March Finale....a tad early

Like I hope many of you will be, I will be soaking up this very special holiday weekend with my family, so I wanted to wrap up this month's project just a tad early. 

I have enjoyed sewing all the kitchen goodies this month and can not wait to have them delivered to The Love Kitchen! As far as I know, they have no idea at all that we have been sewing for them, so I hope it is a surprise that delights and encourages them!

You can see all the lovely donations for this month in our group album here. 

THANK YOU to all that participated and supported this month's project!

I hope you were blessed as you looked for ways to "Serve those that Serve".

Now, I am already about to BUST at the seams to share April's project, so be sure and meet me back here Monday for all the details!!!!!!! OoooooooEeeeeeeeee.....it's gonna be good! :)

Easy - Panel Hot Pads Tutorial

When focused on productivity, I love the opportunity to simplify and get more done in the amount of time I have. This tutorial shares a perfect way to make some super cute Hot Pads using a fabric panel that will produce a PILE in a hurry! Gotta love that!

Start by carefully cutting your blocks from our panel.

Also cut a backing and 2 layers of insulated fleece for each hot pad, using your block as a guide.

You could alternatively use only 1 layer of the insulated fleece and 1 layer of batting.

 Layer your stack... panel, fleece, fleece, backing.  

Pin your layers. Stitch or quilt the layers together as desired. This is easiest when using a Walking Foot or Even Feed Foot to help prevent bunching and sliding of your layers. 

 Trim the edges of your now quilted pad evenly.

 Either using your own handmade or pre-made bias tape, pin the bias binding around the edge of your hot pad, leaving a little extra overlap where they two ends meet. 

Stitch your binding in place, turning the raw edge in at the end.   

If you have any extra small pieces of binding, you can use them to add a hanger to the backside of your Hot Pad.

There you have it! 

A quick and easy way to have a stack of adorable and unique handmade hot pads in no time!

There's plenty of time to participate in our March Project and I invite you to join in!
Feel great about giving back while doing something you love....while encouraging those that are serving others at the same time!

Oh!!! And if you could use supplies to help you with your sewing for this month's project, this is the last day to enter our giveaway for a bundle that includes one of the panels pictured, a package of insul-fleece and some extra fabrics for backing. Enter here! 

Mid-Month REMINDER + GIVEAWAY!

Whew! Not sure why specifically, a whole bunch of little things I suppose, but March has absolutely FLOWN BY! Can you believe it's time for our Mid-Month Reminder already????

How's your sewing going this month?

Are you sewing to Serve those that Serve along with me?

There's still plenty of time to participate, and you can get the details here. :)

And whether you are donating locally or sending to me, I would LOVE to see pictures of your donations in our March Project album here too.

 

Contemporary Cloth was looking for a special way to support our project this month and sent a box of Insul-Fleece to use for the Hot Pads & Oven Mitts. I've put a little bundle of fabrics together with it, including this panel fabric that will make quick and easy hot pads and wanted to share. 

If you'd like to sew along in support of our project this month, then here's your chance at supplies to do so!

US Entrants, follow the Rafflecopter prompts below to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Winner announced 3/19/13 and asked to respond to claim prize within 48 hours. I want to be able to get this bundle on it's way to you quickly to allow sewing time the final week of the month. :)

Thanks for your interest in being a part!
THANKS to Contemporary Cloth for your generous and consistent support of our projects!

Apron Panel Finish!

 I've finished a couple of the apron panels I previously shared about for our March Project. They've turned out so cute and were incredibly quick and easy to put together! 

 The panel provides the pocket, straps, applique cut-outs and a strip of the orange floral print for you to make your own applique shapes. I used this strip to make the ruffled flower pin instead and really like the little touch it provides.

The fabric, being from Kate Spain, is of course absolutely gorgeous!

The rich colors and prints are beautiful, and if you like selvages, this one is great!

There's still time to enter our giveaway to win a panel of your own, winner selected 3/15/13.

Enter Here.

 And, there is of course still plenty of time to sew along for our March Project, so join us as we sew to serve those that serve!

 

Butterfly Kisses Fabric GIVEAWAY!

Our friends over at Butterfly Kisses Fabric sent a special package this week! 

It was a bundle of the whimsical, "Life's A Hoot" Apron Panels from the beautiful Kate Spain collection, Serenade to support our March Project. I'll be sewing up several of these to donate this month, but I'm also offering one as a GIVEAWAY here today!

 This adorable panel includes everything you need to quickly & easily make a fabulous apron! Ties, pocket and even appliques. Here's the sample it shows of the completed apron...

To top it all off.....Butterfly Kisses Fabric has also marked down all the remaining panels in their shop to ONLY $5.99 each!!! Where can you get such a beautiful apron made from gorgeous Kate Spain fabrics for ONLY $5.99??? I know...what a deal while they last!!!

FIND THEM HERE!

If you'd like to be entered for your chance to WIN one of these great panels it's easy!

US entrants, Enter by simply following the Rafflecopter prompts below.

 Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you for your support Butterfly Kisses Fabric!

Find the Butterfly Kisses Fabric Shop here.

Find Butterfly Kisses on Facebook here.

March 2013 - Monthly Project Announcement

OH YEAH!!!

It's time to kick off another fabulous sewing project designed especially with the purpose of giving back to a group of the most giving people I know of!

This month we will be sewing for the people in our community that serve others regularly. More specifically, those that prepare and provide meals. This is one of those months that I'd like to encourage you to look within your own communities for an opportunity to give back. Is there a local church or community group that regularly provides meals for those in need? Does your community have a meal delivery service? A Food Pantry? Take a moment to consider who is feeding those in need around you. 

Perhaps your town/city has a Meals On Wheels program to help provide meals to Senior Citizens in their homes? Visit the Meals On Wheels Association of America here to see. 

Or maybe Mobile Meals is active in your community? Simply web search "Mobile Meals" + the name of your city to find out. 

We are going to be sewing to serve those that serve this month!

What are we sewing?

Aprons

Oven Mitts

Hot Pads

Any type of kitchen accessory that can be handmade!

Don't have anywhere local to donate? Then you can of course send your items to me. I would be happy to include yours in my box! I will be donating my items locally, to The Love Kitchen.

This incredible kitchen began in 1986. 

It was, and continues to be a labor of love of two beautiful sisters, Helen Ashe and Ellen Turner. You can read more about this warm and generous women here. They are actually famous now! :) 

Currently, this amazing outreach is serving more than 2,000 meals a week in our community. Their volunteer-run kitchen is overflowing with people giving their time, energy and resources to help those around them. I want to encourage them in their work! I want to remind them how very important what they are doing is! I want them to be dressed in beautiful aprons, wearing and using beautiful handmade accessories while they are busy cooking up their love-filled dishes! 

Will you join me???

I've created a Pinterest album full of all kinds of kitchen-y goodness! Links to free tutorials and patterns to help inspire and guide us as we sew. Find it here, Kitchen Wearables & Accessories.

As you sew, I invite you to share what you've made and where you will be donating it in our March Project album here. 

I have all kinds of fun planned for the month and can't wait to share it with you!

If you have any questions or wish to mail your completed items to me, just email me. 

Love to have you grab our "Order Up!" badge and add it to your blog or website to help spread the word! Looking forward to sewing with you this month as we serve those who serve.

Ready....Set.....

Dolly Donations - An Ongoing Opportunity! (and free dolly pattern links!)

If you have enjoyed creating plushies for donation this month or haven't yet had a chance to, I wanted to share an on-going opportunity for you to continue giving back this way.

Dolly Donations does just that! Click the image above to learn more and find out about current opportunities for you to participate. Additionally, you can find this free dolly pattern provided by Dolls & Daydreams...

This site also provides LOADS of information and creative tips for sewing dollies.

Here's some other links to free dolly patterns/tutorials I think are super sweet too.

Black Apple Doll at Martha Stewart.com

Softie Doll by Seventy Piggies

Rag Doll by Becoming Martha

Keep sewing and spreading that squishy, softie love!

Doll Panels = Easy Sewing!!!

By far, one of the absolute easiest ways to create plush friends is by using printed panels.

 Most of the work is done for you, you simply stitch, snip and stuff. 

The great thing is that most panels include the instructions right on the panel...

Panels are a great way to provide a hand made gift without being overwhelmed by the process! My girls all love their little doll panel rag dolls too!

 I made the little Modkid dolls for our monthly project in May 2011 and they were very well loved!

This is one of the precious recipients in China! Isn't she delightful!??!

Doll panels....a simple way to hand-craft a smile and a hug!