LOTS OF FINISHED PROJECTS MAKE FOR A BUSY SHORT WEEK!

I have put in a busy, busy week at the sewing machine, and my back is kind of feeling it this morning.  I have a few birthdays in July to make things for, plus my niece had asked me to make some things for her best friends baby, and I wanted to get mom's quilt pieces done before what would have been her birthday in August too, so all of this has kept me VERY busy.  I have also started somewhat on the quilt I am making for a wedding gift.  But meanwhile I honestly feel like I need to get busy on my Christmas sewing, which I know sounds ridiculous, but I do know how long it takes to get things made, and  I have MANY on my list I sew for.  I may have to do a little trimming back somewhere, or I will never get to the couple of quilts I want to make for myself,  at least not without tweaking my neck again.  Sooo after today I am taking 3 FULL days off, and then I only have one more week before my daughter comes for 10 days, and I am NOT touching it while she is here either.  Honestly, it is why I don't open an Etsy store, or really ever take orders (though I HATE telling people no) and have gotten a bigger admiration for people who do.   I am not sure how they do it?!  Or maybe they are not almost 60 years old and have a body that rebels.  Should have done this when I was younger maybe...but it is the old should have, could have, but didn't, lol.

Now that I am done with my whining, let me show you my completed projects.  I got the topper for my DIL back last Thursday and got the binding put on Monday night.  I LOVE it!  It's funny how these quilting things take on different "looks" while you are in the process, but once that binding is on and it is complete is when they are truly beautiful.  I ended up being VERY happy with this topper.  And I went through periods of time while I was making it that I didn't even like it at all, lol, let alone love it.  It is part of the reason I made the matching runner to go with it.  Well that and because I had PLENTY of matching fabric and there are two table tops in that room that really SHOULD have matching pieces.  The quilting done by the professionals is BEAUTIFUL, and I love it.  Didn't cost me much either in my opinion, guess because it is small.  I wish you could see it by someone who has a good camera (which I DID use!) AND knows how to work it, as my pictures just don't do it justice.  But let me show you...

WON'T TELL YOU HOW MANY TIMES I HAD TO MAKE THOSE PINWHEELS TO PLEASE MYSELF...ok it was 3!!

YOU CAN REALLY SEE THE GORGEOUS QUILTING ON THE BACK!

HERE IT IS WITH THE MATCHING PIECE

My DIL's birthday was yesterday but we will celebrate on the 4th of July when we all get together at her and Joe's house.  I am excited for her to see these, and to see how they will look in their dining room.   Then I decided to make the things for my nieces baby.  I bought the fabric a while ago (my niece is reimbursing me) while it was on sale for 60 percent off, and it has just been sitting there mocking me, lol.   I thoroughly enjoyed working with some girlish fabric as the last 4 babies I have sewn for were all boys.  Now let me tell you a brief (I will try hard!) story about these things.  My niece only asked me for burp cloths.  She knew her friend LOVED the ones I had made for Weston, so she wanted to give some to her.  But when I bought the fabric you have to buy the length of the fabric for the burp cloth of course, but they are really not very wide and lots of fabric is left over.  Plenty to make a matching bib.  I couldn't bear for my niece to PAY for fabric she wasn't getting full use of, so I decided to make up the bibs as well.  And then when my sister Diane and I were on our quilt run I came across this darling flannel fabric that I just couldn't resist, so I decided to get some and make her up a blanket as well.  They are quick and easy to do and it is as cute as I knew it would be.  Let me show you these things now...I did have fun adding simple appliques (I refrained from using my embroidery attachment, lol) and decorative stitches to the bibs.

HOW DARLING IS THIS FABRIC?  tell me you couldn't have resisted it either!

ANOTHER VIEW...IF YOU LOOK REALLY CLOSE YOU CAN KIND OF SEE THE DECORATIVE STITCH I CHOSE TO FINISH IT WITH.  THIS IS SUCH NICE FLANNEL TOO...SOO COZY AND SOFT!

ALL OF THE BURP CLOTHES WITH THEIR MATCHING BIBS...8 IN ALL

CLOSER LOOK AT ONE SET.  THEY ARE ONE COLOR ON ONE SIDE AND ANOTHER ON THE OTHER

LOVED THIS ONE...WISH YOU COULD SEE THE DECORATIVE STITCH BETTER.  THE FLIP SIDE OF THIS ONE IS THE PINK GINGHAM

KIND OF DIFFERENT, BUT I LIKED IT...SURE HOPE SHE DOES TOO!

DID THE DECORATIVE STITCHES ON THIS ONE IN AQUA SO YOU CAN SEE.  BUT THE BIBS ALL HAD A DIFFERENT STITCH.  THEY ARE COMPLETELY REVERSIBLE TOO, SO SHE CAN HAVE SOME DIFFERENT LOOKS

ONE SIDE OF THE BURP CLOTHS

THE FLIP SIDE OF THEM ARE ALL PLAIN (in case the other side is too cutesy for her, lol!)

And then I have made all but one of my daughter's place-mats.  When I asked her what she wanted me to make her for her birthday (which we get to celebrate while she is here..YAY... haven't celebrated WITH her on her birthday since she married 6 years ago!) she definitely wanted place-mats.  She has been looking for some for a while.  So here is the brief story on those. She wanted something pretty plain (at least in my opinion) and with simple quilting.  I sent her numerous options trying hard to convince her to want something MORE, lol, but she really was definite on what she wanted.  I will admit it made it simple for me.  I did do all the quilting myself (a simple cross hatch!) which was nice.  I decided to put the binding on by machine as I figured place-mats would get a lot of washing.  Well, that didn't go as smoothly as I hoped, and I had to play with it a bit to get it right.  Let me just say this, she has a couple of reserve ones she can use if she should be desperate, lol.  Kidding of course, I hope she would NEVER use them!  I also ended up just using the same fabric for the binding...I wouldn't have done that either, but again, she was definite on wanting them plain.  I have ended up LOVING them, though I was sure I would hate them, lol, as I would have never chosen so plain.  Here they are...

ONLY ONE TO GO!

THEY ARE NOT REALLY PLAIN AS THE FABRIC ISN'T OF COURSE, BUT JUST ONE FABRIC IS I GUESS MORE WHAT I MEANT...ESPECIALLY FOR SOMETHING QUILTED.  CAN YOU SEE THE QUILTING?

CLOSE UP OF THE BINDING...NOT PERFECT, BUT AS GOOD AS IT IS GETTING, LOL.  

I took one picture of the whole pile, so I thought I'd just show you that too...looking at all that no wonder my back is feeling it.  I need a comfy chair to sew in.  Maybe Christmas?

Today, I was going to whip up the final place-mat for Mel before my sister Diane gets her to sew, but I have decided against it.  I will get back to it on Monday.  It still gives me MOST of next week to make the pillow I have in mind for one of my younger sisters birthday's at the end of July.  After that, I should be all clear to start on Christmas!  Diane and I will work today on her ABC quilt for her classroom.  It is going to be sooo darling.  I am as anxious as she is to see it begin to come together.

We are all going to Joe's house for the 4th for swimming, bbqing, and fireworks.  I am soo looking forward to it.  The 4th of July has always been up there near the top of my favorite holidays.  I just like everything about it.  I do feel as though I need a patriotic quilt sometime soon though to complete the feel, lol. Someday for sure. We are taking my grand daughter Capri home with us for the week-end then and I am soo looking forward to that as well.  I am trying to make time for ALL of my grandkids to get some one on one time with us this summer.  Nothing like it of course.  And when you have 11 grandchildren that is hard to do, but it's easy to get lost in the mix otherwise.  The oldest one is working now, and the babies are still too little, but that still leaves several of them to get in. We also have a bonfire party coming up this week-end, so LOTS going on.  Hope you all have a WONDERFUL 4th of July, and celebrate the good old USA!!  Blessings to you all!  Debbie