Summer Sewing...and crafts

This summer I had a lot of sewing to get done. Two of my closest friends were having babies in Aug and Sept and my sister in law was having a baby in Aug too. Faux chenille blankets have quickly become my absolute favorite blankets! I can't get over how SOFT they are! They are definently tedious and after THREE I am definently taking a break for a while (at least till the next person I know tells me they are having a baby...) but the end result is worth all the work!

 

This one was for my friend Ashley, her baby girl is supposed to arrive in the next couple of weeks :)

The one for my friend Chelsea, or baby Asher :)

And the one for my sister-in-law, for baby Isaac :)

 

For the baby boys I also made these bibs. Pattern found here. I used cloth diaper cover fabric so they are water proof.



 

and these little ties. Pattern found here.

I have been dying to try making these adorable wooden princesses! Evelyn was invited to a birthday party so I thought it was the perfect opportunity to make them. I love how they turned out! Evelyn loved them too, I'm planning on making a set for Evelyn and Cassidy for Christmas.

I am doing Joy School with some ladies fromy ward at church this year with Evelyn and I was in charge of making mats for the kids to sit on. Last year they sat on shapes cut out of yoga mats with their pictures tapen on them, which were cute, but didn't last too long before the pictures were all torn up, then we just laminated a picture of them to sit on, which also didn't last too long before they got all folded up and crinkled. So this year I wanted to do something sturdier, and what's sturdier than fabric? :) It gave me an excuse to sew :) I just cut a piece of fabric for the top 13x16 and a piece of fleece for the back the same size. I printed their initials on the computer, cut them out and traced them on flannel than appliqued them on. Sewed them together and whala! Soft, personalized and (hopefully) indestructible mats for them to sit on.

I almost put this in it's own post because the cause is so wonderful I don't want anyone to miss out on it. Have you heard of Quilts for Kids? When I heard about it I knew I wanted to make a quilt for it. Here's how it works, you go to the website and sign up to have a kit sent to you, you can even ask for more than one if you are up to it. They send you a kit with all the fabric precut for a quilt with the instructions for a pattern. They ask that you send it back in 4-6 weeks. You provide your own batting and pay for the postage to send it back. Then they deliver them to children in hospitals. What a great cause! Here's the quilt I made with the fabric they sent me:

 

They ask that if you are able to you make a second quilt with your own fabric and send it with the other one so that they will be able to comfort more children. I looked through my stash of fabric and found this stack of fabric that I've had for about a year now. I was feeling a little burned out of quilts by this time so I wanted to do something really simple, and what's more simple than strips pieced together? I am IN.LOVE. with this quilt! I went to JoAnn's with the top all together to try and find a matching fabric for the back, but of course a year later they didn't have a single one left. I was really bummed, but then I decided to just go with white and I am soooo in love with how it turned out. Sometimes I think simple is the best :) I hope these quilts will brighten a childs day when they recieve them.