Wednesday, June 08, 2011

A World of Color


I am always, *always* trying to find uses for my scraps -- I have such a very hard time getting rid of fabric (no matter how small), but at the same time I have far too much and I'm determined to reduce my stash! While searching the Internet for good tiny-scrap-stashbusting projects, I came across a tutorial for Baby's Soft Book of Colors over on Homegrown Happy. Tada!

So after accumulating a pile of scraps in various colors (the entire orange page came from my mother-in-law's scraps -- would you believe I don't have a single piece of orange fabric?) and deciding on a few changes (like adding pink, brown, white, and black), I set to work. I decided to make three, since I was already going to the trouble of one. Little did I know just how long it would take... and the second and third are still unfinished!

But one is done.

Because I knew I needed to finish it before Little Man goes to college.



Did you know that I had ric-rac in all the colors of the rainbow, in descending sizes in my stash?

Neither did I.



I absolutely love crazy quilting now -- the little video tutorial on Homegrown Happy is fabulous, and it's virtually impossible to mess up. The only problem? This quilting method utilizes even the smallest, most oddly shaped scraps. Like I needed a reason to keep the pieces that even I usually throw away.



I tried to cram as many textures and shades into each page as I possibly could -- felt, velvet, corduroy, satin, taffeta, suede, linen, you-name-it.




Adding a few pages did change how I assembled the book -- I didn't think the method in the tutorial would work with an added set of pages, so I improvised. Several times. I think the finished product could be better, but hey! I don't think Little Man cares!

(I am a little unnerved that Pablo thought my purple page was blue -- but purple was almost as elusive as orange...)





So the big question -- how does Little Man like his book?





I think it's a winner!





Though he hasn't quite gotten the hang of how to read it yet...







9 comments:

  1. That's really great, Shannon! I'll have to keep that idea in mind for my friends' little ones... I have so many scraps I don't know what to do with it!

    I love those pictures of your wee fellow. What a sweetie!

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  2. That is awesome!! I love you! Good job!
    Katie (from S&S)

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  3. The bottom picture is just too great!!!

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  4. Tooooo cute! What a fantastic idea for a soft book for a baby. I'm definitely going to save this idea for our next one - such a wonderful thing for littles just exploring the world!

    Your little guy has got to be the cutest thing EVER and that smile! *swoon* He sure is a handsome little boy!

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  5. Oh fab, what a great idea!

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  6. Your little man has a FAB smile. He's a heart breaker already.

    By the bye, Kumiko Sudo turns the itty-bittiest scraps into works of art. They mostly require hand sewing, though, in case you prefer to use the machine.

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  7. GREAT idea, Shannon! I liked the zigzag rainbow cover as well. Little Man is *SO* adorable and getting so big!

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  8. Shannon, this is so amazing! And he is the Cutest Nephew! Those pictures are adorable! Lovely! Lovely! Lovely!

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  9. This is so very creative for Baby dear! I love the bright colors, but it is not gaudy! The last photo is just precious, too! It is so much fun to be a Mommy :) My children are 18, 18, and 20, so it takes me back to remember when I made special things like the cloth book! Blessings to you, Mother! may you find joy and your identity in Christ, and He will allow it to overflow into you wif-ing and mothering!!!

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