A Friday Finish

I actually finished this quilt last week but the weather has not been cooperating lately.  It's been rainy, dreary and cold :(  Not the lovely September we normally see.  But it's time to show it and put it to bed so indoor photos will have to do.

 

I'm sure you are all ready to see the end of these chevron quilts, and to be honest, so am I LOL.  I love them but I think doing 5 was too much!

This one has been quilted with blue thread 1/4" on either side of the seam line and bound in Simply Color Ombre Blue.  Which it is also backed in.  I LOVE this fabric for backing (as I'm sure you noticed!).  I'm hoping you didn't notice how badly this needs to be lint rollered.  Or at least are too polite to mention it :)

From the beginning these quilts were planned as a pair.  I think they would be so adorable for boy/girl twins.  Now I just need to find some boy/girl twins :)

Linking up with Amanda Jean at Crazy Mom Quilts

WIP Wednesday Lite

Most of my sewing progress this week has been on my stock for the craft show in November but I did make a few blocks for the Molli Sparkles Broken Herringbone Quilt Along (MSBHQAL). 

I'll be honest.  These blocks are more than a little frustrating for me.  But they are getting easier with practice.  The first one took me an hour.  Then I did two at the same time and it took me an hour to do the two of them.  I have one more navy one almost complete and then it will be put on hold until I receive some swapped strings in the mail :)

In non sewing news, I started reading Harry Potter to my 7 year old this week.  It's been a few years since I read them for the first time and it is even better now.  She knows nothing about the story and is completely into already.  At the end of each chapter she groans "Why does is always have to end at the juicy bits!!".  And they've only just arrived at Hogwarts.  I can't wait to see her reactions when things start to actually happen!!

And this has me thinking of all the other books and series I loved as a child that I want to read with her.  So tell me, what are your favorite books/series from your childhood?

Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced.

Scraps!

Yesterday I got the urge to sort through my unsorted scraps and I thought you might like to see how I sort my scraps (cause I love that sort of thing!).  I keep a shoebox next to my cutting table where I pile all of my scraps as I work.  In theory I plan to sort it every time it gets full.

In theory that is a good plan :)  See that shoe box right there?  The one that is 2/3 full.  This is after 45 minutes of sorting and pressing.  All of those piles covering the rest of the table?  They started inside the box.  It was a little overfull LOL.

On the far right is a pile of snips/crumbs.  Basically anything that cannot be cut into a 2 1/2" square.  This is the second pile.  I put the first pile into it's proper storage box when it threatened to topple.  To the left of that is a pile of strips smaller than 2 1/2 " wide.  And to the left of that is a pile of large scraps.  I would say larger than about 5" goes here.

Bottom right corner (pink mushrooms) is a pile to be cut into 2 1/2" squares for Bits and Pieces II.  Above that is 2 1/2" (or wider) strips for scrappy bindings.  The polka dot is a reference fabric for a blanket I'm making and the pile on top of my ruler is scraps that will work in that blanket.  Bottom center is larger than 2 1/2" but smaller than 5".  These will be cut into 3" and 3 1/2" squares.

And there you have it.  A little random scrap adventure for your Tuesday morning.  I would love to read about your scrap sorting/hoarding/storing strategies.  Leave a link in a comment if you have a related post and I will surely stop by :)

Linking up with Better Off Thread

Mustaches!

I started and finished my first quilt for Project Inspiration this week.

This was a tutorial by Katy of I'm a Ginger Monkey for Fat Quarter Gang.  The tutorial has been languishing in my Pinterest folder for quite some time and I'm happy I finally made it.  I followed the tutorial very closely, if by very closely you mean downloading the mustache template and checking to see what size to cut my blocks LOL.

I used Therm o Web to heat set the mustaches and then raw edge appliqued them.  The fabric is all from Basic Grey's PB&J line for Moda.  I LOVE the fabrics for this projects.  Originally I was going to use all solids for the back and patterns for the mustaches but I'm glad I changed it up.  The navy mustaches are my favorite by far :)

I backed it with white dimple minky and bound it in the Navy Grunge Solid.  I didn't use batting but I did stitch in the ditch to hold the two layers together.  This was my first time "quilting" minky and it wasn't as bad as I feared.  That could have been thanks to the bazillion pins I used LOL.

Linking up with Amanda Jean at Crazy Mom Quilts.

WIP Wednesday

Project Inspiration has begun!  I got started on my Mustaches! this week and I love them far too much :)  I'm using fabrics from Moda's PB&J line, alternating solids and patterns.  Can't wait to see this one all finished and ready for cuddling!

Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced.

Productive Procrastination

For the past few years I have taken part in multiple local Christmas Craft Fairs.  They are small and I've had some mediocre success but not as much as I have hoped.  This year we decided I should take part in a large show in a nearby large city.  They have a history of seeing 20 000 people through the doors over 3 days.  That's 10 times my largest local show.  Their booth fee is more than I've made at any of the local shows.  To say I'm nervous is an understatement.

Those nerves came to a head on Friday.  So I did the logical thing and worked on Clementine Cross.  Katie at Sew Katie Did talked about this a few weeks ago and it really rang true with me.  I am a master procrastinator.  Always have been.  And while I can be a useless procrastinator at times (ie internet wormholes), often I find myself doing other things that need to be done, usually housecleaning.  While these things still need to be done, they are definitely not time sensitive or the most urgent.

And that is how I turned this pile of fabric

Into this pile of almost done blocks

Don't worry, though.  On Monday I got back to working on building up my stock :)

Project Inspiration

Do you guys follow Adrienne over at Chezzetcook Modern Quilts?  If you don't, then you should!  Last month she introduced us to her Library Project, a brilliant plan to start actually making some of the quilts in her quilt book library!  The idea implanted itself in my brain and wouldn't let go!

My library is quite small but if you add in my patterns and pinterest boards it's huge!  All of this inspiration sitting there unloved for far too long :(  So I chose 12 projects to complete between now and next September.  I've loosely planned them by month but reserve the right to switch them up as my schedule/whim changes LOL.

Please click through to the original post if you would like to pin these images!

1. Must Dash Quilt - This is a Fat Quarter Gang tutorial by I'm a Ginger Monkey

2. Trees Christmas Quilt by Amanda Jean at Crazy Mom Quilts

3. A Christmas Tree Skirt - I have several languishing in my pinterest boards

4. Pincushion/Threadcatcher combo- this one has been on my list for several years now

5. Heart Applique Quilt

6. Crooked Cabins - A pattern by Kati Spencer at From The Blue Chair

7. Indian Summer Quilt from Modern Quilts from the Blogging Universe.  Another Katy Jones quilt and my first Dresden quilt.  I'm a little scared of this one!

8. Scout - A pattern by Allison of Cluck Cluck Sew

9. Neighborhood from Modern Patchwork by Elizabeth Hartman.  This pattern made me fall in love with Madrona Road.  I may need to buy some more when I get here :)

10. A Beach Quilt for us- simple and colorful

11. Scrapper's Delight from Sunday Morning Quilts

12. A bag!  I've been pinning bag patterns and actually own Amy Butler's Style Stitches but have never made a bag for myself.  It needs to happen :)

So there you have it.  A year's worth of projects to keep me busy and using the inspiration I'm hoarding.  Some of these may change depending on materials available to me but I'm committing to making one project per month.

Anyone care to join us?

Linking up with Needle and Thread Thursday and Thursday Threads