Hi again

I have been neglecting this little space for a few weeks now.  To be honest, I have not felt very inspired lately.  Things have been a bit hectic around here and I have been, for lack of a better word, distracted.

Fortunately, this distraction and lack of inspiration seems to be dissipating and I am back.  And just when I needed it, something caught my eye and inspired and motivated me to create something (that's you, Andria:)).

I never thought I would be a quilter.  I thought it was just for lonely middle aged women and grandmas.  I used to think that a quilt was the most uncool thing on earth.

Little did I know that it can be quite therapeutic.

The measuring and cutting...

The pressing (fancy term for ironing)...

And of course the sewing.  Lots of sewing.

Following a set pattern or idea, but improvising as needed.  Not knowing if it will turn out exactly the way you envisioned but also being open to mistakes, imperfections and the unexpected.

And making all of those things work for you and learning from them as well.

Using up some leftover favorite fabrics and incorporating some new, exciting fabrics.

Enjoying the process, even if it does not go just the way you thought it would.  Even if it was harder than you anticipated or took longer than you wanted.

The end product is a piece of you.  Representing that time in your life, your choices.  Providing a stepping stone or building block for future endeavors.

Memory Quilt

I have been MIA for a few days here but I have a good reason.  I have been busy making Sully's "memory quilt".  Pinterest led me to this awesome blog, The Life of a Cheap Chickadee, and I have been obsessing about her daughters' "baby thoughts" quilts ever since.  Check them out here.  I knew I had to make me Sully one.  I stared at these quilts for a long time, checked out the tutorial links and gathered my supplies.  I was ready to start!

I decided on a few choice items that held special meaning: The plaid shirt he wore for his 6 month pics, the flannel he wore on his first birthday, his 2011 Christmas shirt, the outfit he got in his first Easter basket and my favorite hot dog shirt of his.

Here is a step-by-step pictoral documentary of the process:

Backing (minky), top and batting (old left over fleece from projects ago) squares all cut.

Making the tri-layer "sandwiches".

"Sandwich" pile.

My "sandwiches" sewed with an X and laid out in the pattern I like.  I cut my top and back squares 8" and my batting/fleece 7".  I made the quilt 7 squares across and 5 squares long (or vice versa).

My "sandwiches" sewed into rows.  (Is sewed a word?)

And below, the finished product after sewing the rows together, cutting the edges, washing and drying it.

Voila!!!!

A pic of the minky backing.

And the boy loving it as much as I do...

Fyi- the damn minky gets everywhere but once you wash and dry it, it will stop shedding.
Now off to dinner and a concert with the hubs!!!

Quilting Queen

Just call me a quilting queen.  I am just this close to finishing my second quilt of the year.  Don't bother trying to figure out the pattern, it is random and made up.  I did not follow a fancy pattern.  And don't look too close, you will see some wonky and off squares.  But it is nearly finished, just have to tie it off.




I made this little beauty

For this little nugget

 Even the hubs was impressed...

Yeah, we're cool...

Mostly refreshed.

The quilt is done!!!  Here is the room, mostly refreshed.  I say mostly refreshed because I want to get a new light fixture and also do something with the lamp shades but that will come later.  See the before here.

(Ignore the dog toy graveyard in our room)

Extreme close up.

Some personalization...

Since the quilt is queen-sized and I just have your standard sewing machine, there was no way I could finish the quilt any other way than with the ties.


And here are the skulls.  They are so festive, they just love Valentines day!

Looking forward to Sully meeting Harper tomorrow!!  Woot woot!

Grandma Groth

Yeah, just call me Grandma Groth.  Why?  I am making attempting a quilt.  Up until very recently, I would not have thought twice about a quilt.  Not even considered trying to make one (or even buy one for that matter).  However, as I age grow wiser, I am finding that I am starting to appreciate and like a whole world of things I have never thought I would be in to.  Also, I have truly been inspired by other hip, young mamas out there who are just so damned crafty.  I am jealous of their talents and their creations.  Such as this one here.

In typical Tara fashion, I told myself, "don't just sit there and be jealous of their talents, teach yourself how to do it."  Because, in my own head, I really can do anything (slightly delusional?).  If I can't find a book around with the instructions I need, I just head to the next best thing, Google.  So Google and I are going to attempt this quilt thing.

I had a bunch of fabric fat quarters as I would occasionally buy them when I saw some I liked in the fabric store.  So I (and Google) decided to go get a rotary cutting tool, ruler and cutting mat. And I started cutting away.

I am using 4 1/2" squares.  Google and I looked up lots of potential patterns but I decided we would just do your standard patchwork squares for this one.  Obviously, I am not a fabric hoarder so I did have to order some fabric online.  And let me tell you, it is awesome getting fabric delivered to your door!  Anyway, the fabric in the above pics is the stuff I ordered.  What you see below is the fabric I already had that I cut and sewed into strips before I even got the above fabric.

Yes, there are lots of different patterns and colors but I love all of them and I wanted the quilt to be lively.

So there you have it so far.  I hope to have a decent final product to show you soon.

Also, don't you think January is the best month to make a quilt?  It is just asking for something cozy.