March 2018 in Review

In March this year, I managed to finish two things: a Sessoms mini quilt and a quilted Weebrawbag. 

When Carolyn Friedlander re-released her Sessoms quilt pattern, it caught my eye. I’m usually not a fan of paper piecing, so I decided to do a small mini quilt version to figure out if I wanted to make a larger quilt or not. I grabbed a bunch of scraps, printed out a few copies of the template and set to work. I enjoyed making the blocks, and would definitely like to make a larger version of this pattern sometime. For now, I sewed together what I had completed and made a fun mini quilt. One thing I learned is that I should print out more templates than I think I need to account for the inevitable mistakes I’ll make, since my paper piecing skills still have room for improvement. 

Speaking of things I enjoy, I really like the Weebrawbag pattern by Laura Zuckerkuss. I changed it up a bit by using a quilted slab left over from the Improv Composition Book Cover I made years ago, and by making four little pockets on the inside instead of two on the outside. I’m really happy with the end product, and it felt good to put the remnant from my other project to good use. 

February 2018 in Review

February was a productive month. I finished two garments, two gifts for my QuiltCon roomies and two gift bags. 

After making a practice Seamwork Sadie Sweatshirt in January, I immediately turned around and made another one in February. I used sweatshirt fabric for the first time and it turned out great! This is definitely a go-to pattern for when I want to make something cozy and warm for the fall and winter months. 

The next garment I made was a Driftless Cardigan from Grainline Studio. The fabric is Robert Kaufman Laguna Jersey in Onyx. I was a little intimidated by all the pieces, but once they were cut out, the cardigan came together easily enough. I absolutely love the pockets and this is definitely on my "to make again" list. 

For QuiltCon this year, I shared a hotel room with two other people and I decided to make them each a small gift. I've also wanted to make mini composition book covers ever since I make a full sized one back in 2015. I’m really happy with how they turned about and would make them again. 

The orange bag was made from the tried-and-true Lined Drawstring Bag pattern by Jeni Baker. Since I’ve made a ton of them already, for the next gift bag, I branched out a bit and made a Pillowcase Pouch from the book Ruby Star Wrapping, by Melody Miller and Allison Tannery. I added a button and buttonhole to secure it, which was fun.