Coaster/Hot Pad/Placemat Tutorial

My friend, Karen, taught me this really simple way to use up fabric scraps and create some unique handmade gifts.  Her idea was to make coasters, but I also used the same concept to make a matching hot pad and placemat set.  This is a great beginner sewing project too, because it requires very little sewing.  For my tutorial, I made a set of 8 coasters.

Supplies:

• Fabric scraps cut into 5" squares (1 for the bottom, 4 for the top, and one for the middle - I used a piece of flannel for the middle, because it's a little sturdier)
• Thread (You can choose whatever color thread you want to match your fabric or just use a plain white or black thread.)
• Iron & Ironing Board

Directions:

Isn't that super easy?  It makes a quick and cute gift idea, especially with the limited time that comes with having two little ones under two.  I'd love to see your own version of this tutorial, so please send pictures so I can share some them here!

Auction Quilt

My friend, Kelli, started a wonderful ministry at our church called Mom Time.  It's a time for stay at home moms like me to get together to fellowship and encourage each other as moms and wives.  We meet the first and third Thursday of every month.  On the first Thursday of every month, we have several speakers (women from our church) come and teach about topics such as marriage, children's health, and playing with our kids.  We decided we wanted to spend some of our time learning to quilt too, so we could donate a quilt to the Trinity Baptist School auction (a ministry of our church).  Kathy agreed to give us quilting lessons and found the cutest pattern for a quilt.  We spent months working on it along with the help of Kelli's sister-in-law, Linda, and then Kathy and her mom graciously quilted it together for us before revealing the finished product at the auction.

 

Thank you, Kathy and Linda for all your time and effort to help us finish this quilt!

I also decided to donate two baskets to the auction from my Etsy shop and was frantically working on finishing them just two weeks before the auction.  I love how they turned out and am already dreaming up ideas for next year's auction. 

PS - Sorry for the blurriness of the pictures; they were taken back in January with our old camera.

H Block Quilt Reveal

A Sew Inspired Winner

Thanks to all who have decided to "follow" my new blog and entered in my giveaway!  Without further ado, the winner is...

#2

Melissa

Congratulations Melissa!  Please email me your address and I'll be sure to get your prize in the mail. 

Close Enough To Kiss

* Stay tuned for a Baby Doll Carrier Tutorial (as soon as my sewing scissors finds its way back to me and my new camera arrives). *

Sneak Peak: H Block Quilt

I have been wanting to make a quilt out of all the scrap fabric I have and finally found an easy pattern that I love. I just finished sewing all the H-Block squares and the next step is arranging the squares and sewing them together. I am having so much fun with the project and am already dreaming of my next quilting project.

A Sew Inspired Giveaway

I thought it would be fun to launch this blog with my first tutorial and a giveaway too. I don't have much time to sew these days, but I still try to find time every so often. Sewing is such a stress reliever for me, because I enjoy it and it always feels good to finish something I made myself.

One of my recent projects was a flax seed hot/cold pack. My mother-in-law first introduced the idea of a hot/cold pack when she made my husband and I rice hot packs for Christmas one year. Then I discovered a little Etsy shop that sells hot/cold packs made with flax seed and I thought, "Hey, I can totally make that myself!" We always have flax seed in the house, because it's one of our favorite ingredients for yogurt parfaits or smoothies.

Flax seed has more oil content than rice and other fillers, so it holds heat longer. It also doesn't produce an odor like rice does and it can be used hot OR cold. It's a great alternative to an ice pack or heating pad for your little one's every day bumps and bruises. Remember when your mom would kiss your boo-boo and make it all better? Well, this little heart can do the same thing.

Step 1: Gather supplies (flax seed, fabric, pencil or marker, thread, sewing machine)

Step 2: Cut out your fabric. You can use any shape you want. If the pattern is not symmetrical, make sure to trace your fabric using opposite sides of the pattern so you have a front and back that matches up. 

 Step 3: Place fabric right sides together and sew a 1/4" seam leaving a small opening for turning it right side out.

Step 4: Turn fabric right side out.

 Step 5: Using a funnel, pour flax seed through opening of hot/cold pack slowly. If you used ground flax seed like I did, you may need to use a pencil to push the flax seed through the funnel.

Step 6: Top stitch a 1/4" seam on your hot/cold pack, making sure to sew the opening closed first.

Ta da! So easy, right...or, should I say sew easy? Of course, if you don't have any idea how to sew, it's probably not. So, I've decided to give away the hot/cold pack I made. All you have to do is leave a comment here. Winner will be drawn after 10 pm CST Thursday, April 29th.

Extra entries (not required, but optional ways to increase your chances of winning):

1. Follow this blog through Google Friend Connect so you don't miss another tutorial or sewing project as I begin sharing my sewing journey.

2. Share this blog through a blog post, twitter, or facebook.

3. Grab my button (on the sidebar) and add it to your blog.

Thanks so much for visiting!

* This giveaway is now CLOSED! *