Progress on Two Fronts

This week I find myself kind of in limbo land.

I've finished several things and have checked them off of my list,

but I'm not sure of what I want to start next.

Right now there is nothing that I have to make.

Trust me...there are PLENTY of things for which I have the fabric.  

It's just that nothing is speaking to me.

So, in the mean time, I will continue on with two

things I've started recently.

The Gingerbread Cottage is coming along!

There are sooo many white sequins sewn to the snow

on this cottage! That took a fair amount of time to finish

and there is more snow to come.

Once the cottage is finished,

I'll be making the candy pieces that

will act as the Advent Calendar pieces.

 

These Bucilla kits really are fun and easy to make,

as long as one goes in the right order.

The directions are very well written and easy to follow.

 

Progress on my daughter and son-in-law's

Canyon Dance quilt is moving along.

Here are 80 of the 110 blocks I need for a queen size quilt.

 

 

Ten more blocks are laid out on my cutting table.

And there are ten here by my sewing machine ready to piece.

That means only ten more are needed to organize and sew!

It may be a completed top soon!

Woohoo!!

That's about it from my Hidey Hole today.

I'm linking to Design Wall Monday today.

Happy Quilting!

Escher Quilt is Finished!

I have been a fan of M.C. Eshcer for years,

finding his drawings and paintings fascinating. 

When I saw this pattern for a quilt that is

"Escher-esque"

I had to make it.

Here is the finished quilt!

The top had been finished for a while,

but I could not decide how to quilt it

or if I should send it to my LAQ to be finished.

 

Finally, I decided to just quilt in the ditch for this one.

The design speaks for itself.

 

This quilt was not as challenging to make as I initially thought

it would be, but it was not mindless sewing,

by any means.

 

The fabrics had to be kept in a very specific order

so the design would come through.

 

Using the Kaffe fabrics gives it so much movement.

 

I'm not sure where this one will end up,

but it's staying with me, at least for a while.

 

I used this fun Kaffe stripe for the backing

and a blue and green dot for the binding. 

There will be another one of these in my future,

I believe!

Happy Quilting!

Mindless Little Projects

Over the past few weeks I've finished up

a few things that had been languishing in my

Hidey Hole.

Before starting another big project,

I decided to get some small things made.

A friend had asked me to make her some

potholders... and had asked a while ago!

Out came the fabrics, batting and the insul bright.

 The line of binding across the pot holder is on a pocket

for the hand. The hand can go inside the pocket and be protected

on both sides from being burned.

I had this pumpkin fabric in my stash and thought it 

was time to use it.

The lower set is for me. :)

These will all be delivered to their homes this week.

For those who have followed me for a while,

you know that I have made a number of Bucilla felt kits over the years.

There is a shelf in a cabinet in my Hidey Hole that has

a number of kits waiting to be made.

I decided it is time to work on one again.

This is going to be a Gingerbread Advent calendar.

There are a LOT of white sequins that will be sewn

onto the felt for this one, along with other colors

and some embroidery.

It's a relaxing thing to do in the evenings while

my husband watches sports.

Nothing too exciting here,

but I'm using stash and making little things.

I'm linking to Design Wall Monday today.

Happy Quilting!

Baby Quilt for Quinn

A friends daughter had a baby in July

and Quinn's quilt is finally finished!

The baby's room is in pinks and gray

and I decided this time to make a

quilt that would cooridnate with the room.

This pattern was on Pintrest a while ago

and the heart in the design caught my eye.

For the backing I decided to use this gray

velour blanket I've had for some time to use as a backing.

NEVER AGAIN will I use a blanket like this!

It was a BEAR to quilt!

I wanted to do some feathers,

but there was no way that was going to happen.

Swirls it was.

It isn't as bunchy as it looks in the photo...just puffy.

The quilt is super soft and cuddly with this backing, though.

It's ready for delivery!

I'm linking to Design Wall Monday.

Happy Quilting!

October Wedding Gift Finished

As those who follow me know,
I make Christmas tree skirts for wedding gifts

when it's appropriate.

A good friend of my daughter's is getting married

next month and the tree skirt is finished!

This pattern has been used for several tree skirts

and, unfortunately, is not available anymore.

It was a Moda Bakeshop pattern that I am unable to find

online. Thankfully I printed it off several years ago.

 

The pattern uses a layer cake and goes 

together quickly.

The fabrics are much richer and prettier in person

than the photos are showing.

 

I'm still deciding if I'm going to put the ties on this one.

A friend has made a couple of tree skirts

without the ties and then I realized that I don't

tie them on my tree skirt.

I will add those today if I decide they are needed.

I can check this off of my list now. :)

Happy Quilting!

MInt, Berries and Chocolate

I really struggled with naming this quilt.

My first thoughta were "Ugly Quilt #2"

or "Sensory Overload"

or.... I won't tell you the rest.

The fabric line is called "Botany"

and Botanical Beauty became the name.

****EDIT****
After Preeti's comment, I'm changing the name
of this quilt to
"Mint, Berries and Chocolate"!
It's helped me to like it a little more!
Thank you, Preeti!!

It's not often that I make something and think

"Phew!  That one is finished!"

I'm not a fan of this quilt, but it's done

and a pile is gone from my stash.

 And honestly,

now that's it's quilted,

it has grown on me a bit.

As I've mentioned before,

the Disappearing 4 Patch is one of my favorite blocks to make...

...and I've made a number of quilts using this block.

I am really enjoying doing the grid quilting

these days, too.

This does look like a vintage picnic quilt or a tablecloth to me.

Is it bad that I like the back better than the front?

Another finish and that's a good thing!

I'm linking to Design Wall Monday today.

Happy Quilting!

More Canyon Dance

A couple of weeks ago I cut a lot of the pieces

for Canyon Dance,

so if I have a few minutes,

I can sew a block or two together.

If you have never sewn curves before,

this is the pattern with which to begin.

It's so easy because nothing needs to meet or match.

The pieces are sewn together in a certain order

and then the block is trimmed to size.

Easy Peasy.

This is mindless sewing for me.

Before I begin,

I arrange the pieces in pleasing sets

and stack them on a cookie sheet.

Then I sit and sew while listening to my book.

 

Thirty eight of 110 blocks are made.

 

As I make more blocks,

things are rearranged.

There will be a lot of rearranging once 

all of the blocks are finished.

Happy Quilting!

Guess What I'm Starting??

Another Canyon Dance quilt!

My daughter, who banned me from making her any more quilts,

has asked for a quilt for their guest bed.

She didn't need to ask me twice!

This was a while ago that she asked,

so I've been collecting fabrics for this quilt.

She's like I am... loves turquoise, blues and greens.

It has been fun shopping the batik sections

and raiding my stash for these colors.

The pieces have been cut using these templates that I ordered

from the pattern designer and the small rotary cutter.

They are very easy to use and the pattern is very easy to follow.

 

I'm excited to see all of the combinations that come out of these piles.

These are by my machine, ready to be sewn together.

Four blocks are finished....only 107 to go!

They have a queen size bed, so I'll be making these blocks for a while.

:)

Happy Quilting!

 

Woven Baby Quilt Finish

Get your sunglasses ready because I have a

bright and happy quilt to show you today!

I started this quilt a few months ago

and needed to quilt it.

The baby for whom it was made will be

here at the end of the month,

and it needs to be mailed,

so I needed to get in gear and get it quilted.

I ordered a fun backing and went to work once it was delivered.

This quilt is made with the Simply Woven pattern.

I have had this pile of primary colored fabrics for a while,

just waiting for the right project.

When I saw this pattern,

I knew this would be fun with all of the geometrics

and polka dots.

I cut enough strips to make a second quilt

and will do that once some other things are done.

 

This one will be sent to Florida and will sure show up

on the beach down there.

I've had to delay the shipping with the pending storm, though.

 

The quilting was simple...a swirl with bright 

yellow thread.

 

Isn't the backing fun?

I used it for the binding, too.

Happy Quilting!

Boxy Tote

My friend Dottie loves to make bags.

She finds the neatest patterns and creates beautiful bags.

Her latest bag uses the Boxy Tote pattern and I

decided to make one with her.

The cutting and preparation takes quite a while.

Plus, there are things used in this pattern

that aren't the easiest to find.

Once the pieces were cut and the fusing was done,

I headed over to her house and the fun began.

The pattern designer has written the directions in a 

super organized way.

She has tabs to pin to each piece of fabric with the measurements and the

order number from the directions.

Once the piece or pieces are cut,

you pin this tab to the fabric and it keeps things organized.

This tote is large enough to carry a Featherweight in it!

There are pockets on the inside and outside of the bag.

There are also stays around the top of the bag that hold it open

and in place so it's easy to fill.

After my friend, Mary, made one, she found this label for all of us!

Only a few swears words were used in the construction of my bag.

:D

Dottie and I made the straps differently than the pattern suggests

and came up with a very sturdy, but cushy strap.

The zipper tab is filled with glue!

It hasn't quite dried yet, so looks wet in the photo.

The only thing I have left to do is get the hard piece for the bottom of the bag.

I'll cover that  and pop it it and it will be ready for use.

When I started this bag,

I thought it would be a one and done project.

I think I see another one of these in my future, though!

Thanks, Dottie!

It was a blast making this with you.

I'm linking to Design Wall Monday and Monday Making today.

Happy quilting!