A {Scant} 1/4"

i have always preached the scant seam allowance in my classes.
i find that it makes a big difference, especially when piecing more difficult blocks.
amy, from diary of a quilter, has a fantastic tutorial on her blog. below are a couple pictures taken from her post, go here for the entire tutorial.

happy quilting!

Strawberry Pillows!

how stinkin' cute are these!!!

chelsie sent me the link to these and i thought i'd share it with you. click here to head on over to purlbee to download the pattern.

so very cute! thanks chels (and becky!)

Teacher Gift

it's so hard to come up with a hand made teacher gift every year.
i am thankful that i am surrounded by creative people and my sister is definetly one of them!
she came up with the idea of an apple pincushion.

we ended up making the apple from heather bailey's pattern. we wanted to package it in a clear acetate box from garnish {LOVE that store!}, so we cut the pattern down by a 1/4 inch and used a piece of branch from the plum tree for the stem instead {we were short on time} the leave pins are from joann fabrics. and some grass, ribbon, tulle and a felt apple tag {made with a cricut} and your good to go.

{for next year , of course!}

hope everyone survived the many parties, graduations, promotions and late nights that go along with this time of the year! happy summer!

Hooded Towel Backpack

this is a fabulous idea and with summer vacation starting this week, i will definetly have to make this one soon! go here for the tutorial.

Love the Boots!!!

so much that i made an outfit to match.
a couple months ago, i bought these boots at target. i loved them so much i searched for a top to match and had no luck. all the liberty of london items from target have been bought out and are selling on ebay for double the price...{ugh}!!!



i got the {brilliant} idea to buy a scarf and cut it up...



i made the cardigan from an old t-shirt.
(note...don't cut out the neck!)
i cut off about 3 inches off the sleeves and bottom of the shirt and then added a ruffle to the bottom and just hemmed the sleeves.



i also added a cuff to the legs of her shorts.



WHA-LA! an outfit to match the stinkin' cute boots!
it's super easy...if i can do it, trust me...
sew can you!

You had me at the neosporin!

i found a link that took me to this wonderful blog called fireflies and jellybeans {cute!} and low and behold this is what i saw!!!

a travel first aid kit tutorial!

some of my closer friends know that i have a thing about neosporin.

it's kinda like WD-40 for some or Duct tape for others!

so when i saw this i knew it was for me and i thought i'd share it with you.

it's a must make for the car!

LOVE it!

i need to make a sewing machine cover.

i've been searching the web for some ideas. aren't these cute...

i found this picture here. i love the fabric choices!

and this one was cute i like the idea of the applique

of course martha always has great ideas. this one is from an old magazine, but i think i want the whole thing covered.

this is definetly a favorite! i LOVE pam garrison's work. click here for a free download of the embroidery pattern.

in the end, i decided that i would follow this tutorial and go with a simple cover like these...

We Got Sidetracked...

and oh how great it was!!!

mom and i had a weekend of quilting planned for weeks and weeks.
the plan was to quilt from sun up to sun down.
however, the red, white & blue caught our attention and it happened...
we got sidetracked!
our weekend started off late and we met for dinner in temecula you have to know that we can't go to temecula, without visiting vivian at rooster's creek. there we saw pillows, cute 4th of july pillows and that led to the making of these.



then we went in search of tin pails and found ourselves in pier 1
and saw some stinkin' cute aprons, that led to the making of these.

(raegan was a good sport about modeling for us!)

we had a great time together and i did get some projects checked off my list of 'to-do's' list. i'll take pictures and show you later.

right now i'm going to eat some ice cream and call it a night.

A Bright Spot

in a gray day...

i LOVE the marie claire idees magazine even if it is in french. the pictures and ideas are inspiration heaven.

look at these lovely aprons!!! fudgie...i'll take the one on the right! he he he

if i knew how to sew (or read french) i'd make the one on the left.

and this quilt...i am definitely putting it on my to do list. how cute!!!

i hope you are all having a great day!
if you look outside you might be able to see the BIG white flag of surrender that i am waving.
it seems that so many people that i love and care for could use a hug, encouragement and a ton of prayers!
friends...(you know who you are) i love you and i'm praying for you.
just remember...the Lord will not give you more than you can handle.
don't forget to look up.
love,

I Have Found a Treasure

i tell you!!!

a treasure!!!

pam garrison is a mixed media artsist from my neck of the woods.
her work is AMAZING and i just found her blog!

BRACE YOURSELF!!!
(Susan, sit down...)

here's just a few pieces of eye candy. you SIMPLY MUST go visit her blog!

she makes these samplers that are just random works of art

you can go here for great tutorials on different stitches.

this sewing machine cover was made from a pillowcase and she has the design pattern on her blog to download.

ummm, how cute are these!!!

they are made from coffee filters and different papers.

(if you see me buying coffee filters, now you know why!!!)

i know...i was SO excited that i just couldn't stand it! grab some hot cocoa and a warm quilt and browse through her blog!

OH HAPPY DAY!!!

A Fabulous Find!

while browsing through jodi's blog simply this,that and the other. i found this great tutorial! i really want to make one and i think jill (a friend of mine) is going to LOVE it! can't you picture it in the same fabrics as in my header! LOVE it! if you haven't checked out jodi's blog, you must!