A crafting year in review . . .

This is something I like to do at the end of the year . . . take a look back at how I spent those afternoons when my little one was napping, and those evenings when the hubby was gone to another meeting.  Reaffirm why I LOVE my hobbies of sewing and quilting, and where all those fabric purchases went to.

Not as many bags this year, but I did get one made for me :)  Two bags were given as giveaway prizes, and the rest were gifts.  There were also more little totes given as birthday gifts, but I didn't blog about them all.  I've also realized that bag-making is one of my favourite ways to spend my sewing time.

Some accessories . . . mini pouches, a Kindle cover, fabric buckets, some pillows, and other miscellaneous little projects.  I often only make something once, but looking back reminds me which ones I should make again.  The table topper was for me, and I'm enjoying it every day.  And my favorite project was probably the handle cover I made for my little guys room - it keeps him in there and has been a sanity saver when we put him to bed at his grandparents house when we're visiting.

Not as much clothing sewing as previous years, but my girls are getting older and are starting to prefer going shopping and trying things on over mama-made.  And my youngest daughter's closet is starting to overflow with the hand-me-down dresses that I've made for their big sisters, good thing she likes to dress up!

And the quilts . . . two signature quilts for some very special women in our church fighting with cancer. Two quilts made with the Do Good Stitches Joy circle, also for cancer victims.  One little boy charity quilt.  Four quilts made for friends and new babies, some rag quilts for gifts, and one last double-sized quilt for my oldest daughter's bed.  Hopefully 2013 will have many more quilt finishes, including one for my own bed.

I have a few more finishes that I haven't blogged about yet that were given as Christmas gifts.  So hopefully I get to those over the next week or two.

THANK-YOU to all my readers and followers for cheering me on this past year!  This online community of quilters and sewers has been such a fun way to share projects and be inspired for the next one!

Holiday baking and cooking . . .

This tutorial popped up in my blog reader a couple weeks ago, and it made for a quick gift for some teachers and neighbors.  The instructions come with printable labels and directions, and it was a great project to do with my girls.  We made a batch in our own kitchen this past weekend too - gotta test them out, right?

A friend and I also got together recently and spent most of the day making a big batch of dutch croquettes, a yummy meat filled and battered delicacy. We hope to get together in the new year to do some more cooking for our freezers.  I love being able to pull something quick and easy out of the freezer for dinner on a busy day.

I grew up with a professional caterer for a Mom, so our kitchen was food-safe, complete with inspections from the occasional health authority.  I know the rules about wiping down the counters, disinfecting sinks, handling meat, and cross-contaminating foods.  I'd like to think that I have a food-safe kitchen in my house now, but I do like to rely on my antibacterial cloths and Lysol® wipes to ensure the job gets done.  Today I'll be making some appetizers for a New Year's celebration and I'd like to wish everyone a safe and Happy New Year's tonight!

Disclosure: I am part of the Lysol® Healthy Families Ambassador Program by Mom Central. I received compensation as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.

Lolly Dolly pillow . . .

This is a Christmas gift for my youngest daughter.

The tutorial is from the The Cottage Home blog and it uses a panel from the fabric line Dress Up Days.  The fabric was sent to me by the designer of this fabric, Shari Butler.

The back of the pillow is just a patchwork of the leftover fabrics.  I hope my little girl is happy with a doll that can't come off of the pillow!

a bag for Lily . . .

One of my niece's became a big sister last week, and I had some sweet fabric waiting to be made into something - so I figured she might like a new book bag.

This is a pattern that I've adapted from a couple others and made several times now, and the dimensions fit our psalter books perfectly.

The embroidery and stitching was all done by my machine - I love playing around with the different stitches.  Now I just have to finish off the gift for her baby brother so I can mail these out.

at a loss for words . . .

Reading the reports of the tragedy from this past Friday has left me overwhelmed.  

Holding my kids a little tighter, making sure they know how much they're loved by their Mama.  

Because they're only lent to us for a time, and we don't know the number of their days.  

Tragic things happen, and they need to bring us to our knees - Come Lord Jesus, Maranatha!

felt garland . . .

I've seen this idea around blogland, and thought it would be a great project for my oldest daughter.  She picked out 9 sheets of felt from the craft store (they were 34 cents each).  Then we took out the Baby GO and circle die and she and a friend cut out all the circles.

She did all the sewing herself which she was super thrilled about.

Pretty proud of her finished product :)

If anyone has any other simple sewing ideas (ones that I don't have to constantly help and supervise), I would love to give her more projects to do during Christmas break.

Second quilt finish for Do Good Stitches . . .

Yesterday I sewed the binding on, and finished this quilt just in time to link it up at Stitched in Color today.  Rachel is hosting an end-of-year celebration for all the Do Good Stitches groups.  You can vote for your favourite quilt (one was selected from each group - my group is JOY) or you can link up a finished charity quilt that you made (there are two linkys - one for bee members and one for everyone else).

This quilt is made using the Hugs & Kisses quilt block tutorial from LittleMissShabby.  I changed the dimensions a bit to have larger finished blocks.  The finished quilt is 62" x 49".  The backing is a flat flannel sheet, and the binding is an orange polka-dot that I had in my stash.

Once again, the Joy bee block members did a fantastic job on their blocks, and I love the scrappiness of this quilt!  So many fun fabrics all together make for one bright and cheery quilt.

It will also be going to a cancer patient, and I plan to deliver it along with my first quilt this month.  I hope it also brings some warmth and comfort to someone during their difficult struggle and treatments.

Fabric buckets and Secret Santas . . .

I had a couple gifts to give, and wanted to give the fabric bucket tutorial from Film in the Fridge a try.  They were super quick and fun to make.  I made one with her measurements, and one a bit shorter. I think these would make great teacher gifts too filled with a couple of goodies.

And I took part in the Secret Santa Swap over at the Colorado Lady blog this year.  This wrapped present awaited me at the post office and inside was a bunch of gifts - my kids were super excited to watch me open everything.

I received a whole bunch of ribbon (and have already used a bit from every one), a Starbucks mug (that I'm planning to put some girly print into so my hubby won't steal it), a pair of awesome mini snips (that worked great for all the loose threads on a quilt I worked on last night), some reuseable bags, a handmade cloth, Christmas fabric, and some bag patterns.  THANK-YOU so much to my wonderful partner, you put a lot of thought into everything!

Winners to Announce!

I was blown away with the amount of comments from the Fabri-Quilt and Sew Mama Sew giveaways!  THANK-YOU to everyone who stopped by and entered!  I have some upcoming pattern reviews, quilts to show, tutorials, and giveaways on my blog - so I hope you'll come again to visit!

Winner of fat quarter bundle of Pretty in Pink from Fabri-Quilt is Lisa Marie!

Winner of SMS Giveaway #1 - fat quarter bundle of orange/gray/aqua fabrics is debbiekl!

Winner of SMS Giveaway #2 - handmade bag is Jen B!

SMS Giveaway #2 - handmade bag

I recently got the opportunity to work with two fantastic new sponsors.  Wholeport is a huge online store filled with fabric, trims, beads, embroidery supplies, and much more.  Most of their cotton fabrics come in 60" width, and after receiving two prints from them, I had enough to cut out two complete bags - one for me and one for one of you!  For the bag pattern, I received the Steph-in-the-City pattern from Emmaline Bags.  I love the belt detail and hardware on this bag, and the adjustable strap so I can wear it cross-body or on my shoulder.  The pattern designer Janelle did a great job with her instructions and pictures.

How to Enter:

Leave a comment: what size bag do you like best?  Clutches, handbags, or oversized bags?
Bonus entry: followers, new and old, please leave a second comment.

Giveaway is open internationally. Please leave your email in your comment if it is not linked in your profile. Winner will be chosen by random.org on Dec. 8. Good luck!

And check out the Sew Mama Sew blog to enter all the other fun giveaways going on this week!

I also have two other giveaways on my blog right now:
Enter to win an orange/aqua/grey fat quarter stack here.
Enter to win a fat quarter stack of Pretty in Pink here.

SMS Giveaway #1 - fat quarter bundle

Recently, I was given a blogger grant from Mom Central to give my blog a makeover.  I'm working with a designer right now, and for the color scheme I chose orange, aqua, and grey.  So, I thought what better fabric giveaway than a stack of fabrics in these colors?!  Randi over at Fresh Squeezed Fabrics helped to put together this bundle for me, and I can't wait to see what one of you makes with it!

How to Enter:
Leave a comment: what is your favourite modern color combination?
Bonus entry: followers, new and old, please leave a second comment.

Giveaway is open internationally.  Please leave your email in your comment if it is not linked in your profile.  Winner will be chosen by random.org on Dec. 8.  Good luck!

And check out the Sew Mama Sew blog to enter all the other fun giveaways going on this week!

I also have two other giveaways on my blog right now:
Enter to win a handmade bag here.
Enter to win a fat quarter stack of Pretty in Pink here.