April 30th National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day

April 30th National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day                                                                      By: Kira Dobbs

If you're anything like me I LOVE animals! Sadly there are so many pets that sit every day at a shelter hoping that today will be their lucky day, a day where they will find their "fur"ever home. If I could I would turn into the crazy pet lady who adopts at least an animal a day, but alas I live in a pet free condo. As much as it breaks my heart that I can not adopt I know that there are other ways I can help, and you can too! Many shelters are always in need of blankets and beds to make their pets as comfortable as they can while they are looking for homes. So dig into your stash and start quilting! Simple scrappy quilts will be loved by all the furry friends. Also if you have super super small scraps consider stuffing a bed with them. I know there are many groups that even accept your small scraps and they will make them into beds for shelters. So even if you can not adopt one today, you can still make a HUGE impact and brighten up (and warm up) a little furry friends day today!

Here is our friends adopted dog - Daisy Mae enjoying her hand-me-down blanket. It was originally an "oops" quilt my mom did that turned into our dogs quilt and then over time got passed on to Daisy Mae. As you can see she is one happy pup to not only have a blanket, but a loving "fur"ever home!

April 7th National Handmade Day

April 7th National Handmade Day
By Kira Dobbs

Coming from an artistic family I was raised with many unique and fun traditions. My all time favorite is our Christmas Gift Tradition. Our tradition is that you must make something for everyone before you can buy them something from a store. Some years (and people) it takes almost all year to come up with and to finish a project, and yes some years your gift might come to you in kit form, but it is always fun. I actually don't mind getting a kit because then after opening presents in the morning, you get to spend the rest of the day with that person finishing the gift (so really it's like two gifts in one!). This tradition has carried on to other holidays as well like birthdays and Mothers and Fathers Day. You can never beat the feeling of giving something that you took the time to really think about what that person would like and then make them something accordingly. I also love and cherish the gifts I receive because I know they took just as much thought and time to make it for me. So I urge you to try it out! Pick a holiday, a gift giving day, or any day, and make something for someone you love.

Christmas Day!

Panda Quilt mom made me. Real bamboo was used as the hanger.

Get creative with your wrapping.

#ShopSmall

Join us tomorrow for Small Business Saturday. Happy Squirrel Quilts is a family owned and operated online quilt shop specializing in hard to find fabrics, patterns, and sewing related products. We hope you have fun shopping and don't forget to use #shopsmall as well as #happysquirrelquilts when showing off your new found goodies!

Sewing Tip #28

When sewing a straight line instead of using both hands to guide your fabric just put one finger where you want to end up. Your machine will automatically gravitate towards your finger for a perfect straight line!

Sewing Tip #11

A lot of times a quilt show will advertise on a nice sturdy bookmark. Hold onto these bookmarks to use when you're paper piecing. They are perfect for folding your paper over and then holding your ruler in place. A great way to make paper piecing easier and to recycle!

Sewing Tip #10

Have a small quilt or wall hanging? Use 505 spray to quickly and easily baste your project. Simply spray a light coat and stick down your layers. One can will go a long way! Find some at your local quilt shop, Walmart, or online.

Sewing Tip #9

When tracing a pattern use freezer paper. You can still see through it to easily trace and it’s sturdy. You can also use your iron on a low setting to press it to your fabric instead of pinning it to cut out your pieces. You can use the iron on each piece up to 10 times.