Placemats!

Simple...yet effective!
Yes, posted on the last day...but made them the day before.  :)
The girls loved them waiting on the table for breakfast!
Becky

Picnic placemats

It hard to make placemats for a sunny summer picnic at the park when it is 52 degrees below zero! But I started them when it was probably only -30 so today is as good a day as any to finish them up. I'll be ready to picnic when summer returns to the Arctic. However, I forgot I was supposed to make five and I was going to put ties on them. Oh well. Here they are, all bright and cheery. Next up: pillows.

Jenny
North Pole, AK

Potholders

Daughter Natalie told me I needed to get going on my potholders before the end of the month so this morning today I used some leftover fabrics plus some additional ones with chickens I've been wanting to use for something.  The front of one of them I actually messed up the order but it still looks good. Check this off my list.

Sharon Horn
Kodiak, AK

Potholders

I totally should have posted before Cristyn!! She's a pro, I can't follow that! :) I was going to make one long potholder that had the little finger pockets on each end but I wasn't sure if I'd like it. It might be harder to grab things. Maybe I'll still try it? I ended up making the same pincher ones as Stefanie. I can't say that I'm very proud of them... But I love that Natalie and I used the same fabric! Hopefully my placemats will turn out better.

Jenny
North Pole, AK

Place Mats!

Before I post my pic, I think I should introduce myself since I don't know anyone who has posted so far. I'm Cristyn, a friend of Becky's. I used to live in Alaska, went to UAF (where I met Becky, and then Jenny), and then moved to Texas. Now I live near Houston.

Here's what I made to answer the challenge this month:

 They aren't totally done yet - I still have to quilt them. My longarm machine is currently disassembled because we got new carpet last week. Once we get everything put back where it belongs we'll get my longarm back together and these will get quilted. I don't see that happening this month, though! :) The place mats pattern is called "Party for 4" and it is made by Judy Niemeyer.

I meant to do these place mats last week, but got distracted with this:

It was started last October or September and I really wanted to finish it before starting a new project. It isn't quilted yet either but I'll post pics when it does get quilted. It is based on a pattern called "Glacier Star" by Judy Niemeyer, but I changed it so mine is round and I had to make up new flying geese units too.

I thought I would use these fabrics for the place mats, but then decided there wasn't enough purple so I  made this instead:

This is a Jelly Roll Race quilt, which is made from any of those 2.5" strip fabric bundles you can buy. Moda calls them Jelly Rolls, Hoffman calls them Bali Pops (that's what this is), etc. There are 40 strips in the pack, and you sew them end to end (yeah, that's 1600" of fabric). Then you bring the two ends together and sew one 800" long seam down the long side. Cut the fold, bring the ends together again and sew a 400" seam. Continue in this manner until you wind up with a usable quilt. You can always cut your own strips - no need to buy new fabric for this but that's more fun.

Potholders!

Here they are...a bit boring after the fancy Kodiak girls :)  Next up, placemats! Becky

Potholders....

So my sister's 'inspired' slash mentally forced me to get some potholders made :) as they were whipping them out left & right!  So here's my first attempt, you can find the tutorial here!    Also, I used fabric instead of ribbon as I didn't have any (well I didn't actually look) that 'matched'.  Turned out pretty good, not perfect, but hey, I like 'em & they'll work!

Natalie D. Horn
Kodiak, AK

Pot Holders - Stefanie

I have been a busy girl, but mostly because I have to kill some time waiting for baby to come!

The first set I did are super cute "pincher" ones I found on Pinterest. Here is the link for the tutorial. The only thing I did different was used 2 layers of Insulbrite and skipped the batting. All in all, it was super easy.

Then, I made this one...

And lastly, I made this set of 4 smaller ones...

I used a white towel on the back of all of my potholders because I figured they'd get dirty and I really only need one pretty side. Hopefully, my picture taking will get better! It is hard to get a good angle & good lighting.

Happy crafting!

Stefanie Kondro
Kodiak, AK

First challenge completed! and it is only January 11th!

Yay! I finished my first set of pot holders for the challenge!

Here is the tutorial I used as my guide from A Pretty Cool Life. The only thing I did differently was used two layers of insulbrite instead of one.

Thanks to Pinterest, I have a few more potholder tutorials pinned that I would like to try and complete before the end of the month! We will see how that goes! If my sister continues to inspire me (she already has 3 different potholders completed!) I will be able to pull through with another set of potholders! Which are much needed at my house. 

How is everyone else doing with their challenge? Be sure to share your completed projects!!

Alison

Kodiak, AK

pot holder links

http://www.instructables.comhttp//www.instructables.com/id/Sew-your-own-potholders//id/Quilted-Pot-Holder/  With Binding

http://www.instructables.com/id/Sew-your-own-potholders/  No Binding

January - Potholders and Placemats

Our first project theme!  If you have pictures, patterns or links to share go for it!  So excited to see what we all create!

Welcome

Let the crafting begin!  A project a month - be it we all do the same thing or not!  Post ideas and links and questions and suggestions here :)