Modern Cottage Creations

I've been working on my truck quilt over the week and it is finally finished! A few days ago I appliqued "Jericho" to the quilt. Simple applique but a very cute detail.  Then yesterday morning I found time to lay out and quilt this cute little piece.  I did some simple quilting - stitch in the ditch and extra linear stitching for stability.  There is so much going on in the prints that I didn't want the quilting design to overwhelm the quilt.  It was a slow day on the carnival yesterday so I had time to sew my binding while working.  I love getting two things done at once!  All that was left was to take some more pictures and deliver my quilt.  Baby quilt success! 

I wasn't able to complete this baby quilt on my marathon day of rainy day sewing, but after a few seams sewn on breaks I managed to get my quilt top done.  I think that it's going to need another little detail.  After looking at the quilt and being a little too overwhelmed by the red, I think I'm going to add some applique in blue to the bottom row of trucks.  I plan on just adding the name of the little boy, which will be a cute addition and make it even more special for the new mom.  Updates to come!

Rainy days sure are dreary, but I make the best of them.  All the rain today gave me some good incentive to sit down and get to quilting!  Today I made the quilt sandwhich for the star quilt I complete over the weekend. I also got an order for an extra wide charm pack bag last weekend.  My goal was definitely to complete something for myself for a change, but I have a hard time keeping focused on me.  So I switched gears and made this very cute charm pack shoulder bag from the "Papillon" line by Moda.   After that I still had plenty of time left in the day so I just kept sewing! I made a set of new curtains for my boss to serve as a divider in our ticket box.  A simple project that didn't take too much time.  Nothing to do but grab another project and sew some more! I wanted to work on a more fun and colorful project so the next on the list was a baby quilt that was ordered to be completed in July.  These bright primaries...

I managed to complete my entire quilt top in the four nights that I had by myself this week.  And it turned out great! I did not remember that when I purchased my fabrics (a year ago now) that I was short the amount that I wanted for the borders.  It was only by a few inches, but it resulted in me not being able to cut that one extra strip that would have completed the full length top and bottom borders.  So, to make up for the small difference, I just added a fun 9-patch detail to the four corners.    It used up some scraps and made these an accent instead of a coverup.  I am so happy with my new quilt top.  I am hoping to find the time this week to make my quilt sandwhich and add some nice quilting details to the top.  If all goes well, it will be bound by next week.  That is definitely high hopes, but it's a good goal to shoot for too.

I got my blocks all laid out this morning.  I love the way the quilt is progressing.  Now that I have them laid out it will be time to add the sashing and corner stones.  I chose a blue sashing from the line and the cornerstones will be cream.  It's shaping up nicely!

Rain, rain, rain.   Bad for business, good for quilting.   We were only open for a few hours today so that left me plenty of extra time to sew.   By the end of the evening I managed to finish all 30 star blocks for the throw quilt that I am making for myself. I feel so accomplished having finished this beautiful stack of star blocks.   I can’t wait to get them laid out in the morning!

I had hoped that I would have more energy to work while I have the house trailer to myself, but unfortunately that was not the case today.    After a slow start to the day and still a much needed nap, I was able to muster some energy and get to work sewing.   I am a quilter who always has a TON of UFO’s.   Sifting through half-done projects, I decided to start yet another one.   I decided to pull out a selection of fabric that I had purchased almost exactly a year ago and get to work on the quilt that I had designed with that line in mind.   These fabrics and this quilt have been on my mind for quite some time, so this one has certainly been a long time coming. The fabrics are from the “Serenity” line by Heather Mulder Peterson.   I absolutely love her designs! I have a good collection of her books and have really enjoyed every line of fabric she has put out for Henry Glass & Co.   “Serenity” is by far my favorite of her fabric lines...

Peace signs are definitely in style these days!   And my boyfriend’s little sister certainly did not miss that memo!   I know preteens and tweens are likely to go through tons of fads over the years, but I am much happier with this current trend that she is interested in than the previous Hannah Montana interest.   I too love the color and ideas behind the peace signs so I am happy to support her fad, and bond a little too! To go along with her current interest in peace signs, this evening I whipped up a small messenger bag in a batik pink and brown peace print. I gave her plenty of pockets for anything she needs to carry with her.   The strap is adjustable to grow with her.   Since we are on the road, we weren’t in town last week for her birthday.   So, for my boyfriend’s trip home this week I am sending her birthday gift along with him.   It’s a little late, but she is a very appreciative little girl and I know she’ll love it.   I u...

Today is off to a frustrating start so far.   The weather was beautiful for driving the trailers today and I was actually enjoying the trip to the next town.   That all ended though when one of the trucks in our convoy ran out of gas.   I didn’t have enough space to fully get off the road so that left me blocking traffic…up a hill and around a corner.   Not a pretty picture.   But we got out of the way, no accidents occurred and someone thankfully delivered some gas to get that truck to the next town. Once there, I let the dog out to get some exercise.   He played and ran and had himself a great time.   Heading back to the truck, though, he ran past me and his collar caught on my skirt.   He ended up ripping a huge chunk of fabric from my skirt along the bottom ruffle.   Thankfully this is a bargain skirt from Old Navy and not one of my handmade pieces.   I’m trying to decide now if the fabric is going to be sturdy enough to try t...

Well it took me much longer than I had anticipated, but I was able to finish four new charm bags this weekend and deliver them to their happy new owners.   So here is the first of the charm bags from last week’s stack of fabric that have fully evolved! First is a shoulder bag using the "Zoe" line from Studio E Fabrics.

Yesterday I was able to get a lot of things accomplished.   I love those productive days!   It feels great to know that I accomplished a lot of things on my to-do list.   Naturally though, I had to start out the day getting the necessities out of the way.   I had to get all of that pesky laundry washed, but at least I had good reading material for the trip to the Laundromat! I just had to check out the new “quilty” magazine.   “Quilt” and “American Patchwork and Quilting” are staples for me at my house, but I had heard so much hype about “quilty” that I just had to pick it up.   I was certainly glad I did!   The magazine has patterns tailored for the beginner and intermediate quilter and the designs they offer trend to the modern side, which I love.   The patterns were cute, but it was the overall layout and design of the magazine that really got me going.   I can sometimes get tired of looking at all of the generic typeface in magazin...

Yesterday - what a day! I spent the morning blogging and managing my business's website and social networks. Then in the afternoon I sat down to start sewing all of those beautiful precut fabrics. I also added some more fabrics into the mix - 1/4 yards that I cut down into 5" squares to make my own charm packs. It was a long but very rewarding day. My stack of precut fabrics has evolved into a new stack of fabric.

Being a seamstress on a travelling carnival, I get to work on a variety of different sewing projects.   Naturally the guys here need their jeans patched or new zippers put in their clothes and that keeps me sewing from time to time.   I have made some repairs to our bounce, adjusted bally cloths that cover the trailer wheels, and made sequin covered fabric slipcovers for plastic totes to hold game prizes.   However, the latest sewing projects that have kept me busy are new carnival flags.  

I love precuts!   I just can’t seem to get enough of these perfect little packs of fabric.   I love to buy precuts because I get to have a little sample of every fabric in the line.   The fabrics work together perfectly in any project because they are designed to do just that.   Buying yardage of each fabric in a line can get too expensive and it is sometimes just so sad to leave behind fabrics that I love.   With precuts, I can just take them all home! Layer Cakes, Jelly Rolls, Chocolate Bars, and especially Charm Packs, I love them all!   This is my current selection of precuts that I have purchased from shops all around Minnesota and Wisconsin, and online as well. This group of fabrics will eventually become some of the charm pack bags that I make and sell and area craft shows and some will become wall-hangings or throw quilts as well.   Keep updated on my blog and I will show you how these beautiful fabrics come to life!

One of my favorite parts of quilting is getting to purchase the fabric.   When I step into a quilt shop I might not even have a specific project in mind but a fabric will call my name and I just need to bring it home.   I love the look and feel of brand new fabric on the bolt.   When I buy fabrics for a specific project I have a tendency to over buy.   I would much rather have too much, than to come up short in the end.   When I am working from my own designs there is also a possibility that I will change the design later, or even encounter a mathematical error that was over looked.   Therefore, I always buy a little extra.   Personally, I love having those bits of extra fabric!   I fell in love with the fabric for one project, so why not share the love and put it in more projects! This beautiful group of flannels is what I had left over from a flannel quilt that I worked on at home over the winter.   One of my favorite parts of quilti...

Hello, Quilters! My name is Katie and I am a quilter.   I am a fabric lover and a quilt-aholic.   I have a small business called Modern Cottage Creations which allows me to put my skills with a sewing machine to use and also feeds my quilting addiction.   With my business I have been selling my handmade bags, table runners, and baby things at arts and crafts fairs in Wisconsin, in addition to doing some neat custom work.   Now, with the kick off Fat Quarter Quilting’s new and improved website, I am launching my new blog.   For those of you who are long time shoppers at Fat Quarter Quilting, you may remember seeing me at the shop.   I spent a lot of fun time working at Fat Quarter and once I moved across the border, my time at the shop ended.   With the launch of the new site I am happy to collaborating with this extremely creative group once again (even if I can only be cyber-present now).   In addition to being a quilter and attempting t...