Sunshine in the Attic

Thursday, December 24, 2015

Merry Christmas Corner! December 2015

Welcome to Christmas Corner, a place to share Christmas sewing through out the year!

My last minute sewing included some reversible baskets from my own tutorial here. Made with Christmas fabric, they are just perfect for some cookie decorating kits I got from Amazon for about $6 each. Now to bake some last minute cookies, if I have the energy!

I found some stashed away, bright and colorful aprons (made from my apron tutorial here) and some dish towels to add to the baskets.

I also made some Cinnamon bread for some last minute gifts. Make your favorite bread dough (I'll include my recipe at the bottom here). Roll out the dough. Mix 1/3 cube melted butter with 1/4 cup white and 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1 tsp flour and 1 tsp cinnamon and spread onto the dough. Take a pizza cutter and slice it up so it will fit into the pans (which you see I have standing on end) and stack into the previously sprayed or buttered pan.

Lay the pans down and shake a bit to level out the bread dough.

UPDATE: Place a damp towel over the pan of dough and let raise in a warm place for about half an hour.
Put in the oven at 350 and bake for 45 minutes.

Take a knife and run along the edges of the pan and the bread comes out of the pan easily. Wrap in foil and give away soon, since it's delicious when it's warm!

I've already seen a few sew alongs I want to join in on and of course have many UFO's (including Christmas ones) I want to complete and also some patterns to share here in the coming year.

This is the 2016 sew along from Quilt Doodle Doodle

My favorite Bread Dough recipe

1 1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar (you could use less)

1 egg

1/8 cup (1/4 of a cube) of butter

1 teaspoon salt

3 1/2 cups flour, (plus 1 or 2 tablespoons so the dough isn't sticky)

1 tablespoon of yeast.

I put the ingredients in this order into my bread maker on the dough setting, but if you don't have a bread machine, just mix all ingredients together, let rise, punch down and let rise again. Roll out your dough and follow directions above to complete the cinnamon bread.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and thanks for stopping by Christmas Corner!

Sheri

Linking up with Connie at Free Motion by the River (she has a darling little runner that I definitely want to make soon)

This one is made by Carole at My Carolina Home

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Christmas Corner November 2015

Welcome to Christmas Corner -- a place to share Christmas Sewing throughout the year on the 25th of each month!

This month I'm working on Snowman mug rugs using this tutorial by Rachel at Not So Plain Jane.

The blocks come out to be 9" square and are quick to sew up.

I made some labels using the freezer paper method (Create the message for your label on the computer word processor. Format with 3 columns and make 12 (oops, only 9) labels per sheet. Cut out a piece of freezer paper 8 1/2 x 11" and a piece of cloth the same size. Iron the cloth to the shiny side of the freezer paper and place into the printer so the printing will be on the cloth. Press with hot iron to set the ink.)

I used the backing/ self binding tutorial by Allison at Cluck, Cluck, Sew here. It's much quicker than sewing binding on and looks quite nice. I will use this method a lot more now that I've tried it!

A bit of swirl quilting prior to sewing down the binding.

Found some fun packaging and accessories at the dollar store!

Packaged up in these cellophane bags with packet of hot cocoa will be a sweet treat, don't you think?

Thanks for stopping by Christmas Corner!

Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced and Crazy Mom Quilts.

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

November Birthday Gifts

I realized one of my coworkers is having a birthday tomorrow. I looked through my WIPs to see if there was something fun to finish up for a present.

Luckily, I found one completed place mat and one that just needed some binding.

Here is the link to the free tutorial at Bee in my Bonnet in case you want to make some too.

And I even found an apron to include for her husband because he's an excellent cook and she brings such delicious things to share! Here's the link to my simple apron tutorial. (Note: To this apron, I added a pocket, contrast bottom and contrast bias tape for finishing the edges which I don't show in my tutorial)

And I even found a card that I stamped in the past that became a cute birthday card!

Thanks for stopping by! Sheri

Saturday, November 7, 2015

Christmas Symbol Quilt Along -- Christmas Candle block and tutorial

Welcome to the Christmas Symbols Quilt Along! The fourth symbol of the quilt along is a candle.

John 8:12 : I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker! I'm enjoying designing candlesticks -- there are so many options! I'm going to test the pattern a bit more and may come back with corrections and please let me know if you have any questions.

Happy Halloween Greeting and Pillow!

I saw a cute pillow pattern/tutorial by Amy Smart of Diary of a Quilter and got inspired to sew some orange and black.

Here's the link and she's got lots of great free tutorials here.

Here's my version.

This is the back. I love the pumkin fabric and think the back is as cute or cuter than the front!

Have a fun Halloween! Linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts.

Saturday, October 24, 2015

Christmas Corner -- October 2015

Welcome to Christmas Corner -- a place to share Christmas projects on the 25th of each month! And to the Christmas Symbols Quilt Along!

Click here for quilt along details.

The 3rd symbol of the Christmas symbols quilt along is the Christmas tree. Whether decorated with homemade ornaments or fancy and sparkling ones, Christmas trees are another cherished Christmas symbol.

The ever green tree symbolizes life and points to heaven. Proverbs 11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life

I followed Elaine's directions for my Christmas trees. To make 10 1/2" blocks, she said to keep sewing scrappy strips until you have 9 1/2".

Elaine at Summercrafter's scrappy version. Click here for the tutorial!

I stacked up and sewed the strips together, as Elaine says, like a birthday cake.

I wanted to cut a 60 degree angle (see the 60 degree line at the bottom ) so I could then sew on a 30 degree side piece, but it didn't quite work out the way I wanted. The side pieces are a bit crooked, which would not have been noticeable if it weren't printed fabric.

I cut out a rectangle 11 x 6 3/4" and sliced diagonally for the side pieces but had to make 2 sets because you need mirror images.

They are fun!

Snowman Door Hanging

I started with some snow balled blocks I made a few years ago.

Three blocks sewn together, add a hat and 2 1/2" blocks border...

Appliqued a nose on...

Free motion quilting....

And some buttons for the finishing touch!

Thanks for stopping by Christmas Corner!

Saturday, October 10, 2015

Christmas Symbols Quilt Along-- Candy Canes and Tutorial

The second symbol of the quilt along, is the Candy Cane. Candy canes symbolize Christmas because the shape is like a shepherds crook.

The shepherds came to see baby Jesus. Christ is known as the good shepherd. And when turned, the shape is a letter "J"

Luke 2: 8-9 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them.

Candy Cane block tutorial

Christmas Symbols Quilt Along Wreath Tutorial

Christmas Symbols -- Wreath Block

Wreath Tutorial (2 styles) Both 10 1/2"

On Point Wreath 9 Patch Wreath

Celebrate Christmas by Sewing Christmas Symbols blocks
Easy and Quick to sew blocks to maximize precious time
The first symbol is a Christmas Wreath! The wreath is often made with evergreens which symbolize everlasting life and is circular which symbolizes eternity.