I bought this book last year!  

I'm starting to get annoyed with myself buying books and then never making even one quilt from them.  

I'm annoyed since I'm running out of book shelf space AGAIN! 

So I made this top from two partial charm pack I had, Reunion and Simply Style. I added one extra row of blocks.

Urban Pods was finished at the end of April.

I've been waiting for good weather to take some outside pictures.

I gave up waiting.

The design wall with Up and Away progress; not much. I have the 10 rows sewn together in the upper right corner.

I feel sure that soon I will lose patience with this sitting here and sew the dang thing up, even though it sitting there and being sewn a few rows at a time is the plan...

I sewed a sample spider web block (ala Bonnie Hunter).

I saw a quilt on Pinterest using pieced fabric for the center area and really liked it.

I don't really like my grey centers.  It might look fine on an entire quilt, but I don't have that much.  I'm going to do another one with much lighter pieced centers.

Customer quilts are threatening to overwhelm-the closet and my mind.

This is Carol's 

E's & 3's with a variegated thread.

and the back

I finished the Swoon pillow.

now I'm

binding and binding and binding.  

Almost done!

I made new kitchen curtains (toppers) on Monday.  They are from osenburg fabric and I love them.

   

I also quilted my Dresden pillow.

I was going to bind it too-love that look on a pillow but just wanted to get 'er done.

Now that a few days have passed, yes I do want to bind it.  I'm thinking a black binding, that I conveniently already have made.

I also had a not planned sewing session in which I pieced the backing for my Modern Misfits top

 I used leftover strips, chunks, some fat quarters etc.  And in pulling these out I had to re organize the ever-shrinking stash.

win-win.
One of these days soon I hope to empty these of their contents...strips chunks and sew new 'yardage' from them.

oh and another Baby Life quilt in the works, actually 2.  The other one is still just fused letters.  I do love this quilt pattern.  I've changed it a bit by just cutting the background piece in half (after adding a 1/2 inch for the seam!).  This way I only have to deal with half the fabric while machine blanket stitching those letters---that's a lot of fabric manipulation.  I don't think the seam will be distracting after it's been quilted.
I may even adjust the cutting of the next one further now that I have the size of the area where the words are.
I will wait and see how the blanket stitching goes on this one.

A morning trip to a quilt shop with Libby today. whoop-whoop.

I'm here

slaving away  having a good time!

What a crazy busy week, appointments, lunch out with my sister, sewing.

Two days of deconstruction renovation.  They got more wiring done and now I have light switches where I need them! yeah! They made a lot of noise  and now my laundry tubs are moved and the drain is moved and I have more room in what used to be a laundry room.  But it's not a room now as they took the walls down too. Whew!  It looks pretty bad- noooo pictures! 

I spent a long time cleaning (again) after they left.  I cover everything with plastic that I can't move out but it's still a dusty mess.  I've probably cleaned the basement more times in the last 3-4 months than I have in all the years we've lived here.   ewwww, maybe I shouldn't reveal so much about me.

We went to the Penguins home opener! So much fun, but dang Paul and I yawn a lot in between rooting them on!  

I'm still working on piecing Quilts for Kids.  The leftover one is #9 for the year + the 2 NI CU one's I donated earlier this year makes 11.  I had set a goal of 1/month so I'm a little ahead. 

Wow that's different.

this one is with all the leftover blocks from the others!

I finished the baby quilt for my friend's daughter.  She had her baby girl yesterday! whew!

I wasn't able to attend the "newbies" class for guild last week as oldest son came home for fall break and visited!  (I thought he was staying at school) So it was a nice surprise.  

In the class, we were making this little runner.  I made it last night (late-apparently I can no longer drink decaf coffee in the evening; even the shot of Bailey's Irish creme( 'yum') in it didn't have any affect.  I have the binding pinned going to try to do that tonight.  

Would you believe that's the 1st time I used prairie points?  Easy peasy!

I quilted Witchy-poo and the 2 new little jacks quilts.  Witchy-poo is destined to be a pillow and the 2 little jacks I want to put those corner thingy's on the back for hanging-like you're suppose to do for AAQI quilts. I'm definitely gearing up to make one or 2 of those in the future. I think the technique is cool-for the little triangle/hanger.
EDIT: The correct term is "Fast Finish Triangles" .  

I'm also about 1/2 way finished with the blanket stitching on The Witch is In,  

I can not wait to get this on my front door.  

2nd edit:  The blanket stitching is done! woo-hoo!

Oh Strings & Stars is STILL on the design wall!  The center is sewn together I really need to take an hour add an inner border and the 2 side star borders and then I'll be able to see how much more I need to add to it....just an hour....or two.

My to do list is crazy long and I'm not starting another thing until it's caught up.  

My Design Wall

These were to be two different quilts. A string quilt and a strips and stars quilt.

I decided to combine the two. I put these up on the wall on Thursday.

 I think it needs a dark (read solid) border probably around 2 inches finished in between the strings and outer strips and stars border. I only have 3 outer borders so that will need taken care of.  My goal for this week is to just get the center string rows together. 

I also have loaded my Christmas quilt and that I want to finish quilting it this week.  I'm using bottom line in the bobbin and Connecting Threads, Essential Pro in the top, I think it's called "honey".

I did a piano key border and quilted the spine for the all-over feathers.

I 've started the feathers and am almost ready to roll the quilt forward for the 2nd section. 

The baby quilt is together. I really like it. 

I pieced the back with the leftover fabric. AFTER I made the binding!

To see other design walls in blogland, go here.

Design Wall Monday

Well, I haven't done one of these in a long time.  Dare I hope life might be taking a turn towards normals ville?  Time will tell.

Design wall #1.

This is a baby quilt for a friend, Mary's, daughter, who is due in like 2 weeks.  I used to work with Mary and in e-mails she asked if I could make a quilt (of course). I sent a few pictures of other baby quilts I've made. 

I was leaning towards this one.

 We had lunch a few weeks ago. Her daughter didn't pick this pattern (oh drat!)

 All Squared Up which is from Quilt Sampler magazine Spring/Summer 2007 is the one she liked and she wanted it made in purples and greens. 

Of course, my first thought was 'holy crap that's gonna be weird' mainly because it's not a color combo I would use. HA!

 (sure I'll make you a quilt....a quilt I want to make in colors I like....)

am I the only one who thinks these things

The greens are yardage I bought, the purples are from an Island Batik jelly roll I just got on a whim last month; yeah for compulsive buying!

I intend to finish putting the outer border on today. I did get the inner purple border on last night. I have a lot of the green fabric leftover so I'm thinking I will use it to make a funky pieced backing for it.

My other design wall has my Bunny Hill BOM waiting for the fused border appliques to be blanket stitched, may or may not happen this week.  I'm not liking the idea of machine bl. stitching with the top all together, I'm thinking it's going to be awkward-only way to assemble tho' with the birds and stars going through all the borders like that.

REALLY like the colors in this one-right up my alley as they say.

Visit other design walls by checking out Judy's blog here.



What I've been working on

I have the binding sewn on and pinned for hand sewing to the back on my Eat. Play. Sleep. Repeat baby quilt.

The binding is sewn on my Serengeti Dance quilt as well.

I'm continuing to sew the blocks together for CW Medallion.  In this picture the side rows are already sewn on to the center and the top row is together but not added to the center.

Today I machine blanket-stitched the 3rd Bunny Hill BOM for Henrietta Whiskers

and then put the first row together.

I'm just lovin this project.

And these are SUPPOSE to be my Leader/enders but I keep finding myself piecing the little blocks together in between and then just piecing them for a bit. They are like eating m&m's---a bag at a time.

(that is how everyone eats m&m's right? not just me!)

I do need to take a little time and cut a bunch of patches for these L/E's. I think that's part of the problem; I keep having to stop and cut and then I start arranging the blocks by color and then I want to see how it will look and before you know it I've eaten another bag. 

(I mean I've sewn all the little blocks together and have nothing for L/E's again.)

And I've just printed out the directions for the 10th block for LCQA.  All morning I would say to myself that today was the day it would be posted and then I would say oh wait, NO I think it's not until next week...I was wrong ...and right.... 

******

my stupid silly computer won't recognize my printer cable AGAIN.  I feel like ripping my hair out.  But that would hurt real bad and not help with the printer issue.

I did download another audio book from the library today and now I'm wondering if I had troubles last month after downloading a book.  (I know they're probably not related in any way but when you're techno-challenged you will grasp at anything!) 

Speaking of audio books.  The last one I downloaded I never even got around to putting on the Ipod for listening to and the one I got today Water for Elephants I put on the IPod but can't get it to work.

I NEED MEGHAN!!!!

OK... I'm OK now.  I'm going to run down to the store for something chocolate(perhaps M&M's???) a few errands and then go back to my sewing room where it's safe and I know what I'm doing--at least most of the time.

Design Wall Monday (2/14/11)

I'll be doing a lot of blanket stitching this week.  I have to finish the words "sleep and "repeat" on the Baby Life quilt and the 2 blocks to the right are the first two months for Henrietta Whiskers, Anne Sutton from Bunny Hill Designs 2011 BOM.

I'm loving it already. 

And my Flying geese and leftover pinwheels are still growing as my leader/ender.

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I got the first Baby Life quilt quilted and bound this weekend.

  And was finally successful in re-installing my printer drivers and all that happy horse do-do.

**happy dance didn't have to get a new computer**

which I just probably jinxed-dang!

 So I am able to make labels in EQ6 and print them out on fabric. I have to put a label on the Baby life quilt, my crumb quilt and Snow Bound (yep finished quilting that this weekend too), still binding it tho' and may re-do the quilting I did in some of the applique blocks, (sigh) not sure I like it will post about that later.

Check out other walls atPatchwork Times

Wordless Wednesday--NOT

Baby Life Quilt 

recipe at ModaBakeShop. 

When I saw it I l.o.v.e.d it.

 I bought twice as much background and backing as needed...he he; forgot to put supply list in purse, went out to run errands and ended up at Joann's-if you can imagine that happening!

And coordinating burp cloths

The tutorial is here.

the first flimsy last night-while listening to the Pens lose (boo-hoo).



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Quiltathon Day 2-final update

Well, this was a fun and productive 2 day adventure. 

 I am tired. 

This evening at 7:15 I finished the final border on Morris (we're on a first name basis now that we've spent so much time together).

I didn't have enough yardage of Morris wkshop fabric for the outer border but I did have something in the stash that works well.  The top measures 81.5 x 90.  I have the binding strips cut but will sew them tomorrow. 

I didn't get to my Jelly roll blocks.

But I did get these arranged.

I brought the big churn dash block up with me (block in lower left)-I just can't take that dark brown---toooo dark.  So I'm going to un stitch the block tonight while staring at the TV and re-sew it with a less dominating fabric tomorrow.