Heart Quilt Wall Hanging

I had the opportunity to quilt this fun jelly strip heart quilt a few weeks ago. 

My customer gave me free range on the quilting. I had fun sketching this one out. 

I used a light pink thread, which is a little difficult to see in these pictures.

AND .. Since you can see it a little better on the back ...

 I loved quilting this one!

Sometimes it's hard knowing what to do on someone else's quilts (or even my own). This time, it came really easy to me. LOVE when that happens!!! If only it would happen more often :)

Um, Hello February!

WOW! The last couple of months seem like a blur. I was surprised to see the last post I did was to wish you all a happy Thanksgiving. The holidays were busy, as usual. Although, looking back, it doesn't seem like it anymore :) My boy's grade did a production of the Nutcracker. This was the 28th year for his school! Even more amazing -- the teacher that started it all is still running the show. I helped teach the Penny-Whistles their little dance. The kids practiced everyday for 6 weeks. All the kids did amazing! Plus, it was so fun to watch!!

I haven't done much sewing in the past couple of months, but I did manage to make a Christmas dress for my girl. I still need to take pictures of it. Shortly after Christmas, I got hit with Asthmatic Bronchitis. Basically, the bronchitis is causing me to have asthma. I have never had asthma, so this has been new and sometimes scary. I have been to urgent care 4 times in the last month, 2 of which were because I could not get enough air. The scary part! There were a few times during a coughing fit that I truly felt as though I had forgotten how to breathe, and maybe I was doing it wrong. I had to think about every breath. I'm currently on a pretty high dose of prednisone, keeping my breathing in check, and making me a bit more productive.

I have been able to quilt a few things the last couple of weeks. Pictures coming soon!! Of course, I do have something to show you today too :) A customer brought me these adorable Valentine's table toppers.

I love these scrappy hearts. They are all appliqued for extra cuteness! 

I stitched around each heart, next to the edge.

Squiggly lines going through the hearts. It was nice and relaxing. 

To switch things up a bit, I changed the direction of the lines on the second top.

I don't know about you, but I am fully inspired to do some Valentine's sewing!

That's it for today. 

I'll be back soon with some quilts and that Christmas dress I mentioned :)

Out Of Step

Out Of Step. 

I feel like I've been a little out of step lately. Trying to balance this new school year with 2 kids and homework, finding time to keep up with the store, housework, gym time... uh, the list could go on. The Holidays always bring on a new overwhelming sense of stress. amiright? 

I'm pretty much a step behind. I know I will catch up. One step at a time. 

Maybe a few extra gray hairs :)

This pattern can be found in the list of free patterns offered by Robert Kaufman.

As soon as I saw it, I needed to make it! I have never done an all solid quilt. I pulled a bundle I had been saving from Art Gallery fabrics and got to work!

I started this quilt at the beginning of the year. I shared a few progress posts here, there, under there and over there. Although I had the top finished, and every intention to complete the quilt at the time, it got placed in a pile and forgotten. I rediscovered it a couple of months ago, found the perfect backing and binding for it in my stash - something I had bought years ago and was saving for an unknown project. I had just the right amount! 

 

I mostly quilted straight lines, following the flow of the quilt. I had started to fill the 'maze' with lines, but after the first section, decided it was too many lines. So, I unpicked 2 rows. Even with all the turning required, I had it quilted in about 4 days. I filled the extra spaces with offset triangles.

I am so in love with how it all turned out!

I asked my little girl to hold my camera while I put the quilt out on the ice. Naturally, she snapped a few shots of me.  

Frozen lakes make me nervous. But, I couldn't resist the forming ice.

I stayed on the bank, and hoped it was frozen enough to support me. But if not, then at most I would only have a really cold boot. :)

I love all the texture the light shows. 

I wouldn't mind having a wintery picnic. right. here.

Just look how gorgeous this lake is!

Oh! I nearly forgot! I had one last hurdle to jump before getting this quilt done. I did a bias binding, which I've done several times before. For some reason, I had a bit of a rolling problem with this one. It might have been that I didn't have it lined up just right when I turned it over. I may have even stretched it a bit while pressing. I thought I could get over it; maybe it would fix itself in the wash. 

I was nearly finished with it, and decided I just didn't like it. I could do better. So, I took it all out. I used a few more (or all of them) of my Wonder Clips, and started over. It turned out so much better!

There was still a small amount of rolling, but barely noticeable. I'm sure after a wash or two, it won't even bother me :)

Fancier Foxes

This post is looong overdue! 

A few months ago, I made a Fancy Fox quilt for my newest nephew. My kids fell in love with the foxes. So much so, that: 1) they didn't want me to give the quilt away. 2) they wanted to make their own fox quilts. I've been posting pics here and there of their progress. Although - it's been a few months since they finished their tops. Summer came along, and like all other projects, we (I) took a break on the quilts. I finally got them quilted in August, and even took pictures a few weeks ago. I'm a bit behind with showing them off. I'm still trying to find a happy medium with how to spend my time while the kids are at school. Lately, I've been sewing up their Halloween costumes. Which, I'm happy to say, are nearly finished, and should have pictures to show y'all in a week or two. 

Making these quilts with them has been such a great experience for all of us. The kids really took to concentrating on their stitches, and even challenged themselves to go at a faster pace. They sort of made a game out of timing themselves to see how long it would take to sew 5 squares, or how many they could get done in 2 minutes. 

They were very particular about what they wanted, putting their personalities into their quilts. They picked everything, from fabrics, placement, accessories, backing and quilting. Which has been funstrating (fun+frustrating)! I think it's a good trait they have, but can also be frustrating when what they want isn't really available. My girl was much more giving in her decisions. If it was the right color, that's all that mattered. 

My boy on the other hand, was a little more picky. He wanted each fox be different - not just in color, but also in print. He has always known what he wants, and always figures out a way to get it. I had to pull out every single bin of fabric I have, with a lot of rejections, before he found a fabric for each fox. In the end, he decided it was okay if the patterns were similar (but still not the same), especially when it came to dots. Even thought it's just a quilt, I'm glad to see him not waver from his determination. I know he felt very accomplished when he was able to find 42 different fabrics. He could have given up after the first bin and just settled on what he had, but he wouldn't have been happy.  

Trying to decide on a background was nearly as daunting for him. After many mind changes, a couple quick lessons on color theory and contrasting, a trip (or 2) to the Riley Blake warehouse, he found the right color of grey he could be happy with.

So how did we make these foxes fancier? Of course the glasses were a must. My girl didn't like the glasses that Elizabeth Hartman made to go along with her pattern. She thought they looked too boyish. So I came up with some other, more girly glasses. Paisley also wanted to add bows. Which I love! 

This is my favorite of her foxes.

My boy also wanted to add glasses. And mustaches.

I came up with a few mustaches for variety. He only wanted the short, nearly straight mustache.

I think it makes the fox look quite sly.

It didn't just stop at glasses and mustaches. He also wanted a hat, which then led to a monocle.

This is my favorite of his foxes. I absolutely LOVE how it turned out!

This might really be my favorite of all the foxes. He looks so dignified!

Paisley wanted a simple wave quilted across hers. She picked a very pale purple thread by Sulky. It has a been of a glimmer to it, just like her :)

She couldn't decide which Michael Miller Basics purple dots she liked better, so I pieced them in a gradient (I should have made some of the strips wider).

Argyle wanted his to be quilted in flames. He found a red/yellow/orange variegated thread in my box that was perfect for the flames.

He also pulled about 13 different fabrics for his backing. I did my best to incorporate all that he had, but when it came down to it, had to leave a few out. The pieces just weren't big enough. I made the back up as I went a long. I don't usually do improv piecing. I had a lot of fun with it, and am seriously considering making a top in the same fashion. 

I don't know who's more proud of their first quilts (and tremendous accomplishment), me or them. The quilts are shown to just about everyone who comes by our house, have been on their beds since the moment they were finished, traveled with them in the car, been to movie nights, a hospital appointment, talent night and shown off to their school classes. 

I am amazed at their tenacity during the whole process. 

I'm glad to be able to share my love of quilting with my kids. 

I'm happy I could teach them.

I am extremely proud of them. 

Foxes In The Desert

Just a few short weeks ago, my newest nephew was born. I have made a quilt for each of my nieces and nephews. This makes number 13. My brother and his family all really loved that 'What Does The Fox Say' song. I have never heard it - I may be about the only one on the planet who hasn't. Non-the-less, when I learned they would be having another boy, I knew I wanted to make Elizabeth Hartman's Fancy Fox Quilt. I was so anxious to make this quilt, I started pulling fabrics before the pattern even arrived! When the pattern finally did arrive, I had this cute little top put together in about 2 days! There was a lot of trimming and pressing, but all worth it. 

I've shown a few pictures here and there of my progress on Facebook. I'll share them again below, in case you missed it :)

This quilt is being hand delivered by my parents who are currently driving through 5 states to meet my new nephew, and will be arriving today. Sometimes quilts make me so happy I can hardly wait to give it to their intended. This is one of those of quilts. 

I held off on taking pictures of the final quilt for a few weeks after it was finished, only because I was going to be taking a mini-trip to Capital Reef and already knew it would be the perfect place to take pictures of these foxes. I toted it around on one of our hikes, placing it in the little 'cubbies' in the sandstone walls, finding that perfectly angled flat rock it could lay on, or over by that tree that is also very beautiful, standing tall above the rocky surrounding as if it too, was taking in all the beauty that was before it. I got left behind. A lot. 

When I finally caught up to everyone else, I saw the most perfect rock to hang the quilt from; with a little help from my mom (who is huddled along the backside).

I love this fox with the glasses on. There was a huge argument between my kids on which one I should put the glasses on. Ultimately, I decided slightly off center would be best. My boy keeps telling me where I really should have put them.

I quilted it with an all over wood grain. This is one of those patterns I felt so intimidated to do. But after squiggling it on paper a few times, quilting it was a breeze. I quickly fell into my niche, and had it quilted with in a day. Such an EASY design that I will be doing again! :)

My kids also fell in love with the foxes. They have decided that they, too, want their own fox quilt. They have been going through my stash to pick out their fabrics, and have even helped with the sewing. One top is done and currently 13 foxes into the second one. It's been fun sewing with them. I'm even more glad it's something they want to do too :)