sewing Archives - Page 8 of 24

a Happy Birthday Quilt Block

July 24, 2014 By Taylor 3 Comments

Recently I have come to realize that as far a sewing goes, I think quilting is my favorite. It’s long and can be time consuming at times but in the end its magic!

Some of my favorite quilting products are made by Olfa… how could I quilt without my rotary cutter and self healing mat!? They are celebrating their 35th Anniversary so when they contacted me about reviewing a few Olfa Products, I was in!

I was sent a fresh, new rotary cutter, a frosted acrylic ruler and a rotating self-healing mat, which I have been eying for months. They also asked if I wanted to make a quilt block to celebrate the big 35! The only rules were that it had to be 6.5″ x 6.5″ and there had to be some yellow in it. I started by pulling my yellow scraps.

I searched online for a block that looked like a birthday cake and I came across this tutorial so I pretty much followed it and used the dimensions she gave, I didn’t make mine wonky though, I went with a straight cake :) I LOVE my new rotary cutter! My other one is a lot bigger so this one is perfect for small projects. I also love the smaller acrylic ruler for the same reason. It also works better on darker fabrics because of the frosted background.

Let me just say how much I needed the rotatable self-healing mat in my life. I am very lucky and have a huge work table in my craft room but it can present a problem with trying to walk around it for cutting.

This was a quick block to sew! Its nice to have a quick project that I can finish in no time :)

I used my rotating cutting mat, acrylic block and rotary cutter to trim it up to size.

Lastly I used a stamp and permanent ink (which I heat set) for the number 35 on the cake.

They are collecting the blocks to make a big quilt to display at the Houston Quilt Market this fall… how fun! Happy Birthday Olfa! Thanks for inviting me to the party :)

Onesie Refashion Part II

July 10, 2014 By Taylor 24 Comments

Happy Thursday… My girl is here and she is two weeks old today! I have shared pictures via Instagram (taylormadeblog for your dose of baby cuteness).

I posted about my Onesie Refashion a few years ago when my friend had a baby. Just a few weeks ago I made some for my girl so I thought I would share. You can head to THIS POST for more pictures and info but these are super simple!

All I did was iron some Wonder Under to the back side of fabric and cut it out into a shape I like. Then I peeled the backside of the Wonder Under off, and ironed the shape to the onesie. Then I sewed around the perimeter of the shape. I like the messy look and as you washed it it will get even more frayed which I like.

If you do a bib style shape then make sure the curve of the neck matches the curve of the onesie. Don’t forget to sew around that too.

These would make a super cute gift set.. but I’m keeping these :) Actually the light pink one is what we brought her home in!

Happy Sewing!

DIY Baby Leggings

June 11, 2014 By Taylor 4 Comments

It’s feeling very “nesty” around here- on the blog and in real life. I don’t have a ton of energy left so all of my more recent crafty projects have been baby related, I promise I do other things besides obsess over my baby (not a lot of other things but some). In fact we have been swimming a ton, we went to the beach last week and we are getting tile installed in our master bath next week, yay!

Anyway, I wanted some more leggings to go with Baby Bee’s newborn onesies. All of the cute online legging shops have inspired me, but not enough to pay over $30 for something she won’t be able to wear long. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about supporting small craft businesses and paying a little more for something handmade. I will just wait until shes a little older so she can wear it for longer than a few weeks :)

I found this pattern online but the crotch to waist length seemed a little short. Then after I finished my first pair, I found this tutorial (which is funny because Ashley had the exact same picture that I had already taken, great minds) So, I kind of made my own pattern based on another pair of leggings just like she says and I used her tutorial. Its a great tutorial by the way, super easy to follow and very fast!

I even broke out my twin needle.

I found the black & white fabric and the red & white polka dot fabric at Girl Charlee. The colorful stripes on grey is an old skirt Ive had for 10+ years. I didn’t have enough of it to match the pattern so I hope my girl isn’t a stickler for details ;)

After trying this first batch I will definitely be making more but I will see how these fit first. Now if my model would just come out so she can try them on.

Briar Rose Strip Quilt

May 26, 2014 By Taylor 18 Comments

9 times out of 10 I don’t buy fabric with a project in mind. I see fabric I really like, I buy it and I take it home. Then months later when I want to make something I “shop” in my own craft room and find the perfect fabric for the job. This quilt was no exception. Last year when I spotted the Heather Ross Briar Rose line I knew I had to have it, and I had to have all of it :) I bought the fat quarter pack and there it sat on my shelf for almost a year. Then in February I found out I was having a girl (yay) and I started putting her room together knowing she would have a mama-made quilt.

At first I had these same strips in mind but I was thinking solid colors… black, white and coral. Then it seemed too matchy-matchy with the room and I wanted a pattern. Here is a baby name secret… we have been calling her Baby Bee for months because her name starts with a “B” so I really wanted to add some bees somewhere. Then I remembered this Briar Rose fat quarter pack!! Bright colors, fun patterns, and bees… too good to be true right? That’s why I buy fabric I like right when I see it :)

I didn’t follow a pattern I just googled the standard size for a baby quilt and did the math. I started by cutting 2-3 strips of each pattern that were 4″ by the width of the fat quarter.

When I had enough I scrambled them up to “randomize”. Then I sewed them into one big continuous strip.

After I pressed all my seams down, I cut the big strip into smaller strips that were all the same width and started laying them out. I’m so thankful to have this big work table with my pregnant belly:)

I worked really hard at making sure none of the same patterns or colors were touching… see the two pink strawberry fabrics touching, I don’t like that haha #fabricgirlprobs.

After I got it how I liked it, I went row by row… pinning then sewing. I used a 1/2′ seam allowance for everything.

Here I am pressing my seams like a good tailor.

I added a border that was also 4″ wide all the way around but then when I opened my batting it was shorter than what was listed on the package. So, I had to shorten the top and bottom of the border. I found this grey floral fabric at Joann’s. I obviously like to do my basting late at night when the lighting is bad :) Then, I quilted above and below the seam of each strip.

I made some binding out of this cute green Christmas striped fabric I found. Quilting confession, I am a cheater when it comes to binding… I have never tried it by hand, machine binding works for me! I still use clover clips however.