Christmas Wrap-up #3 - The Final Saga

This post is going to be ALL ABOUT ME and what I got for Christmas:) Yea!

I want to introduce you to someone very special to me. We met at Christmas, and I turned a new page in my life, and will NEVER LOOK BACK!

ERNST!

Isn't he hot? He happens to be a Bernina 220 and runs like a dream! (In case you didn't know, Bernina is a Swiss company, so I named him after the smart kid on The Swiss Family Robinson, Ernst!)

Also, the awesome MIL got me this sweet ride for him, so I don't have to carry him!

He can do so many more things than Mo could, and he can ACTUALLY QUILT! It's so nice to not have to get frustrated with a tired old machine (sorry Mo, I still love you, a little).

My loving husband went to the Bernina store, unbeknownst to me, and picked him out, as well as a few accessories, ALL BY HIMSELF! Isn't he a peach? I don't know what I did to deserve him! One thing he made sure of was that Ernst came with instruction. Part of the package was 4 classes at the local Bernina Store to learn all about him and the crazy things he could do. That's what I was doing all January! We made all types of crazy samples, and now, I'm a MASTER! (Well, not really, but at least I know the ins and outs of him!) So, our house is pretty harmonious now, and I'm TERRIBLY happy! Hope you all had as great a Christmas as I obviously did!

See ya!

PS: My 1 year blog-a-versary is coming up. Shall I do anything special for my 2 readers out there? Hmmm?

Valentine's Day Skirt

We interrupt your regularly scheduled Christmas Wrap-Up (only one left to go) to bring you a special mushy post!

For about a week or so, I have had an urge to make a skirt. This is funny, as my past two attempts at apparel making have, well, not gone so well.

The first one was in my home-ec class in high-school. I made a wrap skirt. Just a big hemmed piece of material with a snap and a tie; easy, right? Wrong. I didn't put the snap on right and had to wear it with a safety pin.

For my brother's wedding, I decided to make a simple dress. It was frustrating, but when I was done, it actually looked like a dress . . . until I put it on. Let's just say, the girls would not be caged, and leave it to the imagination. (Don't worry, I wore something else to the wedding).

But I have been wanting a skirt for a week or two, so when City Craft had a Snow-Day sale, and I found this book, I got excited. I bought 3 yards of Amy Butler's Love fabric, and last night, I whipped this up.

My Valentine's Day Skirt!

It's the Modern Circle skirt, and it was pretty simple. The book has some really cute stuff, and some really weird stuff, but it's a basic intro into apparel making, and is really helpful with terminology and growing your confidence. I give it a solid A.

I've worn it all day, even though there is snow on the ground and the wind is whipping it all over (I think I might have mooned some people) but it was very happy looking and brightened an already great day! We went to a lovely breakfast at Panera and then to see Valentine's Day, which I loved, despite all reviews. Now we're hanging out and I will be making a big fancy-smancy dinner. It'll be LOVELY!

And yes, I know I need a tan, and no, I will not be getting one. Because, as my 8th grade English teacher, Mrs. Odom, once said . . . Glaringly White is Beautiful!

Happy V-Day!

Christmas Wrap-up #2

Now, moving on to S's family.

I made this for S's brother. It's a smallish lap quilt, and it's just a bunch of flying geese squares in green and white.

This was for the SIL. She's a quilter, so I made her a bunch of accessories. A pin cushion from an Oh Fransson pattern (I love it, have one myself), and a few needle books and a small scissor holder. (Also a fabric gift card, but I didn't make that!) The fabric is Alexander Henry something (I can't remember the line, but they are all the same line. I bought them here.)
This one I made for S's dad. I finally got the Modified Bento Box right! It's maroon and white, for watching the Ags!

This one I made for S's mom. It's a beautiful pattern from Bunny Hill. I taught myself embroidery on it (I had done a little, but this is my first big project). This was the 2009 Block-Of-The-Month. I should have showed it to you earlier, but I wanted it to be a surprise.

This is my favorite one. It' July! Yea!

That's it for everyone else, I'll show you what I got next time!

See ya!

Christmas Wrap-up #1

Lets start with my family, shall we? I know my attention span isn't that long, so I'll try and keep this short and sweet.

First, a review. I decided to make everyone something hand-made for Christmas. I needed a padded cell before it was done, but it is finally done.

I made my mom this Dogwood throw. She loves dogwoods, and I knew she admired the quilt in one of my first quilt books. (I actually bought it for S for Valentine's day one year, but that's another story.) I taught myself needle-turn applique on this one! She loves it.

I knit my first hat for my dad. My poor dad, it's pretty bad, but I'm still proud of it. And so is he (I think!)

I made my brother beer coozies. They have his pictures on them! They crack me up to no end! They were difficult to make, and they're not very well constructed, but they were good for a laugh!

I made my SIL an embroidered picture with a "J" in it. She once asked me to embroider olive leaves for her (she's Greek) but I couldn't figure it out, so this is the next best thing!

For one grandmother, (the one who taught me to quilt) I made a pin cushion and gave her some fabric. She was pretty happy!

I had been wanting to make a Modified Bento Box for a while, so I decided to make one for my grandmother and grandfather. I didn't use a pattern, just looked at some on-line and went for it! (The main one I looked at was the one by Amanda Jean at Crazy Mom Quilts. I miss her)! Anyway, I didn't measure correctly, so I ended up making matching boxy quilts. They really enjoy them, though! This one was for my grandfather.

This one was for my grandmother.

Finally, my cousin had her first baby in November, so I made this blanket for little Gema Neveah!

That's it for my family . . . next time . . . the in-laws!

See-ya!

ACK!

I know . . . I'M HORRIBLY LATE! December was a mess trying to finish up Christmas presents . . . then January was a mess, trying to finish up Christmas presents (only 3 weren't done for Christmas, but the last one took until January 25! My poor mother-in-law!)

I also got a ridiculously wonderful present, and I want to introduce you all ASAP, but I don't want to rush it. So that, and the Christmas Wrap-Up will have to wait. I hope to get it all done this weekend, but we'll see.

For now, I just wanted to stop in and let you know I was still alive, and give you some AWESOME news! Last night was the first meeting of the Dallas Modern Quilt Guild! Hurray! We had so much fun! I met a lot of new people, and we're going to have a BLAST! If you're in the area, you should stop in next month! We're just getting the ball rolling, and since all we really did last night was meet each other and talk about what we wanted to do with the guild, I don't have much to tell you, but know it was great!

Anyway, I'll be back soon with crafty stuff, I promise!

See ya!