Yellow DONE!

This yellow improv is finished. I still have a few yellow scraps left even though the entire quilt, border and binding (but not the backing) was made from a tiny scrap bin. Amazing. 

This is the quilting on it (see previous two posts for more pictures). I used a panto with butterflies and it went perfectly with the gal who will be receiving this. The binding was hand-done, mostly because I sit with hubby to watch hockey games and hand-sewing keeps me from wanting to be doing something more productive. 

The photo was taken in low daylight and is not very yellow. Here is an earlier one of the bits and pieces that were slapped on my design wall weeks ago. It shows the color better -- except the blue. The one above gets it almost perfectly. I should take a photography course and find out what makes cameras and colors so unpredictable!!

I've also nearly finished a top in all reds. It worried me, but I am excited at the way it turned out so far. The borders go on next and I will post a photo.

Also, not happy with the second nativity quilt so am making another sample. It will go on my Etsy page. Theory: If I don't like it, my customers probably won't either. Photos coming soon. In the meantime, happy quilting...

And a joyous EASTER! 

Found wide backing...

 After searching dozens on online stores and finding nothing or "Sold Out" on the wide backings that appealed to me for my yellow scrap quilt (previous post) I went to a local fabric discount store and found wide backing, well, 108" for one and 60" for another, and also a piece of batik that I would have used but enough piecing already!

Here are the three. The top one is already on my longarm hence the funny shadow. I had to turn my camera upsidedown and hold it underneath to get the photo. The yellow works with the top and the oranges work with accents in the top. The gal who is getting this wanted "nature" in it, so flowers and butterflies seem a good choice. Yeah!

The second one was too funky to pass up. It is 108" wide and there was 4 meters left on the bolt so I bought it all. It will work on several things in my think tank. The background is white, don't know why it looks pink in this photo.

The last one is only normal width.  I just love it and wanted to show it to you. I've no plans, but my yellow and orange yellow stash is still here (the yellow quilt used scraps only) so it may wind up in another project... cheerful after a long winter! Please excuse the shadow of my arm across the middle! Never noticed it until it was uploaded here.

There is one store in our province that specializes in wide backings (no yellows/florals though) and one store in North Carolina that sells backings only called Backside Fabrics, but they didn't have one that worked for this quilt either. I did buy one for another quilt but with postage and customs (fabric was over $30 so Canadian customs hit me this time), it was very expensive.  The quilt is for our much-loved grandson and his wife, so don't mind spending the money.

My first totally improv quilt

This top is finished. It will go on the longarm in a day or two. I just love this one. The entire quilt is made from scraps that were in my scrap bins, finding a few other colors to spice it up. I love the shots of blue (not as dark as the photo, more of a teal) and the bits of orange and green. I pulled out a few yellow fat quarters but didn't use any of them. Even the binding is already cut from scraps and will be mostly the darker pieces in the quilt. The backing will likely be one that I bought on sale, but I may go find something more 'golden' to have the same warmth as the front. I'll use a panto with swirls and hearts to finish it off. This will go to a young woman who asked for a yellow quilt.

It is starting to feel like spring. Our parking area for visitors is ice with water on top and the birds are flitting around the yard. The air smells fresh, like it just rained. And I am finally rid of that 'covid' haircut (or lack thereof) and feel like a new person!

Projects on the go . . .

At this point, there is "Brown Scrappy" on the longarm (finally), a top finished and waiting while I find backing that works with it, a new nativity quilt that will be offered as a pattern on Etsy as soon as I finish the quilting, binding, and writing the instructions, a scavenger hunt that is crazy but fun and for a competition so I cannot show you yet, two bags of blocks from our guild that other quilters didn't want to put together, and a whole mess of yellow and accent prints/colored scraps on the design wall just begging for more. Here is a picture of 'so far' -- just tossed up there, about half of what is waiting to be sewn into chunks and in no particular order. Fun! It will make a twin and does anyone realize where all their scraps come from!!😮

I've also offered to make quilts for refugee families sponsored by four local churches. They will arrive about six months apart, and are usually a couple with 1-3 children in ages varying from little to adults. Their sponsors are finding out for me their color preferences and a bit of theme ideas (like one little boy does not like creepy crawlers, just the alphabet please). This is got my imagination in a whirl. So far, two queen-size -- one in solids, one red, and four smaller, a blue, a black, a yellow and an alphabet (I ordered a panel).

We are well. Semi-retired hubby is working some hours nearly every day. If I make cinnamon buns now and then, he is happy with "cook once, eat three times" or crock pot or take-out. I'm spoiled rotten. He even does the vacuuming now and then. 

Our family is okay. But we lost a friend and a second cousin to Covid. Two of our adult children had it, mild, recovered. It is cold here, like -20C in the morning. Kills the bugs but apparently not the virus. Hawaii sounds good but our government shut down flights to warm places. 😒

Hope to be back with more sooner, but life and that to-do list being what they are, no promises.