Monday, December 22, 2008

flea market fancy quilt

Over the weekend I was able to finish this quilt. Trying to take a decent photo of it was pretty challenging. (To say my normal spot is snow-covered would be an understatement!)

So here's one half...

and here's the other.

I love how the white thread shows up subtly on the grey in this block.

And here's the pieced back. Normally I wouldn't use quite so much white on the back, but I was determined to work from my stash. I LOVE the patchwork strip. I really really love the entire backing-it's actually 2 quilts in one. And those wrinkles at the top, those are just from the dryer.

The quilt measured about 65" x 80" before quilting. After quilting, washing and drying it shrunk up to 61" x 75". I think it's because of all the muslin. The quilt will have that just-out-of -the-dryer crinkled effect all the time. Which isn't a bad thing. At all.

Here's the time breakdown for making the entire quilt:

5 hours to piece top

1 hr 15 minutes to piece the back

35 minutes to pin baste

3 hrs 30 minutes to quilt

55 minutes to make and attach binding

3 hrs 50 min to hand stitch binding

25 minutes to make and attach label

for a grand total of 15 hours and 30 minutes.

If you would like to make a quilt similar to this, you can find the measurements here.
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On a completely different note, Christmas vacation is kicking my butt. Yes, it is the first day. If you think I'm exaggerating, you can ask my sister. She came to visit me today and got taste of the lunacy going on around here. She'll back up my story, I'm quite sure of it. :)

75 comments:

Unknown said...

I love how it turned out! I should try keeping tabs on my time spent on a quilt. Hmmmm.... I hope the lunacy doesn't last too long and the peacefulness of the holiday prevails! Merry Christmas!

Crafty Mama said...

I love the puckeryness of freshly laundered quilts. This looks great!! Hope that Christmas is less crazy for you soon!

tam said...

Again-another beautiful quilt! Very nice! I really like how you did the back too!
~Smiles~Tam!

Unknown said...

It looks amazing! I always love your quilts :) I chased my girls outside to try and find a little peace myself - it didn't last long enough but a good thing either way :) I am interested in how long it takes me to make a quilt! Is this your last quilt for 2008?

Anonymous said...

oh, i love it. the back is SO chic.

sammyjo said...

sounds like a cosy quilt! love the fact that it's like two quilts in one, and the white looks great!

Nancy said...

I can't wait until the new year to make mine. I love this quilt. I already have the white and will use my stash of Katie's Jump Rope with it.

Yours is gorgeous!!

Rebekah said...

this is so pretty! I'll have to keep track of my next quilt like this to get an idea of how much time I spend on things.

Hope the lunacy dies down soon!

PunkiePie (Jen) said...

It's gorgeous! You did a beautiful job. I love the colors in it. Wonderful.

Happy Holidays!
Jen :)

Sarah said...

I LOVE that quilt. You work much faster than I do. I am not sure what to do with kiddos over vacation either...definitely too cold to play outside today. :(

nettie said...

okay, you have convinced me to make my own green and grey quilt. I just love the combination. it's fabulous.

Emily said...

Love, LOVE the fabric in this quilt!

Vicki said...

It's beautiful. I love the colors and the design.

Vicki W said...

Love the quilt and the backing is as good as the front!

Kerri said...

it turned out beautiful and I love how you did the back too! I hope you get a peaceful Christmas. I understand the craziness with all the kiddos home. I have six and they keep my hopping. :) At least quilting is time for our sanity.

Anina said...

Wow! Soooooo pretty!
Good luck with the Christmas thing. We did our final shopping this afternoon and I'm declaring it over and done with.

Allie said...

Your quilt turned out so beautiful! I love that both sides are so fun.
Merry Christmas--

Sara said...

This is a totally great quilt. I am going to start keeping tabs of the time I spend making the next quilt I make...

SuzyQSparkles said...

I really like seeing the breakdown of time. I just quilted a little 52" square quilt followed piecing lines. The quilting is only about 4" apart (maybe more) and it took me over three hours. I kept thinking of your free motion quilts and thinking it was probably faster than spinning and respinning the bulk of the quilt under the needle to follow the "easy" lines. Which got me wondering...

What type of pattern do you follow to free-motion? I know there's not a PATTERN per-se, I mean do you start in the middle and work out on one section at a time, or at an edge or go in a circle or what? I think if you could tell / show us how you go about quilting things, it might help us. Like, just give us a drawing with sections labeled 1, 2, 3, etc or something?

Thanks for the breakdown, it was especially helpful to see just WHEN you do find the time to quilt. It's inspired me to work more time in at the machine during my days!

Suzy :D

Heather said...

My angelic children were so off the wall today that I broke down, packed for 4 people, had a beer before noon, and drove 4.5 hours to the beach to visit the in-laws. To say I feel your pain would be an understatement.
You'll make it through. A beer with lunch seems to help. Merry Christmas and a Quilty New Year!

Becky J. said...

love the quilt and i hadn't ever thought of measuring before and after to see how much it shrinks. what a great idea. now i am curious..hmmm

Liz said...

Stunning - as usual!

Sipiweske Quilts said...

I just recently found your site and have been back to visit quite often since. Your quilts are wonderful and you are so productive! The latest quilt is simple and very lovely - who needs complex all the time? None of us! - Marlene

Anonymous said...

Looks beautiful! I love the back of it, too. The greens are so fresh and soothing. Great quilt!

Anonymous said...

It is so beautiful! I LOVE how you put the pieced strip on the back of your quilts. That is so clever!

Barry O'Connor said...

The quilt is STUNNING. And, dear friend, I truly pity you and all of the parents dealing with Christmas vacation and snow days right now. It will all be over soon...

Anonymous said...

love love love! the back is my favorite, too!

Sherry said...

Another beautiful quilt. I love the back as much as the front! Great job AmandaJean. You are inspiring! Happy Holidays!

- dlm. said...

I'm so glad that I popped round your blog, Amanda Jean. Your quilt is gorgeous! I'm still trying to learn how to Machine Quilt. (I love to hand quilt, but it takes so long to finish). So, practise, practise, practise has become my new motto. Until then, my quilt tops shall just continue to lie in a pile.

Wishing you and your family the happiest of holidays.

- dlm.

pratima said...

It looks even more gorgeous with the quilting. Love the pieced back. It pops up so well on the white.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays :o)

Tine said...

The quilt is gorgeous! Thank you for the estimates of how much time you have spent on the different parts of the project :)

Amy said...

It's spectacular!

Is it me or is Christmas vacation longer than it used to be?

beki said...

absolutely gorgeous!

MichelleB said...

You are so speedy! I can't believe how fast you do things, and it still looks so great. I should learn that lesson. Your quilt looks spectacular.

Robin aka Bookquilter said...

Gorgeous!!! Way to go working from the stash. I just put away my sewing for the holiday and in the clean up process counted 14 projects I have the fabric for. Guess who working out of her stash this year...Thank you so much for sharing.

Whitney Crane said...

LOVE IT!! Also love the time breakdown. How much time for cutting the fabric? You must be really good at it. Thanks for answering my question about cutting before. That is my main drawback. I'm scared I will ruin my fabric.

Amanda Jean said...

crazy train,

the 5 hours the time it took to cut and piece the top. I lumped that time together because it was done all at the same time. I don't cut all my pieces first, I cut some, then sew some, then cut some more, then piece some more. I HATE cutting the fabric, too, so I have to break it up like this in order for it not to feel like such a chore.

aj

Abbie S-Dyer said...

Another amazing quilt!! Geez, I wish I could make soo many more. I was looking through all the quilts that you finished in 2008, and I have to say the green quilt is my favorite...it's my fav. color too. It seems it wasn't your favorite though :( But I love it nonetheless....I love all your quilts! I can only wish to make as much as you! Happy Holidays!

quiltingbonnie said...

Amandajean, wanted to let you know that I adore your quilting blog and all the quilts you sew are so pretty and well done. I'm partial to the Kandy Corn one a while bck, but they are all special and well done. I especially like the breakdown of how much time you spend on the quilt process. My least favorite thing too, is the cutting of the fabric. I wanted you to know, I just put a order in to Connecting Threads for some fabric for myself. Their prices aren't bad. Have a good Xmas. Always, Bonita from Northeast FL (no snow here)

Philigry said...

so beautiful. merry christmas to you and your family!

Anonymous said...

Amandajean - You always have wonderful ideas and inspirations to share. Thank you. I would like to make this quilt - maybe from my stash - it looks like that kind of quilt.

You mentioned labels - I don't do them and I want to. Do you have any tips or funny ideas about labels?

Have a wonderful Christmas.
Susan

Jessica said...

Alright, I finished the tree skirt and I.ABSOLUTELY.LOVE.IT! Now I'll start out on this quilt!

Anonymous said...

Another beautiful finish, job well done.

Amanda Jean said...

susan,

I have a little tutorial on the sidebar..."one way to label a quilt". hope that helps!

aj

Adina said...

I cannot believe how smooth your stippling is!!!!!!! I literally just got up from 30 min of practicing it on my machine and I feel discouraged. As my machine was humming I thought of you and what a great talent and skill you have!!!
Thanks for sharing! Also can you imagine how much money you would have to charge for this quilt just to pay yourself $10/hour?Totally random thought.
Thanks again,
Adina

Linda said...

Your free motion quilting always looks soooo much better than mine. I always wind up with "points" when I have to stop and take out a pin or whatever. I use my "needle down" setting, but that doesn't seem to help much. LOL! Your quilt is lovely!

Chara Michele said...

Oh I love this quilt! It looks great Amandajean! :)
I hope that Christmas vacation gets a bit better! Have a wonderful holiday!

Karen said...

Hi Amandajean ~ I hope you and your family have a wonderfully peaceful Christmas.

This quilt is great, as yours always are. I love your color choices and of course the gorgeous stippling which I still have not mastered.

Val said...

I love this quilt. I couldn't imagine adding up the hours that I had in my 25 year old quilt! Ha! I am about through with my second quilt - your quilt along before the star quilt along. If I could just find the time. How do you do it???

Stephanie @ My Answered Prayer said...

I just want to say you are an inspiration...i love your blog and have been searching through all night. I don't see how you do so much! I can't wait to start my first quilt.

Sølvis blog said...

the quilt came out beautiful. And how nice of you to give us others a clue about the time you used to make it.

Ann said...

LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!

What are you going to do with it?

Please say it is for sale!!! :)

Andrea said...

Dear AmandaJean,
Wishing you and your family a wonderful Christmas and holiday....I hope you're taking a rest and dreaming up new projects, in between watching the chaos of kids and presents!
May Santa bring you loads of new stashes, as well as peace and happiness throughout the year.

Enjoy!
Andrea

Mommmmmm! said...

I love how you backed your quilt - it is very inspiring and I think I need one! Beautiful!

Treasure Ann said...

Do you sell your quilts? They are very pretty. Merry Christmas. :)

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful quilt! I love the greys, what a great touch!

I hope you had a good Christmas yesterday Amandajean!

Nanette Merrill said...

That quilt is so so darling! I love it. It just says "fresh" to me.

Patty said...

I just love how this quilt turned out; makes me want one for my bed!

lera said...

Another gorgeous creation!

I'm sure if I attempted a quilt like this, it would take me 15 1/2 days (of non-stop sewing) or 15 1/2 years.

Nici said...

Hi AmandaJean,
I LOVE all your quilts!!! I am a beginner quilter and have been quilting for about 4 months. I have used a few of your tutorials to help me make my first quilt!! I do have a question: do you wash your quilts in a washer with an aggitator or a front loading washer?? I am a little nervous to wash my quilt in my washer. Thanks for all your inspiration!!

Nici

Amanda Jean said...

Ann,

sorry, it's not for sale. i am going to be giving it to a friend.

aj

Amanda Jean said...

treasure ann,

i don't sell my quilts. yet.

aj

Amanda Jean said...

nici,

i wash all my quilts in a wash machine with an aggitator. and they come out just fine.

aj

Caroline said...

Hi!

I just wanted to comment quickly to wish you a Merry Christmas, and thank you for the fabulous quilt-alongs that you do. From them I have created my own quilts and have loved every second of acquiring this new skill.

This year for Christmas, I made a quilt for my husbands grandmother. She was a big quilter, and she made quilts for all the grandchildren she could before she had a stroke and was unable to quilt. It turned out lovely, and I followed the pattern to the week 4 pattern of the star quilt-along. She loved it, mistakes and all (;o), and I knew I couldn't take all the credit. Thank you so much for the help! I appreciate it! I posted a picture of the quilt (please don't look too closely!) on my blog, if you're interested.

Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!

Thanks!

Caroline

Wanda said...

Amazing. My "piece the top" time frame was something like 8 months!!!! In this case, the white on the back is absolutely perfect. It goest so well with the whole piece. Hope the crazyness of your vacation has either settled down or turned into something that feels normal!!

Luz said...

Hola buenas tardes , te tengo que felicitar por este blog tan completo, por tus maravillosas obras , y por esos tutoriales que a las que estamos empezando nos van de maravilla , de nuevo Enhorabuena y muchas gracias por dejar que los compartamos , el primero que hare sera el tutorial del babero ya que estoy esperando para Febrero mi tercer hijo.
Muchos Besitos y Felices Fiestas desde España.
Luz.
Con tu permiso te seguire de cerca.

Tam-A-Roo said...

Merry Christmas AmandaJean!
Just wanted to say thanks for all your inspiration and help along the way. Now that Christmas is past, I posted about the quilt I made for my husband. You can have a look at: http://little-itchy-foot.blogspot.com/
I added in a little note about you too!
Thanks again and looking forward to quilting along in the New Year!

Wilma said...

Hi I just wanted to let you know that i made your doll crib quilt last night with the pillow and pillow case. It was so easy and fun to do. Thanks for the tutorials.

Wilma

Lindsey said...

I have used your idea of piecing the backs and I love it. I piece together all of the mess ups that I cut and put it on the back along with the backing fabric. It reminds me of what I put into the quilt at the time. Thanks for the inspiration.

Tracy said...

This is so gorgeous. I especially love the back. I have never quilted but this makes me want to. What kind of white fabric do you use?

Amanda Jean said...

tracy,

the white fabric is bleached muslin.

aj

The4Rs said...

Love your industriousness, is that a word? Can you tell your readers why you create a pieced section on the backing? Is there a historical reason to do this? Just curious, love the detail!

Amanda Jean said...

san,

i just pieced the back so i could use the fabric that i had in my stash. and i love the design element that it creates on the back. no historical reason at all. :)

aj

Louann said...

Hi Amanda Jean-
I finished a quilt top using the Flea market Fancy pattern and I wanted to let you know. I posted a pic on my blog. I used aqua and blue fabrics with a lttle bit of lime. I absolutely love it. It was so much fun to make and I think it is my favorite that I have made. Thanks for sharing with us!!
Louann

Roxanne said...

I am doing a little happy dance about this quilt - I love it!!