UFO Friday!

This week I have been getting ready for a camping weekend. The weatherman said it was going to be a beautiful weekend, and now they are talking a rain shower and rain on monday, wish they would make up their minds.

We do need to test the trailer and make sure everything is working ok and I have had a rough week, so a few days of resting, will be good for me.

I wanted something to work on at camp, that is simple and keeps my hands busy.

I decided on a baby quilt, I made years ago. It is not perfect, and I went with a lot of black, so I am just going to do a prim black stitch on it. I may do hearts in the larger  dark red squares.

Another quilt I had forgotten about was this Laurel Burch panel. I guess I was hand stitching it and planning on making it into a wall hanging. Now I am wondering about that. I didn't do too much stitching yet, so I could take out what I did and redo it. I was thinking about a quilt, but then I thought, what if I kept the panel and made a giant bed pillow. I could use it on the side of the guest bed, to make it into a day couch. Any ideas? The panel is 42" x 23".

And one reason why I felt horrid this week, I killed my back, going glass hunting. I overdid it and did way too much bending, so I need to take a break, lol. At least the camp beaches are more fun to walk and enjoy the views, not much glass on rocky beaches, it usually breaks up into sand. I did get some nice pieces, though.

Monday This and That!

I hope everyone had a nice weekend, I didn't get a lot done, but I did find some material to use with the baby quilt and today I cut some blocks and laid it out to get an idea of how it looks and what I want to do. I doubt I will get it done in time, but I also may not give it to them. I found out that she is leaving at the end of the month, having the baby in Malaysia and not coming back until September.

So, Grandma is not happy and disappointed that we will not be there for the baby's birth or see Nicholas for 5 months. She plans on having another shower and getting what she needs to use, there, so she won't be taking anything. I can't see giving her a quilt that will sit at home, so I may wait and until the right time or donate it for a raffle or charity. I can decide after it is made and see how it comes out.

I am not sure if I should do some small boats or enlarge the boat and maybe add some shadow seagulls. First I will do the blocks and top, then decide on how to set the appliqué on top. I am also thinking of adding a strip of solid around the design, then varying strips of the other fabrics in the same colors next, then another solid strip. That is the plan, but I may change my mind as I go along.

This is the layout of the base, the borders will give it just enough to make a large baby quilt. I may trip a bit off the top and bottom of the blue so the shading is there, but a little narrower for that space. I will also redo the blocks so they are laying in the right direction.

We had my son and Nick for dinner Sunday night. I was going through his old photos to do a birthday card and it brings back so many good memories. This is a photo of him when were were camping at the state park. He was playing in the camp and a bird landed on his finger, he was always a sweet soul.

This is my son now, he took a selfie of himself and Nick, father and son, time sure flys by.

Of course Grandma and Nick played while the guys did their thing. I always get little gifts from the bargain racks to give him when he visits and he told me to get the camera, so not sure if he wanted me to take a photo or he thinks he has a camera too, lol. I am going to miss the joy that he brings when he is here, it will be a long 5 months.

Tumbler Baby Quilt!

I finished Nicolas' baby quilt last night and took it to him today. I was going to take a photo of him on it, but I was too busy holding him;)

I used the leftovers from the first quilt and material from the curtains. For the stars and circles, I used fusible and raw edge. I used variegated thread and a blanket stitch to sew them on. I decided to quilt by hand, using a medium blue floss, which I think, makes it look more fun. I would have liked have quilted stars on the border, but I wanted to finish it, and went with a simple border stitch. The binding was done with a vintage satin material that I had bought to make curtains. Never made the curtains, but found a great use for it.

The fabric is Down Under, that I won from Henry Glass & Co.

Here is a closer look at the stitching. As you can see, I am not perfect, I missed the edge on a few places but that is ok, he won't mind;) I like how the variegated thread looks, but the lighter color makes it look like I missed a few spots.

And for you new moms and grandmas, I found a wonderful tutorial for making a Mei Tai Baby Carrier. After seeing the ones you can get now, I thought this was a wonderful carrier, for those of you who can sew and read directions, unlike myself. It is in a PDF format, so you can print it out.

Baby Quilt: Tumbler and Stars!

I decided to make a quilt from the scraps that I had from the first quilt and the curtains I am working on. I am still working on the curtains, I made a mess, so now I have to think it over and decide a better way to do them or just make a topper and buy solid curtains to match;)

This one I used the baby tumbler die to cut, makes it easier to cut them out, but it does waste a bit of fabric. Great though for scraps since you just need sizes that fit the dies.

This is the fabric that I won from Henry Glass Fabrics, they really sent me a lot. I still have the green shades that I can use for another quilt, plus a yard of print and one with rows of animals that I will use for the curtain tops.

I wanted to add a little touch and saw a quilt that had stars with circles in them, so I made my own starts and fussy cut the circles to add a little fun to the quilt. I used fusible on them, then a blanket stitch by machine. I also used a variegated blue thread, so on some spots it looks like there is no stitching, not a good idea to use lights on light if you want it to show;)

Then I decided I wanted stitches that were larger and fun, so I am hand stitching the tumbler blocks. It is taking me longer, but I am on the second half, so I should have that finished tomorrow. I would like to do star stitching on the borders, and I also think embroidery would be cute, but would take longer. I am hoping to have it done by sunday, we shall see.

Here is a sneak peak, not the best piecing or stitching, but I am sure he won't mind that Grandma isn't perfect.

Baby Quilt Top Done!

I finally finished the top. Lots of piecing and fixing and stitch ripping and machine acting up, but it all worked out and I finished the top. It is not perfect, I cannot keep my blocks straight, no matter how hard I try, lol. The original pattern came from Connecting Threads in their free patterns. They had the nine patch in the corners, but I decided to add a fussy cut kangaroo, too cute not to use.

Now I need to figure out how to quilt it, suggestions are welcome. I want to keep it simple so wondering if I should just stitch in the ditch and maybe X's across the large blocks and maybe a interwoven design for the border?

I am going to mix the solid blue with some of the solid yellow or all yellow for the binding? The pieces are not long enough to go in one straight line, so I would have to sew pieces together and think it would look nicer with mixed, than solids that are sewn.

I was thinking of using blue thread for the quilting? I still have material to make curtains, so that is next and then enough to make another quilt, so I might use the green shades and do a chisel or tumbler with the dots and then the animal print for the borders.

Here is a close up to show the colors better. This is such a cute print and I do have larger animal prints that I can use in a second quilt, can never have too many.

Quilts in the Works!

Today I wanted to start the baby quilt. I had a Doc day so I didn't get started until the afternoon. It took me awhile to cut out the blocks, I am a bit slow and since I am clumsy, I want to make sure I don't cut my fingers off;) I am making a baby quilt for my grandson who is expected next month, nothing like waiting till the last minute.

The pattern is an irish chain baby quilt that I found as a free pattern at Connecting Threads. I thought it would be easier to do a pieced quilt, then trying to do applique this late. It will also be more practical for a baby.

I measured carefully, I watched my seam lines as I sewed them up but I still came out crooked. Since it is an irish chain, I want them to be perfect, so they line up properly, but that doesn't look like it is going to happen with my sewing, lol. Do you know any tricks or ways to make them better?

I am using these for the chain part of the quilt and the animals in a row for the border. I will save the larger print for the curtains. The Fabric comes from the Down Under line by Shelley Comisky, a prize that I won from Henry Glass Fabrics.

Another project I am working on is, a new runner for the Patriotic Challenge at This-n-That Fabrics. I am making it for my dining bureau so it is long, but I need to make it thinner so I can add a border and then I will add appliques to the ends. I definitely think this is one piece that needs antiquing;) The Fabrics come from a jelly roll that I won from Minick and Simpson, just using the red, tan and blue strips.

An Almost Charity Quilt!

Yesterday I decided I wanted to start a charity quilt, something simple that I could finish in a day. Well, you know how that goes, it became another lesson in, what not to do.

Rosemary Youngs has started a drive to make quilts for the orphanage in Uganda. These are basic quilts, a top and a flannel back, since they do not need heavy blankets. I thought it was a good way for me to get started with charity quilting and a wonderful cause. Rosemary also has free patterns with applique and blocks, so be sure to visit her webpage, as well. She also has instructions on quilt construction, on her website, something easy that you can do, use up your stash and help the children in Uganda.

I started out with a charm pack called Little Apples that was given to me by Linda of This and That fabrics for my charity quilts. I wanted to use the designs so you could see them, so I thought, half triangles would be nice, but it didn't look right. So, I cut them again into smaller triangles and the blocks became smaller. I have nothing that matches the colors and I want to use us my stash, so I found a red/orange shade with two of my fabrics. I liked the contrast it gave, what do you think? Of course the colors are not the same online, as in person.

Now the problem is, what do I add to enlarge it? I will have to go to jo anns to see if they have something that matches it, would be nice if I could find a print in those colors. It is for a child, so I want it to be fun and make them smile. Right now it is only 25" x 32".

The homespun is something I bought and the solid is Kona fabric that I won from Jane of Jane's Fabrics.

The next quilt will be larger blocks with fun prints, no more triangles;) No matter how carefully I piece and cut, I can never match them up.