Excited!

September

Good morning! The first of September has brought a nice crisp fall-like morning. I LOVE it! When I woke up this morning it was like Christmas morning because I have some new projects I get to work on and I'm very eager to start!

First thing is first though, I had to start my day by throwing on a nice comfy hoody, my hat (I like to wear a ball cap when I sew, it keeps my hair out of my face), and my slippers! I bought the comfiest slippers years ago and I still look forward to putting them on every chance I get.

Once dressed, I made a bagel thin with apple butter and a pot of tea. Can't think clearly enough to cut fabric without a strong pot of black tea!

That material you see in the background is a little foreshadowing of the project that I am most excited about today!

Snack Bags

Last year I made some plastic lined snack bags for my boyfriend and I to pack our school lunches in. They have worked very well and I have to watch them closely because I have some colleagues who have sticky fingers ;) One colleague in particular asked if I would please make some for her daughter who was going through approximately five plastic bags everyday. Anything for our environment! So of course, I said I would. Below is a picture of one of my snack bags that has seen much use and the material I will use to make her bags (left over material from a diaper bag).

Mailbag Duo

Last year I made a pair of mailbags to use on my school bulletin board in the hallway. I don't get to that school until mid-day, but students can still have access to what they need in order to be prepared for class ahead of time. They proved to be so handy that I desperately need to make more! I use them to keep important papers, assignments and extra copies in for each of my performing groups (bands and choruses). Last year I had a pouch for Middle Level (both band and chorus together) and a pouch for High School. The kids truly used them, but requested that each group have their own bag so they can find things faster. Very reasonable (and actually quite mature) request! School colors are black, orange and white. I will be sewing up two more mailbags in this great fabric.

Christmas

Finally, the project that I've really been waiting to talk about! My father is like most fathers...incredibly difficult to shop for. This year, for Christmas he is getting his very own quilted throw! To start, it took me awhile to find a pattern that I thought would suit him. Wouldn't you know after a lot of searching I ended up going through the same old issue of The Quilter Magazine that I got my Summer Blooms wall hanging out of and there was the perfect pattern! It is called Once Upon a Dream. Here is the picture from the magazine:

Next came material choice. I thought for sure I would be doing lots of shopping around to find the 'just right' material. Locally, I have three stores to choose from. A quilt shop, Marden's (a discount store), and Walmart. The day after picking the pattern, I was waiting while my boyfriend got his back-to-school haircut so I wandered down to the fabric department. I don't know how it happened, but these fabrics just appeared in my basket!!

My father is a retired forester. Nothing frilly or flashy for him! I will use the green in place of the white, the tan and dark brown will be the light and dark blue solids and the leaf print will be substituted for their medallion print.

Time to get cutting! My goal is to complete the snack bags and mailbags this weekend. It shouldn't be too difficult as I've made them before and it's a long weekend. My goal for the quilt is to get the quilt cut out and bagged because I am going to take it with me on my very first quilt retreat in two weeks!

Stay tuned for more! I'll post pictures of completed projects.

Respectfully,

Harmony

Still Here!

It has been so long since I have blogged that I hope I haven't forgotten how. This summer has been nice and busy on many fronts. Quilting and sewing  has added to that busyness. Graduation quilts for my niece and nephew have been quilted and bound . It is hard to believe that they will both be headed to different schools in Boston next week. Such an exciting time for them both, Jocelyn's request was for a  black and white quilt and is pictured here. I need to get technical assistance from Harmony before I can upload Evan's quilt, though. It is waiting in a saved file but I can not seem to retrieve it!

I am fortunate to quilt once a week with a group of friends here in Maine. Currently I am working on a  king sized pinwheel quilt in red and cream. This is a gift for a sister - in- law. I am using an Eleanor Burns book  to construct this quilt. Her directions are nice and clear and the process is enjoyable. This is a BIG quilt and will take me many more Monday's.

I have continued my second Sunday Christmas gift project . During June and July I worked on a UFO that I intend to give to my daughter.I quilted it myself on my Janome. She has already seen some of the project  so I am not saving it as a Christmas surprise. I am posting a  picture of it here. The Brenda Henning pattern  made a larger lap size quilt but I reduced the number of blocks for a wall hanging. I have enough blocks left to make a smaller version for my sewing room! My sewing room has been a  place to retreat from our unusually warm weather this summer. I have happily stitched away and made a new sewing machine mat  along with some redwork  pillows. I will have to get out the camera again! I'm off to work on a special pillow tonight. This is an embroidered pillow done in grey floss. The  picture I am stitching is original artwork done in June by a little kindergarten friend of mine. Won't his grandmother be surprised to receive this gift!

Flowers

Getting Ready

Sorry for the lapse in time since updating, I've been home from spending three weeks working at a summer camp for about two weeks now, but they have been a very busy two weeks as I have been preparing for a new school year. Normally getting my rooms ready for school is fairly routine, but this year there have been a lot of staff changes, including an all new administration at one school (eight days ago this change occurred!) so there have been a lot of extra little things to attend to. Needless to say, I am VERY eager to begin this school year and it is a good  think because we start Monday!

Machine Applique

I tried my hand at machine applique for the first time recently! I had a baby shower the week after I returned home from summer camp. Luckily, I knew this before I left and was able to whip up this diaper bag and the quick change bags found on this earlier blog. But Pieceful gave me an old issue of The Quilter Magazine and I this picture for Summer Blooms. And I decided that I really wanted to try it out for this little girls room. Here is a picture of my version!

I am quite proud of it. With the exception of the boarder I was able to use all scraps. As it turns out, my machine's "button hole" stitch is really just a zig-zag. Which I suppose I knew because I've done button holes before, but it didn't quite compute! I think I need to play around with some stitches before doing any more. This project was a challenge as a beginner in some ways, but I like being thrown in to things! How else do you learn? I would recommend this wall hanging as there is a good balance of straight edge, curves/circles and points to practice on.

Stay tuned for more!

Respectfully, 

Harmony

IT'S BEEN A LOOONNNNG TIME!

I am downright embarrassed about the amount of time that has elapsed since my last post!I have been busy around the house and in the flower garden since our return to Maine! That doesn't mean that quilting has been at a standstill, though! June brought with it two special graduations and I was able to finish dorm quilts for the graduates. My nephew's has been signed, sealed and delivered ! My niece has seen her quilt but I have just finished the binding . I will take pictures before I head to southern Maine to deliver it.

I have been able to sew most Mondays with a group of friends that meets year round at a local clubhouse. I so enjoy my time there. I have finished up two UFO's from my fabric closet. Both of them  were started at  Maine Quilt show  classes a few years ago. I am putting the finishing touches on one and will count that as my 2nd Sunday Christmas project. The other one is hanging on my covered deck! Very cheerful!

I am off to stitch a little before firing up the grill. Enjoy the rest of your day.

With needle and thread,
Pieceful

Baby Gifts!

Camp

Very soon I will be packing up to spend three weeks at summer camp! While there I co-lead the Counselor-In-Training program. This will be my ninth summer working at this camp! It is difficult for me to comprehend that this year the group of young girls I had in my cabin my first year (when they were 7) are now sixteen and will be in the CIT program!! Before I head to camp though, I have a few stops to make! Also, there is a Baby Shower planned for the weekend that I return from camp so I have been getting ready for that too.

College Gifts

Before I arrive at camp I will get to stop in and deliver late graduation presents to my cousins! I got them both bins of school supplies and odds and ends (batteries, Tylenol etc.). My cousins are ten years younger than me and live a fair piece away so it will be nice to see them.

Grab Bags

I will also have the chance to stop in and finally see my best friend as a new Mommy! It's been quite a while since I've had a good visit with Beth so I can't wait to catch up. On Pinterest I saw some great version of handy Grab Bags for new Moms. I made two versions. One for Beth and one for the baby shower for my friend Sarah that I will be attending when I return from camp.

Grab a Bite

My first Grab Bag is intended for dining purposes! I made some cute little bibs then added 2 wash clothes, hand wipes and a little bibs then put them all into their own little drawstring pouch. Quick and easy to throw into the diaper bag or glove compartment!

 Quick Change

The next Grab Bag is for a quick, convenient diaper change. Each bag has a diaper, wipes, a little trash bag

The material that I used is left over from the Diaper Bag that she will be getting too! Sorry for the poor picture, I was in a bit of a rush to get this posted before I have to get packing!

Stay tuned. I will be at camp for three weeks but I know that Pieceful will have some posts during that time!

Respectfully,

Harmony

Summer Vacation

Quick Update!

I realize that it has been some time since my last blog, but life got very hectic with the end of the school year! Just because I wasn't typing doesn't mean I wasn't crafting though! I'll show you a few things I've been working on  but first I would like to share with you some very wonderful news! In my last blog I shared with you the story of making a 'Designer' hospital gown my friend Ashley waiting for a double lung transplant (see earlier post here). Well, my gown got there just in time! On day 540 of waiting, she got the call! She is now the proud owner of a new set of lungs!  She is recovering remarkably well, but it will be a long road for her yet so please do keep her in your prayers. Here is a picture of her in her gown just before surgery.

I have since made another 'Designer' hosiptal gown. This one looks quite different. One of my very dear teaching friends has a  13 year old son and he was just recently listed for a heart transplant. This will be his second! It just amazed me how science can give to quality of life. Being a teenage boy from Northern Maine, he clearly loves to hunt! So, I thought it only fitting to make him a camouflage and hunter's orange gown for his big hunt for a heart! Lucky for me the kid has a great sense of humor!

More Recent

We bought a new couch! I thought that perhaps it was also time to update the throw pillows too since I was still using the same cases that Pieceful made for me in college. I love to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle so you may recognize this fabric as the same material that I made a diaper bag out of, but the colors go very well with the brown of the couch! I'll show you the old cases to the new cases. The front is the first picture and the back is the second.

From:

To:

 Pinterest

These next projects I got the ideas for on Pinterest! Where would we be in life without Mod Podge? I certainly wouldn't have this trendy new Kitchen Mat or Mouse Pad! I simply Mod Podge-ed fabric on! The kitchen mat was a foam mat that I found 50% off at WalMart. The original had great big oranges on the front. My kitchen walls are yellow so I used this cute bee material! Now that summer vacation is here I have the time to play with my camera more as you will see in the photo below.

Quilt Retreat

For my birthday this year Pieceful is taking me on a Quilt Retreat! I am very excited as it will be my first. It's not until this fall, but I already have a list of supplies to bring. I will need to bring a gift for a game we will play. As I was making my Mouse Pad I thought of a fun (inexpensive) gift so I have been watching the sales racks at WalMart and what do you know - I already found nearly everything I need! So I've made up the gift and tucked it away all ready to go. My gift idea is a Colorful Computer Station! There are flower pens, a Mouse Pad, a Frame to use as a Dry Erase board (I have one of these by my bed...they work so well!) and I'm on the look out for a nice patriotic note pad to complete it! I have spent less than $5 and I think it will be practical too!

Stay tuned for more!

Respectfully,

Harmony

Cystic Fibrosis

'Designer' Hospital Gown

Just the other day I was browsing on Pinterest and I found a link for a pattern to make 'Designer' hospital gowns. I was so pleased that I immediately re-pinned it and the next day I bought material to make a gown for a very specific friend of mine.

My dear friend Ashley has Cystic Fibrosis. I have known Ashley since we were children as her grandparents were from my hometown so she would come visit in the summers and then we both attended summer music camps in high school. We eventually both ended up as music majors in college and lived together for two years on campus. Fast forward to the present day. Ashley is currently waiting for a double lung transplant. She has been listed for 513 days. This is a very long time to be waiting. When she is in good health, she has the good fortune of living as home. But staying healthy is difficult when you have limited lung function. She has spent many months at the hospital receiving care. Despite it all, Ashley always wears a smile and has a positive outlook on life. I wanted to send her a nice bright hospital gown to brighten her tough days.

 Above: Front view. You can really see it because the print is so busy, but there is a pocket that covers a button hole that is long enough to lace heart monitor wires through.

 Above: The tops of the sleeves have velcro and a button near the neckline.

 Above: Rear view. Flaps overlap to provide plenty of coverage. There are two sets of ribbon ties. One at the top and one midway down the back.

 Above: Here is a closer look at the material.

Above: These buttons were perfect!

Respectfully,

Harmony