classy monogram

This blanket is striped white minkee on one side and bright pink dot minkee on the other side. This mother of two boys was eager to add something classy and feminine to her new daughter's layette when she arrived. A monogrammed blanket was just what she was looking for!

a bag for grandma

This bag was made for a special Grandma to tote things back and forth to the grandkids' house. Her name is on one side, and each of the grandkids are on the other side. Each child got their own specialized design, and extra children can be added as they come!

pillow cover

My u-shaped pillow got a lot of use with my son. I nursed him for a year, and he played on it too. A real work-out. However, he was a bit of a puker, so I was constantly having to wash the cover. So... before baby #2 - another cover! The back is fastened with snap tape for easy removal and washing when needed.

something warm for the winter...

A friend wanted something warm and girly for her September daughter.

This seemed like the perfect solution!

looking for a toy

I think these are going to be so much fun! I just picked a couple fun fabrics and pretty ribbons and put them all together.
Coming up on the next ones - specialty embroidery squares.
And maybe a jingle bell inside?!

twice the hippo

This customer chose to make a matching onesie and blanket. The parents chose a Noah's Ark/ animal theme for the nursery, so picking this cute hippo seemed only appropriate. The blanket is Noah's ark flannel on one side, and soft fuzzy green fleece on the other. The onesie sleep sack was made with the fuzzy fleece instead of the minkee, another great option for cuddling.

flannel rag quilt

Most of my blankets are limited to only two fabrics. This blanket is where the fun really began! After putting a couple of layers of flannel together with batting sandwiched between, I trimmed the edges, laundered it, and it made an even fuzzier blanket for a friend's new baby.
The technique is very similar to making chenille, if you're familiar with that fabric. I made another one using a denim on one side - just think of how well a pair of ripped jeans soften up when you put them through the wash. It's the same idea. Warm and cozy! The only problem - it was a lot thicker and heavier to work with!
I also realized the big squares would be a great place to embroider some different designs. Maybe next time.

bucket hats

These hats were a quick and easy way to start getting to know my new embroidery machine.

independence day

4th of July has now come and gone, but I just wanted to share a couple items with you. One was for my son, one was for my mother. My son's shirt had glow-in-the dark stars. He loved those when it was time for fireworks! My mother's shirt has variegated thread (red, white and blue) and the stars cascaded down her short-sleeves.

special cape

My son received numerous hooded towels when he was born. The one that has lasted the longest and is now loved the most is the one handmade by a friend's mother. I have slightly adapted her pattern and made a "special cape" for my adorable son.
He zooms out of the bathroom and loves every minute of bathtime leading up to his choice of hooded towels.

baby wall hanging

Add another new baby in the world and inspired parents and you get a beautiful new creation!
I created this unique wall hanging for the little girl's nursery, soon to be painted light pink and dark rose. The wall hanging itself was constructed much like a quilt or table runner. I then used puffy foam and embroidered the letters around a contrasting fabric. The edge of each letter sticks up a little, and the letters pop.

blankets aren't just for babies!

Recently, my brother-in-law got married. His fabulous new wife :-) ordered a blanket to celebrate the day. Her sister-in-law saw it, loved it, and ordered two more blankets. Which made me think, blankets aren't just for babies!!!!

fuzzy fleece blankets

One of my most favorite fabrics available now (besides minkee and flannel) is fuzzy fleece! It is the softest stuff around, and it just makes you go "ahhhhh" when you touch it. It is warm, cozy, and just screams "cuddle me!!!". So naturally, I wanted to use it on baby blankets. It works best when paired with flannel or minkee.
On this one I used a white fuzzy fleece and a bright green minkee backing. It was sewn to match a sleep sack. My customer chose to use a specialty stitch to dress up the edge rather than satin binding.

flannel blankets

The pictures you see show the blanket made with satin binding. The customer chose a plain flannel and a patterned flannel. Although this repeat customer loved this particular font, I'm going to start digitizing some fonts and I can't wait to try them out! (In the originals I used the child's name too, but to protect their privacy I cropped the names out.)

minkee sleep sacks

I saw this idea for custom sleep sacks when perusing a cute little baby shop and have changed it a little to make it my own. Minkee is the name of the fabric used for the bottom half of the sleep sack, and I used store-bought onesies for the top. I'm not sure I love how it's gathered in - that's going to take some refining.

ladybug blanket

When I was in 2nd grade I wrote a poem about ladybugs that I saw at our cottage on Lake Michigan. My mother has always loved that poem. She recently found this fabric - it already had the cute ladybugs appliqued on it. Using my alphabet stitch, I meandered the poem through the ladybugs. I also added a fleece binding to make the perfect picnic blanket!

flannel choices

I love flannel. Now what am I going to do with all of it??!!!

minkee

There is a lot of this lovely, soft minkee fabric to be had. It is one of the most popular baby blanket fabrics available, and I LOVE IT! These are just a few of the more popular colors that I keep on hand.... the dot is my most popular fabric. The heart minkee and striped white minkee is also a fun variation.
I've scrounged around a lot of websites and there are so many other color and design options. I have so many ideas of things to make!!!

soft fabric choices

This fabric is a shaggier but oh-so-soft option that adds a little bit more of a funky flair to your project.





Speaking of funky - try this pink or purple shimmy-shimmy-shake stuff on top! I also use more fun textures for the fuzzy cubes - chenille, textured fleece, and terrycloth.






These are fabrics you just can't keep your hands off of!!! The dark purple on the top left and the white on the top right are short poodle-curls that are SO soft. The purple polka dot on the bottom is as soft as minkee, but with a bit more weight to it.


These are so thick and cozy they are almost a blanket by themselves. So scrumptious!

rows and rows of ribbon

Besides buttons, I think ribbon is my next favorite embellishment. There are so many gorgeous satin ribbons out there to be found, and standard grosgrain with that special ridged texture. This is just a sampling of what I have currently...