Hello?

Do you hear those crickets, too? It's been awful quiet here on the blogfront and if I'm being honest, my sewing machine has been quite quiet, too. It's almost like it's summer vacation or something;) I knew that I'd get less sewing done once summer rolled around, but I never realized just how little time I would get in my little sewing room. It's a good thing I have Rachel's Handstitched Camp to keep me busy while I am away from my machine! 

It's Week 2 of the camp, which means that we have time to work on the projects that we learned in Week 1.  This week we learned the running stitch, blind stitch, and the blanket stitch. I started and finished this little beauty yesterday while the kids were playing outside. It's a needle book to keep organized when I want to craft at home or on the go! It was the first time I ever did reverse applique and I must say that I have a lot of projects dreamed up using this technique. I make a lot of zippered pouches and covered notepads as gifts and I can definitely see trying a bit of reverse applique on those to make them a bit more special. 

Here's the inside of the needle book. I have yet to add the optional scissor pocket because, well, I don't have little scissors! All I own are large pairs so I am now on the hunt for a pair of small embroidery scissors that can fit in my oh-so-portable needle book. Yes, I know I could just go to JoAnns and pick up a pair right away, but I'm looking for something cute! 

And here is a sneak peak at the second project of the camp that I have started. It will be the center medallion for a quilt that will (hopefully) be completed at the end of the camp, which runs all summer long. I whipped these first blind stitches up while the kids played on this awesome tree house at the zoo earlier in the week. I promise my stitches have gotten better since then! Please excuse the photo, too, as I took it on my ipod while the kiddos played. I look forward to keeping you updated on my handstitching progress!

And in case you are worried that my sewing machine will be getting too dusty, I will finish piecing a quilt top today for a tutorial that will be posted over at Plum and June next week during the Let's Get Acquainted Blog Hop! 

Linking up with Lee's WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced!