Blog Carnival: Summer with the Kids!

My plan for this summer is to spend lots of time with my kids and my husband, doing lots of fun things. My husband and I have a tendency to always be working on a project and forget to have a little fun, so our goal is to relax a little more.
We've managed to do this a little more already this summer, as you can see by the picture above. This is Molly and Sara in the Severn River last week. We were shocked that both of them got in, but it was great to see that they were brave enough to do it. I was in the boat with the four-month-old. I eventually got in after he fell asleep. It was so much fun!

So, I guess our plan is to plan a little less! Just have fun.

All People Quilt

OK, so maybe all people don't quilt, but have you been to the website, allpeoplequilt.com? It's the Better Homes and Garden website for several really good magazines, Quilts and More, American Patchwork and Quilting and Quilt Sampler. The projects in these magazines and on the website are very fresh and happy. I just wanted to share this website with whomever shares that passion that I have for some of those new designer fabrics out there that are bright and happy! There are great projects using designers that we all know and love...Amy, Joel, Heather, Anna Maria, and the list goes on.

This is a project they have on their website, called "Pink Bliss," and is a great use of all of those Amy Butler fabrics you have in your stash.

I sewed through May!

ohmygoodness. May is over, and it's already June 3rd. I feel like I've finished so many projects this month. Isn't that always a great feeling? I thought I would share a few of the things that I did this month....

This cute little marker holder that I made for my daughters (to share, yeah, right!) is the best use of all of those fabric scraps. I have enough scraps to make about 946 more! The pattern is from a great book called Last Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson. She has a series of high-quality books out with great ideas. There are even a few groups on flickr dedicated to showing off works completed from the inspiration of the book.
I've also been lucky enough to become a member of an on-line quilting bee called Sweet Dreams Quilting Bee. Each month a member sends out a variety of fabric and the other 11 members make her blocks for a quilt. We send back the blocks and she makes the quilt. July is my month! I'm so excited to do this each month. There are a lot of quilting bees on flickr. I encourage anyone to check these out. Whatever your craft may be, there are so many opportunities on flickr to "meet" and interact with people who have similar interests. It's really great. Who needs facebook?

Anyway, I made this pillow with some of the leftover fabric from the first month's swap.

And I tried a new quilting technique that I call, "bubble quilting." It might be my new favorite way to quilt. I love to freeform quilt--no lines to trace, just go with the flow.
This month was also the finish line for a quilt that I've been working on for quite some time. I think that the reason it took so long is because I knew it was for me, and those projects always get pushed to the back burner when you are a quilter. Now my super-colorful quilt is hanging in the hallway where I get to see it everyday.

I also finished this quilt for a customer. I was glad to have this project because it really forced me to think outside of my box. I don't normally use these colors, but I enjoyed getting "back to my roots" and using some of the fabrics that I started out using when I first learned how to quilt. It was also neat to see the person's reaction to the quilt when I gave it to her. Very gratifying!

I hope your may was a great one and that you have lots of projects lined up for June. I've already got a list longer than my arm of things that I have to finish this month. I better get back to the sewing machine....