First Finish of 2016 + Some Exciting News

For our family, 2016 is going to be an exciting year. We found out shortly after Thanksgiving last year that I was expecting, and just this week we went in for an ultrasound and found out that our baby is a BOY! Due in early August. After 2 girls close together, followed by a 6 year gap, it's going to be fun to have a baby in our home again and we are thrilled to find out that it's a boy. So that means I finally get the excuse to use up all of the darling blue, nautical fabric I've been hoarding for years! :)
My first trimester was filled with lots of nausea and not much desire to sew, so I haven't had too much to show over here on the ole blog, but I just finished my first make of 2016. It's just a small mini quilt for a swap that I was a part of, but it felt good to turn on my sewing machine and put the petal to the metal after weeks spent lying on the couch feeling blah. ;) My second trimesters are always much easier for me, so I am doing my best to take advantage of the surge of energy I've been having... And because it would be just too simple to sew one large quilt at time, I've jumped in and am in the middle of sewing 2 queen sized and 1 king sized quilt at once. My sewing room is kinda a disaster with three projects going on at once, but its fun. :)

Back to my mini quilt... This was such a fun little project to make. I love foundation paper piecing. I feel like it is the only way that I will take on intricate quit blocks because I can be so precise doing it that way. This cute little envelope block can be found in darling book Patchwork Please by Ayumi Takahashi. It may be the only book that I have that I actually like every single pattern included in the book, so I always feel totally justified in recommending it to a friend. Ayumi is just one of the most kind, and talented people that I know. Everything that she comes up with, from fabric to pattern to pretty much anything she touches is seriously GOLD in my eyes. (ok... I'll quit gushing now. ha ha)

This pattern is perfect for fussy cutting small pieces of fabric into the insides of the envelopes. I used cute bits of fabric by Tasha Noel from her Vintage Market and The Simple Life lines, and then bits of Bonnie + Camille and a handful of other fabrics I had in my stash for the envelopes. Firefly in Whisper from Bonnie Christine's Hello Bear line was the perfect low volume background. 

Well I hope that y'all are having a great day. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and read my exciting news. :)
Happy Sewing!
xoxo, Ashley

La Passacaglia Progress + Black Friday Fabric Sales

I share most of my step by step progress of my La Passacaglia Quilt on IG, but I still like to post updates here too every once in a while... So here are some pictures of my progress so far. 

(I could tell you about the fabrics, process, etc... but I think this time I'll just let the pictures do the talking. ;)

Well... Black Friday is upon us...

And I can't help but share some great fabric sales.

The Fat Quarter Shop: 25% off all orders from Friday Nov. 27 until Saturday Nov. 28 at Midnight CST. (excludes purchases of gift cards. No code necessary.)

Fort Worth Fabric Studio: Friday Nov. 27- Sat. Nov 28, all Riley Blake & Michael Miller is 15-25% off (no code necessary, prices reflected in the cart)

FabricCadabra: 20% off all orders Fri Nov. 27- Mon. Nov. 29. 

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

xoxo, Ashley

La Passacaglia: Part 2

If you have been following me on Instagram, you've probably seen the long term project that I've been working on lately. It's a crazy EPP quilt called the La Passacaglia. 

The pattern can be found in the Millefiori Quilts book (#1) by Willyne Hammerstein. I picked up a copy of the book as well as the paper pieces and acrylic templates at PaperPieces.com. 

It's definitely a bit of an investment to do this project, but it's also SUPER fun and addictive. I love coming up with new color combos, fabric combos, and fussy cutting just about every single piece. 

I am just making each cog as I go along and not really giving much thought to the placement or end result, but I am having fun and love each cog that I create so I am crossing my fingers that in the end it will all work out and be a one of a kind quilt that I can treasure forever. 

 It has been so much fun to start seeing the progress once I have sewn the cogs together! It is starting to actually feel like a quilt instead of just shapes. 

I found a little organizer that is perfect for keeping all of my paper pieces in order. It's called the Divided Case by Sterilite. I found mine at Target, but have heard that they are hard to come by, so if you see one- snatch it up! Here is a link to the only case I can find online. (it's slightly different colors but looks like its the same thing as what I have.)

I plan to do a post soon with progress pictures of the full quilt (what I have done so far) and would be happy to answer any questions that anyone has- so just leave a comment below and I will answer it in my post. If you need an answer sooner, leave your email and I will answer you directly. 

I hope y'all have a wonderful weekend!

Happy Sewing!

xoxo, Ashley