Hey! That's not the right picture...

Meant to publish this one to show of the hand tying. These ties are a bit more robust than the first attempt.

Finished!

It is so satisfying to say that word. As in, I finished the baby quilt I was working on.

I did end up tying it instead of hand quilting, and I backed it with soft flannel and bound it with the same fabric.

While I was at it, I helped a friend with a few more baby sewing projects, like this changing pad.

She already had one, but she said she was using it all the time and needed another.

Isn't this fabric adorable? Do you remember your French? 

We also decided she needed a few more of these drool bibs.

Her baby is only seven weeks old, but they say some babies start teething pretty quickly, so may as well be ready.

Finally, she decided that the window in her kitchen, which never needed a curtain, might need one now that she is wandering around nursing the baby in the middle of the night.

Wild right? I can’t wait to see what they look like hanging up.

By the way, we found the patterns for the bibs and changing pad in Lotta Jansdotter’s great book, Simple Sewing for Baby: 24 Easy Projects for Newborns to Toddlers. Find it at Amazon.com by clicking on the top box at the right.

My Blog is Lonely

Seems like this blog is becoming my sad and forgotten stepchild. By the time I design, make, and photograph a project I’m already starting to be tired of it. Then I set about writing up the pattern, posting it on Etsy.com. To promote it a bit, I also posting the pattern on Ravelry.com (for yarn based projects) and Twitter and update Facebook about the new link so folks can find it. By then I’m really bored with the whole process and can’t begin to find anything interesting to say about it. I think the solution may be to blog about projects in progress – things I’ve started or maybe just imagined. So here goes…

Today I finally have the time to get back to sewing projects – seems like I’ve been crocheting my fingers off for weeks. I’ve picked up this quilt which was pieced last fall, but never finished.

I was really stuck for how to quilt it. Do you see those even little black stitches? Those aren’t mine. They are printed onto the fabric. I couldn’t quite figure out how to quilt that big center panel, which is all one piece of fabric, without competing with the printed “stitches”.

Here’s what I’ve decided to try…

I remember that the neighbor lady (we called her Grandma Burles) made hand tied quilts like this after her eyes started to go and her hands shook so she couldn’t manage all those neat little stitches of traditional quilting. After tying a half dozen knots, I have come to some conclusions. First I need to use what is called a surgeon’s knot, to be sure it will not come undone in the wash, and I also think I want to use a heavier thread. I started with three strands of a standard 6 strand embroidery thread and I think this looks a bit wimpy. Some old fashioned folk quilts are actually tied with yarn, but I think that might overwhelm the design. Besides, I don’t have any yarn that coordinates. Always a good reason to try something else!

Since today is a rainy overcast day, I think I may plunk myself on the couch and stitch away. I’ll post another picture when the whole thing is finished. Oh and by the way, do you remember the quilt I made for my nephew Owen? 

The quilt I’m working on today is made from the leftovers. I’m not sure what I will do with it. Maybe donate it to charity, or maybe just keep it here for the days a friend shows up with a baby and needs something to spread over the dog hair so the little one can play on the floor!