2 Weeks...

of kitchen towels!
I had a blast working on these colorful and useful towels on my retreat.

13 are shown here and 5 more were given away to friends. I found strawberry, cherry, retro kitchen, camping and chicken fabrics. Do you see the first one in the second row? I got that fabric at an ugly fabric swap. I immediately thought of Dunkin Donuts. The motifs look like doughnuts and it is their signature orange/magenta colors.

I embroidered one with chickens, but mainly they are plain for hand-drying. I love having a stash of these, since we use them every day! My favorite is the black/white chicken print with the black towel. That fabric is from the Urban Zoologie line.  The strawberries and camping fabrics are from a destash group.

I have several yards of the mixed fruits on black. It was a giveaway at my Quilt Guild. I love that one! I seems to pick up retro kitchen fabrics whenever I see them. 

 I'm still working on 2 big quilts from the retreat. I'll share the other one next time.

Linny's Pinafore Pattern on SALE!

Linny's Pinafore Pattern is on SALE this week!! It is school vacation week here, which means only 6 weeks till SUMMER!! Get it on Etsy for only $6 this week (ends Friday 4/29)

Promo Code: SPRING

This is a sweet summer pinafore! I made it of aqua seersucker with lime rick rack, ties, and pocket.

The pocket has an embroidered seahorse and is also trimmed with lime rick rack.

This pattern is very versatile. Make it simple or loaded with ruffles and lace!

See lots of examples on my Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/mommysapron/patterns-embroideries-by-mommys-apron-strings/

55 Hours...

21 Friends...
3 Quilts...
15 Kitchen Towels...
3 Days...
12,000 Calories...

That is a quilting retreat for you! I spent last weekend at an inn having an excellent time sewing, eating, and a little bit of sleeping! I had so much fun chatting while we sewed. This was a new location for my Guild and it had a large room with lots of space and light! The meals were included and were fabulous. We would sew between meals and you never felt hungry before it was time to go to the dining room again!

This is one of the quilt tops I worked on. I had started these blocks last Fall, but they sat unfinished. I competed all 100 8" blocks and they are sewn together in rows. Here they are just laid out, but you can see the diamond illusion of the blocks. The light/dark pattern is what causes this effect! I am hoping this will be King size with borders.

I also made this mini quilt. My Guild is doing an Alphabet Challenge and I got letter D. I decided to do a Dress and the D is Dotted. Isn't it Darling? We had to bind with black, so I added the magenta rick rack to set it off. I can't share the whole alphabet yet- but maybe later!

Here's the place we stayed and sewed!

This is a waterfall I saw on the way home!

My computer has been freezing, so I haven't been able to post. Hope to be back soon!!!

Lillian the Second

This Lillian was even more fun to make than the first one!

I was inspired by this Eiffel Tower embroidery design. It originally said "Amour" but I changed it to "Paris."
I remembered that Walmart had some Waverly Eiffel Tower fabric, so I went by and they actually had it in 3 colorways. I liked the purple, but Andy insisted on this blue. Neither of us liked the red. At $4/yd, their Waverly fabrics are a great choice.

I stitched a block of fabric with the blue dot and Paris fabric after the embroidery, but before I cut out the front. I made the seam hit at an empire waist level. Then I added a pretty ribbon, also by Waverly. Then it was just stitching it together with the lining and adding some plain navy buttons to the back.

Children's Corner Lillian, size 3.

Lillian the First

I thought it would be fun to join in the "Lillian" challenge on the Children's Corner Facebook page this month. It was a pattern I did not own (I know- hard to believe) and had never tried. It is a very basic sleeveless a-line dress.

The first one I made was this one from Shell Pique by Fabric Finders. I had about 5/8 yd from a destash group and it was just enough for a size 3. It is lined with white broadcloth.

I found this starfish embroidery with "writing" and liked it. I am not thrilled with the turquoise on the starfish. However, you should know that I investigated starfish coloration and they come in many, many colorways.

The back is plain and closes with white buttons. There are little vents at the bottom of each side and I would like to add some embellishment there, but I haven't decided what yet.

Next time I will share my other "Lillian" creation!

Amazing Artwork

This beautiful string art was made by Rosie. She is taking geometry as one of her math classes this year and this was one of their projects. I want to hang it up. She asked me, as my kids so often do, "do you have any string?" Umm...string...no. Do you mean thread? I'll bet none of the other kids had so many color choices!!

Another pretty to share. Isn't this incredible? Can you believe this is fabric?!!

I would not have believed you if you told me there was a type of fabric I wasn't an hoarder of expert on. But after I got my serger for Christmas, I discovered the world of knits!

I had used them occasionally before for AG undies, etc. but today there are many groups that design custom knit fabrics- usually cotton/lycra like this one.

They are generally pre-order/pre-pay and I was nervous about that, so I didn't initially order any. But then I had non-buyer's remorse- is that a thing? I became obsessed interested in getting a piece of this. So, when limited amounts of retail were posted, I was ready. I even bought Retayne and color-catcher to wash as recommended, because this was not cheap. I can't say how much because my Mom and my hubby might read this!

What am I going to make?? I don't know. Probably some of those adorable maxaloones- they don't use much fabric. And maybe, just maybe a shirt for myself- if I just use it on the front, it won't use as much. 

I've been sewing up a storm and after adding some buttons, I will have 2 CC Lillians to share with you.