First Day of Spring

I love Vermont, but this weather is driving me crazy. Look at the first day of Spring...grey and snowing and cold. Yuck. I cheered myself up by making Heather Ross's Week-end Away Travel Bag because I am going to Boston next week-end. I made it with more of my beloved Melody Miller!

More Melody Miller

Kathleen and John are getting married and they need a little Melody Miller in their lives, I think. Made dishtowels, potholders and reversible apron for the shower!

Busy Weekend

Aretha was home this weekend and we were a busy duo. Aretha made Ruby's Bloomers from Heather Ross's Weekend Sewing.





















I made a duvet cover to go with my new bird quilt. The old duvet cover looked so old and ratty next to the new quilt! I made it from Etsuko Furuya's sheeting. Phiona, of Nido fame helped me figure out all the measurements.

Birds are Back!

I think Spring is finally coming to Northern Vermont-the sap is running, it is daylight savings time, we have corn snow and the robins are back. This is my quilt I worked away on while pining for Spring this Winter. I just got it back from the amazing Barbara Commeau who quilted the Lime Tree pattern on my work with her long arm. My friend, Andre shamed me into finishing the binding by hand. That was three evenings of sewing! But it is beautiful. Thank you, Etsuko Furuya for designing such beautiful fabric!

Josie wants to climb onto it, but she is a bit scared!

Anna Marie Horner

I love the Innocent Crush line from Anna Marie Horner. I made this quilt from Kaffe Fassett's Quilts in the Sun book. It is on the cover and I can't remember what it is called. Barbara Commeau showed me a quilt made from the pattern last summer and I wanted to try it.

I took the picture from afar because my latest attempt at machine quilting is so bad. Washing and drying helped a little, but I am still struggling with my tucks and puckers!

The Mitten Story

Once upon a time, I took a class to learn how to make Norwegian Star Mittens. The final mittens were a gorgeous light blue with a white star pattern. I took them home and washed them and when I took them out of the washer, I was disappointed to see that they were very, very, very small...

So, I offered them to one of my favorite 3rd grade girls. She knocks on my window everyday on her way out to recess. I opened the window and asked her if she would like them. The little girl standing nearby said, "Oh, I wish I had mittens like that...my hands are so cold in these thin gloves." My third grade gal looked at the girls hands, the mittens, the other little girl and handed them to her. So, of course, I had to make her her very own pair. I gave them to her today and it just happened to be her birthday! Here she is in her sparkley birthday dress.

Central Park

Today was a snow day and I finished quilting this jelly roll quilt from Kate Spain's Central Park. I really love the prints and colors! I made it throw size because I think I need to practice my quilting on smaller pieces.

Bags

I made bags for everyone on my staff this year for the holidays. I usually knit something to keep them warm because I once read that one of the major stressor for school psychologists is that they are often cold and wet trudging from one school to the other. So in the past, I have made them mittens, hats, scarves and socks.

This year I was thinking about all the things they have to lug around from school to school...laptops, tests, files, toys, and of course, lunch and snacks! So I made everyone a bag. This is Katie's Sweet Harmony Bag made with Amy Butler fabric. The other Katey also has a Sweet Harmony with Amy Butler Fabric. Miriam, who is teeny weeny has a Frenchie by Amy Butler in Anna Marie Horner. Ginger has the reversable tote by Amy Butler-hockey figures on one side for her hockey life and black on the other for her more sophisticated life. And finally, our intern, Mariel has the Birdy Sling by Amy Butler made with Lizzle House Castle Peeps.

So much fun outfitting my staff. I think it is why they continue to do this important work in sometimes very stressful situations.