sewn: wet bags!

We have a few people in our lives who have had some babies recently or are expecting them soon.  I wanted some simple handmade gifts that would be practical, useful and not too labour-intensive for me to make!  I decided on wet bags- pretty zipped pouches lined with waterproof fabrics, perfect for toting those wet cloth diapers, soiled clothes, or even wet bathing suits.

We took the supplies out to the lake with us, and I was so excited to sew on my new/old table, a banged up antique drop leaf table I scored for $10.  Beautiful and sturdy ;)

The Middle Child wanted to be involved and so she helped choose coordinating fabrics and zippers.  She was so enthusiastic about helping with the sewing and pressing.  In her excitement, about 3 minutes in, she forgot that irons are hot and left it face down on the table......

Grr.  Good thing it was already "rustic."  Took a bit of scraping and four letter words to get the varnish off the iron, but soon enough we were back at it, and made a bounty of bags for the day.  I even pulled out some of my favourite and hoarded Heather Ross fabrics for the occasion! It felt good to USE them.

So here we have it!  I did some larger and some smaller sized bags.

For the girls:

Just love how the "just stay little" made it perfectly onto the handle :)

And for the boys:

The inner waterproof fabric:

Looking forward to gifting these and hope that they will be put to good use!

spring break at the lake

I admit it hardly looks like spring around here....after the "coldest winter in 100 years" we have heaps of snow BUT, it really IS starting to melt!

Regardless of the weather, the calendar says it is spring and Spring Break has come and gone. Time for some mini-breaks out at the cottage!

First a weekend, just me and a long time girlfriend.  I am sure you all have one like her....friends so long you are more like sisters, she knows all your secrets and was the one you always found the trouble with?  This is her.  Back in town for a visit that coincided with her 40th bday, we had to have an escape, just the two of us.  So we piled into The Hubs' truck and beelined for the cottage!

I guess I should have checked the gas tank first....

So another first, at 40- hitchhiking!  Yes, ran out of gas on the highway and had to hitch a ride to the next gas station to fill up, jerry-can style.

But we had much good fortune- the sky was blue, the day was mild, and we barely had a chance to snap this selfie with thumbs out before a sweet lady stopped and offered us a ride, to the gas station and back!

So we filled up, made some new friends, and went on to have a fabulous time.  Ah, memories!!

Later that week, we took a couple days off work and returned to the lake with the family. Much less "eventful."  Enjoyed some family time in the great outdoors, ice fishing, building snowmen, enjoying sunsets and snowshoeing on the lake. Still 4 feet of ice on it!

Also had the opportunity to visit with friends and family, curl up by the fire and watch movies, bake fresh banana bread (in our Anna Maria Horner aprons), knit and sew.

Such a relaxing break, even for our four legged family!

Tomorrow I will show you what was sewn :)

the champs!

Part of the reason I have been so quiet on the blog lately is that we have been busy with hockey playoff season!  My son plays for a top level team for his age, and he and his buddies played some amazing hockey for us this season, stuff that would put The Jets to shame!

It was a long road, but they made it alllll the way to the end- game 3 in a best of three for the finals!  And they came out as the champions!!

Could not be a prouder hockey mom of this hard working boy xoxo

To help support our boys along the way, the moms banded together for a night of wine and appetizers to make team scarves!  It was a simple pattern- fleece in team colours cut in long strips, I sewed them together along the middle, and then all the moms used scissors to fringe the edges.

Don't we look sharp??  No wonder we won!

Congratulations to the boys and families of 9A1 River East Royals White!  What a great season :)

my favourite sweater

While it took me six months to plod through my Coolbreeze cardigan, this one, I whipped off in TWO WEEKS, thanks in part to a road trip and a day at a dental conference....as you may recall, I like shaking it up at my conferences with some knitting ;)

Oh, this sweater.  The perfect colour grey yarn with hints of blue (Tanis Fiber Arts shadow).  Simple fit and flattering boat neck.  Sweet cable details in the front and along the raglans and down the sleeves.  My very favourite.

The neck did stretch too wide after a couple wears as warned by several other Ravelers, so I took their advice and crocheted a chain along the edge and now it holds its shape perfectly.

I could have maybe gone down a size as it did give with wear, but I like the loose, easy fit.

A staple with jeans and a tank top!

All the details of mods, etc on my Ravelry page here.

growing up and needs a new sweater!

A year has passed in the blink of an eye and my sweet little niece, who you may have read about here or here, is turning one!

Once a 3 pound preemie, she is now all rounded and squishy and perfect :)  The baby sweater I had knit her when she first arrived has long since been outgrown and retired to the baby box, so I thought a new one was in order.

I had a couple skeins of some Plucky Bulky yarn in the gorgeous Vintage Icebox colorway on hand, and decided those would be "the ones."  I brought it along to Jamaica and happily knit away on the beach....ahh, this is the life!

I paired the Plucky with the Tiered Coat and Jacket pattern, but seeing as I was a bit short on yardage, just eliminated the tiering part and made it a plain old sweater with a garter collar and trim.  To add a little more girlish whimsey, I used buttons I covered in some pretty floral Liberty fabric....so cute!

But even cuter is the sweater paired with my niece!  Look at that crazy toothy grin!

I knit the 12-18 month size, and it fit perfectly, with room to grow.  It will be a lovely spring and fall sweater for her.  Happy first birthday, VV!!

joint effort

So just wondering....if you are Canadian and are making blocks to contribute to the Soy Amado project for Mexican street children over at Little Island Quilting, would it be helpful to relay the blocks to me here, along with, say, a toonie, then I can ship them all on to the Little Island? Would save the masses some international postage costs.

If you are interested, just leave me a comment here with your email address and I will send my mailing information on to you!

working on......

A few projects on the go!  Here are a few WIPS I am working on lately.

Most of my crafty energy has been spent knitting lately.  And I have a few things in progress:

Some Snowfling mitts for a swap with the talented Krista of Spotted Stones.  I had so much fun meeting her at the Loon Lake retreat in November, she is the sweetest.  I drooled over every stitch she made, and jumped at the chance to knit her some mittens in exchange for a sewn surprise when given an "in".  I know these will be well loved and used in Alaska!

A wee Sproutlet dress for a babe on the way:

Just need to put some buttons on this baby cardigan I knit while in Jamaica.  Am thinking some covered in Liberty would be nice.

And this, my new favoritest sweater ever, all done and waiting to be photographed! Here is a sneak peak!

I have some beautiful blue Plucky Primo yarn all wound up ready to start this sweater, for me.  Next up!

I have been pretty quiet on the sewing front lately, but have recently relocated my sewing mojo and am inspired to start some new projects and finish some others that have been lying in wait.  To be honest, my sewing area was such a complete mess that I couldn't even beat a path to my machine!  A recent clean and IG fabric destash helped me uncover some long lost favourite fabrics and inspiration is back!  I have a bag pattern and a clutch tutorial planned (it's been awhile since I did a tutorial!) and a new quilt top in the works with this stack of Liberty of London and low volume fabrics, all sliced and ready to stitch!

My favourite sewing project currently is this one: whenever I have a spare minute, I like to put together a couple quilt-as-you-go blocks for The Soy Amado project over at Little Island Quilting, to provide quilts to street children in Mexico.  It is a great way to use up scraps and give back.  I would encourage you all to make a few, and ship them off to Alison to share a little love!  Go check it out! Here are the ones I have made so far.

Finished blocks are 12.5", with backing and batting of the same size attached.  You can make new blocks, or use "orphan" blocks you have sitting around.  I found a few old blocks from various quilts in the bottom of my scrap bin, added borders and quilted, and also made some log cabin and mini square ones from scraps.  They are quick and fun, and come together to make cheerful quilts for kids who need them.

Hope you have a fantastic week!