Kennel Comforter Tutorial for Dogs & Cats

The Princess & the Pea

The past many days were packed to the top. By Sunday I felt I just needed to regroup with one quiet day. I went to the studio to get ready for sewing group here on Tuesday, and my hands were once again moving batting scraps. I really hate moving and re-moving unneeded items. We had a cold snap the night before, and a newly adopted barn kitten without a cozy bed to stay warm in her crate. A quick turn of the sewing machine made a pillow cover, and the batting bits turned it into a toasty nest.

GROW YOUR BLOG

This is me--Julie, and Minnie, one of the Doxie Girls.

Today is a very special blog post. 

I've joined with Grow Your Blog 2015 along with hundreds of other bloggers. 

Our host is Vicki at 2 Bags Full, and may I say thank you, first of all. 

There are some rules to abide by, so allow me to follow them to a "T",

and then we'll get on to our Linky Party and a Giveaway!

I'm Julie--a Modern Quilter.

I love modern fabric, intense pattern, and improvisational piecing.

I'm all about machine quilting, but occasionally quilt one by hand. 

I would pick a scrap quilt as my favorite 8 days of the week.

 I Dream in Color.

Fa-La-La-La-La, and I'm Not Done. Are You?

I showed you this little quilt top a few weeks ago made with a Merry Go Round charm pack. The fabric designer is Nel Whatmore for Freespirit Fabrics. It's become a favorite after using it, and one I'll replace for my stash. Very girly and romantic, but modern, too.

One Charley Harper and a Zombie Dog Bed Done

My daughter requested a dog bed for a friend. Could it be something edgy for one very feisty dog? I love the Zombie fabric, and luckily had some leftover in both my stash and scrap bins. They agreed, so I used the same piecing method as the Love quilt. Free-cut strips, and improv piecing. I didn't pay much attention to the layout, but evened up the strips when they were long enough. I was aiming for a 24"x24" top.

No Rest for the Weary

Remember a few days ago when I was looking forward to my week alone with my husband? I was planning to sew my days away with little responsibility, take walks with the dogs, etc. Well, let me tell you, it didn't happen quite like that. 

All week long I've run like a crazy woman. I've refereed more llama disputes than I could imagine, been spit on because I got in the middle, and have had mulitple flashbacks to the early days of mothering 5 kids. The other family dogs came yesterday afternoon for a total of six. Three over 50 pounds, and 3 bad dachshunds. It was a sleepless night while the new dogs got used to regular house noises. We were all up by 4:30. While trying to get medications out for one big dog, the other two played chase in the living room, and took out a lamp. One doxie didn't want to eat, but I coaxed her into it. She then threw up for the next several hours. Oh, dear, I hope it's not contagious. 

(Did I happen to say today's my 27th wedding anniversary?)

So, while I babied the sick dog, the rest have had a couch day. They slept, I finally got the new lights for the tree on, and you can see the little church and Santa finished the decorations. Now it feels like Christmas time.

I did squeeze in a little time to sew.

This is the other pillow top done for dear son's new house. I'll get it all together before he's home from vacation.

This, next, is a Christmas present for the in-laws. It's a dog bed top for their Scout. My mother-in-law has always had a thing for birds, and loves Charlie Harper prints. Harper did a fabric line with winter birds, and it was a perfect match. Some of the fabric was in a panel of sorts, and I had to be creative to work those into a bed top. Two rows go up, and two go down. No matter how the bed is turned, half the blocks are in the correct direction. I think it adds interest to the top. The sashing is a grey with hatch marks.

I quilted the blocks at about an inch apart, and the sashing in between closer to 1/2".

I think his prints give so much character to the animals. 

All six are sleeping hard, and I think I'm going to sneak downstairs alone.

Remember the saying, "Let sleeping dogs lie."

I'm off to sew alone.

Sewing Machine Covers and Ironing Board Redo

What isn't there to love about Saturdays?

It was a whole day to putz in the sewing room. I tidied, dusted, made sure to vacuum off my sewing machines, and put my cover on. It's a good practice to follow as dust is a real enemy to your machine. I made this one years ago, but my new machine needs one now. Something jazzy.

Poor Freezing Fiona's New Dog Bed

This is one very large, very warm dog bed made for a deserving dog who can't get warm.

Project "Feather the Nest": Dog Beds

Today is the first of a string of a few stellar autumn days. Sun and mild temperatures for this time of November are fully enjoyable, if not untypical. Here, we've had a keen eye on the weather during our barn project, and every spare moment on dear husband's part has been spent there in both sun and rain. I hope that the remaining material come in an are installed this week. We're all ready for the barn to be done. The Arctic cold front hits us Tuesday night, and I fear for the harsh winter they're predicting to be near on it's heels. Brrr.