Today will be spent helping Daughter #3 finish her not so secret Christmas gift for her favorite guy. She has done a fabulous job picking out a pattern, cutting pieces, and sewing. Time to get those last bits added and start the quilting! Here are some more sneak peeks.
And here she is working hard:
Such a cute couple!
I should be able to post the finish this Friday so stay tuned!
I finished the 16 patch last night! Prepare for lots of pictures and very few words. I’m tired today! Here goes.
This quilt passed the snuggle test and eagle eye of my little Quilt Inspector.
A few details: I used Cool Grey Glide thread, hobbs 80/20 batting, backing is from Ikea, just over 200,000 stitches. The borders are freehand feathers. I chalked the spine to get started. The quilting in the blocks is all freehand continuous curves. It has not yet been washed.
Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Crazy Mom Quilts, and Richard and Tanya Quilts. Also linking up with Sew Can She for Show Off Saturday.
I loaded this quilt in the frame before the kids arrived and have been quilting in odd moments here and there. Last night, I took it off the frame and trimmed. Before work this morning, I made the binding. I got the machine sewing done during Baby L’s nap.
I have started the hand sewing and hope to be able to call this a finish by tomorrow.
Baby L is a great little quilt inspector.
Sadly, he will be leaving with his mama and daddy early tomorrow morning. I’ll be taking them to the airport before work. After work? I’ll be taking a nap!
Linking up with My Quilt Infatuation for NTT.
Thank you all for the kind comments on my quilting this week! With family here, I am woefully behind on responding to comments but I read and appreciate each one.
I am not ripping any stitches, this is another learning experience! But honestly, it looks better in pictures than in person. Angela Walters always says, close enough is good enough. I like that. However, she also says, use matching thread! LOL! I should have used mono-poly for the continuous curves. In the interest of full disclosure and to show how deceiving pictures can be, here are a few more shots of the quilting.
Overall, not too bad.
Up close….
Oops…
But here’s the deal, I am not crying over this, nor am I soliciting comments. It is what it is. And standing back at a distance, it doesn’t look too bad. I don’t hate it. I might even love it when it is done.
I do find it interesting that something that looks perfect in pictures on the Internet, isn’t necessarily so in real life! Keep that in mind when your projects don’t seem to match up with the picture on Pinterest!
I am glad I kept going. If I had quit after the first row, would have hated it and said, I can’t do this. It isn’t a show quilt. I have enjoyed the minutes I have snuck away to work on it. It’s all good.
I do think we often get caught up on the minor details in life that bug us and we can so easily lose sight of the big picture. This is a really good thing to remember, especially at this time of year.
Mary could have looked at the filthiest of the stable, the smell of the visiting shepherds, that her house was a mess when the Kings arrived, and gotten totally freaked by it all. But these were just details in a much bigger story. A bigger story she couldn’t begin to imagine. It is definitely good to step back and look in wonder at the bigger picture, even if we can’t see the whole thing.
“But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.”
~ Luke 2:19
Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday.
Our family is still here and we are having so much fun! I did steal away for a few minutes to sew yesterday and today though. I have been doing my design work at the frame.
I’m afraid my feathers look more messy than whimsical but I am not ripping them out!
I am practicing free hand continuous curve in the blocks.
Yikes! I need a lot of practice here too! Good thing this quilt is for me!
Check out what others are working on today at Patchwork Times for DWMonday. Also linking up with Modern Traditional Quilts for Keep it Simple, Make it Fun.
ETA: I have had many inquiries regarding a pattern for this quilt from those who have found it via Pinterest. I am NOT the author of this pattern. It was from a quilt along hosted by Lori at Humble Quilts. You can check there to see if the pattern is available. I changed mine somewhat, but I am not giving out any measurements or instructions as it is not mine to give. Thank you for your understanding.
This finish is from last week but it is a finish none the less. My Cascadia Mystery quilt, from the QAL hosted by Humble Quilts, is done. All the clues were out before I was done with the first one so I could see where this was headed. As a result, knowing I was short on time, I simplified mine a bit.
These seminole type strips were supposed to have 5 squares across and I used three. The center columns were supposed to be 4 squares across and mine has only two. Here is my version.
I machine quilted this very simply. Here is the back.
Don’t you love that binding fabric? It was a gift from my bloggy friend Kathy at Inspired by Antique Quilts. It is the perfect color/print to go with everything vintage looking. It enhances but never takes away from the whole.
I so appreciate the time and effort that Lori at Humble Quilts puts into her QALs. Thank you, Lori!
I do have some squares left over. Think I will use these as leaders/enders. Who knows what they will become!
Linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it Up Friday, Richard and Tanya Quilts for LAFF, and Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop, Whoop?
Also linking up with Lori at Humble Quilts for the Cascadia Mystery Finale!
We are having a great time with family this week. Life is a bit crazy with lots of extra people, babies, dogs, jobs, etc. but so very worth all the chaos that ensues! Yesterday morning I got up early and slipped down to the sewing room. I managed to get 6 more of my sawtooth blocks done.
Still no quilting inspiration on this though.
The first holiday puzzle of the season was finished this week.
And we have been having lots of fun with these two little men.
They both move so fast, it is hard to get a good picture!
Sadly, I have to work this morning but I wont complain too much as I will be off at 1.
Linking up with My Quilt Infatuation for NTT.
Since we have family in town, we had our Christmas celebration this past Sunday. My kids know me so very well! #1 Son and Daughter #3 got me an iPad cover made with one of my quilts on it!
It matches the notebook she got me earlier.
And Daughter #1 spoiled me right royally with FIVE Downton Abbey charm packs!
She also got me this FQ bundle of Dear Betty.
Aren’t they beautiful? I am so spoiled!
I’m already using my new iPad cover and thinking up new projects with my new fabric!
Linking up with Connie at Free Motion by the River.
Too busy for blogging much this week! Spending all my time with family. Baby L is here from Arizona!
Along with his adorable parents.
And Baby E has been here as well.
They’ve been enjoying getting to know each other!
I will be back with quilty content soon!
Last Sunday, I finished quilting the last of the Quilts of Valor that I will complete this year. I have three more tops ready for quilting in January safely tucked away. This one was pieced by another quilter from the Stitching Sisters QOV group.
This panto was a bit of a challenge for me! I couldn’t wrap my head around “writing” the words backwards so I ended up working left to right instead of the usual right to left.
Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?, Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday, Richard and Tanya Quilts for Link a Finish Friday.
KatyQuilts 