An Instagram Easter

 So I've had the Instagram app on my phone for who knows how long, but it wasn't until this past weekend that I became super addicted.  Come follow me, okay?  You'll get to see lots of behind the scenes action that doesn't make it to this blog - babies, cats, works in progress, my messy house, etc.  You can find me under Emmmylizzzy, of course!

My weekend started off with me getting super sick for a good 24 hours.  Thank goodness my parents were already here for the Easter weekend so they could watch the kiddos, since I pretty much didn't move from my bed for an entire day.  At one point, Phoebe brought me this daffodil and said "Here Momma, I brought you a present to make you feel better".  This cute moment was followed promptly by her grabbing it out of my hands and saying "Actually...., it's mine".

Thankfully I felt much better the next day for some Easter egg fun.

Due to being sick, I didn't end up making any fancy ones like in years past.....

.....but Phoebe rocked out some pretty awesome ones by mixing her own concoction of colors together.

Odin decided to keep an eye out for the Easter bunny all night.....

.....but must have missed him, because he had time to deliver waaaay too many goodies. (I think I get more excited about Easter than any other holiday)

After church and a lovely brunch in downtown Ann Arbor with the family, we headed home to hunt for eggs and relax the rest of the day.

Hope your holiday was just as great!

Ruffled Waterfall Crib Skirt

I was planning on doing a tutorial on how to make this lovely crib skirt, but I ended up going into labor just after I started making it.  I wanted to be really sure it was true labor before I went to the hospital, so I kept working away on this project, pausing every 10 minutes, 7 minutes, 5 minutes to grab the table, white-knuckled and try not to scream my head off.  So sufficient to say, I did not take any pictures of the process.  But I'll try to walk you through the construction nonetheless.

So basically a crib skirt is made up of a deck and three panels (I didn't make one for the 4th side since it would be up against a wall and you wouldn't see it anyway).  The deck is just a measurement of the crib mattress size, which is a standard 28" x 52".  The side panels are the length of the side and then the measurement of where you want the skirt to hit the floor.

With this crib skirt, I left it hanging a good 6 inches or so off of the floor.  That way when the crib mattress is lowered when Penelope gets older, it will just brush the floor as opposed to puddling in a crinkled mess.

I ended up using exactly one yard of each fabric for the ruffles.  I cut the bottom two colors into 6 inch tall strips and the top color into 5 inch tall strips (this makes all of the ruffles appear the same size since there is about one inch of overlap on the bottom two ruffles). 

To get a full ruffle-y effect I cut my strips 2 1/2 times as long as each panel.  So for the short sides, my strips were 70" and the long front panel strips were 130".  Hem the two short ends and one of the long sides.  Then I simply ruffled the strips by sewing a long basting stitch along the unhemmed side and gathering the fabric until it was the length of the panel, pinned it down like crazy, and sewed it to the panel.

 

For the topmost strips, I sewed them to the panels - wrong sides facing - so that the raw edges would not be exposed, but for the middle and bottom strips, I simply laid them so they were laying right side up because the raw edges would be covered by the ruffle from above.  I didn't even bother to remove my gathering stitches since they won't be seen anyways.

Then I sewed the panels to the deck.

Ta-da!

Now since you've tackled the crib skirt, you can go on to make one of those fancy shower curtains from Anthropologie.  But probably not for awhile.  You'll be super sick of ruffling.

Christmas crafting - revealed!

With Penelope being born so soon after Christmas, it got kind of hectic meeting up with friends and family to exchange presents.  Actually, I have yet to exchange secret santa presents with a group of friends from my modern quilting guild - so I do have one handmade present that I still have to keep under wraps.

I kept it pretty simple regarding the amount of gift sewing I took on this year.  Just a few simple projects for those closest to me.

In addition to the nesting pouches I've previously posted about, I've been working on the following....



My sister does a lot of traveling, so I made her a zippered dopp kit for her toiletries, using this tutorial from The Purl Bee, along with some additional pouches to go inside.  I'd been eyeing this tutorial for a long time, and am glad to say that it was generally super easy!  The most difficult part was sewing on some of the bias tape on the inside seams (those corners!), but thankfully those aren't visible unless you go looking for them.



Phoebe's best friend got a dachshund necklace to match her own.



I finally cut into my closely hoarded stash of voile to make a square dance scarf that I've been seeing all over Pinterest.  Such a simple, lovely project, and the voile was so wonderful to sew with that I wondered why I hadn't made anything out of it sooner!



These were my most time consuming projects of the holiday season.  From Alicia Paulson's book Stitched in Time, I was excited to finally try the patchwork picture frames project.  This was my first attempt at printing photos on fabric, and I'm amazed at how easy it turned out to be!  I picked up a package of printable fabric sheets from Joann's, and just ran them through my printer (which is nothing special or fancy) on plain paper, normal setting, and they came out perfect the first time.  Score!  You can find the full instructions in Alicia's book, of course.

Thanks for sticking around during the sporatic posting - I've got tons of stuff to show you, but I've been using every free minute to cuddle my dear little Penelope.  She's pretty much the sweetest baby in the world.

Nursery sneak peek

I've got a couple more projects for the nursery that I'd like to tackle, but I have a feeling that I'll still be working on those even after she arrives. 

Can you tell I have a thing for doilies?

With each project I work on, I keep telling myself, "She just doesn't want to arrive until this is finished" and then, "She doesn't want to arrive until that is finished..."  Well, tonight it's "She doesn't want to arrive until the crib skirt is finished".  I figure a good bribe can't hurt.  But maybe I should take a cue from her sister and offer up some chocolate.

Project snippets, updates, and a giveaway!

**Giveaway is now closed!  Thanks for everyone who played along - winner will be announced once I get my act in gear and take some photos for my next blog post :)

Welcome Sew, Mama, Sew giveaway groupies - and of course my lovely friends and followers.  I'm finally getting over my never ending virus (knock on wood!), and I think my nesting is finally kicking back in - we're in the home stretch regarding all things Christmas and new baby.  Eeeks!

Here's what I've been up to.....

Making my favorite Christmas recipe to package up for gifts - Salted Chocolate Orange Hazelnut Bark.  You can find a link to the recipe from last year's post.

Remember this quilt top from waaaaaay back when?  Well I finally got it basted and ready for quilting.  I'm really hoping to get it done before new baby gets here because it will be great for the whole family to cuddle under since it's so ginormous.  Although I think my arm muscles keep chickening out at the thought of manuvering that monstrosity through my machine.

Here's the progress I've made on new baby's crocheted afghan.  Two more strips to go, weaving in some ends, and possibly a border if I have time.  I'm finding it funny how much the color scheme from this blanket and the above quilt match each other - especially since I started both projects about eight months apart!

I'm absolutely loving Dottie Angel's tutorial on joining the squares as you go - I think it looks amazing and it saves so much work in the end!

In shop news, I had great luck picking up some simply gorgeous vintage sheets this weekend.  They've been washed, ironed, and are already for sale in my Etsy shop!

I also found some simply stunning vintage baby quilts in pristine condition.  Each individual fabric is just more beautiful than the last.  I'm keeping this one for myself, but I've got one more in the shop that I'm forcing myself to part with.

And as if I don't have enough projects going on right now, I finally completed my Folksy Flannel collection thanks to Pink Castle Fabrics (who currently have bundles of the entire line in stock!) and have something fantastic in the works.  More on that later....

And because I couldn't resist, I also picked up these flannel prints from Anna Maria Horner's  Loulouthi line (from Pink Castle as well).  You know how luxurious her Folksy Flannels are?  Well, if it's possible, these are even softer and cozier! 

Okay, giveaway time!  This giveaway is sponsored by none other than Pink Castle Fabrics!  I'm super in love with the Ruby line by Moda and these Sundae Stripe prints are my favorite.

Just leave a comment telling me what you hope to get for Christmas this year, and you'll be in the running for a fat quarter from each of the colorways - six in total!  As for me, I'm hoping that this baby will arrive early, but I'm definitely not holding my breath :)  I guess I'd settle for a Liberty Mini Fabric Bundle - I've been pining after one of those for a long time!

Good luck everyone - the giveaway will stay open until Friday at 5pm EST and yes, I'm willing to ship internationally.  I'll be back in the next day or two with with a sneak peek of the new nursery!

Some other fall going-ons...

Other stuff that's been keeping us busy around here but isn't really worth an entire blog post....

A trip to the pumpkin patch

Followed by pumpkin carving (Phoebe requested that her pumpkin "have a happy face with oval eyes, a circle nose and a tiny mouth"

Making button magnets (we spent a good deal of time washing them first - kept her busy for a solid 20 minutes!)

Multiple trips to the apple orchard

Making baby shower cupcakes.  Designed to coordinate with the invitation.

3rd trimester already - eeeks!

Martha Stewart craft paint review and project

If you're friends with me on Facebook, you're probably sick of hearing me talk about my love affair with Martha Stewart's new craft paint line.  And no, I am not being paid to go on and on about this stuff (I wish I was!).

First I was awestruck by the rainbow of amazing colors available in all sorts of finishes and their ability to paint on anything (wood, glass, plastic, fabric, metal, etc.), but what I really fell in love with was all of her specialty paints and finishes - specifically the magnetic and chalkboard paints.  I've seen these types of paint before at hardware stores, but only for upwards of $20 or so for a small container.  With my trusty Michael's coupons, I paid a grand total of $3.50 for the magnetic and $3.00 for the chalkboard paint.  And hey, slap a Martha Stewart logo on something and throw on some lovely packaging, and I'm pretty much sold before I even know what it is.  Sad, I know.

 

When we moved into our new house, we were lucky enough to have an updated kitchen with one of those fancy, stainless steel refrigerators.  Attractive - yes.  But I was bummed out about it's un-magnetic capabilities.  So I decided to transform this skinny 2 foot wide section of wall into a magnetic chalkboard  

I taped off a 14" x 56" rectangle and first painted it with 2 coats of the magnetic paint which used up the entire container - it is some really thick and gloopy paint - but of course myself and a couple of friends all squealed in delight when it actually held magnets :)  And then painted it with 2 coats of the chalkboard paint, which took about 1/2 of the bottle.

Then I put my husband to work framing it out with some simple trim that he picked up from the hardware store (I have a bit of a difficult time cutting miters the correct length).  

Next on the agenda?  To whip up some cute magnets to accessorize this baby!  I'm thinking some of these, some of these, and definitely some of these.

Have any of you tried out these paints yet?  I'd love to see some of your projects!

Balloons, confetti, giveaways! Happy blogiversary to me!

*The giveaway is now closed!  Winners will be announced soon.  Thanks for playing!*

One never needs an occasion to get balloons - but I am pretty darn excited that my tiny little corner of the internet has been around for ONE year today!

I had put off starting a blog for forever because I absolutely hate to write.  However, it turns out that I actually enjoy writing as long as I'm talking about things that I'm passionate about.

And adding lots of cute Phoebe pictures make the process a lot easier.

So to celebrate, I'm hosting a giveaway x 3!  Just leave a comment telling me what keeps you coming back to my blog...  Quilts, kid clothes, baked goods, home projects, fabric porn, my adorable daughter......etc.  Or what kind of things you'd like to see more of in this little space.  

I won't make you follow, tweet, or pass out fliers for extra entries, because I freaking hate that.  I'll leave the comments open until Wednesday the 28th (at whatever time I get around to closing them), and I'll pick 3 winners who will have their pick of 3 prize packages (first winner gets first pick, etc.)

So what are these amazing prizes do you ask?

Prize package one has been generously donated by Brenda, owner of the wonderful Pink Castle Fabrics and is a fat quarter pack of all eight Pastry Lines in voile from Anna Maria Horner's little folks line.  I really can't express how much I love these fabrics.  I've got one yard cuts of them just waiting to be made into something fabulous for myself.  And if you don't think a fat quarter pack will be enough to make a quilt large enough to completely envelop yourself in voile (which is what I plan on doing), Brenda has all of them in her shop right now at a pretty fantastic price!

Prize package two contains three large vintage pillowcases and eight vintage sheet fat quarters.  If you've read this blog for even a short amount of time, you have to know how much I love using these in both my crafting and sewing projects alike.  For past vintage sheet projects, check out some of my posts here, here, here, and for my most pinned vintage sheet project on Pinterest, click here.

Finally, prize package three includes a fat quarter from the always popular Flea Market Fancy line by Denyse Schmidt, and other large assorted scraps (some of those strips in the upper right corner are about 5" x 44") from FMF and Heather Ross - my all time favorite fabric designer :)

Whew!  Got your favorite picked?  

Enjoy your weekend and I look forward to coming back next week with more sewing, crafting, and other lovely things (like giveaway winners!) to kick off my second year of blogging!