The leaves have fallen.

Happy Autumn!

Happy Halloween!

I made a ribbon blankie

I had some minky fabric leftover from the playmat so I put it to good use in a ribbon blankie. The finished size of the yellow square area is about 8x8 inches - just big enough for little hands to cuddle, but not bulky enough to fill up a diaper bag. Both sides are yellow minky fabric, and the "ribbons" are ribbon pieces, ric-rac pieces, and scrap binding.

Construction zone

Today I made these three scrap log cabin squares. Yes, it's a Christmas project. I'm not sure what they will become (maybe a table runner or card holder thingamajig) but they coordinate perfectly with the tree skirt I made last year.

These are so fun to make - and they're super fast. A great use for scraps.

This quilt has been a work in progress for a long time. When we found out that we have a baby on the way I changed it into a nursery project. I still need to add red blocks but I think I might wait with those until I know if I can add pink or not. I'll sash the blocks in white (the black shown is just my felt board).

I'd like to hang the finished quilt above the crib. (the lighting was horrible - I swear the blocks look better in real life).

Thankfully, these are not a work in progress! Two more bibs - finished today.

The book fairy was kind to me

Twice a year, our local library holds a used book sale fundraiser for their library foundation. The sale was last week. I shopped. And scored a few treasures. Big time.

First, I must explain that they sell all the books by the pound: $1 for paperbacks, 50¢ for hardcovers. How can you not like that!?!

For me, this shopping trip was dedicated to kid books.

I got this whole stack for a grand total of $1.75.

In case you are wondering if our library only has books published before 1970, the answer is no. They had a whole room of kid's books but my favorites are the old ones (with fabulous illustrations).

I'll share three of my top finds.

Petunia's Christmas by Roger Duvoisin, 1952

It's a charming tale about Petunia the goose, attempting to save her boyfriend goose from ending up as Christmas dinner. Here she is dressed up as a dragon, frightening the farmer's wife. Who doesn't like a good story about a crazy goose?!

The Contests at Cowlick by Richard Kennedy, 1975

It's about Wally, the little boy who took on the angry wild west gang. The illustrations are worth it in themselves. I think that if we have a little boy, this one will get lots of use.

My favorite from the stack! Big Red Bus by Ethel and Leonard Kessler, 1957

The entire book is printed with black, red, and green ink. There are lots of stripes and polka dots. A beauty. It makes my heart sing.

Look at those buildings! The darlings. And the red bus! Love it. The story is super simple and the book is very fast to read so I don't want to spoil anything other than saying it's about a little boy and his mom's ride on the bus.

I have a feeling the library and I will become very good friends in the next few years.

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In other news - new recipe! California chicken tortilla soup

Baby playmat

This weekend my project was a baby fleur playmat. I honestly don't know much about these other than thinking I could probably make one. With the help of this pattern, I set to work.

I made a few adjustments - I left off the face design, used a super super soft yellow center (instead of felt), and I added crinkle sounds to some of the petals. I added the crinkle by cutting up an old/clean potato chip bag in the shape of the petals and sewing it between the petal layers (leaving out the batting). It makes a great crackle/crunch sound - and it should wash up without a problem. I hear that babies love crinkle sounds?!

I specifically love the ribbon loops that allow for toys to be attached around the border (look for the green ribbons).

Anyway, here is the finished playmat with its new buddy, the nursery pillow:

I'm making a major attempt to keep things "gender neutral" but it's so hard! Everything seems to have a bit too much "baby boy" or "baby girl" in it. Any tips besides sticking with green and yellow?

The pattern is the creation of "onegirl designwrks" check out her blog.