Ta and Da

Next weekend Jan and I are having a sew-in at my house.  We've got plenty of firewood and good movies, but we were missing a design wall.  So, after a trip to Jo-Ann's for batting (50% off coupon - Woo Hoo) and the big-box store for insulation board, we now have two 4x8 walls hanging down my hall!  As my hubby says, 'Ta and Da!'  What a treat - hoping I'm motivated to finish some projects that have been languishing in boxes (like the two in the pic at right).

Jan and I took a trip to the quilter's yesterday for drop-off/pick-up.  We stopped at two great IL quilt shops - Quilt Merchant in Winfield and Prairie Stitches in Oswego.  Prairie Stitches is a featured shop in the current Quilt Sampler.  Their quilt is on the cover - what a beauty in person! 

Docia from Quilt Merchant graciously allowed the following pics to share on the blog:  

Halloween fun

New BOM

Geoff's Mom Pattern Co - The Storyteller

Jan and I both loved this doll quilt - looks old, but is new

Never say never!  Over lunch I mentioned to Jan that I don't buy fabric for a particular project - always adding to stash.  Within an hour, I added a new project and purchased 4 yds of the following Jo Morton fabric for background.  Stay tuned!

Progress Report/Birthday Blocks for Bev

Well, as expected, I just couldn't strip piece these light blues for the irish chain. It may not take much longer to piece as individual squares, and will probably follow the piecing plan from the Atkinson pattern. This is just a preview to see if I liked how it was looking, and you can see the odd choice for the chain. The colors here are quite accurate, so don't blame your computer! It is a browney-green, and I quite like the unexpected look of it, and am ready to start sewing!

These are birthday blocks for our quilting buddy Bev. You may remember that we piece blocks for each other when a birthday ends in zero. This will be the last time that we make blocks since we all have received them - with ages ranging from 40 to 60! This time Pat chose this block for Bev, and asked that we use three fabrics per block, including a lightish background. We all like reproduction fabrics, and Bev is partial to florals so they were added into the mix.

Progress

My mom loved this machine.  She said it would sew lace or leather - same beautiful stitch.  I learned to sew on this machine.  It's sewed dining room curtains; school clothes; my prom dress; my sister's wedding dress; and now, my Lexie's snuggle quilt.  The top is together!

It turned out just as I'd pictured.  I'm very pleased.  Here's a peak at the backing.  I have a square piece of French General Toile from the Lumiere de Noel line (picked up at Hancock's during quilt show frenzy).  I'm framing the square with an oldie from stash.  I've ironed the toile, but the creases keep coming back.

I'm planning on adding the back label prior to long-arm quilting.  Any comments on pro's/con's to this approach?

Halloween Pennsylvania Style

Vicki is having a fun in the sun weekend, so I am sharing my finished doll quilt top. The colors seem Pennsylvania inspired, but Halloweenish, too. The four patch is just such a versatile block. I often wonder of a quilter could spend her entire "career" with just one pattern. Maybe for a while, but she would get antsy for something different, I am sure.

Here is the reverse side. I like to press my seams open when working in a small scale. It makes the piecing a little bit more time consuming, but when it comes time for hand quilting, I always thank myself for having done so.

The 13.5 in square top basted and ready for quilting. The batting was a sample piece that was available for $1 at the last big quilt show in Chicago. I bought both the bleached and unbleached as they were the perfect size for doll quilts.

New Projects

Since I have been wanting to focus on crib and doll reproduction quilts for some time, I thought I would look in my closet for a project. All of the fabric and pattern notes were set aside for this star crib quilt top. It was great fun to sew from a limited stack of backgrounds, and of reds/pinks. The alternate block is a Pat Nichols, and there is just enough of the outer triangle fabric to make binding, single-fold, if I choose. This little quilt top has been waiting to be made for over a decade.

This Atkinson Designs quilt called "Chain of Lakes" has been on the to-do list since it first caught my eye.

While I adore the quilt just as it is, I don't work much with 30s repros, so I bought some light blues at the Madison Quilt Show a few weeks ago. My local shop had a few more, and the rest were from stash. There really was a need to purchase fabric because I didn't have many lighter blues. Scads of dark blues though! I'm not sure what the chain fabric will be yet. There is one that I have in mind, but it is an odd color, and I''ll have to cut some up to see if it will work. The pattern is for strip piecing, and I may cut squares instead. I'm afraid that the repeats will be too obvious otherwise. Is that crazy? It will certainly add to the time it takes to make this.

And, an entirely new project, but this is a doll quilt, so hopefully it will be done soon. Maybe I will get some progress made on it today, but I'd better get back to the laundry and house cleaning first!