July 31, 2016

Norway Quilt

Since I just posted a mockup a few days ago, I thought I'd share one of my pre-blog quilts today instead. We need some pictures of real quilts around here! This is Thimble Blossoms' Norway pattern that I finished over a year ago.


It has already been through lots of use and washing, so it's crinkly and delightful. It's a favorite around here because the back is personalized to our family. I used the Spell It With Moda patterns to spell our last name, with a cute little mini Swoon.


I couldn't decide between scrappy or solid, so I used both kinds of blocks. I've seen some really beautiful versions both ways. Three of the blocks are from Miss Kate printed solids, and then the rest are with scraps from my stash. It's a great 2.5" leftover strips project. The pluses and binding are also the Miss Kate printed solid, in grey. I used Moda Bella 97 for the background.


The backing is a blue/green check from Bonnie and Camille's Happy Go Lucky line that I got on clearance about 2 years ago. Often my backing decisions are dictated by budget, but I find this forces me to stretch creatively and think of things I wouldn't otherwise turn to, which is always a fun adventure. Plus, this is a great print for a boy house!


Another reason I love this quilt is because it reminds me of my mama- she loves red and navy, and this is her favorite quilt pattern. I need to make her one! I probably would have given her this one if it didn't have the wrong last name on the back :) I wouldn't mind making this pattern again, it really is a fun one, especially the scrappy blocks. We are off to visit her for several days this week and I'm so excited.


This one is quilted by Hollie Rawe, the mother of one of my friends growing up. She is in Modesto, CA and has done several quilts for me, she always does a wonderful job. I'm not sure what this longarm pattern is called, but I love it.


 See you on Friday for Block 7 of the Rise quilt, we are getting so close to the finish!

I'm adding this post to this fun link party that I sometimes remember to join :)

Sew Fresh Quilts

July 27, 2016

Red and Aqua Quilts Galore!

I have been on a huge red and aqua kick lately. No kidding, you say. But even more than usual!

First of all, I have a new pattern- First Snow- which is in the testing phase. I am excited and a little nervous about it. It will have two block variations in one pattern, and here is one of them:


My IG friend Julia  @redrainbootshandmade is going to sew up this version for me. She makes such beautiful things. Have you seen her barn quilts? Check out her shop, I think you will find you probably need one :)

Recently the town of Bothell, WA suffered a fire that destroyed 17 businesses on their main street, many of them historical. The local fabric store is collecting red 9-patch blocks to make quilts to give to those who were affected. I love to participate in things like this. I'm grateful to the people who put them together. If you are interested in helping out, you may send 6.5" unfinished blocks (2.5" pieces) to:
     
Keepsake Cottage Fabrics
818 238th St. SE
Bothell, WA 98021



As I was working on blocks to send, I had an idea for my next quilt. Every time I make a project that uses red and aqua (which is like 95% of the time, ha) I'm going to use some of the scraps to make a few nine patches. They are so easy! When I have enough collected, I'm going to make a quilt that looks something like this. It will be my second true scrap quilt and I'm really excited about it.


This week I also finished a little pillow that has the first dresden plate that I ever made. It has some special fabric in it- the Tasha Noel that I bought with my mother-in-law back in 2013 when I had just barely started sewing. I love how it's finished off with Tasha's newest line- Pixie Noel, it was the perfect binding for this project! My middle son wanted to model this one since his big brother got to hold the last pillow I made, and I was more than happy to indulge him in that.


I used Essex Linen in black for the background, and the center is the Miss Kate aqua printed solid. The rest has Lecien, Simple Life, Riley Blake Swiss dots and some Daysail.

Lastly, I'm plugging away on my Splendid Sampler (with many other additions) blocks. Here are the latest three. I think I'm up to 52 or so. Who knows when I'll stop! It's too fun, I never want this project to end. These were fun because I got to try floating seams for the first time, and use a selvedge, which I hadn't ever done before. I featured the quote from Bonnie and Camille's new line Handmade- "You don't find the happy life...you make it." Boy is that the truth!


I told you there was a lot of red and aqua going on! I wonder if this color combo will ever get old for me. I think not. :)

July 25, 2016

Monday Mockup 10

Can you believe July is almost over!? I can not. My oldest starts Kindergarten early next month so I feel like this month is not only the end of summer, but the end of the era of sleeping in and going with the flow and having all my little people with me all the time. It's exciting for him, and kind of sad for me :(

Let's talk about something else, like this pretty quilt!


Pattern: Room and Board by Thimble Blossoms
Fabric: Daysail by Bonnie and Camille

I've always loved Daysail. The crosshatch/dot from that line is an amazing basic, and the colors are some of my very favorites. Maybe one of these days I'll snag one of the jelly rolls that pop up on the destash and add this one to my list.

One of my favorite Daysail quilts ever can be found here, by the amazing Whitney Hill @southermakings. I love it so much!

What are you going to work on this week?

July 22, 2016

Rise Quilt- Block 6

Several new people have joined us in the sew along this week. Welcome!! Here is Block 6, and with that we are two thirds of the way there!


Block 6 Pattern

Block 6 has very easy sewing, but the trimming can be problematic. If you are a new quilter and this one is making you grouchy and sad, go ahead and repeat one of your favorites from blocks 1-5 in different colors instead. There's no shame in that! I myself somehow managed it without trouble on the first quilt, but the second time around I trimmed it wrong 3 times! It happens :)


Most of you will have no trouble with it and I can't wait to see what you make!

July 20, 2016

Pillow with a Zipper Tutorial

Hello fabric loving friends! Today I'm sharing the pillow I made with my second round of Sweet Tea fabric, an upcoming line for Hoffman Fabrics by Thistlewood Farms.  I'm also sharing how I put zippers in my pillows. I much prefer zippers to envelope backs as the pillow keeps its shape soooo much better over time. It's not scary, I promise, and I know you'll love the result!

UPDATE: You can watch a video tutorial on zippers on my Instagram highlights.


*Disclaimer: I have absolutely no idea if this is the "right" way to put a zipper on a pillow.  It's simply one of the ways I taught myself to do it. I have made many pillow covers using this method and they have all held up very well thus far :)

Alright, here we go! First you'll need your two pillow panels, spray basted or quilted to batting, and trimmed up. These could be just simple pieces of fabric, or a pieced together design like this. Mine are 18" as I plan on using a 20" pillow form, and the pillow cover needs to be a bit smaller than the form. If you make them the same size the result will be a sad, saggy thing. I also have a zipper as wide as my project, or a little shorter, it doesn't have to be exact. Finally, you need two pieces of coordinating fabric 1" by 5".


Trim your zipper (with nasty old scissors, not your good ones!!) so that it's an inch or two shorter than your pillow top on each side. Make sure you move the pull to the middle before you do this- chopping it off will create more work for yourself.


Fold your 1" by 5" pieces in half lengthwise and press. Sew (I use a walking foot for this entire project) the folded ends to the edges of your zipper. You can sew over a zipper, don't worry, just go slowly. I went over the seam on the right end two or three times since there isn't a metal cap holding the zipper together there, and there will be lots of pulling on that point when you stuff your pillow. Then trim to the exact width of the pillow top.


Sew the zipper right side down to the bottom edge of your pillow top. Sew about 1/8" from the actual zipper- very close, but no so close that the zipper pull won't be able to move. When you get to the zipper pull, put your needle in the down position, lift the presser foot, and carefully slide the pull behind the walking foot. Then lower the presser, and continue sewing to the end.


Now fold open the zipper and sew it right sides together with the bottom edge of the back of your pillow top. Follow the same procedure for getting around the zipper pull. Then press your zipper seams out. Yes, you can iron a zipper. Just don't touch it for a while afterwards :) It should look like this, front and back:


Now, slide your zipper part-way open so that when it's all sewn together you'll be able to get to the zipper pull to turn the cover right side out. Fold the two sides of the pillow together, right sides together. The pieces of fabric on the ends of the zipper should fold inward and flatten, like so:


Sew around the remaining three edges of the pillow 1/4" from the edge. Back stitch at the corners to reinforce the seams since pillows get a lot of wear and tear. Then, sew around those three sides again to reinforce.  You can trim your corners off just a tiny bit so they form nicely when turned out. Turn your pillow right side out, push the corners and edges out, and give it a good press.


It should look like this along the zipper.  Stuff your pillow form in carefully, zip it up, give it a fluff, and you're there! I love to use 20" down pillow forms from IKEA. The price is right and they feel and look great.


Everyone loves a fluffy new pillow, even sassy 5 year old boys who don't approve of floral things. 


Thanks for following along with this tutorial. Check back in a month for round three of Sweet Tea. You can find my first Sweet Tea project here, or go see projects by my fellow Sweet Tea Ambassadors, Jill at Sew a Fine Seam, and Jen at Noting Grace. Their projects are just beautiful!!

July 18, 2016

Monday Mockup 9

As I was making today's mockup, I learned that my husband isn't a fan of the using black in fabric or quilts. I take his quilt styling advice with a grain of salt :) Personally, I am really excited about Bonnie and Camille's newest line including black, rather than navy prints (though I do adore navy!). What's your vote?



Pattern: Baby Basket by yours truly
Fabric: Handmade by Bonnie and Camille

July 11, 2016

Monday Mockup 8

Once upon a time, my dear friend didn't tell me that she had promised a woman that I could make a quilt out of her wedding dress. Her friend wanted to give it to her daughter for her wedding. I knew nothing of this, until during a visit with the first friend, the second woman showed up at my house (unexpectedly to me) with her gorgeous, vintage dress and started talking about her daughter's wedding. I was absolutely mortified- I thought she was going to ask me to alter it to fit her daughter, something I am absolutely not qualified to do! I wouldn't even know where to begin. Luckily, it turned out she just wanted a quilt with a piece of the dress included. Now that is something I can do for sure :)

Here's the plan for that quilt that I cam up with, in her wedding colors, with a heart made from the lace of both mother and daughter's dresses. I am super excited to be a part of it and can't wait to get started when the fabric arrives.


Pattern: 12" sawtooth stars with 2" sashing and 3" border
Fabric: Kona solids and Little Miss Sunshine border


UPDATE: You can see the finished quilt here :)

July 8, 2016

Rise Quilt- Block 5

Welcome back to the sew along! I'm so impressed with how many of you have kept up with the blocks. Here is number 5, I hope you like it!



We are now entering the blocks that are a little trickier to explain. As I am still very new to quilt pattern writing, I'm nervous that my instructions are lacking. Please don't hesitate to let me know if anything is unclear!

Also, there are secondary instructions for those of you who may be using Layer Cakes, or scraps that aren't quite large enough for the primary instructions.



July 7, 2016

Gooseberry Scrappy Trip Quilt


Update: here's a link to all the blog posts I've done with all the different version and instruction.


Here are some specifics about the "pattern" I used to make this quilt, which is really an adaptation of a tutorial.



Materials:
  • 1 jelly roll, or 40 2.5" WOF strips of print fabric (I used "Gooseberry" by Lella Boutique for Moda)
  • 1 jelly roll white fabric, or 40 2.5" strips from yardage (I used Kona Snow) 

Method:

       I followed the tutorial for the "tube method" found here on the Quiltville blog, but I altered it slightly. Instead of using 16" strips for a 6 by 6 block, cut the jelly strips in half (approx. 21") and alternate 4 print strips and 4 white strips for each block, yielding an 8 by 8 block. The blocks will be 16" instead of 12".

You'll need to make 10 blocks that start with a print strip in the top corner, and 10 that start with a white strip, otherwise your blocks won't connect properly. When you lay them out, rotate the ones that start with a print 90 degrees, and alternate them with the ones that start with white.

*I got the idea to make the blocks bigger, thus maximizing the jelly strips, from @shutterbugmal on Instagram. She made a gorgeous quilt using two Hello Darling jelly rolls. I opted to calm things down a bit by using just one jelly roll and alternating it with white.

This will give you 20 blocks, laid out in a 4 by 5 grid, for a 64" by 80" quilt. 


If there are any more questions, feel free to leave a comment! 

*UPDATE: My Insta friend Cindy at Hyacinth Quilt Designs has improved upon this version with a clever pressing tip! Go check it out here. You'll want to see her version :)

July 4, 2016

Monday Mockup 7

Happy 4th of July to my fellow Americans! I truly love this holiday and the sights, sounds, and feelings that come with it.

It was only appropriate for this to be the mockup for today, though I wish it was a real quilt instead of a digital one. I have all the fabric to make this exact quilt, and I'm just so excited to do so, but I've been out of town for weeks! (#firstworldproblems) Next year it will be done for sure and I'm excited!



Pattern: Stars and Stripes by Thimble Blossoms
Fabric: Flags- scrappy, sashing- Daysail Aqua Crosshatch, binding- Vintage Picnic Navy Gingham

July 1, 2016

Rise Quilt Along- Update

Today I thought I'd give a shout out to those who are sewing along with the Rise pattern. Just look at these cute blocks! It was scary starting this as a pretty new blogger and wondering if anyone would participate, so it is thrilling for me every time someone posts a balloon they've made. Thanks for sewing along friends!

You can check the hashtag on Instagram #risequilt to see who made these adorable blocks. Some of them are my dear friends, and others are new quilty friends! I can't wait to see the finished quilts.


We are nearly half way through the sew along and have some really fun blocks in store. See you next Friday!