Busy as a ...Ladybug

The bees around our house have nothing on the lady bugs this summer.  No, we haven't been infested with ladybugs, at least not real ones.  Yet, I did finish two quilts with ladybugs as the focus.

Five years ago, I had six friends who were pregnant.  One was a two-for-one-deal with twin girls.  I made the tops for two baby girl quilts that were really quite cute.  But like so many other projects,  I never got around to quilting them.  The unfinished quilts were at the top of my pile when I moved everything and got a good sense of what was still languishing in the Oasis.

But it didn't feel right to give the girls baby quilts when they certainly aren't babies anymore.

When I saw the video that inspired the Lime Green and Hot Pink quilt from the last post, I thought that it would be the perfect way to make the twins "big girl quilts", and then when I saw an adorable lady bug pattern that came in yellow and green, all the pieces fell into place.

I chose a several yellows and greens to go with their respective lady bug print, and then reds that would go on both quilts.  I particularly liked the red with black polka dots. 

Using the method of sewing over the squares, the two quilts came together nicely, and quickly. After a lovely lunch out with my friend, she reported that the girls love them.

Knowing that the twins had their blankets, I didn't want their original baby quilts to go to waste.  I have a colleague who welcomed a baby girl to his family in January so I was delighted that I could finish off one of the quilts and present it to her dad.  There is a mix of baby patterns with pale pink checks and polka dots.  This was the first quilt I ever used the satiny binding from the store rather than a fabric from the quilt and I was so glad that I had.  I felt like it added a touch of sweetness to the quilt. And, that's another project crossed off the UFO list!

When I saw the Fourth of July ribbons on sale at the local craft store, I grabbed a few and raided the ribbon buckets in the Oasis for more red, white, and blue.  The result was two more ribbon wreathes.  I gave one to my sister-in-law and kept one for me.

This is the one I gave my sister-in-law

 Finally, I made a quick gift for some friends.  Every month, I get together with a group of women and we play BUNCO.  We eat, drink, chat, and win prizes from each other.  They were bridesmaids when I married Phil.  It just so happens that three of them turned 49 this year.  The occasion definitely needed to be celebrated, so I made them "Forever 49" wine glasses.  All it took was three wine glasses and some glass/ceramic paint pens.  I am not much of an artist, so I just drew some swirls and shapes, and of course, some dice.

Being a crafter brings me a great deal of joy. Knowing that I am creating something for a friend or family member makes it even more special.

Happy crafting!

NOT another UFO!

When I was a single mom, I had an army of baby sitters.  Each one was wonderful and the boys loved them all.  One of the girls who babysat lived right next door to us.  We were pretty close with the whole family (and still are - and we miss running next door to hang out with them) so Monica seemed more like a niece than just a sitter.  She graduated from high school this year.  Two weeks ago I decided that I would make her a quilt for her graduation present.

In the past, this is exactly how I would get myself into trouble.  I would decide to make something for a friend or family member for a birthday or Christmas, new baby arrival, or some other momentous occasion.  I would tell myself, "I can get it done by then!" and the project became one of those items on the UFO list. 

But not this time!

Her graduation party was this past weekend and she was so excited when I gave her the (finished) quilt.  I was pretty excited too.

How did I do it in two weeks?!

First, I had a simple yet adorable quilt pattern.  A good friend post this video from DIYDish on Pinterest a few months ago.  I thought it was awesome and used the idea to make matching quilts for twin girls.  (You'll see those quilts in my next post).  It's a "quilt as you go" pattern, so that cuts down on a lot of time right there. 

For this quilt, I wanted something that suited Monica who is gorgeous, bright and sweet.  When I saw this fabric in the store, I knew I had the focal fabric.

I love the combination of hot pink and lime green and the little bit of sparkle that runs through the pattern.

I chose a light green flannel for the backing and then used a variety of hot pinks and greens that I found in charm packs and fat eighths.

After washing all the fabric, the next step was cutting 5x5 inch squares.  (As the women in the video say, the great thing about this quilt is that you can chose whatever size suits your desired outcome.)  I had purchased four yards of the green flannel. I basically just cut it in half so that the blanket would be about 2 yards long.  

Layering the two pieces of flannel with the batting in between can be a little tricky.  Even though the flannel came from one piece, it stretches and moves.  I think the next time I make this kind of quilt, I'll trim the top piece a little so that it will be easier to have the three layers line up.

After getting the three layers all set, it's time to lay out the squares. I used my ruler to help.  It's really up to you as to how far apart you place the squares, and then you'll probably have to adjust to get the amount of rows you want to fit.  These were set about 2 and a half inches apart.

Here's the whole thing laid out and pinned together.  One thing I learned from making this quilt (and this was the third time I did it) is that you want to pin in between the squares to help baste it and keep the flannel from shifting. 

Next, use a marking pen to mark straight lines from one end of the fabric to the other, a quarter of inch (or a half if you'd rather) across the squares, so that when you sew them down, it leaves a edge that will fray.

I discovered that it was easier to sew down the right sides of the squares with the majority of the square to the left of the pressure foot because that helped hold it in place. Sometimes, the square would get stretched "out of square"

And that's all there is to it. Start from the middle and work your way to the edges and you'll be finished in no time!  I bound the quilt using the focus fabric and threw it in the washing machine.  The more you wash it, the more the edges fray.


It was lovely to be able to give a finished quilt to someone!  Two questions follow - what should I do with the leftover fabric I bought for this one, and what fabric could I use to make the next one?  Goodness knows that there's enough scraps down in the oasis to make about six like this.  I hope you'll try one like this too!

Happy sewing!