daffodils and kitty cats - quilt for baby elise

according to usps, this arrived a week ago... so fingers crossed it really did and this isn't one elephant sized spoiler post!
i've known leah for years.  essentially just as long as i've known amy, as they were two of the three people i became really close friends with upon moving schools and starting 6th grade.  through the years since high school, it's been a little bit of here, there and everywhere, but the three of us as well as our fourth franklin friend sara have occasionally met up and caught up like the good ol' days.  well, leah was a super secret keeper, and it wasn't until nearly the end of her pregnancy that i knew anything about it (thanks to instagram!)  i decided i wanted to make something for leah, as she's always commented on my quilty posts, wishing that she would get something someday.  well here's to you, leah!  leah had a baby girl this past march, and after some super stealthy ness, i came up with this little quilt for her baby girl elise.
leah has always been an animal lover, so using the catvent pattern yet again was of course, perfect.  one day, leah posted on facebook about how excited she was about elise's birth flower being daffodils, as it was also her favorite flower.  boom.  these cats needed to be in a daffodil field.  also, pink and yellow look fantastic together.  i've super liked that combo since i made the quilt for baby natalie last year.  it was a little iffy using white on a baby blanket, knowing how babies can be... but once it was all completed, i couldn't imagine using any other color that would make these kitties pop out like they do.
just like the cats are mixed up prints, the daffodils are also one of six different prints.  they have more geometric shape prints on them, while the pink prints on the kittens are all flower related.  well... there's one that looks like bugs, but i guess that's somewhat related to the theme, right?
i assembled all these cat blocks while i was in colorado earlier this month, and then began to get everything sewn together when i arrived home.  i also got to experiment with my new walking foot for this quilt.  there was only a minor oops, but things have since been perfected (so i think) and moved forward.  the backing fabric was something i found on ebay.  i like to go there for super random finds, and after a thousand different searches for pink and yellow fabric, i found this cute vintage piece with pink and yellow cats on it.  the best part was that it was JUST enough for this.  didn't have to do any wonky piecing or anything to make it work.  love it!
i really like the fun-ness of a scrappy border, and with all the patchwork-ness of the kitties, it absolutely had to happen.
still my favorite block. so of course, the pink version had to have a special appearance.
here's a close up of the super cute back fabric. and not only was it super cute, but it was also super soft.
and of course, the glorious "tagged to send" photo.  before sending it off, i included a few pairs of beaded socks for the little one to enjoy as well.  hopefully this kitty quilt made it to it's destination safely, as i secretly got leah's address from amy, and also didn't tell her she was getting mail.  i wanted it to be a super surprise.  guess we'll find out, right?  and just for kicks, here is 7th/8th grade emily & leah.  we were legit volleyball stars...
i may be over hyping our skills.  but seriously, check out leah's awesome mickey shorts.  i'm still a little jealous 13 years later...

kitten mini quilt swap 2015

i participated in my first instagram hosted swap this year, and it was quite the experience.  i have done plenty of craftster swaps, where you know who you are sending to/from and all that jazz.  this one, i knew who i was sending to but i had no idea who would be sending to me (i still don't, as i haven't yet received anything!)  the theme for this swap was a kitten/cat mini quilt, so of course i was easily swayed to create something kitty related.  when i got my partner assignment, i was super excited, as it was someone i already followed on instragram, and started to get some ideas from her likes as well as her fur babies.  i found this paper pieced pattern on craftsy, located the awesome retro backing fabric on ebay, and found some fantastic crosshatch fabric to create the gray tabbyness of the kitty.  alright, without more delay, here's the full piece!
loved this paper piecing pattern. everything went together quite smoothly, with the exception of the nose.  that had to be the trickiest part.  the pieces were so tiny!  i found the blue background fabric and the red swirl "blanket" fabrics in stuff that i had acquired from my grandma, and it worked perfectly to make this kitty stand out.  i went with a stitch in the ditch quilting around the kitty face parts and left it at that to not make things too busy.
such a nice kitty. sure looks like our cats. sleeping, sleeping, sleeping.
i just love the back fabric. these little kitties are red and blue cross hatched on them, which went perfectly with the front. the order i got from ebay also had the same fabric on a blue background... so i have more of these kitties to play with on my own time. yay! and i'm certain it will end up in my scrappy square quilt that has yet to begin... yep. some projects are all talk, no action right now.
it is perfect that there is a little kitty right above my nametag, but that's not what is really exciting here... would you look at that corner?! i don't think i have EVER gotten one to look so perfect in my life... hall of fame right there, folks.
with all the school and life chaos happening at the time, i lost track of time and didn't have a chance to make her any special extras to go along with her mini quilt like some people were. i still wanted my wonderful partner to feel special, so i found this cute kitty shaped pen at target, and i also ordered her a silly book that my parents also got me for christmas. i saw my first "how do dinosaurs..." book when i was last in colorado, and something later on popped up on amazon regarding this one and i just cracked up and sent it to my mom. i hope my partner appreciated this silly nonsense book, and that her kitties love storytime too :)
next swap theme?
who knows yet... i'm hoping for another disney round, that's for sure!

are you there, followers? it's me, emily...

hello there, friends & followers.
i know, it has been quite a bit of silence over here, but hopefully that is about to change... with a little time.  march was a rough month between school, work, and life in general, but hopefully we're about to get back on the up swing of things.  i've got a handful of tricks up my sleeves (which aren't very long these days... 80 degrees in march, say what?!) and need to regain the energy to churn them out in to reality!
here's a few things in the works at the moment
pudge catvent
yeah, that's still a thing that is sitting on my sewing table untouched.  but progress has been made towards completion.  a few weeks back my mom and i went to meissner's and attempted to purchase a walking foot set, but they were out of stock.  we placed an order and have yet to get the call that it came in.  i should probably give them a call and find out what's up.  it is patiently waiting though, unlike the cat that it resembles...
ruffle apron
still on my to-do list, but will ideally get knocked out soon enough.  it's currently packed up and ready to be chopped and assembled.  MAYBE aileen will get it before she leaves for byu-i in the fall... just maybe...
surprise project
this is one that i got the spur of the moment idea for, and then began piecing things together.  i got through all of the paper piecing section of it a week ago yesterday, and then it just sat there.  getting through this last week of work before the break was exhausting... but now it's spring break and i intend to get it knocked out this week.  fingers crossed.
kitten mini quilt swap
done, sent, and received by my partner!  that will appear on the blog this week so you can oogle at it's kitty-ness.  my mom said i should make her a bed quilt size one... YIKES.  i can't imagine paper piecing something to that proportion.
leaving on a jet plane
yep.  you read that right!  come 6ish tonight, i will be on a plane and heading out of california for the week.  i've packed up my projects in my suitcase and will be off to colorado for some more cousinly bonding/crafting time.  be sure to follow on instagram for all our raging good times :)  i am quite excited for the break away from the every day normality, that's for sure.  alas, this time i don't have any flashback posts for you like the last time i went to colorado.  i hope you'll be okay :)

paper pieced heart - february appreciation gift

this is the post that was actually supposed to happen last week, but instead i got everything mixed up, posted the beauty & the beast pillow set and then straight up forgot to post this.  so anyways, a week later, here it is!
since february has valentine's day in it, i went with a simple heart paper pieced patter that i found on craftsy.  using the scraps from the pillow set you saw last week, it all came together with essentially not having to buy a single thing for it!  i only state that, because it was intended by our program director to not spend any money, but if we had to, aim for $5 or less.  i alternated the reds to be light and dark to make it look a little more dimensional.
originally i intended to just use something from my stash for the back as well, but when i saw this crayon fabric, i thought it would be perfect.  i stitched in the ditch for the quilting, and i super like how it looks on the back as well :)
this is more than likely the easiest paper pieced pattern i have done yet.  i would absolutely recommend it to anyone who is thinking about trying paper piecing, or just wants a really cool looking heart block :)  even better, it was free!
heart pattern on craftsy: click here

tale as old as time - beauty and the beast themed pillow set

when lisa started to jump in to the instagram swap game, it wasn't until too late in the game that the disney mini quilt swap was discovered.  such a shame.  i've joined and even organized a few disney swaps on craftster, and they're always a favorite topic to craft for.  so instead, i sat on the outside, checking the hashtag every so often, and oogling at all the disney quilt goodness.  on a random day, i cruised over to craftster and looked at the swap angel board just to see if anything looked fun.  and there it was, disney swap round 12 needed someone!  after a day-ish of thinking on it, i committed to the job and awaited to hear from the gal i'd be sewing for.  then, i found out she had been waiting since AUGUST... yikes!  they wanted a project sent out within two weeks, with a "large" item being one of the items (large = 3 hours or so to make).  my vision was born, and the ball was rolling.  she wanted something for her new house that wasn't cheesy disney.  i hit up fandom in stitches, found the perfect paper pieced patterns, and had kinkos blow them up 240%.  the next day, i bought my fabric, and two days later, i was spending my entire day paper piecing.
one of her favorite movies listed was "beauty and the beast" so i selected chip as well as the enchanted rose to turn in to pillow slip covers.  originally i was set on them being 12", but the smallest square pillow form i could find was 14" so i added a slight border to it.  on sunday i did BOTH of the entire blocks, start to finish, and prepared myself to get ready to do the quilting/sandwiching on monday.  i found that i didn't have any blue thread so i had to run to joann's that night (bummer) and then knocked out the remains of the quilting on both as well as the "envelope" portion of it.
i found a few tutorials on pinterest that described how to make these types of pillow covers.  my grandma had made them for years for my mom & aunt for christmas, so it was a good visual to take a peek at an actual one as well.  the ink used by kinko's was something awful, and left black marks all over the lightest pieces of each block.  so frustrating.  but after a date with a specific stain fighter for ink and a spin in the wash, they were good to go.  packed them up, and then they were shipped out on saturday.  less than a week start to finish, not too shabby!
she initially mentioned that she liked the enchanted rose as a good representation for beauty and the beast, and i have to agree!  i really love this block, whether for beauty and the beast or just to simply be a paper pieced rose.  i cannot imagine this at the 5ish inch size it initially was before i blew it up.
i thought this chip was a good "subtle" match to the rose pillow, as it wasn't a giant princess face.  he was a simple little block (i made him second after the rose) and it just powered right through.  i think he's a pretty cute little guy in movie form anyways, and would absolutely make this block again.  shoot, it has made me want to go through and make so many more disney blocks from their site!
after creating this pillow set, i've also started to envision what the types of friend gifts there might be for christmas 2015. i guess we'll have to wait and see if this stays as the inspiration, or something else happens, right?  either way, i am totally going to keep peeking in on the swap angel board.  as much as i love receiving things from other people, i just don't have anywhere to put anything right now!  but seriously, i'm sure i'll keep doing regular swaps as well.  and drooling over the awesome up! mini quilt from the disney swap that i missed out on.
it's pretty much fantastic.

weekend wips

after last weekend being a super busy one, and this one being extra long, it is safe to say it is time to play some catch up.  not only was this weekend valentines day (which i spent with my main man watching the dark knight for the first time, and he cooked dinner.  yeah, he's pretty great) but it was also president's day which meant an extra day off of work to catch up on craftiness.  basically, this is all a recap of everything that has happened so far since the february "to do" post.
kitten mini quilt swap
alas, i did nothing with this project.  i had high hopes that i would start piecing things together, but so far... nothing.  but i think now that i have a few other things out of the way, this can come together next.
disney swap round 12
these were actually busted out the day that post went live, and then sent on their way that following saturday.  i really hope they arrive to their destination soon, because i'm quite pleased with how it all turned out.  but since they have to go all the way from here to england, i just have to sit here and wait patiently.
ruffle apron
another "nothing yet" project, but i think once i get everything converted from centimeters to inches and cut out, it will go together quite quickly.  cutting is so not fun though.  at least we're looking at rectangles for the most part.
pudge catvent
progress!
yesterday i finally pulled this back out and took a look at it to get things going again.  i took the yardage i had for the back and sewed it together to be the right size.  my mom had an already opened batting from a t-shirt quilt she ended up pulling apart and revising so i got it all laid out and ready for pinning.  safety pinned the kitties in to place, and now they're just waiting to be quilted.  i have all the thread, i just now need to debate the importance of a walking foot.  i'm sure it will happen.  i just need to take the time to get to meissner's and pick one up.  then, it is onward to chalking and quilting!  for now, the pudge kitties just remain on the living room floor, enticing some gray cats to attack them...
"appreciation" gift
this was a little something suggested by our program director for the pre-k to do a little something for us aides to do for our classroom teachers as a token of our appreciation.  since our meeting is this upcoming friday, i decided to craft a little something for my lead teacher.  she's been pretty great helping me get situated in the steps toward being a teacher myself, and i couldn't ask for any more.  i busted this out on sunday from start to finish, and can't wait to gift it to her.

things that fuel the crafty fire

with being crafty comes the need for some crafty comfort. here's a little list of things that help me keep the crafty motivation going when i get in the zone for a long stretch of time.  really, it does sound ridiculous to some extent, but these things really seal the deal in to keeping doing what i love.
a cold beverage
9 times out of 10, late night crafting is supplied with a large cup of water, ice and all.  most often, with a lid and straw, since the general crafting area is prone to cats walking through or elbows being bumped (the less spillage the better).  i'm not a fan of hot drinks at all, or even coffee, so a cup of icy cold h20 (or dr. pepper for mid day crafting) really hits the spot
snacks
right now, my guilty pleasure is these dark chocolate covered pretzel crips.  usually you'll find a bowl of cheddar blasted goldfish or cheese its by my sewing machine.  so deliciously unhealthy, right?  but oh so good.
a noise distraction
much like blogging in silence, sewing and crafting in silence is no good.  if i'm in the living room, i primarily set the tv to something i've seen at least once.  reruns are great, especially if they're episodes of friends, big bang theory or how i met your mother.  another top contender is anything on hgtv.  they're basically all the same on each show, am i right?  occasionally on sunday afternoons i'll throw on a classic disney movie or two or three.  if i'm out of tv range, i plug my ipod in to my old computer speakers and either jam to my fall out boy music, or let it create its own shuffle playlist.  with 3,500+ songs on it right now, the variety could be quite interesting.
comfy pants
last but certainly not least, comfy pants are a must have.
so many times i have tried to comfortably sit on the floor pinning a quilt sandwich together to be quilted, and i just couldn't do it because of not being appropriately dressed.  in the summer, it's usually a pair of high school p.e. shorts, but right now its been my starry yoga sweats.  they're quite cozy and allow me to crawl around the floor without any grumbling.  the only thing they lack though... pockets :)