Quiltz Mystery Quilt

This first picture is BJ holding her first completed mystery block! Love those colors. The second one is June working hard on her block. I love her border fabric so when hers is all done it will be smashing too! And these four pink and blue blocks are mine. I managed to get two done at class (and all but the flying geese units done) and came home and did two more. Now it will have to wait until I have some more time! This quilt will be for Kathy's niece Ayla. She wants a pink quilt with teddy bears, so the backing will be teddy bears and I plan to put plenty of pink in the border too.

Roslyn met at as class was finishing to bring me Hannah and Jeremy's Carolina Crossroads quilt. It is beyond stunning! I really love it...I machine attached the binding to it and barretted the whole thing so that I can start hand sewing this week while watching TV. There will be more pictures of it when it is done. And oh there are no pictures of me because I didn't think to have anyone take one! It was a great sewing day with some fabulous friends--all met online and all strong ladies who inspire me!

A Glimpse at a Future Project: Quilt History Blocks 2009

Last Thursday after quilt history class I did a little shopping. The owner of the shop was nice enough to help me determine sizes for sashing and borders and pick fabrics! I put a few blocks next to the red and the multi fabric so you could get the idea. I will use the red as sashing with green polka dot cornerstones and then a good six inch border of the multi all around. I am quite excited to get to this one soon!

Bonnie's Book Arrived and Cindy Lou Who is Done!

This flamingo picture was painted by my brother's girlfriend Tiffany for my dad's girlfriend Margie. My sister came up with the idea to commision her to do it as a comfort to Margie who is now living without my dad...so we will get this mailed off to her. She loves all things flamingo so it will be a hit! I personally love the leaves Tiffany painted!

I guess I also never posted a picture of my Cindy Lou Who Schnibbles Quilt after I got the binding on! This one was done right around the new year and is hanging from our railing.

Bonnie K. Hunter's new book "Adventures in Leaders and Enders" arrived a few days ago and it has been hard to decide which quilt in it is my favorite. This one called Sister's Nine Patch might be my favorite. Bonnie autographed the book for me but it was hard to show that in a picture! If you haven't bought this one and love Bonnie or scrappy quilts go to her website quiltville.com and order it...she will autograph it for you too!

I also got a new magazine in the mail and fell in love with this quilt in it. The mag is upstairs and I can't remember which one it was but isn't that quilt sweet?(edit: American Patchwork and Quilting April 2010) I may have to add this to my to do list!

Carolina Christmas Quilted and Renamed

Roslyn sent me picture of my Carolina Christmas quilt. I will be getting it from her on Sunday...then I can get the binding (made) on it and handsewn. She quilted the most beautiful dogwood flower on it! I absolutely love it and haven't even put my hands on it yet!

I need to rename this one since it isn't Christmassy and really doesn't have anything to do with Carolina for me! It is for my daughter Hannah's 20th birthday coming up in just a few weeks. Maybe I should call it Hannah's 2oth or 2o years of Hannah or something, lol or just Hannah's Birthday Quilt.

Not sure if you can see the quilting, but you can see the pieced backing.

And more of the backing...More on this quilt and on my Hannah to come!

I have all the bindings cut and most of them sewn and pressed for all the quilts that are being quilted right now. Other than that, I signed up for a quilt mystery class on Sunday and have almost all of that cut out from two really pretty batik fabrics. Been working alot and not sewing as much as I would like.

Simple Gifts Quilt is Quilted and Bound!

Ros met June, Herve, Kathy and I up at the quilt store and delivered the first of my quilts that I gave her last week! Simple Gifts (free pattern on Weeks Ringle's blog Craft Nectar!) is now quilted and bound! I will get more pictures tomorrow in the sunlight, but I was so excited I had to take some and post about it tonight! Ros used an aqua thread which you can really see and I think it makes the quilt even better! I need to get a little label on the back and then it is all set for Marissa's baby girl!
Ros has Carolina Christmas loaded and has some quilting in it by now...I can't wait to see it! Really...
Today June, BJ and I signed up for a mystery class (next Sunday) and I picked up some fabric for that...planning to turn that into a quilt for Kathy's niece Ayla. Her brother borrows her quilts until they are in tatters and so she asked me for a pink quilt with teddy bears--she is smart enough to know that if it is too girley Seth might leave it alone! So it will be a suprise how that one comes out. I can't wait to have a sewing day with BJ and June--so today was a fabulous day!

Madeline Schnibbles for January Top Done!

Here she is...a very Valentine's Day Madeline Schnibbles.

I would have been happier if the flying geese were the same size as my Eleanor Burns ruler (as they were for Winter White) so the trimming was more of a pain with this one. I wound up trimming each one before I sewed it so that I didn't have to face all the trimming at once. The stars really went together well and then turning them into blocks was even easier. Again trimming of the blocks was necessary, but I got into a ryhthm and it went well. I should have stopped and left the border for tomorrow because I rushed it a bit and a little unsatisfied with it, but not enough that I am unsewing. This original pattern looks much different than this one due to the fabrics but I like it all the same. Can't wait to see the Parade of Schnibbles coming up in a few weeks! This completes everything I had planned to get done in January! Yipee, up next is my cousin Tara's wedding quilt (Night and Day by Eleanor Burns) I think.

Amy's Passions BOM for January Done!

I finally got another photo in the sunlight of my Double Delight quilt. This is my favorite quilt so far even though I try not to have favorites ;)!

Amy's Passions Block # 3 for January. This is a Four Square Variation. Tonight I put this one together (after putting the backing together for Hannah and Jeremy's quilt) and have been smiling at it ever since. These blocks just make me happy.

So here are all three of the January blocks (Rocky Road to Dublin, Four Square Variation and Four Square). I am loving them! Can't wait for more! Thanks Amy!

Mystery Solved--Carolina Christmas Flimsy is Done!

I worked on Carolina Christmas last night and finished up the borders this afternoon. They went on absolutely perfectly! I was impressed because usually pieced borders and I do not agree on size limitations. LOL. In the picture it is laying on top of Double Delight which I had just photographed so that blue and pink that is sticking out is not part of it. I thought it was bigger than Double Delight, but it is just about the same size wide and is a little longer so not as HUGE as it appears at first. I was hoping the purple would really come out but with the pieced border I am seeing more of the green, but at least the orange is toned down. I hope Hannah and Jeremy love it when it is done. Now who is up for quilting this one? Roslyn? Stephanie? If neither of you volunteers I can send it on to Wisconsin to my gal there...I already have two out with Becky K. and three I am going to (hopefully) give to Roslyn next week but this one is huge..so any takers ladies?

A Little Quilt-Along

I decided to join in Linda and Regina's Quilt-Along. They and a group of us wannabes have decdied to make nine patch and snowball blocks. The challenge is to get about six blocks a month done. I had my strips cut and decided to start with orange and threw in the polka dot for the heck of it. Then I hunted up some fabric for the nine patches (after I had sewn!) and wound up with my leftover flower fabric. Since I was strip quilting I had no idea I had made far more than six until I had made way too many. They will get used...so there are 13 nine patches and 7 snowball blocks to start with. Not real sure I am liking the blue in there but since this is just for fun and I will do other nine patch colors maybe in the end it will be okay. For now I am not stressing on it! Was a great hour of sewing and I feel like I got something done.
I SHOULD be working on my Carolina Christmas border so maybe I will put some of those together. I have never stalled out so close to the end of a quilt before!

Amy's BOM 2010 Block Two and a Sneak Peak at Madeline

Tonight I sewed up Amy's 2010 Block 2 (see sidebar for link to it if you want to join us!) and am quite happy with how it turned out. My online group NewQuiltingClub took a vote for BOM and Amy's won! I am extremely happy about that because I was thinking I was going to be doing four BOM and that is a lot for me but now I have this one (three blocks posted this month though so if that keeps up I will have three quilt tops when I am done!) and my quilt history BOM too. June and I are talking about doing another BOM that we found online too. That one I think would be scrappy. That is plenty.

Now a sneak peak at Madeline Schnibbles so far! Here it is all cut out...

Here all my geese are done...and one star.

Here is a blurry close up of the first star. How sweet is that? Only eight more to go but I am enjoying putting this one together and not rushing at all. Long as it is done by the end of January in time for the Schnibbles parade I will be happy.

Ok, I am off to grab some water and then to the treadmill. I am trying to start a trend at my house..haha. This makes the second time in a week--for me in recent times that is a record. Smile--thanks for the inspiration in quilting and exercise Amy!

Made this image at wordle.net kind of fun! Not sure how to get it bigger but it was fun to see what I mainly talk about...the larger the word the more I used it in my blog.

And just so you know I did sew tonight...here is a picture of my new valance in our kitchen. Tiffany gave me the fabric for Christmas and I immediately knew where it would wind up!

January Schnibble Madeline Cut and Promenade Market Tote

Tonight I whipped up a Promenade Market Tote (free pattern here http://www.dsquilts.com/uploads/MarketTote.pdf ). Here is one side and...

here is the other side. Really easy and cute. I am sure I will make more.

Kathy helped me cut out the Moda "Sent with Love" favric so I can make my Madeline January Schnibbles. I am using pinks or lighter white/pink/red in place of taupe and the white polka dot for the background fabric. No idea how this will look, but hopefully I sorted the fabric enough for it to make sense!

Watched the football games today and not AT ALL thrilled that the Patriots lost and then the Packers lost. I actually have another headache--migraine style coming on after a day off from them. This is three this month, UGH I hate migraines. It is 8 PM here and I am heading into bed with a pill and high hopes that this is it for the month because these migraines exaust me!

Simple Gifts Quilt Whipped up for Marissa's Baby

Of course Rosey and Zoe had to pose for me on my quilt!

This one made with the same fabrics as the last one...I like it much better for a gift for Marissa's baby. The pattern is free from Weeks Ringle on Craft Nectar and has become one of my favorites to make! I need to decide if I am quilting it or if I want to get someone else to do it!

A Little Strip Twist

I was very excited to try out Bonnie's Strip Twist pattern and was planning to make a baby quilt in aqua and brown...I didn't really have the required darks and lights so I decided to wing it a bit. I really didn't care for it at first, but it did grow on me. It is a bit wonky and pinning more would have helped, but I was thinking it wasn't working anyway! I think I am going to go with Weeks Ringle's "Simple Gifts" quilt...so I cut the strips from my fabrics and tomorrow will whip that up then decide which I want to give to the gal at work who just had a baby. This one may wind up a baby donation quilt for someone to love anyway...
Had a migraine again last night, took a pill, got through today...feel it coming back so off to bed I go! Oh I did work on my Carolina Christmas border blocks last night and an hour today between jobs. I have all the blocks done and a half a row assembled. I just didn't have the patience to take my time and do it right tonight so I will work on that after the baby quilt is done, well the next baby quilt!

Amy's BOM 2010 and Madeline has Arrived!

I have been a little crazy lately ordering fabric! I do not have much of a stash...I tend to buy what I need and use it, most of the leftovers get cut into strips and now get used mainly for Bonnie Hunter patterns. Therefore, I have been ordering some fabric so I can make a few things such as the January Schnibbles pattern Madeline! I picked Moda's "Sent with Love" fabric and may mix in some that I have to make it work for this cute little pattern. I am terribly into polka dots, so I got that either for a border or binding...or both! I can hardly wait to get going on this one though I still have the pieced border left to do on Hannah's Carolina Christmas top.

Last night we cut the fabric for Amy's (Amy's Passions blog) BOM 2010 . This is the first of three she has posted for January--join on in if want, it will be fun! I decided to go with red, white, and blue ish fabrics because I know of a few military people it can go to when done, or it is good for QOV...I am really looking forward to this and have a pile of fabrics set aside for these blocks! This one went together really well, Amy has great pictures and directions on her blog!

Carolina Christmas Clue Six Done!

Need I say more? Well you know I will! Earlier today I cut out border pieces but wasn't really in the mood to sew. Then just before heading to bed with my book I stopped off in the quilting studio to sew just one or two..and then the next thing you know rows were coming together (I had pinned them earlier at June's house!) and then I had Randy make tea because I knew I was going to keep on going! I love how it came out...have been in love with orange since Bonnie did Orange Crush! I am hoping that Hannah likes it because it is for her and her favorite color is purple...she may not be too nuts for the orange, but I guess if she doesn't want it I can keep it! Plan is to work on the borders tomorrow...I got the book and ruler I was waiting for today and I can't wait to start my next project with that. I am a quilting fool! BTW I need to contact a few of my longarmers, because I now have four tops ready to go and this one will be five!

It is also time for the Parade of Schnibbles! For December we made pincushions so check the blogs at Pink Pincushion and A Quilting Life to see the Tuffets we made. January's Schnibbles is "Madeline" and I am trying to decide what to make it in...thinking about Moda's "Sent with Love" fabric but will decide tomorrow I think.

Other than that I am tapping my foot impatiently while waiting for Quilt in a Day's "Night and Day" book and template to arrive!

NYE 2009 Quilt Tops Both Together

Kathy's quilt top is together (with a little help from me) and she is thinking about adding more of the focus fabric for a border. This one is for Kathy's niece Melanie Breor in Mass.

And my top again after a good ironing! I also got my backing together and I don't think I am adding borders to this one. This is for Kathy's other niece Shannon Zimmerman also in Mass. What do you think about border for this one?