1. Let's Get Married by Jill, 2. Old Ways quilt by Lotje, 3. Arboreal Quilt by Amy Friend, 4. Star Value by Melissa Corry, 5. FO: Hexy Wreath by Jacey, 6. Drunkard's Path by Jennifer Worthen, 7. Triangle quilt by Joy, 8. Hand Dyed Patchwork by Malka Dubrawsky, 9. SeaSlab BOM by Matt Macomber.

Periodically, I go through my favorite photos on Flickr, and choose nine sewing/quilting related projects to showcase here. These photos and projects are not my own, you can find the original images and creators by clicking the coordinating links! If for any reason you do not want your project featured here, please email me and I'll remove it!

Happy Weekend!

Patchwork Christmas Projects

Happy Wednesday! Today I have some fun Christmas projects to share. This Fall I decided it would be fun to have a few sewn holiday decorations to switch between. After making my Halloween Patchwork Projects, I knew I wanted to make some Christmas ones.


First up, a Christmas pillow for our lone armchair. I actually made this pillow last year, but didn't photograph it. I picked up a fat quarter bundle of Tinsel by Cotton and Steel and cut into it for this pillow and then set it aside. I used up most of the bundle for the rest of the projects.


It was fun to frame a few cute scenes from the prints inside each star block. I love how this pillow turned out!


I finished it with a simple zippered back.


Both of the table toppers that I made used up some leftover half-square triangles that came from making the pillow. It seemed a shame not to use them up/ I pieced the half-square triangles into strips of four. Then I added strips of the prints to make pieces wide enough for both toppers.


Above is the large topper for the dresser.


And the small topper for the side table.


I also made another tiny mini quilt to put inside the Pyrex dish we throw our keys in. Keeps it from getting scratched up.


Before I cut up pieces for the toppers, I cut up the larger pieces into two lined drawstring bags. I'm using one as a knitting bag right now, and the other will likely be used to wrap a gift. These are both the tutorial size.

Another satisfying and practical group of projects. It makes the apartment feel extra festive having a few sewn holiday decorations.

Happy Sewing!

White Chocolate Chex Mix Recipe

Happy Monday! I love making and giving sweet treats all year but especially around the holidays. I'm planning to try a few new things this year, but there are some treats that have a firm spot in the rotation. This chex mix is one of them!

It's really easy to adjust this recipe depending on what you'd like in your mix. I keep things pretty simple for mine, but will share a few other ideas at the end.


Ingredients:
- 12.8 oz Rice Chex cereal (minus 2 cups)
- 1 bag M&Ms candy (12.6 oz)
- Skinny stick pretzels
- 1 bag of white candy melts (12 oz)*
- 2 cups roasted salted peanuts

*I like to use candy melts vs. real white chocolate because I have a horrible track record with seizing white chocolate. The candy melts are pretty foolproof, and I don't think that they taste all that different. This year I even found peppermint ones! Feel free to use real white chocolate if you'd like.


1. Melt candy melts using a double boiler. I use a glass bowl over a small pot, nothing fancy.

2. In a large bowl, mix together cereal, M&Ms, a few handfuls of pretzels, and peanuts.

3. Pour melted candy into the bowl, mixing to coat. Spread on wax paper to harden.

4. Once cool, break up into pieces and enjoy or pack up for gifting.

I find this amount of chocolate to mix ratio perfectly coated by not overwhelming. If you'd like to up the ratio, use 1.5 bags of candy melts.

A few addition ideas: Cheerios cereal, Crispix cereal, Corn Chex cereal, Reese's Minis, Popcorn, Sprinkles. Drizzle with milk or dark chocolate after cooled to add color and extra flavor!

Enjoy!

November 2016 Report

Happy Thursday! It's time for my November Monthly Report. See past reports here.

It's hard to believe that this year is almost over already. I'm definitely looking forward to reflecting back, making goals, and starting the new year.


I've been steadily working on my holiday gift making (and shopping), so I can't elaborate too much on what I've been working on this month. That will have to wait until after Christmas. It's been enjoyable work though, and I should be done with plenty of time to spare (famous last words). To be honest, it's extra motivating knowing that I'm working down my stash at the same time. Makes it more fun.

I also made a few holiday decorations, which I'll be sharing soon!


The cool weather has really made me want to knit, I've been knitting a lot lately. I'm hoping to finish a few projects before the end of the year so that I can start a few new things. Michael also wants a new pair of mittens.

My Drachenfels shawl progress, see more details on Ravelry.


As I've mentioned, to keep myself accountable I'm tracking my yardage for both yarn and fabric. Here is how I did in November:

November Fabric
Used up: 21.75 yards
Brought in: 20.75 yards
Net: -1 yards
Year to date: -246.375 yards

November Yarn
Used up: 757 yards
Brought in: 200 yards
Net: -557 yards
Year to date: +1902 yards

I definitely brought in more fabric than I planned to this month. There were too many sales, and I caved. Plus I knew when I first saw it ages ago, that I was going to have to buy some of Sarah Watson's new collection, Bird's Eye View. I felt fine about that because I had been thinking about it for months on end, it wasn't a whim. Totally worth it. Thankfully, I finished a quilt this month and a number of other small projects to keep me (just barely) in the negative. 


This month I finally made a list of my works in progress. The grand total is 45! It seems crazy huge, but it's really not as bad as it sounds. That number includes a lot of things that might not necessarily become it's own project. It includes groups of blocks or units (think a bazillion HSTs) that are either leftovers from another project or were blocks from teaching samples or practice blocks. Some of these may end up getting combined into one project, I'm not sure yet. I mean it's still a big number, but I think that gives it a little perspective. Needless to say, one of my goals for 2017 is to bring that number down.


Sweet George bunny, looking all cute.

Have a great month!