{this is how i start off a new year!}

For those of you that didn't know already...I LOVE quilting/sewing/etc. Thanks to the ideas that have already been swirling my in head and Pinterest...I have been extremely inspired to create and try a bunch of new projects! Sometimes I don't know how I find the time to do what I do with an almost 2 year old running around! There are definitely those times where I wish I could sew as fast as my mind works...but I guess it's a blessing that I can't sew that fast because then there wouldn't be any time to enjoy it haha!

This has been a pretty big week for me already. It started with me tackling my fear of sewing zippers to garments, and now I've started off the new year by tackling more uncharted territory...BINDING!

For those of you that don't know what binding is, it's the finished edge of a quilt. Here is a picture so you can have a visual of what I'm talking about...

Image: Courtesy of twin fibers

This was the project that led me to my first binding experience (I followed the binding tutorial HERE that I got from Diary of a Quilter)...

My very first sewing machine cover!!

I saw the fabric for my cover in a fat quarter bundle at our local Ben Franklin and I just could NOT resist getting it! I'm completely in love with how this cover turned out and I can't wait to make more!! There's another variation of a sewing machine cover that I would like to try next. It's a bit more simple.

I'm also excited to share that I will be participating in my first sewing challenge! Over at soscrappy, the author of that blog has created the "Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2012". You're encourage to make ANYTHING out of the "color of the month" that is chosen. The color for January is RED. You can see the Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2012 button to the top right of my blog all year long if you ever decide you'd like to participate! You don't HAVE to do it each month, we all know our lives get busy and sometimes it's just impossible to have the time to do stuff like this. I can't wait to share my monthly projects for this challenge with all of you!! As of right now, I'm thinking of doing just one quilt block a month and then in December, make an entire quilt top out of all the blocks I made for this challenge throughout the year :-) I could change my mind though haha!

Megan at H a p p y Day / Handmade by Megan - this challenge made me think of you!!

And if all those projects weren't enough, I went crazy making Pinterest projects the other night...here are just a couple of the things I made...

A brown felt flower hair clip for Miss K. You can find the tutorial I followed HERE. I improvised on the tutorial a little by adding an extra petal and adding the pink button in the middle. These flowers really don't need any embellishments when they're finished but I have TONS of buttons lying around so I put them to use ;-)  Here's another variation of the tutorial but you make 4 leaf clovers instead ;-) Here' the finished flower...

I also made a recycled t-shirt flower pin for me! You can find this tutorial HERE. It's SO easy and such a fun project to do to get rid of old t-shirts you have floating around the house! Your hubby.boyfriend/partner will never know what happened to his old shirts but hopefully he'll notice the cute little pins and hair clips you've added to your accessorize your wardrobe ;-) This specific clip is about the same diameter as a standard sized baseball. I wish I had gotten a picture with it on me...maybe next time. I'm not exactly photogenic right now haha. But here's my finished flower...

And if all those projects weren't enough...I also managed to find the time to create a new button for my business/blog, Made With Love by Caty...

www.madewithlovebycaty.blogspot.com / www.madewithlovebycaty.etsy.com

And I created my first button for my photography blog, Photography by Caty Blakley, as well...

Facebook Page HERE

I'm already thinking of what I want to do next...I must be crazy or just inspired...haha. I leave it open to interpretation ;-)

So....what projects are you all doing right now?! I've love to hear about them! :-) 

Much Love,