Mask making continues

Making masks from the wonderful Florida Keys today!

Still making masks, still shipping in 1-3 days, still free shipping.

And loving the view from my sewing machine!

http://www.judeharbor.etsy.com

Hey All You Cool Cats and Kittens

Toward the end of March as River and I were busy making masks to donate it was suggested that I sell masks - that the demand far exceeded the supply at that time. I thought to myself ... I can do that, a few masks for those who need them sound great. That night I went to the fabric store - only to find out they were already sold out of thread, ribbon, elastic, etc - and headed home to order elastic, ribbon, etc. on Etsy. And so it began.

The next day Etsy sent a message asking anyone who could to start making masks. It felt so good to be doing something good with my "down time" (my daycare dropped down to one child so I had a bit of extra time to work with)!

2 1/2 months later that need for masks has eased and I'm catching my breath!

Huge "thanks" to everyone who purchased a mask from Because I'm Me or Jude Harbor, and for all the positive feedback and heart-warming conversations.

And the biggest thanks to my children for all their help cutting, pinning, flipping, packaging, and shipping ... and for their patience with their Mama who had them surviving on restaurant take out family meals (best idea ever!).

I still have plenty of masks listed at Jude Harbor, including this bunch above focused on restaurants/bars/coffee shops, but have also added a few more things to the mix - like these tiger stripe cat bow ties for all the cool cats and kittens out there. As soon as I watched Tiger King I knew my cats needed new bow ties ... so between masks I made them a few and now finally am getting them listed at Beacause I'm Me .

In the midst of our social distancing Hippo (the gray cat) decided to get sick and has been diagnosed with diabetes. He's doing fine but now is getting insulin shots twice a day. He's a very loved little beast. :)

I hope you're doing well and have stayed healthy the last few months - and stay healthy moving forward.

Ahoy There, Matey

I have a son, my Adam, who once believed, with all his heart and soul, that he was a pirate. He dressed as a pirate every Halloween, and lived and breathed everything pirate all year round. Here's my sweet Adam in his pirate apron (before he was over 6' tall!) and his pirate quilt, which has a treasure map on the backside, and one of the many years he was a pirate for Halloween.

While he has outgrown his belief that he was an honest-to-goodness pirate, Adam learned to sail, like his siblings, and stays on the water with his BSA Sea Scout ship (like boy scouts, but co-ed and focused on nautical stuff) - deep down I do believe he's part pirate.

Aw, now that I've taken that little trip down memory lane here's a more current picture of Adam, taken at his high school graduation. He's now in college - those pirate days seem so far away ... I sure do miss them.

This quilt reminds me so much of my little pirate, with it's sea-worthy and nautical prints. The pirate prints in this are just fun and fantastic and are complemented by fish and whales and waves and all sorts of other tomfoolery.

The sailboats (or are they pirate ships?) were so fun to make, once I figured out the math. They each measure about 6" tall and are outlined with gray thread.

The backside is a grayish blue anchor print and the binding is a white with black stripes print from Ikea.

The quilt is available in the Jude Harbor shop.

Sea Star Camera Strap

I just relisted this camera strap with it's stars and arrows in the Jude Harbor shop.

It joins the 15 other camera strap styles available there - some more feminine, some more masculine, some just plain fun.

I'm hoping to play with some of the new fabrics I've been "investing in" (I wish!) lately and add a few more straps in the next few weeks. Gotta put this fabric to use so I can add more. :)

Always something going on ...

A few WIP's ...

This quilt top came to be because of the pretty pink and white Red Robinhood prints. They're so sweet ... I can't wait to get the quilt done and get better, more detailed pictures. More of the white print should arrive tomorrow or the next day and she'll get her back. No idea how she'll be quilted yet, suggestions much appreciated. :)

This bunch of fabrics became a quilt top this weekend, with the focus on the two fishy prints. I really thought a backing fabric for this one would be a piece of cake. Who knew that girly fish prints are not that common? Not me, it appears.

In the end I opted for a soft, yummy pink flannel. The goal is to have the binding hand-stitched by the end of this week.

That top multi-colored fish print is just awesome, I can't wait to try it with a few other color combinations (like pink and orange!).

And speaking of works in progress ... Just kidding. Here's River after the grandson did his hair (with a whole lot of hair gel).

And one where he did his own hair. After a few unfortunate very short haircuts that River wasn't crazy about he's growing it a bit longer, not crazy long but long enough to hang the way he wants it to.

Take care and have a wonderful week!

My Stars!

I'm loving this tie. Such a great way to show pride for the old USA or to just say "Hey, I'm a star and don't you forget it". Either way ... I love it.

The tie is available in the shop for both men and boys, and shipping is FREE, free, free.

And just because, here are a few pictures of my grandson's tattoo (and him, but he asked me to take pictures of his tattoo ... ). He's two and amazing, and a regular student at my daycare, so I get to see him most every day (lucky me!).

I Heart You

I am so so glad I decided to start making quilts again. I mean, not the best decision financially for sure, but I'm having so much fun. I'd forgotten how much of a joy it is to put fabrics together, come up with a design, and sew away. And I'm really cherishing that "must stay in one place, can't get up and do 5000 things" reality of hand-binding a quilt. So, yeah, there are more quilts.

Totally off subject, but the other new thing around here is a panini press. Not sure what took so long but that thing is a treat. I'm loving the endless options and the simplicity of it, and all these ridiculously picky children of mine can be fed happily. I've gotten hooked on sandwiches with apples in them ... what are your favorite panini sandwiches?

But back to quilts ...

This hearty little scrapy quilt was inspired by, of course, Valentine's Day. 

The little postage stamp squares are each just a hair over 1" in size. I had so much fun sorting through my stash to find the reds and pinks ... it was like a sweet little walk down memory lane.

The quilt measures 42" square, perfect for to be hung on a nursery wall or to use on a toddler bed.

The backside is a simple pink and white dot print and the binding is a white and red floral.

The quilt is available in the shop here.

Most of these pictures were taken at our local boy scout camp on Sunday morning, after a crazy weekend (least cooperative weather!) when the camp was filled with about 400 campers. The campers cleared out pretty early and we were left with the place almost to ourselves. It was so tranquil and quiet and the weather was perfect, I could have stayed all day.

My partner in crime (and quilt holder), however, was hungry, so heading home was necessary. Until next time ...