Hand Quilting 2018

My hand quilting took a bit of a hiatus last summer due to carpal tunnel issues. My hand/wrist is much better following surgery and I’m thankful to be hand quilting again. I’ve slowly gotten back into it. Here are the hand quilting projects I completed this past year.

I only hand quilt vintage pieces these days. I have several tops lined up to hand quilt this year.

Have a great day!

Posted in Finishes, Hand quilting, Uncategorized | 3 Comments

String Along Update

I told you already that’s Lori at Humble Quilts is hosting a String Along this year. It will run for ten months. In order to make the quilt I want, I need to make 8 of these each month.

I’m a bit worried about my scraps holding out. This is all I have left of my dad’s shirts. I think I started with 30 shirts so there isn’t a lot of variety.

I was using muslin as my foundation layer, but then I thought it would be a great place to use some older, no longer loved fabrics from the stash.

I was a bit worried about shadowing, but it is going well so far.

This is the back.

Looks like I have half of the blocks done for next month!

I’m keeping this bin next to the sewing machine and it’s easy and quick to do a block here and there.

Have a great day!

Posted in String Along, Uncategorized | 9 Comments

Finish It Up Friday ~ Vintage Bowties

I signed up for a doll quilt swap on Instagram hosted by @tossedbutnotsunk aka Jenny B. I found out about the swap while I was piecing these blocks in December and decided if this little quilt turned out well, that I would send this to my swap partner.

I’m not 100% happy with my backing fabric, just because it doesn’t go as well with my binding as I would have liked.

You may remember that most of the pieces for this were cut down from these vintage blocks.

I replaced some bits from my vintage stash as needed. I hand quilted it.

Once it was done, I washed it in the sink with a bit of Dawn dish soap. You never know how these old fabrics will stand up to washing. I’ve had some fall apart completely or change color.

Here it is after washing and drying.

I’m happy to report that it turned out just fine!

That little bit of shrinkage adds just the right touch. I hope my swap partner likes it. It isn’t due for some time yet, though it is nice to have this done and ready to go.

Have a wonderful day!

Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict , Anja Quilts , Busy Hands Quilts

Posted in Doll Quilts, Finishes, Hand piecing, Hand quilting, UFOs, Uncategorized | 12 Comments

Throw Quilts 2018

Thank you all for the lovely comments on my sewing room! I am very blessed to have the space that I do. However, I should have shown BEFORE photos. It became a big of a dumping ground in December. On to the topic for today!

Throw quilts are the perfect gift for graduations, housewarming’s, birthdays, just because…. here are the throw quilts I made this past year.

Have a great day!

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

A Tidy Up

Every January, I like to start out the year with a deep clean in the sewing room. A surprise visit from Daughter #2 and a stint of jury duty have set me back a little. But I got a good start.

I have a lot more to do. I want to go through my fabric in the wire baskets, sort the contents of the big white cupboards, clean the walk in closet, and deal with the ever growing mountain of scraps. But I had to get all horizontal surfaces cleaned off before moving ahead.

I can already breathe easier. Have a great day!

Posted in Sewing Room Pics, Uncategorized | 18 Comments

Baby Quilts 2018

I make a lot of baby quilts every year. They are quick and fun and the perfect gift. Here are the baby quilts I made last year,

Most of these have been gifted. I like to have at least one boy quilt and one girl quilt in reserve. I need to get to work on the boy quilts!

Have a great day!

Posted in Baby Quilts, Finishes, Uncategorized | 5 Comments

Something New

I bought this layer cake a while back. It has aged enough that I’m ready to use it.

It goes well with this piece I picked up in Phoenix.

I cut squares of solid fabrics and alternated solids and stripes in stacks. Then I placed them on my 2 1/2 inch Accuquilt strip cutter and ran them through.

Then I placed them in one of my enamel pans to keep them all together.

There is very little waste in this quilt!

Such beautiful color!

Here are the first 15 blocks. They work up quickly.

Have a great day!

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Ugh

If you are squeamish, look away now. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

I decided this would be the first UFO I would tackle. Those dang thistle leaves are why I set it aside. For the one on the right, I ironed a freezer paper pattern to the back side and tried to trim the fabric as I went. You can hardly tell it is a thistle leaf.

For the next one, I ironed a pattern to the top. Then I traced around it with a chalk pencil.

It was a bit better, but not great. No, it is worse than not great, it is down right awful. I’ll spare you the closeup.

I’ll remind you what it was supposed to look like.

Um, yeah, not even close. Mine doesn’t even look like folk art, it just looks like terrible workmanship. Which it is. All this is to say that not everything turns out like you imagine it will. Not looking for sympathy or comments, I just like being honest and showing the ugly along with the good. I figure, it’s good for a laugh!

And since I never know when to stop and throw in the towel, I’m going to forge ahead with this ugly duckling. It could go well with my Calamity Jane quilt.

I might wait a few days though.

Have a good one!

Posted in Uncategorized | 14 Comments

QOVs 2018

I made three Quilts of Valor this year and all three have been awarded.

I also quilted upwards of 30 QOVs for the Stitching Sisters QOV group this year. I look forward to getting my next batch of tops to work on.

Have a great day!

Posted in Uncategorized | 11 Comments

Finish It Up Friday ~ Swiss Crosses

On Christmas Eve, Lori at Humble Quilts , shared a tutorial for a small quilt called Swiss Cross. I decided to give it a go.

I wanted the large triangles to be the same as the background shirting, but I didn’t have enough.

The above two photos were taken before washing; these next two were after.

I really love this little quilt!

Have a great day!

Linking up with Anja Quilts , Confessions of a Fabric Addict , Busy Hands Quilts

Posted in Civil War Repro Quilts, Doll Quilts, Finishes, Uncategorized | 11 Comments