Charming Handbags!!

So remember when I posted on Monday that I was going to start a new little holiday project . . . Well, they are finished!!! (and I still have 20 days until Christmas :)   5 Charming Handbags made using this wonderful tutorial from Amanda Jean at the Moda Bake Shop ;)  I am not much of a bag maker, so I was a bit nervous about putting these together.  But the tutorial was great and easy to follow so they went together super easy and I am so excited with the results ;)  I mean, who doesn't love square patchwork and getting to play with Charm Packs!!  I have since made a Charming Tote Tutorial here , with Amanda's permission, to show how I made my totes with a few alterations from this mentioned tutorial.    How about some individual shots ;)

Starting with the oldest, for my niece Ka who is 11, a Charming Handbag made with Cotton + Steel basics :)

And lined with this super fun print from Kate Spain's Daydream line for Moda :)

For my niece Ki who is 9, a Charming Handbag made with Social Club by Eric and Julie Comstock for Moda :)

And lined with this classic print from Fig Tree Co.'s Mirabelle line for Moda :)

For my daughter, Jessi who is 9, a Charming Handbag made with Sew Stitchy by Aneela Hoey for Moda :)

And lined with her favorite color from In House Staffs Essentials line for P&B Textiles :)

For my niece El who is 6, a Charming Handbag made with Spot On by Studio for Robert Kaufman Fabrics :)

And lined with of course Basic Dots from Riley Blake Designs :)

For my niece Ra who is 4, a Charming Handbag made with Butterfly Dance by Cinderberry Stitches for Riley Blake Designs :)

And lined with of these adorable mushrooms from Aneela Hoey's Walk In The Woods Line for Moda :)

And here they are all in a line!!!  I am so excited for them to open them Christmas morning ;)  And I have to admit, not so nervous about making a basic bag anymore.  5 is really good practice :)

So what about you??  Do you like making bags??  If you want to and are a bit nervous, I would recommend this tutorial, it is super easy for beginning bag makers ;)  And they are great because you just need a charm pack and 2/3 yardage for the lining and handles.   And we all know we have a stack of charms lying around (Please say that isn't just me :)    Just a note if you do **Be sure and clip the corners of the lining like you did the bag, it doesn't say this step and I sort of missed it and figured it out later when it was a bit harder to "fix" it ;)

And that is all for today :)

I hope you have a very Happy Quilting Weekend!!!

Linking these finished bags to Amanda's (love this gal!!!!) and Sarah's :)

Vintage Vibe Blog Tour - Twirl!!!

Today is my stop on the Vintage Vibe Blog Tour and I am so excited to share a little more about this book with you ;)  Vintage Vibe was written by Amber Johnson of Gigi's Thimble Quilt Patterns.  I met Amber in person at Fall Market and we became instant friends :)  Amber has such a classic feel about her and so it was no surprise that she wrote about taking Traditional Quilts and giving them a Fresh Fabric makeover :)

We were each asked to review a particular quilt in the book.  I was instantly drawn to Twirl, and you can probably see why.  It is a Stunner!!!  Precise piecing, perfect points, and lots of movement.  Oh ya, totally my kind of quilt!!

Photo Courtesy of Martingale, Photographer Brent Kane

Twirl is made up of 2 different blocks and both are so fun and classy!!  I love the way the blocks play off of one another as well.  And you all know, I can never get enough pinwheels, and I just love the contrast of the print and white pinwheels in the 2 blocks :)

Photo Courtesy of Martingale, Photographer Brent Kane

Amber has a really fun way to put these blocks together, so of course, I totally had to try one.  I made Block B  (the ones in the middle of the quilt) and oh my, it was so such a fun block to make :)  Look at all of those points, so fun!!  I just love it.

This block will be going into my Grandparent's Bees Knees quilt!!!  Doesn't it looks so fun there in the center!!  Just a few more blocks that are in the mail and I will be putting this one together ;)

Be sure to pop on over to Amber's to check out all the stops on the Vintage Vibe Blog Tour.  It will be going on to the end of the month and there are some amazing stops that have already posted.   Lots and lots of Quilty Goodness :)  And I want to say Thank You to Amber for being such a lovely friend and having me as part of her awesome book's hop ;)

You can find Vintage Vibe on Amazon or if you want an autographed copy check out Amber's Etsy shop ;)


Thanks for stopping by today and have a Happy Quilting Day!!

Quiltmaker's Staff Block Challenge featuring my Block & Giveaway

**Note - If you are looking for the Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post you will find it here ;)

While at Fall Market I found out that the staff at Quiltmaker had chosen my "A Study In Quilting Block" for their Staff Block Challenge.  So exciting!!!  What is the Staff Block Challenge you ask??  Well, you take this one versatile block, add 8 fabric companies, and finish with a group of amazingingly creative quilters and you end up with some super amazing Staff Block Challenge Quilts!!!

This is the Original quilt I made using this block.  It is called Jelly Beans and was published in the May/June issue of Quiltmaker.   It is the block in a simple 6 x 6 layout, and I love the stars and secondary stars it creates ;)

For the Staff Block Challenge, the quilters were assigned a fabric company,allowed to use a 4 x 4 layout with a 4" border so each quilt finished at 56" x 56".  And can I say, I am totally blown away with how each quilter took this basic design and played with the color and layout to make it their own.  And they are incredible!!  Here they all are!!!

Donna Amos, former QM Scrap Squad Member, made this version using P & B Textiles.

 Carolyn Beam, QM Content Director, made this version using Hoffman Fabrics

Kelly Eisinger, QM Editorial Assistant, made this version using Timeless Treasures.

Eileen Fowler, QM Associate Editor, made this version using Quilting Treasures.

Diane Harris, QM Interactive Editor, made this version using Moda

Jackie Hughes, former QM Scrap Squad Member, made this version using Clothworks.

Denise Starck, QM Graphic Designer, made this version using Northcott.

Paula Stoddard, QM Creative Editor, made this version using Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

See what I mean!!!  Amazing!!!  It really goes to show how one quilt can be done in so many ways.  Each person really highlighted different parts of the design and really made it their own amazing design.  Just incredible!!!  You can read more about each of these awesome quilts in the Jan/Feb issues of Quiltmaker.  It is out on shelves now and is filled with lots of quilty goodness!!!  You can also check out this fun slide show that the folks at Quiltmaker put together on the Staff Block Challenge ;) 

I am so honored that the folks at Quiltmaker chose to use my block for their Staff Block Challenge and I am absolutely in love with the quilts they made.   What a special treat!!  Thanks Quiltmaker!!

 And the folks at Quiltmaker have a special treat for you as well!!!  Quiltmaker has graciously offered to giveaway  2 copies of Quiltmaker Jan/Feb issue to 2 of my lucky readers!!!  

 For a chance to win a copy, simply leave a comment on this post of your favorite Christmas Song ;)  I have been listening to Christmas Tunes non-stop and it always makes me smile ;)

The Giveaway is open to everyone and will close on the evening of Friday, December 5th and I will announce a winner Saturday Morning ;)

Thanks for stopping by and have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!

It's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day . . . let's have some fun :)

First, we need to announce the winner from last weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway!!   The winner of the $25.00 Gift Certificate from Cotton Bliss  is . . .   Number 36 . . . Congrats Teresa Stanulis!!   I have emailed you :)

    

  

    

And on to today's

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by Rustic Rooster Quilt Shop!!   Along with hosting the giveaway, Trina is having a sale starting Monday the 8th of  20% off your cart with the coupon code DEC14!!!!!  That is going to be some fun shopping :)

And the Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is for a gorgeous Somerset Jelly Roll!!!   I just love everything by Fig Tree & Co.!! 

You have two entry chances, the second being optional, and please leave a separate comment for each.  All Entries are welcome, including International Entries.  Please just be sure to leave an email address if you are a no-reply blogger ;)  

ENTRY 1 - Simply leave a comment that tells me what your at with your Christmas Shopping . . .  I am just about done, just need to get a few stocking stuffers and wait for a few online packages to arrive :)  

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Rustic Rooster Quilt Shop love. You can follow them on  Facebook. You can Sign up for the Rustic Rooster Quilt Shop Newsletter (top right hand corner)  or you can visit the Shop and then share a favorite item ;)   Just be sure to leave a comment of how you showed your Rustic Rooster Quilt Shop Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday, December 9th when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Dec 1st Equals Holiday Sewing

Yup, that's me.  I have 25 days until Christmas and so it's time to start the Holiday sewing.  It isn't that bad actually.  I had decided not to do a lot this year anyway, but this weekend changed that a bit.  See, each year we switch off family that we give to.  And this weekend, I noticed that my nieces in our assigned family are still using the totes I made them like 7 years ago for their piano totes.  Now those totes were not great to start with and they are now a bit hammered.

And so . . . .  It's new Piano Totes for Christmas!!!  I am planning on using Amanda Jean's amazing Charming Handbag tutorial found at the Moda Bake Shop here ;)

My daughter and I had so much fun raiding the charm stash this morning to pick out just the right charms for each girl.  We decided on Cotton +Steel  for Niece Ka (11), Social Club for Niece Ki (9) Pink and Purple Dots for El (6), Butterfly Dance for Ra (4) and then Jessi decided she wanted one as well so she picked Sew Stitchy for herself ;)   Can't wait to get started on these!!!  Sidenote - I am so excited to have finally picked a project to use my Cotton + Steel charms in, I have really wanted to sew them up ever since they arrived last month and I can't wait to get playing with them ;)


And just a quick reminder, today is the last day to get all Happy Quilting Patterns at 35% off!!!  You can find Happy Quilting patterns in my CRAFTSY SHOP or my ETSY SHOP and both places they are PDF Instant Downloadable :)

I am off to start sewing some totes!!  Have a Happy Quilting Day!!