Sew Saturday ~ Emily's Garden

EDIT-  You can now vote for my quilt in the MSQ Iron Quilter 2 challenge by clicking on the link and LIKE the picture.  :)  Thank you.  CLICKY



Last Saturday I showed you the Tic Tac Toddler quilt I made for Hopeful Thread's November challenge to make baby quilts for Tennessee Children's Hospital.  Today I will show you the baby girl quilt I've been working on.

My first experience with the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) back when I was in the 8th or 9th grade, came when my mom's best friend gave birth to little Emily.   Being 4 months premature she weighed just 2 pounds 2 ounces.  Such a tiny little peanut.   I remember the routine we had to go through just to step into the NICU.  Hands and arms had to be scrubbed, including under the fingernails.  Clothing, hair, and shoes had to be covered.  Only 1 person was allowed in to see Emily with her mom or dad, so I waited my turn while mom went in first with "Aunt" Debbie.

Holding Emily for the first time was the most amazing, terrifying experience of my life.  I was afraid I might hurt her just by touching her.  When the nurse put her in my arms she hardly weighed anything.  I'm pretty sure the blanket covering her and the tubes coming out of her weighed more.  Instantly I fell in love with my new little "niece" in a way I've never felt before.

As exhilarating as that experience was, there is another memory emblazoned on my soul, that of leaving the hospital without her.  The hospital was 2 hours from where we lived so Debby had to get rides to and from the hospital.  She couldn't afford to stay in a nearby hotel so she had to leave her every time.  I can still hear Debby's sobs as we pulled out of the parking lot.

Thankfully Emily survived and came home to spend many weekends at auntie's house.  She would often stay in my room at night once she was a little bigger and I would get up with her if she needed a bottle or a diaper change.  I loved taking care of her  She was one of our flower girls when we got married.  She is married herself now and lives in Australia with her military husband.  Her life started in the NICU and that is why I made my girl quilt for a smaller crib at the Children's hospital.

As I designed and stitched this quilt I was often reminded of Emily.  I spent many hours praying for the baby this quilt would go to and her for her parents, as well as extended family and friends.  My heart longs to bring comfort not only to the baby this quilt will wrap around but the mommy standing beside her bed and having to leave her side at night.  I pray the angels will watch over her sweet body and that the doctors and nurses caring for her will have the strength & wisdom they need to care for all the babies.  Most of all I pray for healing and peace for this baby I have never met and will likely never know.

My hope and prayer is that one day the baby will get to go home with her new "lovey" and that it will bring comfort and joy to her for years to come.

Now on to how the quilt is made.  I have to give a shout out her to my Sistah's at StampNation who helped me when I couldn't decide where to place all the hexies.  Hopefully you ladies like the finished project.  Thanks for giving me the confidence to finish it.

Each of the hexagons are English Paper Pieced.  I hand sewed the larger hexagons together and then sewed the hexagons on to my quilt top.  (Moda Ombre Grey fabric... I LOVE it!)  Although I wish I could have found a purple ombre instead for this baby quilt.

My friend, Melissa, from Sew BitterSweet designs got me hooked on paper piecing hexies.  I can't seem to stop!  For the fabric I chose to use the Lovely Charm Pack by RJR.   Missouri Star Quilt company is offering these charm packss for $3.95 to go along with their Iron Quilter contest.  I decided this would be a great combo.  Lovely flowers for a baby girl.  One charm pack gave me ALL these hexies and more.

To do the quilting I followed the hexagon lines and created this fun chevron pattern.  It turned out great, considering my low skill level when it comes to quilting.   The binding was cut from yardage in the Lovely line.   I used Jenny Doan's youtube tutorial to attach my binding.  I've discovered that I LOVE hand sewing my binding on.  It's so relaxing!

If you would like to learn more about Hopeful Threads click on the picture below.  Thank you again, Kristy, for giving me an opportunity to give to such a wonderful cause!

Hopeful Threads

If you would like to learn more about the Iron Quilter challenge through Missouri Star Quilt Company click the picture below.  (and don't forget to check out their daily deal!)

This is also part of my personal challenge for A Lovely Year of Finishes with Melissa and Shanna.

ALYOF November

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Showing My Gratitude

Each and every day I am thankful for each and every one of you!  Today, especially, I want to let you know how much it means to me that you visit my blog, leave me comments, and purchase from me.  Thank you!   You are why I am here sharing my creations on my blog.


Will you be getting up early and fighting the Black Friday crowds?  Personally I would rather sit in my jammies and shop online.  :)   Whether you are out hitting the stores early or staying home enjoying some pumpkin pie I hope you have fun. I'll be placing a Stampin' UP! order this weekend too.  There is a HUGE sale going on HERE, and the weekly special can be found by clicking HERE.

I wanted to give you a special something just from me to thank you for shopping with me.   For every $50 you spend you can choose one of these items:

Basic Rhinestones
Basic Pearls
Cherry Cobbler Dazzling Details
Dazzling Details *clear*
Dimensionals
Vintage Faceted Buttons
Seasons of Style Washi Tape
Silver 1/8" Ribbon
Silver Sparkle Dazzling Details

 Spend $150 or more and not only will you be eligible for Stampin' Rewards, but I will also be sending you a package of goodies from the soon-to-be-released Occasions Mini catalog.  (Will be shipped as soon as they become available)  Including samples of the new:

Designer Series Paper
Ribbon/Trim
Embellishments

I can't tell you exactly what it is, yet, but I think you're going to love it all!  I know that I do.   :)

All you have to do is order from my Stampin' UP! store and email me your selections for every $50 you spend between November 28th and December 2nd.  I'll take care of the rest.

SHOP HERE
Email: cr8tvblessings @ hotmail .com

Creative Blessings
and
Happy Shopping!
Heather North

Clean and Bling

Back to more Christmas cards today.  Time is running short for me to get them all done.  This card would be so easy to mass produce, but the weight of the embellishment I used would add extra postage.  I suggest replacing it with some brads, snowflakes or paper buttons if you want to send out a pile of these cards.

My week of participating in challenges continues today.  When I saw this week's sketch at Unscripted Sketches I knew I had finally found the perfect card to use this pretty striped foil paper on.

US#232

One of the reasons I bought the Winter Frost paper pack was because of the shiny papers, but I haven't used them yet.  I really need to stop hoarding the pretty stuff and USE IT more often.  Perhaps that should be my New Year's Resolution.

It's hard to capture the shimmer in a photo, but you can see how it catches the light in the top right corner.  The little piece of Bermuda Bay/Pool Party ribbon sticking out the side of my greeting panel comes from a scrap that I had leftover fromm the Christmas Banner kit.

This sketch would be a great one to add to your collection to use over and over again.  Thank you Unscripted Sketches for inspiring me yet again.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Supplies (Stampin' UP! unless otherwise noted)
Stamps: Joy to the World
Paper: Winter Frost DSP, Island Indigo, Whisper White
Ink: Bermuda Bay
Accessories: Frosted Finishes, Christmas Banner Simply Created Kit

Frosted Finishes

Winter Frost DSP

Christmas Banner Simply Created Kit

Thanks A Million

Over the past couple of weeks I've been making mostly Christmas cards in the hopes that I can get them all finished by the first week of December.  This morning I took a little break to make a thank you card for a friend.

For my inspiration I used this fabulous sketch at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenges.   It was a fun and easy sketch to work with.  I'm already planning a Christmas card using this sketch.

Simon Says Stamps

The biggest challenge for me came from the fact that I used a sentiment as the focal point and I had to decide what I was going to put in place of the banner in the corner.   I decided to just start laying the card out and see what might come to me.  As I did that I had this small strip of striped paper laying around and I thought it might be cute just to have a little banner with nothing on it.

As you can see I didn't leave it blank.  I like to decorate the inside of my card to reflect the outside, so I punched out some flowers from the banner scraps.  One landed on my paper strip and you can see where I went from there.  :)

Vellum can be tricky to adhere to your project because the adhesive you use will show right through it.  To solve this problem I used tape runner only on the part of the vellum strip that would be hidden under my sentiment panel.   Adhesive sprays also work well if you are in a well-ventilated area.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Supplies

Stamps: Million And One (Stampin' UP!)
Paper: Lost & Found Blush (My Mind's Eye), Raspberry Ripple (SU), Silver Glimmer(SU)

Ink: Raspberry Ripple (Stampin' UP!)

Accessories: Bitty Punch Pack (SU), Basic Rhinestones(SU), Vellum (Creative Memories)

Dazzling Christmas

My plan for this card is nothing like the end result, but I have to say I love this card so much that I want to keep it.   But, I won't.  I'll send it to my pink-loving friend who will love it even more than I do. 

This was my first time using heat and stick powder.  I went a little overboard and used it with dazzling diamonds on the ornaments, the background and kept using it to make another card.  My work space is covered in glittery goodness.  :)   

Oh how I wish you could see this sparkle in person.  The card started when I saw the new challenge that Monica, from Add A Little Dazzle, has created.  She put up this scrumptious "frosted pumpkins" inspiration photo.

DDC#1

 Don't you just love it?  My first thought was a Victorian tea party.  I still plan on making a card with that theme, but somehow when I got to the hobby room I just had to turn those pumpkins into glittery pink ornaments.  Afterall the challenge is to become a Dazzling Diva.  You need shimmer and sparkle for that, right?  

The card has touches of pear pizzazz and craft along with blushing bride, raspberry ripple and white.  If you are wonder why I used these colors specifically, it's because of this week's Dazzling Duo's new Triple Threat week.  I thought the colors went well with the inspiration photo.  What do you think?

DD#80

As if these two challenges weren't enough inspiration I had to pull out a sketch too in order to make this card work for me.  You see, after I made the sparkly background paper and 2 dazzling ornaments I couldn't figure out how to put them together.  

My plan was to put them as a grouping in the corner, but it didn't look right, so I pulled out the new sketch from Retro Sketches and stamped a Crumb Cake ornament with Crumb Cake ink and went to work pulling the card together.

rs#91

As you can see I did another lane swerve while actually putting the card together.  My plan was to have all the ornaments in a row like the rectangle on the sketch.  I even adhered the linen thread with tombow mono multi glue at the same length.  Next I glued the Crumb Cake ornament on the card and tucked a couple of leaves from SU Bird Punch behind it.  I decided to put the pink and raspberry ornaments up a bit from the center ornament.  First I popped up the Raspberry Ripple ornament, then I glued a couple of branches behind it.  As I turned over the Blushing Bride ornament it landed just slightly down from the center and I loved the slant it created so I decided to just adhere it down in the bottom corner and have the leaves help in creating a gently slope.   I hope you can still tell how this sketch inspired me.  

Yes, I took inspiration from three different fabulous challenges, but I ended up with a lovely card for a dear friend and her family.  I already feel like a winner.   

If you would like me to film a video on the heat and stick powder or how I made the ornaments, please leave me a comment below and I will try to get one up for you later this week.  

Creative Blessings,

Heather North

Stamps: Snowflake Soiree, Ornament Keepsakes, Petite Pairs

Color: Blushing Bride, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz, Raspberry Ripple, Whisper White
Accessories: Heat & Stick Embossing Powder, Dazzling Diamonds, Linen Thread, Bird Punch, Ornaments Framelits

CLICKY to go to my Stampin' UP! store. 

Sparkly Sketchbook

Last week was a super busy one on the blog as we announced the newest members of the Design Team at StampNation.   They have already begun inspiring me.   Chupa let me know that she does a Sketchbook Saturday challenge every other week.  You know how much I love sketches, so I was all over this one!

This was not what I was planning on making when I saw the sketch.  My plan was to make some glittery stripes on the bottom and a pink snowflake up top, but somehow my supplies got away from me.  :)  To be honest I would love to copy the sketch exactly using the same colors and shapes.  Isn't it pretty?

Before I could work on the sketch card I had to clean up my table.  It was just too big of a mess to continue.  In the process I found this scrap of lace doily I had cut out using SU Paper Doily Sizzlit.  It was already covered in Dazzling Details and I thought it would be even prettier that a regular doily.  I wish you could see how it sparkles!

While I was putting away scraps of cardstock I decided to try out soft sky for one of my snowflakes and embossed it with silver embossing powder.  There are also some scraps of Creative Memories Shimmer paper that I embossed with silver embossing powder.  As I was searching through that scrap bin I found a piece of Creative Memories vellum swirls paper.  It's hard to see, but the vellum has white swirls running through it.

I wish you could see this card in person because it sparkles and shimmers in a way the camera cannot pick up.  The blue strip of glimmer paper was another find from my old scrap drawer.  I really should hunt in there more often.  There are all kinds of treasures to be found.  The final piece was a jewel.  Not sure who makes it or where I bought it, but it has lots of facets that capture the light.

This is the only sketch challenge of Chupa's I've seen, but I predict I'll be a regular follower.  I'm off to check out some of her previous sketches and get inspired even more. :)  You have plenty of time, won't you join me in this challenge?

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Supplies Used (Stampin' UP! unless otherwise noted)

Stamps:  Festive Flurry, Warmth & Wonder (Hostess)
Paper: Winter Frost DSP, Soft Sky, Smokey Slate, Basic Gray, Misc. Scraps,
Ink: Versamark, Black
Accessories: Jewel (non SU), Silver Embossing Powder, Festive Flurries Framelits, Dazzling Diamonds, Paper Doily Sizzlit,

Paper Doily Sizzlit

Festive Flurries Bundle

Sew Saturday ~Tic Tac Toddler

I've been waiting all month to show you this post.  Yesterday I finished hand stitching the binding on my baby quilt for Hopeful Threads and took some pictures to share.

Hopeful Threads

Hopeful Threads was asking for baby blankets to send to a Children's Hospital in need.  This touched my heart and gave me the opportunity to give back and pay it forward.  Let me give you the backstory.  Our son Tyler was born pigeon toed with club feet.

Tyler and Daddy 1 day old

From the time he was a few days old he began being casted to correct his feet.  This is one of the only pictures I have of his feet.  I used to bring his baby shampoo and everything I needed to bathe him to the doctor's office so I could give him a bath once a week between having his casts removed and new ones put on.   This was in the days before digital cameras and cell phones that took pictures.  It never occurred to me to bring my camera with me.

When he was less than 2 months old we found at that our insurance was not going to cover his treatment.  They said it was a pre-existing condition.  WHAT?!  We were a young couple without a lot of money and our son needed the treatment to be able to walk and run and play like all the other kids.   Thankfully my grandpa told me about Shriner's hospital and wrote a letter to get Tyler in.

 

Shriner's hospital took amazing care of our son.  We had one of the top pediatric surgeons in the country perform surgery on his tendons when he was just 8 months old.  That was followed with more casting and eventually braces.  All of this without any cost to us.  Believe me, I was beyond blessed by the generosity of Shriner's hospital.  One day we were at Shriner's in their new facility in Sacramento, CA for a check up when some ladies came in with quilts their group had made for the children.  They gave us one, and I almost didn't take it because I felt like we had been given so much already.  They insisted and I'm so glad they did.  This quilt has always been a symbol of kindness, generosity and hope.  Every baby who has been in our home, including our puppies have been comforted, wrapped or played on this quilt.

Tic Tac Toddler

That is probably where the quilting bug first bit me.  Knowing that these ladies made quilts for the kids with disabilities, burns and birth defects warmed my heart.  They never got to see the kids faces as they snuggled up with their new loveys.  They didn't see how the quilts wrapped those babies in comfort as they sat on their mom's laps while the doctor manipulated their tender feet.  They didn't know how much it meant to the mommies and daddies that somebody cared for their little one.  Or perhaps, they did.

When Hopeful Threads put out the call I was so excited because I finally feel like my quilting is at a level that I can give it away to strangers.  I was thrilled that it would be going to a baby, toddler or preschooler that could use comfort while in the hospital.   I was happy that they might never know who sent it because they would get to experience the kindness of strangers.  Most of all I was humbled by the opportunity to have Tyler's quilt come full circle.

Tyler at 17

Since it was going to charity I decided to use the Riley Blake fabric that was given to us through the Modern Quilt Guild for the Riley Blake challenge.   Thank you Melissa and Kristy for this opportunity.  I'm working on finishing up another quilt for a little girl.

I'm linking up with ALYOF and #mqgrileyblakechallenge.



ALYOF November


Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Spreading Holiday Cheer

The cold weather has really put me in a Christmas card making mood.  :)   Good thing too because I still need to make another 30 cards in the next few weeks.

Thanks to Try Stamping On Tuesday I was able to make this card fairly quickly.  It uses up a lot of random supplies I had hanging out on my craft table.

TSOT #145

Something about the Holidays makes me want to use glitter.   This card is no exception.  It's hard to see in the picture, but I made a little snowbank with my C1 Copic pen and then added little dots of falling snow all around the tree.  Of course I covered up the perfect snowbank with my banner, but glitter trumps coloring every time!  :)

If you will notice the sketch used a flower, but my card uses a circle.  The beauty of sketches is that they are a starting point.  Let you imagination and creativity take over and see what you can make using the inspiration of the sketch.  Sometimes it will match pretty closely.  Other times it will take on a life of its own and look noting like the original.   This time I came pretty close.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

The supply list is long, but remember I was using stuff that was out on my table.  I love to "use it up" so I can buy more.  ;)

Supplies Used (Stampin' UP! unless otherwise noted)

Stamps: Warmth and Wonder (hostess), Christmas Tagables, Joy to the World (inside greeting)
Ink:  C1 Copic Marker, Gumball Green, Marina Mist, Raspberry Ripple
Paper: Crumb Cake Early Espresso, Bronze Glimmer Paper, Gumball Green, Marina Mist, Snow Festival DSP (retired), Whisper White
Accessories: Circle Framelits, 2.5" Circle Punch, Star Punch, Word Window Punch, Small Glittery Brad (non SU)

P.S.  The Circle Framelits are included in the Holiday Sale going on right now at Stampin' UP!  Click here if you would like to see what else is on sale.

StampNation Design Team Reveal #4

We were looking for two, but found 4!  Today we introduce you to the last, but certainly not least, of our new designers.  Iwona Palamountain, aka Chupa, from Random Acts of Creativity will be joining the permanent design team at StampNation.  She will be writing bimonthly articles in her forum "Technically Speaking", as well as making samples for the SN challenges.  We are thrilled and honored to have her aboard!

Her resume is quite impressive, almost as impressive as her artwork!

If you would like learn more about Chupa, head on over to StampNation and see her introductory post.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Warm Wishes On A Frosty Morning

This morning when I took my son to Jazz band practice the car thermometer read 26 degrees.  burrr   The grass and mailbox and lamposts were covered in glittery crystals of ice.   My card today has some sparkle to it as well.

Inspiration for this card came from this week's  Mojo Monday sketch.

This card was a fun experiment with White Craft ink.  Let me tell you some things I learned:

1. It takes a looooooooooooong time to dry, even with the heat tool.

2. It dries lighter than it looks when it is applied.

3. You can emboss with it. 

My snowman was so light that I had I had to pour some white embossing powder over him and emboss it.  That worked pretty well though.  Unfortunately when I tried stamping his face over the embossed image the colors didn't show like I wanted them to.  My solution was to dust off those bottles of stickles on my shelves and give him some sparkly color.  While I was at it I added some Diamond Dust stickles to the swirls of snow and snowflakes.

Such a fun card to make and display.  This is card #13 made for this year.  I better get cracking if I am going to make 40 Christmas cards before Thanksgiving.  :)

Creative Blessings,

Heather North

Card Recipe: (all items Stampin' UP! unless otherwise noted)
Stamps: Snow Day
Ink: White Craft Ink, Gumball Green, Black Staz-On

Paper: Gumball Green, Marina Mist, Pumpkin Pie (carrot nose), White Shimmer
Accessories: White Embossing Powder, Stickles (various colors), White Taffeta Ribbon

P.S.  Today begins the BIG holiday sale at SU!  Click HERE to go shopping!  :)

P.P.S.  If you are looking for the newest StampNation design team reveal click HERE or scroll down to the next post.  ;)

Snow Day

Whisper White Craft Ink