Patchwork Aprons and other lovelies

[sew].

A few very quick takes for you, my dear sewing friends, of the progress of Christmas gifts. I am very committed to use my love of sewing as a way to bless others. I want to give gifts from my heart and the best way to do that is to give gifts from my hands. Because the two are inseparable. So here are a couple of aprons ... with more aprons to come ... this one is my own concoction and its basically a rectangle for the skirt and a rectangle for the bib with a wide band in the middle.  I love it. I'm not sure I can give it away ...

It's reversible. Which is a good thing because I don't really want to wipe grease or grime on this side.  But the other side is my beloved Amy Butler, so its really a bit of a lose-lose situation ...

Haha! The ruffle is NOT reversible I just noticed! Whoops! I love it anyway. And by the way, the tie? Its extra-long; three widths of fabric in length so I can tie a pretty bow; and interfaced to give it some structure. I think the fact that this apron is lined, quilted and has an interfaced waistband/tie means it will hold up to the wash. Because I do have a store-bought apron that's cute, but it comes out of the wash looking like a wrung-out rag and I really don't have a lot of time for ironing.  

This half-apron was fun. Its loosely based on Jona's Apron-in-an-hour though not quite as wide. I used 10" pre-cut squares to make a four-patch, lined it and quilted it for extra structure. The tie is not as long as the first apron, only two widths of fabric, but it does the trick. 

And here's the reverse:

A half-apron is perhaps not as practical if you're standing over a sputtering stove, but gosh, it sure brightens up an old t-shirt and a pair of jeans, no?

My daughter snapped this of the apron in action. I had to take it for a test-drive, even if it will be a gift. Like, maybe :)

The other sewing goodies which I'm really very excited about come from Michelle Patterns; the Card Wallet. I don't know about you but it seems every store I shop at has a courtesy card of sorts. There's Costco, Hallmark, Paradise Cafe (when I'm in the U.S.), Indigo, Shoppers, Winners ... yeesh the list goes on. I mean, not all of them fit in the wallet for one thing, and not all of them are used frequently at all. Yet, you might want to keep them with you just in case. So, its very clear my friends, we all need a Card Wallet. Its an extra little lovely in your purse that you can easily find. I think they are awesome! I have one for low-use cards and one for library cards. The rest are for gifts!

I'm quite excited about giving these handmade treats to my friends and family, but I must admit there is a part of me that hopes/worries whether they will actually like it ... not everyone is into quilty-sewy-fabric-y-mugruggy-type stuff like me. But you know what? The joy is in the giving so I'm just going for it.

That's all I can show you right now, heh heh! On our sewing retreat last weekend my friends and I burned the midnight oil and made a tremendous amount of gifts - like pajama pants, quilts (yes I said quilts!), pioneer bonnets, infinity scarves, mug rugs, play-capes, aprons - I mean we really made the most of our time away. It was so much fun.

thREAD.
I am happy to report I finished Jeckyl and Hyde and ... I did NOT like the ending!!! I was actually a bit stunned that the end was actually the end! I thought for sure that Hyde wasn't really dead and would reappear for a final battle, perhaps against Utterson. But alas. Dead. (Spoiler. I'm sorry).  I now have just barely started to read the book Elizabeth recommended here, Breath of Peace. 

All for now. Be back later to link up with Elizabeth and needle and thREAD. xo

And here is that link! Enjoy!!