Archive for the ‘sew it’ Category

My girls went on a sleepover to their Nan’s house over the Spring Break last week.  While they were there they had a little quilting lesson… and took full advantage of her wonderful 30’s fabric collection.

One Dresden Plate quilt and one hexagon for their 1930’s dolls- very time period appropriate I’d say.

The hexagon quilt isn’t exactly all 30’s replica fabrics, there’s lots of Lecein Old New in there too.  But it feels like a 30’s creation. Lily is now working on the hexagons for a quilt for Kit.  That means this little quilt has been worked on by her Nan, her mom, her sister and now Lily, of course.

Emma has been enamored with and asking to make a Dresden plate for at least a year now, so she was thrilled to be able to make one at her sleepover.  My mom tells me that she picked and laid out all the fabrics and did all the machine piecing by herself, with only a little guidance and only one seam that needed to be ripped and resewn.

Emma called me once she had finishing piecing her Dresden plate to ask, “Should I machine applique my quilt… or do it by hand?

“What do you want to do?” I asked.

“On the machine.”

“What does Nan think you should do?”  I asked.  Already knowing the answer.

“She said it will be much nicer if I hand stitched it.  I told her it will take forever.   But she said I need to enjoy the journey.”

Yes I know.  She’s given me that same advice a time or two.

“It’s your quilt Emma.  And your choice.  But Nan is right, it will look much nicer hand appliqued.”

So Emma is stitching by hand and doing a lovely job.  She does look wistfully over at the sewing machine occasionally. But I really hope she does learn to enjoy the journey.  What perfect advice, especially in our instant gratification world.  Because how much of our lives are taken up with slow progress or mundane everyday tasks?   There’s so much more joy to be had, even in an ordinary day, when we learn to enjoy the journey.

Yesterday our family headed to the courthouse for  a very happy occasion.  My sister and brother-in-law adopted two sweet little children that they have been fostering for the past nine months.

My daughter said as we drove to the celebration lunch after the court.  “There is nothing better than new cousins!”

Never mind that the baby spectacularly threw up all over her the first time she held him last summer.  Lily has forgotten that.  Almost.  All the children (and Aunts and Uncles too) are in love with these two sweet little cousins.

Since  the last week has been a whirlwind,  I stayed up late on Sunday to make hoodie towels for our new family members.

I think every child needs a hoodie towel… especially our cousins.

Luckily they don’t take long to make- maybe 20 minutes or so to make two… because I didn’t want to miss watching Mad Men : ).

Emma helped show the finished towels for the picture before we wrapped them up.

I think yellow is my favorite color.  It’s so happy.  That Lecien fabric makes me happy just to sew on it.

There’s the fabric for the boy hoodie towel.  Don’t ask the name of the fabric… I was given a small piece… no selvage.

If you’d like to make a hoodie towel for the child in your life, they are fast and easy.  I wrote a tutorial here.  The nice thing is they last a very long time.  (My kids STILL love and use a hoodie towel.)  Maybe when they’re teenagers they’ll outgrow them.  But not yet.