Ladybugs!

Since I can't stop making quilts, no adorable ladybug fabric was safe from me and my machine. I found these abstract ladybugs on reprodepot.com and mixed up the solid red ladybugs with the orange ladies and yellow dots. I had enough fabric to make two quilts for two little ladies. Charlotte in Maine is already enjoying her quilt and the other little lady should be presenting herself this week. I can't wait for action shots.

The Goods

I was so busy sewing that I didn't get a chance to post any of my creations before the craft fair. The fair was amazing and all of my purses went way too fast, I barely had a chance to say good bye. Now I have to get going on making more.

THE BUST CRAFTACULAR IS COMING!!!

Bust Magazine hosts an annual holiday craft fair and they have accepted my application to be a vendor. Wahoo! So on Saturday, December 8th from 10:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m., you are invited to come on down and get busy on your holiday shopping, either at the Lunden Designs table or elsewhere. The Craftacular is located at The Metropolitan Pavilion in New York City, 125 West 18th Street. I will be posting pictures of the purses and other lovelies as I make them.

Toot! Toot!

I know it is rude to toot my own horn, but every once in a while, a gal makes something that is just so pretty it can't be helped. This lovely quilt was started a while ago but was put on the back burner so I could concentrate on my wedding dress. Now that the dress is finished and the wedding is just around the corner, I finally had time again to work on this little beauty. It is a gift for my newest friend, Clementine. She took her sweet time coming into this world, but she was definitely worth the wait.
I used a Japanese print and created a cream border to create 12" x 14" blocks and then sewed them all together. I quilted "in the ditch" following the two vertical seams and outlined each swatch of pear material.
The original backing was going to be made with the same cream material, but there was a tragic accident involving some purple fabric that ran in the same load of wash. The cream fabric took the color beautifully and I found that the pink really worked well with the pears and leaves so I used it anyway. Sadly, some shirts and a sweater did not fair as well.

Quilt Action Shots - Part I

It seems like just yesterday that I was sending off my first baby quilt to San Francisco, anxiously checking the post office website for delivery confirmation and just busting with excitement for my friends to receive their surprise present. They did receive the quilt but had to wait a couple more months and then one very long week past the due date for their bundle of joy. Luckily, Henry arrived safe and sound. Here is the man of the hour, clearly enjoying his quilt and generally being charming and adorable.

Knitted Baby Blankets - Part II

Lunden Designs products are huge in Europe! It's true, all the fabulously adorable babies have Lunden baby blankets. This blanket was made for my little friend Kes, who lives in Amsterdam. When I generously offered to take Kes off his parents' hands, I was politely told to go get my own baby. At least I can take comfort in the fact that Kes gets to stay warm this winter cuddling in this lovely wool-blend baby blanket. As you can see, this versatile blanket is good for both playing and afternoon naps.

The pattern came from Debbie Stoller's Stitch 'N Bitch knitting book, a great guide for teaching yourself to knit. I picked a thicker yarn that yielded a much larger blanket than described in the pattern so Kes could use the blanket for years.

Knitted Baby Blankets In Action - Part 1

Long before there was quilting in my life, I knitted baby blankets for my friends' babies. Now that the babies are born and growing so fast, it is such a wonderful feeling to see the baby blanket in action. The yarn for this blanket was a very soft wool blend painted in different blues and greens.

Here are some pictures of little baby Lucas enjoying his blanket on a leisurely Saturday afternoon. As you can see, the blanket is not only comfortable, it is also quite tasty.

Quilt For A Big Girl - Part II

So I spent yesterday afternoon trekking around SoHo looking for the perfect fabric to back this lovely little quilt. I went to one of my favorite fabric stores, Purl Patchwork on Sullivan Street, because I knew they would have just what I need. I decided on this gorgeous, pale rose pattern for the back, instead of a solid color. It is delicate and feminine, but with enough detail to be a great reversible side.

Ever since I learned that Simplicity did not make a compatible walking foot for my machine, I really started looking at my machine with new eyes, as if it had betrayed me and now all I could focus on was its faults. A little time trolling on the internet led me to a great deal on a Brother machine that came with all kinds of great quilting feet. The old machine is in a box; the new machine is all fired up and the rest you could say, is history. I tried out the elusive walking foot last night and it was everything I wanted and more. I quilted this little baby by sewing in the ditch, a fancy term for following the seam lines. I only quilted the vertical seams and did not quilt the short horizontal lines. Keeping the back of the quilt nice and visually simple seemed like a nice contrast to the fun and busy front.

Here are some pictures of the completed quilt for my little friend. I am waiting to give it to her after her little sister is born so I will just have to wait for action shots of the quilt and its new friend.

A Quilt For A Big Girl - Part I

I know a certain three year-old who is about to get a new baby sister. It is an exciting time but it also comes with a lot of changes, so I wanted to make something special for my little friend. I also had a lot of great material that would be perfect for her bedroom. Most of my material was patterns so I supplemented the group with a pretty fresh solid pink. The material were all made up of pinks and browns, so I added three little squares of a bright, fun pattern of birds and flowers. I chose the garden path quilt style, or at least, that is what I think it is called.

Here are some pictures of the quilt in the making.

Some recent developments

The day job has really cramped my style lately, both in sewing productivity and posting new pictures.

So on that note, here are some of my more recent creations.

My First Quilt

My wonderful friend is just weeks away from delivering her first child. Since I have already knitted a couple of baby blankets, I wanted to try something new. The entire quilt is built around some adorable fabric that is baby blue with little goldfish on it. The fabric has been sitting patiently in my collection waiting for me to be inspired. Who would have guessed that all it would take would be for my friend to get a bun in the oven. With the leftover squares, I made matching blocks stuffed with all natural cotton. Here are some pictures of the quilt and the blocks. I can't wait for the live action shots of the little guy posing on his first quilt.