English Paper Piecing

I've been trying to figure out what kind of quilts I wanted to make for my kid's beds, but I couldn't settle on anything that I really loved. Then one of my favorite ladies here taught me how to do traditional English paper piecing, and I knew that was what I wanted to do! It is all done by hand and is really time intensive, but it produces such a beautiful quilt.

I ordered most of the fabric from Bloomerie Fabrics and I love all the colors and patterns so much! I'm not sure what the total yardage is that I used, but it is probably around 1/4 yard (some more, some less) of 26 different fabrics - so maybe 6.5 yards? I cut the fabric into 3.75 inch squares, which I then basted around a paper hexagon template that I got here. I made 630 of these hexagons! It took me about two months to get them all done. I would usually sew while watching a movie at night, and I really liked that I didn't have to be at my sewing machine to do it.

I could sew about 25 in an hour, so that is about 25 hours of work - probably more! It was so satisfying to see the stacks and stacks of complete hexagons! Once I had enough, I laid them all out how I wanted them. I'm making a twin size quilt, but I'm not sure what the exact dimensions are.

The next step is to sew them all together - again, by hand! I love that there are no seam allowances, so the quilt will look exactly as it does in the picture above. I've started sewing them together by rows, and it isn't quite as quick as I'd hoped, so I still have quite a few hours left on this project! :)

Initially, I was going to make one for each of my kids, one being more pink/orange and the other being more blue/green. But for a few reasons (maybe mostly time and difficulty!:) I'm going to do a different pattern for my son that can be sewn on the machine. But I'm really excited about that one too, because I love the pattern I decided on!

I'll update my progress once I get the hexagons sewn together! I used a few different tutorials to help me along the way, but I think I mainly used this blog, Texas Freckles. Just google "English paper piecing" or "hexagon quilt" and you will find loads of tutorials and information!

Sometimes I can't believe I'm going to this much work for a quilt for my 5-year old daughter, but it actually makes me really happy and I have no regrets! I love that it has ties to England and hopefully it will be a special keepsake for years to come!

Summer Dress

I love wearing skirts and dresses in the summer. It isn't always warm enough here in England to go out with bare legs, but I'm calling this my "Italy Dress" since we are going there in July and I can't wait to stroll around in HOT weather in a comfy dress with no layers! I used the Scout Tee pattern as the top (but I think I might shorten the sleeves... and I'll probably bring the shoulder seams in a bit on the next one I make). Then I added a gathered skirt and an elastic casing, front pockets (using this tutorial) and a hi-low hem on the bottom.

I got this polyester fabric at Girl Charlee and it is wonderful. I really love the colors and the pattern and it is a great weight. I'm really happy with how this dress turned out! I want to make more, but I need to be realistic about how many dresses I actually need. :)

Scout Tee

I feel a little rusty on my pattern-making skills since I've taken such a long break from sewing. I wanted to make something that I didn't have to think too much about, so I finally tried out a Scout Tee. It was a straightforward pattern and makes a really nice finished product. I got this fabric at Girl Charlee and I really, really love it! This is my favorite style of shirt to wear, and I know I'll be wearing it all the time!

Matching

I got this lovely floral fabric from Girl Charlee last summer, and had just enough to get two simple t-shirts out of it! My mom actually made one for herself a while ago, too, so we are all matching!

These are really simple shirts - just a top shoulder seam, no set in sleeves, and self-fabric neck and arm binding. So quick!

Tunic

I made this tunic for Anna out of a fun skirt a friend handed down to me (Jill, was it you??). I love the embroidery and the colors and the cute puffy sleeves. Another comfy top!

For Anna

Wow, it took me a while to feel settled enough after our big move to start really sewing again! I did a few things here and there through the fall and winter, but finally started really sewing again this spring! Here are a couple simple things for Anna I whipped up a little while ago.

An elastic waist skirt with a fake button placket. I really wanted to use some dark brown buttons, but Anna won out with the pink. :)

This peasant tunic was so easy and is so comfortable! Elastic neck, raglan/peasant sleeves, and cute floral pockets. I want to make her a bunch of tunics that she can wear with comfy leggings!