It arrived!!

For several years (maybe 7?) I've sewn on the most basic machine Brother makes. It looks very similar to this one:

Mine is only pink and white. No purple. It straight stitches and zigzags. That's all. Period. It has served me faithfully this whole time. Since I've started doing bigger projects, I've wanted to upgrade my machine. I used some rewards from MyPoints and Swagbucks and bought this machine. After my rewards, it cost me less than $75 delivered. I was super excited!

The new machine is a Brother CS6000I. It has 60 stitches and about 10 different feet. This was one of the main selling points for me. I wanted a walking foot for making quilting easier. The foot for my old machine was $30 so for $40 more, I got a whole new machine! I haven't done alot with it yet, but I have made one thing:

Yet another Kindle cover. I'm still not completely satisfied with how they are turning out. The very first one I made for myself I love, but I can't quite get the pattern right for replicating them. I'm still trying though!

I think next week I'm going to post pictures of my sewing "area" I am always interested in seeing everyone else's spaces, so maybe I'll share mine!

Car Cozy

Last spring, I made a car cozy for my little friend, O. O's mommy asked me to make one like it for a birthday gift. I was happy to do it. The original one I made had a car wash and a gas station, train tracks (O loves trains), and a curvy road. This one is a little more simple.


A road to drive on and 5 garages!

The gas station on the end it the best part. You can't see it very good in the picture, but there is a shoe string attached that you can use to "pump" the gas.

It all folds up nicely and closes with this cute little car button. The cars are snug and secure to bring out to lunch or church or the doctor's office.

My original design was a combination of about 5 different car cozys I found online. This one is very similar to Jill's at Homemade by Jill.

WIP Wednesday 01/19/2011

I didn't get alot done this week. I've been waiting for some reward points to arrive so I could order a new sewing machine! They finally arrived and my new machine is on the way! I have been sewing with a basic Brother machine that I got for Christmas about 7 years ago. It straight stitches and zigzags. The one I ordered is also a Brother, but it has 60 stitches and comes with several extra feet. I'm very excited about it, and I've been putting off some porjects until it gets here.

In the meantime, I've been doing a little handwork. I've been working on my Hexagon quilt again. There is something relaxing about just sitting and making the little hexis.

These are all of the large flowers I have put together.

Closer view. All of this is fabric I got for a dollar a yard at Wal-Mart years ago. I'm sure one day I'll be sorry I didn't spend the money for something of better quality, but I really like the color combinations right now.

I also have a pattern that I think works for my Kindle covers. I have a couple of fabrics selections for one more tester!

I did finish a car caddy for a friend. My first paid crafting job! I'll post about it soon!

No progress has been made on my other works in progress:
Fairy Quilt
Ladies bag
I spy quilt
Birdie Stitches Quilt (waiting for February's block!)

Totals
WIP: 6
Finished Projects: 3

WIP Wednesday 01/12/2011

I'm working on several projects now. I'm trying to work up a good pattern for the Kindle covers I've been making. The one below didn't quite work out so I may make it into a bag of some sort.

I love these ladies. I think this would look cute with a button to close it.

Beginning of a quilt for my little girl. She loves fairies. This is a panel from Michael Miller. So far I've cut the small squares out and given them a border. I'm going to sash with the pink swirly material.

I sewed all of these I-spies together before I thought about it. Now I'm trying to figure out how to make this a baby sized quilt.

I'm still working on my orange and pink hexagons as well.

I am making a car cozy for a friend this week too. I haven't completely finished anything, but that's ok with me. I like having several projects to work on at a time. I hope to finish the fairy quilt next. I think it's going to be my daughter's Valentine's day gift.

For 2011:
Completed Projects: 2
Started Projects: 4

Birdie Stitches January block

Little Miss Shabby is hosting a quilt along. Each month she's posting an embriodery pattern for the quilt. I'm not using the same fabric as her. My jelly roll is Lollipop by Moda. My solid is Kona Wheat. I really like the way it is turning out so far.

My birdie (I'm not sure why it looks wavy. It's not in real life.)

I used most 3 strands, but some 2 strands for the embroidery.

I'm going to go ahead and make up the rest of the blocks since it was easier to cut them all at once. I can't wait to see what's next!

My first bee!

Sew Fresh Fabrics was trying to decide what to do with their scraps and decided to host a bee for Project Linus. Project Linus collects and distributes blankets for children in hospitals, shelters, social service agencies, etc. Sew Fresh Fabrics is going to send me a bag of scraps to make a quilt block for a little boy quilt! I'm so excited. Plus I get to keep whatever scraps are left. Double win! Now to find the perfect block...

Kindle Cover, Take 2

I made this Kindle Cover for my friend, Ashley. She likes pink, green, and yellow. I like how it turned out. These aren't the greatest pictures.


I pieced it from some scraps I had from a baby quilt and some fabric I got from Fabric.com. I really liked the combination.

I've been using my cover for almost 2 weeks now. I really like it. I can just drop the Kindle in my purse and not worry about it getting scratched up or stuff on it. I'm going to try to make up a few more of these this weekend. Any buyers? ;-)