Abby's 3rd birthday quilt

This might be the cutest thing i've done in a while.....even if i do say so myself. LOL

I figure 3 year olds like to have things with their name on it....and it is time for them to practice tying shoelaces, buttoning clothes, velcro, snaps, zippers. they want to do it themselves. and for the treat of learning to do these things....there is a surprise in the pockets. i sure hope she likes it.

Here is the front....with her name and 8 pockets.

The back is a chocolate brown in dots

For the letters i enlarged them from a font on the computer to paper size and printed them out to use as a pattern and fused them to the top. when i quilted the top i made sure to go around the edges. I quilted it first and then added the pockets.

Here are the pockets...

The side pocket....just like in jeans

The velcro pocket...i think every kid loves velcro.....it's that riiiipppp sound. LOL

The zipper pocket...i was going to put a zipper pull to make it easier but didn't want something she could put in her mouth if it came loose. plus there is a small baby in the house, too.

The magnetic snap pocket.....like you find on purses. i found the number 3 on the fabric and used it to cover the snap. and she will remember she got this quilt when she was 3 years old.

The open pocket...i like this one...all ruffly and easy to stick your hand in.

The shoe string pocket...do kids still wear shoes with shoestrings? i sewed the lace down at the top 2 holes so it couldn't come all the way out. it reminds me of the old girdles that they tied women into in the 'good ole days'.

The kangaroo pocket...like in hoodies....for 2 hands.

And the button pocket...a pretty large button for little fingers

Some of the pockets are larger and can hold more than one animal in them. I made 8 animals...one for each pocket...but they were so darn cute that i couldn't stop until i made them all. 21 in all. LOL

So, all those animals wouldn't fit in just 8 pockets so i had to make a bag for Abby to carry her animals around if she wanted to.

I still had some fabric left to make the bag. it is lined and closes with velcro.

I put batting between the outside and the lining and sewed random lines across and down.

And here is what you have been waiting for.....the animals.   these were too fun.

The horse, giraffe, and whale

The elephant and cow

The cat and pig

The butterfly, bunny and dog

The koala and alligator

The sheep and lion...looks like they had the same hairdresser.

The monkey

The snail and chick

The turtle and tiger

And, finally, the raccoon and the bear.

All the animals are about 4 inches in size. and all are baby friendly. can be thrown in the washer and dryer. they are applique and completely done on the embroidery machine.

I hope Abby enjoys her quilt and shows her little sister all her animals. and if little sister chews on something....she can't hurt it.

Happy Birthday, Abby

Pocket Pets and other stuff

Did i tell you about the quilt i am making for a 3 year old girl's birthday?  it will have pockets .... to practice zippers, snaps, ties, and velcro. in the pockets will be stuffed pets.

So far, i have a cat and a pig.

And a butterfly, bunny and dog.

Plan A was to put small dolls in the pockets but i couldn't find anything small enough that was soft. so i remembered i had an embroidery CD that makes small animals and i think they will work just fine.

I need to make 3 more. it's hard to decide which ones to make. i like the alligator...but does a 3 year old care about an alligator...or even know what one is?  there is a horse, cow, monkey, bear, snail, lion, turtle, koala, whale, tiger, racoon, chick, giraffe, lamb and elephant.  hard to choose just 3.

Which 3 would you choose?  perhaps i should make extra and send them, too.

While i am contemplating that....i tangled an egg gourd last night. first i painted it with red acrylic paint and then got my permanent marker and had fun.

I like doing these...it helps the brain with quilting designs, too.

This was done in a couple hours...so pretty quick and easy.

Now i have a large queen size quilt on the frame to start on. there is lots and lots of space for playing.