Thursday, October 12, 2017

Fussy Cutter Hexie Pincushions

I love seeing friends come out with awesome books, especially if it involves fussy cutting. I've always been a fan of cutting particular pieces of fabric with little cats or dogs or bunnies on them to highlight special images in my projects. Angie Wilson from Gnome Angel created an entire book "Fussy Cutters Club - A Bootcamp for Mastering Fabric Play" all for the love of fussy cutting.


There are 14 projects and I decided to make the "Hexy Pin-Up Pincushions". The largest pink one below is the actual size that is in Angie's book. Isn't it so cute?

Since I don't have any pincushions, I decided to play with my printer settings to make one at 75% and one at 50% too. Here's my whole stack, some still need a few more hexies to be attached to some of the other itty bitty cushions.

They were all so fun to make and I love Regina's little bunnies and cats and love how they look on the pincushions. Now I just have to be sure I don't poke them with pins.

If you haven't tried fussy cutting yet, and are not sure where to start, Angie's book is a great place to jump off from. She provides all the tools and tricks of the trade in one well packaged bundle. Even a Fussy Cutters Manifesto!

Want to see what everyone else on Angie's book tour is making? Check them out below:
Want to win a copy of Angie's Fussy Cutters Club book? Check out this photo on my Kid Giddy Instagram account and enter for your chance to win. Please be sure to sign up for my emails to get info about new foundations paper piecing patterns, new Sizzix dies, future sales or coupons and other fun stuff.


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Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Kid Giddy Sizzix Fall Fashion Maker Challenge

Hey everyone - Sizzix and I are so excited to announce the Kid Giddy Sizzix Fall Fashion Maker Challenge! Back in May I released 3 new Sizzix dies specifically for those really cute and fun 18" dolls! I've made a few outfits using the two Sizzix Kid Giddy 18" Apparel Dies and now we want to see what you can come up with! Maybe an outfit identical to a child's first day "back to school" outfit, something inspired by a couture fashion show, project runway or even a halloween costume? The skies the limit and I want to see how far you'll go! Here are the two dies included in the challenge!

The 18" Doll Apparel Tops:The pattern pieces included on the 18" Doll Apparel Tops die are so versatile you'll be surprised at how many different things you can sew with them. The project sheet includes instructions on how to make a Jacket, Reversible Tank Dress and a T-shirt. However - I'm going to show you this week some other really fun things you can make with these same pattern pieces, all very different and all very fun.


The 18" Doll Apparel Bottoms:
The pattern pieces for the 18" Doll Apparel Bottoms may only have 3 pieces (the pants panel and two different pockets) to make pants, shorts and capris, but again, I'm going to show you so many other things you can make using this same die with small tweaks.

Did you see my sneak peek I shared on social media last week? Remember this "giddy"patch I free motion quilted for fun?



You can find my Kid Giddy dies on Sizzix.com and these two new dies along with the new mini backpack die also in my Etsy shop. I have a limited number of dies here in my studio and am offering an awesome Doll Apparel/Backpack Bundle deal with a free gift (fyi: backpack is not  a part of the maker challenge) and free shipping in the U.S.! Don't miss out on this really great deal - I only have a limited number - so don't hesitate to grab it now while you can!

I truly am excited about these dies and can't wait to see all the different Fall Fashions you guys come up with these Kid Giddy Sizzix 18" Apparel Dies. Please be sure to tag me on social media (Kid Giddy: on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!) and join me here this week for tons of fun. For more information and all the details about the Kid Giddy Sizzix Maker Challenge - please visit the Sizzix blog.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Please be sure to sign up for my emails to get info about new patterns, new dies, future sales and other fun stuff.


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Disclaimer: I am a Licensed Designer for Sizzix - opinions are my own and there are no affiliate links

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Unconventional Mini French Bull Dog Quilt and a Pug

Hi everyone - I'm excited Christopher from The Tattooed Quilter asked me to be included in his Unconventional Mini Quilt hop to celebrate his Blue Carolina fabric with Riley Blake. I designed this French Bull Dog block using the Electric Quilt EQ7 program based on his sweet Edie puppy when his fabric was releasing for market.


Although I love a great block with lots of white behind it - I loved this challenge because it makes you think outside of the box and makes you work really hard on that binding! This puppy was no exception. Who says a puppy block can't be turned into it's own mini without all the extras? I'd even say you could use it as a mug rug - but who would want to smother that face with anything other than kisses?! Then of course there's the option to make it super sized and make it a sweet area rug, or huge wall hanging. So many options!

Even though there's no details, I love the back too where you can focus on the general shape of the French Bull Dog.




Here is the original 10" x 10" block. She'd make a cute all over quilt, but also an unconventional but wickedly cute mini!

Because I had so much fun with the French Bull Dog Block, I decided to design an entire dog series with it. Next up...the Pug. I mean seriously - little Prince and Princesses? Bow ties and crowns?
Thanks so much for stopping by and thank you especially to Christopher for including me in this blog hop. It's always fun to play with new fabrics and be crazy inspired by them as I have been with your prints!. If you haven't seen the Blue Carolina fabrics Christopher designed with Riley Blake Fabrics you have got to go take a look at all of them and stock up while you can. They are all gorgeous! After you make some French Bull Dog and Pug Dog blocks of your own - I'd love to see them. Please be sure to add #kidgiddy and #dogblockseries to your post.





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Disclaimer: Although I received this fabric for free, opinions are always my own. There are no affiliate links. 


Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Daylight Company Brand Ambassador

I've been up to a little something and I couldn't be more excited about it. Quilt market is always fun, but it's even more fun when you can connect with a group of folks with an awesome product like Daylight Company and instantly hit it off.


Remember that pic I just shared recently of my Sizzix Applique Doll block up on my studio window so you can see the seams better and make sure they are all tucked in? Here it is below...

Well, mama's got a brand new toy and no longer has need for taping anything to any window.

If you haven't heard of the Wafer Lightbox yet - you have to check it out. This Wafer light box is so thin and portable and amazing! My mom used to make her own (huge) light boxes (because she was an art teacher but also worked at the Color Place and did layouts and such, and taught kids how to make their own). But I have never had time for that, nor have I ever had the tools to make one or space to keep it.

I walked into their booth at market and started asking loads of questions because I wanted to leave market with one in my hands. Then some friends came up and it was an instant party. Nicole from Modern Handcraft was there because she is one of their Brand Ambassadors and the more we talked the more I knew I wanted to work with this company. I'm excited to say I am now one of the Daylight Company Brand Ambassadors too and I just had to make them a little block of their Daylight Bulb Logo to say thank you. I wanted to capture the general color in the fabric, but also the glow of light in the logo. The bright spot was improv so they can show customers at shows some of it was paper pieces and some was sewn prior to starting the block.

I did a little Instagram story showing how it can be really bright or just a little bright which is great because during the day there is so much light in my studio it's hard too see unless the tablet is really bright. But at night - I won't need it at 100%. I'll try to see if I can upload that here.

I hope you'll have to check out all of the other lamps and lights they also have on the Daylight Company website - I'm eyeing one of their floor lamps now that my eyes are having trouble seeing tiny needles and hexies in the dark. Please be sure to sign up for my emails to get info about new patterns, new Sizzix dies, future sales or coupons and other fun stuff.




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Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Neptune and Mermaid Tote Bag

Nancy over at Free Spirit graciously asked me to make something with their newest fabric designer's line "Neptune and Mermaid" by Toyko Milk. There's so much I'd love to make with it (because it's just that versatile), but I started off with this fun in the sun, Beach Tote bag. My daughter's love it so much, they each want one, which shouldn't be a problem since there are so many possibilities with all the beautiful prints.
This tote bag has 4 large pockets, one on each side and one in the front as well as the back. I used some Soft and Stable from ByAnnie to keep it from flopping over in the sand (because no one wants sand in their bag). I also decided this fushia glitter vinyl I purchased from SewSweetness was the perfect match for the flowers in this "Lost Atlantis - Aqua" print and perfect for keeping the water out of the bottom of my bag. Salt water and sunshine are the two worst things for vibrant fabrics - so I'll be sure to keep it dry and behind my beach chair during future outings.

I kept the FMquilting simple by following the organic movement of the fish, flowers, and mermaids to accentuate them a little more. I accidentally sewed the straps onto the bag across from each other, and had to quickly correct that, so when you are making a bag of any kind...don't pull a Kerry on your straps! lol. And PSA: don't use a thin needle like I did with your vinyl! Sara told me I should have used a denim or leather weight needle and would likely not have broken two needles...if they were thicker.
I'm currently debating which prints to use for the next tote bag but think I'm sticking with these. I love the bathing suits in the Song of the Siren/ What Would Poseidon Say? prints and love the aqua with the lime green colorings. Of course I also still love those pops of pink flowers too.

I'm so excited summer is coming right around the corner and excited to bring my new beach tote with me for a day of relaxing! Thank you to Free Spirit for allowing me to work with these gorgeous fabrics and to ByAnnie for providing me with Soft and Stable whenever I need it!

I appreciate you for stopping by and reading up on all my goings on. Please be sure to sign up for my emails to get info about new patterns, new Sizzix dies, future sales or coupons and other fun stuff.



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Monday, May 15, 2017

Kid Giddy Sizzix Doll Appliqué Sew Along - Block 1

Hi everyone,
Sometimes the best laid plans are still not enough to give me more time on the clock. Last year I finally got around to finishing my Ballerina Doll Quilt, but wanted to have even more fun and make 9 applique doll blocks to put into one huge quilt. I thought there might be some other sewists out there that would join me in sewing together. You can make your blocks into a quilt as I am planning on doing, or you can make 9 different blocks and use them individually. As individual blocks, they could be great as tools in a Homeschool or Montessori style class room. They can be fully sewn or made to be a "get the doll dressed" style block that helps to teach specific skills.

This is the first Kid Giddy Doll Applique block using my Kid Giddy Sizzix Doll die for a fun 9 block quilt along I'm hosting throughout the rest of the year. This first block represents April Showers. You can make each of your blocks similar to mine, or you can create your very own blocks. Later on, some of my blocks may use a combo of the Sizzix Kid Giddy Doll die (for the head and body) and the Sizzix Kid Giddy Fox die (for the arms and legs) as I did for the first Ballerina Doll block above.

Before we get started, here are some basic tidbits of info you may find helpful:
In order to use the die, you'll need a Sizzix Big Shot Machine (if you can get the Big Shot Plus - you can use all of my dies on it) and the BigZ XL 25" cutting pads. You can use the smaller cutting pads for some parts, but not for the legs as they are longer than the shortest pads.

What you'll need for each block:
1) 1 Fat Eighth of skin tone fabric of choice. Depending on how you choose to sew your doll applique blocks, you may need less. (1 Fat Qtr will be enough for 2 doll blocks, or 1 stuffed doll).
2) Background Fabric (I used white) - 13" x 18" (or larger if desired). 
3) Other materials will depend on the doll you wish to make (additional quilters cotton prints and wool felt for hair if desired).
4) Glue, Fine glue tip and Iron are helpful for glue basting your pieces in place.
5) Bright thread for stitch basting and matching thread for needle turn applique or raw edge applique.
6) Create A Pattern paper for designing any extra pieces (as I did for the jacket, hood and raindrops).

I have decided that I am going to needle turn all of my blocks. I just love the look of needle turn applique, but understand some others may prefer to raw edge applique. For those that also wish to needle turn applique, but haven't done so yet, I learned some great techniques from Carolyn Friedlander's CreativeBug class (not an affiliate link). If you are going to raw edge applique your blocks, you should use an iron on fusible stabilizer prior to cutting out your pieces on the die. Some steps may vary for raw edge appliquers but may not all be noted.

To Start sewing your block:
Step 1: Sew the doll and head pieces together, placing right sides together and using a 1/4" seam allowance. (You may notice in the later pics, I also sewed the boots to the bottom of the legs and the raincoat sleeves to the hands. I cut off the excess skin colored fabric underneath)
Step 2: Place your doll pieces down on your block background as desired (mine are centered but your design may not work best if centered). Lightly glue baste each piece to be sure correct placement at first (as this can be moved around if necessary). Using your brighter thread, stitch the pieces in place 1/2" away from the seam allowance. Clip and notch your curves (within the 1/4" seam allowance - not at, and not more than) to reduce the bulk around the edges (see pic below).

Step 3: While I am needle turning, I love using the two products: the Dritz squishy Thimble grips, and the Thread Cutterz ring. I have bought many and have them all scattered throughout my house and may mom and sister's houses too. lol.
Turn under your edges and stitch in place.

Step 4: When sewing the arms in place, make sure they are going to still be under the body portion when the body is turned 1/4" under too. Note that the little thumbs are pretty awkward, but the stitch basting here really helps.

Step 5: If you hold your block up to a light source, you can see one of my corners just barely makes it under the body edge (on the right hand side). I'll be sure to tuck it in the better on the next block. You may also see here that I have tucked the legs further up than normal. I wanted this one and all of mine to look younger and therefore shorter. Again, you can make your blocks as you would like, just be sure your blocks are all the same size in the end if you want uniformity, and that your blocks are large enough to accommodate your design.

Step 6: Continue adding and sewing all of your detail pieces as you'd like, as I'm doing with the hood, jacket panels and raindrops to complete your block, staying within the 1/4" - 1/2" seam allowance. I've decided to leave the jacket pieces unsewn on the inside and bottom edges. This will allow her jacket to move around. If you decided to add this type of feature, double roll the edges, glue baste and top stitch to secure the hems.

Step 7: Add a face as desired. This can be drawn with fabric markers, sewn with an embroidery machine (test on an extra face piece first), or hand embroidered (as I did for the first time ever below). I haven't decided how I am going to do their faces - I think I need some embroidery lessons or something - so the faces may come later. This one is from my Ballerina. Unplanned and noticeably so.  But I loved her little heart lips and those eye lashes!


Step 8: Once you have all of your pieces sewn, you can cut off the excess background from the back if you prefer, following the basting thread stitches. Be sure not to cut the front pieces and do not cut too close to the sewn edges (not shown). Remove the basting stitches.

Because this tutorial and sew along was supposed to start in April, I'm already a month behind my own schedule. I will be posting two blocks in June, unless I get May's block done sooner. As you can see, this is a pretty casual sew along. If you have any questions about this tutorial, please leave me a comment below so I can answer it for all to see and benefit from as well. I would really love to see your doll blocks. Please be sure to tag #kidgiddy on IG. I will be opening my KidGiddy Group up again on FB for sharing as well after I return from Quilt Market.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Please be sure to sign up for my emails to get info about new patterns, new dies, future sales and other fun stuff.




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Friday, April 28, 2017

Dandy Drive QAL Week 4

Hey everyone - it's week 4 of Quilter Pat Sloan and Sarah J Maxwell's Dandy Drive. This week is all about the butterflies. Week 1 was the 9 patch blocks, week 2 was putting together the outer flower pieces (as shown below) and last week the stem blocks.
These buttterflies (above) don't have their outer background pieces on them but will eventually when. I have more white fabric. 
Who knew I would go through a bolt of white so quickly. I had some for these two below and love how they are starting to look with all the flowers and my one stem block (again waiting for more white). 

If you are new to this quilt along - Pat and Sarah have some fun things planned with prizes each week and the pattern is...FREE! You can download the PDF files each week over on Sarah's website Designs By Sarah J. I'm making my quilt with some of my hoarded Heather Bailey's Up Parasol fabric collection as well as some prints from her True Colors and Lottie Da collections. To get started you can check out the yardage info here (Sarah's Dandy Drive Yardage Requirements).

Pat and Sarah put together a really fun group of friends for this sew along too. Need some inspiration? Check out everyone else's blocks by clicking the links below to see all the possibilities. I'll be sharing more of my blocks on my Kid Giddy IG and Facebook too throughout the week.

Pat Sloan: Facebook/Instagram/Sew Along Website/Facebook Group
Sarah: Facebook/Instagram /HomesteadHearth 
Kim Niedzwiecki: Facebook/Instagram
Jane Davidson: Facebook/Instagram
Jacquelynne Steves: Facebook/Instagram/Facebook Group
Heather Valentine: Facebook/Instagram/Facebook Group
http://blog.patsloan.com/2017/04/free-sew-along-dandy-drive-block-4.htmlSo the prize this week. . . they want to give one lucky participant a Dandy Days FQ bundle. Head over to Pat's website (click the image above) and simply enter a pic of your block via the blue button link on her post.

Thanks so much for stopping by. I'm looking forward to seeing all of your butterfly blocks.




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