WiPs of the week!

Wow. The holiday really threw me off. I can't believe it's time for WiP Wednesday!!!

So, I spent a lot of last week cleaning and organizing my sewing room. Holy Crow. I am glad that I did it, but wow. I did not realize how much I have... Don't tell my husband, but I probably shouldn't be allowed to buy fabric for a long while... ;) lol!

Anyway, here are a few of the thing I worked on...

Bottled Rainbows!


Here's the block of the week - Cerise. I am going to just call it "That pretty purpley color" I love it. I had fun with this one! Love that little leftover Butterfly block! And now, only three left to go! I think from here on I am not going to show the whole group; just that week's block until it's done! Muahaha!

Mod Times - quilted! Binding on! Ready to get that binding done! I'll post pictures as soon as it's finished!! :)


New project! I found a fat quarter bundle that I LOVE and decided that I wanted to do another hexagon quilt. I'll use the same piecing process as the original Hex, but modify it a little. It'll be fun!


While I was cleaning, I found this picnic quilt top that I finished many months ago...


aaaaaand forgot about!! How on Earth does one forget an entire quilt top?!? I am now considering what to back it with and how to quilt it! It's a fun quilt! :)

For my almost-due new nephew - a onsie. He's the 7th child! I though this was funny...


Last - I am still having problems with commenting. I cannot comment on blogs that have comments embedded at the bottom of the post (unless you allow for anonymous or name/URL). So, if I used to comment, but suddenly stopped - I WANT to!! Maybe you could change to the pop-up comment screen, you know - just for me? ;) No, but - know that I'm reading and totally being inspired by your projects!

Check out all of the awesome WiPs, this week at Don't Call Me Betsy! Happy sewing! :)

Oh, and yeah - I'm all for this one... :)

My sewing room exploded.

I got a bee in my bonnet. My sewing storage room was out of control. It was getting desperate. So... I pulled every thing out. I have been folding fabric for over 2 hours. And I'm not done.


(Although, I did get Mod Times #2 basted! It's the roll right there. Just waiting to be quilted. Will I ever be able to reach my machine again?!?)

What did I get myself into?!? I know, I know - it'll be nice when it's done. But right now I need a break. Wish me luck!!

WIP Wednesday!

Another week - gone! I feel like this week has been a whirlwind - with a try at a tri (lol!), dance recitals, preschool graduation, last day of school, and on and on... Whew! But, I was able to get a little sewing done too!

Mod Times #2 is still waiting to be sandwiched. I am so excited to quilt it, but I need to mop the floor before I can baste. (sigh...)


I made a new dance bag for my little dancing queen.


I used the "leftovers" from Mod Times #2 (ahem - because I bought the end of the bolt. Don't judge. It was 50% off...) It turned out way cute, and now she can actually fit her three different pairs of dance shoes - tap, ballet, and jazz - into her dance bag! Sheesh.



Cute, right?!

Bottled Rainbows - Moss block

This is block #12!!! 4 more to go, and I saved my favorite colors for last! Yea!! :) I kept this one simple, and I really do like how it came out. I also like that it is mostly Fandango scraps. I love LOVE that line! :)



I really love this project! I am so excited to snuggle under this one! I'm totally going to hog it all to myself!

Also on the drawing board - a simple skirt tutorial and pants to skirt (My hack method) tutorial! Stay tuned for those!

And - I am really excited to join in this skill builders quilt a long!!! It is going to be awesome!!

Well, that's it for this week! Be sure to check out all the WIPs at Freshly Pieced!

An Excess of Mug Rugs

For end-of-year-teacher-gifts, I decided to follow Melinda's example and make up a few mug rugs. I even used her poem! (She said I could!)

The Princess designed the one for her teacher (her teacher had an ocean themed room)


Cute yes? Here's the outcome...


I designed the rest. Notice how simple mine are? Yeah. SIMPLE. But I love them and they were fast to make!

And one more for the crossing guard (she's got a big job, too!!) :)


I love mug rugs! :)

A Big Serving of Humble Pie

I know you are all wondering about how the triathlon went. Well... it was a complete disaster. Seriously! It has been a long time since I have outright failed at something, so I guess I was just overdue for a good humbling! lol!

Here's me getting ready to start the swim.



Which I only made it partway through. Turns out - swimming in a pool is a lot different than swimming in a lake, and swimming in a swimsuit is a lot different than swimming in a wetsuit. (Can a get a Duh?) So, I had trained for swimming, just not the right kind of training. But that wasn't the kiss of death.

Here's how this all went down. I started the swim out pretty well. I did, however, realize quickly that I had worn the wrong kind of wetsuit. I borrowed a friend's regular, scuba wetsuit, which was too thick, so I had a whole lot of drag going on. I had, about 400 meters in, decided that I would have to alternate between freestyle and breaststroke to finish.

That was went I collided with another swimmer and took a foot to the gut. Now, it's important for me to say - I don't blame the other swimmer AT ALL. It's a free for all, we're all right on top of each other, and it's hard to see where the other swimmers are. So, not that person's fault. And the kick didn't even hurt. But, it was enough to through off my rhythm and breathing, and caused me to start taking in mouth fulls of water. And out in the middle of a lake is not the most ideal place to try and recover from getting the wind knocked out of you. BUT - I don't think the kick would have effected me as much if I hadn't already been struggling.

I swam (if you are being generous with the term swim) another 100 yards or so, and tried to determine the best course of action. I was still coughing and getting mouthfuls of water. I do NOT quit easily, so this decision was painful. But even now I can't regret making the decision to pull out. I wouldn't have been able to finish the swim. At least not before the cutoff. So, I swam over to one of the officials on a jet ski, told him I was pulling out, and climbed on the back of the jet ski. He was great about it, as were the people on the boat who had to call in my number into the race director.

I was hoping to just get to the dock, hand in my time chip and make a discreet getaway. But no. NOW came the embarrassing part. I got to the dock, was helped off by a young man who would not let go of my arm. He kept asking if I was okay, then told me that I would have to talk to "the race director. She's the one in the green shirt... yes, right there, running toward us."

She was running. Sprinting actually. Right. Up. To. ME. And behind her - the medical staff. Complete with a full stretcher. **Dies of complete embarrassment** Holy cow, it was humiliating. Anyway, I assured her that I was okay - and that all I really needed was a rock to hide under and die of embarrassment. Fortunately (?) I wasn't the first to pull out for that exact reason, and I am sure I wasn't the last.

So, a bona-fide failure. But, I certainly learned a valuable lesson about preparing the RIGHT way. And you do know what this means, right? Michael will be ordering a kayak and a few little life vests today. And from now until next year, we will be spending a few evenings a month with my three family members in a kayak while I swim in the reservoir until it's easy to do. Next time.. I'll be ready! :)

But humble pie doesn't taste very good.

Mod Times #2 Top and Back

I was able to get the top of my second Mod Times quilt all put together last night, and then I pieced the back today! I love 'em!!


I went with white background because when I looked around at greens, they just didn't "feel" right. So, white it was! And I like it very much! But I think the back is a big win! I just love it! :)

Tomorrow I am participating in my first open water Olympic distance triathlon! I am excited and a little nervous! It's a 1500 meter swim, 20.5 mile bike and 6.2 mile run. I know I can finish, but wish me luck to not finish last! lol! :) Have a great weekend!!

Mod Times #1 Complete!!

Okay - here it is!! Mod Times #1 all finished! Made with All Stars 2 in flannel!

At the last minute, I decided it need a little bit of blue! So, I got a little of the corresponding blue dot print and I am THRILLED with that little touch on the binding! Yea!!


The back! It needed blue too! :) I love how it came out!!

A big THANK YOU to Twinfibers for hosting this quilt a long! It is a fabulous pattern! I have #2 going strong, and I'll post pictures of that in the next few days!! :)