You Are My Sunshine

 It's been a minute or two since I have been here.

For two months or so, not much was going on in my

Hidey Hole for various reasons.

My days were busy with many other things

and I kind of lost my sewing mojo.

Also, I was helping a friend recover some outdoor cushions

and that took WAAAYYY longer than I anticipated.

I learned a valuable lesson, though...

I will NEVER reupholster things as a career.

 

A little over a week ago I did start playing with some

quilting fabric again.

A friend at church is becoming a grandmother for the first time

and she needs a baby quilt.

The gender is unknown, so I pulled out my yellows and oranges.

 

This quilt will be called
"You Are My Sunshine".

 

 

 

 

A couple of days were spent making HST's.  

 

 

 

Then the block construction began.

 

This block is called "Twirl"

by Fran Gulick

and can be found here. 

 

 

 

 

 

This first layout is with the oranges and yellows forming 

diamonds in each color. 

 

 

 

This layout alternates the direction of the orange and yellow fabrics.

 

 

This one has them set on point... obviously.

I am really leaning toward this layout, but I need

to find a fabric for the setting triangles.

I can make more blocks for the triangles,

but I'm not sure I want that.

It may be too busy.

I'm also debating on whether or not I need sashing.

If so, what color? 

 

It feels good to be back at it,

but things will be put on pause again.

There are dresses to be made for the littles!

 

Happy Quilting!

 

Brick Wall #2 Finish

 It's so nice when a pile of forgotten parts is found

and quickly become a new quilt.

Several years ago I made this Brick Wall quilt

and had bricks left over.

When I found the pile recently, I had to add a few

low volume bricks to complete this quilt top.

Now it is quilted and ready for donation.

 

 

 

 

 

This was quilted using a very quick and easy design.

I don't know what it's called,

but I'll call it Swirls on a String.

 

 

 

The sashing strips were cut at 1".

 

 

 

 

January started out slow for me since I had

Carpal Tunnel release surgery done,

but ended up being a good month with three finishes!

 

 

Happy Quilting!

 

Broad Strokes Veterans Quilt

I just finished my first Veterans quilt for 2025.

 

 

This quilt is not my normal color palette or my normal style of quilt,

but it went together very quickly and really shows off this

gorgeous Kaffe leaf fabric.

The pattern is called "Broad Strokes" from the book 

3-yard Quilts on the Double.

I bought the book a couple of years ago,

thinking it would be good for fast and easy donation quilts.

 

 

 

This leaf print had been in my stash for quite some time and I

really wanted to use it. 

The yellow polka dot and the green floral were also in my stash

and paired nicely with the leaf print.

 

 

 

This took no time to cut and was super easy to piece.

I think it makes a striking quilt!

 

The coloring is off in this photo. The yellow background is

the same yellow as the polka dot on the front.

I was happy to find this perfect background fabric

 in the clearance section at my local quilt shop.

 

This will be delivered to the group who makes and collects

quilts to donate to our local Veterans hospital.

It's a small token of thanks to those who have given so much.

 

 

Happy Quilting!

Another Canyon Dance

 There are certain patterns and quilt designs that I am really drawn to.

One of them is "Canyon Dance".

It's an old pattern and it looks like the designer is going out of business.

I bought a set of templates when I first made the pattern and

it made cutting the pieces so much easier.

 

One day I was looking at my stash and decided to pull some batiks

to make another one of these quilts.

 

 

Here is the result:

 

 

 

 

 

It is a wild and crazy quilt and I love it.

Sewing these curves is not difficult at all

and the blocks are trimmed at the end.

 

 

 

Hopefully, this one will be quilted soon and will be donated.

Mindless sewing at it's best!

Happy Quilting!

Sampler Quilt Finish

 I have to say,

I'm not a fan of making sampler quilts,

but for some reason I decided to use

a jelly roll and a fat quarter bundle

and make a bunch of sampler blocks 

at quilt camp in the fall of 2023.

Then the blocks sat... forgotten in my cabinet.

I pulled them out last fall and sewed them into a top.

Then this past week I quilted it and now have a finished quilt!

 

 

 

 

I don't remember what the fabric line of the jelly roll was,

but the fat quarter bundle was Tula Pinks dots and stripes. 

They played so nicely together!

 

 

 

After my carpal tunnel release a couple of weeks ago,

I had trouble cutting, but could sew.

I have been watching videos on quilting swirls

and practiced along the outside borders of the quilt.

I need more practice, but it's coming along!

 

 

I love the backing fabric I found on clearance

and there was just enough for this quilt!

It's ready to be donated.

Happy Quilting!

First UFO Challenge Top Finished

 In my last blog post,

I mentioned that I have joined the

UFO 2025 Challenge.

 

The first UFO I tackled is one that I started

years ago and put into time out when I realized

I had made a big cutting error.

I received a number of comments 

encouraging me to go ahead and finish the quilt.

As my husband and a few others said...

if one hasn't seen the pattern,

how will they know how it was supposed to look?

It will be my take on the pattern.

 

Well,

the top is finished and I love it!!

 

 

 

It still needs a good pressing,

but it's finished.

This is "Diamond Delight" from

Kaffe Fasset's book

"Quilts from Morocco"

with my own design twist.

:)

 

I am preparing the backing and will send it off to my

longarm quilter soon.

It's so exciting to have this quilt done and out of time out!

 

 

As I was going through some piles of parts,

I found this pile of Kaffe bricks I had used to make

this quilt a few years ago.

I had seen this quilt on Pinterest and loved it. 

  

 

There were enough of the colorful bricks in the pile

and I had to add a few of the low volume bricks to the mix.

After cutting the 1" sashing strips, it went together very easily and quickly.

It is now in the "to be quilted" pile.

 

Last week I had carpal tunnel release surgery on my left hand

and am very thankful to have cut several quilts before it was done.

I can sew, but cutting is a challenge.

Since the first UFO challenge is done,

I can decide which fun project will come out of the box next.

 

Happy Quilting!

New Year... Old Project

If you are on Instagram,

you may have seen that Jandi Dean is

hosting a UFO challenge for 2025.

 

While I am not one to usually start something and not

finish it, I do have projects and kits that I've purchased

and then let them sit.

And sit they can do!

 I jumped on board with Jandi for this challenge.

 

 

For my first UFO,

it is a true UFO.

I don't remember when I cut the parts and pieces

for this quilt, but it was years ago.

I moved it to this house almost 4 years ago

and think it was cut out several years before that.

 

This is a Kaffe Fasset quilt from his

"Quilts in Morocco" book and I loved the fabrics he used.

His shot cottons and stripes are so soft and comfy feeling. 

As soon as I cut the pieces out,

I realized I had made a huge mistake.

My striped fabrics were cut so the stripes were on an angle

instead of straight across.

GRRRRR!!!

 

 

 

This is a photo of the quilt from the book. 

I was so mad at myself and put the pieces and

fabrics away.... for years.

With this challenge,

I decided that done is better than nothing.

The quilt will still be soft and cuddly,

even though the stripes are all on angles.

So, the sewing has begun.

 

 

 

All of the big blocks have been made and one has been framed,

just so I could see how it will look.

It is a jumble of fabrics and designs,

but once it's done, it will keep someone warm.

Once all of the blocks are framed,

I will arrange them so the colors are

more evenly distributed.

 

 

 

 

 

Hopefully, this will be done by the end of the month

and I can move onto the next UFO on my list.

 

 

Happy Quilting!

Out with the Old, In with the New

As I look back on 2024 and what I was able to accomplish,

it was a very good year. 

 

A lot of time was spent in my Hidey Hole,

making baby quilts, big quilts, donation quilts,

Christmas decorations and other fun things.

 

 

 

As I look over all of these finishes,

I am very thankful for the desire and ability to create.

It feeds my soul.

While spending time in my Hidey Hole, in the car, sitting with my husband in the

evening while he watches sports, etc., I listen to books.

!

It was a record year for me!

My favorite book of the year was

"The Women" by Kristen Hannah.

Welcome 2025!

May you all have a blessed and joy-filled year

and may your bobbins never run out of thread!

Happy Quilting!

The Irene Baby Quilt

 My sewing machine is back home and working!

For those who have Bernina sewing machines,

it's best to plug them into a surge protector strip

versus the wall outlet.

It turns out, this is why my machine was malfunctioning!

Once I had my machine back,

I was able to finish quilting this baby quilt for donation.

 

 

 

This is "The Irene Quilt" by Kitchen Table Quilting

and is a super fast pattern to make.

 

 

 

 

A while ago I had picked up a jelly roll of "Willow" (I think)

and was able to make two baby quilts from this jelly roll.

 

 

 

 

 

The quilt is finished and has been passed on for donation.
I hope to make many more quilts for donation

in the coming year.

My Cricut machine has been busy, too!

 

 

 

These shirts are ready for my littles to wear for our

annual cookie baking day this weekend.

 

 

My littlest little won't be baking with us,

but she can still get a new shirt.

This child has some of the chunkiest thighs I've seen.

As my son-in-law says.... her thighs have thighs!

Happy Quilting!

No Sewing Machine Again

 I had my sewing machine in the shop in September

for its annual clean and service.

They had it for almost 3 weeks then,

which was fine because I was gone for part of the time.

Two weeks ago I was quilting a baby quilt

and it began acting up on me.

I was using the serpentine stitch to quilt 

and as I was sewing, it would switch to straight stitching mid row.

The only way I could get it back to serpentine was to turn the

machine off and back on again.

After the first time, it would switch back to straight stitch frequently.

So, back into the shop it went and the time frame is

four weeks this time.

:(

Thankfully, I wasn't planning on doing a lot of sewing

for Christmas.

Before I took it in,

I managed to piece this quilt for my great-nephew.

My sister-in-law (his grandmother) saw this kit while we were on

vacation in September.

I told her if she bought it, I'd make it.

It's been sent off to my quilter and should be back in a couple of weeks.

I really need to get a back up sewing machine!

Happy Quilting!

Three Completed Baby Quilts

 These three quilts have been hanging in my

Hidey Hole for quite some time.

It feels so good to have them finished

AND delivered!!

 

 

 

I didn't follow a pattern for this one and can't remember

how large I made the triangles.

 

 

 

 

 

This quilt is made from "The Charlotte Quilt" pattern by

Kitchen Table Quilting.

 

 

This quilt was made from an old pattern from

Moda Bake shop.

Is that even still a thing?

Now, I can begin a new pile of baby quilts.

Happy Quilting!

The Charlotte Quilt

 The other day I posted a baby quilt made using

a Kitchen Table Quilting pattern,

"The Irene Quilt".

Today I have another quilt finish using a

Kitchen Table Quilting pattern,

"The Charlotte Quilt".

Both quilts were made using the same jelly roll.

I think the jelly roll is called "Willow",

but I'm not 100% sure.

 

 

 

These colors are so soft and soothing...

Not my usual color palette. 

 

My pile of "to be quilted" quilts is growing,

so I really need to get going on this.

 

Happy Quilting!

Chasing Dreams Finish

 I am excited to say that my

"Chasing Dreams" quilt top is finished!

The final stitches were sewn

and I can finally cross this off of my list.

 

 

 

This was made exactly like the pattern and kit.

It was too intimidating to think about changing anything.

Plus, I love it like it is!

 

The batiks in this kit are so rich and luscious.

I'm thinking of having this custom quilted,

so will be chatting with my long arm quilter.

Woohoo!!

Happy Quilting!

Chasing Dreams

 Several years ago, while on vacation,

I found this kit for the Chasing Dreams quilt

by Jacqueline de Jonge.

I have pulled it out and put it away more times than I can count.

It intimidated me so much that I just couldn't make it.

 

Finally, it was time.

Before quilt camp I cut all of the pieces

and prepared to make this one.

 

I did take other projects in case I just couldn't make it again,

but pushed myself to start it.

 

 

 

 

 

The first step was making the big star in the middle.

It's all paper pieced, which helps with the precision. 

I finished that and was pretty happy with the results.

Next up was the small star and then the flying geese outer band.

The most difficult part was dealing with all of the paper!

I finally thought to use some clips and folded the unused paper

until I got to those sections.

 

 

 

This was my sewing set up.

I remembered to bring my light box,

which made all of the difference.

 

 

 

 

 

Isn't my trash pretty? 

 

 

 

These beautiful borders took HOURS to make!

 I could not be any happier with them

and was very glad to have them finished.

 

 

 

The pieced border pieces will go on after two narrow borders of

the black and white striped fabric and a black and

white star fabric.

 

Onward and upward!

 

Happy Quilting!