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

Time Slips Away

I realize that it has been almost a month since I shared a new blog post. Oopps. Time definitely slips away. I went on my week long sewing trip at the beginning of the month. It was INCREDIBLE! Best year so far and plans are already in motion for 2017! Even though I haven't been writing up any blog posts, I haven't slowed down much in my sewing room. I have all these finishes and progress pictures to share with you all today :)

First up are these cute little triangle pouches.

These beauties are for my sister's baby shower (minus the blue dragonfly one which she already claimed!) Here's a link to the tutorial by Crafty Gemini :)

Next up is this awesome rope bowl.

So much fun to make! And so practical. This size was made with 50' of 1/4" braided cotton rope. I followed this tutorial from Julie Hirt. I also first started doing foundation paper piecing through another one of her tutorials. She is incredible!

I also worked on my FQS Mystery Quilt from 2014!

Oh those strips! And huge squares!

So much love went into those blocks...

Here is the center of the quilt top. I still have add the top and bottom borders....Still in the WIP pile....Hopefully I'll have it finished in the next couple of weeks. This quilt will never be leaving my house!

Another project I started was Violet Craft's Hummingbird Paper pattern. And it's free from Violet Craft! I had the opportunity to meet her in Michigan (and get a hug!). She's an incredibly down to earth person. So I got this far on my sewing vacation...

And then I was working on the final piece....and I was talking....and I did this while trimming...

Oopps. So I decided to wait until I returned from my sewing vacation to finish off this beautiful hummingbird.

When I decided to make this block, I knew I wanted to put this block as part of a pouch. So here's what I came up with :)

I love this hummingbird!

The back.

And the inside :)

And just to give you a better idea of how large this pouch is...

That's my iPad 2!

And finally the baby quilt that I was working on my last post. I am calling this quilt pattern "Building Blocks" Most of those FMQ motifs were all new to me. I learned so much in doing this small baby quilt.

This baby quilt pushed me outside of my comfort zone but I feel thrilled that I finished it. Not sure where this one will end up. For now, it'll stay here.

Here are a couple of close-up pictures.

And the pieced backing. I just love the various textures in this quilt. Perfect for a baby ;)

Hope you enjoyed a glimpse into my sewing life in the past month :) I hope you get to enjoy some gorgeous weather over the summer! And some quilting time ;)