Friday, June 01, 2018

two of a kind

Welcome to finish it up Friday!

I want to start this week by saying that this will be the LAST week of finish it up Friday for the summer. I need to step back and take a breather. Did you know that I started finish it up Friday in October of 2011? That means we've been at this finishing business (with the occasional hiatus during my social media breaks) for almost 7 years. That's CRAZY! Also, that's a LOT of finishes! I'm very much looking forward to the break from finish it up Friday so I can spend more time with my kids this summer. I do plan to keep blogging, if I can find time to sew, that is. :)
 
Speaking of finishes.....I have a PAIR of quilts to share today.
When I was making my epic Heather Ross quilt, I was actually working on two at a time. I made one to keep and one to give to a friend. I'm so glad I did!
Each of the quilts is a twin size, measuring about 67 1/2" x 91". I used my Easy as Pie tutorial (available here), but I expanded it to make a twin size rather than a lap size. I LOVE the simple pattern because it was QUICK and easy to put together and it lets the fabric shine.
The quilts are identical on the front, but the backs are slightly different. I used a mixture of the same two fabrics for the backing, but I alternated the arrangement of the fabrics. I used cotton lawn from Heather's line Sleeping Porch, which I found on clearance, (bonus!) and I knew that they would make beautiful backings. The combo of the orange and cream colors reminds me of an orange creamsicle. It carries out the summertime feeling of the quilts. Also, the lawn is lightweight and DREAMY!!!! It quilted up beautifully.
I quilted them both with loop de loop quilting on the baby lock Tiara that I still have on loan. I used 50 weight Aurifil thread-color 2026-which is a lovely creamy color that blended with all of the fabrics quite nicely.
Normally I don't use a light or white binding for a quilt, but these bright yellow dots were a perfect match to the colors in the quilt. It is smooth and lightweight, so it was a delight to hand stitch down to the back. (Hurray!)
This cute lined fabric (Fine Lines by Michael Miller) works perfectly for labels. You can see the backing fabrics better in this photo, too.
I gifted the quilt to my friend yesterday and I'm happy to say that she LOVED it!!! I also enlisted her to help me take quilt photos after I gave it to her, because I'm nice like that. Hahaha! :) As you can see, it was a little bit breezy down by the lake.
I especially love this photo....it's the epitome of a Minnesota summer. I am soooo pleased that these quilts are done NOW so that they can be enjoyed and used all summer long.
 
That's it for me today! Please link up your finishes for the week. Thank you, as always, for joining me for finish it up Friday!

35 comments:

Tracy said...

Two for the price of one. I'll miss all the Friday finishes, but will check in with you over the summer.

Alison V. said...

These are both adorable and perfect for these beautiful Heather Ross prints! :D

Sandy said...

All these lovely Heather Ross prints add up to a GORGEOUS quilt -- and two of them?? Double score!

Melissa Corry said...

These are both just so fun!!! Love them!!!

Leanne Parsons said...

They're both beautiful! Congrats on getting them finished :) Enjoy your break over the summer!

Bernie Kringel said...

Thank you for hosting this event for such a long time. It has been a lot of fun. You are a good example of striving for that all-important balance between work and family life. Hope you all have an incredible summer. I can't really believe that my daughter (youngest of four) will be a high school senior next year. I plan to spend time with her this summer as there won't be many more summers where she will be living at home.

Keep in touch and post your amazing projects when you ca!!
Love todays quilts - so bright and happy looking!

Deb said...

Relax and have a great summer!

Yvonne from Quilting Jetgirl said...

Thank you so much for 7 years of amazing finishes and sharing. I appreciate all that you do, and I hope that you have a wonderful summer with your family.

Home Sewn By Us said...

Hi Amanda! Fabulous finishes for today and I'll miss these posts SO much. Seven years! That is crazy amazing. Enjoy the summer!! I'm right next door in Wisconsin so I know how well earned the nice warm weather and the relaxing is. {{Hugs}}
Happy Friday! ~smile~ Roseanne

Rebecca Grace said...

Amanda, how is this the first time I'm realizing that you're a fellow Minnesnowtan?! I love your lake photo; it makes my heart ache for the Minnesota summers of my youth. I have been living in the hot, sweltering south for nearly 20 years now and I miss the lake cabin where we vacationed when I was little. :-(

Your quilts are both adorable, I really dig the unexpected light colored binding, and using the striped "lined paper" fabric for a simple inked quilt label is just genius -- it's the perfect finishing touch to complement these quilts. Congratulations!! I'll miss your linky party this summer, especially since I was hoping to be able to finish up MORE projects now that many of my other commitments are on hiatus. Your kids must be younger than my teenagers, whom I don't expect to see much of this summer now that they and their friends are driving (yikes!!). Enjoy a wonderful summer with your family!

Di~ said...

Oh Wow Wee! Lovely Lovely! seriously so very awesome both quilt! You are amazing! That is a long time for finish it up! I had no idea, but I do know that I have read everyone! :) Your labeling has inspired me...I sold a baby quilt yesterday and had the buyer help me with making a label! ha...family friend. Have a good summer!

grammajudyb said...

I have had your Easy As Pie pattern on my radar for a bit now...Now I really want to make it! It great in the colors here. I wonder if I could do a fabric pull from my stash?? Maybe if I stick with a theme. Patriotic, Christmas, Fall! Have a great summer and I hope you are back when the kids are back in school and your life returns to structured. Enjoy them, time goes too fast!!

Frog Quilter said...

Beautiful finishes!

piecefulwendy said...

Love your two quilts -- your friend is pretty lucky :-) Have a wonderful summer with your family!

Unknown said...

Thanks for your dedication to Finish It Up Friday and letting us link up with you each week. Enjoy the summer, and that bottom picture is great! Beautiful colors!

Nancy in NV-wheres the dude at blogspot said...

As always-great finishes. Enjoy your summer and your kids.

Zenia Rene said...

They are super cute!

Mary Marcotte said...

Enjoy your kiddos! Summer is a great time to cut back on work and enjoy the beautiful weather with your children. We teachers know about this, so trust me. We'll miss you, though!

ChezVies said...

beautiful quilt for summer! By the way, what do you suggest as batting for summer quilt? We have a very humid summer here in Northeast India.

Julia Mac said...

Thank you so much for all the Finish Up Fridays. You are an inspiration in so many ways. I hope you have a glorious summer with your children and that we still see your work from time to time when you're ready.

Nancy @ Grace and Peace Quilting said...

Thank you for finishing up our Fridays for 7 years now! Your quilts are wonderful. Brilliant to make 2 at once. Have a great summer!

Robin said...

Oh, no on the hiatus! I just found you, via your excellent No Scrap Left Behind. Enjoy your summer. I'm a kindergarten teacher and I ALWAYS enjoy mine, LOL

Cathy Melancon said...

WOW! These quilts are so fun and gorgeous! The fabrics are great and the backings are too perfect! The binding takes the cake! I hope you enjoy your summer immensely! You and your family deserve it! Thanks for all you do!!!

Kay said...

Such a fabulous present, you have a very lucky friend. x

Laura J. said...

Love this quilt, looks to be "Easy Enough for Laura" to work on over summer while you are playing with the kids! You'll be missed, but enjoy your time away from the computer!

Liz said...

What a fun quilt idea for these fabrics!! Thanks for the inspiration as always. Hope you have a wonderful summer. :)

The Joyful Quilter said...

Those are two super cute quilts. Enjoy your FIUF break!!

bee said...

so many finishes - wow, didn't realize how long you've been running finish it up fridays! thank you! it's always fun to link up and check out all the other finishes too. Definitely spend time having Summer fun - and I'll hope to link back up fridays in the fall!

The Cozy Quilter said...

Great way to show off those cute fabrics. The finished quilts are wonderful, blowing in the breeze!

FlashinScissors said...

Wow, Amanda! Two amazing finishes!
Thank you for running Finish It Up Friday, you’re a real inspiration!
Have a lovely holiday, but I can’t wait till you return!
Hugs,
Barbara xx

Jessica Christensen said...

These are so fabulous, Amanda Jean! Love. Them.

Frieda said...

Hope you enjoy your summer break. It is great to be able to spend time with your family. Kids grow up so fast. Thanks for hosting and I love your twin quilts!

KaHolly said...

They are so sweet! As always, you’re an inspiration to me.

Sandra Healy Designs said...

Have a wonderful family summer and thanks for running the linky party with so much dedication for so long.

Sandy Panagos said...

I really like that! I have tons of novelty prints I need to use up, and this pattern would be perfect. Yup - creamsicles.