Guest post on Lily's Quilts

I finally wrote my guest post on Lily's Quilt. I had won a chance to share my ramblings on her blog when I entered her Fresh Sewing Day giveaway.

Go check out her blog, you won't regret it. Her quilts are amazing and she is happy to share her ideas for new quilt blocks with her followers. She also hosts regular Giveaways and Quilt Alongs. So make sure you don't miss out on those.

And of course please read my blog post "Nadine's Etsy 101" here: http://lilysquilts.blogspot.com/2011/06/nadines-etsy-101-guest-blog-post.html

Lots of love,

Nadine xx

Giveaway - Win an Odd Owl!

Hurrah! It's GIVEAWAY time.

You'll get a chance to win an Odd Owl with a letter of your choice. Just follow the instructions below for 3 chances to win. The Giveaway is open for a week and closes next Sunday, 3 July. The winner will be chosen by random number generator, so make sure you use all 3 of your chances to win.

And here is how it goes:

1. For your first chance to win go to the Etsy shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/QuiltedBlissByNadine have a browse and then come back here to the blog and leave a comment to this post telling me which of the Odd Owls you like best.

2. For your second chance become a blog follower and then leave a comment telling me you're a follower. (of course if you're already a follower just leave a comment telling me so.)

3. And for your third chance to win an Odd Owl go to the Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Quilted-Bliss-by-Nadine/204707436234824)
and Like it (the button is a the top next to the page name). Then come back here and leave a comment telling me you're a 'fan' on Facebook.

Good luck everyone. And maybe very soon you'll give an Odd Owl a new home.

Now ...



Love, Nadine xx

Meet the Odd Owls A to E

Hello everyone,

may I present to you the first 5 of my Odd Owl collection, personalized plush taggy toys for babies now available on Etsy. I absolutely adore them, all of them. Each one is unique and different. They are a bit creepy, a bit odd, but also cute and cuddly.

I used zigzag stitches everywhere to give the illusion of little feathers and to give them a sort of rugged look.



They are all stuffed with polyester filling and I have made sure they are safe for kids who PULL. I stitched all the seams three times and backstitched several times over the ribbons and I also used a zigzag stich on the seams to make sure the 3 layers are tight.



I have researched all the safety regulations for toys both for the UK and EU, but I also researched the CPSIA law for the US so I'll be able to sell to American buyers. It is classed as a low risk item because of the way it is made and the materials it contains, which means it is up to the maker to add the labels that contain all the information as stipulated by the law. Therefore, I have sewn a label into the bottom seam that complies with both legal regulations and that makes the toy trackable if a government agency ever picks it up. I hope that sorts all the legal requirements. I am having the toy tested by 2 very qualified babies, who can pull and grab all day long, so let's see whether the Odd Owls stand the test of time, the test of little baby hands rather.

Once I have finished the alphabet I am thinking of offering whole families of Odd Owls which will spell the baby's name. But there are only so many hours in a day and I will have to make those Odd Owls first.



I will also be moving on to Russian dolls, penguins, bunny rabbits and monsters. Can't wait.

I hope you like them.

Lots of love,

Nadine xxx







... and this was the first one I made:

Treasury Tuesday

Here are the last few treasuries I've created and I absolutely love them. I would love to own every single on of these items. Absolutely gorgeous stuff. And Etsy is a treasure trove of quirky and unusual handmade arts and crafts. If you ever need to relax and wind down, browsing through Etsy treasuries is almost meditating.

So what do you think of these ones? Do you like them?

Jungle Fever




Will you play with me?




Thinking in boxes or be square



Lots of Love,

Nadine xx

BEACH CAMPING baby quilts for twins

Hey everybody,

I hope you get to enjoy the sun on a glorious day such as this one. And while we're at it, speaking of sunshine ... and blue skies, birds, the sea, fishes, whales, submarines ... well, my latest 2 Etsy additions have the lot.

I made 2 very similar quilts using organic fabrics from Dan Stiles' Marine collection on the tops



and organic fabrics from Monaluna's Circa60 Beach Mod collection on the backs.



I was thinking I could offer these as twin quilts if somebody needs 2 similar quilts for 2 little boys for example and if they do buy BOTH quilts they can get free personalization on both quilts. what do you think? Great Idea or Meh?

The quilting was done in wavy lines:



Now, do they make you want to go swimming?

No? Camping maybe?

Well, I would love to go on one of those little submarines to explore. Wouldn't you?

Love, Nadine xx

Wedding Season needs a Wedding Quilt ...

.. and if you are sick and tired of all the wedding talk or when it turns September and it's time to put the wedding stuff away, well then you can just turn it over and you have a completely different colourful Kaffe Fassett quilt.





quilting on the back:



All hand sewn (hand pieced, hand quilted and the binding was done by hand too), made before I got my sewing machine a few months ago.

This quilt is so different from most of my other quilts. I normally use strong colours and bright modern patterns. So going for just black and white was unusual, and I love it. I always say my colour scheme is black white and red (I love it especially when it comes to clothes), so about time I made a quilt in those colours. I made a black white and red quilt for the monkey this year too, but that is very different and much much darker than this one, as most of the fabrics are black or dark red.

On a regular double bed (UK). The quilt measures 68” x 68” (172cm x 172cm).





I went for contrast quilting this time and not just texture as usual. I wanted the quilting to stand out and ended up using white thread on the black/dark grey fabrics and black thread on the white and lighter patches.

It was an obvious choice to call this a Wedding Quilt, maybe it will even end up being given to someone as a wedding gift. That would be wonderful. At least I hope so and I just listed it on Etsy http://www.etsy.com/listing/75993197/wedding-quilt-hand-sewn-reversible-2in1.

What do you think? Do you like it? Or do you prefer the rainbow colours of my other quilts?

Love, Nadine

Another taggie baby toy

I have just finished another little taggie toy and absolutely love it. I really enjoy making these too.

What do you think? Would it sell?












Let me know what you think.

Love, Nadine

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Creepy Tim-Burtonesque Taggie Doll. Yay or nay?

Hey everyone,

I need your help with something today. I experimented a bit and made something new and really don't know what to think of it. All that talk about taggies and baby blankets and what sells on etsy and what doesn't made me think I need to come up with something different, something that I can make quicker and more reasonably priced, as quilts are obviously not the way to go.

So I made this.





Too creepy? Too Burtonesque? Or do you like it? Are you a mum or gran and do you think a baby would like it?

It's a plush taggie toy (something like an owl maybe? I think I could make all sorts of creepy animal thingies or Russian dolls maybe). It's about 12" tall with a monogram stitched to the belly.

I thought a baby might like the tactile nature of all the applique stitching and the taggies and having something personalized with monograms always seems to be popular on Etsy.

Maybe I could make one per letter of the alphabet?

I would love to hear/read what you think.
All comments welcome.

Love, Nadine

California Dreaming in French Baby Quilt

Hurrah. I finished it! Another handsewn reversible quilt, this time it's a baby/toddler quilt and I quilted it A LOT which gives it a lovely texture and fluffiness (is that a word? if it isn't it should be :)

On the top I used fabric from the California Dreaming line and on the back I used Pat Bravo's Dreaming in French fabric in a differnt pattern.

It is 33" x 49" so it is not too big for a baby but also big enough for a toddler. Am actually quite pleased with the result. What do you think?



the back:





close up of the hand quilting:



I have just added it to the shop:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/75496693/hand-sewn-reversible-2in1-baby-toddler

I have also added a PERSONALISATION feature in the shop. Am so proud of it. I will now offer personalisation when somebody buys a quilt from the shop (but it has to be purchased separately).

I tried three different stitch lengths, oh yes, forgot to mention it will be HAND APPLIQUE, and any name or word can be added to either side of the quilt.











What do you think? Which of the three versions do you like best? (A, M or Y)

Lots of love,

Nadine xx

Fresh Sewing Day

What a great way to mingle, be sociable, meet other crafty people. I think I tend to just quilt away in my little flat and forget that there are so many lovely people living inside my laptop.

I have been working on lots of things last month. (yes, my plan to always finish one thing before I start the next is out the window)

I have finished this Quilt (reversible Quilt as you go)







.. and I opened my Etsy shop on May 15 http://www.etsy.com/shop/QuiltedBlissByNadine and decided to make more personalized baby quilts to sell in my shop. So I have started working on this handsewn reversible baby quilt:





... and I have been working on this quilt (again reversible, like all my quilts) and now I have just started quilting it.





... and I am also working on a really big reversible quilt with a maze in Far Far Away II fabrics on the top but I haven't got any photos of that one yet. So I guess you'll just have to come back later (;p)

SO WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN WORKING ON?

Lots of Love and thanks to Lynne for organizing this Fresh Sewing Day.

Nadine xxx