Five Years of Wedded Bliss

May 29th, 2004

Ah, seems like yesterday - times flies when you're having fun!
Its been the best 5 years of my life (so far.)

We're taking a mini-getaway to Niagra Falls to celebrate this weekend... more on that when we return~

Goodies for my Friend

Good friends are hard to come by. Seriously. For the first three or four years after I got married, I had little to no close friends. Friends that would agree to come over for dinner at the drop of a hat. Friends that were not afraid to ask for a ride to the airport at 6am on a Saturday morning. Friends that would meet us for icecream with only 10 minutes notice. THOSE are things that mean the most to me. Making time, and having time, to share with your friends.

I have a few of those girls in my life now, and I love them! They (or their husbands) are connected to Justin, originally, back to high school and or middle school, so all of us can hang out together and have a great time due to that common history. Now, here's where the fun begins. All of our friends have one or more children! Too fun! We are child-free for now - but I love spending time with my friends kids. They always amaze me with something they say, or do.

One of those good friends is Amanda. She's expecting a baby girl in July... and has a three year old daughter, Adison. Amanda asked me to use my stellar sewing skills (right!) to make a few goodies for her that will be useful once baby girl comes. So here are those items:


A binkie (or binky? or paci? or nipple looking thing?) whatever you want to call it... BAG to attach to a diaper bag and hold a few pacifiers and keep them clean and handy. This is my 3rd go with a zipper, and it wasn't bad at all!


These are not just any ordinary cloth bags. They are specifically made to be used as a cold compress. Insert blue ice, frozen peas, or a Ziploc of ice cubes. Your bruise, sprain, strain, or boo boo will be feeling better in no time. Velcro at the top secures it shut.


Nothing extraordinary about this blanket... just that its SUPER soft minky on the backside and I want one in adult size for my bed. I loved this Amy Butler fabric and thought it wasn't too baby-ish for a baby girl. Yes, no, maybe?


So there we have it. Fun goodies for a good Friend - and I really had a great time creating them. I may have to make a few more binky bags and sell them on Etsy - they were just fun to make.

How was your Memorial Day weekend? Too short you say? Yeah, I agree!

Amy Butler Oranges - Take three!

I recently completed my FIRST custom order Queen sized quilt. They saw this Baby Quilt in my Etsy Shop asked if I could make a Queen size from the same fabric. I agreed, and we set a price and delivery time. FOUR weeks later, and with huge bags under my eyes, it was done! The photos below go from cut fabric laid out on the bed...


to the materials I took to the local quilt shop in order to baste it on a big enough table...


To painters tape marking the lines where I'd quilt...


To FINALLY the finished quilt! Its about 92" by 86" which is the biggest quilt I've ever completed. And of course, it wasn't for me to keep ~


I do like how it turned out, but was it really worth it? Since it was my first, YES, it was worth it. But next time, I'm going to do my cost of materials + time calculations a bit more carefully.

On a similar note, I'm now finishing up another baby quilt and I LOVE the grays, blues, greens, and pinks in it. I'm so OVER this Orange AB fabric; did love it... not so much any more. Here's a sneak peak of said gray/blue/green/pink baby quilt:

Yes, Its still Amy Butler... but its from her "Daisy Chain" collection. I had 80 yummy squares and only used 24 of them on this quilt... which means 56 squares left for me to use somehow! More to come on this soon! I'll finish quilting it today! Happy Memorial Day!

Little ol' me featured in Etsy's Gift Guide!

MaryMary has stumbled upon my shop and put me on the path to ... uh ... being seen! Thanks Mary! She actually added THREE of my items to various Gift Guides and two of the three items sold within that day! I'll miss my Tree Clutch and Amy Butler security blankie, but I'm glad they're going to good homes. My coaster set looks pretty nice in the Under $20 category, I think.

One Lucky Mother

A friend commissioned me to make this bag for their boyfriend's mom. (You can be 30-something and have a boyfriend, right? What else would you call him?) I used the Amy Butler "Chelsea Bag" pattern but modified it a bit my adding straps, deleting the cut-out handles, and adding two inside pockets for the heck of it. Turned out quite nice, I think.

Chad (said boyfriend) went to the fabric store and personally chose this Amy Butler French Wallpaper in Duck Egg and Coriander Pink fabric. What a nice son!
Someday - I'll make one for myself - WITH the cut-out handles, let's say.

Fun Little Finished Projects

A fun little crochet baby blanket in speckled green - approximately 40" x 40" - was finished just this week while watching 24. Isn't Jack Bauer inspiring? Oh yes, he is. This will either be saved to give at a baby shower OR sold in my Etsy Shop. We shall see.


I've been meaning to make myself a fun pincushion - and after about 8 months, I got around to it! I used some left-over fabric from (below) sisters Birdie Sling then some leather I bought at an odd & out-of-the-way fabric store in Norwalk, OH. Its filled with emery, which makes this little beauty weight about 2 lbs. Keeps my pins sharp, though! And the coriander fabric in the background... soon will become a Mother's Day gift for Gloria's man-friend's mom. Stay tuned!