Things I Didn't Buy (1st edition)

In honor of the upcoming Black Friday (for those of you non-staters, the day after Thanksgiving is considered THE biggest shopping day of the year, people are out waiting in lines for stores to open early-most around 3am and 4am-to get REALLY good deals, and then running around like madmen trying to collect all you came for. It's a blast!)

But anyways, that's my cultural lesson for the day! So, in honor of Black Friday, I am posting my first edition of Things I Didn't Buy, although it may need to become 'Things I Have Yet To Buy', or 'Things I Have Added To My Shopping Cart, But Haven't Clicked Check-Out, So I Technically Haven't Bought Them Yet' because some of these are really stinkin cute...


1) Paper Heart Shadow Box Art by SarahAndBendrix

They sell these gorgeous paper-heart-cutout-goodness thingys that come pre-framed in a shadow box. You purchase them individually, but does this picture not make you want to buy a whole wall full?!


2. Don't Forget Aged Sterling Silver Bow Ring by Whimsy Wire and Wool

This one is completely rational... I'm forgetful! I don't know how I've lived to the age of 22 without a bow tied on my finger!


3. Ride the Wind print by SpreadTheLove

I don't know if I love the quote or the hot pink yumminess of the background more!


4. Chanel Lover print by EmmaKISStina

So beautifully awkward, I love little imperfect pieces like this. Maybe I can relate because my drawings in art school never turned out looking quite like what I was supposed to be rendering!


5. Lilac Fingerless Gloves by Afra

I love arm warmers...gloves... scarves.... leg warmers... anything knitted that keeps me cozy really. It doesn't help that these are so frickin cute i want to wear them all year long! (Be sure to check out the insanely cute shawls and caplets in the store too!)


Ok, ok, enough wishlisting for me for today. Have a lovely afternoon (and safe travels for the holidays!)

-Chels

Strippin a King!

I cut, I sewed, I ironed, I repeated. Whoa. After a few hours I now have 5 coin strips long enough for a king size quilt!

I will DEFINATELY be taking this to someone with a long-arm to quilt once I get the top finished!

(those aren't scraps by the way, that's a portion of the pile resulting from a chain piecing bonanza!)

Sunday [Fabric] Funday

Hello hello!

It's another beautiful, sunny day here in Indy. I woke up in a great mood and couldn't wait to dive into this pile that I've been mulling over for the past few months. I jut couldn't decide on a pattern. This plagues me so often - I have piles of pulled fabric sitting everyone but don't dare to bring a rotary cutter to it until I decide on the perfect pattern.

So here she is... a fun lil collection of teals, greens, whites and browns. I'm planning a coin quilt of sorts, but with a little bit of a twist. More to come later! ;)

What's on your agenda today?

Boisenberries and plums, cherries and red hots!

Check out this stash of lovelies that were waiting on my doorstep when I got home from work yesterday.
I've been dreaming of a reddish, purplish, pinkish, rich, warm, perfectly cozy quilt for months. After many disappointed trips to Joann fabrics (they never have the Kona colors I want!), I ordered a handful of 1/2 yards from Pink Chalk Fabrics.

I have nothing but good things to say! I ordered them on Tuesday (along with about 12 other fabrics but I will share those at a later date) and they were here on Friday. That was my first time ordering fabrics online, boy was I nervous. They came perfectly packaged and I dug into them like a 6yr old on Christmas morning!

What exciting things do you have planned for this pretty fall weekend? (Indy is sunny and 40's today, what a welcomed break after a week of rain). I'm spending today fabric shopping for a commissioned baby quilt and sewing!

Sew somethin' sassy! -Chels

When you wish upon a star...

You might be able to make a wonky star without being short on your corners!





This is what I've been working on lately. It's my first stab at wonky stars and Ive had my fair share of short corners on the blocks that have points. I guess I am laying my triangles down too wonky? Who knows! Anyone else have this problem?
It basically is like when I trim my points block to 4.5" x 4.5" there's one corner that is just shy of being squared up.

Practice makes perfect I suppose!

Not in our house!

That's been the slogan of the Indianapolis Colts for quite some time now. They really brought it back Sunday night against the Patriots!



I had a terrible sore throat and was tempted to leave about halfway through the 4th qtr but we decided to stay. Ssoooo glad we did!

Here's Chris & I celebrating the win! 9-0, I love my Colts!

Happy Tape = Happy Christmas!

Shh... I'm supposed to be working, but I had a revelation on my way in to the office this morning. And by revelation I mean I was daydreaming about crafty things instead of focusing on the road. It's almost a morning ritual nowadays.

I do my best thinking in the car. Or the shower. Where do you do yours?

Off track, sorry. Anyways I decided I wanted to wrap all my gifts in craft paper. Then I figured I would be more environmentally friendly and wrap them in leftover newspaper and paper grocery sacks.

This is where my happy gift-giving comes into play...


Hello, the answer to the worlds problems - happy tape! Those Japanese sure know a thing or two about making me smile - adorable fabric, spicy tuna rolls, happy tape, heck even my boyfriend is 1/4 Japanese!

But seriously, how cute will this look on a Classified-ad-wrapped-gift?!

Nothing says straight from the heart like last week's sudoko.

(Photo is property of Tina Rice at Happy Tape; product can be bought here. I purchased the Waterfall 5pk, but I must have snagged one of the last few because I see it's now sold out.)

Yippee!

I presented the Cindy Loo Who quilt at the shower this afternoon... Not only did the mama-to-be love it, I also got requests for three similar commissioned quilts!

So excited!

The Lil "Cindy Loo Who"

I did it! I finished my first quilt that I quilted myself (usually I just do the tops and pay someone to quilt them)






I am calling this one Little Cindy Loo Who because the letters have made me think of Dr. Suess all weekend long as I've been working on this. And since I love naming things, giving my quilts human-like names makes the utmost sense ;)

Lil Who is made up of 12 blocks that are a little larger than 13" each. I made up the pattern myself, but can pass it along if anyone is interested. I quilted her in a grid of sorts (will post a photo of the back tomorrow).

I have this amazing sense of accomplishment right now... I hope my quilt high lasts all week!

I'm giving miss Cindy Loo Who away Wednesday at a baby shower luncheon... This is a bog step! I can't believe I'm giving away the first quilt I've ever quilted! I'm like the queen of hoarding! Haha especially anything with the smallest spec of sentimental value.

Phew, I'm ready for a few days of rest... Rest and fabric shopping. I'm hooked!! I can't wait to quilt some more tops!

C'mon baby, just a lil bit left!

Things have been moving smoothly today! Love it when that happens! Finished the quilt top for the baby shower.




I plan on quilting it tomorrow- yikes. My first attempt at quilting on Bernie! Wish me luck!

Now it's time to get all the stray threads off my clothes and get ready for a night out with some friends. Italian food and good company- can't wait!

Let's give it a go, baby!

How's this for gender neutral? This will be the first quilt I'm making specifically for someone else. I'm a little nervous!

I hope the little peanut appreciates my gift! I'm spending my day cutting, piecing & ironing. That's right I took a personal day off work to hang out with Bernie!

Call me crazy, but I'd much rather sew than be in the office ;)

I need your opinion!

I've decided to make a quick lil baby quilt for a coworker who's due in January. It's a suprise that I'm giving to her at her shower but I need color/pattern suggestions!

Her & her husband aren't finding out what they are having, and the nursery bedding is light greens, browns, white & tans.

So, fellow fabric freaks, should I atfmept to coordinate with the nursery or find some bright childfriendly prints??

Also what is your ideal baby quilt size? Thanks all, I appreciate your help so much!

Pie in the pants!

Chris and I had been debating Halloween costumes for the entire month of October. We knew we wanted to coordinate (maybe that's silly, but it's our first Halloween together so we are allowed to be all cutesy!)

About a week before the big night Chris came up with the best idea...





We were Nickelodeon Double Dare contestants! If any of you remember this show you know how ridiculous it was. Teams had to do "physical challenges" that usually involved lots of slime and/or whipped cream.

We made our helmets, tshirts and flags so overall I was a rather cheap costume!

We went to a couple parties and were a big hit! We entered in a costume contest and got in the top 10, but were beat out by KISS and a rather large "Michael Phelps" (complete with teeny tiny speedo & medals!)

How did you spend your Halloween? I've seen lots of cute pictures of party decor & costumed kiddos!