I didn't do a totally useless stitch along update last month, but my jar is pretty packed. I'm still rocking the same jar and I've just been squishing it down, so it's really full. I've been trying to think of something to do with it at the end of the year. I thought about maybe making a little plush of some sort and stuffing it with the ORTs. Any other suggestions of what I could use it for? It is pretty nice to just look at, so colorful! ... Read More
This week we are having an ornament decorating party with a few of Evie's friends so we made a batch of this cornstarch dough and went to town with cookie cutters. I always use a straw to poke a hole for the ribbon to hang the ornament, and I got the idea to poke some holes for cross stitching! For the Christmas tree I used the same straw for the holes. They are bigger and that's why I used the yarn for stitching. The holes shrink a little when the dough dries, so I wanted to make sure they were big enough for a needle. They could have easily been smaller though and ... Read More
I've been stitching as fast as I can making Christmas presents, and I feel like I'm doing pretty good, all things considered. It's barely December and I have four completed projects and two more in progress. I've been using the opportunity to experiment and try out some new techniques. I tried some blackwork, or more accurately, purplework. I'm currently working on an embroidery that's totally out of my comfort zone, but I am having a blast. I have a very clear picture in my head of how I want this to turn out, and I'm using totally nontraditional methods to make it ... Read More
I decided to run the first ever Hugs are Fun Black Friday Sale, and I am giving you TWO options. My personal favorite kind of discount is free shipping, Amazon Prime has spoiled me and now I hate paying for shipping. So I am offering all of you the luxury of avoiding shipping charges with the code BLACKFRI13SHIPPING. Now, if you are buying a pattern, shipping is already free, so I figured I'd throw in another deal. Use the code BLACKFRI13DISCOUNT to save 10%. Both coupon codes are good until Sunday December 1, 2013, so head over to Etsy and get ... Read More
I was really excited to receive an ebook review copy of Modern One-Block Quilts: 22 Fresh Patchwork Projects* , and it did not disappoint! I was immediately struck with how easy to follow everything is, there is a terrific combination of illustrations and photographs. Everything is very clean and clear. The book starts out with a great section on learning to sew, so even if you are a complete quilting beginner, Modern One-Block Quilts can help! It lays out a variety of different types of quilting blocks and how to make them. I know that when I finally choose which of ... Read More
Despite the fact that I have a pile of 121 sunburst granny squares that need to be joined for Evie's blanket, I started a new one. I have been really wanting to work with yarn, but sewing together squares was not what I had in mind. I was at Hobby Lobby and their I Love This Cotton was on sale so I grabbed a skein of this lovely light grey. I had these other colors left over from Evie's blanket and another project I never actually did. I have seen a ton of different blankets I love and have considered making, but I went simple and started a giant granny square ... Read More
I feel like I've been so productive lately, but I've been making Christmas presents so I can't show them off. But I wanted to show a sneak peak of my current project. Over at &Stitches, they declared November the month of color. They gave the challenge to create a blackwork piece, in color. I had seen blackwork before, and while I found it impressive, I was never really interested in doing it myself. Changing the black thread to a color makes such a big difference, it feels so much more fun and modern. Teresa from Daisies for Violet made an incredible color ... Read More
I've been wanting to try out English paper piecing to make hexagons for awhile. I always see pictures on Instagram of hexagon quilting projects and I wanted to get in on it! I've seen plenty of free templates for hexagons, but I just spent a couple dollars and picked up a pack of precut hexagons. I knew that I would never get around to making these if I had to cut out my own paper hexagons. I used this terrific tutorial from the Zen of Making to learn the process. I have a big box of scrap fabric and I dug through and prepped a handful of hexagons. I made these ... Read More