News: Everything Quilt

Baby Girl's Handmade Secret Garden Quilt

By Casey Corey

Baby Girl's Handmade Secret Garden Quilt

I knew I was going to create a custom Everything Quilt for Etta, but I struggled for a long time to decide on a theme. Honestly, with this third baby, it was hard to make a lot of decisions. We struggled between two names for a long time- we had originally decided on a different name a couple of years ago but it became really popular. So we decided to let it go and went with Etta. We both love the name Etta, but usually we are very decisive and have the name picked out early in pregnancy. I don’t think we finally decided on Etta until my third trimester!

pregnant belly with fabrics for baby quilt

Also at some point in my third trimester, I finally decided Etta’s room would be a Secret Garden theme with blacks, browns, and greens. Once I made the decision, then the fun began: picking out fabrics! I found the perfect black and white floral design for the back. 

workspace desk with fabrics for quilt

The front of the Everything Quilt has 6 patterned fabrics and 4 solid colors. I chose some moody, darker patterned fabrics and some lighter white and beiges to balance them out. This design requires a lot of cutting and sewing and then some more cutting and sewing. Did I mention cutting and sewing?

fabric for handmade baby quilt

fabric for handmade baby quilt

fabric for handmade baby quilt

fabric for handmade baby quilt

fabric for handmade baby quilt

 

She’s four months now and it’s coming along. I sneak in some personal sewing in between making beautiful quilted heirlooms for our clients. I hope to have it done in the next few months after our two new handmade quilt collections are released! Make sure you subscribe to the newsletter to stay in touch. In the meantime, Etta happily uses her brother and sister's quilts. 

baby doing tummy time on handmade quilt

baby laying with big sister under handmade quilt

Interested in a handmade quilt for the baby or child in your life? I would love to bring your quilt to life. All of our quilts are made to order and take about four to six weeks to complete. Send me an email: casey@caseysheilaquilts.com so we can connect and get started today. 

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How We Use Our Children’s Quilts

By Casey Corey

How We Use Our Children’s Quilts

If you’ve been following along on social media, then you know I have three silly and wonderful kids: a four year old, a two year old, and a three month old. I thought it would be fun to share with you how they use their children's quilts. What started off as a handmade baby quilt for each of them has evolved over time as they grow.



All of my babies used their quilts as soon as we got home from the hospital. It’s a soft place for them to lay down for playtime and tummy time. Spit up is of course inevitable. I machine wash the quilts and they have all held up well. We also use them as the backdrop for their monthly photos.

My two year old now uses his quilt for pretend play. I love watching their imaginations come alive. There are many games of being a ghost, peek a boo with the baby, and pretend sleeping. Pretend sleeping is when they get all cozy on the floor with pillows, the quilts, turn off the lights, wake up 15 seconds later and do it all over again. Ah, the repetitive life of a toddler.

My four year old now uses her quilt to sleep with every night. If I’m being honest, she’s still in her crib (without the railing attached). We are waiting on some home renovations to finish before upgrading her to a big girl bed. But she delicately and purposely hangs the quilt on the side of her crib every morning. The quilt has been through so many washes at this point between spit up, messes, and night time potty training. Her children’s quilt has proven durable and soft. I will make her a bigger one when the time comes and save her baby quilt for picnics, imaginative play, and hopefully one day for her babies (should she choose to have children). 

I offer custom quilts and two quilt collections right now: Wild Things and Pout Pout Fish (of course, inspired by the legendary books). They are all made to order in baby, toddler, and twin sizes. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at casey@caseysheilaquilts.com

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Everything Quilt: Part 4 of the Custom Quilt Blog Series

By Casey Corey

Everything Quilt: Part 4 of the Custom Quilt Blog Series

So far in the Custom Quilt Series, we’ve shared the basics of creating a custom Casey Sheila Quilt. We’ve also taken an in-depth look at customizing both the Raindance Quilt and the  Ombré Quilt. This week is all about customizing the Everything Quilt.

custom baby quilt with soft greens, yellows, and blues

baby boy custom quilt

The Everything Quilt is a fun, detail-oriented way of packing a little bit of everything into a modern baby quilt. Lots of patterned, coordinating fabrics with geese flying in vertical directions. As with all of our custom quilts, this quilt is a feast for baby’s visual stimulation and provides a soft place for tummy time. Because there is a lot of anticipated spit up and drool in tummy time, this quilt is also machine washable.

two toddlers laying under custom quilt

Once baby is old enough, the quilt can be used for naps and night time sleep. My four year old still comfortably snuggles with her baby sized quilt (40” x 40”) and the toddler sized quilt (40” x 50”) would last even longer. Once they are ready for a bigger size, you can tuck this quilt away for your baby to give your grandchildren one day. Quilts are for life. 

To customize your own Everything Quilt, we start off discussing a theme or color palette for the quilt. Maybe baby boy’s nursery is polar bear themed and so we start off looking for coordinating colors and fabrics. Or maybe you just moved to South Florida and you spent your pregnancy walking along the Miami River with the manatees swimming alongside you. We would then look for fabrics that fit that theme. Because the quilt is custom, the theme is anything you dream up! I am here to help you make those ideas a reality. 

fabrics for baby boy polar bear quilt

After we discuss a theme/color palette, I’ll send you a mock-up. Once approved, I will order the fabrics. Custom quilts generally take between 4-8 weeks to create. I will literally wrap your dreamy quilt with a bow and mail it off as soon as it’s done. I can’t wait to work with you. Please send me an email at casey@caseysheilaquilts.com to start designing a forever quilt for the baby in your life. 

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Custom Florida Sea Life-Inspired Quilt

By Casey Corey

Custom Florida Sea Life-Inspired Quilt

First finished custom quilt of 2021! This beautiful, inspiring momma-to-be reached out about creating a custom quilt. She and her husband first moved to Miami when he matched at a local hospital. When they first got to Miami, they lived in an apartment overlooking the river. Every morning she started her day with a cup of coffee and watching the sea life in the river. Her favorite memory was watching a momma and baby manatee swim by. They moved so majestically despite their size and the small width of the river.

manatee fabric on back of baby quilt

And yep, we found a fabric with a momma and baby manatee. It was meant to be the back of baby's quilt. Momma didn't know baby's gender so we went with gender neutral colors. Honestly, it was easy to piece the colors because the ocean and sea life colors are gorgeous, deep blues, yellows, teals, whites, and creams. Perfect for a gender neutral baby quilt.

flying geese baby quilt

We went with the toddler size (40" x 50") so it would be big enough for baby to enjoy for years to come. She chose the Everything Quilt design. This is one of my favorites because it has a little bit of everything. Cotton and linen, and so many different patterned fabrics. In addition to the manatees, the quilt has gold foliage, herons, seagulls, waves, and suns.

baby quilt hanging in front of plants

Creating this quilt brought me so much joy. Can't wait to see baby and family using and loving it. Still accepting custom orders for 2021, send an email to casey@caseysheilaquilts.com to start planning handmade baby quilt today.

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How a Bearloom Inspires My Quilting

By Casey Corey

How a Bearloom Inspires My Quilting

Isn’t it funny how when one of your senses are triggered, it can bring you right back to a specific moment in time. A specific feeling. A specific emotion.

Stuffed Panda Toy and Bouncing Baby

When I was born, my grandfather brought this huge stuffed panda bear for me to the hospital (My enneagram 5 wing cringes at the thought of the impracticality of transporting that bear home). Over 30 years later, I am proud to say that bear still sits tall in my bedroom. And every day, one of my senses trigger a happy, comforting memory of my childhood with him. 

Sometimes I get a big whiff of Big Panda when I bend over to pick up the dirty laundry that’s stacked up next to him on the floor. When I do, I remember sitting next to him with my childhood dog and reading books. I loved sitting up against him to read. He was sturdy and soft- a delicate balance. My miniature dachshund would sleep in my lap as we got lost in the pages. 

Each time I touch Big Panda’s thick arm to move him or give him a little pat, I think about how I’ve brought him every where I’ve lived including my college dorm room. Even though he takes up a surprising amount of space, he has always been an essential. He probably knows me better than I know myself. 

Although I don’t have any actual taste memories of Big Panda, I’m sure I drooled all over that guy as a baby. 

Every time I hear Dylan fall on top of Big Panda, I smile to myself thinking of how I used to run at Big Panda full speed in my carpeted bedroom and launch into him. We’d roll over on top of each other and I’d burst into a fit of giggles. He was such a kind playmate. 

And whenever I see Big Panda, I’m reminded of how he’s provided me comfort throughout the years. It feels like a big bear hug just thinking about it. One day I’ll pass him on to my kids and their grandkids, and he’ll continue the tradition for them. 

big stuffed panda teddy bear with handmade quilt

If one bear who is relatively immobile and just hangs out in my room can provide all of that, can you imagine what a child’s quilt can do? Fort builder, reading side kick, good dream catcher, all around protector- a source of comfort and love. Can you imagine unpacking your child’s quilt after years of being tucked away so they can regift it to their new babies? What a treasure. Both Alice and Dylan have custom versions of the Everything Quilt. I can’t wait to see the memories that smelling their quilts 30 years from now sparks for them. Custom quilts are open for 2021, send an email to casey@caseysheilaquilts.com to get started planning today. 

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