Blue Collar Diamonds

Posted on February 16, 2021 by katyquilts

I decided to name this quilt, Blue Collar Diamonds. It is another made from shirts belonging to the men of my family. I’m not sure exactly what the solid is, I had it in my stash. I wanted something more orange, but now that it’s together, I’m quite happy with it.

Thus was inspired by a vintage quilt owned by Barbara Brackman and featured in the book, Sisterhood of Scraps.

It finished at about 30 by 40 inches.

In case you are interested, here is how I pressed my seams. Everything nested beautifully.

This came together so quickly. I can’t wait to quilt it! Have a great day!

Posted in Finishes 2021, Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Diamonds

Posted on February 15, 2021 by katyquilts

This is one of the projects I cut out last fall. These are 60 degree diamonds and they finish at 2 inches on a side

I started sewing a few as leaders/enders while working on my QOV top. Here are some layout possibilities.

I’m not sure how big I can make this based on he number of pieces I’ve cut. I should probably figure that out!

Have a good one!

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Slow Stitching Sunday ~ Itty Bitty Bow Ties

Posted on February 14, 2021 by katyquilts

I enjoyed sitting outside hand quilting this last Sunday. But it soon became clear that this wasn’t enough quilting.

So I had to sacrifice another afternoon to quilt outside. Winslow helped.

It’s much better now. It’s twin is pieced, but not yet quilted.

All that is left for this one is the hand stitching on the binding.

I guess I’ll have to sit outside again! Have a great day!

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

Vintage Top

Posted on February 13, 2021 by katyquilts

Mr. Wonderful wanted to check out some plants at a nearby nursery yesterday. They had a little shop selling repurposed furniture and home decor as part of the business. I found some cute stuff in there, it this top grabbed my attention.

When I saw the $6 price tags, I knew it was coming home with me! It has some really great fabrics in it!

I love this mourning print!

The blocks were hand pieced and the top put together by machine. Beautiful work!

There is one block that will need replacing, but otherwise it seems to be in great shape. I just love this!

Have a good one!

Posted in Vintage Fabrics, Vintage Quilts | 8 Comments

Finish It Up Friday ~ Thank You, Roberta

Posted on February 12, 2021 by katyquilts

Oh, this turned out to be the perfect project during work on the house. Between the pounding on the roof and the dogs barking at the workers, simple sewing was all I could do. And while there are many parts, this is simple

I found this to be a very inspiring project. The following would be a great layout too.

But as mentioned in an earlier post, my inspiration was a vintage quilt owned by a Roberta Horton, who passed away this week. This quilt was featured in her book, Scrap Quilts: The Art of Making Do. Here it is:

Roberta Horton was a giant in the quilt world. Here is my take on her quilt.

I didn’t spend any time laying things out ahead of time. I just grabbed and sewed. Of course I ended up with two like pieces next to each other.

Here is my finished top. It measures 60 by 80 so it will be a good size throw.

I will take this back to Michigan to quilt on my long arm. Have a great day!

Posted in Civil War Repro Quilts, Finishes 2021, Uncategorized | 8 Comments

QOV Progress

Posted on February 11, 2021 by katyquilts

I thought I might use this as a leader/ender project, but I’ve been enjoying it so much, I can’t leave it alone.

This was totally inspired by the Roberta Horton project. The piecing is so simple.

Can you tell where I’m headed with this?

Have a great day!

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Flying Geese Update

Posted on February 10, 2021 by katyquilts

I’m sure you haven’t forgotten my flying geese fiasco. Well, someone suggested tea dying this little bit.

I didn’t have tea on hand, but I had coffee. So I gave it a good soak overnight.

Here is the result.

And the back, which just looks dirty to me now.

Here’s a side by side comparison.

The coffee definitely took the brightness out. So I think it is an improvement.

Have a great day!

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

This and That

Posted on February 10, 2021 by katyquilts

Remember these?

I cut more pieces when I was back in Michigan. But I didn’t count very well. Ugh. Oh, well. I made a couple more and will piece one here and there until I’m out of parts.

We had a lovely weekend with family, including a birthday party for a Big L. I can’t believe he is seven already.

I also wanted to share this comment left by Wanda at Exuberant Color regarding die cutting on cross grain vs. lengthwise grain.

And if you’ve never visited Wanda’s blog, you are in for a treat. It’s the one I read with my coffee every morning.

Lastly, I wanted to share these books with you.

Historical novels in diary form? I’m in! I read these books for the first time not long after my first trip to Arizona. Since then I’ve read them at least three times, maybe four. They tell the story of a young woman who comes to Arizona Territory and settles here. I look around at the wilderness here and know that Sarah was made of sterner stuff than I am! I finally ordered my own copies.

Have a great day!

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Quilt of Valor

Posted on February 9, 2021 by katyquilts

Every year on the first Saturday in February, the Quilt of Valor Foundation hosts a national sew day, complete with prizes. I always think of this happening in the winter, so I kept thinking it was a long way off. Well, it was last Saturday and I found out when I saw it on Instagram! Saturday was a busy day, but in the evening I got out this bin of red, white, and blue fabrics given to me by my neighbor and started cutting.

Someone asked about how much waste there was using an Accuquilt die cutter. I thought I’d show you here. In the bin were three half yard cuts. I layered and pressed them and rough cut them in strips, 6 layers deep.

I’m using this die.

In no time I had this pile of 2 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch rectangles.

And this is the waste. The bits on the left will be die cut into smaller squares, so not really waste in my book.

I’m more than happy with that little pile in exchange for speed and accuracy! And here is my whole quilt cut out and ready for piecing.

Click here to see all the current deals from Accuquilt . Have a great day!

This post contains affiliate links.

Posted in Accuquilt, Quilt of Valor, Uncategorized | 4 Comments

My Chair Redo

Posted on February 8, 2021 by katyquilts

Before we even got to Arizona, I was scrolling through the online marketplaces looking for stuff for the house. I found this chair and had daughter #2 pick it up for me. I had no idea how huge it was!

Mr. Wonderful calls it the Santa Claus chair. I refer to it as my throne. I loved it, but it wasn’t really comfortable . Also, as much as I loved the pattern, it clashed with everything.

The cushions were too big and too hard. So I decided to redo them. This is what it looks like without them. Cool, huh?

I picked up several yards of this upholstery fabric from a Good Will back home and brought it out here, not really knowing what I’d do with it.

Time to cut down these gigantic cushions!

An electric knife is just the ticket for that job.

My 301 powers through this like it was quilting cotton.

And ta daaaaa!

In person, the fabric looks more green than blue. Willy gave it his seal of approval. I don’t love this kind of sewing, but I’m really happy with how it turned out. It is much more comfortable now too.

Have a great day!

Posted in Home projects, Uncategorized | 5 Comments