April Bag of the Month

Oh, did you think I quit making bags???  NOPE, just been super busy and a quilt or two got in the way!  This months bag was from Janelle at Emmalinebags.com  she is a fabulous pattern writer/designer and I could not be more pleased with the outcome of this purse!  It is the Manhattan Bag and there are actually two sizes the Mamma and the Miss.. The one I just did is the Miss but plan to make the Mamma soon!

Not sure if you can tell but the flap actually has a zipper all around and is a pocket you could put  your sunglasses in!

Hope you have a Blessed Tuesday!! Nancy

Taking my sewing to a new level....

When I purchased my Janomi 8200QC a year ago it was with the intentions of learning to quilt... I had sewn for many years and had kind of almost given it up.  I first learned of sewing from my dear Late Mom!  Some of my earliest memories of her were her sitting at her Treddle Sewing Machine and sewing for myself and my four siblings as well as herself and anything she could sew for the home.  My Mom could do anything! :)  Her mother (my grandmother) passed away when I was 2 1/2 and really all I know about my Grandmother was that she was pretty crafty too.... she loved to crochet and quilt!  I learned to sew small things as a kid and as I got older I began sewing my own clothes, and then when I had children I sewed clothing for them.

When I bought my machine I never intended to fall in love with Bagmaking, but I sure did!  Please do not think I won't be making bags anymore, because I will!  I finally accomplished what I set out to do a year ago and I do not plan on stopping that either!  I made my first quilt, a twin size from a Craftsy Class by Camille Roskelly.  I made the Piece of Cake into a Twin Size Quilt.  I actually made it with Scrumptious by Moda which is designed by Camille  and her mother Bonnie!

 
Below shows me free motion quilting on my Juki 2010Q, yes I know I over quilted but it was my first and YES my arms and hands were extremely tired when I finished!

BUT... I do love how it turned out!  I just need to find a good place to take a full picture of it!

SO, I had to try my hand at another.... this time I made a Strip and Flip Baby Quilt  by Cluck Cluck Sew, out of the same fabric as I did my first quilt....  I LOVE IT!  I did circle quilting on it and it was sew much easier and quicker!

 I even tried a Zakka pincushion out of the book Patchwork Please!

Now I need to get busy and get my March Bag of the Month by Noodlehead finished!

Hope the Son is shining wherever you are!!

Nancy

                              

A Special Purse....

What excitement we have had in our family this past month!  FINALLY my daughter and her husband got the call that the Adoption Agency had a son for them!  The long awaited phone call had finally come and they quickly went about planning their trip to Bulgaria to meet this handsome little 2 year old boy who melted their hearts the first time they saw his picture!  While they were only there a week the bonding was immediate as they welded their hearts together.  It will be anywhere from 3-5 months before everything is complete and they can return to bring him home!  During that time they will be able to Skype with him every two weeks!  God is so Good!  Everything went so well with their trip... While this Momma's heart was a bit anxious, I certainly did a lot of praying for their safety and for a wonderful time with the little guy!  While a lot of people travel abroad frequently so all those long flights are nothing for them, this is something new for our family!  I had the joy of staying with their 3 children for 5 days while they were gone and couldn't ask for sweeter kids ( I shared duties with their other Grandma)!  They are so excited to be getting a little brother!

So what did I do immediately upon finding out they were finally getting to go to Bulgaria?  I ordered some Vintage Old World Map fabric from Mango Tree Creations on Etsy... Tried to figure out which purse pattern I had that would work out to be a great small travel purse and Oooooh Laaaa Laaaaa I picked the Butterfly Sling from Janelle at Emmalinebags.com  and I could not of been more pleased with the outcome and Amber loved it!

The lining you see  below was not what I had planned, but somehow it just seemed perfect!  It is my logo fabric "Wrapped in Love" that I ordered from Spoonflower.  Since my fundraiser had been called Wrapped in Love, I felt like I was sending my love with her to Bulgaria!

 Here is Amber standing in front of the Black Sea!

We have freezing rain here today, with the promise of yet more snow!  I love winter but am looking forward to Spring!

Blessings to you!  Nancy

2nd Hyacinth Bag...

Why yes... I do like this pattern!  A test of whether I like a pattern is if I make more than one!  Sara Lawson did an awesome job designing this pattern!  It is a keeper that is for sure! The fabric is Michael Miller Straw Daisy and Mini Mike's Dot n Square.

Happy Friday!  Nancy

February Bag of the Month

Here it is the February Bag of the Month.... The Hyacinth Bag... pattern by Sara Lawson.

I used Kate Spade cotton Laminate in Central Park line of fabric.  I combined vinyl with this one and love the outcome!!

Happy Thursday!!  Nancy

Wrapped in Love.....

My title Wrapped in Love which has become my logo  (thank you Lynn Tullock for the name)... it started as I began a fundraiser for my daughter and her family who decided over 4 years ago to adopt from Bulgaria....   It all came about from ongoing nudges from God that they needed to do this.  They have 3 biological children, but for a period of time everywhere they turned adoption was in their face, some were soft nudges others were downright  pointed....  They felt the call from God to adopt from overseas and specifically Bulgaria.  Their theme became "One Less"  one less orphan, one less child who didn't have a home, one less child who didn't have a family to call their own..   

In that time I wanted to do something... so I started a Facebook Page called "Wrapped in Love"  and I knitted my little fingers to the bone, making scarves, hats, jar cozies and what have you to help raise funds to defray the cost of the adoption. THANK YOU TO MY FRIENDS WHO PURCHASED ITEMS FROM ME!   I donated my time and supplies and every penny I made went to the Adoption Fund for my Bulgarian Grandson... With all of that being said I am happy to say that they finally got "the phone call" that there is a little boy in Bulgaria just for them!  

Let me just say,  I laughed and I cried with joy when they called me to let me know... Now that does not mean this journey is over yet... They will have to travel over to Bulgaria very soon to meet the little guy and get all the paper work started and then within the following months they will travel yet again to bring him home to his forever family!  So in a sense their journey is just truly beginning!  So, if you have been praying for this all to take place please continue to pray for my new grandson, and for my daughter and her family who are very anxious for all of this to happen!  God is so faithful to meet our needs, if we just humble ourselves before him.  Thanking God for all of our many Blessings!  

Isaiah 1:17New International Version (NIV)

17 Learn to do right; seek justice.
    Defend the oppressed.[a]
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
    plead the case of the widow.

This verse has been on their "One Less" shirts.......  

So please join me in continuing to pray for good health for my new grandson, safe travels for my daughter and son in law... for an easy adjustment for this little guy in his new surroundings in the next several months.....

Nancy

Finally a post about our Kitchen Update....

I have not posted pictures of our finished Kitchen....  So what exactly did we do to this Kitchen in the last year after moving in in October 2013?  I painted the cabinets with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in the color of CoCo... We put all new hinges/hardware on the cabinets.... removed the doors up in the corner on each side of the sink and had the medieval wire removed and had glass put in, plus glass shelves in the cabinets on the corner also...  We removed the flooring and had large rectangular tiles put in... we flip flopped where the sink  and dishwasher was and added a new dishwasher and a deep stainless apron front sink/new faucets, removed the old range hood and put an over the stove microwave in, (and above the microwave put in a shelf) of course we brought our stainless gas stove and refrigerator, removed the laminate counter top and replaced with granite.  I installed white subway tile for the backsplash.  We had lighting put in over the sink and also LED under cabinet lighting... (LOVE IT)  .....

On the wall below there was nothing, so we had this dresser that would not fit downstairs, Mark installed the two end cabinets and made the shelves in between them.... We made this our coffee bar.

We replaced all of the windows and now we have an awesome view of our backyard, and we can even open the side windows for a nice breeze.  (the old windows were all fogged up in between the glass and we could not open them)

So for those who have asked to see our completed kitchen...   (by the way....the door back in the corner goes to the lower level).

Happy Wednesday....