October was a Hoot!

Oh my! An entire month has gone by. Where has it gone? I know it was packed full of sewing, quilting, and being busy in general. But lots of sewing and quilting means that I have some projects to share with you! I really did try to finish a quilt for my birthday but it just didn't happen. I did finish piecing the top but did not even start to work on backing. But it is looking good!

Remember that Addicted to Vintage quilt I was working on for myself? Here is how it was going before:

Well I just love watching things come together, and that it did over the first 2 weeks of October!

But my biggest project in October was a very special baby quilt that I created for one of my husband's co-workers. I knew all along I would be creating a quilt as soon as I found out the baby's gender but when the baby ended up in the NICU for 2 weeks, I knew this was going to end up being something more than just a pieced top. I decided to design an applique for the little girl to represent her and her family. I started by creating a border of patchwork squares around a large square of white polka dot cotton fabric! 

A closer look at one of the patchwork squares will introduce you to the inspiration for my applique. 

I did all of my applique free hand. To do this I used a white chalk pencil to sketch my designs before cutting them out.

I then attached all the applique with a cute blanket stitch.

And I kept adding and adding layer by layer until it felt complete.

I then attached the patchwork border, embroidered some personalization, and began quilting the top. I usually quilt on my vintage machines but this time I decided to try something new. I played with some pre-set stitches and decided to try quilting using a wavy stitch.

It actually turned out beautifully!

Some straight line quilting around the border and some binding and the blanket was complete!

Hopefully the quilt will keep that beautiful little girl warm this winter. And now as we are heading quickly towards winter I am getting a jump start on creating some special Christmas gifts. But along the way I will be working on and sharing some holiday projects for our own house as well! 

Happy Quilting!