WIP - Wednesday

I have been doing some sewing on my new Juki and taking her out for a test drive.  For the record I love this machine. It sews beautifully and is pretty easy to operate.  I will be working on that post on another day.

I did travel with the Juki up to the cottage and pulled it out to get a few things done.  I put it on the dining room table but it was nice out and we ate outside so no need to back it up.  There really isn't a lot of time to sew when we are there so not sure that I will do this very often but it was nice to be able to get something done.  Yep that is the hubby making dinner while I sewed!  I did make dinner the night before.

The quilt under the needle is a charity quilt that I did finish FMQ and now I just need to get the binding done and a few pictures of it.  The Juki FMQ is fantastic!  I still have some practice to do but I can tell the difference.

Definite progress on the X and + quilt.  This has been my goal for the last two months and I am going to finishit.  I had this pinned and started straight stitching on it but it was not working out well.  My issue was how the quilt was basted.  So I actually ripped out 3 and half rows of stitching and unpinned it.  I have never done that before!  But it took me less than 45 minutes to unpin and rip.  I am much happier now that I did that.  Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and learn from our mistakes.  I was not happy with it and then read Crazy Mom Quilts blog post on basting.  I kinda did it like her but not really. When I taped it to the floor I would start in the corners and I did not tape as much or in that same order.  I don't know if it was just this quilt that seemed so bad or what but I decided I wasn't that far into it and I would redo it.

So now I am almost done!  I have less than 1/4 of it to stitch.  I am still trying to figure out if the walking foot is really that loud or if there is something wrong.  I am testing a few more things to see.  It sews fine just sounds bad sometimes!  Just can't figure out the why it sounds like that.  I am really happy that I unstitched.  I am sure I will have a tuck or pucker but it was way better the first few lines I sewed previously.

Mostly this weekend I spring cleaned the cottage and did all of the gardens.  There are a few of them.  But the quilts airing out were pretty!  I made all of them but the small blue and yellow one.  My mom made me that one.  This picture was taken prior to that garden getting cleaned up!

On the agenda for this week is finish up the quilting and get the two bindings done!  I am determined to not go into the weekend with them lingering.  It is suppose to be another beautiful weekend here so our hope is to spend a lot of time outside and on the water!

Linking up to WIP Wednesday, Let's Bee Social and NTT.

Class time at Paducah

I have to say I was really glad that I took a class in Paducah.  I thought just roaming around for one more day would have been too much and then everything because even more appealing. Who knows I may have come home with a vacuum cleaner too!

Thursday was an all day class with Jacquie Gering and it was very informative and I learned a lot.  I am not a big fan of improve.  I love it but have a really hard time letting go.  I follow a pattern even if it is loosely and I can mock up a block but just sewing triangles on and put them up on the design wall - no that is not how I sew.  

When I take a class I really want to be able to step out of the box, learn something and hopefully want to do it again.  This class was just plain fun too!  It was really quick sewing and every one's in class was looking great.

I had decided that I was going to go low volume background and purple since I wanted to make a jumbo pillow for my niece Julie and this was really killing two birds with one stone.  So I started out with the J.  The other two circles was my friend Laurie.  We were sharing the design wall.

I then added some random dots and one circle.  I just thought it looked pretty!  I am betting that she will like it.  I was able to get 4 rows sewn together and the others are stacked and ready to go.  Not quite sure yet on how I will quilt it but it is fun so far.  The background was a Botanics and it was perfect for this.

Here are some others from class, I did not make any of these but wanted to show my other sewing mates what the possibilities were.

Another letter, I had taken photos before lunch too and this one had the design wall fall down and the picture came to the rescue!   It is a little confusing to know which way those triangles are suppose to go!

I think most people working with the squares were working in 4.5 inches but one ladies scraps were smaller so here block was 3.5 inches.

I loved how this one has different colors around the circles.

This lady was sitting next to me and loved her fabrics.  The grunge background was really great.  I don't think that this picture does it justice.

She worked on getting this one to spiral out with radiating color - pretty cool!

Turns out that Jacquie was staying in our same hotel across the hall from me.  I don't know she might think I was stalking her!  That was pretty funny so one night we shared our wine and we hung out in the lobby.

Overall great class - lots of fun and I can't wait to finish mine up.  Linking up to Let's Bee Sewcial, NTT.

In class were sewing on a Bernina Sewing Machine 750.  That machine was a little too complicated for me and it kept getting that little birds nest of threads.  But boy was that baby quiet!  We also had this little Steam Cordless Panasonic iron and that was awesome.  I did not go back to see how much there were at the show but have looked them up on Amazon.  That might need to go on the Christmas list!

Another long post but wanted to be able to look back and remember what happened!  So thank you if you are still reading this!  This weekend I have sewing on my brain so hoping I can get somethings done!

Kids Charity Quilt

Yeah, I finished this kids charity quilt over the weekend.  I had the 6.5 squares along with some yardage saved away for one of my boys and never did make anything with it but when Margaret's Hope Chest was looking for quilts I decided I needed to make something right away.  Pulled it out and started sewing.  This is finish number 3 for 2014 and no new fabric needed!

I pieced the back with the yardage in the box.  There was also enough for the binding.

Close up of the quilting.  I did loops with an orange thread.


I am calling this one Happy Dance!
Fabric Used 6.5 yards

Linking up to NTT, Finish it Up Friday,  Can I Get a Whoo Whoo, Let's Bee Sewcial

Any Which Way Finish

I finished my Riley Blake Challenge Quilt and I even named it!  I don't name things often but I am calling this one Any Which Way.

I am really happy with how it turned it out too.  I can tell you that I would not have put these fabrics together myself and was really not sure what to do.  I had decided that I wanted to do large flying geese and that I would use all of the fabrics and just add white.  I did not want to buy any fabric for the challenge either and I didn't.

What I originally thought was my idea, I just didn't like.  So I kept moving them around until I liked what I was seeing. This is when the design wall or in my case a piece of batting pinned to the wall comes in really handy.  I had the general idea down and my younger so thought "that is pretty cool Mom, but you should put the fabrics in order"  I couldn't have agreed more on that note.  I did that and I loved it.  I can say this is the first time that I did anything like this and it was fun to do.There was some trial and error but the end result worked for what I had in my head.

Then came the quilting.  I started with the flying geese.  Then added the center.  That happens to be my favorite part too!

I loved doing that back and forth lines too.  I think I need a pillow made in this same design and quilting.

Then the large white triangles.  Those were a little big to get those lines as straight and even as I would like.  My FM foot I can not use a ruler either.  That will take some more practice yet.

Then I decided on small stippling.  in the rest of the areas.  While I was finishing it, I kept thinking of yellow as the binding and had a piece just big enough that worked.  I love the yellow binding.  I am normally either same color as the background or a dark color.  My other one I used navy.

This little quilt finished up at 31" x 33".  Kind of a weird dimension.  Not sure where this one will live yet but it makes me smile when I look at it.

Linking up at NTT and Crazy Mom Quilts and Quilt Matters and Can I Get a Whoo Whoo It's Friday for the finishing parties and when the time comes also linking for Lovely Month of Finishes and this is also on my Q1 Goals for 2014 Finish Along.  Feels good to have it done and I love it!

WIP - Check In

Needed to check in and see how I am doing for the month.  Doing some sewing but not as much progress as I would like I think there are too many projects going at once.  This weekend since I have 2 days off of work is time to get a few things done!


From my list for the FAL List here is what I have been working on:

The scrap quilt from Quiltville's Free Patterns, the Dancing 9.  I had gotten 58 of the blocks over half done just by doing them as leader and enders.  Then I had a short amount of time and needed to do some mindless sewing.  Yup all 68 blocks ready for sashing. Now to to pick the sashing. I am not sure anything really goes with all this crazy but thinking I am picking a darker blue from stash. This will most likely a donation quilt and I do always like them better when they are done.

Moda Friendship Blocks - I finished all of them. I did buy the grey to use for sashing.  It is a new Kona color and bought the rest of the bolt on Sunday.  Now to figure out how I am going to lay this one out.

Of course I have a list a mile long and what did I do.  I picked up a pile of scraps that were already sewn into strips that I won at my Moda Quilt Club meeting and made this mini.  Not sure what it will be for but they were lying in a pile on the floor. Yes, I keep things on the floor.  They needed to be put away but didn't have a good spot for them so I made them up!  Now I want to quilt this little one up and have a finish this week.  I am sure someone might like this as a gift at the holidays.

No progress on the goal I set for my October finish or on my list of Christmas gifts. Hoping to finish a few things over the very nice long weekend I am going to enjoy and get ready for my sewing weekend in November.


I am linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Happy Sewing!

A Full Finish Post

I did a quick post last on this quilt at the beginning of the week to get this in for the FAL - Q3 deadline but still needed to take pictures of it in daylight.  This whole getting dark earlier and having to work the daylight hours is always a bummer.  But I did manage to get some taken before the sun was completely gone.

Here it is:

I LOVE IT!  This quilt was my first bee I have done.  I did need my arm twisted to join.  It was not a fear of making other people's blocks but what would I pick for my own.  That is what I stressed over.

My month was March and I knew I wanted to do the rainbow colors since I had done a swap at the end of 2012 on flickr.  My first on line swap as well.  I love that!  All those pretty fabrics and colors and I only had to buy one yard.  That seemed like a great plan!  I then scoured the internet to figure out the perfect block. This block is called the Depression Block.   I was a little worried about all the HST's but everyone did a great job.

Here are some close ups of a couple of my favorite blocks(really there isn't one I don't love)!

There are actually 14 people in our MMQG bee so I had to only had to make six extra since I wanted it bigger.  I still have a stack of charms remaining for another rainbow project!

For the back I used a piece I had bought last year with the quilt in mind but of course didn't have enough so I used up the black and white prints.

Close up of the back print.  

I knew I had wanted to do a black and white and had just bought the one from the Architecture line.  Not necessarily for this project just to have.  Now I wish I would have bought more!

I know a lot of pictures!

Last one!

Quilt finished at 67" x 82"

Really no good name. Hopefully that will come to me.

Linking up to 

Crazy Mom Quilt Finish it up Friday

My Quilt Infatuation-NTT

Quilt Matters-TGIFF

Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Busy Week

I have been busy this week working on my challenge quilt.  I found my inspiration from a pin on Pinterest on the blog the Girl Who Quilts. I changed the size and of course the colors since my Clementine needed to be 25% of the quilt. 

Cutting was done. That was pretty easy and finally tried out my new ruler as well.  Not really new anymore since I bought it in spring and first time I used it.

Then did some work on the design wall and started piecing.  I must admit they did not stay long on the design wall I went to chain piecing pretty quickly.

Had to stop here since I needed another piece of the Clementine background for the top part of the quilt. 

Which I did get yesterday.  Hopefully tonight I will put that last piece on and start on the back.  I am thinking that I will quilt it with straight lines following the triangles so it will make a plaid effect on the solid.  Not sure yet.  Suggestions?

While at the quilt store I took my stack of Tula Pink City Sampler Blocks.  That deadline to get the pin and tshirt is the 15th.  I was only able to get 46 done.  I will get the pin.  Once I knew there is just no way for me to do that I just moved on. Here is my pretty very colorful stack!

I also did a little baking last week.  Two out of my three things turned out yummy.  

The pumpkin bread was delicious.  The banana oatmeal breakfast muffins good, just not my favorite.  I tried a new bar recipe - that was a complete flop.  Out to the birds those went!

I have to share my quote on my daily calendar as well.  "To live a creative life we must loose our fear of being wrong."  Joseph Chilton Pearce.  I thought that was very fitting today with my struggles to commit to a pattern/design for my challenge quilt.  

Enjoy the rest of your week.  Linking up to Thursday Threads and NTT.  Thanks for stopping by!

 

September WIP List

Since my list for last month served me well.  I am going to go ahead and do it for this month to keep myself on track. Here is what I have been working on this week.  More Tula Blocks.

I did Section 3 blocks 36-46 but somehow missed no 43.  I think I need to put these aside for now and start working on my challenge quilt.

So here are the rest of my goals for September:


1.  MMQG challenge quilt

• Pick fabric and pattern
  
• Cut and Piece
• Quilt and Bind

2.  2 Moda Club Applique Blocks

3.  3 September Blocks for Moda Club 

4.  Finish the X and + Quilt (This one is Q3 Goal)

• 10 blocks to piece
• Piece top
• Quilt and Bind

5. Tula Pink City Sampler

• Section 3 Triangles 36-55
• Section 4 Stripes    56-71
• Section 5 Squares   72-86
• Section 6 Haiku      87-100

This is a long list but I have several sew days lined up so I have very high hopes this month!  

I am linking up to WIP Wednesday and Thursday Threads and Needle and Thread Thursday.  Now I will have to see what everyone else has been up to.