Baby Reo's Hat Collection

A friend of hubby's that he snowmobiles with is expecting their first child in February.  His wife, Barbara, asked me to make the baby fun hats to wear for fun baby pictures.  Reo was born on Super Bowl Sunday, February 2nd, at 9:30 am!

Here they are:

Plain Hats

Bear Hat

Chick Hat

Mickey Hat

Owl Hat

  

Newborn Long Tail Hat

Some are newborn size and others are 0-3 months.  She loved all of them!

My Kindle Covers

Last weekend I wanted to explore making myself some new kindle covers.  I found a pattern from Blissful Sewing's blog.  I loved this pattern!  Here are my results:

 

Floral Kindle Cover - Closed

Floral Kindle Cover - Opened

Aqua & Black Kindle Cover - Closed

Aqua & Black Kindle Cover - Opened

These covers fit my kindle keyboard perfectly!  It also includes measurements for Kindle Fire, Kindle Keyboard, Kindle 3G, Kindle Touch and Sony Pocket.  I will be making more of these.  My father actually requested one so I found some Star Trek fabric from Etsy to make it for him for Father's Day.

The Letters - Suzanne Woods Fisher

Summary:

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Rose Schrock is a plain woman with a simple plan. Determined to find a way to support her family and pay off her late husband's debts, she sets to work to convert the basement of her Amish farmhouse into an inn. While her family, especially her cranky mother-in-law, is unhappy with Rose's big idea, her friend and neighbor, Galen King, supports the decision and he helps with the conversion. As Rose finalizes preparations for visitors, she prays. She asks God to bless each guest who stays at the Inn at Eagle Hill. As the first guest arrives and settles in, Rose is surprised to discover that her entire family is the one who receives the blessings, in the most unexpected ways. And she's even more surprised when that guest decides to play matchmaker for Galen King.

With her signature plot twists combined with gentle Amish romance, bestselling author Suzanne Woods Fisher invites readers back to Stoney Ridge for fresh stories of simple pleasures despite the complexity of life. Fisher's tale of God's providence and provision will delight her fans and create many new ones. Welcome to the Inn at Eagle Hill.

Rose Schrock's life has had so many bad things happen to her lately. Her husband's death, failure of his business, her step-son running away and also having to move in with her mother-in-law and returning to the the Old Order Amish traditions.  Rose is determined to pay back her husband's debt so to make money she turns her basement into an inn.  She learns a lot from her first guest and her guest learns from her about faith, love and forgiveness.  Will she be able to balance her life?  Will she be able to get over the guilt left behind by her late husband?  Will she be able to move on and love again?

I really enjoyed this book from Suzanne Woods Fisher.  I love that the characters fromt he Stoney Ridge series are in this series too!  But it is not necessary to have read that series in order to understand and enjoy this one.  I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series, The Calling, soon!  A special thanks to Net Galley and Revell for allowing me to review this book.

Zippers, Zippers Everywhere!

Lately I've been sewing lots of bags and pouches using zippers.  If you've been to Joann's lately, zippers can cost you about $2 each or more.  Let me share a little secret with you, I get my zippers from Zip It, an Etsy store!  She has the best deal around!  I buy 10" zippers for smaller pouches and 14" zippers for my box bags.  Here are my favorite deals from her store:

• YKK Coil Zippers 10 Inch Mix and Match Your Choice of 25 Zippers for $11.25

• YKK Zippers Your Choice of 25 YKK Brand 14 Inch Zippers Mix and Match for $12.50

Look at the variety of colors!  There shipping is really quick too!  I would highly recommend this store to everyone!

My Favorite Zipper Pouch

I found another great pouch tutorial on Pinterest, I love that website!  It is called My Favorite Zipper Pouch by Jedi Craft Girl.

Here is my first pouch:

I made these using some layer cakes that I have acquired from Missouri Star Quilt Company.  This one is called Lost and Found 2 by Riley Blake.  These pouches also have the covered end for the zipper.  It is a nice size too, about 8-1/2" wide by 6" wide with a box bottom.

I will be making more of these soon too for my Etsy store!

Lil Cutie Pouches & Box Bag

I've been sewing again this past weekend!

 

Here are some smaller pouches, called Lil Cutie Pouches, which are perfect for keeping my hand sewing needles, scissors and smaller items for hand sewing.

 

I acutally made three of these but I kept one for myself to match this box bag:

I finally got this bag right.  I added tabs at both ends of the zipper and made the handle 8" long instead of 11" on the last one.  Much better!!!

 

This is my bag for my English Paper piecing.  Don't you think this fabric is so fitting??!!  I found it over at Uberstitch's Etsy Store.  She has an amazing selection of Riley Blake fabric at very reasonable prices.  I bought half a yard of the hexie fabric and made the box bag, 3 smaller pouches and one larger pouch with plenty of scraps to spare and use.

An Amish Garden by Various Authors

“A Place of Healing” by Vannetta Chapman
Emma discovers a run-away teen in her barn, and the bishop asks her to provide a haven for a woman and her two children. Then her mother-in-law reveals a secret about her garden. Will Emma choose loneliness or learn to accept God’s gifts?

“Flowers for Rachael” Kathleen Fuller
Rachael’s garden is beautiful, but she is lonely. Gideon is in love with Rachael, but when Rachael finds her garden in shambles after a crisis, she rejects his help. Will she realize she doesn’t have to do everything on her own?

“Seeds of Love” Tricia Goyer
When a corporation shows interest in buying Sadie’s heirloom seeds, she panics. They are all she has left of her Dat and Mem. Eli believes he can help Sadie, but a misunderstanding leaves her heartbroken. Will she trust him again, and will the seeds of a new relationship take root?

“Planting a Future” Beth Wiseman
Rosemary is doing her best to run her family’s household. She excels at all her tasks except one: gardening. Saul has been interested in her for years, but Rosemary has turned him down repeatedly. Saul begins helping with her family’s garden, but someone is sabotaging his efforts—and keeping a secret that could change their lives.

 

In Planting a Future, it is a heartwarming story of true love.  Rosemary is running her household since her mother passed and should be married with her own family by now.  Saul has been her true love since they were 16.  Will they now be able to give love a chance?  Will Rosemary let Saul into her heart?

 

In Seeds of Love, Sadie moved to Montana with her aunt and uncle after her parents died in a buggy accident.  She decided to leave the area to avoid the daily memories of the pain she is feeling.  The only connection she has left from her parents are her Mem's heirloom tomato seeds.  She plants a wonderful garden but is meet with several challenges to help it thrive.  Eli is the recent Amish traveling bachelor who is taken in by her aunt.  Will Eli help Sadie save her family history?  Will love bloom with them?

 

In Flowers for Rachael, Rachael has a beautiful garden and loves flowers.  Gideon is her neighbor that has fallen in love with her.  Can Gideon win Rachael's love?

 

Finally, in a Place for Healing, Emma is grieving the recent loss of her husband.  She is living on a large farm with her eldery mother.  The highlight of their day is working in the large garden.  One day she discovers that a young Amish boy is living in her barn.  Will she take him in?  How will she deal with carrying for him and the future plans for her home?

 

I loved this book! These four authors are amazing! Each story touched my heart in a special way.  A special thanks to Net Galley for allowing me to review this book in advance for free in exchange for an honest review.

Michelle's Bag Set

I've been on a bag kick lately.  My hubby liked them so much that he asked if I could make a set of them for his friend's friend's wife, Michelle.

 

Here they are:

Here is the cosmetic bag:

This time, I added a handle that was made with a piece of interfacing lined fabric which was 5" by 11".  I think the handle is a little too long so I will try a 5" by 8" piece next time.  I also want the handle to be on the closed zipper end and add a tab on the open zipper end.

 

Here is the lined zipper bag:

 

This zipper bag has covered end!  I like how these look better!  I also trimmed the zipper to 1/4" after adding the tabs to reduce some of the bulk in the corners.  It seemed to help!

 

I reaily like how these come out!  I think these are two of my favorite bags right now!  I will be making more of these sets soon for my Etsy store!  Keep your eyes open!

This blog post has been entered into Ellison Lane's The Crafty Traveler Giveaway!

Cosmetic Bag

Okay, here's another box bag.  I was attempting to make a larger one and this is the perfect size!

 

Here it is:

 

 

Don't you just love this fabric!  I found it on clearance at Meeting House Fabric in Wales, MA.

 

This pattern is called Cosmetic Bag Tutorial, which I found on Pinterest thanks to my neighbor's daughter Jackie.  This is the perfect size for my English Paper Piecing stuff!

 

There is just one little problem, I don't like the sound of the fusible vinyl on the inside of the bag, it crunches.  To fix this, I am going to make one using fusible interfacing and I will also add a carrying handle to one end.  Keep your eyes open for an updated version of this bag with full instructions and step-by-step pictures.

This blog post has been entered into Ellison Lane's The Crafty Traveler Giveaway!

Zippered Pouch

On that same snow day that I made the Quilted Box Bags, I also made some zippered pouches.

Here they are:

Hers are the backs:

See what fun stuff can fit inside one, with plenty of room to spare:

I wanted to have a small zippered pouch to keep my notions and crochet hooks in.  I love how these came out!  They are the perfect width for crochet hooks!  This pattern is called Zippered Wristlet/Pouch Made Easy, which I found on Pinterest.

This blog post has been entered into Ellison Lane's The Crafty Traveler Giveaway!

Kyla's Birthday Quilt

Our friend's daughter turned 10 yesterday.  She was so excited to finally be double digits!  So for her birthday, I made her another quilt.  She received a baby quilt when she was born but she needed a bigger one now.

Here it is:

It is called a Friendship Braid Quilt.  It used the 5" half hexagon ruler from Missouri Star Quilt Company.  I love how it came out especially since it uses her favorite colors, purple and pink.

Here is a picture of the label on the back:

Then I also made her a pencil case with a zipper from the fabric left over from her quilt.

Here it is:

Happy 10th Birthday Kyla!