Finally Sewing Again: Making A Table Topper Quilt

After a really long time not feeling creative, or having time to do anything crafty, I'm slowly finding some free moments and a bit of inclination to tackle things.  Truthfully speaking, most days I'm exhausted from dealing with my big kids, corralling my toddlers and keeping my shop running, but the crafting spark hasn't totally gone out!  

What pushed me to start sewing again was needing a sample project for my shop (so this post kind of ends up being a bit of an "advertorial", but more because this really is what I'm making right now - not because I want to get all sales-y on ya!).  

I've just started carrying digital quilt patterns, which is great for getting customers sewing asap, but one design didn't have a finished project photo or digital mock-up to go with it.  Kind of hard to sell an item without an image of it, right?  So I decided to use fabrics from a new Christmas collection I got in (called Comfort & Joy) to make this sample table topper quilt:

To be honest, I'd been a bit nervous to start it.  I've been a self-taught sewer of bags, clothes, home decor and literally every other fabric project for years, but I'm not really a quilter.  I've only made a handful of basic quilts and since I'd not sewn anything in months I was a little apprehensive of my rusty skills making a go of it.  Add the fact that two of the fabrics I was using were directional, I needed to take a little extra time to make sure I had them cut with the pine trees and text facing the right ways:

I do have to say it came together pretty quickly.  The design is the Guiding Star Table Topper Digital Quilt Pattern.  The instructions are very straightforward so a beginner quilter like me can easily make it.  It features an 8 inch focal square, so I fussy cut from my text print fabric to make a nice holiday phrase block:

The one modification I made was to make the back self-binding rather than doing a separate backing piece and binding edge.  

It saved me a bunch of time and made it easier to get a nice even binding edge on the front.  I used this handy how-to for getting nice mitered corners with a self binding, since it had been so long since I'd done them last: 

This little quilt can be used as a table topper, wall hanging finished or as a center for making a larger quilt.  

I feel confident enough to do another one (or more) and possibly piecing them to make a larger quilt, so I'm pleased I could get back in the sewing saddle and test drive a new pattern at the same time.  Plus, I've got a nice, new, Christmas-y item already sewn up early.  Boy, does it feel good to be ahead on a project for a change!