Ok, so it's been forever, literally!

Sorry it has taken me so long to get back on track with blogging. Joel and I have been super busy.

We are really liking our new town, and we have found a great church. I started working with the Cubbies at Awana, and we have 20 - 3 & 4 year olds on the roll. On any given Wednesday night we usually have at least 18! Talk about a crazy night. It has been a lot of fun and has helped me meet other people at church.

Today I had the second (in a 2 part series) beginning machine quilting class at a local quilt shop. I had a great time and learned so much. I got to meet several great ladies, and we talked about different ways to machine quilt and ways to mark the quilt. Also, I got to practice using my new walking foot and free-motion foot. The teacher of the class was super nice, and she brought several beautiful quilts to show us. You should go check out her blog...she does some really beautiful work and some neat things with real pictures printed onto fabric. Hopefully I will have something fun to show you soon.

Joel has been staying super busy with all of his classes, teaching schedule, and the homework that keeps him up late at night! He is really enjoying his classes and learning a lot. He just registered for next semester's classes this week. Only a month and a half left in the semester and then he will get to take a much deserved break for Christmas.

So that's a little about what's been going on with us. Hope everything is going well with you. I will try to do better about blogging in a timely manner (better than I have done since we moved :)).

Finally finished!

I actually finished my quilt on Wednesday night, but I wasn't able to get it washed or take pictures until last night. But finally I am able to show you the completed quilt. I'm so excited with how it turned out, I really love it. It is super warm and snuggly, especially after washing (and it smells so good, I got the Gain Joyful Expressions detergent last time I bought detergent, and I am LOVING the new scent).

So here goes:

Front after washing

Back before washing (see some wrinkles)

Back after washing...look at all that wrinkly goodness!


Here is one of the front corner...I was pretty proud of the way my corners turned out since this is my first time to do binding like this. I like it!

And here is one corner from the back. Again, pretty pleased with how it turned out.

So there it is. What do you think?

Ragged Squares Quilt

I started working on this project last week and got sidetracked, so unfortunately it's still not complete. But I have been meaning to show these pictures for a while now. So here goes...

My version of the Ragged Squares Quilt as seen over at Crazy Mom Quilts:

All of the fabric is from Moda the Bistro line by Deb Strain. My sister-in-law Deborah started my stash of this fabric, and then I found the whole line at a little quilt shop that I happened to go into. I was very excited to get more pieces.

Layer 1

Layer 2

Top all put together.

I'm excited about this quilt. I think it'll be a good size for me to cuddle up under. I am also excited about the back (sorry no picture yet) because it is mostly a green color with a blue strip down the center.

It looks a little crazy with all of the patterns, but I really like how it all comes together and goes together.

Hope to finish the quilting this week and then I'll post those pictures.

So...

So it's been a while since I've updated. Last week was the beginning of a new semester, which brings with it a new schedule for day to day operations. So far it's been pretty good. I'm still not adjusted to being back at work after our wonderful Christmas holidays. Joel is teaching four classes so that is keeping him busy, and I am working and taking 2 classes this semester. Once we get used to the new schedule it should be fine (thankfully I don't have any night classes this semester!) We are trying to be careful with our time and not add too many things to our plates.

Hope this new season is going well for you. I have not been able to do much sewing since the start of the semester. I did get a pair of pants hemmed (I like them a lot, very comfortable), and I have been doing a good bit of quilting. I'll have to take a picture so you can see my progress. It's still a long way from being finished, but I am making a dent in the work!

Playing Catch Up...

So it's been several days since I last posted...and a lot has been going on during that time! We celebrated Thanksgiving with both sides of our families, and enjoyed every minute we got to visit with them. I have been reading all of the different ideas and ways that people celebrated Thanksgiving and how they remembered what they were thankful for...this year my family made a chain (the sort that you take off a chain each day it gets closer to Christmas) and on each chain link we wrote something that we were thankful for. It was really neat and fun to hear the different things people said.

So here's a picture roll of all the things we've been doing this last week...

First off some family pictures:

Wynn is looking so much like Sanders!

Sanders is looking so grown up!

Rebekah posing!
(Isn't her outfit adorable?)


The whole family.

A potential Christmas card photo...
(Check out my mom's new cabinets in the background)

The competing Christmas card picture :)McPhail family Thanksgiving '08

There has been much project work going on over the holiday...

This year we are donating to the Project Linus organization.

From the Project Linus site:

Be a Blanketeer

Our volunteers, known as “blanketeers,” provide new, handmade, washable blankets to be given as gifts to seriously ill and traumatized children, ages 0-18. It is Project Linus’ policy to accept blankets of all sizes, depending on local chapter needs. All styles of blankets are welcome, including quilts, tied comforters, fleece blankets, crocheted or knitted afghans, and receiving blankets in child-friendly colors.

So in order to help with Project Linus we are making and donating a few blankets this year. The picture above is of the one blanket I've made so far and the other one was made by my nine year old niece Madison. This was her first sewing project, and I think she did quite well :)

Madison posing with her almost finished blanket.

This is my first time to quilt on a machine...so let's just say I
need a little practice, but I think it's a good first effort.

I got in the sewing mood on Saturday...

A fabric basket...it's already full!

A Christmas present...

An organization tool...now that I am cutting Joel's hair there are several things that have to be kept up with in order to have everything when it's time for a haircut. So a bag was in order...

PJ Pants made with Amy Butler's pattern from In Stitches. These were a collaborative effort and I think they turned out pretty well. They are super soft flannel!

And finally (if you're even still reading) a few Christmas decorations...

Our tree all decorated

Finally, the presents have a home!

Well, if you even made it through this post I'm impressed! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. As you can see we were busy....

Finally

Well, this week at work has been absolutely crazy. Our department has been stretched to all corners of the state and we have been trying to keep up. Everything went well and relatively smoothly this week though! But, I am definitely glad it's Friday...time for a little break.

This weekend I plan to relax and also do a little more Christmas shopping. As of today I am about halfway finished with the Christmas list (several packages are already wrapped and just waiting for a tree to rest under!) On Saturday I'm going to run some errands (mostly Christmas related) and do a little shopping in town. Then on Saturday afternoon I plan to meet up with a friend to try and make a holiday craft...hopefully I'll be posting it here once it's finished!

I also have a few more projects that I have completed that I need to take pictures of to post, and I have done some more quilting on the quilt. I promise to take a couple of pictures and post those as well.

Hope you have a great weekend! (Remember only 41 days till Christmas!)

A few projects...

Well, I finally remembered to bring the pictures with me so that I could post about some of the projects I've worked on over the last year.

#1 Christmas Stockings - Last year Joel and I were looking for stockings and we couldn't find anything we liked. So, as I mentioned in an earlier post, that is what started my whole adventure in sewing.

#2 First Purse - For my nieces birthday, I made her a purse...it was my first attempt at a purse, and I think it turned out pretty well. Hope you like it Maddi!



#3 Baby Shoes - I found this project idea here on Stardust Shoes. It was a fun project, my sister and I figured out together. These shoes Kelli and I made for Avi Grace. Since then I have made several more pair for baby gifts!



#4 Baby gift sets - At our church there was a spell where everyone was having babies! Here is one set I made as a gift (Bib, burp cloth, and shoes). The tutorial for the shoes is here, the bib and burp cloth here. (That site is Homemade by Jill...one of my favorite blog's to read)



#5 "Beach" bag - As seen in an earlier post, the girls in my family went to the beach last May. I made my mom a "beach" bag. The reason I put it in quotes is because it really wasn't heavy duty to where it would stand up on it's own like most beach bags, but she liked it! It is a fully reversible bag.



#6 First little girl outfit - I made this little outfit for Avi Grace because I wanted to see if I could! I used bias binding for the first time, and made little bloomers to go with it. I was pretty proud of this outfit.



#7 Pillowcase dress of sorts - I made this little dress for Avi Grace as a birthday gift. I think it's pretty cute, the only thing I'd do differently is to make the bow slightly smaller so it would be more proportional to her small frame. I found the tutorial for this dress here.

So there is a list of my "so far" projects. It has been fun making each of these items...I've learned a LOT and I have gotten really really good at using the seam ripper! :)

Here is one picture from AG's birthday last weekend.

Exciting...

It's been an exciting weekend in that I got to work on my quilt top....and I got it completely FINISHED! I am very proud of the quilt top...my second quilt and by far the largest I've ever made. Here are a few pictures: The first one is just of the blocks laid out on the floor (before it was put together).



These two pictures show it after it's put together. Our bed is a full size bed and it's made to fit a twin...but it gives a good idea of how it will look. Most Double Irish Chain's are made on the diagonal. I saw a picture of a DIC in this book. I thought it looked very unique so I wanted to try to make it like that one. Joel had to help a lot with this aspect of it...he did all the figuring to make it work out! Thanks Joel!

So instead of the chain being on the diagonal it is in a straight line pattern. I'm pleased with the look of it.



Now I'll put it aside till November or December...until it gets cooler outside (and school work calms down). I can't wait to start quilting on it, but for now it feels good to have this part of the quilt completed.

A lot of work...

So this week I have gotten to work a lot on my quilt top. I have really gotten down to business. On Sunday I put out the blocks I had made for the top to look at it. I was almost halfway there. On Monday night I started making more strip-sets for the blocks and was able to get several done. Then on Tuesday night I made all but 11 of the checkerboard blocks. That means I made around 16 blocks in one night...that's a lot compared to what I had been making! Then on Wednesday night I made some strip-sets for the other block pattern and ironed them all down. Last night I got to work on it again, and I made the last 27 blocks! Then I finished up the 11 checkerboard blocks I had left....so that means....ALL MY BLOCKS ARE MADE!!!!!!!

I really did not expect to finish it this quickly. I just got in high gear this week somehow and knocked those blocks out. I hope to lay it out this weekend and start to put the top together. If I get this stage done I promise I'll post pictures. I'm so excited. My goal was to have the top completely together by December so I could start quilting it (always more fun to quilt in cold weather). I definitely think I'll make my goal time!

Now I just have to wait for the day to pass...so I can get home and work on my quilt top!

The big project I'm working on...

Well, I found a new hobby last December when I decided to make Christmas stockings. I had looked everywhere and couldn't find what I wanted so I decided to just make them...note: I had only sewed one other time in my life and that was a pillowcase with much supervision! So I asked Joel's mom to help me make these Christmas stockings and it turns out that I had the greatest time working on them, and I ended up making a tree skirt for us too. From there the hobby just grew and now I am always looking for some new project to begin.

I made a quilt for my niece in the spring, it was my first attempt at quilting. I found that I enjoy that activity too! So now I have two hobbies, haha. Here is a look at the quilt I made for Avi Grace...



Once I finished that quilt I immediately decided I needed a new project. So I looked around and finally found a quilt design that I loved, and I knew I had to make it. So I started on a Double Irish Chain. Let's just say I have a long way to go...but I am enjoying it! The quilt is going to be large enough to fit on a twin sized bed so I am excited about that. Here are a couple of pictures of my progress so far...



I'll keep you updated on the progress...my hope is to be at the quilting stage by Christmas...winter is the best time to quilt!