Lattice Quilt for Sister

Our household has been under the weather for the last few weeks so I'm just now getting these photos posted. I DID finish the quilt in January as promised... as its a late Christmas gift!
It's already living with my sister in Kentucky and I know for a fact she'll get tons of use from it!
(Her husband is warm-blooded and their house is always cold!)

A few stats:
size: about 70x70"
fabrics: Red colorway of Laurie Wisbrun's "Tufted Tweets" along with other various black/grey prints
Batting: Warm and White
Quilting: all-over stippling done at my LQS mid-arm machine!
Inspired by: Ashley from Film in The Fridge

The back is pieced with leftover fabric and 4 blocks that I started out wanting to use on the front then I decided the red and yellow together looked a little too... meh. Reminds me of McDonald's... or a hotdog. All the solid greys you see is Kona Ash and Kona Coal, my go-to solids!

My sister and I took these photos a couple of weeks ago on the COLDEST day of the year, of course. It couldn't have been more than 2 or 3 degrees outside. My fingers were frozen after about 3 minutes of camera work so the few quick shots you see here is it. I haven't finished the tag yet so once I get that stitched on maybe we'll be able to take a few more.

What's keeping you occupied this winter? Do share!

Amy Butler In-Person!

I'm so very lucky that Amy Butler lives just outside of Columbus and she made an appearance last night at my favorite little Fabric Shop, Sew to Speak!

My friend, AnneMarie, and I waited in line for an hour to meet Amy and boy she didn't disappoint! She was so friendly and took the time to sit down with us, chat, and sign out books.
She was truly amazing! And all her yummy designs were strewn about the shop, not to mention all the FABRIC we were drooling over but didn't want to get out of line for.

Amy Butler is the first celebrity, of any kind, that I've ever met (I'm lame, I know!) and it was just really great... I highly recommend meeting her if you ever get the opportunity!

Befitting an Arctic Day

I finished this Eggplant colored afghan for my SIL last Friday... happy birthday Jess!
Its rather large, big enough to snuggle under for a nap.
The yarn is by Caron (1lb per skein) and this took 2.5 skeins.
The pattern is just a rectangular granny square. I rather enjoy a pattern you don't have to count... I prefer to crochet mindlessly while watching tv, chatting in the car, or waiting at the Dr. office.

I've got a few quilty projects in the works... one big, a few small.
And I'd love to find a pattern for little boy (infant to toddler size) pants. I've seen them around the web but need to do some more research to find a free or inexpensive pattern. Or maybe just buy a {used} copy of AMH's book, Handmade Beginnings. But why would anyone want to sell their copy? The book has gotten such rave reviews! Hmmm...

**edit** I did find a cute little pair of pants in Simple Sewing for Baby by Lotta Jansdotter. Might give that a try this weekend! AND was given a link for these adorable little "Big Butt Baby Pants" perfect for cloth diaper bums! How can I choose? Or shall I make both...

Homemade fun

Babies love to make noise. What better toy to make that noise with that good ol' pot and pans and wooden spoons? He's completely OVER his own baby toys so we had to get creative.
Good thing his birthday is coming up... maybe a few new toys are in order?

If you have a 1yr old... or know a 1yr old... or USED to have a 1yr old...
What were their favorite toys at that age?
(All babies love electronics but there is no way in H-E double hockey sticks he's getting an iPad!)
I need ideas. I have no clue! And our space is small so its gotta be compact. Yeah, I know. Good luck with that :-)

Due to the weather...

We are NOT venturing outside today! First it was freezing rain, then heavy downpours, then ice falling off the roof at 3am! Now everything is frozen again (~1" of ice,) its snowing, and 30mph winds. The boy and I have been battling a head cold since Saturday so thanks, but no thanks, Mr. Winter. Instead, we'll drool over some yummy fabrics! The above stack is from Sew Fresh Fabrics and Hawthorne Threads. Delicious! I have no plans for any of them except I suppose the dots will become binding for a quilt.

Circa 50 FQ collection from my wonderful SIL, Kristin.
These will for sure become a family quilt.

(These are my fav prints from the collection!)

And last but not least, a fun little stack gifted by my older sister... from a cute little shop in Georgia called Fabrika! The bicycles are my favorite! Too fun!

So have you been reading the series The Art of Choosing by a great blog called In Color Order?
Jeni is doing a series of posts about how to organize/fold/display/store/buy fabric!!! I don't know about you, but I need some advice! My fabric stash is on the verge of out of hand! I think I need to arrange by color... but what does THAT really mean? Well go check out her blog, you will not be disappointed!