Rainbow Challenge - Red

Oh my, we're only into the second month of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and I am already challenged!  I do not have any red scraps.  I had two 2" strips of a burgandy fabric with stars but other than that I was coming up completely dry.  So I went digging through my stash and found a beautiful red batik.  Then I came across this (does the happy dance)!  Add those and the rest of my Bliss charm pack and we have a plan!

Forgive my bedroom door, we've got a shortage of blank wall space at our house. 

It's coming together sew (as Madame Samm would say) beautifully, I'm super excited!

Regatta in Blue

I've been working hard at creating more blue scraps for my Blue & Bugs Blocks Quilt, see...

There's a strange wind a blowing...they can't make up their mind which way they're sailing.  The blocks are finishing out at a wonky size, 11 3/4' rather than 12" but I can work with it.  I'm going to add another column then I think I found the perfect Mariner's Compass blocks for the corners but I need to work on my foundation piecing skills before I tackle that.
(I got smart on this one, there's no chance that I'll run out of fabric because each block is made with a different fabric combination.) 

Rainbow Challenge Sew in Saturday

I know there is an official Sew in Friday but Friday's are our family nights so I'm going with the Sew in Saturday.

I've only got a few little things to report. I've been doing a mad dash with my enrollment and financial paperwork for going back to school. I actually begin classes this coming Tuesday! EEK! But enough on that. Let me show you what I've put together.

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Here is another bowl rug I made for my daughter. This time I used a log cabin block as my base and obviously a few extra colors other than blue.
So... I have something to admit here. This was the first time I've ever used black in any of my quilting.
Ok, when you take into consideration that I've only made about three quilts to completion in my life (tied quilts, not quilted quilts) and have not many more that that in UFO status that doesn't seem like a lot...but I'm wondering what took me so long. I love how it adds a dramatic punch to the look. Prepare to see more black!

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Here I am playing with some foundation piecing. I really like it!!! I think this might make either a pretty pillow or a nice hot pad.

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Ok, I see this and all I can think of is Sting singing I Saw Three Ships. (Love Sting!) You will remember how I mentioned that I need to make more blue "scraps" for my Blue & Bugs Block quilt. Well this is helping me get them. I found an adorable pattern for a quilt using these ships. I'm going to make a few and then hopefully find a Mariners' Compass pattern the same size to use for the corner blocks.

Finally I've gotten a couple more rows done in my Blue & Bugs Blocks Quilt. I didn't get pictures this time though. Next time. I better get to it through, January is almost over!

So I now have two very boyish quilts in the works. Hopefully February's color is a bit more girlie. :) Thanks so much for stopping by. Until next time have a lovely one!

Custom Blend Aromatherapy Eye Pillow Tutorial

My poor sweetie picked up a nasty head cold and was stuffy and miserable all weekend. Me being me, domestic/maternal goddess that I am, I wanted to do something to make him feel better and when I saw him putting a hot moist, washcloth over his face to try and ease the congestion I thought of just the thing.
So I sprang into action and went digging through my scraps and my pantry too for that matter to see how I could bring my plan to fruition. Lo and behold I came across some blue & white stripe flannel. Perfect, because now it counts for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge! So I snipped and sewed and filled and fluffed and finished up with a custom blended aromatherapy eye pillow.

Now I know this isn't a new idea, they were all over the place a few years ago although I haven't seen them for a while. I thought I'd share all the same, so without further delay here's my little tutorial on making a custom aromatherapy eye mask.

You will need:
Freezer paper
Flannel remnant
Muslin remnant
Pinking Shears or blade
Rice and/or flax seeds (both available in the bulk section of your grocer.)
Herbs or essential oils of choice
*Use dried, chopped herbs, not fresh or powdered! Some grocers carry a small selection of none-kitchen herbs but stop by your local natural health store for an even greater selection. (Just so you know, I used Rosemary, Peppermint leaf, Fennel seed, Lavender and Sage, if I'd had Eucalyptus I would have used that in lieu of the Rosemary and Sage.)

First off, mix your rice and herbs, I used approximately 1/2 a cup of rice and 1 to 2 tablespoons of each herb but make it to suit your taste...or smell rather, :) set aside until needed.
For the essential oil, place your rice in a container with a lid, add the essential oils, just a drop or two (a little goes a long way), close and shake well, continue until you have the desired aroma, Set aside for as long as possible to allow the rice to absorb the oils. Keep any extra closed in the container


Ok now that we've got that part taken care of, draw your template onto freezer paper. It's easier to make it symmetrical if you draw it on the fold and cut out.

Iron your template onto your fabric and cut out two each from the flannel and muslin.

Sandwich your fabric together WRONG sides facing with the muslin in the center and the flannel on the outside like so.

Then sew around the edges using a 1/4 seam making sure you do a couple of reverse stitches to start and stop and leaving an open spot to add your rice and herbs.

From there, use a funnel or something akin to fill your eye pillow. The filling goes between the two layers of muslin. Don't over fill it, you want it to still lay fairly flat and be able to drape over the face.

Once you have the desired amount in, sew up the opening and cut around the edges with your pinking shears to keep them from fraying.

You can use this moist or dry, for moist, mist lightly with water before putting in the microwave, otherwise put in the microwave for 15-30 seconds or until nice and warm* then drape over your eyes, sit back, inhale deeply and relax. Aaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
* I did say warm, not hot...warm. Please be aware of the temperature when you remove it from the microwave to avoid serious burns/injury. We want blissful sighs not screams of agony.
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Here are a few herb suggestions
Lavender & Rose - Relaxing
Ginger & Clove - Relaxing
Rosemary, Lavender & Peppermint - fights fatigue
Eucalyptus, Lavender & Peppermint - for congestion
Lemon & Basil - Uplifting

These would make great gifts and you'll probably have enough of the aroma mixture to fill several, so make a few, add a pretty tag and voila! If you're using herbs you can store them in an airtight container and cross some Christmas gifts off your list!
*Note* While the rice does absorb a significant amount of the essential oils the scent will diffuse faster than if you used herbs and may not last more than a month or two.

Scrappy Saturday! Last the best of all the game!

My latest project for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge may very well be my last for the month of blue. I'm actually using all those two inch wide strips that I had and so far loving the results!
I don't remember exactly what they were cut for but they're working out perfectly for some just shy of 5" 9 patch blocks. These are by far the easiest and quickest 9 patch blocks I've made thanks to Julie the Quilter Behind the Barn Door and her two strip 9 patch tutorial. These work up so fast that I had enough for a baby quilt done before I knew about it. I then realized that I had enough materials to keep going...so I did.
Then I discovered this cute bug print from years and years ago also cut in two inch strips. Well there are blue bugs in there so it works doesn't it? I have more bug than blue at this point so you may be seeing it again. Jeesh, starting to wonder what I had for 2 inch strips...
Then I added some solid blocks. I'll admit I had to buy fabric for this, I was out of the off white broadcloth and it's not like I can't use it for a multitude of other projects. But look at what is coming from all this...
Sorry for the poor pic, I don't know why they don't put overhead lighting in living rooms but lets be luvs and put our imagination hats on and pretend it's professional.
This isn't the final layout or size by any means, and since I'm still making blocks I don't know a final size yet. It's good for a general idea though.

So I'm having visions of backing it with flannel. Is that odd? I want it super kozy and snuggle up in warm cause I'm entirely to darn cold as of late. I've not seen a lot of quilters out there using flannel as a backing. I'd love to hear pros/cons. My plan would be to do a bit of cross quilting through the solid setting blocks then a simple cross or 't' through the 9 patches.

Ok ok, enough rambling out loud, I must say though that I'm pretty proud of myself on this, I know that it's a simple 9 patch, but I've never worked up a top so quickly 3 days and it's 3/4 of the way done! If I wasn't working this weekend I'd say I could get it finished maybe another two or three days.

Little Blue Box

Another little addition to the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. :)

So what do a bunch of blue 2 inch strips of fabric...

Cut into 2 inch squares...

Some too small to do anything with garbage scraps...

Rice and Catnip

And this doubtful looking concoction have in common??

Some very happy kitties!

Blue Bowl Rug

My first ever bowl rug and my first finished project for the Rainbow Challenge! I had to make it small and simple since I missed the Scrappy Saturday (I didn't find out about this until Sunday.)

Ok, I know your thinking "Bowl rug?" Well here's the scoop on that. The moment my daughter comes home from school she pretty much heads straight for the kitchen for her snack. Usually that involves a bowl and the microwave. We don't have hot pads, just mitts so to spare her hands a hot bowl she kidnaps my kitchen towels which I don't see until I have none left and go hunting for them in her room (teenagers!). So the plan is to save my towels by making her a weeks worth of bowl rugs.

I'm using a single layer of insul brite tm for the batting, and on this, my first one I used a "quilt as you go" method. What was so fun about this, is that it gave me a chance to test some of the pretty stitches on my sewing machine!
I've had it for over two years but have only recently gotten back into sewing after a work enforced hiatus. (They didn't not let me sew, but after a 12 hour day, I just didn't WANT to sew.)

Ok so here I am digging through my "scraps" for blue's. Most of my scraps are 45" long and 2" wide. They're from a tied baby blanket that I made over 6 years ago for a nephew. I went a wee bit overboard on cutting the strips so I have LOTS.

I regret that I have no during shots of my rug top, but once I got involved there was no stopping me. When I got finished with it there was the wee little matter of squaring it up though.
My solution was to cut a piece of freezer paper to an 81/2" square, iron it in place and trim the edges. Some days my brilliance astounds even me! :)
Front is done, next...

My back was a cut and insert, repeat twice piece, and hey, I'm going to use that piece of freezer paper again!
Check out ma' bad self, I'm a cuttin' a perfect block!
With my two perfect 8.5 inch pieces, I lined the two up and did a quick zig zag around the outer edge to make binding a bit easier. Using an ooold technique I made my own binding from one of the straight cut pieces. No bias here.
Now to apply it, complete with mitered corners which I'm finally getting the hang of.
Now, flip it over and hand sew the bind...Naaaahhh, just kidding. I tend to avoid hand sewing like the plague. So lets test another pretty stitch from the 174 that I have to choose from. I think some pretty shiny blue thread up top is just the thing!
And ta da! My lovely bowl rug is done!

Thanks so much for popping by, it's been lovely!

Rainbow Scrap Challenge

Even though I don't have a lot of "scraps" per se, I'm going to participate in this, the Rainbow Scrap Challenge now to dig out the scraps I have...and maybe make some more. :)

I have my interview at the quilt shop tomorrow. I've tweaked my resume to look more customer service oriented so I'm good there, but all the holiday chocolate and months of lounging have made my wearable wardrobe significantly smaller so I'm stressing about that a bit. Looks like I may need to put together a new year goal list with some weight loss stuck on there somewhere.

I started a thrown together project with my Fruitcake Charm Pack. I just really wanted something that I could start without having to put a lot of thought into first and that would come together quickly and easily and so far, this is fitting the bill. Pics to come.