one

I can't believe it's been a year. Feels like it was just yesterday that I held this wee person in my arms for the first time and told him that I love him. Happy birthday to my feisty little doodlebug! I love you lots, kiddo.

quick getaway

We took a spontaneous little trip to Cape Cod for a couple of days. I had never been there before, and Matt thought it would be great to go in the off-season. It was so wonderful. We strolled on a few beaches and hiked along a trail. We ran into a fox that darted out in front of us and sat perfectly posed about 10 feet away from us watching as I pulled the camera out of my bag only to scamper away as soon as I took the lens cap off. We came across a gorgeous marsh with a chorus of hundreds of wee frogs at sunset. We waited for the wild turkey to cross the road. We let the kiddo walk along the shore, saw a whale in the distance doing its whale thang (which was kinda amazing), played with shells and pebbles, and ate the most fabulous crab cakes. If this is a taste of what this summer might hold, I am so looking forward to it.

and so baby quilt season begins

Some projects are just happy-making every step of the way. This baby quilt is one of those joyous projects. After seeing so many Single Girl quilts on Flickr and Pinterest, I had to make my own, and I had to make it that very moment. I didn't use the actual pattern by Denyse Schmidt. I couldn't wait for it to be mailed. I just winged it and made my own template. Sewing curves is super-easy, so the rest was really a breeze to figure out and execute. My construction was a little different; I paper-pieced all the scrappy bits because it just made more sense and seemed easier to do so. I referred to the Single Girl Support Group on Flickr for tips and ideas on how to quilt it. I decided to follow Denyse Schmidt's plan for the quilting, but I didn't trace a ton of lines onto my top. I only traced the large rounded squares using my template as a guide, then used the quilting stick on my walking foot as a guide when making the echo lines. 

Everything about this project (except for sewing curves) was new to me, and I really enjoyed the whole process. This is the first time I have ever gotten so fussy with the quilting itself, and I loved it. I am amazed that I have never used the quilting stick before for straight lines. I always mark them or sew 1/4 inch from the seams when quilting. Now I want to quilt everything like this! I figure since it only took me two sessions to quilt this in this fashion (an hour or so of quilting each night), maybe I can actually do a huge one for my own bed within a reasonable time frame so that I don't lose interest or momentum. Hmmm.... As soon as I finish up a few projects and bee blocks, I know what I'll be doing.

Overall, my proportions for the quilt are just slightly off from the original design/pattern. I think my scale is smaller by a couple of inches. Each block came out to 15 inches finished. The quilt measures 35 x 50 inches, which I think is a good size for a versatile quilt that can be easily rolled up for travel or used as a stroller quilt, etc. Since the recipient is a New Englander, I thought they would appreciate something that would keep their wee one warm everywhere, not just in the crib, which is also why the backing is one of my favorite flannel prints by Ann Kelle.

So one baby quilt down, three more to go!