Teacher Quilt... Pieced by Preschoolers

For the past two years, my oldest child has been attending a wonderful Montessori preschool.  One of the teachers there is having a baby soon, so I wanted to make her a quilt (of course)!

Instead of making it entirely myself, I thought it would be more meaningful to get the children involved.

I decided simple would be best, since the kids are 3-6 and some are still learning to write their names :)

Each student was given six 5" squares, a small spool of thread, and a needle.  I cut all the squares and even drew on the 1/4" seam lines on every square.  Each family was given instructions on how to hand sew the six squares into a row using a simple running stitch.  

Instead of purchasing a cheapo spool of thread for each student, I bought a pack of bobbins and wound them with quality thread (that I already had).

As students finished their strips, I began figuring out a layout.

I decided to do simple quilting to reinforce the seams.  

I ended up adding another row of quilting stitches for extra durability.  The squares were sewn together by kids after all! I did have to redo a few strips that were sewn together poorly, and I reinforced a few without pulling them apart entirely.  But for the most part, the kids and their adult helpers did a great job!

One of the grandmothers I see often at the school is a very accomplished quilter, and she suggested having the kids sign the quilt.  She recommended this crayon and iron technique to set the ink into the fabric and it worked beautifully! I will have to follow up with the recipient in a year or so to see how it holds up over time.

I think she was very pleased with her gift!

One more thing! On Amanda's recommendation, I used this sheet set from Target as the backing for this quilt and for my Meadow Quilt.  I bought the full size for about 25 dollars and backed two quilts with it.  Quilt backings can be very expensive so I'm glad I have found a cheaper alternative.  There are many options in solids or prints.

Enjoy your weekend!

Meadow Class and Finished Quilt Top

Back in March I had the opportunity to take Lizzy House's Meadow Quilt workshop at Intown Quilters in Atlanta, Georgia.

This is me on my way to the workshop.  I haven't taken a quilt class since my very first beginner's quilting class five years ago!  I was a little bit excited :)

Lizzy House was very approachable.  She explained every detail of the block construction and how to put the quilt together into a top.

Here's my practice block! I think it turned out great for my first one.

Lizzy and I in front of her original Meadow Quilt.

Here is the color inspiration for my version...

from here

from here

from here

 After much deliberation, I finally settled on a plan.

And then I changed it of course! I replaced the peach with a grass green color.

We were out at Brian's grandparents' farm the other night and I thought it would be a great time to take pictures of the finished quilt top.

I thought I would try to get a picture of my Meadow Quilt in front of a meadow!

It's about 72" by 84".

I think I will try a combination of machine quilting and hand quilting on this one.  I want to hand quilt the white petals and green eyes, and machine quilt the rest. I've never hand quilted a large quilt, and this could be a good way to get my feet wet.  

I couldn't resist one random pic of the kids enjoying their time at Happiness Hills Farm :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Easter Dress... Times Three!

It's been a while since we've had a good family photo.  I thought Easter would be an ideal opportunity.  Then I decided to make dresses for the girls... and me!

For Rose and Bridget, I used Made by Rae's Geranium Dress pattern.  I have been wanting to get this pattern for a while.  I held off for so long because I already have a very similar dress pattern (Brownie Goose's Lazy Susan Dress).  However, the Lazy Susan dress is so difficult to get on and off! The back of the dress doesn't open up enough.  So I splurged on the new pattern and some fabric (Happy Home collection by Sew Caroline).  Rose helped pick out the fabric (from Quilter's Square) and chose the buttons (Hobby Lobby) all by herself.

Rose just turned 5 and the size 5 fit her perfectly.  She has cap sleeves on her dress.

Bridget is about 21 months, and was measuring small (size 12-18 months).  I decided to make the size 18-24 months and it also fit her perfectly, with a little bit of growing room.  Bridget has the flutter sleeve option on her dress.

I added a ribbon on Bridget and a sash for Rose to add something special to the dresses for Easter.  Rose's only complaint was that the skirt of the dress was not "spinny" enough.  Next time I might try cutting the pattern piece wider, maybe even the full width of fabric, to give it that extra fullness for great spins!

I made myself a pattern I have been looking at for a LONG time... Sew Caroline's Out and About Dress.  I have never sewn myself any garment of clothing and I have never sewn with knits.  What could go wrong!?

Well, my biggest mistake was in choosing my size.  My waist was actually measuring for the XL size.  I decided to cut a hybrid large/extra large bodice and an extra large skirt.  This ended up being way too big.  Instead of ripping out the stitches and starting over, I just cut an inch or two from each side seam and then sewed it back up.  Then the shoulders were too big, so I took the sleeves off, modified the shoulder seam, put the sleeves back on and it actually worked.  I believe it's because knit fabric is so very forgiving!

The fabric is an Art Gallery knit solid purchased from Westwood Acres. When it first arrived in the mail I was unsure that it would be thick enough for a dress, but it's perfect... not too light and not too heavy.  I can wear this in the summer with sandals and in the winter with a sweater, leggings, and boots.

I am looking forward to making this again so I can see what pattern size I should have cut out!  I might try a sleeveless version this time :)  I don't blame the pattern for my difficulties, I think it's more my lack of experience with sewing myself clothing.  For a first attempt, I'm pretty proud of how it turned out!