curves quilt top

Over the past several days I worked on assembling this quilt top using the blocks I made during Dan's curves class. I surrounded the blocks with two different Kona solids...dark violet (which is dangerously close to purple) and cerise (which has been one of my favorites for a long time, although I rarely sew with it!). It ended up big...67" x 89", so it's a decent twin size.

I'll admit that I struggled with these blocks quite a bit. The colors are so out of my realm, but once I started adding the horizontal strips into the curvy blocks, I realized that there was a little potential hiding in there. Once I figured out that I should surround them with dark violet (with the help of Flaun...a big thanks goes out to her!) I thought I might even like the quilt.

Once I bought the solids and played around with block placement, it didn't take long to stumble upon the diamond lay out. It was a little tricky (time consuming) construction wise, but it was totally worth it. I love this quilt top so much! It is definitely a testament to getting out of your comfort zone, working through the bumps and persevering to the end. Now, I just have to figure out how to quilt it. :)

Happy Monday to you!

porthole pillow

Welcome to finish it up Friday!
Can I just say, I love finishing?
I really do.

I made this block at Camp Stitch A Lot last month, and I turned it into a pillow cover yesterday. One less thing hanging out on the design wall. Hurray!

The patchwork center was made using the slab technique in Sunday Morning Quilts and the circle was made using a reverse applique technique that Rossie taught at camp. I really liked the process of making circles this way. Furthermore, I LOVE how the two techniques work together.

For quilting, I cross hatched the background using a 2" grid in red thread. The center is pebble quilted in white thread. I considered doing a spiral quilting on the background, or perhaps even concentric circles, but cross hatching won out at the last minute. I am happy I chose that route.

I made an envelope backing so that cover is washable. This ADORABLE Riley Blake print from my stash is a lovely compliment to the front, I think. My daughter squealed with delight when she saw it on the back. (Apparently she agreed.) Man, it's fun to have a girl to share cuteness overload with.

I'm so glad that I made this block larger enough to turn into a pillow (it's 22" square), because the last thing I need is another orphan block hanging around. I can always use another pillow to add to my growing collection. :)

This is scrappy project 10/101. Almost a tenth of way there!

Now it's your turn. Please link up your finishes! Thanks, as always, for joining me for finish it up Friday!

working (and buying) habits

Yesterday we talked all about scraps. Today I'd like to talk about using (or more specifically buying) fabric. One of the most common questions I get asked is "how much fabric do you buy at a time?" If you know me, you know it's not going to be a short answer...it will take an entire blog post. If you want to know the answer, read on. :)

When I am working on a quilt, I would say 85-90% of the time the entire quilt comes from my stash...backing, binding and all. When do I build my stash? When I travel, mainly. I have a few favorite local fabric shops, too. When I see a good sale, I stock up. I don't buy much fabric on line at all-I much prefer to buy in person. Shopping on-line can be dangerous and my husband does enough on-line shopping for the both of us. He admitted that himself.

Most commonly I buy half yard cuts. This is a great size because it is enough to bind up to a lap size quilt. It is also easy to cut into fat quarters, which are great for swapping. I've swapped fat quarters recently with my sister and a few friends. It's a nice way to add variety to the stash without spending any more cash. Notice that most of the fabric I buy is only one color and white? I find that I gravitate to simple color schemes, which tend to last longer in the stash. That's a good thing when there is a 2 year lag time between purchasing and actually using your fabric.

These are fat eighths. I LOVE this size and wish they were more readily available. When you use scraps the size I do (tiny), yardage feels more like acreage! A fat eighth is a nice size to buy because you can get a lot of variety for your money. And variety is good! I find that these are the easiest size for me to cut into.

These are all 1 yard cuts. I bought 5 out of 6 of these in one weekend. My theory? You can never have too many red and white polka dots! They could be my weakness. Some were on sale, some were a good price, and some were so good that I didn't mind paying full price.

I've started to buy mini charms here and there. A whole variety of a fabric line in a 2 1/2" square? Sign me up!

This cute fabric was on sale but there was a minimum of a one yard cut. If you are shopping with a friend, that is a good time to split a yard, if you can agree on which fabrics to buy. Sometimes you just have to get a whole yard. Because, c'mon. Smiling carrots? Hard to pass up!

This is a full yard, and it was full price, but I could see using it for labeling quilts. I've gotten so lazy about that step, so I'm using it as motivation to start labeling them again.

These were both on sale and both fabrics are ones that I could use in a variety of quilts. Or I could see using them on quilt backs. That is when the words "I'll take the rest of the bolt" slip out.

I am buying whole fabric lines less and less. The last entire fabric line I purchase (before this one, and not in a pre-cut form) was Chicopee. That was awhile ago! This line is Briar Rose by Heather Ross. I debated for a good while about purchasing it. I was trying hard to decide if I was going to buy it just because everyone else was buying it or if I was buying it because I really wanted to buy it! (Know what I mean?) I think I'm glad I bought it, but it will probably sit untouched for a good while.

Then I had to buy additional fat eighths of this stuff. I will actually USE these, rather than hoard it like the FQs. (Oh, it kind of hurts to admit that. But it's true!)

And sometimes (not often) I buy fabric as a reward for myself. These were on sale and I purchased  them the day all 5 of us spent 7 hours shopping for school supplies. I think (I know!) I earned them! These are 1/4 yard cuts. I didn't need a ton of each print, but I liked the variety of prints and the limited color scheme. I'm anxious to cut into these!!!

There you go! Way too much info on how I buy fabric. I hope that those of you who have asked this question have found the answer helpful.

So, how much fabric do you buy at a time? I'd love to hear, if you care to share!

my full time job(s)

I've decided that scrap management is a full time job.

(One that I am happy to have!)

I've been cutting 3" squares from scraps. This is a stack of 400. I'm on my way to cutting at least 700 (!!!) to make a lap size quilt. You know, I've got to hurry and whip this one up because we are running low on quilts around here. Ha!

After cutting up squares, I have lots of odd sized trimmings that I store in this pretty wood bowl. I love to sit down and just sew them together. It's such good therapy.

I recently sorted all my scraps back into their color coded baskets. That took a better part of a weekend to accomplish, but it was so worth it! The pattern for the boxes can be found in Sunday Morning Quilts. I have 3 more colors to make...purple, brown and white. Then I'll have a complete set!

Meanwhile, my strings are piling up and threatening to take over. They need to be sewn up. Pronto. (This seems to be my most robust category of scraps. Always. I think I need to make another spiderweb quilt. Or 3.)

I'll spare you a photo of my tiny ticker tape pieces, thus sparing myself judgment. (hopefully.) I really ought to throw them away, but I can't bring myself to do so.

As if that weren't enough, Flaun came to visit and sew yesterday. She generously shared her scraps with me. I've got a whole basket of new-to-me scraps to sew up. Thanks Flaun! I'm so excited to dig into these!

My solution to all the scraps?
Sew faster.
I'll let you know how that goes. :)

On the home front....my other full time job...
(another one that I am extremely happy to have!)

Today is the first day of school. (sniff sniff.)
Early morning. (Yawn.) New shoes. New routine. Lots of jitters. And one very sentimental mama.

As hard as it was to send them on their way this morning, it was time. I am excited about finding a new routine and having some serious structure in my day. Hopefully with lots of sewing time!

Happy Tuesday!

purple pouches

My daughter needs a pencil case for school and we decided that I should sew one up for her. I should probably mention that she LOVES purple. As if it weren't obvious. (Lucky me.)

This was my first attempt. I finished it late last night and was a little disappointed. It's a make up bag, not a pencil pouch, for crying out loud. She insisted that it was great, but I just couldn't stop there. I'm a bit of a perfectionist.

I attempted another one this afternoon. And, hey! It actually looks like a pencil pouch! Now she has two purple pouches to fill with who knows what. She's pleased as punch! I love that she appreciates hand made things so much. It's wonderful.

These are made from scraps, so I'm counting them as #8 and #9 for my 101 scrap project challenge. Woo-hoo! I'm hopeful that I'll be able to whip up a few more projects before the weekend is through.

Are you sewing this Labor Day weekend, too? If you are, I'd love to hear what you are making!

the 'A squared' quilt

Welcome to finish it up Friday!

It's the last week of summer vacation here. Lots going on, and I still managed to finish quilting and binding this quilt. (Just barely, though!) I'm calling this one 'A squared'. Several of the scraps came from Anna and several of the blocks came from my scrap baskets. I love this color scheme so very much. It screams summer, doesn't it?

The squares are 4" finished. I just love plain patchwork. It's a classic and it's such a fun way to play with color and print.

I used this fun piece of Lucy's crab shack fabric surrounded by a large lime green border (to make it large enough) for the back. It turned out to be a great compliment to the front. I love fitting pieces and parts from my stash together like a puzzle. It's so satisfying to make it work.

I did lots of loopy quilting on this one. Two lines of quilting per row of patchwork. Again, no marking, I just eyeballed it. I had lots of practice from this quilt, so it went pretty smoothly.
I used Hobbs 80/20 batting inside. Lightweight and a little lofty, but it washes up so nicely. (I haven't had a chance to wash this one yet, though.)

I used a Kaffe polka dot fabric for binding. I'm loving that cerise color these days.

The quilt is my favorite lap size...60" x 72".

 

This is scrap project #7 out of 101.
Hold on to your hats, folks. I am cruising.

Now it's your turn. Please link up your finishes! Thank you for joining me for finish it up Friday!

twister quilt

Welcome to finish it up Friday!

After all the work I did on various WIPs this week, I still managed to produce a finish!

This quilt is made from 12 different Soho solids from Timeless Treasures. I cut the blocks at my former LQS using the Accuquilt Studio cutter. (Thanks, Ellen!) It made quick work of the cutting, and the best part is that the die cuts off the tails of the triangles. That means no trimming is required after piecing. What a time saver! The triangles finish at 6".

I LOVE these colors together! For the back I pieced leftover strips and added a whole lot of pink Kona cotton. The quilting shows up nicely on the back. It reminds me of an embossed tin ceiling. It's a little risky to piece a backing, then straight line quilt. If things are off kilter from front to back, it's going to show. Thankfully things worked out pretty well. Phew!

I also love how the quilting forms a star around the triangle points on the front. I quilted this on my Janome with my walking foot with straight lines about 1/2" from the seams. It's so nice to use the patchwork as a guide rather than marking lines.

For the binding I branched out from the all solids theme and added a polka dot. I couldn't help it! The color was a perfect match. I thought twice about it, but I'm very happy with the choice in the end.

As for the name, my daughter gets credit. She calls it the twister quilt, because apparently the quilt can double as a twister game board (of sorts) in a pinch. I love that my kids are a little resourceful. :) Turns out the quilt looks pretty dandy on her bed, too! (Not sure that it will end up there, but it works for a pretty photo at least.) The quilt measures 60" x 84".

Another finish to share...

Remember this quilt? It's in the new issue of Modern Quilts Unlimited magazine! The quilt is back home safe and sound and its fun to see the quilt in print.

Alright. Now it's your turn! Please link up your finishes for the week. Thanks for joining me for finish it up Friday!

drowning in WIPs

So, in the past week I've worked on no less than 7 different quilts.
Madness!!! Wouldn't you say?
Here's a peek....

 (these are blocks for 3 different quilts)

Sometimes I wish I was a one project at a time girl.
But that would probably get boring, right?

sweet and low

Welcome to finish it up Friday!

Last weekend at camp I finished my low volume slab quilt. She's a pretty little thing that I'm calling sweet and low. Many thanks to my friend Brianne for coming up with the clever name! The top is all scraps. My favorite! It took over a week to piece the top, which felt like for-ever! But, there are tons of tiny pieces in it, so I guess that makes sense.

For the backing I used some of my treasured Katie Jump Rope fabric. You know that I must love the quilt top to use some of my out of print (hoarded) fabric. The bottom strip of fabric is a print I picked up at Loom when I was in Pittsburgh in May. I love to shop for fabric when I travel. It is THE perfect souvenir (if you ask me).

I auditioned a ton of different fabrics for the binding and this one was the winner. It came from my sweet friend Katherine years ago. I'm delighted to have found the perfect project to use it in. It's the perfect finishing touch! (Thanks a bunch, Katherine!)

Looking at this photo, it's apparent that I love polka dots. No new news there! :P
For the quilting I just stippled it. If I were to do it again, I would straight line quilt it in a herringbone pattern. Oh, well. Delayed inspiration happens sometimes. Maybe for my next one!

The finished quilt measures 46" x 53". I'm not a fan of having my photo all over my blog, but it was suggested that I need to make an appearance here once in awhile. This one is for you, Melissa! :)

I'm counting this as scrap project #6.

How about you? Do you have a finish to share? If so, please link up! Thanks for joining me for finish it up Friday!

out of my box quilt

Over the weekend I finished the binding on the "out of my box" quilt. I'm learning that having binding (or any type of hand stitching) is a wonderful thing at retreat. It is a nice break from stitching on a machine all day.

This quilt is made from 9 slabs, then it is pieced together in a rather traditional way with sashing and cornerstones. I love the mix of the two. The sashing adds order to the quilt and even though the black and white polka dot is busy, I think it works beautifully!

The orchid colored corner stones are one of my favorite parts of this quilt. They aren't very large, but they still pack a punch. I had enough scraps of fabric to cut 12 squares, but I needed 16 total.

So, I found a print that was similar in color and added 4 blocks in an alternate fabric and placed one in each corner. When you use scraps sometimes you have to get a little creative, but I love how it pushes you to find an alternate solution. The quilt is more interesting because of it.

The spiral quilting makes this quilt, doesn't it? I plan to do much more of it! I've gotten several questions about how it's done and I plan to write up what I've learned from my experience so far. But I'll save that for a separate post.

I am SO glad that I used a solid on the back so the quilting really has a chance to show off. It makes me think that making a 2 sided whole cloth quilt with just the spiral quilting would be a great idea! (Add it to the list, right?) I used a 70 weight aqua thread from Connecting Threads. Ocean mist is the actual name of it, and it's one of my favorites. It comes in a 3300 yard cone, so it lasts a long time! I LOVE that!

The quilt measures 43" square. Small for me, but a nice size to use as a class sample when I travel.  

 

This is scrap project #5. Only 96 more to go!