January ‘18 Queen Bee Blocks

Posted on January 20, 2018 by Quilting is in my Blood

I have seven blocks on my design board that look SO good that I just had to write a post about them! I am the January queen bee for a Bee Hive swarm in the U.S. We actually don’t have an official swarm leader but several members are stepping up regarding swarm organization. And that’s been so great. I was a Bee Hive swarm leader in ‘16, and it was a lot of work and not much fun to encourage->cajole->nag members who were delinquent in getting their blocks in. I chose the Autumn Chain block by SewMamaSew using the slight change in color configuration by my friend, Sarah Goer. (Check out the Autumn Chain blocks she posted on Instagram a few months ago). For her most recent color triumph, read her blog post about her free Confetti Marks pattern in Modern By the Yard.

I have asked my fellow swarm members to make blocks using their own color choice. So far I have received four blocks, and I have sewn three blocks (the two green and the orange block). One of the reasons I like the The Bee Hive Block Series by Blossom Heart Quilts is the secondary design made when several blocks are sewn together. Even with seven blocks on my design wall, that secondary design is starting to emerge. I plan to make a small lap quilt that is 48” square using a total of 16 blocks.

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The emerald green block is very special to me. It has the low volume Therapy fabric co-designed by my sister and me and printed using Spoonflower. I used that fabric for gifts for a few therapist colleagues in 2016. I just picked up the medium-value green yesterday at a quilt store in Santa Fe, and made this block today in honor of my sister who loved the color green:

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I know when I jumped head-first into two online quilting bees in 2016, I wasn’t sure how things worked, so I thought I would share a few tips with quilting bee newbies:

  • It’s okay to repeat a block throughout the year. Don’t think because another member has chosen “your” block, that when it is your month, you can’t choose that block too.
  • If you are not sure about your fabric pull, check with the queen bee BEFORE you make the block. You can email her privately or use a group Facebook page or Instagram. If your fabrics won’t work for the queen bee, you’ve saved yourself a lot of time and frustration.
  • Try very hard to make your block the correct size. All Bee Hive blocks are 12.5” unfinished and a tiny bit under is okay (like 12.25”), but less than that can make your block unusable to the queen bee. Creative Grids has a great 12 1/2” ruler that I like to use to check my block size. I usually sew a scant 1/4” seam (one thread less than the normal 1/4” seam) when making Bee Hive blocks so that they aren’t too small.
  • Read and re-read the queen bee’s instructions. With my Quatrefoil Quilt, a few of the blocks had white fabric when I had asked for low volume grey or black. It wasn’t a deal-breaker, but I definitely would have preferred that the low volume fabric be used as I had requested.
  • If you don’t have a certain fabric that the queen bee has requested, try to get it at your local quilt store or online. If that is a hardship for you, communicate with your queen bee. I would rather send a swarm member some fabric than have the wrong fabric used.
  • Ask for help and guidance if a block is too difficult for you. My paper piecing skills were not even Kindergarten level the beginning of 2016. When my April Queen Bee asked for us to make the Hidden Gems block, I had to ask for major help from my queen bee who became a very good quilty friend.

Linking up to Sew Can She: Show Off Saturday.

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2018 Qtr 1 Finish-A-Long Goals

Posted on January 14, 2018 by Quilting is in my Blood

I have four goals that I am highly motivated to accomplish this first quarter of 2018, and for the first time since joining the quarterly finish-alongs back in 2015, I am planning to keep all of these projects. The first is my Summer Sampler 2017 Quilt that I so enjoyed working on last year and recently started working on again (see my Summer Sampler Re-Emergence post for more info on the gazillion filler blocks I’ve been working on!). I’m getting close to getting this quilt top finished and to the long-arm quilter, and I can’t wait until I can put this amazing quilt on my bed! Below is a pic of the inner medallion section on my design board:

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Next are a set of three pillows to coordinate with my Summer Sampler 2017 Quilt. One of my favorite quilting books, Quilts Du Jour by Marny Buck and Jill Guffy, has some striking modern pillows in it. The pillows I am planning to make from this book using scraps from my Summer Sampler 2017 Quilt are Salsa, It’s a Wrap and Sushi:

 

The Sushi pillow will use Kona Emerald, Sage, Aqua, and Coal scraps, and the Salsa and It’s a Wrap pillows will use Kona Emerald, Chartreuse, Aqua, Berry, and Cerise scraps:

 

Also coordinating with my Summer Sampler 2017 Quilt will be my Wayward Transparency quilt that I plan to quilt myself. Check out all amazing versions of Yvonne at Quilting Jetgirl’s awesome Quilt-Along pattern at the Wayward Transparency Quilt Along Link-Up. I have two of the four blocks completed and hope to join the linky party by the end of January. Below is a quick snap I took of one of my blocks that uses Kona Emerald, Sage, and Aqua solids:

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And last but definitely not least is the Scattered Squares baby quilt pattern test that I did for my friend, Sarah, of Sarah Goer Quilts. I also plan to quilt this quilt top myself. I’ve named my version of this quilt, Jackie’s Aviary, because my sister loved birds, and I had originally purchased the bird fabric with her in mind. Below is a photo of the finished quilt top and a close-up of the bird squares before I started sewing:

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Linking up to 2018 Qtr 1 Finish-A-Long Goals.

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Summer Sampler Re-emergence

Posted on January 1, 2018 by Quilting is in my Blood

Now that I have finished several quilts and pillows for Christmas gifts, I can turn my attention back to my favorite quilting project ever (though my Dogs in Sweaters Quilt that I gave to my niece, Mary Frances, for Christmas is a close second). I really enjoyed working on the Summer Sampler 2017 last year (see my Post about this project that has some of the 17 feature blocks I sewed and provides a lot of information about this amazing skills-building sampler).

This New Year’s weekend I started working on the filler blocks that will help turn all my blocks into a gorgeous quilt top. I sewed all the large sawtooth stars and one of the small sawtooth stars. I also started working on the paper-pieced narrow flying geese units.

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My January ‘18 One Monthly Goal is to sew the remaining 15 small sawtooth stars, make 23 more narrow flying geese units, sew 20 diagonal flying geese units, and make a total of 184 half-square triangles for the HST border. Whew!!! See the mock-up below, and keep in mind that I have substituted Kona Coal for white in this project:

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I hope to as a bonus to finish my Wayward Transparency Lap quilt top this month, but no promises! I am trying very hard to get my Summer Sampler quilt top to the longarm quilter by mid-February, so most of my quilting energy/time will be directed to finishing this quilt top.

Linking up to Elm Street Quilts: Jan ‘18 One Monthly Goal.

 

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Dec ‘17 OMG Finish

Posted on December 26, 2017 by Quilting is in my Blood

For my December ‘17 One Monthly Goal, I decided to repair the binding on the cat quilt that I had sewn with my Brother sewing machine. It was extremely uneven in places, so my plan was to carefully rip out the machine-stitching on the binding on the front of the quilt and re-sew the binding down by hand. Well, shortly into the process, that plan was literally shredded as I tore several holes in the binding fabric even though I was going very slow and taking my time, and I even had a few slight tears in quilt itself near the edges. Yikes! Basically the stitches were too close together which made it practically impossible to cleanly remove the stitches. So I painstakingly ripped the entire binding out no longer worrying about salvaging the binding but trying not to rip the fabric of the quilt. I repaired the tears with little patches of matching fabric using double stick fusible web. Then I started the binding process all over again, this time sewing the binding down with my sewing machine on the front side using a 3/8” seam allowance to hide the little patches and hand-sewing the binding down to the back of the quilt. It turned out well, and I’m glad I did it even if it was almost triple the work!

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The cat quilt was given to a local friend for Christmas, and she loves it! Linking up to Elm Street Quilts: Dec ‘17 OMG Finishes . This quilt was on my list of 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Goals. Linking up to 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Finishes.

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Happy Hedgehog Holidays!

Posted on December 25, 2017 by Quilting is in my Blood

I made my friend, Kristen, a Hazel Hedgehog pillow for Christmas and for her birthday which is on Christmas, I made her a simple tote bag using a Cotton+Steel Canvas Hedgehog print by Sarah Watts.

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And for her son, Aidan, I made him the Stretching Cat pillow that he is holding in the photo below. I love his real cat,  Meow Mix, surveying the action from the window in the background.

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Both of these pillows are 2017 4th Qtr Finish-A-Long Goals. Linking up to 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Finishes .

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2018 Quilting Goals

Posted on December 18, 2017 by Quilting is in my Blood

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I am definitely one of those people who loves to plan, but I can also be quite spontaneous which is why in college I chose the oxymoron Spontaneous Planner to describe having both of those traits. I am appreciative of Yvonne at Quilting Jetgirl hosting a #2018 Planning Party to help me refine what I want to accomplish in the coming year.

Free Motion Quilting

My biggest priority in the coming year to become more proficient with the actual quilting of quilts, particularly focusing on regularly practicing free motion quilting. My Juki TL-2200QVP Mini is a powerful straight-stitch sewing machine that is known for its FMQ capabilities. To be honest, sometimes it feels like TOO much of a machine for me, and it’s very easy for me to go to my little Brother sewing machine which I know like the back of my hand (probably because I have spent hours looking at the backs of my hands when sewing with it!) rather than my Juki. For one thing, the Juki machine is much heavier. And threading it isn’t as straightforward, and then there’s the bobbin that is hidden unlike the Brother where I can easily see how much thread is left on my bobbin. And it has to be oiled! Alright, I know I’m whining! Most of my fellow quilters have powerful machines with similar challenges. One way to build my free motion quilting skills is to make a FMQ sampler quilt similar to this one by Crazy Mom Quilts using a Quilt As You Go (QAYG) technique. I’m thinking of making 12 1/2” solid blocks in beach colors with a few white stars interspersed amongst all the solids.

Walking Foot Quilting

I also want to improve my skills with the walking foot. I took a class from Jacquie Gering on walking foot quilting in July and love her WALK book, and there are many quilting designs in her book that I want to try. I’ve read about other Juki owners not being happy with the walking foot that came with their machine. I found the post that Laura of Slice of Pi Quilts wrote about the problems with her Juki machine’s walking foot very informative, so I ordered the Janome Even Feed Foot Set for high shank machines from Amazon but haven’t made it a priority to start using a walking foot on my Juki. I’d like to remedy that in the first few months of 2018.

Right now I have two quilt tops waiting to be quilted with the walking foot: my Random Intention Baby Quilt and my Forest Daybreak quilt (though maybe FMQ might be a better option for the Forest Daybreak quilt or a combination of the two quilting techniques. Any suggestions? Also I think this quilt needs a new name. It just does not evoke a daybreak in a forest to me—so I would also welcome suggestions for its new 2018 name!)

I do have another project that I will definitely use the walking foot to quilt, but I can only give you a sneak peek. I have tested a pattern for Sarah Goer Quilts called Scattered Squares and below is a pic of the little birds I used in my version:

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By the end of January, I will have tested another pattern for Sarah. Look for her new patterns in the early part of 2018. I have to tell you that they are striking, modern quilts that I’m glad to have in my quilt repertoire.

I will also be using the walking foot to quilt my version of the Wayward Transparency Lap Quilt that looks similar to Yvonne’s example in greens. My colors are Kona Aqua, Sage, and Emerald, and I actually have two of the blocks sewn but not photographed yet.

Finishing Up 2017 Projects

I only have two projects from 2017 that I want to complete. First and foremost is my Summer Sampler 2017. I loved working on this project, and it really helped increase my confidence with paper piecing. I only reluctantly put this project aside when I needed to turn my attention to quilts for Christmas presents, and it made me sad to take the blocks off my design wall! Below is pic where I was playing with the arrangement and trying to leave some room for the filler sawtooth blocks and flying geese, but since this finished quilt will be 70” x 70” and my design board is only 48” across, it really didn’t work!

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I hope to start sewing some of the filler Sawtooth Star units in January (maybe even Christmas weekend!).

I’ve fallen way behind in my 2017 Chocolatier Block of the Month. I’ve been faithfully picking up the pattern and fabric each month from ThreadBear but have not touched this project since August except for eating the chocolate that is included in each month’s package! I’m not in love with this project, but I think that I will like the quilt when it is finished, at least I hope I do!

New Projects:

I fell in love with Sarah Goer’s Rainbow Autumn Chain Blocks that she posted on Instagram in October and sewed the two blocks below to help her get her quilty wishes granted. I enjoyed the challenge of combining a light, medium, and dark value in orange and green so much that I decided to join The Bee Hive again in 2018, and I am the queen bee for January. My swarm-mates will be making me the Autumn Chain block in rainbow colors.

My best friend, Mary, bought us both quilt kits from ThreadBear that uses Modern Quilt Relish’s Bowtie Pasta with a Twist pattern. I think she is hoping for some more free quilting lessons from me!

And for Mary’s birthday in October, I want to make a custom butterfly quilt for her daybed using this large Take Wing Butterfly pattern by Lillyella Stitchery for the top of the daybed and some  Butterfly Charm Blocks on the overhang.

Also in October is my niece, Kim’s birthday. I’ve been thinking of making her a Dog Gone Cute quilt.

The last project that is on my radar is starting an Ice Cream Soda Quilt. Jodi at Tales of Cloth has a new EPP Mandoline quilt pattern that is very pretty, but when I think of starting an English Paper Piecing project that I can work on when away from my sewing machine, I keep going back to the Ice Cream Soda quilt using Alison Glass fabrics, so that’s what I’m leaning toward at the moment.

This is the time of year when many other quilting tempatations are starting to appear. I can’t promise that I won’t add any other projects to my list, but I will say that I am going to be VERY picky!

Linking up to #2018 Planning Party.

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Gateway to Paradise Quilt Finished

Posted on December 16, 2017 by Quilting is in my Blood

My best friend (also named Mary) and I worked together on this quilt for her sister, Debra. We started it almost two years ago cutting the colorful fabric from a jelly roll that I think I bought from Craftsy and recently got it finished and in the mail to her sister. It feels good to get this old UFO done! It was one of my 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Goals.

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Linking up to Sew Can She: Show Off Saturday. Also linking up to 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Finishes.

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Slinky’s Friends

Posted on December 15, 2017 by Quilting is in my Blood

My niece, Mary Frances, has a wonderful dachshund named Slinky. One of her friends gave him the nickname of The Ambassador of Joy, and it totally fits him! I purchased Elizabeth Hartman’s Dogs in Sweaters pattern earlier this year and a few months ago decided that the lap quilt would be the perfect Christmas gift for Mary Frances (and Slinky!) this year. This is one of my 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Goals.

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I gave Michael at ThreadBear free rein with the long-arm quilting, and I could not be more pleased with how this quilt turned out. (And a big shout-out to my brother, Bill, and sister-in-law, Sharon, for paying this custom quilting!) Below are some close-up shots. Just look at how the different directions of the straight-line quilting accentuate the dog’s face and body! Each dog’s sweater has a different quilting motif, and this top dog has snowflakes quilted on his sweater. The quilting in the negative space around him is reminiscent of dog bones.

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Dog # 2 has flames on his sweater and is surrounded by clouds.

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The third dog, also known as The Smart Dog, with appliqued glasses, has chess pieces  quilted on his sweater, and the quilting around him looks like scientific symbols. This guy is my absolute favorite!

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And the last dog who is in the middle of different sized pebbles has a couple cats quilted on his sweater. Slinky lives with two cats and would love to be better friends with them if they would let him!

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Here’s a photo of the cats on the back:

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Both Mary Frances and Slinky are fans of quilts. Below are a couple of pics with Slinky snuggling in quilts. The first one is him with the Morning Coffee and Cream Quilt that I made for my sister.

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And here he is all cuddled up with the Fashion and Food Quilt that I made for Mary Frances in 2015.

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Feel free to check out more photos of Slinky on his Instagram The Slinky Chronicles.

Linking up to My Quilt Infatuation: Needle and Thread Thursday, Busy Hands Quilts: Finished or Not Friday, and Crazy Mom Quilts: Finish It Up Friday. Also linking up to 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Finishes.

 

 

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Back and Forth Christmas Quilt Finished

Posted on December 12, 2017 by Quilting is in my Blood

I have a happy finish to share today! When my friend, Sarah Goer, released her Back and Forth Baby Quilt Pattern in October, I knew immediately that it would make a great Christmas bed runner for me (and my cats!). I love decorating for Christmas which now extends into my bedroom. I found Sarah’s instructions to be clear, especially regarding the partial seams which were easy to do. And the graphic design of this pattern is so awesome with large scale prints, especially my red snow leopards!

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I love the grey snowflake fabric that I found on Etsy along with the Moda Jol Reindeer fabric that I used as the quilt backing. Since I decided not to put a label on this quilt and also chose to hand-stitch the binding, it is completely reversible!

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It is probably obvious from the photo below that the Christmas palette I am most drawn to is the red/aqua with neutrals, though I do have a touch of green in my llama pillow which was one of my 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Goals. And equally obvious is that I like animal fabrics!

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Linking up another time to Cooking Up Quilts: Main Crush Monday. Linking up to 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Finishes.

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Bow Tie Quilt Finished

Posted on December 11, 2017 by Quilting is in my Blood

This is the hardest post I have ever written. Some of my closest quilting friends know that my beloved sister died unexpectedly in August, but I haven’t shared this sad news on my blog until now. My sister, Jacqueline, who I called Jackie, and I were very close, though not geographically as we lived almost 2000 miles apart. She was my biggest supporter in so many ways including my quilting and blogging, and she commented on many of my blog posts.

During a visit to Michigan in June of 2016, Jackie pulled out a bow tie quilt top that had been completed by our mother in the 1990s. Our mother, Cleo, who died in 1997, was a gifted quilter. Unfortunately, when my mom was alive, I wanted nothing to do with quilting and literally groaned every time we went to another fabric store. Jackie asked me to finish the quilt for her but told me there was no big rush as she knew I had several other quilt projects I was working on, and she had planned to pay for the longarm quilting. I brought the quilt top back with me when I visited my sister in June 2017, so we could strategize together on how she wanted it finished. I wanted to give the finished quilt to Jackie for Christmas this year. I wrote about this quilt top as one of my 2017 3rd Quarter Finish-A-Long Goals which I rolled over to 2017 4th Quarter Finish-A-Long Goals.

Jackie had planned to place the folded up quilt on the bench at the end of her bed, and I think she probably imagined pulling up the quilt on occasion to snuggle underneath when taking a nap. I decided to go ahead and finish the quilt for my brother-in-law who greatly misses my sister who was his wife of 52 years. My brother and sister-in-law generously offered to pay for the quilting of this bow tie quilt which measures 66 inches wide by 90 inches long. The original quilt top was 48” x 72” but Jackie requested that I sew on asymmetrical borders of six inches on one short and long side and twelve inches on the other long and short side using the grey grunge fabric that we both loved.

My original plan was to use four extra blocks on a pieced quilt back, but I decided to make it simpler for myself and put the blocks away to use in another project down the road. I used 108” wide fabric for the quilt back and called it good.

I’m pretty sure both my mom and sister are very pleased with this finished bow tie quilt.

Linking up to Cooking Up Quilts: Main Crush Monday. Also linking up to 2017 Qtr 4 Finish-A-Long Finishes.

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