Hooded Bath Towel for Children

I have to admit that this is not MY idea!A dear friend, Mary Schultz,  from Sugar Land showed me how to make this and it's been my favorite gift to send for baby showers or children's gifts ever since.  She so inspired me with her frugal ways!

She would stock up at the outlet store on beautiful bath towels and hand towels on clearance and then spend a day sewing them into these towels. She didn't choose 'childrens' designs per se..just beautiful multi-colored towels. They lasted long after the baby had grown to be a small child. Her children all had one and she used them when they went to the beach or swimming lessons.

To  me, one of the best gifts I can give to you, my readers, are ways to show you care and give a gift that doesn't break the budget.  If we can live on less, we can spend more time living...

The reason I can stay at home, and my hubby can work from home is that we find these little ways to do the same thing we normally would, for less money. Besides, when you give a homemade gift, you give a little of yourself...don't you think?

This bath towel gift is for my darling grandson, Brennan.  I will certainly make one for Colin and Nikolai before the year is out, but it happens to have just been Brennan's birthday, and the green towel with a frog and dragonfly was just too cute to pass up!

Here's how you do it....

Project: Hooded Bath Towel

Supplies: Large bath towel
                Matching hand-towel

Steps:

• Fold over about 1" of the long side of the hand towel, pin in place and stitch about 1 inch in the center of the fold to hold it in place. This makes a nice edge to the hood.

• Fold the hand towel in half, right sides together and sew the back of the 'hood' together with one straight seam. The back of the hood will be the opposite side to the edge that is folded over.k

• Find the middle of the large bath towel and mark it with a pin. Match the back seam of the hood with the center of the bath towel and pin in place with the right sides together.

Now you have a darling gift for the next baby shower or birthday!

Introducing a new book on motherhood..The Artistic Mother by Shona Cole

 

The Artistic Mother by Shona Cole 

(click here to order from Amazon)

 

I've been friends with Shona, mother of five busy children, for several years now and she has been such an inspiration to me! She has encouraged me to do a lot more fabric art than I ever would have attempted without her encouragement. In fact, three of my quilts/wall hangings have won places in our GCC art show over the last three years--an art show she hosts at her home in fact!  Moonstones, Pacific Northwest Coast Indian Button Blanket, and Turkey Feathers...see DC's Creations for photos. 

If it weren't for her and Shannon Mucha of Blu-Bambu (featured follower on my art blog), I never would have thought I had any artistic ability at all!  Shona really inspired me to keep at it in spite of the busy life of homeschooling, kids' activities and church responsibilities. If she could make beautiful works of art with five young children, then I should be able to and you could too!

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If you would like to know more about how she does this, you will really want to read this book!!!  She is a very well known and well published artist from Ireland. She does lots of altered art and photography, plus she write beautiful prose and journal entries on motherhood in general.  You will get all of this in her book The Artistic Mother and on her website... An Artful Life.

PS. If you would like a chance to WIN her book...CLICK HERE.

Crochet..the perfect solution for anxiety!

Good Morning! 

I am finally able to get on my father's computer, after I found his password, to post a little update. He couldn't remember it due to the influence of his pain medication.  My last post was made from the hospital and I have been trying to get settled in with my dad, at his house, ever since. I just brought him home yesterday. He had a bad fall last night, but is fine now.

 

Today, I'm working towards getting my laptop connected through his wireless connection. Hopefully, I will be able to do some more posting in a day or two. Thanks for visiting my blog Cindi! Trudy, I can't wait to see your post about the candle I sold your daughter and the one I gave you! I gave one to my dad last night and he was so pleased. It started a long talk on candle-making. :o)   Christi--Hey!  How are you?  I'm a little exhausted...but alive and finally kicking again. Ha!

 

 This last few days have been some of the hardest of my life, but blogging, if I can make it work, will be my sanity saver! Last night, I finally thought to bring out something to work on while we visited.  I spent the evening crocheting a colonial baby cap out of yarn while my dad talked and talked with me. It really helped pass the time and helped me be more patient.

 

At first, I was too overwhelmed to think of doing anything but sit and listen to him, but this was just what I needed to relieve the stress from this new situation.   My sister is making these caps for the Ren-fest and other shows and she showed me how to do it just this week.

 

 I'll be crocheting a pull string to lace through the edge about 2 inches from the edge.  Then you pull up the strings and tie them into a bow.  It causes the circle to puff up into a colonial style cap.  These will be great for me to sell at the next spring craft show and will also make cute baby gifts!  I'll post a picture when it's done.

 

Please keep us in your prayers.  My husband and kids are at home managing on their own and we don't know how long I will need to be here.

 

Blessings,

Donna

Lena Plays in the Leaves

Like Me

A squirming babe lies in my arms,

with adoring eyes, so quick to charm.

Chubby cheeks, a precious pout,

capricious curls, legs short and stout.

She's a miracle in every way,

like a flower, blooming day by day.

A gift from God, yet just a loan,

since a baby's soul one cannot own.

Though I teach and train so carefully,

I find, instead, she's watching me!

How much like Jesus I must be,

if a Godly child I hope to be.

As our days wing by in rapid flight,

I pray for God's grace to be.

A living light, a beacon bright,

for a child who'll be ...so much...

 ......Like me..

 click here to listen

Darcy Anne Ramos' Baby Quilt

Last month, I was privileged to be able to finish sewing a baby quilt for Darcy Anne Ramos, who lived only 14 days. The family asked me to make a 'family tree' quilt with all seven children's names and their own embroidered on it. In the picture below, I had just finished piecing the top. In the picture above, you see Darcy Anne under the blanket with her special square on top. Her block was the only one with blanket stitching and ribbon on her name leaf. I used a block from Quilter's Cache called, Baby bud for the blocks on point, and designed my own coordinating block to allow for a 'tree' pattern. The idea for leaves for the names came from the need to have something to embroider the names on that didn't have such a busy background print. Darcy Anne had trisomyie 18 so we knew she would not live long, but still it was so very sad to have to say good-bye. Please keep her family in your prayers! The family put her foot prints on her block after she was born which made this a very special quilt indeed. If you would like to read more about the story of this incredible family and their baby, check out www.darcyanne.weebly.com. The top two photos were taken by Shona Cole. She is a fabulous artist and photographer. See her work at http://shonastudio.blogspot.com/.

Darcy Anne's Baby Quilt

 

Nicole just recently sent me these photos from when I was at Darcy Anne's birth.  I had just finished the stitches on the way to the hospital and Tim and I wanted to get it to them, just in case Darcy didn't live very long.  Isn't God good, that he let them have almost two whole weeks together as a family before she went to Heaven.

They had asked me to make a special block just for her on their 'family tree' quilt, which I designed from scratch.  This is the sweetest picture!  Thanks Nicole!

Shona took this one and I treasure it!  In the next picture, I'm showing the Ramos family their new quilt.  I'm pointing to Mom and Dad's block with their wedding date on it.  I don't have a picture of the whole quilt finished yet, but they will be getting it to me soon. 

Our church is so excited about Tracy's book  "letters to darcy"  If you'd like to get a copy just contact them at www.darcyanne.weebly.com.

Sunbonnet Sue Quilt with embellishments

This quilt is made with 100% scraps which for those of you who know me, know makes the project especially satisfying. I pride myself on being a 'frugal' artist. However, some things do cost money, and the embellishments on this quilt are not cheap. Total cost for lace, buttons, and applique was close to $30.00. However, that is a cheap price for a beautiful 'heirloom' baby quilt. My new daughter-in-law, Elisabeth, will enjoy this quilt, I'm sure! She is due Feb.18 and we are having a baby shower for her on Feb.1 at church.

SunBonnet Sue Applique Quilt

Hi Everyone,

I thought you all might like a 'sneak peak' at Elisabeth and Andrew's baby quilt that I have begun working on. The picture above shows the quilt blocks with all the pieces sewn to pellon backing and turned, ironed on and now ready to applique to the blocks. I will then need to embellish them with pretty things like lace, buttons, appliques etc.

And of course they still need to be sewn with pink or green sashing strips and cornerstones to make into a quilt top. I plan to take these to Germany to hand stitch and embellish. By January, I should have plenty of time to sew the sashing strips and cornerstones into the top and be ready to quilt the baby blanket. A baby shower will be coming up soon!

The pattern is very traditional and is called "Sunbonnet Sue". Rebekah has a beautiful quilt made of Sunbonnet Sues made all in blue scraps by a dear friend, Margie Lawrence, who taught Rebekah how to embroider and me how to do 'needle turn applique". She also gave me the pattern for this picture and made Rebekah a beautiful quilt of Sunbonnet Sues in Blue. It is hanging in our sewing room.

Here are the pieces of scraps cut out with the pattern out of all my scraps of pink and green cloth.

Since Elisabeth especially likes pink and green, I naturally thought to include those scraps in my baby quilt for the newest Rodgers girl--Baby Rodgers-Weber. Girls are rare in the Rodgers' clan, so when one is on the way it is cause for special celebration!

Here are the pictures of this baby blanket "in progress'. Planning which scraps and colors should be used for each dress is half the fun and really the most important part. But I can't wait to add all the pretty things to the little girls' dresses.

Enjoy!
Donna
(a proud Grandma!)

Darcy Anne Ramos' Baby Quilt

Last month, I was privileged to be able to finish sewing a baby quilt for Darcy Anne Ramos, who lived only 14 days. The family asked me to make a 'family tree' quilt with all seven children's names and their own embroidered on it. In the picture below, I had just finished piecing the top. In the picture above, you see Darcy Anne under the blanket with her special square on top. Her block was the only one with blanket stitching and ribbon on her name leaf. I used a block from Quilter's Cache called, Baby bud for the blocks on point, and designed my own coordinating block to allow for a 'tree' pattern. The idea for leaves for the names came from the need to have something to embroider the names on that didn't have such a busy background print. Darcy Anne had trisomyie 18 so we knew she would not live long, but still it was so very sad to have to say good-bye. Please keep her family in your prayers! The family put her foot prints on her block after she was born which made this a very special quilt indeed. If you would like to read more about the story of this incredible family and their baby, check out www.darcyanne.weebly.com. The top two photos were taken by Shona Cole. She is a fabulous artist and photographer. See her work at http://shonastudio.blogspot.com/.