Friday Finish!

 

This week I finally made the time to finish my daughter's quilt. I was working on it for her 30th birthday but we lost her five days before. Over the years I have wanted to finish it, but didn't have the heart, but this year, was the year.

It felt good to finish it and I am thinking we will use it as a family quilt for now. It was a pain to put together, since I used a cutter to make the blocks. I would rather cut the fringe, after piecing. Having them cut before, just got in my way. I had planned on adding another row of denim for the outer edges, since she had a queen bed, but it doesn't have to be that big now, so I left it as is.

We have been getting out more with the nicer weather. We had a nice Easter with the kids, the boys checking out their finds from the hunt.

The next day we picked them up to go fishing. They loved their new poles and I realized I miss fishing, so I got a license, now I need to get a new pole. 

We enjoyed time at the beach, and I spotted this shy gull.

And they are all nesting on the big rock in the bay, all the Cormorants stay on the same rock.

We spotted the Ospreys in the cove, along with two Oystercatchers, a first time I have seen them inland.

In the nearby farm, a lot of birds were gathered in the fields. The Glossy Ibis and Killdeers were wonderful to see.

Today we went back to the beaches. It was really hot the last two days and now there are fires going up in the woods, so it was nice to get away from the smoke.

I got to enjoy watching this new pair, doing their mating dance and showing off.

And the final act, I hope they have a successful year and I get to see their young.

I want to thank you all for your prayers. Cyndi is still in ICU, but she has improved and we are all hoping she keeps fighting. I hope you all enjoy your weekend.

Rag Quilt: Change of Colors!

I needed to fill in more space on my quilt and I didn't have time to go to the store and I really didn't want to buy more fabric. I had already cut out some blue blocks and sewed some, so I added those to the center, in a random pattern. I also had faded denim already cut, as well as the backings, so I went with those and only had to cut more batting to put those together.

I got all of the rows, sewed together and laid them out on the bed, to make sure I had them in the right order. I still need to sew the rows together, but as you can see, it came in a bit on the sides and it will come in on the length, as well. So, I think I am going to have to go to the store to get some more dark denim. I really think that would make the nicest border, do you?

Another thing I learned while sewing these is that they bunch as you sew the two pieces together and I have been getting a lot of puckers at the end. I did find that putting the denim on the bottom, helps keep the puckers out, but I still got some. Having the rag pre-cut makes it hard to hold the fabric tightly as you sew, I really think I would have preferred to cut after. Now for the fun part, sewing the rows without catching the fringe, so I will have to take my time as I go along. So much for a fast project;)

Help?

I have been working as much as I can on my daughter's quilt and not coming out like I planned. I have learned a few things, one is never use a cutting die for a rag quilt on large quilts. The size ends up less than 7" so a lot more blocks to make one. Also, I have to cut the fabric down in blocks to cut the blocks on the cutter and do that for the front and back of the quilt, so way too much cutting and steps for something that should be quick.

I was going to use light and dark denim and a mix of the reds with blue and greens, but they didn't look right to me and I like the contrast of the dark denim with the reds. I laid them out today and have enough reds and need to make 10 more denim blocks to finish the top, but I still need more on the edge for the over hang. I am thinking of doing just the dark denim but that is a lot of blocks to cut out again. What I would really like to do is strips of denim, but not sure if I can add that to the already cut rag pieces? Has anyone ever used a go die for rag quilts and added a strip border?

This is what I was doing today, laying out the pieces to see how it looked. I won the fabric and got some yards and some half yards so I can't seem to get the red blocks to look right without getting some of the same ones, too close.

So, what do you think? Any ideas of how I can make it look better? After I do the last denims, I will sew them together, and I laid them out so they over lapped, so hopefully it will be the right size, after sewing.

I laid them on my bed, which is a queen size, as hers is, but her mattresses are taller than mine.

It was hard to get a photo since I had to stand on a chair to get this, but here is a close up so you can see a better idea of the actual colors. The denim is darker, so it really looks nice with the red bandana fabric. Her birthday is next thursday so I think I might actually get it done in time.

For the stitching, I am using a variegated denim blue thread.

Friday Finish and Start!

I have been promising my daughter a new quilt for her room, for a few years now, so I thought it was time and her birthday is in a few weeks. She will be 30 this year, and it seems only yesterday that I was 30, lol.

I won fabric from a giveaway by Sheri of A Quilting Life. The fabric is Soho Bandana by Amy Barickman and hosted by Indygo Junction. I wanted to make her a rag quilt and also added denim cottons to the fabrics I won. I am using the main fabrics and saving the whites for the back, as well as yardage with larger prints for matching pillows. I did get a lot of fabric!

I was given a gift certificate by a friend and bought myself a cutting die for the rag blocks and I love how it cuts easily and smoothly, and I don't have to hand cut all those little snips.

This is what I have gotten so far. I think I will start cutting some back material and the batting and start sewing to see how it goes. This will be my first, so hopefully I will not mess it up. I did read that the precuts can get caught in the edge, when sewing, so I will watch for that. Any tips on sewing the rag blocks from the accuquilt die, would be appreciated.

I am going to alternate a dark denim, then a soho block, then a washed denim. This is when I wish I had a program to try the colors out and where to put them. I do have one, but it is a mac versions and it frustrates me too much to use it;)

I also finished the new ornament for the ornament of the month. You can find the new ornament at Attic Heirlooms. They are fun to make and it will be fun to have a set at the end of the year.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter weekend!

Old is New Punch Needle!

This week I decided to work on a pattern, I have made before. The original one was done with colors that washed each other out, so I wanted to try it in bolder colors with a dark background. The design is based on an antique red ware plate.

I was going to do it in 3 strands, then decided it was large enough to do in 6 strands and a faster way to finish it. I am debating on wether I want to do more rows around the piece, or I may do a braided cording. Not sure if I want to keep it as is, or maybe mount it on a box or basket. My niece got a giant dollhouse and I was thinking this might make a nice rug for it.

I haven't worked it into a pattern yet, hopefully I can get that done this weekend. I still have to clean some areas up and a few fills where I missed, then I can finish it off. My hands have been bothering me and my brain is off a bit, so my punching does not match the actual design, it is supposed to be oval.

I also found a fun free tutorial for a Valentines quilt. I wanted to make one with some pastels that I have and try out my new rag die to see how it cuts. I had an idea of doing a rag quilt and adding a heart, here and there and today I stumbled on a quilt, exactly like that, so now I can follow her guidelines. You can find the pattern and tutorial at, Sew4home.