12/01/2015

Home At Last

Hello friends! It's been 3 long months away for me. I have so much to do and catch up on. I wanted to put a quick post up before I get any more lost in cleaning, sewing, etc etc. I am doing some better and hope to accomplish a lot this month!

I'm working on a Christmas quilt. I really love this Jingle fabric by Kate Spain!


I had purchased a Jolly Bar from The Fat Quarter Shop and wasn't sure what I'd do with it. Then I remembered this lovely quilt I saw on Moda Bake Shop. I love elongated stars :) So, the Gooseberry Star Patch Quilt it is!

The day after I got home I made up these potholders for a Christmas gift. The recipient likes bright and dark, so I think they will fit. I used my own tutorial, you can see it here


I have said this before but need to say it again. I'm so incredibly grateful for the friends I've made on my quilting journey. I have to give a huge thank you to Cristina and Lara for always checking on me, listening and being so supportive. When you get so down and low, knowing someone cares means so VERY much. I love you both to pieces!! I had  a wonderful surprise from my good friend Jasmine when I got home as well. This pretty little pouch :) I love it and have so many use ideas that I can't decide what it will house yet. Thanks again Jasmine for your kindness and friendship!


And last but certainly not least. Thanks to a few readers that sent me emails asking if I was ok because I hadn't posted for so long. We are all so busy and life keeps turning, I didn't think anyone would notice my absence and it was really nice to know some did :) The quilting community is so awesome and I'm so thankful to be a small part of it! I've peeked in your blogs here and there as I've had time but have a lot of catch up there too. It's good to be back :)

8/09/2015

Hillside Houses

I wanted to share a quick post of my Hillside Houses quilt along top finish with you all.
I'm a little late in the game but my top is finally finished! In case you missed it and would like to make your own, you can visit Cristina at Pretty Little Quilts. She shares free instructions, the links are on her blog!


I figured out using so many different brands of solids in one top can render things a bit off. I'm not sure what caused it, but things didn't all line up so well in this one. Perhaps different shrinkage or stretch when steam pressing. It's pretty straight forward piecing and usually things end up pretty good for me. It was frustrating but I still love this design and I'm happy to have a finished top :)
I have been working on a few different things. I completed a few more blocks of the Farm Girl Vintage sew along. I am waiting on my last two blocks from the Feed Company BOM and it will be almost ready to complete. I also got all my rows of the Ambleside jelly roll quilt sewn. I just have to join the rows. I'm trying to complete a few things before starting anything else. I don't work well in disarray!

I, like most of you, try to keep my blog a happy and sewing related place to visit. However, life does happen to us all sometimes. I'm going to be gone for 2-4 weeks for a new doctor visit in Dallas, TX. The truth is, I'm just not getting better still. If anything, I've continually gotten worse. I've studied and done all I know to do and decided it was time to get some real help! Please say a prayer that when I return, I have answers and I'm improving...it's way past time for me to be well again :)

I missed posting a two year blog anniversary giveaway, so be on the lookout for that when I return! Take care friends and thank you again for following along with me and for the wonderful friendships I have made :)

7/16/2015

The Enchanted Road

I have a baby quilt finish to share today :)


I love the Road To Tennessee pattern and I had just enough fat quarters to make this little quilt. I used some prints I had won from The Intrepid Thread quite some time ago. They are from the Enchanted line by Sarah Fielke for Windham Fabrics. I paired it with some Moda Bella baby pink solid.


I didn't follow any specific pattern. I started with 5 inch prints and 2 inch solids. This quilt was really tough to photograph from a distance. I am happy with how this turned out and the photos just don't do justice to this happy little quilt.


The backing and binding are also prints from the same fabric line. I quilted alongside each square and down the center of each "x" print.




It's so nice to have green grass this year! Typically we don't get much rain and it's so drab and brown. We are fortunate to have received lots of moisture this year.

The quilt finished at 36 x 45.


Thanks so much for stopping to visit. I hope everyone is having a great summer!

Linking up to: Let's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts,  Needle & Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation, Fabric Frenzy Friday at Fort Worth Fabric Studio

6/30/2015

Vintage Sheet Quilt

I found this cute truck at JoAnn Fabrics in the 70% off section. It reminded me of my Feed Company and Holly's Tree Farm fabrics so I couldn't resist :) It will make a cute Christmas decoration with a little tree or something fun in the back.



I never did share my sheet quilt finish. I escaped to Phoenix again for a month and just returned home. I forgot to photograph my quilt before I gifted it! So, I only have a couple pictures I received on my phone.


It's simple 8.5 inch cut squares. I only quilted it on each side of the seams, I wanted to keep this super soft. I used the cuff off of a yellow vintage pillowcase to cut the binding strips. This was my first use of polyester batting. While I love the feel of a quilt with polyester inside, I didn't love that my basting spray didn't stick to it well. I used a microtex needle to piece and quilt this and I really loved how smooth it went!

 You can see on the back that it's baggy from the spray not sticking. I was so disappointed when finished, but in the end, it's soft, it's pretty and super comfy. So I just chalked up the polyester/basting spray combo as a lesson learned and I love it anyway :)

When I arrived in Phoenix my daughter had these huge scissors for me. I absolutely LOVE them! They have hooks on the back for hanging. The lady she bought them from said they were from Pottery Barn.


 While I was gone I did keep up on my Farm Girl Vintage sew along blocks. There's a button on my side bar for anyone that may be interested in participating. I'm determined to use as many scraps as possible. I'm amazed at what such small pieces can create! These are only 6 inch blocks. Sewing these tiny pieces is definitely new for me!


I should be home for awhile now and hope to have more to share soon!

5/08/2015

Scattered Projects

I've been working on so many things that I don't have a full post on any one thing. I've been wasting spending a lot of time picking fabrics for the Farm Girl Vintage Quilt Along. The first 3 blocks are done. I really enjoyed making the chick block. I will definitely make the full size quilt from the book in the 12 inch block, it's adorable!!


I found a decorative stitch on my machine to use in place of embroidery for the legs.


The pieces in these blocks are so small and this is new to me. I need more practice!


This block has 3 true vintage fabrics in it. They are a bit thinner than I like so I'm not sure I will use more in this quilt or not.

Last week I finished the first block of the Hillside Houses Quilt Along at Pretty Little Quilts. Blocks 2 and 3 are up and I'm excited to see this come together. The blocks are huge, 20 inches. This is a fun one! It's just getting started if anyone wants to jump in :)


I cut up some pillowcases the other night and decided to make up a vintage sheet quilt for my sister. I'm learning a few things from this one. I've never used polyester batting in a quilt. My Mom always sent us quilts backed with a sheet and she always used polyester batting. They were the softest, most comfy quilts ever. I wanted this one to have that comfy factor. I used a good batting from the Warm Company. I have learned basting spray doesn't stick so good to polyester batting. The back is a bit baggy to my dismay. Sorry for the dark and quick picture. I'm almost done quilting it now and will get more photos.


I used a microtex needle to piece and quilt this. Another first for me on a quilt. I love them! The quilting stitches seemed so much smoother and even. I think I'm going to try one with a regular quilt as well. It worked so great for me.

I will be back in a couple days with more pictures when this is done, and if it stops raining (no complaints here, we need it). Have a Happy Mother's Day!

4/30/2015

A Few Things and Two New Quilt Alongs

This pretty little runner made from a Color Me Happy mini charm pack. I used up some white scraps as well. The pattern is from Brooke at Silly Mama Quilts


 I have been working on my Ambleside jelly roll quilt. The blocks are all finished.


I made up a couple kids pillowcases and mailed them off for pediatric cancer patients. I have a big list and decided to just pick a different one each month to donate to.


I grabbed a few cheap hand towels when I was at IKEA awhile back. I used the tutorial from My Fabric Relish to make some toddler bibs. So easy and my daughter loves them! Just ignore that I finished this one wrong side out :)


I make up a couple blocks each month that go alongside the printed blocks from the Sweetwater Feed Company BOM. I really love this fabric!


I have joined two new quilt alongs. I never thought I would like doing block of the months and quilt alongs but I'm really loving it. It's like having homework. I know exactly what I need to do for the moment. It's fun seeing other people's progress and the friendships are nice too.

First is one from my friend Cristina at Pretty Little Quilts I love her design, Hillside Houses.
House quilts are so fun and hers is different than all the others. I'm really starting to love quilts made from solids so this was a definite yes for me! She chose to use American Made Brand solids, which I think is awesome! I'm using strictly from what I had on hand so I have lots of different brands. Luckily, I did have a beautiful piece of royal blue that is American Made Brand. Don't be put off if you aren't on Instagram. She's posting on her blog as well. I'm working on my first block now. The cutting and piecing are simple and she's offered up 3 size choices.


I'm sure most of you have heard about the Farm Girl Fridays quilt along from Bee In My Bonnet
Her new book Farm Girl Vintage really is as wonderful as all the hype. I love it! I've spent a lot of time lately looking through it again and again. So many great projects, it's hard to choose. So I decided to wait until tomorrow when the fun begins. I have picked a few of my true vintage fabrics to add into my blocks as well. I could keep busy all year just with this book :)


I guess that's it for now friends, thanks for stopping by!

Linking up to:
Let's Be Social at Sew Fresh Quilts, Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation and Fabric Frenzy Friday at Fort Worth Fabric Studio

4/09/2015

Daysail Finish


I'm so happy to be back with a finish! I love this fabric and this quilt but had a heck of a time getting decent pictures. Now that I feel like I'm able to be back to sewing, a camera is back on my list of must haves.
The fabric is Daysail by Bonnie and Camille for Moda. The aqua in this line is so perfect! I purchased my fabric from Lori at Stitches N Giggles. The pattern is by Live.Love.Sew. I really like the way she writes her patterns. Very easy to follow. For the solid I used Moda Bella white 98.


The pattern uses a 4 x 5 layout but I chose to do 3 x 4, allowing me to only use 12 fat quarters and still have a decent size lap quilt.



I used a 1.5 yard cut of one of the prints for the back along with the white. This has kind of become my go to layout for backings. I absolutely love pieced backs but hate doing them. This allows one of the prints to be incorporated without spending a fortune. And it's fast and easy!


I quilted straight lines in a 2 inch grid over the entire quilt.


The binding is one of the navy prints from the same line as well.


It finished at 52 x 69



Now it's time to catch up on my BOM and some small things that have been waiting. Thanks for stopping by :)
Linking up to Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation, Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts, Fabric Frenzy Friday at Fort Worth Fabric Studio and Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday

3/24/2015

Feed Company BOM and The Latest

The first of my Sweetwater Feed Company Block of the Month Quilt goodies from Lady Belle Fabric arrived today! The first thing I did was make one of the recipes :) My husband thought I was joking, I was not!


I'm so excited to have gotten in on this BOM. I thought I had missed out when Sweetwater closed their sign ups. I was thrilled when I saw Lady Belle post on Instagram that she had spots open, woo hoo!
I went missing after my last post, but for good reason. On a whim, I cancelled all my doctor appointments for the following two weeks and went to Phoenix to visit my kids and grand kids. It was nice to get away from everything. I got to do a few things I hadn't been able to do the last few trips, I was just too sick. I went to Jo Ann fabrics and got some needed pins and etc. Those half off coupons sure are nice! We made a trip to IKEA. I got a few small things for my sewing room and a new cutting table. I love the table, perfect size 30 x 59, and it looks awesome! However, I learned to be careful what you buy there. The top is pretty crappy made. I now need to go to Lowe's and buy some L brackets to attach the top to the legs better. I still love it however! It has adjustable height and I love this. My old table was too low and it killed my back. Please disregard the ugly rental house carpet...


Those two cabinets in the back, my daughter got them both free from her employer! They are HUGE. I really wanted all my fabric out of the light and dust. They are wonderful. Someday when I move they will be painted white. The bigger one is so heavy it's crazy. My husband was not a happy camper so I won't be moving it out to paint anytime soon :)

I hit the closest Goodwill and found some great vintage sheets and pillowcases. That always makes me happy :)


Anyhow, I am home again and back to work on my Daysail/American Honey quilt. I just have the top two rows left to add on my blocks and they will be completed. I'm really loving this quilt a lot!!


I also finally got my blog/quilting stuff switched to Gmail. I'm hoping this solves the notification problems for my blog and the ones I visit. I can comment again and you actually will know it!

Have a great week everyone :) 


2/23/2015

Slowly Getting Back To Things

Hello friends! I made it through surgery 3 weeks ago today. It's not been a fun time, but I am finally seeing improvement! I wanted to share some quilty things since my last post.


I made this little needle book up last night. I used some scraps from my Vintage Frogs quilt. I had a "what were you thinking" moment when I attached the snaps before sewing and turning. So I wasn't able to top stitch all the way around. Luckily, this is for me so it's all ok. I know better for my next one! I did some fun stuff with the inside that I will share when I have a couple more completed.

I finished my Road 15 mini wall quilt top the night before surgery. I hung it up to get it out of the way and it's still there. I can't decide how to quilt it. I knew my roof tops were going to be cut off before I started and I was ok with it. If I made a regular size quilt, I would use a different pattern. It was fast and easy, and that's what I needed at the time :)


While I was down, I loaded a few books onto my Kindle. I recently purchased an Ambleside jelly roll with no plan of what to do with it. This fabric is beautiful! I found a pattern I could use along with a roll of Kona white skinny strips I had won a very long time ago. I ironed all the strips so it's ready to go.


I did the ironing while I was waiting for this fabric to arrive from Stitches n Giggles. I had the white all cut and ready. I'm downsizing a little from the original quilt pattern American Honey.

I think Daysail is my favorite line from Bonnie & Camille so far. It is just gorgeous! The aqua is just perfect. I'm going to cut the fat quarters up today and get started on this one. Love, love, love it!!

 I ordered this cute Moda tea towel from Donna's Lavender Nest. I'm not sure if she has any left but I had to have one. I love old flour/feed sacks and I wanted this to hang in my sewing room :)


Last but most importantly, I want to say thank you. Thank you to everyone who stops by my blog. Thank you to the wonderful friends I have met on my quilting journey. A few of you have been so supportive, checking on me this month, and offering an ear and being there for me when you probably have better things to be doing! Some of my days have been pretty dark and an email from you always brightens my day and I can not thank you enough!! I had this wonderful package from one of you when I arrived home from the hospital. Quilty mail from wonderful friends sure can brighten your day!


This picture is not very good at showing how awesome that bag is. I LOVE it so much. I believe it was made from a vintage tablecloth if I remember right. If you've been around here long, you know I love vintage sheets and linens. It is so pretty in person and I truly love it, I love it ALL!!

Sorry for the long and scattered post. I just wanted to catch up. I will be back with Daysail progress. Thanks again to all of you!

1/20/2015

Building Houses, FMQ and Paper Piecing

One of my quilty friends sent me a charm pack last year of Sweetwater's Road 15, thanks again Moira! I instantly knew I wanted to make a wall mini house quilt. I love Sweetwater, they will always be my favorite designers I think!



I originally was going to use a tutorial from Moda Bake Shop but I wanted doors. I found a super easy tutorial on you tube. It uses only charms and 2.5" squares. These were so fast to cut and easy to sew. I will share more when it's completed.

I really didn't make any resolutions this year. I have been struggling more each week with my health. Finding answers has been a long road. I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer a couple weeks ago. My testing has shown a mutation that can indicate a more aggressive strain. I'm just in the beginning of all this, so there's many unknowns still. I don't think this is the whole of my problems but I'm hoping I am at least on a path now of getting back to better at some point soon! I decided this year I want to focus more on doing things I WANT to do in quilting. I love house quilts so that was first on my list. I also tried free motion quilting for the real first time! I think I did pretty good you guys!


I know I need lots of practice but I was pretty darn happy with my first go and I can totally do this someday!


I did enough that I know what speed will work good for my machine. I only had one issue and it was only in a couple places, what I think they call "eyelashes" on the back. I can't remember what causes that so I need to go back to my Craftsy class and look that up. Or I'm sure one of you have the answer :)

 Next I tried a very simple paper piecing. Twice. And I failed. I learned that you have to start with pretty big scraps until you get more experienced. I followed directions (what I thought to be) exactly and two of my pieces still ended up going the wrong direction. I will get it figured out because I love the beautiful quilts that can be made with this technique. Another one of my goals this year is to make harder quilts. Ones that may take twice as long but will be worth the effort!
I wanted to share something I found at Big Lots. They had these newsprint packs on clearance for 75 cents! I bought the last 3 they had hoping it would work through my printer and it did, perfectly! I had to trim them slightly to fit through my printer but they worked great for printing my paper piecing patterns. I may need a lot of them...


Anyhow, if you paper piece and have a Big Lots near, you may want to raid the clearance aisle!