rd—I’m giving away a copy of the book and a fat quarter bundle of Christmas fabric!

Linking up to Tuesday at the Table.

Donuts and Doorways

First, a little WIP Wednesday.

I have 42 blocks for the Scrappy Stash QAL sewn and squared up to 9 1/2 inches.  I’ll be working on it more tonight and hopefully can get it done within a week for the linky party.

I saw on Debbie’s blog A Quilter’s Table that she would be posting about donuts yesterday, so we made some in the morning since my oldest was off from school and we were just hanging out.  When I went shopping last week, I picked up a tube of biscuits so I could make donuts like my mom did when I was a kid.

This method of donut making is fun for the kids, too.

There’s really nothing too it.  Just heat veggie oil on high.  Divide each biscuit in half so it’s not so thick, pinch out a hole, and brown on both sides (it only takes about 4 minutes).  Then cool on a few paper towels and let the kids cover them in cinnamon-sugar.

A few hours later, after we ran some errands and before going to the polls, we stopped at Dunkin Donuts and had donuts a second time and hot chocolate.  So yesterday was definitely a donut day! 

I have one last thing to share.  When I first started the Scrappy Stash QAL, my scraps were a hideous tangle of fabrics smooshed in a basket.  I gave it some thought, and since I don’t have any free shelf space in my sewing room, I decided to go with a hanging shoe holder to organize everything by color.

I would have preferred clear plastic, but Target didn’t have much selection and after sorting everything and hanging it in place, I am really pleased with the organized result.  It was a pretty inexpensive storage solution.  I think I read this idea in Sunday Morning Quilts, which has a pretty comprehensive section on scrap organization. 

Have a happy Wednesday!  We might have snow on the way this afternoon, which we are all really excited about.

Linking up to WIP Wednesday and Tuesday at the Table.

Tuesday at the {Herbal} Table

I am linking up this post to Tuesday at the Herbal Table. Debbie makes the most beautiful quilts, but she also loves recipes!  I love Caprese salad in the summer, but there’s really nothing to that except using really good quality balsamic vinegar. Something else I love is tortilla chips and fresh guacamole.

We grow cilantro, and then I mix together onion, bell pepper, and avocado. Add salt and pepper to your taste and a dash of both lemon and lime juice. Mix with a potato masher.

Voila! A delicious summer treat!  Now I am feeling hungry…