Happy Monday! I have been anxiously awaiting the release of Elea Lutz’s new book Pretty Playtime Quilts and guess what showed up last week! Firstly, not only is Elea the sweetest person, but she is incredibly talented and everything she creates is sure to please. Her darling illustrations bring whimsical fun to the fabrics she designs and now to every page of her new book. Pretty Playtime Quilts is a collection of six different quilted projects, but even better it is full of lots of fun blocks that can be used for so much more. Yaay!Secondly, today kicks off an awesome quilt along hosted by the Fat Quarter Shop that you can join in on, too! For the next sixteen weeks, I along with a group of 15 other ladies will take turns showing you a new block each week of the adorable Garden Fairy Sampler Quilt. I’ve gathered up my fabrics and plan on using mainly prints from Elea’s new line Strawberry Biscuit. Come join in on the fun! You can get the book here and sew using your favorite fabric, or you can go here and get the quilt kit.

Here is a list of the participating bloggers:

Week 2 – Erin from Why Not Sew?
Week 3 – Wynn from Zakka Art
Week 4 – Anorian from Samelia’s Mum
Week 5 – Amy from Diary of a Quilter
Week 6 – Renee from Sewn with Grace
Week 7 – Jemima from Tied with a Ribbon
Week 8 – Amanda from Jedi Craft Girl
Week 9 – Debbie from Happy Little Cottage
Week 10 – Tina from Emily Ann’s Kloset
Week 11 – Erica from Kitchen Table Quilting
Week 12 – Kristyne from Pretty by Hand
Week 13 – Heidi from Fabric Mutt
Week 14 – Bridgette from The Family Hearth
Week 15 – Lorrie from Sew Mod Designs
Week 16 – Kristin from They Grow Up Too Fast

xoxo,

Bridgette

So, I have been keeping a little secret over the past couple of months. A secret I announced on Instagram a few weeks ago, and am just now getting around to sharing with my dear readers here…

We are expecting a little baby boy, and he is due to arrive in just two short weeks!

Since he is our first little one in our new home we decided to pretty much start from scratch with the nursery, and have spent the last two months remodeling and preparing everything for our sweet babe. (And Finian! Who is still in the crib and loving his new space.)My husband spent the first weekend wood paneling the back wall. I am crazy about ship plank walls, and just love the character it adds to the room without taking away from the softness I was going for. While he had his tools out, I talked him into building a blanket ladder and a set of shelves. He is so good at turning what I have in my head into the real deal!

The animal prints are by far Finian’s favorite part. He wakes up pointing and talking about them everyday. They really are the sweetest prints and I think I squealed when I found them because they are exactly what I was looking for. They are available from James River Studios on Etsy. (His entire shop is a must see!)

For our new little one’s quilt, I decided to go with a very simple patchwork square quilt in low volume prints, and a sweet little hand-stitched tag. This little crochet sheep may be my most favorite toy I’ve ever crocheted. He is so sweet and was so much fun to make! I added the little linen tag when he was finished and just hand sewed it in to place. The pattern is by Lanukas. (You can find the translated version on Pinterest here.)For the wood blocks, I found a set of 2″ wooden squares from Michaels, and sanded the sides and corners smooth. The pictures are from a Peter Rabbit book that had been loved to pieces and was falling apart. I cut each picture a little less than 2″, rounded the corners, and Modge Podged them  to the squares.

The baptismal outfit is one I had sewn when I was expecting Liam. It has now been worn by both Liam and Finian and it makes me so excited to see it hanging there waiting to be worn by our third son. The wooden fixtures that it is hanging on is another make by my husband. I found the round raw wood pieces and knobs at Hobby Lobby and he turned them into the perfect hanging displays.The children are beyond excited to meet their little brother. They giggle and crowd around my belly with every little kick and move. They sing to him and talk to him. He is already loved so much.

xoxo, Bridgette