Oh Baby

I finished a number of items in July (just in time for one of the baby showers) for two new babies due in our family.  

I made Elizabeth Hartman's Preppy the Whale for a baby girl.  The mom-to-be wanted bright colors instead of baby pastels.  The grandparents-to-be live in Gloucester where we've departed for a family whale watch, so I thought this was appropriate.  It's hard to see, but the background fabric is a pale blue.  I used an all-over stipple to quilt it.

The back is a small floral with a single girly whale.  I used the same blue for the binding that was used for the background.

Made a couple of quick bibs.

I also finished a really cute diaper clutch.  It's a combination of tutorials I found on Pinterest.

It unrolls and opens up to a changing mat.  I used a waterproof fabric for the inside because we all know that things can get messy.  The pocket can hold some diapers and a package of wipes.

We also had a baby boy join the family.

I made this triangle quilt with some leftover pieces from a quilt I had made for my grandson.  It was really simple.  The fabric is called Life in the Jungle and it's from Riley Blake.  I really like the orange an gray in this collection. I mixed in a few solids as well.

The back is a cute blue plaid with some leftover strips.

I did straight line stitching for the quilting and used a solid blue for the binding.

Until this weekend when I started sewing a Christmas table runner (getting an early start), I hadn't sewn a single thing since early July.  It's just been too hot, plus I've been spending my time reading the Outlander series.  Each book is about 1000 pages.  I'm on book three.

Anyway, it's good to get back to my machine.

Joyful stitching,
jane 

Show Off Saturday

Finally, a decent finish.  I started this churn dash quilt in March at retreat.  I finished it last week.

This is a generous-sized lap quilt measuring 63"x72".  Each individual block measures 9".  I used Carolyn Friedlander's Botanics.  Her collection contained a nice selection of small and tone-on-tone prints as well contrasting ones.  I think this allowed for the individual blocks to stand out nicely.

I used my walking foot to stitch from top to bottom along just along the center row in each block.  I stitched in the ditch in the seam between each individual block.  Easy peasy.

I patched the back together using some leftover blocks and scraps.  The yellow fabric is an older Joel Dewberry from my stash. 

I'm not generally an orange person and I'm not sure why I even had it in my stash, but I think it worked well to sharpen the edge of this quilt.

Now, I've got a couple of deadlines for baby quilts so those should be my next finishes. 

Today, I'm linking up with

 
Joyful stitching,
jane

For the Birds

Finally, a finish.  My first one in months. That's what a deadline will do for you.  

The Seacoast Modern Quilt Guild will participating in  A Quilters Gathering quilt show in November with an exhibit of mini quilts.  These quilts represent a modern interpretation of a traditional block.  The traditional block I chose is called Pigeon Toes.  Not a very attractive block, but I wanted to finally use a ruler that I had purchased a couple of years ago.  It's the Split Rec ruler by Deb Tucker. My pigeon toes turned out lovely.

The traditional block is a 5x5 grid with a combination of squares and half rectangles (pigeon toes). I kept with the 5x5 grid but rearranged the blocks and used some extra half rectangles.  We were only allowed to use solids for this project and had to finish at either 18" sq. or 22" sq.  This one is 22".

The diamonds and the elongated flying geese - which I call flying pigeons - are all made from half rectangles.  The binding and backing is the same Kona Ash as the background.  I did a bit of echo quilting within each section.
I even found a little clip-art pigeon to add the the label.

I'm calling this "Pigeons in the Park".  Sounds much nicer than "Pigeon Toes".

I really liked the way the flying pigeons turned out and would definitely make another quilt with them.  But first, we have two new babies coming into the family in the next few months so Auntie Jane needs to get busy with those baby quilts.

Joyful stitching,
jane

Wonderful WIP Wednesday

It's been a while since I've blogged.  The 400 feet (well, almost) of snow that was dumped on us last month threw me out of sorts.  Anyway, I do have a couple of things to show.

I completed this top about a month ago. It's from A Quilter's Mixology by Angela Pingel.  I really love this book.

The curves were not very difficult. I finally found something for the backing and hopefully will be able to baste it this weekend.
I went on retreat with my the Boston Modern Quilt Guild this past weekend up in Kennebunk, ME.  It was loads of fun and I actually did some sewing.

I made this churn dash top out of a fat quarter pack of Botanics.  The blocks finish at 9".  The layout is 7x8.  That means that there were 224 HST's to trim.

I didn't think to look for a backing while up in Maine.  We always make a trip to Mardens.  Hopefully, I'll have something in my stash.  The last thing I need to do is buy more fabric.

I bought these 3 fat quarter bundles before I went on retreat.  I was really naughty and bought about 30 yards (yes, 30 yards!) more at Mardens, but it was such a good deal. I hid it put it away before I had a chance to photo it:)  I promise I'll make good use of it.

Things are looking up. The temperature is supposed to be over 50 degrees tomorrow!  I even saw little buds on my raspberry bushes today.

Linking up to Lee at Freshly Pieced











Joyful stitching,
jane

WIP Wednesday

Finally, a bit of progress, with the help of a blizzard.  Two days off from work:)

One of my goals for the new year was to try something different.  Sewing curves was at the top of my list.  This block is from Angela Pingel's A Quilters Mixology.  There are more than a few quilts that I'd like to make from this book.
I've finished all the larger blocks.

I still have most of the smaller ones to complete.  All the curves are done.  They are really not that difficult.  The smaller ones are harder since you have less room to fudge with.  I'm hoping to finish the blocks by tonight. 

My other WIP is this herb garden.

I gave one of these to my son and his wife for Christmas.  It was the perfect gift.  My DIL is a gardener and my son is a bit of an urban homesteader but there's not much you can do in the cold New Hampshire winters. They're growing kale in theirs. 
Amazon had a deal on them so I gave myself a gift as well. I planted this one just under 4 weeks ago.  So far, so good.  I grow a lot of herbs in my yard during the summer and always miss them in the winter.  I can't resist the smell of fresh basil.

Linking up to












Joyful stitching,
jane

4th Qtr FAL Finish

The linkup for the 4th quarter Finish-Along ends tomorrow night so, of course, I'm hustling to finish posting my completed items.

One of the items on my original list was this table runner.

I purchased the kit on Craftsy.  The fabric is Moda's Winterlude.  I liked the blue in the collection and thought it would match my dining room.  It measures 51" x 25" and fits my table quite nicely.

I was very happy with the end result.  The pattern itself was not difficult.  It's made with a Honeybun which means that there are a lot of 1 1/2" squares.  It took me longer than I anticipated.
One of the things I like about the pattern is that there is a flange between the outside border and the inside border.

It's a nice effect.  I did an all-over stipple for the quilting.  The back is just a plain piece of a cream print.

I enjoyed using this during the holidays.  It's still on my table.  The poinsettia, however, didn't make it through Christmas.  I think they come to my house to die.

Joyful stitching,
jane

Linking up to

2014 - It's a wrap.

I went through my photos of things I finished in 2014.  It was not a banner year for finishes, but still, there's still plenty to show.  I was surprised, however, to realize that I had only finished 3 larger quilts.

The top one is a sampler made from 1 layer cake, the middle one is all Kaffe Fassett stripes and shots (super soft after washing!) and the bottom is called Hexie Garden.

I also finished some baby quilts.

All of these are from scraps/stash with the exception of the lower left hand one.  It's a version of a disappearing 9-patch using just one charm pack and some Kona Snow.

I made a few small runners and wall hangings, too.

These are all seasonal and already packed away for next year.

My biggest collection of finishes are my small items.

I made a number of mug rugs for my sister's birthday, another rose star EPP block, a Social Tote, a bib for my grandson's 1st birthday and 3 Sew Together bags for Christmas gifts.

As I went through my mess of photos (I resolve to be more organized in 2015.), I realized that there were some things that didn't make it into the photo collages.  There are a few that I haven't posted about yet, but I'll need to get them blogged about since they are part of my 4th Qtr FAL.

Looking forward to a few changes in 2015!  More on that later.

Joyful stitching,
jane

Linking up to...