a little bit of this and that - i have actually been sewing

With school starting it's been a little easier to squeeze some sewing in. And I figured since I've been a member of my local guild for a year and actually have a job working on the newsletter this year I thought it was about time I made my name tag.  It's a simple foundation pieced pattern and now I want to make another and use the block as a pincushion!

I also toyed with a couple of wonky star blocks to audition ideas for the pouch swap.  Can you ever have too many Heather Ross fishies?

And hedgehogs + kokka??  

And another zippy for a friend's birthday!  Hot pink is her thing right now. And damask is always mine.

And then, just for fun I worked up another wonky star!  Now I want a whole navy, orange and aqua quilt.

 

Maybe I'll start breaking out my real camera and not just post pictures from my phone - although... this is much quicker - but the quality is not as good. :(

New Year's News - it is that time of year, right?

Well hello there friends! Remember me?  I used to blog more regularly around here.  Like 2 years ago! And I used to sew quite a bit. And generally do a lot more things that have gone to the wayside with the demands of family, military, and school life!  I actually have been doing some things, just not sitting down to blog about them.  Mostly I annoy everyone over on instagram (@amylouwhosews) with the minutia of my daily life.

But you know what? I miss blogging! I miss connecting on blogs. I miss being motivated by readers comments!  I'm not even sure if people really comment that much on blogs anymore. Do they? I know I haven't.  The quick ease of a comment on a photo on IG has spoiled me rotten! Typing on my phone or iPad is just too much! (Oh brother - #firstworldproblems) (and see that hashtag?! Totally evidence of my IG addiction.)

Anyway, we did move. I love my new house! I wish I could just get it organized! And then keep it that way! And clean!  My life since Thanksgiving was absolutely crazy!  We ended this fun spell last week with the wedding of my darling sister-in-law (whose bouquet was absolutely AMAZING!)

(Looks like flickr has changed a bit too in my absence)

I just want to tell you I have a list a mile long of things I'd like to show you.  Quilts I've finished, clothing I've made, and generally just start sharing here again.  I'd love it if you'd join me! and the conversation! Comments are motivation as lame as that sounds - but then at least I know I'm not just talking to myself!  

See you soon!  What are you working on this year?

I'm still here! Summer news

So many things going on this summer! It's time to move again and well be in our new home in less than a month! They sent me this photo of my kitchen in progress and I was dying with excitement! Counters go in today!

Five years ago this month I turned this blog into a sewing blog! This quilt was one of the first things I stumbled across in the budding sewing blogosphere. So it's only taken me 5 years to finish it but I'm hoping to have it done soon!

 

Let's be honest, I haven't been a very present blogger this last year. But with the start of a new school year with two kids in school I'm wondering if I might just be able to be more regular about it. I hope so!!

Until then, I'm going to be a little absent while I pack up my fabric house and get settled. Not that it would be different from the rest of the year!

See you soon!

scrappy trip around the world

I drank the kool aid folks.  There was this amazing surge of awesomeness happening on Instagram a couple of weeks ago.  Lots of little scrappy blocks turning into beautiful quilt tops in what seemed like seconds!

It is basically a trip around the world quilt made with 2.5" squares!  It's strip pieced with a twist to make it so easy!! Go see the tutorial at Quiltville, I'm not going to explain it all again, but I'll show you some pictures of what I've been up to!  You can also see many more by searching #scrappytripalong on Instagram or Twitter.

Remember when the lovely Fat Quarter Shop asked me to curate a fat quarter bundle for them?  I decided this bundle would be the perfect start for this quilt.  Although, to make a large lap quilt it's not quite enough fabric!  So I went to my LQS and picked up some red Riley Blake mini chevrons and dots!

I needed to keep all of these strips organized since I was not doing a true scrappy look. So I pulled out my clothes drying rack and hung them all right there next to my sewing machine! Perfect!

 

I chain pieced strips together in sets of two and then again into sets of four.  And they went together really quickly!

After sewing these sets into tubes (the tutorial explains this and it make more sense once you see it) I cut them across the seams into strips of little blocks! yippee!

Once you get the strips organized and sewn back together you get something like this:

And I have all of these small 2.5" strips left over that I am going to be able to use for a baby quilt.  I'm excited about that too.  I just love these fabrics so much.  And the colors!! They make me happy.

This may be the Chinese year of the rat snake - but for me? It's the year of the quilt. I've got plans to finish up some UFOs!!

I had another birthday.

Fabulous chocolate waffle cookies, awesome birthday candles, tulle puffs, amazing lemon cupcakes!

So I turned 40 a couple of weeks ago. There was a fun little party with all of my favorite foods and lots of my favorite people! It's weird to turn 40, mostly because when you're really young, that sounds REALLY old. But once you're here it's more like, where did the last 20 years go?? I don't feel like I thought 40 would feel! But it's good. I like my 40 better than I thought 40 would be. :)

Things I've learned/I'm not afraid to admit now that I'm 40:
I've realized I can't do everything I think I should be doing, and that's okay.
*on a related note - having a clean house is great, but not always possible (without paid help).
I'm addicted to making friends.
I like Sci-Fi and Westerns.
I'm more of a garment sewer than a quilter - mostly because I like a quick finish!
Having a 2 year old is a good disguise for being 40.
I love a good burger.
Most of my days are fueled by diet Dr. Pepper.
Doing something is better than doing nothing.

So, my birthday present was our trip! And a post-deployment break for the two of us.  It was convenient that it timed well with my 40th and my BIL and SIL's 5th anniversary (we went with them).  I have been supremely spoiled by mrlouwho and it was a great way to start out this new decade!  Here's to being on the young end of something again!

oh and PS - I got an amazing present from a truly thoughtful friend.  We don't live near an IKEA and she picked one of these up for me last time she went! Now I can be part of the cool club!

Happy New Year!

So I went on a little trip last week and this beautiful beach was one of our stops! I've decided that a warm weather location is the best place to be in January post-holiday! Helps postpone the holiday blues a bit and this year it definitely took the sting out of celebrating my 40th birthday! Looking forward to a new year, and maybe, just maybe, getting back onto this blogging train!

Do you want to hear about our post deployment/birthday trip? Or would it just be annoying?

 

spring color fabric love

So we went out of town for spring break and the mail piled up! I had 3 packages waiting for me.  And after I took the pictures I realized I don't venture out much from my choice in bright happy spring-y colors.  And I'm totally okay with that! 

Some fabric for a new quilting bee I joined - I know I have too much already on my to-do list.  But I couldn't pass up an opportunity to quilt with some of my favorite people!  Love this Happy Mochi Fabric from Monica.

Then I got this little order I placed from Randi at Fresh Squeezed Fabrics.  The orange is a departure from my normal picks, but I like it.  The blue and green? Not surprising at all. (Riley Blake Chevron, Lizzy House Pearl Bracelets)

 

And then there's this.  Which I am dying over a bit!!

 

I've had that little link over there on my sidebar since I picked out the fabrics for the bundle and my month is finally here!  These fat quarter bundles are cut and shipping now!  Click here if you want your own!  I love the fabrics in person.  Even better than I hoped they would be!  I hope you like them too.  

sewing space spring cleaning! ready for a challenge?

I struggle with keeping my sewing space neat and orderly. Raise your hand if you know what I'm talking about.

Okay, now that we all know we're not alone... (right?)  I'll share an embarrassing picture, again.  I've done this before...

This is my former computer desk that was converted into my sewing desk.  It's too big, too open and too easily cluttered.  Plus it took up TOO much room in my sewing space and blocked the only wall in the room (it's the attached sunroom).  I decided after getting my new (to me) sewing cabinet that I needed to get rid of this desk.  I finally figured out that I need a small sewing desk and a big work table (i.e. my dining room table).

I had a friend who had expressed interest in buying my desk if I ever wanted to sell.  She's far more organized than me and I was happy to let her have it.  Open shelving and my "organizing style", or lack thereof, do not mix!

When I texted her she said she could pick it up the next day!  I had to get busy.  This desk is so alluring when it's all cleaned off!!

And now I have all this free space and room to move!  And a bunch of stuff to figure out where it goes. 

Go take a picture of your sewing space RIGHT now.  In it's current state.  Let's clean up together!  I am working out the details, but we will have a before and after sewing space spring cleaning sew & tell in a few weeks!  And I'm working on prizes, and a button, like I said.  The details. 

Stay tuned!  And really get a good before photo - you'll love seeing the difference a little cleaning up can do!

thank you

Dear friends thank you for your sweet and supportive comments. Writing it down helped me feel better. But you all made me feel like I can do it.

And lucky me, mrlouwho came home three days early from his training yesterday! Whew.

busy bee

I've been cleaning and organizing like a mad woman. My husband took everyone to grandma's and left me here to clean and organize uninterrupted. I should clarify that he was only acting on my request, they would have stayed if I'd let them! He took 3 sickies with him too.

But here's a few things I've done in the meantime. (again pictures via my instagram. I may or may not be addicted.)

Relocated the art wall (to the bathroom),

 

and hung up my pot and pan rack a la Julia Child!

Took all of this crap out of ...

 

...here, in order to purge, organize and refill.

 

Hung up my shelf with the hooks for my quilts a la Rachel.

 

And possibly my favorite idea, a $7 jewelry tray for all of my hair accessories!

 

I have more to share later this week!  Have you got the new year organizing urge too?  What's your current project?

a little free motion quilting

What are you up to during the holiday break? Hope you're getting some sewing in. I'm trying to.

Christmas via instagram

A little glimpse of my life the past couple of weeks via instagram shots on my iPod with a not so great camera.

{amylouwho} december cheer and a sew & tell vacation

I've been busy painting, decorating, organizing and getting ready for Christmas.  I'm pretty sure you are all in the same boat, so we'll just take a Christmas break from sew & tell and resume in January.

December cheer around our house includes birthdays!  Mine is right after Christmas so I guess I'm sensitive to the plight of my DD #1 and her birthday 10 days before the big day.  We had a little party for her today which was fun, but I had the house torn apart from the above mentioned projects and had to pull it all together today!

I've been sewing stuff - I'm just too limited on time and energy to do some worthy posts!  I finished some window treatments to go with my newly painted rooms.  I sort of love it all! I should have known a little turquoise on the walls would motivate me and make me happy. :)

So here's a few pictures of what we've been doing.

 Happy Christmas, Birthdays, and New Year's!