Whoop Whoop! 4/29

Material Girls, Stash Management, Swanky!  Quilted!  Whoop, Whoop!!  They were patiently waiting (what choice did they have, I mean, really?) in my little stack giant pile of flimsies to be quilted.  

I might put these for sale in our "Quilters Corner Market" at our quilt show in June.  It would be nice to get some money coming in so I can buy more fabric to make more quilts that I'd have to sell to make some money to buy more fabric.

It really feels good to get these quilted.  On one, I remembered to stitch the binding to the back so that I could just bring it to the front and machine stitch it down.  On another, I forgot and sewed it to the front, so I'm in the middle of hand-stitching it to the back.  I hate that!!!!  It takes me longer to hand-sew binding than to quilt -- grrr.  The pink and green quilt is pretty large, so I hope I remember to put the binding on the back.

I hope your ideas remain in memory longer than mine!

Go see Sarah here: http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2011/04/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-best-laid-plans.html to add your Friday Whoop, Whoop! and to see what others have done this week!

To Sew Or Not To Sew/Design Wall Monday 4/25/11

What have I done?  Holey Moley!  I enjoyed the technique of the Lil Twister (Design Wall Monday on 2/28) so much, I decided I'd put a few charm packs up on the design wall and make a big Lil Twister.  There are 168 of those little beauties lined up.  And how many seams??!!

I have enough charms left for another row, but I ran out of design wall space!  So there it is.  Staring at me.  Waiting for me to pick up the first pair and carry it to the sewing machine.  Which reminds me!  Do you have gremlins in your sewing room that swap those pieces you are so carefully carrying to the sewing machine, so that by the time the rows are done, everything is bass-ackwards?!?!?  I sure do! Tell me what they feed on, so I can try to starve them outta here!!

So there it is.  What to do, what to do?  

Whoop Whoop! 4/22

Here's my neighbor, with her quilt top put together!  Now she's working on the borders, and then it will be time to quilt that beauty!!!  Isn't it gorgeous?  Give the girl a hand!!!   clapclapclapclapclap - yayyyy!!!

Me and my re-arranging and organizing ideas.  Whop me on my head the next time I act like I want to do that.  While Kat was sewing, I dragged out the stash and UFOs in my closet to see what was hiding in there.  Booooooooo!!  Scary!!  I bought a small cubie to hide some PIGS (projects in grocery sacks).  Of course, it was that much too big to fit in there.  So, I had to move a bookshelf over a little.  Which required taking everything out of the bookshelf because it was so heavy.  

And who the heck designed those blankety-blank closets that stretch a couple of feet wider than the doors!?!?!?  You can't reach anything on either side, and it's so narrow, you can't walk in, or even lean in.  Clothes hanging on the sides are left to moulder and disintegrate before you ever see them again.  But I digress...

So, since I had taken everything out of the shelves, I decided to re-fold the stuff before putting it back.  I used the really handy method of folding all the fabric 12" wide so that you can tell at a glance how much fabric you have folded up (three folds = yard) without taking it off the shelf.  I can.not.believe how much yardage I've accumulated.  But I don't want to go there, either!!!  But it looks lovely, and took me only FOUR STINKIN' DAYS OF MY LIFE!  I put batiks together, separated florals, funky and brights, geometrics (does that say something about my stash when I have funky and brights and geometrics in three different piles?), black and whites, 30s, and Kaffe Fassett-related.  It's good I took a photo, because that will never happen again!!!

I occasionally buy flowers when it's marked down, but never had tulips.  Well, these are so delightful, they're now my favorite flower!  Happy Easter, y'all!

Now go to http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2011/04/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-where-would-we-be.html to see more applause-worthy projects!

  

Design Wall Monday 4/18

Cool, huh?  But I can't take the bow, it belongs to my neighbor, Kathy.  Am I cheating by using her project?  It's on my wall, so that should count, right?  She's my newest protege, and she's doing a great job!  She bought this fabric and the pattern ("Gypsy Crosses" by Two Old Batts) several years ago to make a quilt for her brother, who was entering seminary.   He has been at his church for a couple of years now, and she decided it might be time :-)

Judy at http://www.patchworktimes.com/2011/04/18/design-wall-monday-april-18-2011/ has lots of links to works in progress.

Whoop! and a Color Challenge!

Jungle Critters, Strippy Thing, and Color Challenge -- these are a few of my favorite things (sing along, if you wish)!  One of my bestest buds in Texas is a first-time grandma, so Jungle Critters was completed, and went out to her grandson.  I made another block for Strippy Thing after the Quilting Gremlins stole one from the design wall.  And the Color Challenge watermelon is teeeny, tiny.  Go to Sarah's site for more Whoop, Whoop! Friday show-and-tell here:  http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/p/whoop-whoop-fridays.html.  She's very forgiving to those who don't know their Fridays from their Saturdays.

If you love color and are interested in a color challenge, go here:  http://3creativestudios.com/blog.  On the 16th of every month, they announce a color palette, drawn from a photo.  You make something creative, using one or all of the colors.  No sign-up or requirements, but you can add your project to their Flickr page, or just see what others have made.  My challenge to myself was to use the monthly color palette for a  BOM that is itty bitty paper piecing that finishes out to about 3" x 4".   The pp blocks are monthly themes, and I've been able to use the colors from the first three months for a Christmas tree, an iris, and now the watermelon.  By process of elimination, I'm worried the snowman block will be the last one to be made, and the last color palette will be orange and green!  Here is this month's gorgeous palette, just to whet your appetite:  http://3creativestudios.com/blog/2011/04/15/color-palette-challenge-april/

The same blog has a monthly technique and journal quilts sections, see the links on the right side of their blog.  For you artsy people, you'll find lots of eye candy, and maybe something challenging, as well!

Jungle Critters

Jason came into this world a couple of weeks ago, adorable little guy.  And needs a quilt, of course.  So, without further ado...

I've had this border fabric for a long time, percolating in the stash until it could come out and play :-)  Isn't it fun!?!  I didn't add batting, but I did use a funky and fun flannel backing, so it will be snuggly but not too hot for Texas!  The more it's washed, the softer and cuddlier it will get.

Tomorrow I plan to share some new quilter adventures :-)

Design Wall Monday 4/11

I can't count!  All those strings and strips became blocks:

But when I put them on the wall, guess what?  Argh!    This kind of sewing is called mindless, just sew strips and strings until they'e big enough.  Mindless is right -- it causes you to think you can sew 29 blocks and they magically become 30!!  Go to www.patchworktimes.com to see more quilts in progress!

One of my biggest thrills is when someone shows the slightest interest in learning to quilt!  I can't wait to show you!

Whoop Whoop! 4/8

A pile o'strips, one of my favorite things!  And a pile o'strippies!   Since I cut the largest strips 1 1/4" and the smallest, 3/4", this is much slower going than if I cut them 2 1/2"!  But I'm loving the process!  I learned that while I have a decent indecent stash, all my pinks were more on the coral side, while I needed lavender-ish flavors.  So I *had* to go shopping -- oh, gee!

I've also finished a bag because of Judy at Patchwork Times' UFO Challenge, but I'm going to wait and post on the first of May (done early --  yippy, skippy!)  Meanwhile, go to http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/ and see all the great projects!  Whoop, Whoop!  y'all :-)

Design Wall Monday 4/18

Annabella is very excited this is Design Wall Monday.  Oh, wait.  No, she's excited to find a sun spot this morning!

What the heck do you do with five one-yard pieces? I bought this bundle of early Robyn Pandolph several years ago at the Nashville AQS Show.  Waaaaah, I miss having it in Nashville!  Oh, sorry.  So I had this fabric, but had no clue what I'd do with it.  I belonged to an online group and put out a call, and one of the ladies came through for me.  She sent me a copy of a pattern she'd made.  It was almost illegible, very dark photocopy, with lots of "notes to self."  But I had a blast making this top!  It was easy and fun to make.  Auditioning borders now, I have very little fabric left, so we'll see how that goes.  It may be scrappy.  

Threads, threads, threads!

As much as I am a fabric-holic, I am also a thread-holic!  Colors, shimmer, shine, glow, variegates in every color direction, yumm-o!

These are threads I've collected, mostly for quilting, but there are water solubles, fusibles, clear and smoke, bobbin, jeans threads.  In the bottom pockets are my cones for piecing.  Yikes!  I ran out of two cones this week while I was on my sewing marathon, so had to order more -- I got some 60wt Presencia cotton cones, I'm becoming a thread snob!  Handy hint:  You know those little bags of silica gel that come in the box when you buy shoes.  Put it into a plastic bag with your water soluble thread to keep it dry :-)

And in the closet I've hidden my little rack that has my old sewing threads that I use for odds and ends stitching.  That collection is getting sparse.  (I hide it up high so Annabella doesn't eat it.  'Nother story.)

 Is this a natural side effect of being a fabric collector?  Or is this another illness!?

Whoop Whoop Whoop!!!

Home run!  Three Whoops! for me!  Amazing how you get stuff done when you work on it, go figure :-)  First of all, my March UFO with Judy at www.patchworkstimes.com .

Ack, I should have ironed it before snapping the picture, huh?  This was a mystery at a Quilting on the Mountain retreat about six years ago.  I had maybe two blocks almost done, but the rest was in parts.  Trying to figure it out after all those years -- that was the challenge!! I know I've pulled it out of the UFO closet a number of times, but after wracking my brain awhile, put it back.  Now that it's a top, I'm loving it.  It's only 47 1/2" square, so I'll be adding borders, I think.

My brain was totally fried from messing with the Pepper Dish, so last time I posted, I'd pulled out a jelly roll and cut white strips, and decided to have some relaxing play time.  I had a blast!  I was on a roll!  And yesterday, I finished this top:

I'd written the instructions while watching Eleanor Burns on Simply Quilts, a looong time ago, years and years, when I first began quilting.  Between deciphering my notes, and having lost the last page on what to do with the blocks once they're made, it could have been a mess.  I figured it out -- at least I figured out *something* to do with it!  Edit: (I was asked what I figured out :-)  Well, you take the pinwheels that turn in one direction, sew them together 5 blocks by 6 blocks, and add a 2 1/2" border top and bottom.  Sew five blocks that turn in the other direction in a row and add to each end.  The outer border is six pinwheel blocks sewn in a row, add a 2 1/2" strip on each end, then finally a block on the ends of the border strips.  Clear as mud?  email me if you need clarification!)

And -- drum roll, please -- number three!  I'm not in love with this quilt, but it was fun and easy to do.  You chop up 8 FQs, add borders, and that's it.  Talk about easy-peasy.  This will go to Habitat via one of the guilds I belong to.  The actual colors are brighter than the photo shows.  (Gotta find my camera book, y'know?)

Yup, sometimes things get done when you focus.  Maybe not the ones you intended to focus on.  But now I have three tops finished.  Hmmm, I should designate a "get it quilted!" month!

For lots more Whoops! and pictures and links to blogs, go to Sarah's blog here: http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2011/04/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-no-april-fools-im.html