Baby {Making}

A few years ago I had no idea what babies needed. I did not have any babies. I had ideas about what they needed but these were far from concrete. Now, 4 years out I feel that I have a better grasp. Babies need diapers (lots), something to eat (breast/other as long as they are fed) and lots and lots of your time. Not much else really. Well, they usually get lots of other things but don't you think it really comes down to the essentials most of the time?

That does not mean we do not like to give them lots of other things and I am no exception. This month is the month of baby for me; my boys were born in April and now I have a new niece who has recently just come into her own and two small people forming up in two lovely sisters. Lots and lots of baby.

Couple all the baby with my new love of quilting and there have been many projects making their way to the sewing table (which is really just our huge long wooden dining table).

(Sewing space has been dismantled in favor of painting the wall a deep juicy red). (Man, painting just keeps going and going around here).

I think my confidence has grown with the quilting after successfully feeding two queen size quilts through my little machine and finding such happiness with the result. The first was for the boys, the second for our bed. The summer scrappy quilt is done!

400 plus 3.5 inch squares joined, sandwiched, quilted and only waiting for binding. Full pictures of that one to come.

Right now there are two quilts in progress. The first was inspired by JulieFrick who is a quilting machine lately. She is cranking out beautiful projects and I was inspired by her plus sign quilt. I had a stack of boy fabric that I purchased at Purl in Soho.
It sat without
a plan until the plus. But now it has found a place to be, sewn into this quilt top for baby S due this summer. The design is simple enough, I approached it with some chain piecing and it came together quickly.

I have the backing cut and ready to be sewn and then it is the simple matter of quilting which seems like a breeze after the giant-ness that was queen quilting. Yippee.

The second is for Rose, my niece to be. I found a link from Liesl at Disdressed about the quilt art show in NYC that featured Red & White Quilts. I drooled a bit over pictures, wishing with all of my heart that I could be there. Impossible but it did inspire me to try my own red and white combination.

I have all the fabrics chosen and washed and ironed and today I cut up strips with plans for 9 patch prettiness.
Another yippee.

Both little ones are due in summer but the baby showers are in a few weeks. I thought I might make the deadline but I know now that will not happen. Instead of applying that pressure that makes the making of things less fun, I thought I would just enjoy the process and aim to get the quilts done by the babies' arrival(s). So onward from here because babies may not need quilts, but I know that they need LOVE and to me this is a great way to send it to my far North family.

The only problem with quilting is that it addictively pulls you in and there are only so many hours in the day.

Want to see a Tim project? Yippee for wine cabinets that hold lots of wine and cute little boys.

He made it from scrap wood and all from hand. That man. He sure can make.