Busy at the Bee

I collected my last Bella Russo gift yesterday, a very nice shoulder bag!

I think I'll probably use this shoulder bag more than the cross-body bag we got the first week, simply because it's not as flat.  My wallet is kinda thick because it has a check book in it, so I need a roomy bag.

So here's my entire set!  It includes a cross-body bag, a reversible bag, a shoulder bag and a lunch tote.

The gifts were free, I just had to go once a week to collect o-n-e at a time.  So, driving to the casino an average of 45 minutes each way, four times - you could say I traveled 3 hours to collect this 4-piece gift set.

Whatever ...

On another note, at this month's bee we were making heart pillows to be donated to Howard University Hospital for mastectomy patients.  I posted about this project in an earlier post, you can read more details here.

There were a ton of pillows to be finished off ... stuffing and more stuffing.

One person added a strap to hers - a great idea that I wish I'd thought of!

Sewing the opening closed, then stuffing a few more!

We even added custom made labels to each pillow, got to have that finishing touch!

I don't know how many we finished Saturday, but we turned them out by the basketful! 

Some of us will make even more at home to be donated later. 

I'm really glad we took on this community service project, it's a worthwhile cause and I know the pillows will be appreciated by the recipients.


That's it for now, have a great Tuesday.  Sew forth and sew on

Hearts and baskets

I went by Maryland Live! casino yesterday to get my third Bella Russo bag. 

This week's gift was a reversible tote bag; it's made of vinyl and is sturdy and quite roomy.  

I think I like it best with the flowered print turned to the outside, the other side looks a bit dull, in my opinion.

I can see myself using this tote a lot!

Last October my bee donated heart pillows to Sibley Hospital, to be used by women who have had a mastectomy.  The pillows are placed beneath the armpit for support after surgery, during the healing process.  You can read about it here.

They were very well received and the word spread, so now we're making some for Howard University Hospital too!  Each member of the bee is asked to make at least 5 of these pillows.

It's wonderful to be able to contribute to people in need, but at the same time it's so very sad that so many women need these pillows.  If everyone in the bee makes just five, that's 100 pillows, 100 women needing them...

Four more of the flower baskets have been made.

I had my doubts about the one at the bottom right; a more solid gold would have worked better with that red fabric.  Oh well, it's pieced and will go into the quilt!

Nine baskets finished - looking good!

Have a great Tuesday, sew forth and sew on

Tis the season

I finished piecing the top for the 6-inch blocks I was working on, this was a very easy top to piece.  I should put it in the category of a "get er done" quilt! 

For the border, I decided to use a piece of batik-y fabric I had, just to use it up.  I cut the strips to finish at 4 inches... I think this will give me a large enough quilt.  I'll piece something for the back, not sure what yet, whatever I find in my stash that compliments the front.

In my guild (and bee) we are asked to make heart blocks to be used when a member has lost a close family member, and we want to remind them that we're thinking of them. Anyway, the idea is to make up some to be kept on hand rather than when they're needed, so yesterday I decided to make a few after I finished putting the border on my quilt top, while I was thinking about it.

When you say "heart block" most people automatically think of a red heart on a white background, but actually the heart can be any color as long as the block measures 6-1/2".  In the top one at the left, I cut a heart from a piece of red scrap yardage I had on hand and appliqued it onto a white background.  In the second heart, I sewed together 3/4" black and white strips to make a mini 9-patch that I appliqued off-center onto a solid red fabric.  The b&w strips were cross cut at 1" to make the 9-patch. I did a little trimming to neaten it up :o)

I decided to use blue scrap yardage to design the block below:

I cut a slash in the background fabric, added a 1" strip from scrap yardage for a little accent, then cut the 6-1/2" background to which I appliqued the blue heart.  Easy peasy! 

Well, today is the first day of summer - at last, the season has caught up with the heat!  Get out and enjoy it, but take a bottle of water with you.

Sew forth and sew on