A quilt for Robbie

I'm sending this little quilt off today for a friend's baby boy. Have I mentioned that I'm in love with my walking foot? The tutorial for the Crazy Nine Patch blocks is from Oh, Fransson!


























Have a happy holiday weekend!

What happened?

It appears I needed all of January to get my blogging act back together after the holidays and a trip to Disney World. I don't know how an entire month flew by just like that, but so it did.

Last night I finished a quilt for my nephew. I've also spent the past few weeks crocheting a couple hats; starting and then unravelling a pair of crocheted socks (I've yet to find the perfect pattern for that); and making crock after crock of homemade soup--one of my favorite comfort foods for the winter months.

Here's Milo's quilt. It's quite late (he'll be 2 in June) but hopefully he won't hold it against me.

Neglectful

Yeesh, three weeks since my last post. No excuses for the blog neglect, but I can say I've been busy in the sewing room. Lots to show soon...

For now, here's a work in progress. This was my first time using a walking foot and I'm already in love with that little contraption.














And these little pouches are going to become dryer sachets.

36 squares

I fit in quite a bit of pleasant sewing time this weekend...and finished all 36 squares for the Mod Sampler quilt. Now I can't move forward until I select a sashing color, and I'm having a heck of a time with that decision. Jeff votes strongly for white, but as far as I'm concerned, more color equals more happiness. I'm leaning slightly toward a subdued yellow like the one in the print that's paired with the orange solid. Thoughts, anyone?

Therapy

What with the gloomy weather and a school decision weighing heavily on my mind, I've been down in the dumps. Today provided just what I needed...some warm sunshine and young pansies outside and new Mod Sampler quilt blocks inside.


















And a sweet little kitty always helps too.


















So do pep talks from loved ones. Thanks, Mom and Gina.

Plan B

The solids weren't quite working for me. There's a gorgeous quilt made of mostly solids in Denyse Schmidt Quilts that I've always wanted to make, so I checked it out again the other night and realized I didn't have the right color tones.

Yesterday on the way to Costco I told Olivia I needed to go to JoAnn and get some more colors and she retorted, "You don't need any more fabric, Mom. You want it. What are you going to do when all the shelves in your sewing room are full?" My suggestion that I add a fabric shelf to her room was met with disgust. What a little teenager, and she's only six. But I guess she had a point, so I came home and started fresh. Here's the result, and I'm much happier with it.














The prints are from last year's vintage sheet swap, which Elizabeth also hosted.

Colors for the Mod Quilt and an Afghan from Mom

I was thinking I'd use all solids for the Mod Sampler quilt, but now that I've photographed them I'm not so sure. I was toying with the idea of orange, red, or pale yellow for the sashing. Now I'm rethinking the entire palette. I have to admit it's a pleasant dilemma....














And I wish I could take credit for this lovely creation, but alas I'm not much of a knitter. My mother, on the other hand, can do it all. When I was little, she sewed clothes for my Barbies and me; knitted and crocheted afghans, hats, and mittens; embroidered at least one glorious picture for the wall; and made various holiday decorations. Then she grew tired of stitching for many years until she was inspired to get her knitting needles out of the attic last month...and promptly whipped up this delightfully soft afghan for Olivia.

Back in the sewing room

Just when I needed some inspiration for a new sewing project, Elizabeth at Oh, Fransson has begun a quilt-along. I'm thinking my lovely stack of Kona solids, a recent treat from Pink Chalk Fabrics, is going to be perfect for the Mod Sampler Quilt.

A herd of elephants

My new sewing buddy, Mary Clare, came over this morning and we collaborated on a baby quilt for a colleague. We'd agreed beforehand to embroider elephants on bleached muslin using a cadet-bluish color with a little splash of other colors here and there. Today we framed the five embroidered (plus four simpler) squares with red prints.














One of Mary Clare's elephants (I wish you could see her perfect, tiny stitches here!)...














And one of mine--with, I just noticed--quite a bit of "disappearing" ink remaining...














That last one was a free pattern from Andrea Zuill.

Oldies

It's not that I'm being unproductive; it's just that I'm busy with top secret Christmas gifts. In lieu of zucchini bread photos, I thought I'd post a few older creations...things I made before I began this blog.

For starters, here's the pink flamingo wall-hanging I made for Elizabeth's birthday last year. Iron-on fusing and machine applique. Fun! I bought the pattern at AQ a couple of years ago.

Runner

Today I finished my Anna Banana table runner from Pink Chalk Studio's pattern. I adore this funky floral fabric, and it's all the sweeter having won it during a Free Fabric Friday at Sew, Mama, Sew!
















This was my first foray into free-motion quilting. I took the "easy" way out and went with a simple, wavy checkerboard pattern, but even so I ended up removing quite a few jagged lines of stitching. Mid-way through the project, a friend's visiting mother gave me a free-motion pep talk and a pair of garden gloves with little gripper dots all along the palms. Those, as well as a hint from Elizabeth at Oh, Fransson! to set the stitch length to zero, made a world of difference.

Funky Monkey

I bought this Alexander Henry fabric several years ago. I cut the pieces for a stack and whack quilt (still unassembled), then came across this little pattern and realized I had enough fabric to do both. This was my first attempt at hand applique with freezer paper--surprisingly fun! It's going to a baby shower tomorrow for a June baby boy.

Crumbs

A little of this (minus Miss Violet)...














And a little of that...














Makes some of these...














Blocks for a crumb quilt! I never would have believed that the scraps from my various projects (from 1930s reproduction fabrics to Amy Butler to bright batiks) would come together in such a pleasing fashion. These colorful crumb blocks are making me very happy! Here's a tutorial, and here's a gorgeous example.