Quilt Retreat

I was lucky enough to attend our guild's quilt retreat this weekend. It was so much fun! I got a few things accomplished while I was there.

I finished step 3 of our guild's mystery quilt first. Yea! I can't wait for step 4!!

Then I pieced a baby quilt top. Yellow for the rainbow scrap challenge. I picked this pattern because we share a name :) I love how happy this top looks! The pattern is Laura from Michelle's Romantic Tangle

3rd I worked on these blocks from the book Fat Quarter Style. This pattern is called Plume. As you can see I am making it in patriotic colors. This one will be donated to our guild's community service for their Hometown Heroes program. These blocks are just laid out ready to be seen together. I like the yellow "plumes" which make me think of shooting stars or maybe fireworks.

And last I worked on sewing my jelly roll strips together for my whirling hexagons quilt top. I didn't take any pictures because I still need to cut them up into triangles.

Progress is good and fun! Retreat was awesome! My one regret: I wish I had taken more pictures...Oh well. I will next time!

RSC and Tula Pink

It is a rare treat when one of my daughters' decides to join me in my sewing area, but today it happened. My younger daughter and I started working through Tula Pink's book of blocks last summer. We put the numbers 1-100 in a bowl and when we finish one block we draw out a number to determine our next block. When we finish we will each have made 50 blocks and we plan to put them into one big quilt. We aren't rushing this and are just working on a block here and there whenever the fancy hits us. Here are the two blocks I made today.

We are just using random scraps. I wish I could say this is making a dent in our scraps but it really isn't! I think we have made a total of 25 blocks so far. Here is the book we are using. I love it!

 

I think I mentioned last week that I wouldn't get much sewing done and I was right! I was hoping to get more cutting done, but I didn't get much of that done either! Let's focus on the positive. For the yellow rainbow scrap challenge I cut out enough squares for two baby quilts...yea! Also in the picture a few 5 inch squares to add to my charm collection. You can see what others are making in yellows here!

I plan to work on putting these tops together at our guild retreat at the end of the month. Now that it is cut the temptation to start sewing is great!!

I also finished my geese for our guild's mystery quilt 2nd clue. I am so excited that I am keeping up so far! 

I used the method Bonnie Hunter taught us at a class for using the scrap triangles to make bonus HST. I didn't take a picture but I made 96 bonus 3.5 inch HST!! I was tickled with that! I'm not sure how I will use them, but it was fun not to add that extra scrap fabric to a scrap pile or the trash :) 

The goal for this week is to work on the Twirling Hexagon quilt to get it ready to take to retreat and to start cutting the fabric for my daughter's graduation quilt so I can also take it to retreat. I did sit down and figure up a game plan for her quilt, so that is a little progress, right??

Hello March!

Hooray for March!

This month the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color is YELLOW! I made my March Nine Patch Nirvana BOM in yellows. I love the skulls :) I love making just one block a month. Check out what everyone else is making for their Rainbow Scrap Challenge this week.

I also finished my Love Notes baby quilt. It turned out cute! I am saving it for when I need a baby girl gift, I think. I prefer a brighter color palette but this one turned out very sweet and I am sure it will be perfect for some baby girl someday!

This week we got the 2nd clue to our guild's mystery quilt. I have one 'wing' on each of my geese. I should get the second 'wing' on today or tomorrow. I am really enjoying this mystery so far. If you would like to work on the mystery too our guild is posting the steps on our website here.

This isn't quilting related, but I did get some new shoes. Bright pink! I think they are the perfect shoes to celebrate the coming of spring!

Soon will be our guild retreat. I need to figure out what I am going to take to work on. I am thinking a yellow and white baby quilt, my daughter's graduation quilt, and/or the quilt I have started called Twirling Hexagons to donate to a senior. I have to start cutting all my fabric for all of these quilt tops, so that is probably what I will work on next week. I want to be ready for retreat so hopefully I can get a lot accomplished while I am there!!

I am happy it's March!

The End of February 2015

This month flew by, which is unusual for February. Even though it is the shortest month of the year it always feels the longest, usually. Not this year though...

I didn't get as much done as I wanted to, but I still accomplished a few things.

The local guild I am in does a mystery quilt each year. I didn't participate last year and I regretted that. This year I am on top of it (ok, truth be told I finished my step one the day before our meeting, but at least I was on time! and then our meeting was cancelled due to weather anyway. I could have procrastinated even longer! haha!) I waited so late in the month to start it because I couldn't make up my mind what colors I wanted to use or if I wanted to go scrappy. I finally decided on "controlled scrappy". I plan to use cream/white/neutrals, light/lime greens, purples, and blacks. I hope it will look good. I love mysteries, but sometimes I struggle with picking colors. For this mystery our color guidelines were light, medium light, medium dark, and dark, no actual color suggestions. So I had a hard time figuring out what I wanted to do. I can't wait to get and make step 2 now that I have picked my colors. I also loved how simple step one was. 12 four patches and I love that they are DONE. :) 

In honor of Valentine's Day I made a little quilt top. This is Love Notes found in the Block magazine by Missouri Star Quilt Company. I used the magazine pattern. But here is a link to Missouri Star Quilt's video tutorial, which is free. There is quite a bit of pink in this top and this was made from a charm pack I had laying around so I count this for my Rainbow Scrap Challenge for this week :) You can check out what other pink creations are being made here.

Right now it measures 39 inches X 50 inches. If I make this again I definitely want to remember to press my seams open. I don't think it said to in the pattern or if it did I overlooked it, because I hate pressing seams open...but this is one pattern that really would have worked better with open seams. Some of the seams are very thick. I will have to think about how I want to quilt it. Maybe a meander that I can work around the thick seams? This quilt top did work up quickly and I think it is very pretty. I am not much on borders. In fact I hate borders, but I do think the red floral print I used really helped to brighten this quilt top up, so I am glad I put the borders on. And guess what? I had all of this fabric in my stash, so yea for getting some fabric off my shelf! I have even cut the backing and the binding, so the entire little quilt will be made from stash. That's a good feeling! I'm linking up with Michelle's Romantic Tangle: Let's Make Baby Quilts!

 

We got snow yesterday so my husband and daughter built a snowman. Isn't he cute?

Happy Last Day of February Eve!! 

 

Update on New Year's Resolutions:

 

*I am soda free since Jan 1. Not even one sip. GO ME! I still crave Mountain Dew. Not every day, but lots of days.

 

*Regarding my fabric resolution: Last month I bought pink and leopard print fabric for a commissioned quilt. The quilt was made and delivered and the new little baby has been using it. I received the cutest picture proving it! I love getting pictures of my quilts in use. It really makes my heart smile! This month I bought 4 yards of yellow flannel. Here's why: a lady has organized a group, Amelia's Angels,  to help our local hospital provide memory boxes, blankets, outfits for angel babies and their families. For babies who leave this Earth before they are born, or shortly after, or born way too early to survive. I am going to make some yellow receiving blankets to contribute. So I think my purchase is justified, don't you? Now I have to make the blankets. I worked an extra night last week, and my girls were home for the last two weeks due to weather, so I haven't had much sewing time. My daughters' both know how to sew and make quilts and have been making quilts as long as I have been, since 2009. They usually make one quilt in the summer time. During the school year they have nothing to do with sewing. So I know that we have way too many weather days off of school when my youngest decides to spend a day working on a quilt she started last year. It is a massive queen sized quilt so it is taking some time. It is an easy pattern though, just big. She is hoping to finish it this summer. I am hoping the first week in March will be a fabulous sewing week for me!

 

It's February!

We are well into February already! I have gotten a little sewing accomplished this week.

First up: in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge this month's color is pink! I am participating in a block of the month with a facebook group. So I am combining the two and making each block of the month in the rainbow color of the month and using my scraps. Here is the February block:

Please keep in mind I am using up scraps. I would never have chosen these fabrics and in fact the striped fabric is one of those "why did I ever buy that fabric?" fabric!  Actually if I recall correctly I bought it at a Habitat Restore at a really cheap price thinking I would use it as a backing. I have made a receiving blanket out of it, and now this block, and still have a good piece of it left. As I was making this block I wasn't sure I would like my fabrics at all, but now that it is complete I actually do like it a lot! I think it looks very retro 80's. It is also DONE! So yea!! On Saturday morning check out how others are turning their pink scraps into prettiness here!

I also had a finish this week, and it happened to have pink! This quilt was special ordered for a baby to be born any day now. Leopard print and pink were requested and I love the way it turned out! After washing it was so soft and crinkly and it measured 50 inches X 50 inches. 

This is the back...lots of pink :)

So today I should have been working on lots of other projects but in straightening up the sewing room I saw my Celtic Solstice and thought I would spend my little bit of today's sewing time working on it. I finished 4 blocks! Yea! I think I have only 7 more blocks to piece and then I can start putting them together! This pattern is no longer available, but it was created by Bonnie Hunter and I believe she has plans to publish the pattern at some point. Check out Bonnie's website for soooo many cool patterns and tutorials. Quiltville link.  Hooray for making progress in slow motion ;) 

I also started on the Elephant Parade quilt along. I messed up and made my 5 elephants going the same way, but that's ok. They are still adorable and I will work them into the quilt anyway. These elephants worked up so nicely! And they are so cute!!! Do you want to make some elephants too? Follow along at Sew Fresh Quilts.

Week one of February has been productive for me, how about you??

 

I am linking up with Finish Up Friday at Crazymomquilts.

I am also linking up with Michelle's Romantic Tangle Let's Make Baby Quilts.

 

 

 

 

One more blue block...late

February is pink for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, but I had one more block I wanted to do for January blue. So here it is:

I cut out twelve 10.5 inch white blocks and I hope to make one of these each month in the color of the month. I was inspired by the Ticker Tape quilt pattern in the book Sunday Morning Quilts. It's fun using odd small scraps. Hopefully they'll make a pretty rainbow quilt by the end of the year! Now I can start thinking pink!!

RSC January week 5 & Snapshots BOM 1st block

It's been a good week for the final January blue week for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge!

 I made several more square in a square blocks, enough for a baby quilt I think!

I think these will become an "under the sea" themed baby quilt someday!

Speaking of baby quilts I finished the blue 9 patch baby quilt. I free motion quilted it with a meander pattern. I was pleased with it! It has been donated to our guild's community service committee and it will be donated to our local hospital for a little one in need. Yea for a finish! I'm linking up to Michelle's Romantic Tangle Let's Make Baby Quilts .

I love the backing too!

Blue has been a fun challenge this month! I still have one more block I want to make, and I doubt I will finish it tonight, but that's ok! Check out how others have been using their blue scraps here.

Tomorrow starts a new challenge: PINK! How appropriate for February!

 

I also completed my January BOM in the Snapshots which was called Let Them Eat Cake. This was such a fun block and I could envision an entire quilt of different flavored cakes! Wouldn't that be fun?! You can learn more about this BOM here.

 

I hope January has been a good month for you!