Konza Creative

So last week I shared my fairly ambitious goals for the weekend.  While I did not get everything done I was pretty pleased with what I did finish! So I shared this as my inspiration for my porch bench: And here is the version that I finished this weekend: I'm pretty proud of that pillow.  Not because I saved myself $19, but because I was able to use stuff in my stash to create it!! I've had this cowl on my knitting needles for quite awhile.  It is also my APQ UFO #6.  It is Purl Bee's Classic Cowl , using a beautiful fluffy brioche stitch.  I used 3 skeins of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino.  I love that yarn and have used it for so many things...it is wonderfully soft and even better it is washable! I am not a fan of blocking but in this case it was necessary to try to minimize the line caused where the rows start and end.  I find that this always happens when I am using circular needles. However as you ...

It's the weekend and my head is just spinning with all the things that I want to get done! Do I work on the first block of Leah Day's Machine  Quilting Block Party?                                                                             Do I keep the same color combinations or do I make it scrappy and try to use scraps from my stash? Or do I just buy a bunch of the same fabric and make all the blocks the same?  So many choices and so many decisions!!     I also have 2 orders on my Etsy site which need to get started.  My goal for the store this year was to try to get at list one quilt order a month and so far I am there.  The next one will look just like the last one I did but she does not want buttons used for the eyes and nostrils: I also wa...

Mind you this baby is only a month old.... however when Mom announced that Baby M thinks she needs new booties to match her outfits, who am I to deny her? So once again yarn was cast for the Cutest Booties  by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee.  She has the best blog The Yarn Harlot .  I've been following her for awhile and her posts always bring a smile.  This is the best baby booty pattern I have found.  I have knitted so many of these that I have lost count.  I think I first blogged about them here . I love how the grey booties turned out!  It uses Baby Cashmerino by Debbie Bliss.  It is a wonderful light weight DK, a blend of wool, acrylic and cashmere.  It is so soft and even better it is washable!  Perfect for a the little one! I wanted to make another pair of booties just a tad bit smaller so I chose, a baby weight yarn.  I have used this yarn for may booties and baby hats as it is the perfect weigh for wee l...

One of my first posts this year was about the APQ UFO Challenge .  I had shared my UFO list on the blog earlier and the fabric panels I was going to use for this month's #6 UFO.  Well I finally got the project done last night!! Out of the two panels I was able to make a wall hanging, 4 pillow covers, 7 coasters and 6 postcards which will hang on a picture frame! The coasters were finished much the same way as the postcards.  I used two layers of batting instead of one, practiced a little free motion quilting and then stitched around the outside of the coasters through all the layers.  I then used pinking shears to trim the edges.  This was much easier than using binding and since this was a small project trimming worked just fine. I practiced a little free motion quilting on the borders of the pillow and the  wall hanging which you can see here.  I need still need lots of practice and this project was just perfect for that! ...

I'm slowing posting about things that I made for Christmas this year.  Most of my attention has been focused on this new grand baby and from the day I found out I was going to be a "nana" I have been sewing, knitting and creating for this little one.  So it was time to focus on other members of the family. Last year I had made both older daughters a coat for Christmas.  It is Vogue 8933.  This particular version is out of print but Vogue still publishes it with a different pattern cover.    Here is my oldest modeling her coat: And here is a more detail look: So this year I thought it is my youngest turn to get a coat.  However when I had asked her about it, all she wanted was to get her t-shirt quilt finished.  With only  2 weeks until Christmas I wasn't sure that I had enough time.  Luckily she had already cut out all of the shirts so all I had to do was add the interfacing, cut out the sashing and put...

In an effort to get organized this year I discovered that All People Quilt is doing a UFO Challenge .  It seems like they have been doing this for quite awhile now...how did I miss this? They had drawn early for the January project so when I came on board #6 was chosen as the January UFO.  I then decided to change my list because I wanted to get a Valentine project done and a cowl knitted for my dear friend's birthday at the end of the month.  I have a feeling that I might be re-adjusting my project list a few times.  😉 I made two lists...one for sewing and one for knitting. I am making good progress on my #6 for knitting and hoping it gets down in the next week so I can get it in the mail to her before her birthday!  However the baby is "needing" some new booties so I need to get that done because as you know "what the baby wants the baby gets"!  :) I did finally started on the Valentine quilts/pillows last night.  I had an Etsy ord...

Wow!  So much has happened!  But first things first,  Our family received the best Christmas present ever!   Madden Jeanne  was born to our second daughter on Thursday December 15th. And we are all smitten with her as is evident by this picture: And Nana and Gramps are the most smitten! I spent a large part of the year making projects for this new baby: This pattern is from See Kate Sew This knitted chevron quilt is a pattern from Purl Soho I really wish I could find this hat pattern but for the life of me I can't figure out where I saved it! It really is the cutest thing! Knitted Sheep Pillow, another Purl Soho gem My daughter had 3 baby showers.  So I made her a signature quilt that we took to the showers for her friends to sign.  I plan to add a piece at the bottom with her name. The pattern can be found here . I was so happy to find out that this was her "coming home"outfit!  The knitt...