Granny's Medallion Quilt

A few years back, I came across a quilt that my friend Amy of Diary of a Quilter had taken a photo of at a quilting retreat and posted it on her blog. The moment I saw it, I was obsessed. It was one of the most beautiful quilts I had ever seen. I reached out to Amy to get more info on who the maker of the quilt was.

Once I had the makers information, I reached out and asked about a pattern for the quilt. It wasn't until I took at look at her Instagram that I realized that it was actually someone that I knew and had met a couple years prior at the Spring Quilt Market in 2016. I had been sitting in a room waiting for the Tula Pink schoolhouse to begin when the woman sitting next to me struck up a conversation. She was very friendly and we got to know each other a little in the 15 minutes we chatted before the class began.  Little did I realize at the time, just how talented the woman I was sitting next to was! Her name is Paula McKinlay and she teaches classes to make her quilt designs at quilting retreats.

When I contacted Paula, she graciously offered to send me the pattern so that I could make the quilt since I live out of state and wouldn't be able to attend one of her classes. I was so excited!

Then, I found out I was going to have a baby girl, and this quilt couldn't have been more perfect! 

It took me some time to pick out my fabrics. I knew that I wanted to make mine in colors very similar to Paula's original quilt, but I wanted to put my flair into it with fussy cutting the center of the star. All while making the quilt I had this idea of doing a hand appliquéd scallop border for the final border. The original pattern calls for plus blocks- which are just as cute as can be, but I took a leap and started making half circles to hand appliqué. It took a while to complete that final border, but when I finished that last stitch I was so happy that I had done it. I love the way it turned out. 

I used various fabrics from my stash to make the quilt, Paint Brush Studios Shell Pink solid for the sashing and backing, and hand quilted it with Aurifil 12wt thread. 

I finished just in the nick of time before our sweet baby girl arrived this summer. She is just as cute as can be and we are so in love with her. I've been taking time away from sewing to soak in all of the snuggles, and I have been moving every moment of it, so I'll be back sometime...

as you know, "Babies don't keep."

xoxo, Ashley

P.S. For those interested in making the Granny Medallion quilt, you can email Paula at pauladmckinlay@gmail.com and she can sell you the pattern.

Vintage Inspired Baby Quilt

This week is an exciting week for our family... It's finally time for our baby to arrive!! I am due this Friday and scheduled to be induced that morning I haven't already gone into labor. Hallelujah! I am beyond ready to have this little guy. My pregnancy has been fairly easy, but I've definitely reached the "get this baby outta me" stage!! If you've ever been pregnant, I am sure you know the feeling well! We pretty much have the house in order and everything set for him to arrive, so it's just time to hurry up and wait for Friday to get here. 

I started sewing about 5 1/2 years ago, which was means that I've never sewn anything for any of my babies since my current youngest is 6. I thought when I found out that I was pregnant that I would want to be sewing up a storm and making all kinds of things for this little guy... but.... are y'all ready for a shocker? I haven't made a single thing for my baby yet. Can you believe that?? I don't know if it's just that he's a boy and I've never made boy things, or if it's because I just haven't had the desire to sew as much since I've been pregnant, but my time before baby comes is officially running out and there is not a single handmade item (from me) in the nursery yet. It seriously shocks me when I think about it, but to be honest, my "nesting phase" seems to be lost and I'm simply in survival mode and have been for the entire summer. I've done a bit of hand stitching here and there since coming home from Quilt Market, but most of my time has just been spent enjoying my family and simply in "survival mode". ha ha Maybe with these last couple of days, I will have a burst of energy and make him a quilt... or I might just lay on the couch and watch Netflix. ;)

I did manage to sew a little baby quilt for my best friend Rach (of Family Ever After), who is due exactly a week after me. She's having a girl and I think I've decided that we should probably begin the proceedings for our babies arranged marriage since they are going to be so close in age. Then we can really be family! ;)

She and her family recently moved back "home" to South Dakota and bought the coolest property in the Black Hills with a darling log cabin home. She calls it their "little house on the prairie". I always love seeing pictures of the fun adventures that their family has in on their land and their new slower more relaxed way of life seems so appealing. It totally suits their family so well. 

I knew that I wanted to make something for her sweet baby, and I decided to go a little out of my normal design esthetic and make something with a vintage/old fashioned feel to go along with their new home and way of living. 

I started digging through my stash and found a Chloe's Closet 30's Playtime mini charm pack. It was exactly the feel I was going for, but since it was a mini charm pack, it definitely wasn't enough fabric to make a quilt with. I decided to make little four square patches and alternate with solid white blocks in a checker pattern. Once I got that put together, I realized that the quilt was still feeling a bit small- even for a baby quilt, so I added the yellow and white square border. The yellow and white remind me of a vintage quilt I used to snuggle up with as a young girl at my grandma's house. 

I did really simple quilting but added a bit of detail by quilting a sweet scallop on the yellow and white border. I really love how it came out. I feel like it is definitely a quilt that could be found on a "little house on the prairie"- which is what I was going for. 

Well friends, wish me luck!! The next time I blog, I will have a little bundle of blue in my home! 

I hope that you all have a wonderful week!

Happy Sewing!

xoxo, Ashley

P.S.- Today is the last day of the Christmas in July sale going on over at Lady Belle Fabrics... RUN, do not walk, and snatch up some of the amazing deals going on over there!

Quilting for Twins

Last month I started a fun project- quilting for TWINS! (But not my own! ;)

My sweet cousin is pregnant with twins... A boy and a girl. As soon as I heard the news, I started day dreaming about a fun color palette for coordinating quilts to make for her and the babies.

I wanted something that would coordinate, but not be matchy-matchy. I started pulling fabrics from my stash and the fabric that kept jumping out to me was Wild and Free Folk Plaid by Maureen Cracknell. I felt like it would be the perfect fabric to tie both quilts together. 

So first I pulled fabric for the baby girl quilt. I started with the plaid, and then added some peachy fabrics as well as some mustard. Some of my favorites were the Wild and Free Arrows, Arizona Desert Blanket by April Rhodes, Winged Plumage by Bonnie Christine, & Domino Dot in Geranium by Violet Craft.

I really love the way the colors came together. I think this combo is so dreamy- plus since most of them are Art Gallery fabrics, they have the softest hand and it is just an incredibly snuggly quilt!

After I finished the baby girl quit, I pulled fabrics for the baby boy quilt. Again, I used the Wild and Free Folk Plaid as the fabric to tie both quilts together. Then I added some Cotton + Steel Basics from the blue and mint color ways, Essex Dyed Linen in Black, Hello Bear Buck Forrest by Bonnie Christine, and some black and white fabrics pulled from my stash. (I used the folk plaid for backing on this one and I am going to have to do it again! It was the perfect quilt back.) I tried to do a new and fresh color combo that I hadn't really seen before, and I think its perfect for a little boy. 

The quilts have made it to their destination and are anxiously awaiting for the babies to arrive and snuggle with them! Can't wait!

Thanks for stopping by my blog! Hope y'all have a happy week!
xoxo, Ashley

DIY Carseat Cover

I love giving handmade gifts at baby showers. Back in the spring, we had a baby shower for one of my besties and I made her this car seat cover. It is thee easiest project ever! It only takes about an hour to make. Here is a link to my tutorial:

Tied with a Bow Carseat Canopy

This carseat cover was made for a little girl, but I wanted to use different colors than the standard "baby pinks". Since my friends carseat is red, I knew the perfect fabric line to use: Moda Baby Jane. I love the yellow, red, and aqua in this print. 

If you were making this cover for a little boy, you could totally just leave the bows off, or replace the bows with some chunky buttons. 

Hope y'all are having a great week!

Happy sewing!

xoxo, Ashley

Fort Firefly Baby Quilt

Leaving our home in Ohio was hard on many levels... But one of the hardest parts was leaving my friends. Especially since two of my very best friends were pregnant with babies due just weeks after we pulled out of town! It was so heartbreaking to know that I wasn't going to be there to meet their babies or help them afterwards! 

So during the month before I left, I was frantically sewing some gifts for the babes amidst trying to get our house together and ready for the move. Crazy times, but it was so nice to have a project that I could work on and take a break from the craziness.

The first gift that I made was a quilt for my friend Rachel and her darling baby boy. I used some of my leftover scraps from the Fort Firefly Quilt I made for my daughter. I used most of the fabrics from the line, minus the prints with the little girls on them and added a few other prints I had lying around in my stash. I really love the colors of the quilt. It different than just the average baby boy quilt- which I love.

 I am so thankful for technology when it comes to living far away from family and friends! Thanks to Instagram, I was able to see pictures of Rachel's darling little boy hours after she had him. It was ALMOST like I was there... Ok... Not quite, but the next best thing! He's a cutie!

Hope you are all having a wonderful summer! I'm only days away from leaving Utah on a new adventure- trekking across the US again to our new home... This time to states I've never been to before! I can't wait! Wish me luck! 

xoxo, Ashley

Briar Rose Baby Quilt with KNIT Backing + Matching Doll Quilt for Big Sis

One of the things I love most about working with fabric is all of the endless colors, patterns, and possibilities. Since I only started sewing a couple years ago I am definitely new to the designer fabric world. There have been a few times that I have come across fabric lines that were printed and sold a few year ago before I even knew they existed that I have been so bummed I missed out on! (Mainly the Good Folks line by AMH- but... luckily I have gotten my hands 9 of the prints from that collection that were still lying around a quilt shop off the beaten path).

One of the fabric designers that I have fallen in love with is Heather Ross... I love all of her past fabric lines that are oh so cute and sadly out of print and not available to me now. So when I saw she had a new line coming out, and printed on quilting cottons no less, I pre-ordered a fat quarter bundle and felt so happy to finally be in on the Heather Ross action! 

As you can see... this line is so bright and happy! I love it. The darling strawberries are my favorite! (These knit leggings I made my daughter are so darling that I may or may not have contemplated making some for myself... ;)

When I cut into my bundle of Briar Rose to make a baby quilt for my friends baby on the way, I was tossing up ideas for what I wanted to back the quilt with. I have mixed feelings on quilts for tiny babies. I really love blankets that will swaddle and snuggle my babies and quilts can be kinda stiff until you really work them in and soften them up a bit. (I have always used my girl's baby quilts as more of a play mat than a "blanket".)

While in the midst of contemplating quilt backing, this gorgeous Briar Rose knit showed up on my doorstep from The Fabric Fairy... Lightbulb moment! 

My very favorite baby blankets that I have used on both of my babies have been blankets made with knit fabric. So I thought... "I wonder if it would work to use this knit as backing for this baby quilt?" 

 IT WORKED! I am so happy with the result. The drape on the quilt is perfect. Not stiff at all and totally ready to swaddle a brand new baby! I did straight vertical lines about 3 1/2 inches apart to quilt it. It is very minimal, but since I was going for a "not stiff" quilt it worked great. It has such a great feel to it. 

I went totally overboard when basting my quilt and used TONS of pins to make sure that this knit wouldn't shift or bunch up while I quilted... It paid off! So if you do use knit as your backing be sure to pre wash your knit fabric, pin like crazy when basting, and use a walking foot while quilting to insure that you have a good experience like I did! :)

One thing that I have tried to do when gifting quilts to my friends, is make a matching quilt with the scraps for big sis or big brother to use for their doll or stuffed animal. My friend has a daughter that is becoming a big sis for the first time so I knew that a mini quilt for her doll would be perfect. Now she can take care of "her baby" just like mommy takes care of the new baby.

It turned into a wonky quilt unintentionally... I forgot to use my walking foot when I started quilting it and once I realized my mistake- it was too late to do anything about the shifting without picking out all of the stitches I had done... But I figure our little friend probably wouldn't mind a little wonkiness! ;)

I backed it in the PERFECT quilt backing for a little princess... Fair Maidens...The colors matched perfectly and I love how the frogs in briar rose mixed with the princesses kissing the frogs on the back made for a "Princess and the Frog" dolly quilt. 

Perfect baby gift for mommy and big sis!

Happy Sewing! xoxo, Ashley

Ahoy Matey Quilt

With me having little girls, it's pretty rare to see me sewing for a little boy... but one of my friends just had her very first baby boy last week and I couldn't resist making the new little guy a quilt.

I can't even tell you how much I love this Ahoy Matey fabric by Michael Miller . When I saw that it had a panel and that it was so darling, I knew that I wanted to try making a quilt using a panel. Usually I am not a huge fan of panel quilts, but this one may have changed my mind. 

To make it, I used one panel (which is the main part of the quilt with the ship and waves on it), and then I used the Navy Stay the Course fabric for the side sashing, and Dumb Dot in Clementine for the prairie points, Clementine Ship Shape for the binding, and then Quarter Dot in Midnight for the backing. 

I have been wanting to try doing prairie points on a quilt and I felt like this was the perfect quilt for it. I found an awesome tutorial for continuous prairie points on Sew Take a Hike. It was such an easy tutorial to follow! Love how they turned out!

As soon as I saw the panel for this quilt, I knew that I wanted to hand stitch along the outlines of everything. I love the way it looks around the waves, clouds, and boat. Once I washed it and dried it, oh my goodness!! I was in love... it was a tad bit hard to part with this lovely quilt. ha ha

But lucky me... I happened to buy two panels and have just enough leftover fabric to make myself this exact quilt- should a little bundle of blue pop up into my future.... And if not, I am sure I can find a loving home for such a darling little quilt- don't ya think? :) 

Happy Sailing!

xoxo, Ashley

Vintage Modern Baby Quilt

A few weeks ago, my friend had a darling baby girl. 

Of course I jumped at the chance to make a quilt with my stash of Vintage Modern fabric. I made it using 2 mini charm packs which are squares that are pre cut to be 2.5x2.5 inches instead of the regular 5x5 inch squares. I also used a white jelly roll and cut up some squares (2.5x2.5 as well) to lighten up the quilt and then added some borders.... I loved how it turned out! So simple, but so cute!

I honestly love this color combo so much! DARLING!

I am still working on getting my hand quilting straight so don't look too close!

I have quite the stash of this lovely fabric... Now I just gotta come up with some more fun ways to use it! 

What are some of your favorite fabrics that are hiding in your stash??

Striped Circus Quilt Tutorial

(This tutorial was originally shared on Family Ever After)

I am not going to give a supply list because there are so many ways you could make this... Here is what I did.

I wanted to make this a baby sized quilt for my friend who is having her third boy in about a week and a half. 

I fell in love with this Michael Miller Circus fabric and thought it would be perfect for her quilt. I love the old fashioned look of it. So cute!

So I got a few of the coordinating fabrics and just cut up a bunch of varying sizes of strips that were 44 inches wide (width of fabric). The smallest I cut was 2 1/2 inches (the width of a jelly roll) and the biggest was the middle panel which was about 12 inches. 

I put the strips right sides together two at a time and pieced my quilt top. By the time I was finished it was approximately 36x44. 

(if you wanted to make a size that was wider than 44 inches then you would just piece your strips together to make them as wide as you need. ex: cut two strips that are 5x44 inches wide and then put them right sides together and sew up one of the ends. Once you opened it up and pressed the seam open you would have an extra long strip that was approx 5x88 inches. Make sense?)

When you quilt top is all pieced together you will need to iron and press open the seams so everything lays flat. 

Now you can make your quilt sandwich- your quilt top, batting and backing. For my backing, I used one yard of fabric. I laid it out flat and used t-pins to pin the fabric into the carpet to hold it in place. Next I laid the batting on top of that and smoothed it out. Then I placed the ironed quilt top on top of the two layers. Be sure to smooth things out very well so that everything is laying flat. 

Now that everything is smoothed out and held in place with t-pins, you can baste (hold) the layers together with safety pins. I like to use these curved safety pins. You just need to place a safety pin every few inches to hold the 3 layers together while you quilt it. 

Now it is time to quilt it. I just did some very basic quilting and sewed 1/4 inch from the seam on the top side of each of the stripes.

For the large panel in the middle, I wanted to give it a little more personalized look so I hand quilted around each of the animals. Here is a great tutorial for hand quilting if you have never tried it. I have to warn you though, it is so addicting... I love hand quilting- by far- more than machine quilting. It is so relaxing to sit on the couch and let your fingers and needle get to working over the fabric. It takes a lot longer than machine quilting, but I just like it so much better! Call me weird! ha ha

I wanted to "hide" her baby's name somewhere on the quilt so I chose to stitch "Paxton" along the giraffe's neck... I love the way it turned out.  

Once you are all done with your quilting, it is time to bind the quilt. Here is a great tutorial if you don't know how to do this step!

That's it!