lost in summertime feelings

Oh, my how flies by. I just checked out my own blog to realize that I have only ONE post in the Month of June. What was going on this month?? We had two birthdays and a house warming party! I had one weekend to enjoy the solitude of great weather and no interruptions where I could concentrate solely on my sewing hobby. How much better can life be?

I enjoyed a great post exposure of my new cutting table which was also posted at Ikea Hackers and took a little summertime break. I also finished up my DQM quilt for Mary Pat and will be sending to her within the next few days.

Here is what I made in my last weekend retreat - a cathedral window pin cushion. Now, this is my very first try at cathedral windows, and I am not the best at hand sewing. It takes me a while to get going and find my rhythm before my stitches are a little more even. The project is small, but I always take on more than I can chew; I just wanted to learn the technique and get a project finished!

When this one was done, I move on to the next one of learning how to sew in a zipper. I have sewn in zippers before, but I felt a little bit out of practice. I also learned how to "hide" the zipper underneath the fabric thanks to my dear instructor, Sabine of Quilt Oase!

I made four pillowcase covers for my old sofa in the new house. Since my wall in my dining room is PURPLE, I wanted to united the red sofa with the wall. I have been looking for the right fabric and then found this from Makower. I wanted it simple - [Simple, Easy, Practical] - The quilting took the longest since it was a "quilt as you sew" method.

I hope now that June is over, I have more time to get back to the topic at hand - more sewing and pattern designing. I have a new pattern waiting to be published. This one will be free of charge, because I want you all to have it and start your own sewing projects with it. It is a fun little project that your really can finish in just a few hours.

I would like to thank all of you that either subscribe or read my blog. I really and truly appreciate your support. Thank you for the wonderful comments as well.

Yours truly,
Karen

micro quilts

I've been toying around with the idea of making some miniature-quilts. Does anyone remember these goodies? There was even a really awesome magazine that put them in the spotlight, called Miniature Quilts.

I am not talking about mug-rugs or inches, but actual miniature quilts that look like the real, life-sized blankets. It is great when you see them photographed next to a Barbie-doll. Everything is scaled down. They are very challenging, because you have to sew them together perfectly and usually with 1/8" seam allowance or cut down the seam allowance. Most are sewn to paper like a sew and fold or foundation piecing technique.
 
In the meantime, I have joined a very nice group of ladies at Doll Quilters Monthly! I am all psyched up to try new things and am anxious to receive small doll quilts from other fabulous quilters from around the world. I started practicing for my first swap. My Barbie-Doll Chevron Quilt has just 1/8 inch binding! You can check out the rest of the photos at flickr.

If you would like to explore this genre with me, please drop me a note so we can put our heads together to go retro with our "micro quilts." The format should be smaller than 11 inches².

Enjoy the spring-time sun! Karen