Ah Summer....

Well the summer seems to have gone by quickly for me. I have been busy in my sewing room and I did have a chance to go on a few vacations. Blogging and reading blogs has definitely taken a lower spot on the priority list. Sometimes a break is needed. I'm hoping September will be a return to a regular schedule of blogging and catching up.

Here's what I've been up to in the last month (the projects that I can share anyhow):

This pile of fabrics, all from my stash, are for the Meadow Mystery Quilt-A-Long hosted by Cheryl @Meadow Mist Designs. I joined the Midnight Mystery Quilt hosted by Cheryl last year and had so much fun that I decided to join again this summer. I'm a bit behind since the cutting and first piecing instructions are out. I'm hoping to catch up this month.

I took a trip to Newfoundland a couple of weeks ago. It was a spur of the moment trip since I had less than a week to prepare to go. I was visiting family out there and made these make up bags for my two younger cousins.

They look much better when they are actually filled. They came out a bit slouchy I find. Some of my favourite fabric collections went into these and they were in my stash ;)

You can find the video tutorial at So Sew Easy.

I also quickly whipped up a bag for me to take to Newfoundland. I wanted to make a slouchy bag but couldn't find any patterns that I really liked. So I found one in my Sew Serendipity Bags book by Kay Whitt and modified the pattern a bit to what I was looking for. The end result is this gem.

I had bought this fabric a couple of years ago on a bus tour trip down to Maine. At the time, I didn't know what I would use this fabric for since the print is so large but I think it fits nicely for this purse.

I tried to cut out the pieces are best as I could to show the design. This side came out better than I pictured it.

And the simple inside that has binding on the edges. This bag was difficult to put together. I used the seam ripper A LOT! and it's a bit bulky to sew but the end result was worth it in the end!

I am currently working on a baby quilt for my new nephew or niece who will be arriving next month. I'll be able to share pictures when the baby quilt is delivered to my sister and her husband. I just finished the quilting this morning and only need to trim and add the binding.

I hope you all have had a good summer and have taken time to unwind. I needed a bit of breathing room and I'm feeling better now that I've had it. I realize there will always be a struggle of what I want to do and need to do. There are only so many hours in the day to strike that balance. I'm trying to find mine ;)

Wishing you all many happy sewing days in September!

Julia