To-Do Tuesday #3 Weekly Progress Update

Posted on September 3, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 3 Comments

September ‘19 OMG

Posted on September 2, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

My September ‘19 One Monthly Goal is to sew a Dimension in Dusk quilt top (pattern by Nydia Kehnle). I fell in love with this version of her Dimension pattern last year, and Nydia very generously shared the exact layout including the Kona solids she used to make this stunning variation. The pattern is a fairly simple paper-pieced design made with 19 different Kona solids, and fortunately I have many of the required fabrics in my stash. The photo below gives a sense of the color scheme, though several other solids are on order that will complete the color gradient arrangement.

I can’t wait to get started on this project!!!

Linking up to Elm Street Quilts: Sept ‘19 OMG.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 3 Comments

Tranquility Quilt Finished!

Posted on September 1, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

I am thrilled to share today that my Tranquility Quilt is finished. This quilt is an adaptation of Robin Picken’s Harlequin Quilt. I created paper-pieced templates to make the half-rectangle blocks, and used Saija Kiiskinen’s lovely take on the Harlequin quilt for inspiration and the same fabric collection that Saija used, Loved to Pieces by Mister Domestic, though I used different coordinating Art Gallery Fabrics Pure Elements solids (Tile Blue, Cozumel Blue, Fresh Water, and Zambia Stone). It is a good size quilt at 75”x76” that fits nicely on my full-size bed.

I made a Kitty quilt for my cat Bug to provide a little protection for the area of my bed where she typically sits or sleeps.

The solid fabrics on the bottom border in the pics above really show the Take Five quilting motif used by Melissa at Sew Shabby Quilting. She did a terrific job as usual!

Here’s a photo of the quilt label that shows the colorful striped binding and beautiful mandala backing fabric which is my favorite from the Loved to Pieces collection (I actually finished binding the quilt at 7:00 pm on 8/31/19 even though the label says it was finished in September. I did, however, snip a few loose threads today—the first day of September!).

Linking up to Meadow Mist Designs: Favorite Finish Monthly Linkup – August 2019. This is also one of my 2019 Qtr 3 Finish-A-Long Goals. Linking up to 2019 Qtr 3 Finish-A-Long Finishes.

Posted in 2019 Quilts | Tagged , | 7 Comments

To-Do Tuesday #2 Weekly Progress Update

Posted on August 27, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

My friend, Roseanne, at Home Sewn By Us is now hosting the weekly To-Do Tuesday Linky Party, and last week I decided to join in, and it was a lot of fun. So without further ado, here is my weekly update:

To-Do for the week of August 20th through 26th:

  1. Finish making the blocks for the Stargazer BOM Month 7 which included making eight reverse triangles in Purple and Caribbean solids, and then four triangles in each direction in Purple and Aqua solids.   – √ Done
  2. Paper piece the letters for Mime’s Kitty Quilt – √ Done
  3. Choose the fabrics for the Lumen Quilt that I will be making for my step-daughter. I am using many of the gorgeous Alison Glass Kaleidoscope fabrics that I used in my niece Kim’s Feathers Quilt. – √ Done

To-Do #1

I have been participating in Rebecca Bryan’s (of Bryan House Quilts) Stargazer Block of the Month this year and am now caught up with paper-piecing the blocks for this BOM. This past week I made 16 Stargazer Month 7 blocks. Below is a pic of all 40 of the blocks for Month 7 made with Kona Aqua, Purple, Caribbean, and Celestial solids.

To-Do #2

For the kitty quilt for my best friend, Mary, I paper-pieced letters that spell the name of her cat, Mime, using Kona Amethyst and Purple solids.

To-Do #3

I went through my Alison Glass Kaleidoscope fabric and figured out what colors I will be using for the Lumen Quilt that I will be making for my step-daughter. I will be using Kaleidoscope Charcoal for the background. Below are fabrics I pulled (not including the background fabric that I still have to order):

To-Do for the week of August 27th through September 2nd

  1. Sew Mime’s Kitty quilt top.
  2. Cut the colored strips that I will be using for the Lumen quilt.
  3. Make a quilt label for my Tranquility quilt. (See pic of quilt top below).
  4. I just got word today that Melissa at Sew Shabby Quilting has finished quilting Tranquility. If I receive it back from her by Friday, I’d like to get it bound this weekend since it’s a three-day weekend.

Linking up to Home Sewn By Us: To-Do Tuesday Linky #3.

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 3 Comments

August ‘19 OMG Finish

Posted on August 25, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

My August 2019 One Monthly Goal was to finish my Tranquility quilt top (Please see my August ‘19 OMG post for details about the pattern and fabrics used). I’m happy to report that I did get the quilt top done, and it is in the queue at Sew Shabby Quilting. I chose Melissa’s Take Five quilting pattern to echo the triangles in the quilt. The pic below shows the top and bottom borders on the quilt top but does not show the side borders. I promise to get a full shot when the quilt is finished. At 75” x 76”, it will definitely be an outside shot! I’m hoping to enjoy this quilt on my bed while it is still summer. I might just make it by a week or two before the Fall Equinox (Sept. 23rd).

Linking up to Elm Street Quilts: August ‘19 Finishes.

Posted in 2019 Quilts | Tagged | 6 Comments

To-Do Tuesday #1 Weekly Progress Update

Posted on August 20, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

My friend, Roseanne, at Home Sewn By Us is now hosting the weekly To-Do Tuesday Linky Party, and I’ve decided to join in. She’s been writing weekly posts for over two years, and her posts are informative and well-formatted. Mine will be simple and to the point (though I do have to admit to shamelessly copying Roseanne to even get started with this post!).

To-Do for the week of August 13th through 19th:

As far as what I accomplished last week, you’ll have to trust me about what my goals were since I didn’t write a post about it (wink).

  1. Finished Bug’s Kitty Quilt  – √ Done
  2. Made 24 (out of 40) Stargazer Month 7  blocks – √ Done
  3. Decided on fabrics for Mime’s Kitty Quilt – √ Done

To-Do #1

Small projects are so satisfying to make! It felt great to finish the kitty quilt for my cat, Bug, on Sunday. I attached the paper-pieced letters (that I had sewn the previous week) to two side pieces that matched the background and then sewed them to larger cuts of one of my favorite Loved to Pieces fabrics. I made the reverse side using simple patchwork featuring more of the Loved to Pieces fabric collection. (See my Bug’s Kitty Quilt post for my info on this project). I quilted this 21” square mini quilt using wavy lines. It’s my favorite way to quilt because it is so quick, and I like the informal look. And with only 84” of binding, I got it machine-stitched on Saturday and hand-stitched on Sunday.

To-Do #2

I have been participating in Rebecca Bryan’s (of Bryan House Quilts) Stargazer Block of the Month this year and am fairly close to being caught up. I am making this lap-size quilt in the main color way with one change which is substituting purple for lime. I am paper-piecing my blocks using traditional foundation paper piecing, though most people participating in this BOM are using the freezer paper piecing method. I haven’t been blogging about my progress with this project but posted about it one time on Instagram. So I guess it’s time to starting sharing more about this BOM. This past week I made 24 Stargazer Month 7 blocks. Below is a pic of the obviously stacked blocks. The triangles on the top are made with Caribbean and Celestial Kona solids. The ones below are made with Purple and Caribbean Kona solids.

To-Do #3

I decided on the fabric for a kitty quilt for my best friend (also named Mary) who also has a cat who sleeps at the end of her bed, and she would like a small bed-runner for Mime that features her name. Mime’s quilt will feature Kona Amethyst and Purple solids for the letters and the super cute Dear Stella Meow Mix fabrics will be used on the front and back. Below is the fabric pull:

To-Do for the week of August 20th through 26th

  1. I plan to finish making the blocks for the Stargazer BOM Month 7 which will include making 8 reverse triangles in Purple and Caribbean solids, and then four triangles in each direction in Purple and Aqua solids.
  2. I am going to paper-piece the letters for Mime’s Kitty quilt.
  3. I plan to start choosing fabrics for the Lumen Quilt that I will be making for my step-daughter. I will be using many of the gorgeous Alison Glass Kaleidoscope fabrics that I used in my niece Kim’s Feathers Quilt.

I think that’s enough goal setting for this first post! Linking up to Home Sewn By Us: To-Do Tuesday Linky Party #2.

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 5 Comments

Bug Kitty Quilt Finished

Posted on August 19, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

Yesterday I finished the kitty quilt for my cat, Bug, who generally likes to sit/sleep at the end of my bed in one particular area. I’m hoping this 21” square mini quilt will protect my Tranquility quilt when it is finished, but of course it is likely that she will move to another spot on the quilt! This mini is reversible and the back side features many of my favorite Loved to Pieces fabrics (collection by Mister Domestic) used in my Tranquility quilt. In the photos below this quilt looks much larger than 21” square!

In my 2019 Qtr 3 Finish-A-Long post, I had originally planned to make this quilt a little larger and was going to make the letters using Jaybird Quilts Alphabet Soup pattern. I decided instead to paper-piece the letters and bought the upper case alphabet pattern from Diane at From Blank Pages. Sometimes you gotta go with what you know (and what you have experience with!).

Below are a couple photos of Bug on her quilt:

Linking up to Cooking Up Quilts: Main Crush Monday. This cat-sized quilt is also one of my 2019 Qtr 3 Finish-A-Long Goals. Linking up to 2019 Qtr 3 Finish-A-Long Finishes.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 3 Comments

Comfort Quilt Finished and Gifted

Posted on August 4, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

I realized a couple days ago that I hadn’t written a post yet about finishing the comfort quilt for Kathy, who is the sister of my best friend, Mary. Kathy tragically lost her 49-year-old daughter, Sandra, to a stroke in June. Sandra was an extremely vivacious person who loved life, especially after she became involved in Christian ministry in her 30s. Mary and I designed this quilt together. The first part she wanted to include was the “God Rays” which I free-style paper-pieced on 11 x 17 sheets of copy paper.

The bright sun in the above photo washed out the center Angel panel. Below is a pic that more clearly shows the beautiful angel. I actually like how the narrow yellow sashing arches over the angel.

We also included two cookie cutter angels using a pattern by Amy@ During Quiet Time, two half-square triangle crosses, and a country style church (pattern purchased on Etsy). Amy of Amy’s Creative Side did the quilting even faster than her typically quick turn-around, so that we could send this finished quilt off to Kathy as soon as possible. I’m happy to report that Kathy loves the quilt and is considering framing it. At 52” x 53”, it would make a fairly large piece of wall art!

Linking up to Meadow Mists Designs Favorite Finish Monthly Link-up July 2019, and I am also linking up to 2019 Qtr 3 Finish-A-Long Finishes as this is one of my 2019 3rd Quarter Finish-A-Long goals.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 1 Comment

August ‘19 OMG

Posted on August 1, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

My August ‘19 One Monthly Goal is to finish my Tranquility quilt top. That is the name I have chosen to give my adaptation of Robin Picken’s Harlequin Quilt. I purchased the PDF at her Etsy shop, but she now sells both the PDF and paper pattern at the shop on her website. I chose to create paper-pieced templates rather than using a plastic template for cutting out the shapes or a triangle ruler. And I did not follow Robin’s pattern exactly. Except for the borders, my placement of the half-rectangle triangle blocks was more random. I added two more columns and one more row, but using her pattern and Saija Kiiskinen’s lovely take on the Harlequin quilt for inspiration, I was able to come up with a workable design that features the same fabric collection that Saija used, Loved to Pieces by Mr. Domestic, though I used different coordinating Art Gallery Fabrics Pure Elements solids (Tile Blue, Cozumel Blue, Fresh Water, and Zambia Stone). It will be a good size quilt at 75”x76” that I will use on my full-size bed. Below is a pic of the blocks I have sewn into partial rows. It shows 11 of the 19 total columns and 5 of total 11 rows. I’m definitely liking how this project is shaping up.

Linking up to Elm Street Quilts: August ‘18 OMG.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 6 Comments

July ‘19 OMG Finish

Posted on July 25, 2019 by Quilting is in my Blood

My July 2019 One Monthly Goal was to finish my Vertices quilt top.

I wanted to love it for so many reasons!

  • It is made with a wonderful fabric collection, Loved to Pieces, designed by Mr. Domestic.
  • My favorite colors of turquoise, teal, and aqua  are prominently featured in the quilt top.
  • The fabrics are all Art Gallery Fabrics with their luxurious feel.
  • I stretched my paper-piecing skills by drawing out different equilateral triangle templates (some from Melody Miller’s Cotton+Steel Picnic quilt pattern) on graph paper and then sewing on the photocopies.
  • I used my light tablet for the first time to place a tricky inner piece of one kind of equilateral triangle.

But when I laid out blocks on my bed, the layout felt too chaotic to me. So I decided to add light green sashing/borders to insert some calmness and order.

Which I think it did, but I just wasn’t crazy about it. That night as I was lying in bed feeling “twired” (you’ve probably heard of this “new” feeling—tired but still wired—unfortunately a feeling I experience more often than I would like), I realized that the quilt I REALLY wanted for my bed is a version of Robin Pickens’ half-rectangle triangle Harlequin quilt which is inspired by Saija Kiiskinen’s take on the Harlequin quilt using Mr. Domestic’s Loved to Pieces fabric collection. I absolutely love Saija’s version (See her quilt here) but decided that I wanted my quilt’s irregular triangular borders to be made with solids featured in the quilt: Pure Elements Tile Blue, Fresh Water, and Cozumel Blue.

The next day I photographed my Vertices quilt top and put it away. I think I will finish it next year for a donation quilt.

I bet you all can guess what my August One Monthly Goal will be!

Linking up to Elm Street Quilts: July ‘19 Finishes.

Posted in Uncategorized | 7 Comments