Getting Ready

We are going to be visiting our first craft show this year. I only have one more weekend to prepare and I feel frazzled. I don't know what to expect, how much product to bring, what will sell, etc. And there is still so much to do: make table cloths, create the actual display and practice setting it up, buy the tent (ouch)...

So many questions....

We will be mainly selling the hubby's honey from the bees. And I have been working hard to make some lovely products with the wax and other by products.

My latest work has been on some lovely lotions.

The bars are really adorable, feel so luxurious, and smell nice too. I love that they are made with simple ingredients, but still works so well. I think they would make an excellent end of the year teacher gift as well. So, here's to hoping that those passing by will think so too!

What have you been up too?

Sewing Lately

I haven't had as much time for sewing lately as I would like. Work seems to always get in the way. When you work from home full time, homeschool, and try to run your hubby's bee business, it seems that sewing gets lost in the mix.

With the few minutes that I did have, I tried a couple new things.

First up, I made some crayon and colored pencil roll-ups. These were super fun.

I kept it simple by cutting three pieces of fabric the same size for each one.

Crayon roll up - 6 in x 19 or 20 in (whatever length my fat quarter was after I trimmed it...)

Colored pencil roll up - 9 in x 19 or 20 in

One of the three pieces in folded in half and used for the pocket.

I sewed lines 3/4 inches apart to fit the crayons and pencils. This attached the pocket to the inside fabric.

I also got a chance to try the block of the month for Sew Can She. This month was the On Point Heart. It was fun to try a block I have never made. I made them half the size of the block described in her tutorial. I hope to make two more and attach to make a sweet hot pad for spring.

It was fun to see how the different colors worked together. I like the one on the left better. I think you can see the heart more clearly. I'm going to try one with the birds on the outside and the teal and polka dots forming the heart to see how they play together too.

I am adding my blocks to the monthly link-up.

Melon Mosaics

I just love when Rachel, at Stitched in Color, has these mosaic challenges. Her writing is just beautiful and I always feel inspired.

My first mosaic feels like a summer bouquet.

And my second...

Well, this one sort of reminds me of a sunset I saw at the beach.

It might be too many coral, peachy, orange colors, but sometimes the sky is just filled with so many different shades. And the solids could be fun together.

I really wanted to get a chance to work with some raspberry shades of color, but every time I tried it just didn't feel right. I might keep playing around with it because it is really fun.

Check out Rachel's post to see how to make your own and enter the giveaway.

International Quilting Day

I hope that you all were able to enjoy International Quilting Day. I was supposed to be working, but I decided it would be worth losing sleep to spend the day sewing.

I have been redoing my sewing corner and decided to put the big ironing board away. It took too much of my small space. So I found a small ironing board at Goodwill for $2. It was a mess, but I had lots of fun with fabric and a staple gun recovering it.

With my new ironing board made on Friday, I was all set to work on my first quilt on Saturday. So I started by planning out where I wanted each square to create the bee body.

Then I spent the whole rest of the day piecing it together. This part was fun and frustrating. I thought I was so careful cutting and so careful with my seams, but some of the pieces still do not line up as I wanted. I put some of them together more than three times. Then I decided to go with a quote I recently saw and felt that it would be better finished than perfect.

So it is not perfect, but it isn't horrible either. It is only a small fraction of the whole quilt and it took me so long. (Is this horribly slow for one days work??) So this will take a while, especially if I only get a weekend here and there.... but it was so much fun.

I worked a little on another project on Sunday to help the remake of my sewing corner. I am excited to share that with you soon. Just a little more to do...

My First Quilt

I finally decided what I should create for my first quilt. It took forever, and there are at least 8 other quilts in planning... but for the first one... I decided it should be for my soul mate, my hubby, the beekeeper.

I found this great fabric at Connecting Threads. I loved all the honey combs, little bees and beautiful flowers. And then they ended up having a 40% off sale. So I snagged a bunch and got planning.










So then I started planning it out. I am still not sure about the wings, but I have a basic plan that will have me just sewing squares together for this first one. Once I got the basic plan together, I found this great white fabric with little hexagon/honeycomb designs all over that will be great for the rest of the quilt. The fabric was really fun to pick out.

But I am soooooo nervous to put this thing together. I guess making the first quilt for my love wasn't the best idea. I don't want to mess this up, and I know he will inspect it from top to bottom. I have been sewing quite a bit, but never anything this large. I don't know how I will even quilt it and I have not ordered my walking foot yet. So for now, I have a few hundred more squares to cut and lots of piecing to do.  I will probably just stare at the quilt top for a while after it is put together before basting and quilting. That will be fun!

If you have any tips for a first time quilter, please share. :)

Le Challenge... Space

This past Sunday I had a lot of fun just sewing. I had to work part of the day, but I have also been trying really hard to include some time for the things I enjoy as well. So I sat down at the machine and decided to create.

Soon after I got started, my three year old got hurt while playing. It was just a small "boo-boo", but he wanted to cuddle and not let me sew. So after about 10 minutes of hugs and kisses and cuddles, we compromised. I told him that I would make him a pillow, so that he would have space for his head to lay while resting the "boo-boo" on his foot. He wanted Christmas themed pillows and I said YES!

Then the hubby got going on about how he still wanted an insulated bag that could carry his water bottle at the bee yard. He uses glass jars, to stay away from plastic, and wanted something that would hold them and keep them from breaking. So I started measuring the half gallon glass jug and designing a pattern for this lovely bag. It has two layers of batting and 1 layer of insul-bright on each side. I don't think that glass jar will be moving, breaking, or getting too warm anytime soon. I had some of the material that feels like a table cloth, I think it is called oil cloth or something. I used that on the inside so that if there was any condensation it wouldn't soak through the bag. He didn't want anything too girly on the outside, so we went with ninja turtles for the outer fabric. I am saving my bee prints for a quilt for the hubby. He thought the ninja turtles were pretty funny. The interior has a box shape, but I could not figure out how to get the box shape and all the batting in there for the outside. I am still trying to figure out how to do that, but the basic tote shape on the outside seems to work just fine for this first try. Now he has a space to keep his glass water bottle safe.

I wish I could have sewed all day and night. It was a great Sunday. What did you do this weekend?

These two projects are being entered into the monthly Le Challenge. There will not be a new challenge over the holidays, so be sure to check back around January 15th for a new theme.

A Grateful Heart

This week, I am so thankful for the few minutes I have found to sew. It is so hard to find the time, but I have been really trying to make sure that I get a few minutes. Sometimes it isn't even once a week, but I sure am trying. I have been planning and cutting while I work with the kids for school so that when I do get a few minutes I can just get right to it.

Here are some of my attempts and more bags. They are not perfect, but I sure am having fun. And I can't get better unless I practice. ;)

Hopefully this weekend I will get a chance to work on some gifts and a pretty purple block I am turning into another bag. Then, after Christmas, I plan to work on my first quilt. It will be for my daughter.