I'm still here...

Just so no one gives up on me, that black quilt is keeping me busy. It is quilted, the binding is nearly finished, and I keep getting ideas for more quilts. It will be ready for a new owner before the weekend. I don't have a new photo to show but will soon. 

Here is a repeat from a favorite that is only a queen, but it goes edge to edge on our king bed and is the first big quilt that I made many moons ago. The blocks are 6" and it represents a Scottish hillside. It is soft after lots of curling up in and a few trips through the wash, but as bright as it was back in the day even though I used inexpensive fabric before realizing there was such things as quilt stores and far better options.

More Purple and a Panel

The previous post showed 6 improv blocks. Here they are with plain scraps the same size and more improv with the leftovers sewn into a 50" top, good for another charity give-away. The photo shows more contrast than the actual quilt top. Some colors do that. I've yet to cut batting and backing. There is enough leftover purple (no kidding) to do a major part of the backing. Don't know if the scraps will be all used, but it is the goal! 

This next one is a start. I was asked to make a black quilt. Couldn't do all black, and since she also wanted a nature theme, this panel seems perfect. It has a real dark green in it so cut off the sides and made dark green triangle windows for them to peek through. More green now all the way around it, but narrow. And the black pieces are sewn on, but no photo. Next time.

Need to keep going. Sometimes it is too easy to procrastinate on the important stuff and do fiddly projects.

Lots happening in our lives too. Some days I just want to sleep all afternoon!

Purple Purge continues. . .

The purple top is done. I had a couple yards of purple for the backing, not quite enough. So I hit the scraps again and made a piece about 20" wide and 76" long, totally improv and so relaxing to put together!  Then I cut the yardage in half lengthwise and stuck those scraps in the middle. Pictures below of the top on the right and the backing on the left, draped over my longarm machine. The long bits of backing on the lower left will be trimmed off to use in the binding, along with a few other scraps.

Of course, there were still scraps left over, so I made six blocks, 10.5" square and used up most of the odds and ends. This shows only two of them. But there are still more hunks of bigger purple pieces. (They multiply in the dark like rabbits...purple is not my favorite color) so the next step: I will cut them 10.5" square if the piece is big enough, or cut in sizes that will sew together to make blocks or rectangles so I can use the six squares with other shapes to make a lap quilt. If there are any purple bits leftover, they will be so little that they will get tossed in the bag of scraps I'm saving for people who who use them to stuff dog beds. This war on scraps has been fun!

ALSO, I have an item for sale. I would like to sell it locally because shipping would be too expensive for a buyer. It is a nearly new, sewing machine rolling cart with an inner case that nicely holds lots of fabric, batting, etc. for taking to classes or on a holiday. That extra case fits inside for storage. It is a deluxe model, barely used. Tons of zippers and compartments and huge! Only issue is I used felt marker to put my name on it. I'm open to offers. These are not on e-bay that I could find, but lesser models are $75 USD. Contact me or comment if you want this and live within a reasonable distance from the home of the new CFL team, the Elks. We can work something out regarding delivery. I will also be advertising this to our guild and maybe elsewhere, but not in a hurry. It has been stored for a long time, used only a few times.

 

 

Playing around...

Heard about this from somewhere, ordered one and fun... It is called a Boogie Board, something like the old Etch a Sketch but bigger. Great for doodling ideas for quilting, and other fun things. Push the button and it's gone. Or take a photo to save it for future reference. About $20 on Amazon and there are many brands. Just don't pay any attention to the "get a second one free" coupon that may come with it. It is a scheme to collect/sell email addresses...

 Also, my apologies for laying trees on their side. Here is the upright view. For some reason, this quilt is much nicer in real time than the photo. Maybe it's because the quilting does not show up well in the photo but it really unifies the quilt.

 

Below is what I am working on right now. It is a purple purge project, starting with the inset squares on an angle with both inside and the outside done with scraps. I'm not really into purple so am surprised how many scraps I have that are big enough to do these. The center is 4.75" cut and the outer pieces are from 6.5" squares cut in half diagonally with one corner trimmed. I printed a paper template and wound up using it to cut Then without making a bunch more scraps! 😀 Then I decided it is not big enough, so delved into my stash and found more purple to make alternating light/dark squares around the whole thing. It will be about 56" x 64" and good for a Quilt of Valour. If I want it bigger, there will likely be enough leftovers to do a piano key border after that.

 

Photos of the two finishes...

Red Blocks and Trees. This one is a deeper red than the photo, but close. The pantograph is called Ebb and Flow and feels super nice, soft. For some reason, this one is not very photogenic. I think it looks much better in person! 😀

Something Old, New, and Blue. This is kind of a modern mix with the old fashioned look of Crazy Quilts in the blocks. The panto is called Saffron Blossoms, perfect for a lady from Asia.

Legend of Zelda and two more finished!

 The blue and red quilts are finished, waiting for labels and photos. The Legend of Zelda quilt is also waiting for its label to be sewn on, but I do have some photos. Remember, I wanted to quilt this one first, then sew on the iconic design so I didn't have to quilt around it, and so the recipients could take it off if they ever decided this game wasn't what they wanted on a quilt. (That might never happen... the news this week tells of an unopened, first version of it for Nintendo, sold for about $800,000 to a collector. Yikes!) I've never played the game but it seems to be incredibly popular!

Anyway, this was a good decision but difficult. The icon pieces were made by sewing right sides together of gold and green fabric, cutting a slit in the green, and turning it right sides out. I pinned the pieces in place and sewed them on by hand. I'll never do that again. It was hard work, physically hard. The quilt is a king-size and I had to lay most of it on a coffee table so I could manage to get my hands where they needed to be. I used Glide thread, a big help as it is strong and does not twist or shred. About every seven stitches, I did a double or triple to make sure that it was secure. It took a loooooooooong time. The label is an extra triangle and I put the words on it using a transfer for t-shirts etc. that looks cool. Just have to sew it in place and we will deliver this to our grandson and family this weekend.

Now I have a black quilt to make and several charity quilts for our local guild. Need to get at it!

Blue being bound, Red getting quilted...

The blue quilt from my last post is in a pile on our living room coffee table. I'm doing the binding by hand on the back, during hockey games and watching mystery shows. It is fast, again using Glide, the most wonderful thread for this task. It does not twist, break, or annoy in any way!

The red queen-size is on my machine and I'm using a very simple panto called Ebb and Flow. It looks like ocean waves but I'm doing it vertically, so on this quilt, it goes with the brilliant tree panel in the center. She wanted red and a nature theme. I had a few red slab blocks so incorporated them. Many of the fabrics have floral designs or leaves or trees. It was fun to make. Since red is notorious for running, the whole quilt is mostly red with a red backing. Hopefully more pictures soon.

I have one more to make for this family of four. She asked for black, also a nature theme. I have a perfect panel and will put black (but not a solid) around it. So far, it is still in my head, but must come out soon! Making quilts with just a bit of 'guidelines' is fun for me.