And Now It’s January 2024!!!

Long Time Gone

 My first quilt finish for January 2024! 

I am still quilting even though I have not posted in years. I had a problem uploading photos so I will try again and see if it works any better. 

This quilt is Long Time Gone with pattern by Jen Kingwell. I didn’t follow it completely but it works for me. These were leftover fabrics from two or three other quilts, Baker’s Dozen and Happy Birds, both by Jen Kingwell also.

I just completed the binding and used a Kaffe Fassett backing - a pretty fabric I had for years and with some good yardage. 

Here is a close up and below the quilt laying across the sofa. Lots of stitching in this quilt and the pineapple blocks were paper pieced and took a bit of time but I felt worth it for the spin they gave to the quilt overall!! 

Maybe I can continue sharing quilts after all. Happy Stitching!!

Some New Quilt Tops

 Lately I have been working on many quilt tops getting them ready for quilting. My long arm quilt machine is now in the garage since we down-sized so I am waiting for some cooler weather.

This first quilt is designed by Kaffe Fassett called Stone Log Cabin in the book, Kaffe Fassett's Quilts in Italy. I love the look of the quilt and the fabrics and bought a kit a few years ago. Funny thing is I am not fond of sewing borders on quilts and that is what this whole quilt was - around and around we go!! Oh well, it was easy and fun with all the gorgeous fabrics!

This is using some leftover jelly roll strips from two Christmas quilts I made last year for the grandchildren. The pattern is Jelly Roll Twist and is free from the Fat Quarter Shop.

I just figured this quilt design out again, using the leftover jelly roll strips and had a plan with the sets of threes and ended up using all but one set. I will back them both with flannel to be cozy when it turns cool this winter.

Again, leftover fabrics from Postcards from Sweden I made a few years ago. These triangles were cut a little smaller but still made a quilt about 55" x 55" square. 

I began this quilt, Comfort and Joy by Silver Thimble Quilt Co, ten years ago as a BOM with Sweet Home Quilt Shop. I got side tracked and every few years made a couple more blocks. I almost trashed the fabrics several times but decided recently it was worth finishing which took about a week. I'm glad I persevered!!

Still Quilting and Cross Stitching Again!

 It has been quite some time since I did a post on my blog but I decided to try it again and see how it went. I have continued to quilt but I retired from being a long arm quilter a couple of years ago.

In the meantime, in 2018, I took up cross stitch again and absolutely love doing that, too. I admit I must enjoy the process more than having it on the walls because I haven't had much framed but I think the pandemic played into that since that was just another place to go and we have stayed home a lot.

Here is a quilt top I just finished. It is made from leftover dotted fabrics, mostly Kaffes and a few more thrown in to go with the other squares from older projects. Wanda Hanson from Exuberant Color has a great tutorial on how to sew these 16 patch blocks/quilts where all of the seams nest and it goes together so nicely! Made it a joy to stitch together! Thank you, Wanda! 

And here is a close up! 

Spring Quilting 2018

Earlier this year I asked my sister in Texas what she was working on with her quilting and she sent me some pictures of really bright fabrics and I knew I had to join in. This quilt is Postcards from Sweden and is a free pattern from Robert Kaufman and Jeliquilts, made with  Kona cottons.

I searched on Etsy and found a site where I could order the fabrics needed and in 3 or 4 days began the quilt! 

 The fabrics were all labeled with the color and number and all was very organized with making this quilt from the pattern. We swirled our seams and made the quilt come out very flat.

 And accurate!

 A little swirly quilting and then it was finished.

 This quilt is Retro Rug Quilt and was a kit I bought at Houston Quilt Festival last year. It went together so easily and again, I enjoyed the fun bright colors - all Kaffes!

I found some interesting leftover fabrics in my stash and pieced them for the backing.

 I saw this quilt in Quiltmania Magazine 124, called Fruit Slices, and wanted to try and recreate it with my own fabrics. These are from a fabric grouping.

 I particularly liked the pink sashing and green cornerstones that separated all the ovals.

 I chose all these fabrics from my stash - except the pink and green which I ordered and began cutting. I used the starch method for appliqué so it's been very easy sewing.

These are my fabrics laid out before I began stitching. I'm now down to my last row of easy appliqué.

And then here is a totally different type of quilt - Mini Havana - designed by Laura Heine. Again, I could not resist at the Houston Quilt Festival so the whole kit came home with me. Quite fun to make and here is the finish!

I will be doing more of this type of quilting in the future!

 My Primitive Garden is still in the making - six years later. I am working on the last large border but at least got the center put together. Don't you love these tiny stars?? They finish at 2" square but I decided they would be worth it in the sashing.

This is the center of my Primitive Garden quilt, the pattern is by Lisa Bongean.

China Shop is now hanging in the stairwell so I can view it every day as I come up to sew!

 I made a round tablecloth using all Kaffe and Friends fabrics in my stash. The old and the new still went together so well.

This was the Turning Twenty Again pattern by Tricia Cribbs. Always goes together well!

Jake & Lacey's Quilt Designs

I've let the grandchildren design their own quilts on my design wall and here is their latest! We stretched this one out a bit as what they can put up on the design wall in 45 minutes can give me a week's worth of work!!

 This is Jake's quilt! As he stated to his Mom, "It has a pattern to it". That was important to him. He was six at the time of this designing. It was neat how if he did not have enough of one fabric for his rows, he was okay with substituting something similar.

I found this great border fabric that I had been saving for a long time and it was just the right amount for the borders and the back.

 Lacey is not as concerned about order as she is having fun. She did choose all her fabrics also - she is five. She did notice how the flower in the vase turned out matching near the center.

 Here is her back - other fabrics I had on hand and her border was leftover bindings that worked with her quilt colors.

I did a freehand swirl on hers.

Swirls from the front!

Another Flower Garden block finished!!

I love the colors of this quilt!! Imagine that!! This is from Kaffe Fassett's book, Quilts from Italy. There are at least two in the book I want to make. For this one, however, I am making it a smaller size so it can be a wallhanging in our family room. It just looks like spring to me!

Happy Quilting and stitch when you can!

Completing UFOs

This year I have been working - as usual - on completing some UFOs. This always happens comes January and this year was no exception except that I am actually finishing some this time. My goal is to finish one quilt per month.

I made a long list that I won't share for fear of embarrassing myself but here are my January and February finishes.

 This is Color Works, the pattern being from Kathy Doughty's book, Mixing Quilt Elements. I had so much fun making this quilt and choosing fabrics, all which were in my stash. Some are Asian prints that have been aging for quite some time; some Kathy's own fabrics and stripes by Kaffe Fassett.

 My pictures could be better but I think that is what keeps me from blogging sometimes - waiting for great photos and finding a large place to take the pictures.

 Next came the quilt you may recognize - Bonnie Hunter's Mystery Quilt from Nov 2017,  On Ringo Lake. My sister and some of my friends were going to make it so I proceeded ahead, of course not knowing how many thousands of pieces there would be! I must say it is good therapy and even though I'm glad it is FINISHED, it was fun in the process.

 Just hanging on the longarm here.

And a closeup picture. 

I still have more to share but goodbye for now and

Happy Easter!

Fall 2017 Projects

I'm still working on several long-term projects and do not have any finishes yet. . . . .however, I have a couple of new quilts that I've enjoyed making to share.

Here is Scrappy Trip Around the World, a pattern given free by Bonnie Hunter on her website. I saw a quilt on someone else's blog and it made me want to make this. I had been cutting 2 1/2" strips when I had a little fabric leftover from a project and not much yardage left so I had a plastic shoebox full of strips. Many different fabrics are included.

I think Bonnie's was much larger but this is about 58" x 84". Even the border was leftover from a backing for my Lollypop Trees a few years ago. Just a simple pantograph with variegated thread and it was done!

 This quilt was SO fun to make. Now it made me think, contemplate, audition tons of fabrics and put them up on the design wall and a lot of playing but so enjoyable. I am quite pleased with it as I've done some improvisational quilting before and that is how this went. I was inspired by a quilt by Kaffe Fassett in his book Bold Blooms, called Gray Random Strips. I had the center piece like his but from there on, it was just trying to get the same look yet using my own fabrics and having fun.

 Here are some tulips that go back into the early nineties or late eighties by Jeffrey Gutcheon - I still have that in several color ways but it worked well in this quilt. I finally had to make a trip to the quilt shop to get enough larger pieces for the borders.

This backing by Laura Heine had been in my closet for years waiting to be used. It was just the right amount and I liked how it went with the very center floral in the quilt.

I finished one more block in my Flower Garden quilt - pattern by Kim McLean. I think I've been working on that for five years.............oh well! Still pretty to me.

My daughter's family had to evacuate when Hurricane Irma came up the coast so they spent several days with us. The children had previously enjoyed having me cut squares and triangles with my Go Cutter and they chose their fabrics and their design - all by themselves. Nana sews them together later on and makes the quilts for them. Lacey, who is 5 made the design on the left and older brother Jake who is 6, the design on the right. He wanted a pattern to develop with his and he did it all by himself. If he ran out of fabric he'd just use another that was a similar color he said. We did have fun!!

 I mentioned earlier that I was doing the 2017 BOM with Sarah Fielke, Down the Rabbit Hole, and this is my center. I'm a little behind - think I'm up to May now. 

I just finished making 40 little tiny houses to go around the center. Very tiny - makes me think of the tv show, Tiny Houses. Right now I am ready for some appliqué after sewing those tiny 1" strips but they are cute and colorful!!

Happy Quilting and maybe it won't be nine months before I do another post!!