Pattern Launch: Be My Valentine Heart Mug Rug

Any Pinterest fans out there???

Me, too!

One of my most popular posts

has been spreading like wildfire on Pinterest.

Maybe you've seen this Be My Valentine Mug Rug.

I figured a lot of people would like to make their own

versions of these sweet hearts,

so I wrote a tutorial-style pattern with lots of photos and tips.

It's now available in my shop on Etsy called eamylove for only $3.00,

as an instant download.

Believe it or not, I first made these mug rugs in 2013.

Since then, I've created many more of these

adorable quilted hearts, edged in ric rac.

You can find them here...

and here...

and here...in my blog.

Oh, there will definitely be more in upcoming posts.

I have sew much fun creating these!!!

If you make them, too, I hope you will send me pictures!

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Spring and Summer - Reversible Mug Rug

Do you remember when I showed you

my reversible mug rug,

with one side decorated for Autumn...

and the other side ready for Winter?

Ummm...I bet you also remember that I only

showed one side at a time,

rather than both sides in the same post.

This time I'm going to have mercy...

I'll show both sides today!

Let's get going with Springtime tulips,

featuring yet another block

from the Quilty Fun book by Lori Holt.

I used two of the tulips

without any sashing between them.

I chose some of my favorite Bake Sale prints,

also designed by Lori Holt.

I really love the solid green fabric

for the leaves...very lifelike!

A little bit of quilting around the edges finished

the flowers off sweetly and neatly.

For the Summer side,

I turned to my other go-to designer...

The Patchsmith!

This time I used the Ice Cream Sundae Mug Rug pattern.

Nothing says summertime

like a cold and creamy ice cream sundae, right?

Some fresh fruit tops it all off,

and I really {heart} those red cherries!

My mug rug came out kind of large,

so I added a straw to the sundae...

and now it's more of a SODA!

I live in western Pennsylvania, where a soda has ice cream

and pop, mixed together. 

{Over in eastern PA, where my sister Susie lives,

you don't get any ice cream with your "soda".  It's just plain POP!}

;)

My Cath Kidston mugs look so adorable with both sides,

don't you agree?

I think I'll be making more mug rugs from these designs,

one at a time, some other day...

while I dream of sunny seasons.

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Be My Valentine

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!
How would you like to stitch up your own version of my

BE MY VALENTINE mug rug?

The pattern is only $3.00 and is available at

Etsy in my shop, called eamylove.
It's written in a tutorial style, with loads of step-by-step photos and tips!

I've had fun this month creating hearts

in anticipation of this lovely holiday,

and today I have a few more to share with you.

I love that ricrac

and all those little squares of pink and red and white.

I didn't have to go far to find some scraps

from my table runner and pillow

that were perfect for these mug rugs!

The trimmed pieces from the Herringbone Blocks

and leftover strips gave me a jumpstart,

 using these fabulous fabrics.

I'm not gonna lie...it took me a long while

to create a piece of patchwork made up of 

tiny little squares.

Then I did some cross-hatching

and cut a pretty heart shape from the quilted magic

that came from my sewing machine.

Here's where I veered away from the original...

I put my ricrac between the layers, to finish the edge.

{Love at first sight!}

Want to see the back?

So sweet...and fun to make, actually.

I just had to make another one.

Instead of all the little squares,

I pieced a large patchwork from those 

herringbone block trimmings,

then cut my heart shape.

This time I did some stipple quilting.

I had enough left for a third mug rug, too,

quilted in square cross-hatching again.

I like the way it looks like a crazy quilt.

Here are the backs of the whole set.

They look so pretty all together.

Each one is cute on its own, too!

I have such a great sense of accomplishment,

creating a few of these things that have

been in my mental Pinterest file

since before Pinterest came along!

I hope you'll enjoy

a very special St. Valentine's Day

with someone you love!

If you would like to make your own "Be My Valentine" mug rugs,
the pattern is available here on Craftsy, for only $2.99.
I'd love to see what you create!

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From the HEART

 Just in the nick of time,

I've created a pillow that's perfect for Valentine's Day!

{Or any other day of the year!}

 When I chose this month's theme...HEART...

 for the Across The Pond Sew Along,

I knew I wanted to make a quilted pillow for my project.

At the end of January I got involved with the Sew Can She

sew along, using the Herringbone Block tutorial from Bijou Lovely.

As soon as my first block was finished,

it gave me the idea to use it in the pillow!

{See what I mean?  It is kind of heart-shaped already.}

So I put this block aside until yesterday,

when I had some time for sewing. 

I pulled out my trusty machine applique friend...

Heat N Bond Lite.

I used the advanced heart-making skills 

I learned in elementary school quite a few years ago, 

and I cut out a big HEART template from a piece of paper, 

folded in half.  

I traced it onto the paper side of the Heat N Bond Lite

and cut it out, leaving about 1/2" on each side of the line.

Then I pressed the side with the exposed glue onto the BACK of my fabric,

centered to show off the pretty heart shape.

{Because I removed the center area of the Heat N Bond,

my heart was not overly stiffened.  Everyone loves a soft heart.}

Next  I cut out the heart on the line I'd drawn.

Easy peasy...here it is, with the paper backing removed,

all ready for stitching onto my square of creamy vanilla fabric.

I drive a Pfaff 2040 that is about 12 years old.

{I still love it.}

  It has an awesome blanket stitch that was the deal-maker for me 

when I was shopping for my sewing machine.

In no time, the center was finished.  

I chose two prints and made a mitered border.

I fused a piece of Pellon 987F fusible fleece to the back,

and it was ready for some quilting.

I stippled the entire center area.

For the borders,

I quilted straight lines, about 1/4" apart all the way around and around.

I love the crisp modern finish.

Now it was time to make the back...

and I used my very own free tutorial

for Pillow Backs with a Covered Zipper...a lovely finish, no?

The Pellon ShapeFlex 101SF fusible interface

keeps the back of my pillow smooth and strong.

I had no trouble stuffing a 20" pillow form inside,

for extra fullness and pudge!

{I wish you could squeeze this pillow for yourself.}

I just listed this pillow in my shop on Etsy, eamylove.

Hurry on over to see it, plus other projects I made

from the same fabrics.

Sending my LOVE for all of my friends Across The Pond

and on this same side...

with all my HEART!

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Paper Snowflake Pillow - a New Free Project

This morning at our house we had a few snow flurries...

nothing major, just decorative.

:)

I just love how each snowflake is unique, 

and also very beautiful.

{Here's how they look under a microscope...photo from interestingtopics.net}

 A few weeks ago,

snowflakes inspired me to create a pillow,

and the free pattern is now available for

you to download

at Pellon Projects!

{Go to pellonprojects.com and choose Projects, then the Home Decor tab, to find my Paper Snowflake Pillow project.  It's free to join the site, and then you can download the PDF file.}

I may have mentioned before how much I love using Pellon 987F fusible fleece

in so many of my projects.

I literally buy it by the bolt!

The brilliant idea I came up with was to use Pellon 987F Fusible Fleece

on the OUTSIDE of the pillow,

as the main design element!

Maybe you had been waiting patiently to see the front of this pillow.

{I featured the back for my own free tutorial for making 

Pillow Backs with a Covered Zipper.}

So now you can make your own

Paper Snowflake pillows!

I chose some aqua and red prints for my original pillow.

I love the contrast of the top fabric...both are from Joy by Kate Spain...

perfect for the background of the snowflake.

{The bottom fabric is awesome, too...will be used for a future pillow!}

Then I used some Ta Dots in Ocean by Michael Miller.

{Raise your hand if that shocks you.  Anyone???}

And for the backing, I love the snowmen from Ann Kelle's latest Christmas line, called Jingle, for Robert Kaufman.

I'm actually working on my second paper snowflake pillow right now!

I've got some Cherry Christmas for that one, by Aneela Hoey for Moda.

{I'm going to have to get a bigger Aneela Hoey box!}

I don't provide a template for the snowflake design, because...

That's the idea...no two are going to be alike!

But I promise...they will all be very pretty.

See what I mean?

I kinda went crazy with the quilting on my first one.

I liked the way it looked on the back, too...all squishy and soft!

A Snowflake Pillow can be used all winter, 

but a Christmas snow is always extra-magical.

Maybe you could partner up with a child you love,

to design and cut out the snowflake shapes.

If you do make one, or a flurry of Paper Snowflake Pillows,

I'd love to see them on my Flickr group page,

"Amy Made That! and So Did I!"

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