Red Letter Day...in shades of Tula

I started my Red Letter Day quilt blocks way back in August of last year.  I finished all 9 of the blocks 3 months ago (according to instagram at least) and blogged them briefly here.  Yesterday I finally turned them into a quilt top:

I've got backing fabric for this quilt already, and I plan to get this one basted and ready for quilting in the next day or so.  But then I plan on doing some hand quilting with these:

so who knows when it will actually be finished.  (I will do some machine quilting to anchor the quilt and make it more sturdy and long lasting).  Looking forward to having a slow stitching project...of course it would be better if the weather cooperated with being covered up with a quilt...but supposedly some chilly weather is on the way.  I'll believe it when I see it.

Double Slice Times Two

I finished up the last two Christmas gifts over the past two days.  I used this tutorial from Missouri Star Quilt Company to make a pink and a blue version of the Double Slice quilt.  Here's the pink:

and here's the blue:

These quilts are headed to two sisters, my lovely youngest nieces.  I hope they enjoy them.

I love this quilt pattern and plan on using it again!  That will pretty much wrap up my finishes for this year.  I have at least one other quilt top I want to get finished before the ball drops tomorrow night, but I plan on doing some hand quilting on it, so it won't be a final finish for a long while.

Details:
Fabric: Top - Kona Cotton 10 inch squares in Fragrant Fuchsia (pink) and Sky Gazer, backing is a print purchased from Hancock in both blue and pink
Batting: Pellon
Thread: piecing - Aurifil, quilting - Pink: superior threads; blue: Aurifil

3 years running...and Merry Christmas

For 3 years in a row I have managed to make a quilt to gift to my baby girl for Christmas.  (first year, second year).  I have been able to do last year's and this year's in secret.  It makes my day to see the smile on her face when she opens up that particular present.  This year's quilt is:

I was able to get the blocks pieced over a period of a few weeks, and then with hubby's help (getting her out of the house on Monday) I was able to get the top assembled, and then on Tuesday got it basted.  I used my last remnant of Britten Nummer as the backing (it was exactly the perfect size!) And then quilted as much as possible as she slept the past few days.  (I wake up very early, even on "vacation").

Details :
Pattern - Allie Owl by Elizabeth Hartman
Fabric - Top: Kona cotton and Essex Linen; Backing - Britten Nummer
Batting - Soft n'Crafty
Thread - piecing and quilting: Aurifil

I was also able to surprise the hubby this year:

with the Fancy Fox quilt I've been working on.

Details:
Pattern - Fancy Fox II by Elizabeth Hartman
Fabric - Top: Kona cotton, and scraps of Lucky Penny, Hometown, some Robert Kaufman tiles and a bit of Juliana Horner print (and I'm sure I forgot something).  Backing: madras cotton from hancock
Batting - Soft n'Crafty (the last bit off a roll I bought over a year ago)
Thread - piecing: Aurifil, Quilting: Metrosene

I hope you are all having a very Merry Christmas!

might be crazy...

Just in case I wasn't scrambling enough to get my holiday sewing finished...I decided to add more on to the pile...and managed to at least turnout a quilt top this afternoon.  My Fancy Fox quilt may be my new most favorite:

The individual fox faces took almost no time to put together, and because I configured the large blocks into a 9 block layout, I was expecting a much more prolonged process. I went with this layout because I intended to put together the giant blocks but started cutting my background fabric into the large block sizes...so I made do.  Now to finish quilting the other surprise quilt...and then get this one quilted...and then I can take a break until the weekend...unless I'm just feeling froggy and jump into quilting two others.  I'm only so crazy though...

Just keep stitching...

I'm still here plugging away at Christmas gifts...like this Hazel Hedgehog pillow for one of my daughters dear friends:

and then started ANOTHER quilt (Fancy Fox) I would like to gift in a few days:

and then got my super secret quilt backed and basted early this morning:

so now to get it quilted, and another quilt pieced and at some point (by next week) get two other quilts basted and quilted.  Just keep stitching...

Pink Escapade

I finally sat down and finished up the binding on this quilt this morning, and am very happy to show you my Pink Escapade:

The weather is so crazy here, middle of December and the grass has started growing again!  Of course today it's cold, but it's supposed to be in the 80s on Christmas Day!  Loving the sunshine though!
Well that finishes off 2 of the 5 quilts I need done for Christmas.  Thankfully I've got a few days past Christmas for a few of them, so now I really only have one that must be done by Friday.  Guess I should get to working on it!

Details:
Pattern - Escapade by Rachel Griffith
Fabric - Kona Cotton (10 inch squares in Fragrant Fuchsia and then some additional yardage in Pink); backing - unknown (purchased from Hancock fabrics)
Thread - piecing: Aurifil, quilting: Coats&Clark

Christmas came a little early...

I can't begin to tell you how amazing my husband is...he supports all of my crazy ideas and this crazy hobby called sewing.  He has put up with the pins everywhere, thousands of "hey can we run by the fabric store really quick" and has learned how to baste a quilt like a champ.  And then he calls me at work today to tell me he had gotten me a Christmas present...

and now I have no idea where to even start...but I can't wait to try her out!!!

Close to the finish...

One more share from the mad sewing spree of this past weekend.  I took the first pink quilt top and
got it basted and quilted:

(I'm in love with that backing fabric, the pic does not do it justice) and now it sits...waiting on me to get the binding done.  I intended to do so yesterday and call it a finish.  Didn't make it that far.  And then last night found out that I actually have more time to get this one done that I previously thought.  However, if I slack off too long (i.e. more than a day or so) I won't get the other quilts done in time.  So hopefully tonight...I'll get it finished.

Previously on Quilt-a-Daisy...

I was so excited to show my finished quilt yesterday, that I completely forgot that I had another quilt top finished!  On Saturday morning I showed the progress pics for the next top, and left off with a pile of squares on my ironing board.  Well, by Saturday evening I had worked through this stage:

and this stage:

and made it to full on quilt top:

So now...just one more quilt to get the top finished (the secret one), one for the back of the couch that needs just a few seams to get the top finished, one quilted in need of binding, and now two quilt tops in need of backing, basting and so on.  Happy sewing!

At last...

a finish!  The first of 2015!  Got up this morning and got to work on the quilting:

really like the print backing on this one:

and then got it bound, and just like that, a finish:

Quilt details:
Fabric: Top - Kona cotton, Back - unknown, purchased at Hancock Fabrics
Pattern: Easy as Pie Layer Cake Quilt by Sherri McConnell
Batting: Soft n' Crafty
Thread: Piecing - Aurifil; Quilting - Mettler

the Blues...

One more 10 square, one more quilt top (hopefully soon)...still using this tutorial, this time with the Sky Gazer Palette of Kona cottons:

and quick work of cutting and getting to stitching:

and now here is where I start this morning:

today's goal...get this quilt top done, and start basting all of the tops and get to quilting on at least one of them.  I may check in again later today...all depends on how much progress I actually make.  The clock is ticking!

Speed sewing...

Wow!  Did a bit of stitching yesterday and then again this morning...and bing bang boom...I've got a finished quilt top!

Started with another Kona Ten-Square and this tutorial and got to cutting:

and then stitching, and then pressing:

and then getting the rows assembled:

and then a top:

Woohoo!  Now I have 3 finished quilt tops...on getting pretty close...one in progress...and one I need to start...and 19 days until Christmas!!!

Time to kick it in to high gear...

After telling myself several times last weekend that I really needed to get two quilts basted and ready for quilting...I finally actually got the second one to the flimsy stage this morning

and NOW...I really need to get that one and this one

basted and start quilting!  I also still have two more quilts to get started...and a third that's a bit of a secret (and so I can't work on it during normal times).  Thankfully the secret quilt already has two of the four big blocks done.  Really need to get my tail moving...I still can't believe it's December and we are now less than three weeks from Christmas!