'Nuff said another great deal at Craftsy! Get them before they are gone and have a wonderful weekend! Happy Friday ?
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Want to take great creative classes in your jammies?
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Simply, click on the picture at the top of this page to inquire about this great deal! Happy Thursday!? Need some affordable and easy gift ideas for upcoming baby shower or mom and baby to be? We have lots of ideas and this series will focus on some ideas shown below and more. These easy sew gift ideas focus on useful, quality, practical, affordable and sustainable gifts for baby along with some really cute fabric selections!  Today I would like to talk about how to make easy, sustainable and environmentally friendly bum wipes that can also double as spit up wipes and burp cloths with very few dollars involved! I have to credit this idea to my sister-in-law Rosemary along with my niece Annette who gave me a great idea on how to use them. Flannel Bum Wipes The above wipes according to my niece and from my recent personal experience with my grandson, eliminate the need to purchase as many store boughten diaper wipes. Diaper wipes end up in a landfill and do not break down easily. These wipes work effectively to moisturize baby's bottom naturally with one to two spritz's of water and a slather of coconut oil and a soiled bottom is wiped away easily. *However, you may still want some disposable wipes for travelling, so you are not carrying around unnecessary laundry. You will need: Several 10 x 10" of Flannel Fabric (pre washed) -I made 48 for my daughter = 12 per meter (4 meters needed) A serger to serge edges or hem all edges (the serger is easy and works great) Neutral thread for Serger or sewing machine to match all fabric (cream, white or grey) A sprayer bottle-filled with water A large jar of coconut oil To make: Cut out many 10 x 10" Squares of flannel- you determine the number (12 per yard or meter) Serge all 4 edges of the squares or zigzag, turn under and top stitch. Press with an iron when they are completed It's that simple! Suggestion: Kit up the wipes in a stack with a jar of coconut oil and a spritzer bottle with clear basket wrap and place a pretty ribbon around it for a lovely gift for those environmentally, all natural moms you know. My daughter has also found them very useful spit up and burp wipes, so even if they don't get used for baby's bottom, these are very useful!  Katie and Eli using Flannel bum wipes for baby burp time Mom's will thank you for this great gift !
Happy Wednesday! 😊 Need some ideas for a DIY baby shower? You have come to the right place! Read the below post for some great DIY ideas and I hope this helps you in your planning process. In yesterday's post I spoke of the arrival of my first grandchild Eli. I am positive you will hear lots about him in blog posts to come. Who can resist talking about a beautiful baby! Especially since he is my first. It will be very hard to remain unbiased!! Today I want to talk about DIY for a baby shower. There are very few sewing elements, but several crafty and cooking elements which I thought my readers may enjoy. So here goes: Invitations: Katie (my daughter) decided paper invites were a must. She felt they would be more personal than social media sent invites. As a lover of arts and crafts, Katie felt that a paper invitation might also better depict a theme and atmosphere of the shower to come. As they live in a small town, most of the invitations were actually delivered in person (almost unheard of these days!). What is funny is that these invitations were sent out before Katie knew the babies' gender and so the little bear theme was wonderful for a baby boy💙. The invitations were also printed from: creative market.com on their home printer. A picture of the invitation is shown below:  Decor: My co host for the shower was Andrea, a lovely friend of my daughter's. So we decided on an intimate gathering of about 12 lovely ladies in her Andrea's home. We decided to keep the decor simple with fresh flowers and a simple crafted swag in keeping with the theme of the invitation.  The swag was made with construction paper leaves in various colours of green, tissue paper roses to celebrate our little boy and an enlarged bear head made out of felt with glued features, sewn by hand and stuffed lightly. All of the elements of the swag were strung on jute (you could use wire, wool or string but that is what we had on hand). I think you get the idea of how it was constructed right?, if not feel free to contact us with any questions.  I also found that glue gunning the leaves in place so they would stand in different directions helped to make them look right for the swag. Games: We chose 3 "games" . #1) Guess the number of easter eggs in a baby bottle. You can get the graphic below on Etsy at https://www.etsy.com/market/jelly_bean_game  #2) Baby Trivia Baby Trivia True or False 1. All babies are born with blue eyes? 2. Babies have more bones than adults? 3. Touch is the first sense baby develops? 4. September is the busiest month of the year for giving birth in Canada? 5. Babies take more breaths than adults? 6. Babies are born without kneecaps? Press the Contact tab above if this game is something you are interested in and I can give you my researched answers. 3) Baby Word Scramble from www.plan-the-perfect-baby-shower.com  Again press the Contact tab above and email us for the answers to the Baby Babble above Food---- Savory items: We chose lots of finger foods, a range of fresh veggies for dipping, vegetable rice wrappers, cocktail meatballs, creamed cheese cucumbers, pot stickers, crab stuffed mushrooms, aged cheddar and crackers. a taco dip and nacho chips. All made from scratch except the pot stickers! Scroll down to the end of this post to enjoy one of these savoury recipes. ---Sweets We decided to have a cake and several smaller items, along with Gluten Free options and healthy fruit. The menu for the sweets counter included: Sugar cookies (blue and white royal icing), chocolate cupcakes (blue icing), Gluten Free one bite brownies, Gluten Free lemon squares, Lemon Tarts, small fruit kabobs and a double chocolate "Bear Cake" . All sweet items were also made from scratch,. The Bear Cake- note that the little flags strung with "Welcome Eli "were triangles of paper sewn together with sewing thread and then attached to paper straws and stuck into the cake. The eyes were made of round chocolate truffles and the nose was made from chocolate easter eggs cut in half for each nostril. Thank goodness it was right around Easter time or these chocolates would not have been left over!  Beverages: We served wine, Gin and tonics (with lots of fresh lime juice), Sparking Water and a Spicket jug of Iced Water with cucumber slices and fresh mint, coffee and tea. This seemed like the perfect assortment for a group of ladies. Some additional photos of the fun below:  My lovely cohost Andrea, loving on Eli just after he was born. She was flying around at the shower so I was not able to get a picture of her there! Little "Man of the Hour":  Eli slept through most of the shower!  Momma Bear Katie and some of the guests at the shower (Cora (behind Katie), Natalie and Debbie)  Katie, Yours Truly and Cora (Rachel in Background)  There were several new or young moms at the shower. Pictured here are Katie and Eli, Anita and Milo and Stephanie and Jacob. An easy savoury dip recipe to share for your shower below:  Recipe for Easy Taco Dip 1 cup mayonnaise 1 cup softened Cream Cheese 1 pkg. Taco seasoning 1 cup salsa 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese Chopped veggies of your choice, Suggested: Red pepper, orange pepper, tomatoes. green onions Tortilla Chips for Dipping To Make: Whip the first 3 ingredients together with a mixer until smooth and spread in a glass pie plate, spread salsa on top of cream chess mixture, sprinkle with cheddar cheese and sprinkle with chopped vegetables. Serve with tortilla chips Katie received a plethora of lovely gifts including a gorgeous Chariot Stroller for walking jogging and skiing with baby to which she is extremely grateful. Many thanks to all her lovely guests.
The shower was lots of fun but really---- when is it not fun with babies, good food, beverage and great people? Feel free to use any of these ideas for your upcoming shower and good luck with your planning! The talk about baby stuff has just begun, check back tomorrow and every wednesday for the beginning of my blog series on " Sew Many Easy Gifts For Baby". Happy Tuesday! 😊 As many of you know, I was recently in Kitimat, BC for a month, awaiting and assisting with the arrival of my first Grandchild. I am so happy to announce that the little one has arrived. We welcomed baby Eli on March 24 at 10:07pm (Pacific time) weighing in at 8 lbs 11oz a beautiful little baby boy who has entered into our family and of course our hearts.❤️ See his newborn pic below:  I'm so proud of both my daughter Katie for doing such a great job of growing a healthy baby and working hard at giving birth to this little miracle of life and to Chad for being a truly supportive, involved and loving daddy! See a picture of this new little family 2 weeks after Eli's birth below:  Eli's baby shower was hosted on April 8 at a friends home in Kitimat, BC. Check back tomorrow when I show you some DIY ideas for a fun baby shower! Happy Monday and hopefully spring arrives soon in your neck of the woods? 🌷☀️😊
 The time has come and I am out in beautiful British Columbia assisting my daughter in her transition to motherhood. We have been doing yoga and walking daily to get this labour started and it has not happened yet (her due date is actually March 18).  My view when I landed, lots of mountains to surround us! "Crafty" Prep for BabyI thought I would share both my daughter and son in laws' crafty preparation for baby. Some of it is quilty, some wood work, some purchased and thoughtful items to make their nursery very special. Let's start with wood work. My son in law is a talented woodworker and he made a really special piece of wooden wall art for his new baby. He painted, stained and wood burned it to provide a very special message to his little one...... Have I got your curiosity ? Check out his work below:   Love this little quote!  Another of his painted and wood burned wall art, this one was made for their home and not for the baby but I thought I would share it with you because it is so beautiful. See below:  My daughter Katie shown below, made the lovely hexi quilt below for her baby to be.  Katie at 9+ months pregnant Check out the quilting, she is relatively new to machine quilting and English Paper Piecing, she did such a great job! The rug they purchase is indicative of their life style, it's all about the outdoors, mountains, wildlife, camping, hiking and fishing.  The crib (provided by Chad's Parents) is a mini crib because their home is small and right now it's in their bedroom , so adorable!  The baby supply organization of course will be endless, however they have thought of a clever idea for a tiny home that is moveable. If they are changing baby or bathing baby, they can move products/supplies around. It is a basic utility cart from IKEA but such a great idea. See below:  Some natural watercolour paintings painted as gifts by my husband (and grandpa to be Rick) prior to baby. These make a great addition to baby's room. See these below: I gave you a sneak peak of the baby quilt/wallhanging at the top of this blog post and it is currently hanging in the baby's room. Made by myself, I had purchased the pattern at the most recent quilt show in Waterloo. I left out the pattern in my studio purposely quietly to see if my daughter liked it and .......she loved it. I then had to get all of the fabric from the quilt shop and they still had it (lucky us!). The quilt was quilted on my long arm with a leaf free motion pattern. After all Bears are in the woods!  Big Sky Bear Quilt - Designer Annie Brady by Moda Fabrics Bringing it all together ! See the picture below:  I hope you are having a great Saturday and Happy St. Patrick's Day!🍀🍀🍀
Hopefully our wee Leprechaun will arrive soon :) Just "sew " you are in the know...... I have developed a new class and it's shown on the "Teaching Page" of this website. I am so excited to be teaching Quilting with Rulers for Domestic Machines! The description is shown below: "Quilting With Rulers for Domestic Sewing Machines This workshop is designed to teach you to understand how to work with the new and very popular rulers for domestic sewing machines including brands such as Westalee, Handiquilter, Bernina and more. You will be shown how to master setting up your sewing machine and ruler foot . Handouts and tips for success will be shared along with step by step instructions for each ruler, Demonstrations and practise time will be allowed for students to create additional patterns to make the most of using their rulers." See more pictures of what you will see in this workshop below: In this class you will make individual blocks to practise with your rulers to be ready to try your hand at a sampler quilt.   Ruler Sampler Quilt- Using Westalee, HQ and Bernina Rulers If your shop, guild or group is interested in this class, please have a look at my teaching page for more details.
I hope you are having a great week! I hope everyone is really into enjoying life and hobbies/passions this year! I am back in the swing of things after some holiday travelling to British Columbia and and a 10 day Cruise in the Southern Caribbean. My travels were fantastic however, I came home with the nastiest flu I have ever experienced! So if you are on my list for custom long arm quilts to be done, please excuse my tardiness. I promise I will get to them! I am feeling better and about to get back at it and I felt it is a great time to reflect on last years accomplishments and/ or challenges . In 2017, I quilted a ton!, taught lots of classes, took some classes, completed lots of long arm quilting work, honed my crochet skills, made a custom memorial quilt, thread painted, tried new recipes, hosted a lovely wedding for my eldest daughter, helped my youngest daughter get settled in Waterloo, held many trunk shows at area guilds, designed 3 new patterns, tried new quilting rulers and tools, got published, completed some hand embroidery, had a fantastic time with friends and family, travelled and had my ankle replaced! Thank you all for your continued love and support! I could not have gotten through this year without family, friends, students, store owners, editors, blog followers, doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, fellow quilters and my wonderful customers. Phew bring on to 2018, I am finally ready for you!!!! Below is a photo montage of my journey through 2017 .... and a happy last day of January (yeah!) to you!
Wow I have not been writing on this blog since November! The 9 long arm quilts to be done before Christmas are down to 2! (Even 2 quilts are daunting right now but I will get er' done!!)
So as you can imagine, along with the obligations of work, family and housekeeping and issues with my recent ankle surgery, I have simply not had the time to share some of my recent work. However, I wanted to share with you some wee projects, 10 to be exact. Pictures are shown below, they are Santa Pot Holders, the pattern was found here at Quilting Digest. I also added a recipe card for sugar cookies for santa and will share the recipe in this post. 
As you can see they are simple blocks, I started by laying down the face right side up on the sandwiched backing and Insul-Bright and flipped and sewed the rest of the fabrics. The beard was then quilted (free motion swirls), a binding and loop was added along with a yoyo for the hat and buttons for the eyes, nose and on top of the yoyo. Easy Peasy!
I have a ladies group I belong to and I wanted to give them all a small token gift to celebrate the Christmas season and spread some joy. These cute pot holders are lined with Insul- Bright a heat resistant batting for crafters and wonderful for lining pot holders, oven mitts, candle mats etc. See the image below, it's a relatively affordable staple item in my stash of supplies on an ongoing basis for items that need a batting that will handle the heat. 
More of these little beauties
I think 4 of them together would make a nice centre piece or candle mat? Maybe next time!
ALL 10 SANTA'S TOGETHER
Check out my sugar cookie recipe below, I printed it on card stock and a free printable recipe card on Pinterest .
This recipe is fool proof. So if you don't want to make Santa's, please enjoy my recipe. I then attached the recipe card to the loop of all the pot holders with curling ribbon, totally optional, but added a nice little touch to this little santa pot holder. This would make a great take away gift for a party or table placement gift and you could just add names to it. 
That's it for now, I must get back to my pre-Christmas long arm quilting.
Enjoy the season and I hope you are all ready for Christmas. Have a lovely week! ?
Get started on your Christmas shopping list for DIY's and purchase some great fabric at great prices!
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Welcome!Hi I'm Robin and I am a professional long arm quilter, pattern designer and teacher. I am passionate about all things quilty! Categories
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