Mini Puddle Jumping

I would safely say that winter has officially arrived!  A good time to be indoors and quilting. 🙂

One of my many goals this year was to make sure I made time for my own stitching, whether it be piecing, hand wool work or quilting my own projects.  AND surprisingly I have done pretty well with that, even if they have been small projects.  Instant gratification! 🙂  One of my most recent little finishes is Puddle Jumping Mini by Camille Roskelley for Thimble Blossoms available here.  Camille has done the most genius thing EVER by taking her patterns and making adorable mini versions of the originals.  Like I said, “genius.”  There is something about a mini quilt that makes them irresistible.

 Did I mention how adorable this is??  Seriously.  Ridiculous.  It finishes at 12″ square!

I made my version in gorgeous chocolate and pink reproductions.  I used one of the Primitive Muslins by Moda from Primitive Gatherings for the background.  I know I have mentioned before how much I love those muslins!

Teeny tiny blocks compared to an iPhone.

I enjoyed every second of making this little quilt.

Layout and deciding on binding.  Yes, those are actually two slightly different shades of brown and pink. 🙂  Polka dots make everything happier.

Simple quilting.

I am trying to get more used to using our good camera, so I was playing with it a bit.  Seeing how close I could zoom in. 🙂  One of the reasons the quilting is so simple is because I quilted it on my Juki sewing machine.  The Juki is new to me this year.  I purchased it last year when Primitive Gatherings offered it on sale after Christmas available here.  Fortunately, I had been saving some gift cards for a while, so it ended up being a fabulous deal!

It arrived in January, but I do not think I took it out of the box until the spring.  I was a bit busy with flannel quilts at the time. 🙂  I have a wonderful set-up in another room where I can piece and iron… a sewing studio.

A little messy in this photo, which is old, but you get the idea.  I have a Janome 6600, which I LOVE! BUT I really wanted something in my quilt studio.  That way I could jump on my machine and piece whenever I got a chance, even for 5 min or to take a quick break from custom quilting.

Viola!!  Now, I can piece or quilt so easily from where I am working.  I will admit, the Juki took some adjusting to from my Janome.  Honestly, I love the Juki now!!  It is fast!!!!  Super smooth.  A real workhorse!  I am thrilled to have it every day!  I still go and sew in my other room on days when I am not working. 🙂

Oh and one last item of info…we have a new member in the family!

 Meet Louie!  He is the sweetest kitten EVER!!!!!  Doesn’t seem to mind the girls dressing him in Build-A-Bear Workshop outfits either. lol.  Louie, short for Lieutenant is the kitten of a stray I found last May outside the post office in our little town when I was dropping off a flannel quilt.  I really wanted to keep her, but it was not a good time to take in a stray.  She didn’t seem to care for Sarge at all, so my best friend Patti took her in at her farm.  Last summer she had a litter of kittens.  The girls have been begging for a kitty for what seems like forever, especially since Scooter has gone home to Kristin’s.  We decided to surprise the girls and brought Louie home shortly after I returned home from Houston.

Sarge is a saint!  Naturally, Louie thinks Sarge’s bed is his bed.  Louie seems to love Sarge and Sarge…well love probably isn’t the best word to describe how I think he feels towards Louie. 🙂    He puts up with Louie’s kitten antics of biting his tail or playfully swatting him.  Sarge lets him know when he has had enough, though.  🙂