Vintage Baby Bib

What happens when you merge a vintage table cloth with a white bath towel?

This....

Thanks, Delilah, for helping me with the snaps!  I love it!

This fabric flower was so easy to make!

I adapted it a little by finishing off the edges and putting a button in the center.

This bib is now for sale in my etsy shop and will be on display at the OGC Arts and Crafts show this Sunday night.

Orange and Blue Quilted Table Runner

So, I've been eyeing this project for quite some time.  It was a project that I knew would stretch me, because quilting is something I've never done before.  So, I collected an assortment of orange and blue fat quarters and 1/2 yard pieces.  I originally thought I would display this outside on my husband's Florida Gator patio, but now I think it't too pretty to go outdoors.  We shall see...

The tutorial is really good.  Step-by-step instructions are clear if you have a basic sewing knowledge.  This was my FIRST quilting project.  I thought it would be more patchwork than quilting, but after doing the binding, I've decided it can definetly be considered quiltling. 



There is a layer of batting in the middle, and the back is solid blue (matches the binding).  100% machine wash and dry.  My kind of home decor.  ;)

There is an excellent post here about quilt binding, something that was completely foreign to me.  I found it to be much easier than bias tape, which I am still attempting to master.  (Just ask my Grandma Mathews about the heart-shaped potholder I asked her to "repair".)  But, this clear explanation helped me to understand it all, get it right on the first attempt, and even mitre my corners! 

This project could be adapted to so many needs... other team colors (ahem... crimson and white, UA fans?), christmas fabrics, vintage fabrics, or even a great way to use those scraps of fabric in your stash.  I have a box labeled "Sentimental Scraps" which contains fabrics that either I or a family member have made something for me or my children.  I plan on doing something special with it someday; maybe this would be a start for that stash?

Covered Lampshade

When we moved, we separated our two children into different rooms.  I picked up this lamp at our local thrift store for just $3.88.  When my husband's great-grandmother passed away last year, I had grabbed a dated lampshade from her home, just because I couldn't see it go to the trash.  It has one of those zig-zag/crimped lampshades on it that was falling apart, so I ripped it off, and recovered it into a shade for my daughter's room.  I love the way it turned out. 

This black and white gingham is perfect for her room and I love how it has that "on the bias" look (even though I didn't plan it that way)!  I overlapped the fabric about 1/2" in the back and put a piece of 1/4" pink grosgrain ribbon on the bottom.

Underneath the lamp, I used hot glue to keep it looking finished.  If you wanted the inside to look more custom, you could glue ribbon to the inside to finish off the raw edges.  But I didn't because I figure no one will see it anyways.

This is what it looks like when the lamp is off.  So classy, yet feminine and still cute, too!

(Sorry for the blur on the picture above.  A certain someone had dirty hands after breakfast and I didn't realize she had smudged the camera lens.  Don't worry, it's clean now.)