The honeymoon is over...

I'm one of those people who can't ever just follow a pattern. Most of the time it's not an issue. Really! In fact, it often makes sewing more enjoyable as I get to put a little of myself in each thing I make.

But in my desire to maximize my sewing moments over the last week, I didn't think to double-check my measurements on my improvised step before sewing a good portion of the rest of the pattern. When I went to put the pieces together, to my horror, they didn't match! *sigh* And I was on such a roll...

So my honeymoon period with quilting has come to an end. Out came the seam ripper (whom I would equate to the couples counselor) and I started the painstaking steps of picking out stitches. I have one section picked out, adjusted and re-sewn, but I'm thinking it's time to toss the other piece in the scrap basket and just start the last part again. Pre-kids, I couldn't have done that, but I'm finding that having kids changes just about everything - including the contents of my scrap basket!

For my quilt share for the week, here are jackets that I made for my two sisters-in-law. I stacked-and-whacked charm squares, put them together into the shape of a gutted sweatshirt (bands removed and cut down the belly to form a jacket shape), and quilted them onto the gutted sweatshirt using matching threads and decorative stitches on my sewing machine. To finish them, I added binding along with loop-and-button closures.

They were fun to make - I even started one for myself using cat fabrics. The parts for mine are still somewhere in my stash of UFO's - hopefully to be brought back to the surface soon.

I finally got my successful 'insert head here' photo this last weekend. In fact, I got multiples! When we visited our favorite zoo (Como Zoo) on Saturday, we found they were set up for their yearly Halloween event - which included more 'insert head here' photo ops than I've seen in one place. The boys had a ball putting their heads in each one and laughing.

I even got in on the action.