Friday, July 26, 2013

Don't Anybody Sneeze!


Here are all the yummy fabrics I have settled on and cut for the Star Surround QAL hosted by Happy Quilting.  I am so delighted with my final fabric choices.  I will be taking a more scrappy approach to Melissa's pattern so there are quite a number of fabrics in each block.







MMmmmm....

Originally I was trying to work in some navy but even with  a trip to the LQS, I couldn't find any combinations I liked.  Once I decided to add the black and the gray to all the berry colored fabrics, I was hooked.

I really can't wait to start sewing on this!




So until I can get these organized by block into little bags, there will be no eating at the dining table at my house!







There is still time to join in on the fun. How about you...are you in?


Be sure and check out Melissa's Linky party to see what great fabrics others are using.  So many beautiful color combinations!   You really will want to stay tuned!!




Thursday, July 25, 2013

Maybe having a Goal really Works!

A while back I wrote out some finishes I wanted to complete by the end of September.  I am not very good at finishing up things so I thought it  couldn't hurt to see if setting some goals would help.  

Believe me, I am willing to try anything to get me focused on completing some WIPs!



I am so happy to say I finished an item on my list!  This adorable little quilt finished up at about 35 x 40.  It is one of the quilts I made from scrap pieces I received from a friend.

Pretty much all the fabric in the top of this quilt was destined for the deep dark depths of a closet and I just couldn't let that happen.  So home they came with me.





Here is the quilt the scraps came from fresh off my quilting machine.   I think the above triangles I received were cut away from the heart blocks.

I tried to talk my friend into giving me the whole quilt but she doesn't seem to want to part with.



The pattern for this heart quilt can be found in the Sew Red book.  It is a pattern submitted by Tula Pink, who is also the designer of those lovely fabrics in the quilt.   The book was written in support of Women's Heart Health.  There are some great projects by a number of talented designers.  It is definitely worth taking a peak at.



And if you make the heart quilt, don't toss those scraps! 


she can quilt

 Sharing this great finish with Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation, Finish it Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts and Whoop Whoop Friday at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.  
Thanks for stopping by!


July Finishes


Sunday, July 21, 2013

Scrap Progress

I thought I would share my progress on the lime and black scrap quilt.  So many people commented on wanting to see what I was going to do with all my 2 1/2" squares.....I'm guess many of us are in the same boat - floating in a sea of scraps!




As I said in my first post of this project, I have been randomly chain piecing these little squares together.  When I sorted out my scraps, I really kept to those with only lime, black, gray and white. 

Okay, I did put in a very small amount of  turquoise to add some pop.  Scrap quilts don't have to be boring!






I have now pieced these bits into a 16 patch.  My only placement rules were to never place the same two fabrics together and to put a single blue piece randomly in every block.












Here is where we are at now.  I have 30 blocks finished and up on my design wall.








For the next step, I have pulled some solids from my stash. 

I have a few fun ideas on how to incorporate these and still keep it scrappy and random.  I hope to get some time soon to firm up a plan and finish up the top.

Hope you stay tuned to see how it turns out!








I also played with some scraps on the other end of the color wheel and made this little quilt for a class I will be teaching soon.  I am sure I will be making a larger one in the future.  It went together really quickly - another perfect project for working up those scraps!




I will be linking up this week with Plum and June for Let's Get Acquainted and WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.  Hope you check out both to see what others are up to.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

My First QAL!

And I am SO excited!

I have decided to join in the fun with Mellisa at Happy Quilting for her Star Surround Quilt A Long (QAL).  I have even solicited one of my local quilting buddies to sew along with me so I will get to experience both a virtual and physical QAL.

Yay me!






Melissa has drafted up a number of layout options and quilt sizes.  I really like the 3 x 3 layout and think I will go with the 24" blocks so the finished quilt will be at least 62" square....I might add a pieced border to make it a wee bit bigger. 

We shall see where the quilt takes me.









I have decided to go with a yummy berry and gray for my colorway.  I also want to throw some light blue and navy into the mix so I think my top will be a little scrappier when all is said and done.  My background will be Kona ash which works really well.

So far, this is what I have pulled to use.  I'm not 100% sold on a couple of the pieces.  I might have to run to the store to see if they have a piece or two and work a little more navy in.











Of course, I still have time to change my mind and swap out a couple of the pieces with something I already have....

but that is not nearly as fun as shopping!





Be sure to follow along to see how it turns out.  I hope to share my and my friends' progress along the way. I am sure hers will look very different than mine!


Linking up with Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation.  Be sure and check out the links and see what others are up to!


Sunday, July 14, 2013

A Very Scrappy Week

I know, I know.  I said recently that I was going to really try to get a few things done around here.  I even made a list of goals to have done by the end of September.  But what do I do?  I start playing in the scrap bin and can't resist starting a few more quilts.


I have been setting aside my white, gray, lime green and black scraps for quite some time.  The bin they were going into finally over flowed so I thought I had better start cutting to see what I had.  I spent a couple nights cutting them into 2 1/2" squares and decided to add a bit of turquoise to the mix. 

As usual, I have no clear direction on this so we shall see what I end up with!  So far, I have just randomly started chain piecing them together....





I have also been sewing together some red string blocks.   With so many of my last projects having red in them, I have quite a few scraps that need to find a home.

These are 10 1/2" blocks so they go nice and quickly!



I was also sidetracked by some scrap triangles a friend gave me.  Not sure how I will use them but they are all sewn and trimmed and waiting for the perfect project.



How come your friend's fabric is so much more fun than your own?!


I also spent last night playing with various layouts on this big stack of triangles that were also "gifted" to me.  I might just try to bury these under some fabric in my sewing room so I quit spending time on them. 

Think that will work?




 Yay!

I am pleased to say I quilted and bound this scrappy lap quilt so this week wasn't all about starts. Unfortunately this quilt wasn't one of my FAL goals but I am still happy to have it done and listed in my Etsy shop!

Well, it's a new week now and maybe this will be the week I zero in on some more finishes.
I really do have a number of fun WIPs to choose from so it shouldn't be that hard!


Linking up with Plum and June for Let's Get Acquainted hosted by Sewing by Moonlight, Show and Tell Tuesday at I Have To Say and WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.


Thursday, July 11, 2013

My Q3 FAL Goals



I'm great at starting quilts.  Finishing....Not so much! 
 
To help me in getting some of these projects finished around my sewing room, I thought I would join up with Leanne at she can quilt for her 2013 3rd quarter Finish-A-Long.  The rules sound easy enough.  I just need to make a list of what I hope to will finish by the end of September.....


she can quilt


Here we go....Fingers crossed I can get all this done. 



This cute little baby quilt just needs borders and quilting. As a WIP it is not that old but I did fold it up and put it in the closet so it would be really easy for it to be overlooked and re-discovered years from now.  I need to prevent that from happening!


I have cut and pieced one row on this fish quilt.  I am now bored with it!  (Does anyone else get that way?)  I have started a couple other quilts since sewing on this row and I need some incentive to stick with it and finish this one. 


 This quilt top just needs to be quilted.  As customer quilts always seem to "bump" my quilts out of the quilting queue, I always have a large stack of my own waiting.  Quilting is the hardest thing for me to get done.  This quilt is a christmas gift and I would love not to be working long hours days before the holiday to get this quilted and bound.


 Here is another quilt top I need to finish up.  This top does need a backing sewn from my stash.  I will probably need to get a little creative as I have worked through alot of my older fabric in these colors.  In fact, I am really tired of these colors and a great deal of determination will be needed to get this one done.




Here is one of my REALLY old projects.  This top has been done for probably 4-5 years and just waiting in the closet for me to quilt it.  Most of my friends have never seen it and I will share it more fully when I get it done.  This one I am a little nervous about getting it quilted with everything else on the list.



This next little project won't count toward the FAL but I need to spend some time on it.  My lovely niece is an amazing dancer and will be graduating from high school in two years and I want to make her a word quilt filled with dance words/phrases.  Hopefully it will be something she will take away to college with her.  I am committing to all of you that I plan on finishing 3 more blocks in Q3.


Whew!  That is a lot to get done!  Knowing myself, I bet there will be a ton of other projects that sneak in next quarter but I am determined to not let them interfere with accomplishing the above.  Wish me luck - I know I am going to need it!!

she can quilt


I will be linking up these goals at she can quilt.  Follow Leanne's button to see what others are doing this quarter.  There are some very talented people out there!



Also linking up with Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation and Really Random Thursday at Live a Colorful Life.



Tuesday, July 9, 2013

A Day of Bliss!


Isn't it amazing how one little day can make all the difference.  I have been working long hours, feeling very stressed and really needed some time away from my studio.  So yesterday I spent a wonderful day with friends doing a little fabric shopping.  Okay, let's be truthful...we did ALOT of fabric shopping!  That one little day has done wonders for me and today I feel so refreshed.  


Here are some of the wonderful items I picked up.





Ever dream about fabric?  The fabulous mid-century modern piece was a fabric I had seen on my last shopping trip and I have been thinking about it since.  I am about to remodel my mid-century kitchen and I wanted some of this for the curtains.  I also found this great stripe that I am going to use to recover the chairs in the breakfast nook. 

Can you tell I am going with an orange and turquoise color scheme?










These two adorable fabrics are for a pattern test on a pattern I am writing.  I fell in love with the scooter fabric so it will be the focus of the quilt.  I will certainly share it with you in the future.









Another item on my shopping list was to replenish my text fabric.  Was I happy to see all of these!









At this point, I was extremely pleased with myself as I seemed to be focused on getting only those things I "needed".  I had another project I was shopping for but the concept just didn't seem to be falling into place so I put it back in my bag for another trip.  The store was very busy with carloads of quilters on their way to the Sister's Quilt Show this week.  

You guessed it, the longer I was there, the more I bought.



Waiting to get some fabric cut, a friend and I idly dug through the sale fat quarters.  Of course you have to buy 12 to get the additional few cents off!  Right!?!

There was a little competition for the "best" ones.







And my favorite purchase of the day was this sweet chickadee fabric. I absolutely did not need it nor do I have any project in mind. This summer two chickadees raised a little family in one of my birdhouses so the two chickadees enclosed in that little heart tugged on my own little heart.





I am already looking forward to my next trip.....






Linking up with Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday and Linky Tuesday at Freemotion by the River.

Sunday, July 7, 2013

Quilts are for Giving

There are two exciting things I wanted to share with you.  If you have followed my blog for a while, then you know that charity sewing is very important to me.  Here's some information on two new projects I am involved with.


Photobucket

 I have decided to contribute to the Quilts are for Giving blog.  It is a group blog where various quilters post what they are working on and the organizations they are quilting for.  I found this blog through Sarah over at Confessions of a Fabric Addict and I am excited to share what I make personally to give and what Project:Quilt makes each month.

 

100quiltsbutton 100 Quilts for Kids: Charity Quilt Drive Starts Today!


I am also supporting and promoting the annual 100 Quilts for Kids charity quilt drive!  Katie over at Swim Bike Quilt has been spearheading this event for the past three years which runs this year from July 1 - September 30th.  You can find all the information here.

The guidelines are pretty simple and I hope you join me in ensuring Kim far exceeds her goal.

I myself am starting off by donating the below three scrappy baby quilts to Quilts of Hope for the Neonatal ICU at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Springfield Oregon.  




Thanks for stopping by!  And a big hug if I have inspired you to donate a quilt!



I will also be encouraging quilters over at Plum and June for the Let's Get Acquainted Monday Link Up this week to join in the giving.


Thursday, July 4, 2013

Saved from the Trash Bin

A secret obsession passion of mine is to make fun projects from fabrics and blocks that people discard from their projects.  I get so much satisfaction out of challenging myself to come up with designs around these bits and pieces and give them new life.  

Okay, so maybe it's not such a secret anymore.  Luckily, I no longer have to pull my treasures from the trash bins - they are passed to me across the table as I quilt with friends.  Here are a few things I have been playing with recently.




These lovely little triangles were the trimmings from Tula Pinks's Paper Heart quilt from the Sew Red book.  It was like Christmas to get these!





The day I received them, I instantly sewed them up into HST blocks.

I used my Blok-Loc ruler to trim them up.  It makes trimming so very easy.  The one thing I don't like about this tool is you cannot press your seams open - which I like to do to remove bulk.   







Here is what I have sewed up so far.  I still need to come up with a border to bring it out to a good baby quilt size.  It is going to be very sweet when it is done.


I was also handed a bunch of apple green print triangles from another friend.   These were a bit more challenging as they were not quite all the same size and I really didn't want to spend a bunch of time trimming them down.


My etsy shop was getting a little light on baby quilts so I thought I would make up a few quick quilts using some old fabrics from my stash.

I just sewed the triangles into strips and set them horizontally into some strips of bright turquoise and green fabrics.


As I still had quite a few triangles left, I decided to make another simple top with the inset running vertically.

I still need to quilt this top and give it a little more character. I'm thinking a bright apple green thread!




I also made this third little quilt to try and sew up more of these fabrics.  It is amazing how far fabric will go when you are trying to use it up!






Thanks to my friends who fed my obsession passion and shared these little treats with me.  I have another sew day scheduled soon so we will see if I find any more "treasures".

Hope you all had a great 4th!


Linking up with Lily's Quilts for Fresh Sewing Day,  My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday, and Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it Up Friday.

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