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Harriet’s New Quilt

Posted by Carolyn on July 18, 2017 3 Comments

This has taken me so long.  I think I bought the fabric last summer when we moved Harriet into a big bed.  Then I started sewing in October.  Then I finished the quilt top in the winter.  Then I quilted it in the spring.  I finally got about to binding this past weekend and Harriet was so happy and excited.  I am too.

I used the same pattern as I did with Alma’s big quilt.  But, again I had to modify it.  I wanted to try the color gradation, but that was only designed for queen sized quilts.  I had to put on my thinking hat, do some math, and hope for the best.  It actually worked out just right and I really love the finished effect.

I used the same color scheme as I did with Alma’s quilt, but it is mostly different fabrics.  I love these scrappy quilts because it’s fun to use fabrics with sentimental value and find cute little quirky fabrics – I like the idea of the quilts being like eye-spy books with hidden things.  Harriet’s favorites are the pink mermaid tails scattered throughout the quilt.

Here’s a photo of the front of the quilt:

And the back.  I love making quilt backs more interesting than just a big expanse of fabric:

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Posted in: created., sewing, sewing for my daughters | Tagged: quilt, quilting, sewing

Happy Halloween!

Posted by Carolyn on October 31, 2016 1 Comment

This Green Faced Witch and this Queen Elsa (who’s really Harriet) would like you wish you a very Happy Halloween!

Here’s that Green Faced Witch looking extra spooky with a mean face and a real, decorative broom.  I made her dress using a pattern for the Wizard of Oz wicked witch.   I really wanted her to have an old-fashioned looking dress, and this pattern was perfect!  The spider web fabric makes it extra spooky and extra fun!

But she doesn’t want you to be too scared.  She’ll rip off her hat and say, “It’s me!  It’s Alma!” in case you look too spooked by her green face.

There was no question that Harriet wanted to be Queen Elsa for Halloween.  She’s pretty obsessed, and this hand-me-down from my cousin’s daughter was perfect!  She’s quick to point out that she’s ‘Just Harriet” if you call her Queen Elsa.  She doesn’t want there to be any confusion.

Here she is freezing everything, but not really since she’s not really Queen Elsa, she’s just Harriet:

Now let’s just hope for a dry evening so we can get some good trick or treating in!

From left: Alma's pumpkin from school, my surprised pumpkin, Alma's jack-o-lantern (designed by Alma, carved by me), Harriet's spooky pumpkin (designed by Harriet, carved by Jesse), Jesse's cool pumpkin, an extra pumpkin.
From left: Alma’s pumpkin from school, my surprised pumpkin, Alma’s jack-o-lantern (designed by Alma, carved by me), Harriet’s spooky pumpkin (designed by Harriet, carved by Jesse), Jesse’s cool pumpkin, an extra pumpkin.

 

 

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Posted in: a little moment, created., sewing, sewing for my daughters | Tagged: elsa, halloween, happy halloween, sewing, witch

A Day in the Life – October 6, 2016

Posted by Carolyn on October 10, 2016 1 Comment

8:23 – I want to remember these girls and the cuddles in the mornings.  Now that they share a room, it’s more likely that they will stay in their beds, or at least their room, and chat and play before they come into our room.  We do all, usually, end up in bed together for a few minutes.

8:47 – I want to remember how the girls love to play with new things.  They made this goo the night before at a Science Fair at the university and were really excited to play with it first thing in the morning.

8:56 – I want to remember this view, with the gorgeous yellow birch, the flaming red dogwood, the landscaping growing up and getting bigger.  The junky car that’s been parked across the street for a few months, I’m happy to forget that, if only it would go away.

9:03 – I want to remember how great it feels to wake up to a mostly clean kitchen.  I never want to do it at night, but it’s always worth it in the morning.

9:08 – I want to remember these autumn breakfasts.  Oatmeal with frozen blueberries for them, tea with orange oil for me.

9:14 – I want to remember how Harriet says “hot cococo” for hot chocolate.   I don’t want to remember how she threw a huge fit because I gave it to her in the wrong cup – I’ll just choose to remember that she eventually accepted the cococo in the Santa mug (the one she usually wants).

9:25 – I want to remember that this was not a normal day for us.  My To Do List isn’t usually a bunch of chores around the house.  We usually actually leave the house.  I don’t usually spend the entire day cleaning the house.  I do want to remember how good it feels to clean up our messes and be able to have such a wonderful home to take care of.  I also want to remember how using the essential oils to clean the house makes it all so much more fun.

9:48 – I want to remember how the girls are actually eager to help me these days.  Harriet loves to help me cook dinner.  Alma likes to help with the dishes, dusting, and sweeping.  I’m working on giving them daily and weekly chores.

9:52 – I want to remember these eggs and these chickens.  I love that my chores include getting eggs, taking out food scraps, and giving them water.

10:07 – I want to remember the corner of our kitchen where things build up.  Art projects from school, mail that needs attention, empty shoe boxes.  These are the things that show our busy existence.  I especially love when this corner of our kitchen gets sorted and put where it all goes.  That was my job this day.

10:12 – I want to remember how these girls play together.  They use their imaginations and really work well together.  They used these boxes as houses, horse stalls, tunnels, who knows what else.  I also want to remember Harriet’s love for her new boots and her tutu.

10:25 – I want to remember the imaginations in these girls.  They had a full conversation between these two candlesticks.

10:31 – I want to remember these candlelit meals and snacks.  Candles, while eating, are pure magic.

10:49 – I want to remember the love and care that goes into keeping a house.  These wood floors shine thanks to me and my care for them.  And essential oils.

11:56 – I want to remember these plates and the little hands that made them.  I want to remember these peanut butter sandwiches – honey for Harriet, homemade strawberry jam for me and Alma.

12:59 – I want to remember all the sewing.  I haven’t sewn in a couple months, so it feels great to get back to it.  I finished Alma’s witch dress, fixed my sweater, and got started on Harriet’s much needed big bed quilt.  I love giving my girls quilts so they can always be wrapped up in my love – and a tangible representation of that love.

2:03 – I want to remember how much I love Christmas and how much I love making good things for our family.  These blend perfectly when I use Christmas Spirit oil (Orange, Cinnamon, Spruce) in my homemade hand soap.

3:13 – I want to remember how Harriet is the queen of the pout.  She will sit down and pout, or just stand in the middle of the room and pout.  Here, Alma is her horse who ran away.  The pout went away once the horse came back.

3:20 – I want to remember these colors and snacks.  Pink and honey for Harriet.  Blue and jam for Alma.

3:52 – I want to remember these slow, cloudy days when I don’t get around to taking my shower until well into the afternoon.  And my old Cal Young tie dye t-shirt that I use for my hair after my showers.

4:15 – I want to remember these days of forts, and make believe, and reading corners.

5:31 – I want to remember how our friends came over, bringing us a fake Christmas gift for an upcoming music video, and how it was fun to wish them Merry Christmas in October.  I also want to remember how they all came inside and hung around for a little bit.  Surprise guests and good conversations fill my bucket in a big way.  Even if I forget to take any photos.  Especially when I forget to take any photos.

6:11 – I want to remember this season and the comfort food that it brings.  This was a baked potato bar, using lots of things we happened to have on hand.

6:18 – I want to remember “Come Lord Jesus, be our guest; let this food to us be blessed. Amen,” and how Alma and Harriet say “Come Lord Jesus, be our guest; let this family to us be blessed. Allmen.”

6:49 – I want to remember the chaos that falls at bedtime.  It is a constant battle to get them going in the right direction to get their teeth brushed, jammies on, and everything else that needs to be done when there are so many other things that they’d rather be doing.

7:03 – I want to remember the calm that settles when we’re all in our bed, reading a story before they head to their own beds.  A few final cuddles and they race to their room.

7:04 – I want to remember how the girls need just a little bit more chaos before they can settle into their beds and eventually fall asleep.

I want to remember the time that Jesse and I get after the kids are in bed.  We watch shows, get stuff done, clean up a little, read books, and eventually fall asleep ourselves.

Other Days In The Life:
May 12, 2015
September 9, 2015
November 11, 2015
January 3, 2016

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Posted in: a little moment, ate., CHOOSE, created., currently, day in the life, learned., parented., sewing, sewing for my daughters, to do lists, writing | Tagged: a day in the life, autumn, cleaning, day in the life, essential oils

Soothing Tea Drops with Thieves – Giveaway 6/36

Posted by Carolyn on May 12, 2016 2 Comments

I sort of stumbled upon my new favorite way to drink tea with soothing tea drops with Thieves.  This has been the worst winter with everyone in our family being sick over and over again.  I started looking for recipes to make some natural cough drops when Alma had an especially bad cough.  I found this recipe and made a batch of drops.  I added in a few drops of Young Living’s Thieves Vitality oil to up the immune support that honey and coconut oil naturally provide.

Alma’s doctor suggested giving her a spoonful of honey to help her cough.  In fact, it’s the only cough treatment that’s approved for the little ones.  The honey coats and soothes their little throats, while coconut oil is shown to have antiviral and antibacterial properties.  Thieves is also great at supporting our own immune systems as they fight off any bugs that might be getting us down.

I made a batch of the drops and put them in the fridge.  A while later, I was thinking a cup of tea with honey sounded good.  I’ve been adding a little bit of coconut oil to my coffee and tea, along with a drop of Thieves for a while.  I remembered the little drops in the back of the fridge and realized that I could just drop one of them into my tea for an instant, ready made boost.

Here’s what I do:

Soothing Tea Drops with Thieves
(modified from The Coconut Mama’s homemade cough drop recipe)

  • 1/2 cup organic, unrefined, cold-pressed , virgin coconut oil.
  • 1/2 cup raw, organic, local honey.
  • 5-10 drops Thieves Vitality oil.

Mix all ingredients together in a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer.  Whip it all together until it’s smooth and well incorporated and fluffy.

Put a couple teaspoons into mini muffin tins. I’m sure there are molds that would make beautifully smooth drops, but I’m more about using what I have and what I have is a mini muffin tray.  You could even just scoop onto a cookie sheet.  Note:  Since there are essential oils in here, you should use metal, glass, or silicone since oils and plastic don’t play well together.

Stick it in a freezer for about a half hour, just long enough for everything to solidify again.  The drops should slide right out.  Pop them in a jar and keep in the fridge for a long time.

When you’re ready to make the tea, start by steeping your favorite tea as you normally would.  Add one soothing tea drop to your tea. Sometimes I add another drop of Thieves, just to enhance the flavor and immunity support.

Mix it all up.  My favorite way to mix is with a few pulses with my immersion blender.  It really gets it all blended together, and even makes it a little bit frothy.

For this giveaway, I’m going to give away this Mug Rug (or one like it).  I’ve been working on a quilt for a while, and have lots of scraps left over.  I’ve started making these fun, scrappy coasters and I’m planning on adding them to my Etsy shop later this month – along with some other oily accessories!

Head over to my Instagram account for a giveaway of a handmade, quilted mug rug!  This is part six of my 36 Things for 36 Years project.  I’m giving away 36 things this year, and this week will be a whole week of oily giveaways! Details on how to enter here!

Also, make sure you enter my other Essential Oil Giveaways this week!  Essential Oil Sugar Scrub can be found here! Bath Bombs can be found here!  Green Smoothie with a bottle of Citrus Fresh can be found here!

 

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Posted in: 36 Things For 36 Years, ate., CaroMade, created., giveaway, new recipe, sewing | Tagged: 36 Things for 36 Years, essential oils, giveaway, mug rug, recipe, tea

My Tula 62

Posted by Carolyn on February 26, 2016 2 Comments

I’m basically a self-taught sewist.  My first few quilts were just thrown together squares and strips and triangles.  I have used tutorials and videos and my own intuition.  I took a class to make Harriet’s “Hoo-Hoo Coat” (it has owls and is still her favorite), and really learned a lot.  Having actual instruction was really helpful and beneficial to my sewing.

When I made Alma’s big twin quilt, I bought a pattern, and mostly followed it.  I had to change it a bit to make the colors flow the way I wanted.

I’ve been working on a new quilt, a Tula 100 block sampler.  Actually, I worked on it a lot a while ago, and it’s been sitting around all winter.  I bought Tula Pink’s City Sampler book after seeing some amazing blocks on Instagram.

I love the blocks I’ve made, and I’ve also learned a lot more about the art of quiltmaking.  I’ve learned better ways to make triangles.  I’ve learned more about piecing and fussy cutting.

I’ve learned that triangles look cool, but are a pain in the butt.

I love these squares because they are so little.  The finished size will be 6×6, so all the little pieces are tiny.  I’ve been able to use many of the fabrics I’ve had leftover from other projects, and haven’t had to buy much.  I’ve bought a few fat quarters of plain colored fabrics because I’ve realized that my tastes tend to be a bit busy and having some solids help balance that little bit.

I love going through the blocks I’ve made.  I’ve made 62 so far, so I’ve over halfway there.  Working on my Tula 100 quilt is on my Winter To Do List, and I’m really excited to get back into it.

I’m not sure what the finished product will be, but I’m leaning towards using it on our bed.  It will be bright and cheerful, and I love that sort of thing.

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Posted in: created., decorating, sewing | Tagged: create, creating, quilt, quilting, sewing, tula 100

Matchy Matchy Heart Dresses

Posted by Carolyn on February 12, 2016 Leave a Comment

I still have so much fabric left over from the weekly photos I took of the girls during their first year.  Alma and Harriet are outgrowing the dresses I made them last Winter.  Valentine’s Day is coming up.  So… I made some new dresses for the girls.

I have to admit that I never thought I would be the kind of mom who would dress her daughters in matching dresses.  Turns out I am that kind of mom.  I am totally that kind of mom.  I’ve done it more than I expected, and I love it every single time.  So be it.  Can you blame me?

I mean, seriously.  They are just the two cutest sisters that ever were.  Especially when they make the same absurd random expression.  Don’t even ask, I have no idea.

Gotta love ’em!

This pattern is my take on Shwin and Shwin’s amazing dress pattern.

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Posted in: CaroMade, created., sewing, sewing, sewing for my daughters | Tagged: creating, hearts, love, sewing, sewing for my daughters, valentines day

I Love You

Posted by Carolyn on February 4, 2016 1 Comment

I do love you, all of you, but this post is more to show you something new I made.

It’s a banner that says “I <3 You!”  Just in time for Valentine’s Day.

If you want to order one of these, they are available in my shop – CaroMadeCo.

Yo, go check it out!

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Posted in: CaroMade, created., decorating, holidays, sewing | Tagged: CaroMade, caromadeco, decorating, decoration, holiday, valentines day

MERRY CHRISTMAS Banner Now on Etsy – Plus Giveaway Winners Announced!

Posted by Carolyn on November 23, 2015 2 Comments
MERRY CHRISTMAS Banner Now on Etsy - Plus Giveaway Winners Announced!

andthenthey merry 3First off, I want to share my new listing on Caro Made Company!  It’s another felt banner – this time Christmas themed.  The example I have says ‘MERRY,’ but you can totally customize it.

andthenthey merry 2Wouldn’t this be a great way to display Christmas cards or other special mementos?  I love how it looks over the fireplace with the stockings.  Go check out the listing at Caro Made!

andthenthey merry 1Now, on to the winners from last week’s giveaways!  Thank you to all who answered my questions and took the time to enter the giveaways!  It was fun to spend a whole week sharing these fun items and working with Megan and Katrina.

The quilted table runner goes to – hmv
The gift bag goes to – Jacque Goss
The wood burned ornament goes to – Lauren Sharpton
The Christmas countdown chalkboard goes to – Nicole Trautman
The Goodness Gnomes go to – Becky

I will send each of you an email, but if you don’t hear from me, please contact me!

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Posted in: CaroMade, created., decorating, gave thanks., giveaway, holidays, sewing | Tagged: Christmas, create, decor, felt banner, gratitude, holidays

Drawstring Gift Bag – GIVEAWAY and TUTORIAL

Posted by Carolyn on November 17, 2015 6 Comments
Drawstring Gift Bag - GIVEAWAY and TUTORIAL

andthenthey gift bag tutorial 01I love wrapping gifts, but I’m so, so bad at it.  The ends are always crumpled and there’s way more tape than there should be.  I also hate all the trash that we throw away on Christmas morning.  But, I love how reusable gift wrapping is getting more popular!

I thought I’d make a few gift bags for our family, and show you my process.

But first, a story.  I have no idea if my parents know this, but my brother and I were expert gift-peekers.  We would shake our presents, lift up the paper, do whatever we could to figure them out.  There was one year that I remember, in particular.  We would take a knife to slice the tape, carefully unwrap the gift, wrap it back up, then put a new piece of tape exactly over the sliced tape.  I think we knew everything we were getting before Christmas was here.  That was the year we got new ski pants.  I know, it’s odd.  Why did we want to ruin the surprise?  Now, I would never do that.  Why am I telling you this story?  Well, because if you have someone like me in your house, these gift bags won’t do much good.  You must make these bags with a healthy dose of trust, because they are easy to open, peek in, or completely unwrap.  That’s the disclaimer for this tutorial.

Well… let’s get started, shall we?

For these gift bags, you don’t need a specific cut of fabric.  You can really use any dimension, but in this tutorial I used a fat quarter.  I like the size bag a fat quarter makes.andthenthey gift bag tutorial 02 Start by ironing down about a half inch on the top of the bag.  You should note, at this point, that I don’t use actual measurements to make this bag.  It’s all estimated and eyeballed.  This is partly because the amount of material you use will determine how you construct your gift bag.  Also, it doesn’t have to be perfect since it will be all scrunched up in the end.  andthenthey gift bag tutorial 03 Fold down again, this time a few inches.  You can see this in the below photo.  If you look to the left of my hand, you’ll see the first fold, then how I folded again on top.  Does that make sense?  I hope so.

Also, in the below photo, you can see two blue marks on the right side of the fabric.  These are the guidelines for where I’ll put the buttonhole.  The reason I’m doing buttonholes is because it finishes the edges of the holes where we’ll put the ribbon.  It adds to the finished look.andthenthey gift bag tutorial 04 Unfold the fabric, and put your buttonholes in.  (My sewing machine manual had instructions on making a buttonhole, and I’m not sure if the directions would be similar for different machines, so if you don’t know how to make a buttonhole, you should search for your specific machine.)  You want to make sure you just put the holes in the top layer of fabric, so be very sure that you unfold your fabric before you start sewing the holes.andthenthey gift bag tutorial 05Refold your fabric and sew along the bottom edge, all along the top.  Now, you’re going to finish the channel for the ribbon.  Start above the buttonhole, and sew all the way across the top to make the channel.  For me, I had a narrow ribbon, so I sewed my second line a couple inches above the bottom line.   andthenthey gift bag tutorial 06For these gift bags, I love making it as finished looking as possible, so I like to do a French seam on the inside.  French seams are really fun, and I actually use them a lot when I make clothes, too.

Here’s how to do it.  Fold your bag in half, wrong sides together.  (the photo below is crooked, with the top of the bag on the left side of the photo.)  You can see below how I sewed around the bottom and the side opposite the fold.  I did about a 1/4 inch seam, but trimmed it to about 1/8 inch.andthenthey gift bag tutorial 07 Here you can see the trimmed seams.  I also trimmed the corners, so when it’s turned inside out in the next step they weren’t too bulky.andthenthey gift bag tutorial 08Turn your bag inside out, and sew around the seams you just sewed, again with a 1/4 inch seam.  You’ll want to make sure the first seam is nestled inside this seam.   andthenthey gift bag tutorial 09 Look how pretty and professional!  No frayed edges!  No sloppy lines!  I love it!andthenthey gift bag tutorial 10 Now, all you have to do is string your ribbon.  Cut your ribbon so it’s about 4 times as long as your bag is wide.  I’ve ready about fancy ribbon threading tools, but I’ve always done just fine with the safety pin method.  Attach a safety pin to one end, stick it in one of the holes, and work your way around until the pin comes out the other hole, pulling the ribbon with it.andthenthey gift bag tutorial 11Magic! andthenthey gift bag tutorial 12Now all you have to do is make a bunch of these!  They are quick and easy, so get sewing and you’ll have a stash in no time!  They are so fun and cheerful!  Make them for hostess gifts (stick a bottle of wine in one as a bonus), birthday presents, or any other occasion.

andthenthey gift bag tutorial 13Want to win this bag?  Here’s how:

Giveaway time!  I’m giving away this festive gift bag.  Five ways to enter to win this fun, handmade (read: not perfect) Christmas decoration.  You’ll be getting to know the other two sponsors, Megan and Katrina, this week, so you can start following them today!

To enter to win the Gift Bag, do the following:

  1. Answer this question in the comment section of my blog: Were you on the naughty list or the nice list when you were a kid?  Did you ever peek at your presents?  Do you think my parents knew I was such a stealthy sneak?
  2. Follow me on Instagram (carolynfwilliams), then comment on this blog post telling me you’re following me on Instagram.
  3. Comment again telling me you’re following Megan’s shop on Instagram (alwayscreateco).
  4. Comment again telling me you’re following Katrina on Instagram (katrinalhenry).
  5. Subscribe to Megan’s channel on YouTube.

*** ENTER by SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22nd 9pm Pacific Time – All five winners (one for each day this week) will be announced on Andthenthey.com on Monday, the 23rd ***

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Posted in: CaroMade, created., decorating, DIY, holidays, sewing, sewing | Tagged: Christmas, create, creating, DIY, DIY gifts, gift bag, giveaway, holidays, sewing, tutorial

Quilted Christmas Table Runner – GIVEAWAY

Posted by Carolyn on November 16, 2015 16 Comments
Quilted Christmas Table Runner - GIVEAWAY

As part of the 5 Days of Christmas Giveaways, I knew I wanted to make a table runner.  I love quilting and sewing and Christmas and tables, so it was an obvious choice.andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 01This project is perfect for someone who’s new to sewing.  If you’ve been wanting to make a quilt, this is a great place to start.  It has all the elements of quilt-making, but on a much smaller scale.  That means that you can learn the methods without the overwhelming amount of fabric or work.  It’s also very forgiving – the way I did the crooked strips mean that you don’t have to worry about having things line up, or even about sewing a straight line.

Materials needed:

  • 4 fat quarters
  • 1/2 yard fabric for binding
  • 1/2 yard fabric for backing
  • Batting – I bought a crib size and cut it to fit the runners
  • Thread
  • Rotary cutter – scissors would work, but the rotary makes it much easier
  • Ironandthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 13Disclaimer:  This is my first sewing tutorial, so I’m sorry if something’s unclear.  Please let me know if you have questions, or if something needs to be clarified! andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 02 I started with four fat quarters and cut them into strips.  I didn’t measure anything because I was going for the uneven, crooked stripey look.  I did some wide strips, and some narrow strips, but most were in between.  I probably should have ironed my material, but this wasn’t about perfection, so I didn’t.andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 03Above, you can see the first two strips ready to be sewn.  If you were doing a quilt where you wanted straight lines, and lined up angles, you would just put the two pieces together (right sides facing), and sew along one edge.  To get the crooked look, I just placed my strips together (right sides facing), but didn’t line up the edges. andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 04When you sew the strips together, follow one edge.  I like to use a 1/4 inch seam, so I just line the edge of the fabric up with the edge of the sewing machine foot, and that’s a little over 1/4 inch. andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 05 After you sew a new strip on, go ahead and trim off the extra seam allowances, making both pieces of fabric have about a 1/4 inch seam.  You can see in the photo above how the red fabric won’t be trimmed much, but the green fabric will have quite a bit trimmed off, especially near the top.  andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 06 Above, you can see one of the strips that I made really crooked.  Can you see how that top fabric is placed at quite an angle from the one I sewed it to?  That meant that I trimmed of quite a bit of the bottom fabric, but it created a really crooked line.  Just keep adding strips until you run out, and it should be fairly large.

I don’t have a photo of this, but after I sewed all the strips together, I ironed the quilt top.  I pressed all the seam allowances in one direction and got rid of all the creases.  I also cut the whole thing in half, to make two long, narrow table runners.  I think this would look great if you kept it wide, too!  Totally your choice!

andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 07 Now, on to the quilting!  I cut out some fabric for the backing.  It wasn’t long enough, so I had to sew two pieces together.  Lay your backing fabric (design side down) on a large work area.  For big quilts, I do this on the floor, but for this project, my dining room table worked just fine.  Smooth it out and place your quilt batting on top.  Then, put your quilt top on top, sandwiching the batting between the backing and top.  Smooth it all out, check to make sure it’s all lined up, and stick some pins in it.  Next, roll it up from both sides, to the middle.  It’s helpful to clamp these rolls, just to keep everything snug in place.  I found that it wasn’t as necessary for this project, since it’s so small, but you might still find it helpful.andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 08The purpose of quilting is to hold the three layers all together.  I have yet to get too fancy with my quilting.  I usually just do straight or wavy lines, and I like how that turns out.  For this quilt, I didn’t really want to see the lines, so I used a technique called stitch in the ditch.  Basically, this means that you will sew right over the seams.  The quilting lines are almost hidden in the seams.  I used red thread, so it stands out more than if I had really been trying to match, and hide the quilting lines. andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 09Keep quilting until it’s all sewn together!  To bind it, use this tutorial. I started writing a tutorial for binding, but realized that this one is way, way better.  It’s what I used to learn, and I look back at it every time I make a quilt.  The only thing I do differently is how I finish it.  I usually attach it first to the back of the quilt, then use my machine on the front with it folded over.  This means that the front of the binding has a line of sewing on it, but I like that look – especially on this quilt with the red stitching on the white binding.  It’s also much more secure, and since most of my quilts have been for kids and babies, that’s important.  My quilts get washed a lot and need to hold up.  andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 11 Please let me know if you have any questions!  I’m happy to help!  Let me know if you end up making one of these – I’d love to see it!andthenthey Quilted Christmas Table Runner 10Giveaway time!  I’m giving away one of the table runners I’ve made here (the backing fabric is different than the one pictured, so that will be a fun surprise!).  Five ways to enter to win this fun, handmade (read: not perfect) Christmas decoration.  You’ll be getting to know the other two sponsors, Megan and Katrina, this week, so you can start following them today!

To enter to win the Table Runner, do the following:

  1. Answer this question in the comment section of my blog: What is your favorite Christmas decoration?  Does it have a story?  Is it an heirloom or something you bought more recently?
  2. Follow me on Instagram (carolynfwilliams), then comment on this blog post telling me you’re following me on Instagram.
  3. Comment again telling me you’re following Megan’s shop on Instagram (alwayscreateco).
  4. Comment again telling me you’re following Katrina on Instagram (katrinalhenry).
  5. Subscribe to Megan’s channel on YouTube.

*** ENTER by SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22nd 9pm Pacific Time – All five winners (one for each day this week) will be announced on Andthenthey.com on Monday, the 23rd ***

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Posted in: CaroMade, created., decorating, DIY, giveaway, holidays, sewing, sewing | Tagged: Christmas, create, creating, DIY, giveaway, holidays, sewing
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