1/8 of the project done, if that

Making progress right?  Slowly but surely the quilt is coming along.  

It starts in stack, goes to rows, rows to sections, sections to a whole quilt.  So many more rows to sew

 This is week is the busiest week at work and I'm sick to boot.  I won't get a chance to do much more today but hopefully in the next couple of days the quilt will come along.

- Bryn

Fall is coming - in about 9 months

Winter is officially here about a week ago, time to continue work on a fall project.  

Lots of colors and many hours later I came up with all my blocks completed.  Its always good to know how many of each color you have so I label mine

 Next step way laying them all out!  I didn't want to turn my computer back on to see what size to make so I used the quilt from my bed as a template.

And a couple of hours later this is what you get!  Looks pretty good.  It looks random but it is not.  It takes a lot of planning.   

I put everything together and decided there were a couple colors that didn't quite match everything else.  I left one or two of each colors in the quilt.  I plan on re-purposing the grey to use on the second quilt.

Now that the major work is out of the way I should really finish my brother and wife's wedding quilt.  It was in September which may be considered fall so it is only apt that it be finished now, or by their first anniversary!

- Bryn

Fall quilt continued

After my initial buying and cutting spree I found out that 8 different fabrics were not enough.  As I wrote in my last post I ended up with about 25 colors.  More shopping was the key!  I went to JoAnns with a gift card from my aunt and bought a couple more colors.  

I spent an afternoon cutting all my fabrics apart to sew them back together.  Each block ended up being a little smaller than 4 1/2 inches square.  

My goal is to make a throw quilt that could also be used as a quilt for a twin size bed.  After adding more colors from M&L I probably made too many blocks.  My back pain for another person gain.  Someone might be getting a cool fall quilt in probably 2-3 years at the rate I finish things!

Do these colors say fall?   I think so.  Maybe not the teal but I can't make a quilt without using at least a little bit of teal.

-Bryn

It's been too long!

Wow, it's been over a month since my last post.  Needless to say, the holidays have been crazy!  My mom visited from KC, my aunt and uncle visited from Idaho and Colorado and it is the busiest time at work of the entire year.  And now I'm sick!
My projects got a little mixed up for the holiday season.  The quilt I wanted to make in the fall is my project now and my Christmas presents I did in the fall.  But I suppose, better late than never!  A while ago I found a picture online of a quilt made of solids and triangles.

I thought it was beautiful so I decided to give it a try.  I bought a whole bunch of solid colors from this crazy store in Anaheim.  I have never seen so many fabrics in one place in my entire life!  But I digress.

Opposite all colored pieces I bought a charcoal solid.  I really wanted to challenge myself to make something different than I usually do.  Most of my projects lately have had a light muslin or white as the background color but for fall charcoal seemed to suit the season better.  

I made five inch squares and cut them diagonally.  I used four yards  I found a little trick earlier this year of not separating the pieces until I had sewn thirty to fifty together and then cutting them apart.  Seems to work well and saves me a lot of thread.

I ended up with about 25 different colors.  Some of the colors ended up a bit too bright so I didn't use them.      More cutting, ironing, and sewing to come.  Feels good to start another project.  More to come soon!
- Bryn

More Christmas Presents

I've made most of my Christmas presents already but I needed something fun and... cheap for many of my special work friends.  Our connections is working at Disneyland so why not make something from there!  I found an ornament on Pinterest and thought it would be cute to make from the park map. 

Holiday time has already started in Disneyland on November 11.  That's right, November 11!  What happened to Thanksgiving?  Oh well, but it means I can get to making presents super early!

I took the cover page and part of an inside page and cut them into 1/4 inch strips.  I curled them on a pair of scissors.  The pages were thin enough to curl!  I put them in a glass ornament that I bought from the craft store and done!

 Each one is getting a fancy handmade tag.  I think they turned out really cute and different then anything you can buy.   6 down, 24 to go!

- Bryn

Organizing my mess

I can't throw away even the smallest pieces of fabric.  If it is a long skinny piece that is about an inch wide, kept.  A one inch square, kept.  I keep almost every scrap.  It's a problem I have.  But I can make amazing things from those tiny pieces of fabric!

 Needless to say, when you make a million different projects you get a lot of scraps.  My box was a mess!  I had a little time before work and that seemed like a perfect project.

 I put all the similar colors together in separate piles.  Once I had all the pieces together I rolled the colors with a rubber band.  Awesome!  All my scraps fit in the box again!

Finally being able to find all my scraps will make putting together projects much easier.  After the holidays I plan on doing a scrap project to get rid of my stash.  

Today is the day I go back to working on the black and white quilt. 

- Bryn

Little bunting bag

I found another tutorial online that I could not pass up.  I found it at Just Another hang up probably from Pinterest. This little bag, I love bags, didn't seem too difficult and it would force me to organize my scrap pile.  One of my favorite fabrics to use is muslin and that is what the tutorial called for, perfect!  

 Using my scrap pile I cut tiny triangles in the same color family.  I love making fabric crafts with the ombre color patterns, which up until recently I called a color progression.  I had been doing the ombre style before it was cool.  I'm such a hipster!

 Even the backside of the fabric looked cool.  Too bad it will never be seen again.

 Once both side of the bag was done it was sewing time.  On went the zipper and the lining.

 I think it's kinda cute.  I'm thinking I might shorten it a little bit so there is less non decorated fabric at the bottom.

I wanted the bag to be square when I cut it but now it seems a little odd.  That might solve to extra fabric at the bottom too.

 I'll figure that out tomorrow!

Well the scarp orginizing didn't go that far but the end product is pretty cute.  Tomorrow I probably won't get too much crafting done but the Wednesday and Thursday I have off!  More wedding and Christmas presents here I come!

- Bryn

10 pillows done!

Wow, I already have 10 Christmas presents done and it is only early November!  Woot!

A couple days ago I finished 4 pillows and today I finished 6 more!

To make these pillows it take a lot of steps and lot and lots of small pieces of fabric.  It is all worth it when they are finished.

I finally remembered to make some tags.  ByBryn is offically my craft name and now it's on the my items, but only if I remember!

  I'm going to post 2 of them on Etsy.  Hopefully I will sell something on there.  It's gotta happen eventually right?

-Bryn

Christmas pillows

I finished the tops of some Christmas Pillows recently and really needed to finish them off.  Work has kept me busy and out of my crafting mode.  I had an evening shift tonight which gave me a lot of time to finish them off.

 All Done.  I made one without the red trim around the edges and tore it apart to add the red.  It adds a wonderful finishing detail.  I will have to work on all of them again.  I keep meaning to make a ByBryn tag but I keep forgetting.  Only I would remember to add something after it is completely done.  Oh well, for another day.

 This is my everyone Christmas present this year.  I have about 6 more to make after finishing 4 already.  I just couldn't throw away all these cut pieces.  Another day off tomorrow, another day of crafting ahead.  

Or wedding planning...

- Bryn

Something old and something new

 Wedding planning is taking much of my time these days but there is something else wedding related that I need to get finished.  My brother and his wife just got married two months ago and I promised them a quilt.

Horizontal stripes

 I was practically done with the quilt top when I stopped.  It didn't take very long for me to the majority of the top.  I'm going to put a black border around it as both the length and width are too short.  Now it is the newly married couple's choice on which way the waves go.

Vertical stripes

And now the something new.  I have been wandering the internet and found this cute idea for coasters.  I would love to have a homemade wedding favor that somebody will actually use.  These are a contender, depending on how long they take. 

Cheers coasters

 If this was the gift I would have to make about 200 of them!  Yikes!

Back to work tomorrow but that will not stop me from working on projects anyways.

- Bryn

Christmas presents with scraps

 My Christmas stockings left me with a ton of left over fabric that was already sewn together.  I've had a Chrismtas pillow on my project list for a while.  It dawned on me that my scraps would be perfect for those pillows.  There is no time like the present to make presents!

For each 16" pillow I cut a 8 inch square white piece of fabric.  I needed more white fabric on the outside to create a diamond shape.  Two - 8 1/2 squares for the sides of the pillows and cut them once diagonally to create two large triangles.

I cut 2 inch wide pieces from my last project and framed in 8 inch piece.

 I pressed out the seems and added my other pieces of white fabric on each side.  I had 4 square pieces of fabric with a colorful border along each edge.

I sewed on the large triangles on each side of the square to reorient the fabric square in the center to create a diamond instead.

All that hard work left me with a beautiful diamond pillow top.

That is all I can get done today.  It's time to head to work.  Tomorrow I plan on using even more scraps for more pillows and other projects.  

- Bryn

An almost year in crafts

Kaleidoscopic Quilt

Citrus Coasters

I want to rework the blog again.  At the moment most people who look at my blog are family and friends.  I feel it might not be necessary to do the tutorial style posts, yet.  I'm working on getting notice in the craft community by using Pinterest and visiting other blogs.  As always, simplicity is key.

Easter Basket

Here is a look at some of my past projects.

Diamond Pillow

Button Bouquet

Princess Clock

Just one princess

Chevron Pillow

I've done quite a few different projects over time.  Working on a variety of things keeps it interesting.

Americana Quilt top

Irish Plaid quilt - my first real quilt

Halloween Cross Stitch

All 3 Thumbtack Pumpkin

Look for another redesign of my blog.  I can't quite decide what works the best for me and this blog.

My Modern Log Cabin Quilt

Lattice Hawaiian quilt top

4th of July Purse

Hawaiian Wristlet

 My next project will use the majority of the scraps from my Christmas stockings.  As always, thanks for looking and inspiring me to keep making more.  Please leave me a comment on your favorite project.

- Bryn