Nix the Quilt...Duvet Cover

So I said I would do a quilt. Nevermind. I went online to find a blog about duvet covers. Much easier. Perhaps I shall tackle the quilt this summer. After adding up all the materials and including the batting, I thought, "If I wanted to make a quilt, I should not use an older comforter for the batting." Who has ever seen duvet cover that has a quilt design? That sounds terrible as well. I will make a duvet cover for Taj using my old comforter. This idea is much better for my pocket too. The quilt will be for something/someone special where I have lots of time and would like to buy all the materials new. I like the idea of duvet covers because I am reusing an old comforter in the process. This is also what I would like to do for our master bedroom in the event we decide to change up the colors.

For a duvet cover, I need a total of 6 panels. (three for the front and three for the back) Not sure if I would like them all to be the same color or different colors. Perhaps different for something reversible. All together they have to be 62 inches in width and 88 inches in length...if you add the seam allowance that would be about 66 inches in width and 90 inches in length.

Back to shopping!!

Design sponge looks like a neat resource for me in my sewing endeavores.

Quilting Ideas

So pretty soon here I will have to start thinking about how to transition Zion into the crib. Taj will also need to learn how to sleep in a bed. While sitting in the boy's bedroom today, I thought, "Why not make him a quilt for his bed?" I could use my old Muppet Babies comforter as a guide. Today I went to Fabrics.com and searched through the entire fabric selection. Found some fabrics that would look good together. I plan to place the order in early March. It will be navy, brown with accents of teal, yellow and red. The backing will have a apple green minky fabric so it will be soft and warm for Taj. I am looking forward to working on it soon. I would like for it to be done before Taj's birthday. However, we will see. I will need to pace it because this is a big project and nothing ever looks good when it is done without patience. Quilting feels like a whole different beast. Especially when you get into patterns and stitch styles. I will be doing something rather easy. More like a quilt with a bunch of different lengths of rectangles. I learned a new phrase today..."Stitch in the ditch." It means that when I make a quilt and put the quilt, padding and backing together, I stitch over the seams of the quilt. This will be tricky, requires patience and a gentle foot. I am looking forward to this project.

Comforter size: 62inches x 87inches

Diaper Bag

I love my new diaper bag!! So much easier to carry.

floor pillows for our living room

So this week I finished two floor pillows using the fabric I purchased from Ikea. It was a pretty easy project...just had trouble trying to get the pillows to fit properly so the cover wasn't too big or too small. I ended up with one pillow slightly bigger than the other which was annoying. Thus I had to do some resewing. They are not perfect but I am proud of this first project and looking forward to making two more pillows using a green fabric to match our living room. They will be perfect for our students to use while they are over for book club.

my materials

I like my machine!! Thanks Mom!



Mom told me to take pictures so that I will remember how the thread is looped in the machine. This was a helpful thing to do because it saved by butt a couple times.


It makes my desk look like MY desk. It is something that belongs to me.

One thing that I really like about sewing is that it allows me to be creative with the resources I already have. I have the tools to do this...thanks to Mom AND I can find materials, fabric, buttons, things I do not use or need to recycle them. Instead of buying new shorts for summer, why not crop by old jeans I do not wear anymore? It allows me to consume less and reuse more. It's a new path I am taking to making my life simpler for my family.

The Journey Begins

So...Sewing has suddenly inspired me. It all started this last Christmas when I made bags for my siblings. Burlap bags from Dunn Bros Coffee. Now, I am going to start. I don't know where it will take me, but I want to attempt to master something. Record it and develop it. Make homemade gifts.