Revealed Secrets...

For Christmas this year, I made a lap quilt for each of my girls, 5 in all. They were all different, from different fabrics, and kind of specialized just for them. Kira's, on the left, is made from "Gypsy Rose" and worked up pretty quickly. Michaela has been eyeing my "Aviary" charm packs for months and has always wanted a pinwheel quilt, so that is what she got. Tibi, on the right, got a cute, funky quilt from the "Objects of Desire" line. My son, Landon, is thrown in there just for fun! He got a rag quilt last year for Christmas.

The two girls in Arizona got their quilts when we got there on Christmas night. Lexie's was done in "Hello Betty" and Connie's was done in "Spring Magic" by April Cornell. Connie's quilt took the longest to make because I used the Confetti Cake pattern. Lots of fun, but very time consuming. I had so much fun doing these quilts, not necessarily because of the piecing and quilting, which I LOVE, but because they were going to the most important girls in my life. There's just something about making something for someone you love. It's giving part of yourself.

The girls have been using their quilts ever since they opened them up. They cuddle, sleep, and canoodle with their quilts, which is why they were made. I told them that they could do anything with them and not have to hang them or not use them. It was definitely a labor a great love for me.

I also did my very first stippling job on my new Janome machine since I bought it. I was very nervous about doing this, as this is Lexie's tabletopper I have been promising her for months. I was busy trying to get all of the quilts done for Christmas, so this ended up taking a back seat for a while. I gave it to her unwashed and dried so that she could decide herself whether to do that or not. I actually think it turned out okay. It definitely takes practice, practice, practice!