His - Crafting in 2020

     Each year i like to look back and see what sewing projects i was able to complete. There are still quite a few unfinished objects but that topic is for another blog post. Here are some of the highlights from 2020.

Face Masks

It may come as no surprise but face masks were a big item for me in 2020. I dont have an exact count but i made well over 250 and could be over 300. I made them in many different colours and fabric patterns. I sold masks to people in 42 different states in the US last year through my Etsy shop.  theguywhosews.etsy.com

I was also able to complete 6 quilts in 2020. It was a few less than the previous year but then again i wasnt making hundreds of face masks haha

Quilt #1 Temperature Quilt

 The first completed quilt was one for myself. Every other quilt i had made prior to this was for someone else so it was nice to have one of my own. Each of the 365 rectangles shows the temperature in my sister's town in 2016. Each color indicated a different temperature. She made the quilt top and i added the batting and backing fabric which is not pictured. This would have been completed well before 2020 but it had some technical issues and was put to the side to get other projects completed.

Quilt# 2 Fun Shirts Quilt

This was a fun project. I used 16 Hawaiian and dress shirts to make this quilt. I used the back of the shirts so i could highlight each of the prints on the shirts. I was a little nervous as i had not worked with some of these materials before but it turned out really nicely.

Quilt# 3 Graduation T-Shirt Quilt

This one went together pretty easily. It ended up being a little to narrow and short to fit a bed so i used strips of the leftover fabric from each of the shirts to form a border around the shirts. 

Quilt# 4 Dachshund Baby Quilt

I found out around May that my sister was pregnant with her first child and was due in December 2020. She loves Dachshunds so i thought a baby quilt with Dachshunds would be perfect. I found a great pattern online (Link to pattern here) and got to work. I chose 8 different colors for the dogs as this was a rainbow baby. I love how this turned out and cant wait to see photos of my nephew using this quilt.

Quilts # 5 & 6  Jimmy Buffet Quilts

My mother in law and father in law are both big Jimmy Buffett fans. They had been collecting Jimmy Buffett shirts for years and asked me to make them quilts for Christmas. I used the prints from the fronts of the shirts to form a border at the top and bottom of each quilt. (Sorry they are sideways but no matter what i do they refuse to rotate)

Did you do any crafting in 2020 or pick up a new hobby?

Saturday Snapshots: Lap quilts for the Aussies

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Today we are linking up with Melinda at West Metro Mommy for Super Saturday Snapshots.

My sister and her husband have been visiting us in Virginia for the last two weeks. My sister and I decided to make a lap quilt for her husband.

I cut out the squares and my sister sewed them together. Teamwork!

Tim chose the pattern that had beer glasses and beer related phrases. We paired it up with coloured blocks that matched.

 Tim chose the backing as well. It is a microfleece material. It was fairly easy to sew.

Since we were working together we finished Tim's quilt fairly quickly so we went back to the fabric store to get material for a quilt for my sister Shellie.

 She loves Dachshunds so we found a Dachshund fabric and some bright colours to be the solid squares.

The backing for this was a little harder to match but the nice lady at the fabric store found one for us.

 Tim and Shellie displaying their new quilts.

They are heading back to Australia today where it is winter so they should get plenty of use out of the quilts for the next month or two.

 Do you have a favourite quilt for cold winter days?

Saturday Snapshot - Lap Quilt

Have you liked our "His and Her Hobbies" Facebook page? If not, click here!

Today we are linking up with Melinda at West Metro Mommy for Super Saturday Snapshots.

Last week I posted a picture and asked if anyone could name which city the photo was taken in. Click here if you missed that post. A few of you guessed the correct answer which was Boston.

Today I am sharing some photos of a  lap quilt that I made for a friend of ours. I kept the design fairly simple but it turned out to be super bright and colourful as I used a ton of different colours and patterns.
 

The quilt measures approx 58 inches by 52 inches (147cm x 132cm)

The back of the quilt is an orange checkerboard fabric. I kept the quilting simple but it looks nice.

There is a total of 56 blocks on the quilt.

There are 27 different prints in the quilt. All but one of the patterns were scrap pieces from other projects.

 Each print appears once in the center of a block and once as the border of a solid color block.

I used a variety of solid colours for the binding. I really liked the effect that the different colours give the edge of the quilt.

Give it a quick test run before it got shipped off to our friend.

 Which of the fabric patterns on the quilt is your favourite?

Saturday Snapshots: Messenger Bag

Have you liked our "His and Her Hobbies" Facebook page? If not, click here!

Today we are linking up with Melinda at West Metro Mommy for Super Saturday Snapshots.

Last year Amanda was looking for a messenger tote bag for her to use on her field trip. No matter how hard we looked in stores and online we weren't able to find one that was the right size. So I decided I would attempt to make one. Since we weren't able to find a pattern for the style of bag she wanted I just made it up as we went along. The finished product was not perfect but was pretty good for my first attempt. Here are some photos of the bag. 

The bag has adjustable strap and can be worn cross body.

Before sewing in the interior lining and pockets I used some fusible webbing to give it structure.

It has 7 interior pockets of various sizes with one of them having a zipper.

Close up view of some of the pockets.

The completed bag.

Have you ever tried making a bag for yourself or a friend? What did you blog about today?

His: Saturday Snapshots - Memory Quilt

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Today we are linking up with Melinda at West Metro Mommy for Super Saturday Snapshots.

I was asked to make something as a Christmas gift using some old nightgowns. The nightgowns belonged to the client's grandmother and the gift was for her mother. She was hoping that I could make something, even if it was something small like a table runner. After looking over the materials I had to work with I thought it would make a good quilt. I found a design that I thought would work and got the ok to do the project. I made the design fairly simple so the nightgown fabrics were the focus point of the quilt. Below are some photos of the completed quilt.

The finished quilt is a little larger than a standard lap blanket.

 52"x68" / 1.32m x 1.72m

All of the coloured fabrics (except the binding/border) are cut from the nightgown. In total there is fabric from 11 different nightgowns.

A view of the fabric on the back of the quilt. I had a different fabric in mind when I went to the store but this ended up looking really good. 

I kept the quilting simple on this quilt to keep the focus on the nightgown fabrics.

The binding turned out really well. I had struggled with binding in the past but I think I have it figured out now.

I got creative and put a ribbon around it to give it a nice presentation.

This was a fun project and it will be something that will be treasured by their family for years to come. I do not currently have a listing for these types of quilts on my Etsy store but plan to after Christmas. If you are interested in having something made I would be happy to talk to you about it.

Have you ever made or seen a memory quilt like this?

Saturday Snapshots: Bubble / Biscuit Quilt

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Today we are linking up with Melinda at West Metro Mommy for Super Saturday Snapshots.

A few weeks ago I posted pictures of my first quilt that I made for my niece. I also mentioned that I was working on a bubble quilt for my nephew that was due this month. I finished the quilt last week but held off posting photos until the parents were able to see it first. Here are some of the pictures that I took of the quilt.

I made this rainbow pattern as it was requested by my sister in law. It creates a very bright and colourful quilt design. The finished quilt was 25" (63cm) X 45" (112cm)

A close up of the bubbles and the binding. I am still struggling to make the binding look perfect but that will come with practice.

I used a black fabric with coloured dots for the quilt back as it was a good contrast to all of the bright colours on the front of the quilt.

A baby's eye view of the quilt.

I had a lot of fun making this quilt as it seemed to go a lot quicker than the other quilt that I had made. It took a little while to make all of the puffs but once they were stuffed it was just a matter of sewing them all together. I used this pattern to make the puffs but I chose not to make the ruffle and made a simple binding to go around the edge instead.

If you would like a quilt like this for yourself or someone you know please check out my listing on my Etsy store and I will be happy to design one that is right for you. 

Have you ever made a bubble quilt or had one as a child?

Saturday Snapshots: Monkey Quilt

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Today we are linking up with Melinda at West Metro Mommy for Super Saturday Snapshots.

I started my first quilt last December and figured it would take a couple of weeks at most to complete. I kept the design fairly simple but it ended up taking a lot longer than I expected. (I wrote a post about my progress back in April which you can check out by clicking here) I am happy to announce that I have finally finished the quilt and in time for my niece's birthday later this month. The quilt is 3ft (91cm) by 5 feet (152cm) so she can use it in the living room or even on her toddler bed. I am very happy that I was finally able to complete it. Below are some photos of the completed quilt. 

The front of the quilt is a patchwork design with monkeys on it. I tried to keep the design fairly simple for my first quilt.

I chose this fabric for the back of the quilt.

The quilting pattern was wavy lines with leaves every so often. It is a nice effect without being too complex.

A closer view of both sides of the quilt.

Now that this quilt is done I have moved onto my next quilt which is a bubble/biscuit quilt for my nephew that is due next month. I will post pictures of it once it is completed.

Have you ever made a quilt?