T-shirt quilt not done, but darn near close

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I swore that I started this project in 2011, but alas, it was 2009.

Good news is, I feel very close to finishing this 5 year old project. VERY CLOSE. It’s amazing how a few years of crafting increases your confidence.

Last weekend, I teamed up with my sister in law. Both of us were in a crafting slump and meeting together with no kids or distractions was the perfect way to jumpstart our stalled projects. We talked. We laughed and we got some work done. My project is now ready to be quilted together (the scariest step of all for me, anyway.) 

It’s clipped together with magnetic clips…the backing, the batting and the top. I have nightmares about bunching and shifting, but I am committed to taking my time on this guy. This is a sentimental and amazing project that I cannot wait to complete.

Quilt Success

I call it imperfect perfection. This quilt was a labor of love. It definitely has flaws, but the fact that I stuck to it and it's finally complete is a miraculous feeling. I got my information on how to do each step from a variety of sources. In crafting, you have to be resourceful. There are a lot of steps in quilting, but I have always been one to change gears, so quilting was a great project to embark on. First is the piecing together, which is fun because you get to cut out a variety of squares in cool colors and use your creativity. Then comes the putting it together with the backing and the batting. Then, you have to quilt it together, which I found to be the most challenging step. I had a hard time not getting it to wrinkle and scrunch up. And while I hand quilted the middle yellow square, I resorted to machine quilting for the rest to save time. Then, I had to trim the quilt. All the shifting and wrinkling that occurred made it a little tough, but I improvised and made it work. Then, I had to bind the edge to make it look finished. And, this is where the fun came in. I learned the invisible ladder stitch from a blog and was so giddy with excitement, I couldn't stop smiling the entire 4 hours I finished the quilt. I ended up finishing the quilt at 7 a.m. this morning (couldn't sleep). It's done a whole 8 weeks before my little girl is predicted to arrive. That just means, I can do a few more craft projects in the meantime.

Big crafting plans

I have big crafting plans for Christmas break. I am thinking...finish my baby quilt and make some more onsies. I think the list is longer, but I can't recall it right now. I have a lot of other projects in the nursery, but that will wait until the new year when my crafty mother comes to help me.
Oh, I also want to stock up on homemade cards so as I get really, really busy with the new baby, I still have a stockpile of cards to send for birthdays and other occasions. Hopefully, I can set aside a chunk of time to really dig into these projects and not dabble in them. I am really ready to finish. Let's hope that I do and post pictures to chronicle my adventures in quilting.

Grand plans for sewing

My sewing machine has been getting a lot of love lately. Since I abandoned the T-shirt quilt for a bit, I focused on the baby quilt. I had to do a lot of reading in various places to feel confident enough to tackle the little thing. I even experienced ripping out hundreds of stitches. You never understand the power of a sewing machine until you have to rip out it's work.

I think all I have to do is bind the edges of the quilt, which is a little scary. However, I have my trusty books to guide me along the way. I also recommend YouTube, if you are a visual learner.

Once this little thing is finished, I am going to try to sew some onsies. I was having a hard time finding cute, girly camo. Nate wants our baby girl to wear something other than pink. So, I decided to make some onsies with camo shapes on them. I just have to get to the sewing machine. I bought a worm camo tee at the Salvation Army for $2 and plan to cut some shapes out. I will fuse them to some backing that makes it more sturdy (have you ever tried to sew straight on T-shirt material?) We will see how it comes out. I want to have it done in time to wrap it up for Nate as a surprise.

And, I still have high hopes of making some personalized touches for my nursery. I didn't want the cookie cutter nursery, and tried to steer clear of all things commercial. That, my friends, is pretty much impossible. Look at all of the packaging and plastic. I hope to spend Christmas break getting some more things organized and put in its place. I have a long way to go. I need a dresser, first. However, I have to remember how far I have come.

For now, the nursery is a playground for my cats who love the tissue paper and baby-smelling items.