Blogger's Quilt Festival

I have added my Swoon quilt to the Blogger's Quilt Festival's "scrappy" category.  This one was quilted by Ros Atwood.  Go check out the festival and choose your favorite!  Click here!

Several Finishes, WHOOT WHOOT!

 This is the last of the leftover bits and pieces from my cousin Tara's "Night and Day" quilt.  I made Coleman a whole quilt from the leftovers, and Tara a tablerunner to match her quilt and then Kathy made this for Coleman's wall.  Today she quilted it and I bound it and we will give it to him for his birthday in December.  Bug loved it!

I made the binding and Kathy attached it to Tobacco Road.  This was a tag team effort and we both count it as a finish!

 Swoon is also all bound!  I do need to get labels on these though...

 I also cut out about ten more zipper pouches from Patriots, Packers and comic fabric.  I plan to get on a roll with them next weekend.

Christmas Through the Year--LOL

 Here are my 35th Ave. Kaleidoscope of Color blocks--which are really more of a sashing kind of unit.  One more month before we get the setting directions.

 We picked up my Featherweight from Mr. Happy Sew and Vac Saturday.  He does an amazing job and she is running like a dream.  He said it was one of the filthiest machines he has seen...umm guess I should not wait a year to bring it in! I do clean it regularly, but not the way he does.

 Here is what Kathy and I spent hours doing today!  We FINALLY (seriously I have had the stuff to make these for over a year, maybe closer to two years) got to making potato bags for the microwave.  I have already figured out which twelve folks on my Christmas list will be getting one.  I think my son is really going to like the skeleton one!  I needed a lot more potato fabric than I had, so I just used some of the other stuff in my stash.

 Here are Kathy's Crossroad (Rainbow BOM) blocks.  She paired them up and started quilting them.  She just drew lines on there like we had done to the potato bags.  They are looking good and she is going to sew them together and give it to a friend of hers.  We aren't sure if it will look weird with the seams showing on the back, but she says her friend will be happy with it so she is trying that out.  Works for me!  Oh and you can see my green and gold toes...GO PACK GO!  They won today, we did catch the game while sewing.

 I also made a binding for Swoon (thought I had already done it, but I hadn't!) and attached it.  I will get some pictures in the sun soon.  I decided to use one color for the binding because of the scrappy border.  It needed a frame.

 I also pieced a backing for Lazy Sunday and ironed it all nice and pretty for Ros.  Will be handing that one off next time I see her.  All in all, it was a very productive weekend!

I am SWOONING again!

 Ros has done it again.  She quilted my Swoon and I can't wait to get it from her on Saturday!  Here are the pictures she posted.  I am absolutely loving it!

Long Sewing Weekend--Whoot Whoot!

 I worked a 15 hour day on Friday (first one job, then the other) and was so excited for three days of nonstop sewing!  Saturday morning I did do a bunch of cleaning that needed done, and reorganized my family tree stuff that needed a few hours of work.  Then I started sewing and only just now stopped!  I made these two zipper pouches to add to my Christmas gifties.

 I made (and later stuffed) this little monster softie.  Kathy and I may make ten or so of them for all the nieces and nephews if we get motivated.  It was fun to make!

 I sewed up one of these two "candyland" blocks for the Skillbuilder BOM which I really am not doing anymore.  LOL, I decided to just do the blocks that really appeal to me and not guilt myself over it.  Not really sure what in the world I will do with them unless I make them all into pillows, ha!

 Kathy and I got the border cut for Swoon and I attached it.  I am SO OVER THE MOON with this Swoon top.  I am so glad that Sarah started Swoonalong2013 and I didn't resist another year.  I have the backing all pieced and ready for Ros.  So nice to see all my Denyse Schmidt fabric going to use!  I have hoarded it long enough!

 Kathy also continued work on Twist of Fate.  This quilt has been hanging out forever..I started it at quilt camp and she has been working on it here and there.  It is about half way done and she has the other blocks done.  Love the visualness of the twisty design!

I spent many hours this weekend working on Lazy Sunday too!  This is the latest Bonnie Hunter mystery from Quiltmaker magazine.  (Bonnie's next mystery will be in November..who is with me?) The next two borders are quite complicated, lol but I got the next one made, just not attached and then I will make the last border and get it on.  It looks rather blah to me in this light, but the next border has green and the outer one has aqua so that should perk it up.  I made the binding in aqua already too.  Still need to decide on a back for this one and make it.

Seriously productive sewing weekend and we caught several movies while sewing which was nice too.  Tomorrow back to work but may get a chance to sew one of the nights this week--just want to get these borders on! :)

SWOON

Here is Swoon outside, though picture was taken before the sun was really out!  I am really happy with this...now to add the border!

Swoon Top is a Flimsy!!!

 We are heading up North to celebrate my mom's (my sister's, Kathy's and my) August birthdays tomorrow after work so I was determined to get the last block for Swoon made and the top together.  I decided not to add more blocks because in order to do it, it will become too huge.  I think the plan is to add a five inch scrappy border of DS fabrics which will enlarge it nicely.  I have all the bonus HST's I could put in the border if I want to get crazy too, lol!

Not the best photo since it is inside the house at night, but tomorrow I will haul it outside and take some better pics.  I am grinning from ear to ear to have finally made this quilt.  And all thanks to Sarah and the Swoonalong 3013!

Swoon Obsessed!

Made two more blocks tonight...so eight blocks of Swoon down!  :)

One Swoon Block Becomes Five!

 I worked on SWOON all day yesterday while gabbing with Becky and watching Bonnie and such.  I am just taking my time and trying to do a nice job.  I am love, LOVE, loving it!

  I ran out of the light blue fabric in the block above and decided to do what Bonnie Hunter would do and just substituted something similar I had.  If it bugs me it may wind up on the back, but so far I am fine with it!

 The other four blocks (of the nine I am starting with, there may be seven more after that..) are all marked and pinned and ready to go! :)

Bag Swapping and Swoon Marking

Today was the PHXMQG meeting and had a bag swap.  Eighteen of the thirty or so people who made it to the meeting participated in the swap.  There were lots of cute bags and I got the one below made by Jen, she even put her label on the inside which was a sweet touch and I will always remember who I got it from!  

 My elephant has finally made it onto some blue background fabric...next step is figuring out what backing fabric I am going to use!   We will be sharing our embellishment challenge in October and this is what I plan to bring, if I can get it done.  Totally copying Danny but I LOVED her pillow.  Not sure that I will be keeping it, I have someone in mind to gift it to.

 I got the binding on this yesterday (and also on my mom's Halloween quilt that I haven't hauled outside for photographs) and in the process I sewed through my finger!  Seriously, through the nail and out through the back--it bled on both sides.  Luckily it didn't hit the bone and hopefully it will heal right up.  What a dork, but I guess it had to happen sometime!

 I also FINALLY sewed up a Swoon block for the Swoonalong2013!!!!  I really love this block even more in person than I do in pictures.  It is huge, 24 inches which is the biggest block I have ever sewn I think.  Tonight Kathy and I watched "Orange is the New Black" and I marked and pinned the other eight blocks that we have cut.  Tomorrow I am sewing with Becky and I am hoping to make progress on this quilt (set aside Lazy Sunday which was what I planned to work on because this quilt it calling to me!).

Swoonalong 2013--Are You In?

Remember awhile back there was a Swoonalong happening all over blogland?  I missed it.  Just way too much on my sewing table to get to it, though I wanted to.  Then, as luck would have it last April, I saw Danny's Bee blocks (which I think maybe were technically Carpenter's Star blocks made from a free pattern) at the PHXMQG meeting and I was doubly sorry I hadn't swooned along!  I went ahead and bought the pattern and put it on my someday list. Here is a picture of Danny's blocks...love that she had everyone use a little tiny print for her background fabric! 

Then I found a blog that I had previously overlooked somehow.  Sarah is going to be trouble for me, she already influenced me to buy a cool book because of a post she made with pictures of the coolest quilt (the book is "Hand Quilted with Love" if you want to know) and now she has me jumping on the swoonalong train.  Sarah is all the way in Ireland, who knew that quilty influence could go so far! 

So any chance you missed the Swoon boat the first time around and you are jumping in along with me?  We are getting the pattern and picking the fabrics this week so plenty of time--and you are going to wish you did!  So head on over to Sarah's blog and grab the button and let's get started!