Log Cabin Quilt and 1930s Reproduction Fabric

Today I received a delightful surprise in my email inbox -- a photo of this beautiful lap quilt made by one of my wonderful Etsy customers for her very lucky mum.  She utilized the reproduction 1930s fabric that I stock in my Etsy shop, in addition to some complimentary fabric she acquired for the project and backed it with warm fleece.  The log cabin pattern lends itself well to this type of project, you can make your quilt practically any size without a lot of adjustment.

Here's the beautiful quilt:

Two fabric bundles were used for this quilt, this one:

And here's the other bundle:

I'm so excited to share this work, it's terrific to see the creative process in action.  This lap quilt, using vintage inspired fabric and a traditional pattern resulted in a very lovely, warm and cozy work of art, like a hug, wrapped in love.  Sweet!

Free Apron Patterns

There is just something charming about aprons.  Just looking at them brings back warm memories of delicious smells coming from the kitchen.  Yesterday I was looking through a vintage sewing pattern book and found the patterns for these two little sweethearts.  The vintage pattern book isn't dated but the designs look very 1930s to me.

As you can see from the description, the directions call for the aprons to be made with oil cloth, but any pretty cotton fabric will do.  You'll have to do a little drafting to enlarge the pattern, but it's pretty straight forward after that.

This half apron would be perfect for either crafts or gardening.  The appliqué is charming and you could embroider a cute design on any of them for a personalized look.

One of the things that I love about my large vintage pattern book collection is discovering the treasures within.  So many of them are from a thrifty time, this one from the 1930s is a prime example.  "Make Do or Do Without," as the saying goes.  Enjoy making aprons from these vintage apron patterns, they'll look just as good today as they did then!

Free Children's Vintage Cross Stitch Patterns

Looking through my stash of vintage cross stitch patterns I decided to add a few more free patterns, this time children's themed patterns.  The first two, old fashioned little girls, would be super easy and fast to sew, could be quickly stitched into holiday ornaments or stitched side-by-side for a pretty sampler for a little girl's room.

Sunbonnet Sue style:

This page depicts several old fashioned scenes of children playing..... love the skaters!

Not children, but these patterns could be used to decorate children's clothing or maybe embellish baby sheets, the bunnies, squirrel and Doxie dogs are pretty darn cute!  Of course, the scary kitties would be better for Halloween decorations and the rooster would be great on a tea towel.

And I don't know the story behind this but it reminds me of a storybook tale ..... perhaps Hansel and Gretel?

 Coming from the same page are these adorable bunnies.  Love the repeat pattern!

There is something charming about old fashioned imagery that never seems to go out of style.  These vintage cross stitch patterns are just as sweet today as there were 100 years ago when there were first published.

Vintage Christmas Cross Stitch Patterns

Christmas is a little more than a month away which leaves plenty of time to create using these vintage Christmas cross stitch patterns.  These cross stitch patterns came from an original vintage pattern book from the 1920s.

The first thing that comes to mind are Christmas ornaments!  The first chart could easily be made into a Christmas ornament and personalized with the family monogram.  What a unique gift this would make for someone special!

In addition to ornaments, the swag above would look charming on napkins, tablecloth corners or even pillowcase edgings.  Below are all the letters of the alphabet for easy personalization.

And here comes Santa Claus!  These Christmas ornaments would take a little longer to create but would look great on any Christmas tree and would make very special gifts!

Time to get cracking!  With Christmas just around the corner, time to get out the trusty embroidery floss and start stitching!  I just love this timeless, vintage Christmas look and can't wait to get started with these fun vintage Christmas cross stitch patterns!