weekend wips

woo hoo, progress!
this week was crazy (i'll share more on that at the end) but i was able to bust out some crafting during the week in little bits here and there.  saturday i was at another wedding in tahoe all day, so that day got knocked out of progress.  i spent friday night after work knocking out my homework since i had a meeting with a friend planned for sunday.  woke up yesterday and the poor girl has been sick!  it has been postponed, so once the laundry was started, it was crafting time!  spent a whole bunch of time cutting out projects while watching up! (because i couldn't find wall-e... adult problems, i tell you) but i feel like i got a fair amount of stuff done.  let's recap, shall we?
sewvivor:
challenge 3: complete.  see good ol' hexing around in it's entirety right here.  ususally i link up to simple simon and company (thanks to lisa's sharing of that party) but this week they linked up through instagram.  so i attempted that, but it's done, and i'm moving on to my final project for the sewvivor sewalong.
challenge 4 is moving right along.  the last day i was in colorado, i had to buy more fat quarters to finish off the block pieces, and i got those cut out today as well as the main front area.  i still need to figure out what i'm going to use for the borders and the backing...  coupon commotion is happening at joann's this week, so i'm certain i'll be there at least once or twice.  guranteed.
quilt block swap:
i knocked out a set of 3 blocks today, as well as one of a second set of three.  i ran out of green fabric for that one, so yep.  joann's is already on the plans for tomorrow once i get off work.  i think i have some fabrics figured out for my disappearing 9 patch... i just need to figure out the individual square sizes to see if it will work. after that, it may just be down to the paper piecing, the "where you live" and the person who created their own pattern with a month to go until send outs need to happen by.  oy!
gift collection:
i didn't quite get anything made off of this checklist, but instead found more fabric for these projects.  go figure.  my ebay purchases came, got prewashed, and organized by my mom while i was off at a wedding on saturday.  i've been making quite a few lists lately in regards to all my craft projects, so hopefully i'll be able to check things off my list for people.
except for my sister.  she's clearly getting nothing now.
the news:
so last week i mentioned having a working interview for a preschool on tuesday.  yes, that happened in all it's chaotic glory.  my day started with an observation at the lab school for class, then the working interview (it was picture day for them, so the schedule was off) and then lunch time for me.  THEN i had an interview with a second site that i basically played phone tag with all week, which turned in to a semi working interview with their after school program.  after they went out to recess and back, the program director told me she was given the go ahead to hire me on for their preschool program at a different site.  got my live scan paperwork, and i was on my way.  wednesday, i turned in my two weeks notice for calfit, and have begun the lovely transition period.  my last day at cff will be the 24th, so hopefully i can back up starting at the new school not long after.  live scan has been completed (as obnoxious as having to do it is) and on it's way.
happiness is finally moving on in to a licensed program.  i'm very excited for this new opportunity ahead of me, and that i'm finally moving in the direction of where my degree is going to take me  :)

sewvivor sewalong - hexing around

a day later than desired, but hey... better now than never!
still made it in time for the #sewvivorsewalong entry on instagram, so that's a plus, right?
when doing my project research for this sewvivor cycle, i stumbled across this hexing around block by freshly pieced, and knew it was what i wanted to do.  this was actually the first project i had decided on WELL before auditions even happened.  even better was i knew what fabric i wanted to do it with.  remember catvent 2013?  yep.  same fabric!  i was working through more of the batik fabric i inherited from my grandma, and all i had to purchase for this project was the gray used for the front and the back.  before i chatter more about this, take a look at the full quilt!
pretty stoked about this one.
the blocks pieced together easily, it was just SUPER time consuming.
sew two sides, iron, trim to the right angle, repeat 3 times for each color round. once i hit the green round, my pieces started to be too short and i had to connect pieced together just to be long enough, and then make sure i had enough just to get around.  once i got to the orange ring, i completely ran out, and pulled some yellow left over from baby mark's petite trellis just to complete that round.  i pulled in some red from that project as well, but was able to finish the blocks off and have enough to create the binding.  woo hoo!
i really like the purple parts, just like in catvent, but there just wasn't enough to make them the bigger ring to the quilt. oh well. i like the lack of scrappy purple on each one, and that it is a center point
more close ups. this is my top center block, and i like it quite a bit.
haha. i did such a awful job sewing on this tag. i literally finished sewing it, threw it over the cat and left for work yesterday. it's a little wonky, but that makes it unique, right?
the quilting was an absolute breeze to do.  i did it in two sittings, probably because i had somewhere to be (this week was chaotic, let me tell you what) but it was just around and around the hexagons.  easy peasy.  just time consuming.  and i really like how it looks on the back.  so glad i went with the solid gray fabric with gray thread instead of anything with a print or color.
i would absolutely love to do this quilt in a larger scale and see how it turns out.
i am out of batik remainders (finally?  is this true?  maybe almost...)  but i would love to see this done in different color schemes, and a different aspect ratio of blocks.  i didn't have much of an option since i only pulled off 12 blocks, but i would have loved to see this a little bit bigger with at least a 4 block across width.  something about 3 just doesn't do it for me... haha.
i'm quite pleased with how this turned out (i think i say that about all my quilts lately) and think it looks just like i imagined it in my head.  i love how all the same colors mixed around on different blocks make each one unique and so different from the others.
there you have it folks!  sew-vivor challenge 3: finished!

365.2014 - week 36

weekend wips

i feel like this week has been madness all around.
i'm a little impressed i even got up yesterday, considering how exhausted i was after saturday.
 and i get to do it all again this week and then some. yaaaaaaaaay....
sewvivor:
still moving right along with the hexagon challenge on this one.
i got all of the quilting done yesterday afternoon, and then began to slowly work through removing the basting.  after an engagement session out in davis, i finished all the basting removal, made the binding and then attached it.  all that is left is the handsewing.  my goal is to get this posted by thursday of this week... but between preschool observations, working interviews, homework and work work... i am hesitant of that happening...  positive vibes on all accounts, people!  then it's on to the lap quilt.  which i can hopefully bust out in time as well.  the plus side, i have some pieces already together on that one since i put them together in colorado.
quilt block swap:
i knocked out another set of three blocks last week.  well, on monday or tuesday i believe... whenever we ate dinner at arby's and i watched some undercover boss.  anyways, that makes 2 full sets completely done, and i think 6 more to do.  i should really get going on those as well.  i anticipate them coming together quite quickly once all sewvivor projects are complete.
scrappy square what-not
this really isn't an "in progress" project at the moment, but it should be mentioned that my mom found yet ANOTHER box of flannel that was used for christmas eve pjs in the past.  so as i was off second shooting with a photographer in tahoe on saturday, she chopped some squares out for herself, and a second set for me.  add that collection to my box, and yet again, put to the back burner.
gift collection
these gifts have an on going theme, and they'll randomly be completed from now until the holiday season.  i knocked another one off my list this past week, simply because i had the time for it and nothing else.  (clearly i could have been working on my hexagon challenge, but it hadn't set it to be crunch time yet).
additionally, i ordered some great fabric to go for a wedding gift for sarah & raymond's wedding next month.  i really love ebay sometimes...  random, yet perfect finds on there.  i'm so excited to see the fabric in reality, because it is quite perfect for them.

and now, i enter panic mode for a working interview tomorrow.
eeeeeeps.  here's to hoping i survive until next monday.

petite trellis - baby mark

as you remember, i went to colorado a few weeks ago to hang out with my crafty cousin with hopes to meet baby peterson 3.0.  well, baby peterson didn't show up until LAST friday (a week after i left) but has already made it known that he's enjoying his gift.  well, showing as much enjoyment as a wee one can.  when lisa found out she was having a boy, we all knew that meant more superheros in her house.  kenty has turned in to quite the cat lover, so i started finding her things on etsy to send her, knowing they would make brett gag a bit.  but what started out as trying to bother brett turned in to a full fledged idea that i just couldn't let go.  over the years on our trips to san francisco, we have accumulated quite a few kliban cat shirts.  so many, that there is a t-shirt quilt for those in the plans.  anyways, i've searched ebay in the past for various kliban cat things for christmas gifts, and remembered this "super cat" sheet.  i searched it, found it, and boom.  plan was in action.  then i had to settle on a top to go with the back that would be super hero-esque without being cheesy and overwhelming to the back.  i purchased a quilt book at joann's with this petite trellis pattern in it and was one step closer.  i transferred the sample colors to primary colors (i was thinking superman-ish) and found these fabulous batiks at our local beverley's.
i was impressed to see how small these pieces were actually cut (for a hint, that yellow border on the outside was 1" wide) and was afraid it would be too small.  once the blocks pieced together, it all came together to be a perfect size for a little baby.  i guess i was just thinking it needed to be HUGE like the one i made for kent nearly 4 years ago ended up being.  i need to remember babies are small-ish.  here's another "in progress" photo.  i've tried to tone down my safety pin uses... this is tame compared to what i've normally done.  i just have a fear of layers shifting and the back looking ugly!
are you ready for the front yet? are you certain? here is it, front & back!
aren't those cats just fantastic?  i was really afraid it was going to be too small to get any concept of super cat on the background, but i was proven wrong.  and in this case, i quite enjoy being proven wrong.  i really love the front too.  i've taken quite a liking to bright, colorful baby quilts in contrast to simple pastels such.  the pattern was a little tricky to keep lined up, but they came pretty darn close in most spots.
i wanted to quilt in such a way that wouldn't distract from the front or the back.  originally i had blue variegated thread that i purchased for this project way before i settled on a design, or even the fabric.  my mom convinced me to do a white thread and it worked great.  i decided to simply stitch in the ditch around the yellow pairs, and then around the yellow border to "block" it in.  it doesn't take away from the front pattern, or the back cats, and it's something a little different.  i dig it. a lot
and there you have it! one of my favorite baby quilts so far (i'd actually quite fond of all the baby quilts this year) and i'm glad to finally share it with you!  funny thing i found out is after i had purchased the book and decided on the pattern, i was scrolling through my pinterest and found that i had pinned this exact quilt forever ago.  it was totally meant to happen!
so in short.
welcome to the world, baby mark.
rude of you to not show up early like we all hoped, but i think you were just trying to burst our bubble...  in that case, success.  i guess i'll have to make a trek out to colorado again to hang out with you.
for the pattern to make your own petite trellis quilt: click here

365.2014 - week 35

weekend wips

i almost saved this post for tuesday, since it was a "three day weekend" in real job world... but in mine line of work...  well, i'm at work right now actually.  besides i did a million things yesterday (it seems) and here's a smidge about it.
so saturday we went to mongolian bbq for dinner (yum) and as usual, there are fortune cookies.  i opened mine, and it said "the project you have in mind with soon gain momentum."  i laughed, thinking about the 20 million different things on the sewing table that are my project, and tossed it in to my wallet as i do with all my other fortunes and went on with it.  yesterday rolled around, and i decided to buckle down and get a few things knocked out for my quilt block swap, starting with one that i deemed hard.  well, after much sewing, grumbling and seam ripping, i finished four blocks yesterday.  not too shabby if you ask me!  as for the rest of the week, i did a few things here and there squished between back to school & work.
sewvivor:
i finished all the blocks for my hexagon challenge, and now that i've progressed on my quilt block swap, i just need to piece everything together, quilt it and call it good.  i'm certain it will be a breeze, and then it is onward to the final lap quilt project (which i bought most of the fabric for this past week as well) and i think all i am lacking now is the border & the backing.
quilt block swap:
as far as this project goes, i completed four blocks yesterday.
i did a paper pieced eggplant for the "represent your hometown/state/country" group.  where are my loomis-ites at with the eggplant festival reference?  yeah, i thought it was pretty fitting.  and actually pretty easy.  makes me a little less scared about paper piecing.  i just need to work on cutting my fabric pieces a smidge bigger in order to get them to cover the whole spot they need to fill, plus seam allowance.  it took me three tries to get the pieces to not flop over and get sewn in the fold.  good thing i bought lots of purple.
the other block i did was the ribbon star block which took up most of my day.  had i referred back to the instructions and the words more than just assuming by the pictures, there may have been a lot less seam ripping and resewing... my mom helped a lot on that, so major kudos to her.  i finished all three blocks that were necessary for that person and can now check that off my list and move on to the next ones :)
christmas gifts
tis the season, right?  well, it will be here before we know it... and that means it's time to get crackin!
in the past, i've bought gifts for friends, but lately, i've started making things.  once year, i made all my friends pajama pants, and other years i know i've cross stitched a thing or two (at least for aileen & jenny).  this year, i've already set out on what i plan to make my friends (not quilts) and have started to hunt stores for the perfect fabrics.  as i find them, i tend to pick them up and add them to my fabric hoard (which is still in it's haven't done anything with state) and plan to get them all going at the same time.
birthday gifts
 a special someone has a birthday at the end of this month, and i've started to work on their birthday gift in the mix of all this holiday/swap/sewvivor madness.  yet another "perfect fabic" moment that just had to happen.  when you see the end result, you'll totally agree.  don't you worry :)