Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Working on a Twister

These 6.5" squares have been on my mind.
They came in the box of fabric and rulers
that I bought at an estate sale last year.
Because of the warm colors, I suspect the fabrics could be
from Kansas Troubles or Thimbleberries.
I found a warm neutral in my stash and sewed up a grid.
Using a Twister template, I cut new squares...
...that make "twisters" when sewed back together!
There is lots of extra fabric leftover,
but fear not,
it will not go to waste!
I'm using these to make a pieced border!

Friday, August 26, 2011

Little Green Quilters Update!

I have three finishes this week. Well, three almost finishes.

First up is this rag doll!
 Isn't she adorable? Blogger Beth of Love Laugh Quilt had a tutorial
and I just had to make one! It was really fun and easy enough!

I made the doll to match this baby quilt.
 I may just have to make a rag doll to go home
with every baby quilt I make from now on!
Here's the link to the tutorial:
And if you want to see more rag dolls made with this tutorial:

Here is my almost finish...the "Little Sister" flimsy is assembled.
 I think the center of each block needs a little something.
 A spot of the dark pink would work.
Maybe I will applique a small circle at the center of each square.
 Here is the "Big Sister" flimsy.
"Little Sister" was made from the leftovers.

 I already posted about this assembled flimsy on Monday.
But it is fun to see the three accomplishments in one post!

I'm linking up with Susan and other Little Green Quilters at


Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Writing up a Tutorial

This....is a KEPI.
 It is a kind of hat worn by soldiers during the Civil War. In our homeschool co-op, the students in the Civil War class are divided into the North and the South. Each one wears a blue kepi or a gray kepi. Well, two years ago I made a pattern, and now others want to use it to make kepis for their classes. So today I wrote up all the instructions; as I assembled the kepi, I took pictures of every step.

What a lot of work! It took me the whole afternoon. I certainly have a great appreciation for those who write up quilting tutorials!

So tonite I had some fun...Can you guess what I am making? I should have it done by Friday, so stay tuned!

Monday, August 22, 2011

A Most Successful Day!

The Red, White, and Aqua Quilt top is finished!

I really like the pieced scrappy border.
 And since all the leftover fabric was lying about,
I decided to piece together a backing for this quilt.
 I even made bias binding!
 So here it is, backing, top and binding, waiting to be quilted....

(I haven't even made any other blocks yet today!
I guess I was anticipating the finish! )

Thursday, August 18, 2011

I am making some great progress!

I like how this is working, to make a block, then sew on a WIP. It is like eating dessert first!

I start with a block...
 ...then I start adding sashing to the squares.

A job well done! So, I make another block!

 I wanted cornerstones, and that is tedious work. But... 
 ...I really like what they do for the quilt!
Will I get borders on it yet tonite?  

Nah. I think I'll just make another block!

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

I have a design wall!

Actually, it is a flannel-backed tablecloth, stapled to the wall in my sewing (dining) room.
 I have 25 blocks done so far, and I wanted to see how they look all together.
The pattern I am following is from a Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting magazine, dated May/June 2008. The finished quilt looks like this:

The instructions say that for a queen size quilt, I will need 93 squares. Yikes! I have a ways to go if I am going to make it that large! Well, I am not tired of making blocks at this point, so I will keep making them as incentive to finish other WIPS.

Monday, August 15, 2011

I think it's working!

Last post I decided I could make a block, then I must work on a WIP. Well, I have had a productive day following that intent. Take a look...

Make a cute block...
 ...and add a border.
 Sew a cute block...
 ...and add the final border. I even mitered the corners!
 Make one more cute block!
The pink "Little Sister" quilt is not quite finished. I have a little bit of embellishment to add. I hope to finish by Friday and reveal the full quilt top then!

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Bite the bullet...

I am a great procrastinator.
I have little self discipline.
I would sooo much rather make these blocks... 
...than finish up other projects!

I have often heard my mom use the phrase "bite the bullet"; you know, to "accept the inevitable impending hardship and endure the resulting pain with fortitude."  Now, finishing off a quilt project is not really a hardship nor is it painful. Still, the one thing I don't really enjoy about quilting is the sashing and borders. Blocks are fun to piece, but measuring and re-measuring, then cutting, pinning, and sewing long strips of fabric is b-o-r-i-n-g for me.

"Bite the bullet, Julie" and just get 'er done. So after sewing that one very cute block, I got busy...
 (sorry, upside down picture, thanks to blogger)

Well, it wasn't as bad as I thought. So I added a light pink border. And next up is a narrow fuschia border. Then I've got one wider border to put on last. I am trying to make this quilt about the same size as the other pink one, and I am trying to use up as much of the leftover fabric as possible!
 I'd still much rather be making these....!!!!
Perhaps I can make a pact with myself....something to help with self-discipline...
I could make ONE cute block, then I must work on a WIP. Will it work? 

Friday, August 5, 2011

Another Estate Sale

Yes, I went to another estate sale and bought more fabric. I went especially to find more reproduction feedsack fabrics for the blocks I am making. I hit the jackpot! Price was right at 50 cents for a fat quarter. Well, many of the fabrics are more than a fat quarter, but the price was the same.

I am not sure if they are all true reproduction fabrics, but they sure look enough like it to fool me!
 I also found lots of wonderful reds, as I needed more variety for my red and white bowtie blocks. On the top are patriotic and nuetrals. The middle row has fabrics that I bought simply because I liked them!
 This quilter woman must have done a swap of 1.5" red strips, for contributor names are in each baggie. And they are all red!!! On the right are some larger pieces of fabric that were a dollar each.
 And I found two books for a buck each. The big one is all patterns for quilting, and the small book has ideas for quilts using all those reproduction fabrics!
I am very happy to have found such a treasure trove. You would not believe how much I left behind! And no one was buying it. This woman had piles of fat quarters of every style fabric (except oriental); I would have liked to see some pictures of what she created with such a variety of material.

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Side-Tracked!

It happens every time. I can be making progress on a WIP, and WHAM, I get side-tracked.

This time it was by a picture in a magazine, and of course I had to try to make just one block. Just one.

Ha! One turned into three. But look how cute they are!

 The one on the left is an Ooops. Got the colors switched around. (So in reality, I made four blocks.)

Then there are the raspberries. This is the bounty of just half of the ever-burgeoning bushes one afternoon. I made two pies. I hear they were delicious.
 See?! There are more and more every day. Yikes!

O.K. So I am making a little progress on the pink Topsy Turvy 2. I am calling it "Little Sister".
Tomorrow is Little Green Quilters Update. I am linking up with Susan! (http://www.blackberrycreek.typepad.com/)