from blank pages... #6

This week I have taken a bit of a break from the blog (obviously) as well as sewing, as we are getting ready for something new in our family. Hunter starts preschool next week!! I can't even believe it! I have mixed emotions about it, but ultimately we are all so excited! We ordered him a new backpack from Amazon. He didn't want me to take his picture with it yet, so here is dad sporting it around. ;)

I still need to fill out all that dreaded paper work (blah! my least favorite thing ever!), and get a few other supplies. His open house is tonight, well, like right now. So we're heading over that way as soon as the dad get's home. :)


For the past 4+ years I haven't had a schedule I've had to live by, besides church every Sunday, so I'm hoping I can adjust easily and get him there on time everyday! lol. Isn't it usually the child that has a hard time getting ready on time?! This will be good for all of us. :D

 Ok, so I guess that is my new beginning or start for this week! How about you? What have you been working on? Started? or are excited about?


Please remember a few things:

1. Please ONLY link up posts that talk about the beginnings of a project, new or old. It can include finishes too, but I want to hear about the process of starting too. It can be something you haven't even started yet too. What are your ideas for that beautiful fabric you just bought?
2. Make sure to link back to this site in your post. Grab a button form my sidebar, or just link back some text.
3. Visit the other bloggers sharing their projects and leave some comment love! :)

Please make sure to do these things. I have some random posts linked up before, and plenty of links that didn't mention participating in this link up. Kind of a bummer.... so please make sure to start! :) (then I won't have to feel like a meany and delete your linky. I promise these aren't hard things to do!) 


Don't forget... Friendship Quilts Blog Hop starts MONDAY!!!!!! Wahoo!!!!!!! :)

Quilter's Blog Hop Party Giveaway!

I've seen this before over at Quilting Gallery, but have always seemed to miss it! Thanks to Karen and her constant reminders (on her blog and then in the Mark Your Calendar Group) I was able to be on top of things this year! Yay. :) Thanks Karen!

If you are stopping by from the Quilting Gallery, Welcome!! I hope you will sit and stay awhile! :) Michele said I should tell you all the goings on around here, and let me tell you, there is a whole lot of stuff going right now. I just celebrated my 2 year blogiversary on the 23rd and actually have a giveaway for that which you can sign up for here.

Starting September 3rd is the Friendship Quilts Blog Hop! There are some great blogs with amazing quilters participating, along with some super fun judges, a link up at the end, prizes, and a lot more prizes! It's going to be like totally rad!! (yes, I did just reference the 80's. And I hope you're ready for a lot more of where that came from because you are going to LOVE what we have in store for you!)

There is also a linky party every Thursday to share the beginnings and starts of your projects, whether old or new. Starting something new sometimes is just as, or more, exciting as finishing something up. I figure we might as well all enjoy it together! :)

There is also The Master List, which is a linky for all the linky parties around. If you host a linky party, or know of some, please come by and share them so we can find them too. There is also a new linky and Flickr group called Mark Your Calendar. It's still new, but is/will be a great resource for all upcoming events!! Come see what's happening and share your events! :)

As always, the Charming Travelers are still traveling the US and Canada. (you can read all about what it is here.) Ok, that is exhausting... you can check out my sidebar for anything else going on. :)


Now onto the good stuff! A giveaway!! :)

Besides just participating in the Quilting Gallery Giveaway Blog Hop, I've also decided to celebrate reaching 400 followers as well!! Wahoo!! This is a milestone I never thought I'd reach (just all those other great blogs, ya know.) Anyway, I am more than thrilled!! :) Thanks everyone for making this fun! Definitely giveaway worthy.


Sometimes it is so hard to figure out what to offer for a prize! I finally decided to offer a charm pack of Denyse Schmidt's new line, Chicopee! I love her fabrics. I like this line because it's more gender neutral than most fabrics, but it's still beautiful with great colors and great designs!

 

* the charm pack will be cut fresh from my stash of new, unwashed fabrics *

For an added prize I am also offering a pdf copy of a new pattern I will be releasing (hopefully) on Monday early next week! I just have a few finishing touches to add and then it will be off to Craftsy! :) Want a peek of what it's for?

 
"My First Alphabet" a PDF pattern from A-Z
finished size is 3" tall
(this is an unfinished project, so ignore the weird R and U and such. You can come back on Monday and see the final version, plus a few other projects made with this pattern!) :)

To enter:
(only one is mandatory, the rest are optional)

• Leave a comment telling me your favorite thing about fall. Or your favorite thing to do in the fall. :)
• Follow my blog and leave a comment telling me you do.
• Link something (that is applicable) to either The Master List or the Mark Your Calendar linkies. Come back and tell me what you linked up. Whether it's your event, or one you participate in or enjoy, it's fine with me! :)

This Giveaway will be open until I pick a winner the morning of September 5th.

International entries welcome!

Make sure to leave your email in the comments so I have a way to get a hold of you, unless you are sure that you are not a no-reply blogger.

Make sure to stop by the Quilting Gallery starting the 26th to check out all the other giveaways and blogs that are participating!! :)

*Picture-Perfect* Polaroid Block Swap

I made it just a day or so late for this swap. But sweet Debbie was kind and let me send my Polaroid blocks anyway. Thanks! She definitely needs the "Best Swap Mom Ever" award for all the work she's putting into this group! Basically everyone makes any number of Polaroid blocks, sends them to her, then she mixes them all up and sends back to each person the same amount of blocks that they sent. These were really pretty quick to make and I think a lot of people ended up making more than they had planned on. My condolences go out to Debbie! She is going to have quite the task to accomplish. If airline tickets were free, I would totally fly out to her and help her sort them! (I like the challenge). :) You can read all the details for the swap here, and the tutorial that we used here. (GREAT tutorial by the way!! So fast and easy, I definitely recommend it!! Thanks capitolaQuilter!)


Anyway, here are the blocks that I made. I decided to go with 60, plus an extra 5 for Debbie to keep.

I am planning on making I-Spy sleeping bags for my kiddos. I think these Polaroid blocks will be a great addition to them! I can't wait to see the ones that I get back! I am still working on collecting some more I-Spy fabrics, so it may be a few more months until I actually get to the sleeping bag part. :)

the bottom center one is my favorite!! I almost kept it! lol.
I also love the forks on the bottom right.

Sorry, this post is too late for anyone to join in. I don't know if there will be another round, but maybe someone else could put one together if more people want to do it again. :)

 

Happy 2 Years!! from blank pages... linky #5 AND a Giveaway!

Boy does time fly! I have officially been blogging for 2 years TODAY! Wahoo! I cannot believe how far I've come in 2 years! I have too many wonderful friends to count, I never would have believed you if you told me I would be 10 followers shy of 400! This whole experience has been one amazing ride and I wouldn't trade it for anything!! Thank you for all of your comments, friendships and support! It wouldn't be the same with out you!


I totally forgot about my blogiversary last year (I think I was pregnant??), and well, for this year I wanted to do something especially fun.  I've actually been meaning to do this all year long but never got around to it. Any kind of anniversary is special though, so I decided I needed to take a little extra time out just for this.

(I wasn't going to do this part, but saw it on someone else's blog once, and since people like to celebrate these things with giveaways too, I figured it might be interesting to see where I'm at...)

In 2 years I have:

• Published 404 posts (I believe over half of those are from this year!) :) (oh, and this doesn't count all the posts that I moved over to my Our Story section of my blog. This is just quilting/crafting stuff.)
• received 3240 comments on my various posts
• had 87,091 pageviews from 29,948 unique visitors. wow.
• I have 390 followers via GFC (only 10 away from 400!!) and 405 subscribers in google reader
• 139 people like my Facebook page (that I don't do anything with).

Anyway, basically it goes like this. I don't believe any of that. If you told me two years ago that I would have stats like that I would have laughed. Or punched you because I thought you were teasing me because I'm sure I was dreaming about it. ;) #widrn Eating a slice of humble pie. (= what I'm doing right now) You all are seriously awesome! And I just want to thank you for stopping by and saying hi. Maybe these numbers seem huge, and I'm sure to a lot of people they're small. But to me, I'm pretty excited about it. (I am NOT bragging. We all start somewhere and end up somewhere else. This is where I'm at on this day. Tomorrow I'll be somewhere else. I love watching where life takes us. Ok, now I'm rambling...)
 

Here is my picture round up of projects and posts from the last two years!
(click on the mosaics to go to Flickr and then you can click on the links to find out more about each photo.) :)


The beginning: first quilts, paper crafts, things I sold in my Etsy shop, first knitting projects, Christmas presents, etc. This is all from 2010 and a few projects from before that.

there are a few totally awesome awful projects that were left out. Oh well. ;)

2011:

Bags, paper goodies, sewing stuff, things for the little ones, and yes. Number 2 is a baby. I made my third baby in 2011. :)

All things quilting:
do.Good Stitches bee blocks, minis, quilts, quilted pillow, etc.

2012:

Pillows, Pouches and other sewing items

And Lots of blocks (do.Good Stitches, Moody Blues 2, [3x6] Mini Sampler Bee, 4x5 Modern Bee and just because)

Quilts and quilted goodness

I think it's safe to say that my skills have improved over the years, as well as my photography skills. ;) It's been a fun journey! Thanks for hanging out and looking back with me. It's always nice to see what I've actually accomplished, and that I haven't just been little miss busy body for no reason. :) Swaps have definitely been my favorite thing I've sewn for! They always seem to push me the most as well, which I really enjoy. I hope to jump in another swap here soon! :) But until then, there are WAY too many other things going on!

I think my goal for this next year is to finish more quilts! I have a few still sitting in my closet, that have been there for a while, so next year you will see some of those for sure! I hope. If not, I guess it will just be something better. :)

These mosaics definitely took WAY too long to put together, so I'm just going to leave it at that and not type anymore! lol.


Now I want to see the things YOU'VE done! I think everyone needs a special occasion to celebrate their creations and give themselves a big pat on the back! So here's the perfect excuse! :)


Here's what to do:

Create a blog post that highlights, or shows off all of your creations you've made! Is your list too long? Just pick your favorites, but make sure to search back in time and get all the goodness! Don't skimp on the celebrating, even if it's a little embarrassing going back to the beginning. ;)

Then come back here and link up your blog post in the linky. This will also count as this weeks from blank pages... linky. Because today we are celebrating the beginning of us! :)

You don't have a blog? Make a mosaic and post it in Flickr (or wherever) and you can link up your mosaic here. Need help making a mosaic? Here are some good instructions to help you out. I use Big Huge Labs Mosaic Maker. I read recently that someone liked a different mosaic maker better, but I have no idea where I read that or where it was. If it was you, let us know. :)

Make sure to link back here in your post so others can come join along in the fun as well! :) (you can grab a button or something. :))



And because celebrations are ALWAYS more fun with prizes,  I will be giving away to one lucky reader......

A 5" charm pack of Anna Maria Horner's LouLouThi collection.

30 squares cut by me from my unwashed fabric stash.

To Enter: 

(you must do at least 1 - otherwise I won't know you've entered! bwahahaha! - it's late. 

All others are optional.)

1. Link up a blog post or mosaic to the linky (1 entry) and leave a comment telling me you did (get an extra entry)
2. leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite memory as a child
3. follow this blog and leave a comment telling me you do.
4. follow me either on facebook, twitter, or intagram! (only one entry even if you do all three)

This giveaway is open to international participants as well! Yay!

I will leave this giveaway open until I pick a winner the morning of Wednesday, September 5th.

Good luck! 

Have fun!

And thanks for stopping by!

Today is The Day...

That I celebrate the 2 year anniversary of my first blog post!! It is also still my most popular blog post, according to google analytics. Go figure. I came in with a bang and just went down hill I guess. lol. ;) I am SO super excited that my blog is where it is at today!! And I'm so excited to celebrate it with you!

Today is also the day of interruptions. Boy is that ever an understatement. But it is the best day for it, as well as the best interruptions ever! My oldest was so happy to have me read to him in German today! Yay! What could be better than that?! Rumpelstiltskin was one that we read today and he loved every second of it! We've also done a ton of puzzles and games today. More than usual for sure. It's been so much fun! Maybe I should try working on a big project every day just so they will want to play with me so much every day! :)

Anyway, my point is that I am working on my post for the day, but it is taking a LONG time. It will also include the linky for the day, which is way fun! as well as a super sweet giveaway (at least I'm excited about it. Ok, I'm actually still deciding on what it will be, but it will be good.)

So here is my quick intermission telling you that you need to check back later so you can celebrate with me! I'm sorry that I can't tell you when it will start. It's just like me to be late to my own party. :D cheese!!! Just know it's coming. :)

Until then, Happy Thursday!! :)

Mark Your Calendar! a linky for upcoming events

   




You asked for it, so here it is! Are you ready to Mark Your Calendar?! This is a linky for any and all upcoming blog events. Simply link up a specific blog post that explains your event under the month in which the event takes place.

To help keep things organized and easy to sort through, here's a key on how to link up your event:

Put the following in the NAME line when filling out the form:

1. What your event is. A blog hop? Start with BH. A Quilt Along? Type QAL. etc.
2. Next type the name of your event.
3. Type where it is taking place, aka, your blog name
4. So we all know when to head over, put the day that it begins.

Here's an example. I am hosting the Friendship Quilts Blog Hop in September. It starts on the 3rd. This is what my entry would look like:

BH - Friendship Quilts @ from blank pages..., 9/3

If you have a past event that you want to share, let me know and I can pin it onto the group boards on Pinterest. (If you want to help us pin, let me know and I'll send you an invite.)

If you have a Linky Party, you can share that at The Master List. The Master List is specifically for linky parties. (since there is The Master List, please don't share linky parties here.)

There is also a Flickr Group where you can share any sort of event as well. There is a discussion thread for all sorts of events. I really like Flickr for the purpose of easily being able to see any new updates!



Thanks for sharing! I hope you'll help spread the word about this, as well as link up any events that you find. I'll keep a few months up at a time so we can be ready for events coming up. If you have an event coming up and I don't have that month up yet, just let me know and I'll add it. :)

<center> <a href="http://fromblankpages.blogspot.com/2012/08/mark-your-calendar-linky-for-upcoming.html" target="_blank"><img alt="The Master List" src="http://i381.photobucket.com/albums/oo253/dbByDesign/Mark-Your-Calendar2.jpg"  width="150" /></a></center>

August 2012




September 2012




October 2012




November 2012




December 2012

Something Wicked This Way Comes: a Halloween Paper Piecing Blog Hop: A Shout Out for Contributors :)

Do you know Soma? She blogs over at Whims and Fancies. She is AWESOME!!! As well as being an awesome paper piecing designer. You should go check out her Craftsy shop here. LOVE!

Anyway, she is hosting a blog hop in October. It's basically a Paper Piecing Halloween Party. How awesome is that? It will be a months worth of paper piecing all based on halloween pictures. It will kind of be set up like the Garden Party Blog Hop was that took place at Sewhooked in the spring. I was SO excited when she told me about it and asked me to join her!

It's not for another month+, but here's the fun part, there are still openings in the schedule! Do you want to come join us? If you like to design paper piecing patterns, you can find out all the information here to sign up and get on the calendar. If you don't want to sign up, be sure to come follow along and sew with us! I think it will be fun. Finally an excuse to use that Halloween fabric I've been toting around for the last year+. :)

And so you don't miss it, I'll say it again, GO HERE for all the info and the line up! It should be quite a spooky treat. lol. ;)

Wonky Quarters: a Paper Piecing Pattern + more

I have been busy around here! In conjunction with preparing to go to the Sewing Summit, I've decided to finish up a lot of patterns that have been sitting around for a while. They've been basically done, just needing a few finishing touches. They are all being added to my Craftsy store here.

I decided to list the 18 inch pattern for my 70's Geese, with the encouragement of Kelly. She saw my in-progress picture on Instagram and liked it. Thanks! :) I love this pattern! You can read all about the version I made for Whitney here. I really need to make myself another one for me. (Ok, really I want to make a quilt for my bed using this pattern, but that will take a long time... maybe once I finish up some other projects.) :)


I also added a new one, Wonky Quarters. Candice was so kind to test this pattern for me in July, I think. But I have been slacking at actually sharing it. Do you want to see her pictures? They are beautiful!! So you know, the size of this block is huge! One square is 8", so the normal 4 blocks together is 16" square. I think this is great to help show off prints, as well as be able to put something together fast. ;)

 I love the colors she used! :)

 Individual corners

Thank you so much Candice for testing this for me!!


I also came up with these on my computer. The possibilities are endless!

 

 

I added some new features to this pattern as well. There are two coloring pages to test out color schemes and fabric placements, as well as three pages with templates for cutting out your fabric! The templates have 3/8" seam allowances, which should be just enough to be able to easily piece with them, but without so much fabric waste. I think I might go back and add these features to my other patterns as well. :)

Anyway, it's up and listed. Just wanted to let you know!


I will also be listing I also listed my test block that I made for the [4x5] Bee, but didn't end up using. I think the triangles would look so cool in this pattern if you had multiple blocks together!

On The Spot

you can find the pattern here

pattern includes, pattern block, coloring page, and template pieces

So stay tuned! I have some other patterns in the works as well. I'll keep you updated. :)

I'M GOING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YES!!! I will be at the Sewing Summit!!!!!!! WAHOO!!! I talked to my hubby this morning, and he told me a much better way to approach my dad. My dad flies A LOT and has a lot of miles. Plus he is the best dad ever!!! Neil just said to ask if he'd donate some for me. :) I have the best hubby ever!!!

So forget this mornings post. But know that I am going to be the happiest girl there. lol. :) I can't wait to finally meet all of you!! :)

xoxo!

Where there's a will there's a way...

RIGHT??? That's what they say, isn't it?!


UPDATE:  ****** I AM GOING!!! I have the best Husband and best Dad ever!!! With a little figuring out, I AM GOING!!! WAHOO!! SO GRATEFUL! I was going to delete this post, but I will leave it. Maybe all of us who are making sacrifices to be there can get together at the Summit and do a huge group cheer for how excited we all are to be there!! :) lol. *****



So here I am wracking my brain trying to figure out a way. A way for what, you ask? A way to go to the Sewing Summit! Man oh man do I want to go. ... let me explain. I have a ticket. I bought it when I lived in Utah. Exactly 34 min away from Little America (ok, I don't know if it's exactly that, it might be 35 min, maybe 40, maybe only 30. NOT the point.) Sweet. I was ready and set to go.... then we moved to North East Iowa. Iowa is about 20 HOURS away from Little America. No way am I going to drive that. Plane ticket?! Yes please. Except no.

Neil got an AWESOME job here! It is just right for him, he's doing an amazing job, I'm SO proud of him. I'm SO happy he finally has a job that will push him, that will use his talents and abilities and put them to good use, a job that will pay him more of what he's worth, and give him the position to excel in his career. It's awesome. In a few months I'm sure we'll have everything we need, we'll be comfortable and be living the dream. I don't know... there's always something right?! Anyway, that is not right now. Is moving always a drain on the finances? or is it just us? The upfront expenses, added appliances we need, extra furniture, etc. isn't making the room we need to get me a plane ticket to fly back to Salt Lake.

So what?! I'm just going to put it out there that I feel super vulnerable typing this. But I just feel like maybe it will help me either, figure out a way, or to let go. I know there have been a lot of people who bought a ticket to the Sewing Summit and aren't able to go now. That stinks. I know a lot of people have been super excited to get a ticket and now get to go when they thought they weren't going to. I should, and keep telling myself to suck it up and just sell the ticket already. but I.just.can't. man. here comes the water works.

So it's basically like this. I have some amazing, wonderful friends. I love them dearly, but none of them sew or quilt to the level that I like to and do. Or perhaps I don't know it (then they're in trouble!) ;) Anyway, It's kind of a huge part of my life. I used to go out and do a lot of things, but I've kind of given that all up to raise my 3 sweet babies. For 4+ years I've been home going happily crazy. (and sometimes not so happily, but I'm still happy to do it.) So my outlet is sewing, quilting, crafting, blogging, flickr, etc. This has become what I do and to an extent who I am. Can I tell you it's been a lonely road. YOU have made it all worth it! I can't believe the number of amazing friends I've met online! Whether through blogging, Flickr swaps, whatever. YOU are awesome! And YOU make me want to keep going. YOU have definitely become my friends! But the truth is, I still wish at times that I had someone to sew with right here, or anywhere, but to actually be doing it together. Do you know what I mean?

I sometimes get the idea that I should just stop. Stop blogging, stop sewing, stop all of this. I should be focusing more on my family, keep a cleaner house, actually fold and put away the laundry. lol. But then there is always something awesome that happens that pulls me back into it. Whether I actually sell a pattern, or my free pattern is at the top of the Craftsy list, again (-the other day - so excited!) or I get a super fun email, an invite to participate in an awesome event or blog hop, something happens that I can't tell you yet but definitely knocked me out of my chair, or someone says something super sweet (like Karen. Do you know Karen of Sew Well Maide? She is the sweetest person ever!! not bragging: look what she wrote about me. did not deserve that. Thank you!) Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that I feel like every time I doubt my contributions and place in this virtual world, I always seem to get a sweet reminder that this is where I should be.

Enter Sewing Summit. I can still remember last year, hearing about everyone's great adventures at the Sewing Summit. I was so jealous. ;) I was so close and totally wanted to be there, but I wasn't. That's cool. I didn't know anyone anyway. Now comes this year. Tickets sell out in 9 HOURS. And I got one! Awesome! People that I know that are going, like 100! or more! People that I want to meet so bad so we can turn our virtual friendships into the real thing - SO many! Besties, BFF's, Best buddies, Close friends, REAL LIFE FRIENDS. whatever. SO pumped! Me sitting here in my *lonely* life is actually going to have some real-life, flesh and bone friends that ALSO like to do the same things I like to do. (I guess if my hubby liked to quilt and sew with me this might be different, but he.does.not. lol.) Anyway, that is super awesome and I'm so excited. It's like the sweet relief and the life saving time-out-for-me get-away-weekend-that-I've-been-waiting-4+-years-for. And now I can't go. All because of $400. balling my eyes out.

I keep telling myself, "get over it Di. You need a dryer and a lawn mower so your neighbors can stop looking at all your weeds and your wet underwear." teehee. I don't think of myself as a selfish person. I don't feel like I've done very many "this is for me only" things. There have been a few days where I've kicked everyone out so I could have a few hours of uninterrupted sewing. But that's about it. I can just see all the judgements coming, and all the "you need to put your family first" comments. But I don't care. If I could have one thing for me. this would be it. One weekend of fun. One weekend to be a person again and step out of the mom mold. One weekend of amazing friends and amazing people and learning and growing and whatever. man this sucks. and boy am I going to be embarrassed when I know people actually read this. ;)

When there's a will there's a way... If you are waiting to snatch up my ticket, well, you are going to have to keep waiting. because I'm not giving up yet. lol. I already gave up my hotel room, but I have family in the area, so I should be fine that way. I think about calling up my dad, but can I really say this, "Hey Dad. We have a huge long list of things we need, but can you buy me a plane ticket so I can go play with my friends for a weekend?" lol. I don't think so. I don't know what I'm going to do... but when I think of it, I'm going to do it.

And if not. If I have to sell my ticket. well then so be it. You better take notes in your classes and share with me what you learned, and tell me all about how awesome it was - even though I'll be crying through all of it. :) And if you have any advice on how to let it go, I'm open for suggestions. And maybe I'm just prego and that is why I'm so emotional about it. lol. For the record: I am NOT prego.

ok, that's all. I just had to put this out there. To help me get all these emotions out. To open some doors to finding a solution. I don't know. But I'm sure something will come of it, whatever that something is. :)

A HUGE THANK YOU to all of you! If you weren't so awesome, and if I didn't truly consider you my good friends, I know this wouldn't be this hard, so that says a lot about all of you, whether you read this or not. :) Thanks for being awesome! :)

Winterkist 2-in-1: Serving Mats & Bowls Tutorial

*** This is not an official post for the Winterkist blog hop. If you are trying to enter the giveaway, leave a comment on the post here. Comments on this post will not count, but you can still leave them because I will still love them! ***

 

Yesterday I shared a quick intro to my project for the Winterkist Blog Hop, as well as a full tutorial for piecing the pattern I made. I guess I kind of did this all backwards. I should have posted today's post yesterday and yesterday's post today. Oh well. :)

My Smaller serving mat. 

I did my rows and columns in order on this one. The larger size is randomly pieced.

Today I'm going to share with you MORE pictures and a quick how-to for the 2-in-1 Serving Mats/bowls. Though I'm not sure if I should really call them bowls, or baskets, or what. Anyway, you know what I mean. :)

I LOVE the straight lines over these circles!

The larger serving mat as an upside down bowl.

I really love these! I can just picture taking these to a Christmas party to place under the yummy goodies I'd bring. Or to host your own party for your goodies. 

 
All the fabric in these, besides the Kona White, is from the Winterkist line.



I've been looking at this the past couple days and I am just dreaming up rows and rows of banana bread, zuchini bread, marble bread, etc in there. Then I dream about eating it all by myself. lol.


These are fully machine washable, so it would be ok to put food in them.



The backs, or insides.

Ok, now here's my tutorial for putting these together. (sorry I don't have a ton of pictures for this part)

Here's what's going on:

• I have one front piece (my Weave) cut to the size I want. 
• I cut out and ironed to the front piece one piece of fusible fleece - cut the same size as the front piece
• I have one larger piece for the back - cut it so that it is 1"plus wider on ALL sides than the front piece
• Cut out one piece of heavy weight interfacing (cut the same size as the front piece)
• Iron the heavy weight interfacing in the middle of the back piece (maintaining that 1" border around the interfacing)

 If you're curious, the size of my front piece is 12.5" x 19.5"


Line up the front piece so it is flush with the heavy weight interfacing.

Then PIN BASTE IT! I highly recommend the quilters pins that are bent. It's a lot easier to pin through all the layers and not have any shifting since the pin naturally curves to come back out.

I quilted these with diagonal lines.
To start I took my ruler and figured the angle I wanted to start with. Then I used my crotchet hook (sorry the clear doesn't show up so well. I've also used knitting needles, but couldn't find mine at the moment) and *drew* a line along the ruler. I think this is what people use the Herra marking tool for (is that what it's called?). I don't know if that specific tool has magical powers, but from what I can tell a knitting needle works just as well. :)

You may wan to do this step before you pin in case you have pins in the way, I didn't so I was fine. :)

I only mark one line, because then I use my sewing foot, or my sewing guides, and this first seam to line up the rest of my quilting.

See how good that line shows up while I'm sewing?!

Once you have it all quilted, trim up the extra fabric from the back so it is 1" on all sides. then fold it in half towards the front so it is then 1/2" wide. Then fold the whole thing over again on top of the front of your *quilt*.  Pin it in place. Fold your corners as best you can so they look good. (I am horrible at the corners. I do trim some of the fabric back so they aren't so bulky, but I don't really know how to miter them very well. Do the best you can.) :)


Then sew as close to to the edge as you can, making sure you catch the binding.

 

You are ALMOST finished!

Now decide how much you want the sides to fold up by pinching the corners.

 

obviously not pinching them here, but here you can see what it will look like. My smaller mat has larger sides than the bigger one. You can make yours however you want!

Measure the height of your sides. (I'm going to call this "X" inches)

Now lay it flat, use a large clear ruler to measure in from one side "X" inches. My smaller baskets have 2.5" sides. Mark it 1/4" from the edge, and then mark it  "X" inches in.

I marked THREE dots. The dot in the center just helps to keep things lined up, you really don't need it probably. 

I tried to put snaps in this to snap the corners. If you have the sew on snaps you could use those. But otherwise all the layers are WAY to thick. So, Instead I sewed on some velcro. You want a male and female piece in each corner. Place the velcro so it covers the 1/4" mark on the sides. I used the heavy duty velcro that has the sticky on it. Probably not the best for your machine, but I know that if my baskets are full they won't come undone. I know some sewing velcro doesn't hold well, so you'll want to play around and find one that will stay together.

*** If you only want these to be bowls, and not the 2-in-1, simply pinch the sides and then sew the corners. Easy as that. :) ***

NOW you are DONE! Wahoo! :)

baskets upside down

Have fun! If you make something like this, I hope you'll share!! :) 

You can add photos to the from blank pages... flickr group. ;) or leave a comment!
and as always, if you have any questions, please ask!