Sewing + Yoga + Poetry = ?

Back in the spring I started going to yoga classes at my gym fairly diligently. You know, because I needed an activity that WASN'T sitting down / stationary, like my job is and like sewing is and like pretty much everything else I do is!

Anyway, occasionally the gal who teaches the class will read us a poem from her little book of yoga poetry. Generally the reading will have something to do with one of the poses we did that today. While we didn't do this posture today, the poem really struck home.

Sutra Hasta Majariasana
"Threading the Needle"

Untangling a knot
that is my life
the knot becomes my teacher.
Gathering the threads into one,
unraveling the closed-up space
a glimmer of light
surfaces between strands.
The needle that is sharp
at dawn
might be broken by dusk.
The thread that is straight today
doesn't know
it will be knotted tomorrow.
The knot
that is tangled today
could be woven into gold
ten years from now.
That is why
I thread the needle,
honoring the odds
steadying my arms
softening my breath
working the knot,
trusting.

If you're interested, this is a video showing you how to do the posture that the poem is referring to. :)

Namaste!

Shopping suggestions

Don't have a heart attack, but yes indeed, this is me blogging two days in a row! WHOA!

I'm very excited to be playing the role of sewing mentor very soon! The gal I take yoga from at the gym is having her second little boy in a few months, and we're going to make a quilt for him! She picked out this bundle from Fabricworm:

Vikings! How cute is that?? I can't wait to see it in person.

My folks have decided to come for Christmas, so I figured it's probably best that I make something for them as well (which really means something for my mom, since I'm pretty sure my dad's not huge on interior decorating). My mom pointed out several blogger bundles from Pink Castle Fabrics that she likes - unfortunately, most of them are out of stock!

They do have Hawaiian Sunset in stock:

And she also liked the Sea Glass Bundle and Summer Blooms (both out of stock!)...But I'm looking for a few more options. Where do you shop for pre-put-together FQ bundles that aren't necessarily from the same fabric line?

I may go with the Sea Glass Bundle - but rather than get the bundle, just get a couple prints, since I already have a TON of the Salt Air collection...hmmm....

Too busy to photograph?

I was SO productive on Saturday, I'm mega-proud of myself. Of course, I didn't stop to take any photographs with my digital camera, just my iPad through Instagram. If you use it, too, my username is StephMabry. Lots of cute photos of cats, some of my hubby, and plenty of quilts, too. ;)

Now, what was I so busy with? I was busy working on all kinds of things on my Q2 Follow-Along list!

Status of those projects:

1 - K's quilt - no change. Oops.

2 - Crosshatch quilt - top is finished! back is pieced - it will be a yummy teal flannel that I think goes pretty darn well with the front. Sweet.

3 - Giant star - oh, wait, nothing here either. Maybe I wasn't as productive as I thought??

4 - 16 patch quilt - yes! Top is finished being put together, and so is the back (which will be brown flannel. SO creative, right? Not).

5 - baby quilts - Yes, more progress! Backing put together for all three, and two of them are basted - not all three because I was running out of pins and patience.

6 - Half Moon Modern - wait, nothing here, again? I can't decide if the coordinating solid that I have really coordinates as well as I want it to. Further contemplation needed.

7 - Baby clothes quilt - sorry, Rebecca, nothing done on this, but please don't think I've forgotten about it. Because I definitely haven't.

I did work on other things - see, I told you I got stuff done! I worked some more on one of the random squares quilts, so now they're sets of squares sewn into rectangles and then pinned, waiting to be made into 4-patch blocks. I haven't decided if I'm going to make them four patches or 16 patches.

I also have joined up with the My Precious QAL that's running on Flickr. The idea is that you cut into special fabric that you've been saving up and FINALLY make something with it. From the look of the Flickr group, no one's been able to use their precious Heather Ross fabric - there's lots of swapping of Mendocino going on over there! I, however, have hacked up my Outfoxed:

To turn them into squares:

Which I will use for a variation on this quilt, from Moda Bake Shop:

So the weekend tally? Two quilt tops finished, five backs put together, two quilts basted, a bunch of squares sewn into rectangles, and more fabric cut up into squares. Oh, and I finished finding fabric for the Spectrum Charm Swap: BRIGHTS, also on Flickr. There are still spaces available, if you want to join up! :)

Q2 FAL Pre-Quarter Linky Party

Most of my WIPs are on that top shelf. Note my bolts of flannel? I'm pretty ambitious. At least with my wallet, when things are on sale. (This might be the longest caption ever for a blog photo??)

What a complicated title that is if you see it without reading the post, huh? This is my post for Rhonda and Quilter in the Gap's Finish-a-Long - pre-quarter 2 goal list, let's call it. Maybe that's better. Goals. Easy peasy.

Anyway.

This is what I'm hoping to get done!

Project 1: K's quilt: Yes, the same project that was first on the list LAST quarter... but I've at least made SOME progress - all I have to do is bind it. I think I've been putting it off for so long because part of me knows it's not very good at all - it was the first quilt I put together, so the back is horribly bunched, it's not pieced very well... but I think she'll still like it, all the same.

See? Almost there.

Project 2: One of the "crosshatch" quilts: It's currently in three strips, awaiting more of the white to sash the rows together and the solid raspberry color that I can't remember the proper name of in order to add borders. I think this might be for my good friend T's little girl, who's adorable and who I know will enjoy it, if she doesn't drown in it, as she's three and this quilt seems ginormous.

Project 3: Giant star quilt number two: As I posted about previously, I finished Sara's Wedding Quilt but managed to have almost an entire quilt top left over, so I'm hoping to finish it for another friend of mine. I think I'll do similar quilting on it after I add yellow borders at the top and bottom. Note to self, buy a yard of yellow fabric.

My shoe got in the photo? Weird.

Project 4: 16 patch quilt: Made from squares from a not-so-great swap that I joined (it was my first, and I've quickly come to agree that swaps involving Joann-quality fabric aren't the greatest, even though I freely use their fabrics through my own projects). I think I might finish this up for my parents. I've got all the blocks put together, and the fabric that I've chosen for sashing has arrived. Hopefully I've got enough. I'm not entirely sure, because I'm lazy.

Project five: Baby quilts: As I mentioned above, I freely use Joann-quality fabrics, because it's cheap and nearby and there's something satisfying about having things in hand immediately instead of ordering them. Most of these fabrics are from their red tag racks. I just grouped it all together, cut it up into squares...and lo and behold, I had enough for THREE baby quilts out of it. Since this photo I've got them all made into quilt tops. My goal's to finish one this quarter.

Three quilts stacked up here, but my goal's just to finish one. Set my sights nice and low, I will.

Project six: Half Moon Modern quilt: I've got four-patch blocks made out of my two Half Moon Modern charm packs, and I'm hoping to finish it up. I want to sash it with something but I'm not entirely sure which color to use. Any suggestions???

Project 7: This is the big 'u - clothes quilt: My friend Rebecca, who I've only met online but have known that way for years (the internet is pretty awesome, huh?) has commissioned me to make a quilt from her daughter's baby clothes. I've watched Autumn grow up, thanks to the joys of Livejournal and Facebook, so I was definitely interested in taking on the project! Even more fun is that some of the clothes were Rebecca's when SHE was little, so it's a multi-generational thing.

So far I've got all the clothes cut into "cloth," so to speak. I was surprised at how much fabric comes out of a single shirt or dress!

Also, check out Rebecca's photography website or her blog, because she's pretty awesome. I'm looking forward to her move to California so I can have photos taken of Jeff and I. We skipped a pro photographer for our wedding, and it's my one regret about that day. :)

Anyway, here's a sampling of the clothes...

Love these colors!

I plan on using applique for details like the little pockets and belt on this dress, and the other cute embroidery and such on other items. (Another epic comment? Yes).

I was SO nervous to cut into these cute dresses! They weren't handmade, but looked like they could have been.

Alrighty, there we go! Seven projects for three months. Totally can handle this. Or at least half of this. Until all the swap fabrics come in and I get distracted, anyway!

Another swap? Yes please.

Another busy week in which I've gotten basically nothing accomplished (or at least it feels that way!). My friend and I have started going to early-morning yoga (6AM? Barf) this week, so my body's still adjusting to that, in more ways than one.

I have a ton of projects that are in a state of limbo right now...and unfortunately, the fabric that was supposed to be delivered yesterday and which would help me move those projects along wasn't delivered because, for whatever reason, Amazon is requiring a signature this time. Weird, huh? Hubby wasn't home, and won't be home today at all, so it's likely that I won't get it until next week - eep! Thankfully I have fabric coming from Fabric Shoppe - another variety/mystery pack and some swap fabric - that will tide me over. ;)

In other news, because I *am* addicted to swaps... there's another one going on! Annaliese is likely a kindred spirit - obsessed with charm swaps! - and has been in a ton of rainbow/colorful ones...so she's running one for neutral/solid fabrics. Signups just started today, and she's looking for at least 28 people. Check it out!

That's all I've got! Look for a Q2 Finish-a-Long post sometime this weekend. :)

Overboard? NEVER!

So it's quite possible that I've gone a little overboard with squares. I'm LOVING squares right now. From some WIPs that I've posted to some that I haven't gotten to show you yet, to the... FIVE charm square swaps that I'm in, to fabric that I'm buying and cutting up... it's a bit ridiculous.

(Oh, FYI? If you're looking to join fabric swaps, or you know about some, please check out the Flickr group Fabric Swap Finder - help facilitate our addictions! ;)

Anyway, last week Fabric Shoppe posted on their Facebook page that they were offering up four free fat quarters with any order over a certain amount, so of course I had to get in on that. Of course. I snagged one of their "A Surprise in My Mailbox" remnant bundles, and was SUPER pleased with the results!

Between the "surprise" and the four FQs, this is what I got - plus a bit of Pezzy Prints, which I included for my giveaway winner since I was bad and hadn't sent it yet! Oops!

The bundle split itself pretty nicely into two sets of fabrics. I usually ask my husband for input, and he said he dislikes them both because they're too busy. Too bad.

 I added some fabric from my stash (the pinky-red print at the top) but otherwise, it was all from the bundle.

And here's the other set. The blue/yellow print with birds on it was from my stash for this grouping. I don't remember what it is but I got it as a remnant (I think?) from Sew, Mama, Sew!'s clearance section. The only fabric I wasn't sure about was the gold-with-white-dots-and-red-and-gray-roses-on-it, but I think it will work out okay!

I definitely recommend Fabric Shoppe for all your fabric hoarding needs. Quick shipping, great selection...and make sure to check out their FB page for specials. :)

I think I'll probably end up doing more four-patch blocks with these. Any thoughts on what solid to pair them with? I like plain ol' white for the top set but I'm not sure about the bottom. Input is appreciated!

(and now I'm off to order another set. Because I need fabric for the last swap, and it's my first payday since my raise, so I have to keep celebrating. Because the iPad wasn't enough...)

WIP - A bunch of new projects

If you haven't yet entered my Pezzy Prints giveaway, check it out here! 

Winner will be chosen on 3/23. 

I finished up Sara's Star quilt, so what was the next logical step? Starting a few more projects, of course. At the rate I start projects, I'm going to have 4,302 WIPs by the end of the year but only 12 finishes. Oops.

Anyway, at some point a few weeks ago I put together a bundle of girly prints - flowery things that are all manner of pinks, and some stripes, and that sort of thing - and decided to cut squares from them. It then came to me to make sort-of-4-patch blocks out of them. This is what I've got so far:

There are definitely way more than enough to make two (if not three!) children's sized quilts out of, as I'm planning on putting white sashing between the blocks. I think these would all end up for sale.

I then decided it would be a good idea to do the same thing with my two charm packs of Half Moon Modern and two packs of white Bella Solids:

(Pardon my terrible photography skills! I tend to take photos before work, with the intention of blogging at lunch time...and then I don't. Aww.). Anyway, I think I'm going to pick one of the solid colors (possibly the teal?) from the line to use for sashing, and use all the blocks in the same quilt. Not sure where this one will end up, either.

Then I've started ANOTHER project, out of slightly-smaller-than-charm-square sized squares that I got from a couple of swaps I participated in. It was my first swap, and as much as I appreciate the bargains I can find at Joann for fabrics for myself, I also very much understand why swap mammas say NO to those for their swaps. Anyway, I'm making 16-patches out of them:

 14 out of the 22 blocks have turned out properly, like this (they're still in two sets of eight squares each)

While the other eight have turned out like this! I have no idea where or how they went wrong; I just know I have a bunch of seam ripping to do! Boo! Since my parents are now coming for Christmas, I think these blocks, combined with a cream-colored sashing (tentatively, anyway) will end up being their Christmas present. I think I can handle that sort of schedule!

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In other news - WOW. I joined up with the St. Patty's day giveaway blog hop and have been amazed at the results. 174 comments SO FAR, *and* I now have 100 followers! Whoa! Thank you, all of you, for all the comments. I've defintely read every one, even though I've been overwhelmed and haven't replied to them all. I'll definitely do another giveaway sometime soon for hitting that milestone, probably at the end of April, for my birthday.

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Lastly, if you're as addicted to charm swaps as I've become, there's another one going on over at Adventures in obsessive crafting. Deanna's looking for folks interested in swapping rainbow charms, and she (and I!) would love if it you joined up!

English Paper What?

Crafting hobbies don't live alone, do they? People aren't "just" quilters, embroiderers, knitters, or whatever. Once you start quilting, well, it's only a matter of time before you do one of those nifty quilts that include bits of embroidery, which gets you to just embroidering things to have something to do in front of the tv, and so forth, right?

I guess my new hobby is sort of quilting, but it feels different so I'm going to say it is. I've recently taken up English paper piecing - fed up with seeing all the OTHER bloggirls make adorable hexagons, I wanted to make some for myself. I combined the beginning of this venture with my attempt to organize/sort scraps, which really has worked out pretty well.

I bought the die-cut papers that I'm using off eBay and they included a handy tutorial (including pictures!), but here's one that I found online that you may find useful: summerfete's the basics of english paper piecing.

I haven't gotten to the point where I'm sewing any together yet - right now, I just have this pile of scrap candy.

 Which includes favorites from projects past - the red from this finish, the purple stars from the quilt on our bed that I never properly posted a "finished!" post for, and the flowers...I think from these placemats? Yup, it's in there.

 There are also ones I just think are pretty - the leaf print from buntings I haven't finished yet; the pink flowers from another WIP; the turtle from a baby quilt I finished for a friend, and those cute birds that ended up just so - both from fat eighth bundles I got at Joann - the brown was in another set of placemats, the pink just left over. :)

Then my cat decided to get involved. Hopefully she doesn't think they're toys and scatter them everywhere by the time I get home from work!

Next on the project list - a pouch to keep my supplies in! All the OTHER girls have one, maaaaaa (Who knew I'd end up saying that about things like this!? Haha!)

In other news - this is my 201st post! Okay, not a big deal, but hitting 200 was, regardless of how sporadic my posting has been. Quilting Gallery is hosting a blog hop / giveaway party this weekend in celebration of Saint Patty's Day, so I figured I'd join up with that to give away something (haven't figured what yet!) in celebration! Check back for it later this week! :)

If you'd like to join in on the hopping, follow that link right up there - you do have to pre-register for the hop...which in a way is really nice, because you get a handy e-mail sent to you so you don't forget the rules and the dates and all that!

Have a great day, readers!

WIP Wednesday - fugly edition

(linking up with Freshly Pieced for W.i.P Wednesday)

In honor of the Fugly Fabric Giveaway hosted by Charm About You (click here to find MY offerings!) I decided to whip out my fugly WIPs.

No, I don't ever intend to finish them. Don't worry.

Up first is, literally, a mishmash of all the ugliest fabrics that came in a fat quarter lot (which I got ridiculously cheap, I can't imagine why!?!?) on eBay. Note my terrible attempts at HSTs, back when I didn't realize that using an iron that was too hot would screw up fabric and before I knew what squaring up a HST was.

Keep in mind, also, that this was started about a year ago! What a long way I've come (I hope, anyway). Overall it's roughly, um...lap sized. If you have a lap that needs to be covered by something fugly.

Don't those fruits look delicious? Not. Also note my failure to follow my own made up pattern.

Then there's this. I'm not sure what it is. It's maybe a bit bigger than mini sized, and this was fabric from a lot of 3" charm squares, also from eBay. Not sure what I was thinking here, either, but I do like some of the combinations...

Like the one on the left here. The one on the right? Chunks of dalmations and cat bodies. No idea.

Just to reassure you, no,  I have no intention of finishing either of them...though I'm not sure what I will do. They're sort of quilt tops, and they definitely demonstrate my learning process! Any ideas what i should do??

50 Follower Giveaway

So, um, I have 50 followers now. Well really I have for a week, maybe even two, but it has come to my attention (via my own imagination) that maybe I should do something for you folks. Like give some crap away, because even if it's crap, no one cares as long as it's free, right?

Right?

Anyway, with Lucy over at hosting the Fugly Fabric Party soon, I figured that would be a superb time to give some crap away.

Actual crap.

Okay not actual crap, but fabric I think is crap, like fat quarters that came in lots I bought on eBay when I was first trying to build a stash. Florals, batiks, things that just aren't me.

That being said, I'll be giving away a 16 fat quarter set for you. Again, it's not Aneela Hoey (can you imagine her stuff EVER being thought of as crap!?!??! No.) or Lizzy House or anything Moda (or maybe it is, and Moda turns out some hideous stuff once in a while?). Anyway, I have no idea the origin of it other than "eBay," which really means "anything, but probably Joann once upon a time." But I'll give it away next week, on Tuesday, February 7th.

I'll do two ways to win - follow the blog, follow me on Twitter. 

To sweeten the deal a little bit, if I somehow magically reach 100 followers by the time the drawing closes (yeah right, right? hah!) I'll have a second giveaway of a 21-square Riley Blake So Sophie charm pack, like this:

Image borrowed from Amazon

So there ya go! My first 50 followers, my first giveaway, AND my first blog bribe, all in one! Spread the word and help get that second prize unlocked! ;)

Fabric squeeeee, and @IntrepidThread love

When I first started sewing all of my fabric came from Joann, and really, most of my fabric still does - as a quilter, I'm a-okay with buying the smaller pieces of fabric that they sell as remnants, which generally come at a great price. I also dig their clearance section, especially on the "extra 50% off days." I didn't - and really, still don't - understand the people who hate on Joann and who insist upon only buying designer fabric.

I started buying charm packs a little while ago - they're a reasonably priced way to get a teensy bit of those fancy fabrics. I have Little Apples, Sherbert Pips, Circa 1934, Hometown, Reunion, Pezzy Print, and Half Moon Modern, and I've got a bunch of Moda solids to go with them.

But only recently did I start getting yardage.

My lovely aunt gave me Outfoxed for Christmas:

 That's fat quarter bundles of all three color ways, and a cut of one of the hedgehog prints (squee!). They're so lovely, wrapped up in plastic from fatquartershop.com... I haven't even opened them yet!

Then I got a bunch of "free" money back from FatWallet.com, and I decided what the hey, why not get some more pretties for myself...

So off to Intrepid Thread's etsy shop I went, and got these...

1001 Peeps half-yard bundle (1001 Peeps and Towers in Turquoise and Illuminate in Basra Blue)

 Some Outfoxed yardage - Hedgehogs in Purple and Foliage in Pink

 Then I built a custom half yard bundle, and got:

 Impressions - Taj in Navy

Echo - Ranka in Navy and Teal 

Domestic Bliss - Out of Doors in Cream

 Half Moon Modern - Leaves in Steel

Nature Elements in Ocean Breeze

Little Apples - Round Round in Pencil Gray (OMG the selvedge has little turtles on it, I definitely made some silly sounds when I saw that!!!)

When I opened the package, I was thrilled - it was wrapped up tidily in tissue paper with a cute ribbon around it, with a hand-written note, and these SUPER cute little charms as a bonus! PANDAS! I love them! I'm thinking maybe a pin cushion or something out of these? No idea, but definitely need to make them into something special.

Anyway, that's what I've been getting in the mail lately, and there's a review of Intrepid Thread for you. Julie blogs over here, and regularly hosts awesome giveaways, and just has all kinds of awesome pictures of pretty fabrics - what more do you want? ;)

((Just to be clear, I wasn't compensated in any way for this post - I just wanted to leave a great review for an awesome business who gave me super service - a refund after she combined shipping, packaging that kept my fabric dry, a hand-written thank-you and great communication - who doesn't love that!?))

Fugly Fabric

Everyone has it - the fabric you just don't like anymore, that you got in a sack of scraps that you never liked in the first place. I know I've got some, and I haven't been sewing all that long, so I'm sure you've got some, too.

I'm talking about fugly fabric.

Lucy at Charm About You had the great idea to host a Fugly Fabric Party - a link party in which you post a lot of fabric that you're just not that into, and make it available to one of your followers - maybe just a giveaway, maybe a FQ-for-FQ swap, who knows. It's up to you! She's proposed February 7th as the date for this. I'm pretty excited about it, as I've got some FQs to put up for grabs, as well as a big piece of backing fabric...so spread the word!

((It'll also be my first giveaway - hooray!))

Quilter in the Gap 2012 Finish-a-long: Quarter 1

Quilter in the Gap is hosting a "finish-a-long" all year in 2012. This is a great idea for me, since I've apparently turned into a chronic "project starter and abandoner" since I've started sewing.

Oops.

That being said, here's my pre-first-quarter goal list! 

1: T's ticker-tape quilt: This one was supposed to be finished for Christmas, but I got a bit burned out. I'm about 1/3 of the way through attaching the ticker tapes, so I'm pledging to finish those, square it, bind it, and wash it! Finished and gifted - read about it here!

2. K's hexagon quilt: One of the first quilts I started, but definitely not the first one I finished. Oops. Also something that was supposed to be done for Christmas. I'm also about 1/3 of the way finished quilting this one (stitch-in-the-ditch around the hexies), so I will finish quilting it, square it, bind it, and wash it!

3. This extra quilt top: This one was initially the other half of this quilt top. I made it from scraps rather than a proper jelly roll, so I had no idea how many strips to use. I ended up cutting the top in half, and have had this top sitting around since last July. I've got some cutesy pink flannel to pack it wish, so this quarter I'll baste it, quilt it, square it, bind it, and wash it.- FINISHED! Read about the finished project here.

4. Kindle Fire cover: My super duper amazing hubby gave me a Kindle Fire for Christmas (!!!!!), and I found a cute tutorial for making a cover for it. This quarter I'll make it, I promise! I've got this fabric for it - I've had it in the stash for a while (a remnant from Joann), and I think this will be a great project for it. The same coworker who received the other half of UFO 3 told me he wants to see it when I'm done - sounds like I might have a customer? ;) ((This one isn't started yet, so it technically isn't a UFO, but I plan to do it anyway!))

5. Drawstring bag for D: When I was at Joann on black Friday stocking up on flannel for this year, I found this weenie dog flannel with a bright green background. My boss LOVES these critters (she's got three!) so I bought half a yard and am planning to make a drawstring bag for her, since she refuses to carry a purse. Her birthday's in February, so it's a priority!(Another that isn't yet started, so it won't count, but it's still a to-do). (Yeah this ended horribly, and by that I mean in the trash. Bleck.)

6. Another jelly roll race style quilt, because they're quick and easy and I like them! The mother of T and K, who will be receiving UFO 1 and 2, deserves a quilt of her own. I've had these fabrics picked out and cut into strips for a while, so this quarter I'll sew 'em all together, finish the top, find something to back it, baste it, quilt it, square it, bind it, AND wash it!

Alrighty, there ya go! I've got a TON of other things in my head (and on my desk, and in my fabric closet, and on my fabric shelves...), but these are the ones I WILL finish by the end of March!

Tuesday Link-Ups!

Linking up to Fabric Tuesday @ Quiltstory!

And with Lily's Quilts's Small Blog Meet-Up!

So I've been pretty good at actually making progress - crazy, huh? The bummer about this time of year, though, is that it's getting harder to share projects on here because someone who will be receiving said progress might actually see it - and that would kinda ruin it, huh?

Anyway, these are two projects I can share - hooray!

I'm still pretty much a beginner at this quilting thing - but I've found myself quite taken with the jelly roll race quilt. My first two finished quilts were both jelly roll race-style, and I'm making three more: one I can't share, one I just finished quilting tonight, and another that's still a heap of strips!

This first one, which I just finished quilting tonight (straight line, 2" apart) is for my 10 year old niece, Paige. She's absolutely adorable and I can't wait to see the look on her face when she gets a quilt from Aunt Stephanie! It's backed mostly with purple flannel. I'm really proud of how doing these jelly roll race quilts over and over is making me pay attention to keeping the back smooth! My first two were pretty wrinkly, but this is the 5th quilt I've quilted and it's WAY better! 

This pile of strips is for another gift quilt, and will also be jelly roll race style. I don't use actually jelly rolls - I just cut strips from the fat quarters and remnants in my stash! A few months ago I went through my stash and grouped together fabrics I thought looked good together, cut them into strips (these are 2 1/2", but I've done wider and thinner - you just get different sizes!), and stuff them into plastic baggies - think homemade quilt kits! When I need a gift, I pick a kit and stitch away! :) I have some weddings coming up, so I'll have to make a few more up!!

How do you make gift giving easier? Do you find it hard to keep gifts a secret, too!!?