would you blog if you were me?

Seven weeks old today, and we've been waiting eight years for this little one. Would you blog if you were me? I guess since I am me, I'll just say it like it is: I really want to use my free time snuggling and squeezing him and kissing those cute little cheeks. I'll be back to blogging at some point, I promise. Until then . . . isn't he just adorable?! (Plus, my sewing machine just broke two days ago - I think the belt fell off, but the closest authorized dealer who would actually be able to fix it is four hours away - I'm not sure how I'm going to survive this sewing drought!)

dr. seuss quilt

Don't' you just love Dr. Seuss? I've always loved him, and passed that love along to my kids. When the Dr. Seuss fabric line came out, I had to make a quilt. This is the one I finished in February (but obviously forgot to post). Kind of (very) bright for my taste - but, can you imagine being a kid with all of your favorite characters on your blanket? I'd love it. I tried to temper the wild colors on the back a bit by using mostly black and white, then put big patches on to add a little burst of color and tie in the front. Basically what I'm saying is that I have a quilt back fetish and love to do something unexpected on the back of quilts. I'm a pattern follower for the front, but play around with the back. Someday I aspire to be a true modern quilter and have the confidence to play around on the front as well.

One more baby quilt for a little one that has too many quilts already. But then again - is there any such thing as too many quilts?

dan stiles marine quilt

When I first saw the Dan Stiles Marine fabric line, I became a stalker. I watched any web site that said it was coming soon, and then watched it some more, waiting ... and waiting ... and waiting. This fabric line actually was slotted to come out in October or November of last year, and kept getting postponed. I think it was January or early February before I finally received my fabric purchase. I love the colors though - it was worth the wait. My biggest problem with this fabric line was that it was so cute, I just couldn't figure out a pattern to put it together in. I finally decided on this design, with the centers being the big designs, and the edges of the block just enhancing with color.I love the little guy in a boat that I saved for the back. (He's not from the Marine line - can't remember where I got him.) I just think he's adorable.

Quilting this time around wasn't my favorite. I like how it turned out in the end, but it took me quite a while to be motivated enough to actually complete the quilting portion because I quilted it with straight lines, rather that free motion. Not my favorite way to quilt, but I like the end result this time.

Just one more quilt that a little baby in the southwest really doesn't need, especially with summer coming up. It's just so fun to be creative with little boy fabrics though!

it's a little tricky ...

I've been waiting so long for this Dan Stiles fabric, and finally got it put together in a little baby quilt. However, it's really hard to baste it with safety pins ... ... when my stomach looks like this ...

... only five weeks to go!

spit up in style

Our little one that is coming is going to spit up in style. His mommy just can't stop sewing. My latest project has been burp cloths - so many cute fabrics in my stash, and so little time to turn them into quilts. Guess these will have to do!

sulky blendables - note to self

Note to self: I love the colors in the Sulky Blendables thread, but am not having fun stippling with it. I now remember this from using it before - the thread breaks every 12" or so, even with setting the tension right and using a top stitch needle. Very frustrating and to me: Do Not Buy This Thread Again! Use King Tut instead!

eat. play. sleep. repeat.

I found the tutorial for this baby quilt here, and just can't seem to stop thinking of fabrics to make another ... and another ... and another. It's so simple and cute and easy to make. Here's the front: And the back (love those little doggy fabrics):

And it hanging in the baby room:

(Can you believe the walls here used to be painters tape blue?! My poor patient husband - it took 3 coats of paint to cover that wild color with this butter yellow.)

A side note: Does anyone know how to download more of these letters to use in quilting? I'm not too tech savvy, but would love to know how to find more letters and/or different font to use in applique.