And another set of finishes...

These two quilts were delivered today, and well received I might add!

First up - Shake n' Bake (so named because I cut the charms, threw them in a bag, and shook them up.  I then pulled them out and pieced them however they ended up getting pulled out of the bag.)

Details:
Fabric - Kona Steel (backing and binding); charms - Aviary II by Joel Dewberry, Curious Nature by Parson Gray, Seasonal Little Gatherings by Primitive Gatherings, assorted KONA solids
Pattern - ummm...yeah
Thread - Piecing: Gutterman, Quilting: Mettler Metrosene
Batting - Warm and Natural

Next - California Girl (originally started over here)

Details:
Fabric - California Girl by Fig Tree (all of the quilt including the binding)
Pattern - Jelly Roll Race
Thread - Piecing and Quilting: Gutterman
Batting - Warm and White

a few finishes...

A final post on a few of the finishes...first up...Rainbow Strings:

(pics taken when we were in Indiana, and it was very very cold and very very windy, thankfully Girl and Guy "volunteered" to help me out!...had a blast and a huge giggle taking these!):

and finally...an "official" pic:

Details:
Fabric - assorted from my stash, Quilters Cotton in Manatee and a black sateen
Pattern - figured it out myself, wanted the size to finish the same as Rainbow Scraps
Thread - piecing: Gutterman, quilting: Mettler Metrosene
Batting - Warm n' Natural

Next up: Strawberry Swoon

Strawberry Swoon was first started way back in October 2011.  I finished 3 of the 4 blocks...and then put it all away (I think I was distracted by something else!).  So when it was crunch time on the Christmas quilts...I pulled the blocks out to see what I had left to do:

and got to work!

Girl helped me decide to go ahead and do the pieced sashing and border, and I love how it came out.  I think the binding (same as the backing) helped pull it all together.

Details:
Fabric - Strawberry Fields by Fig Tree, Kona Cotton in Corn for backing and binding, background fabric unknown (I just can't remember).
Pattern - Swoon by Camille Roskelley
Thread - Gutterman for piecing, Mettler Metrosene for quilting
Batting - Warm n' Natural

and that's that for now...hoping to get a quilt bound tonight so that it can be gifted tomorrow!

15 minute challenge...week 4

where we make improvement over the previous week, but only after a slow start!  LOL!

Tuesday: nada

Wednesday: nada

Thursday: nada

Friday:  finished the California Race Quilt Top and started working on the back for the Paris Race quilt top that has been finished for an exceptionally long time!

Saturday: finished up piecing the Paris Race quilt back (please ignore the terrible picture quality of the next two pics...having serious issues with aviary in flickr...keeps saving images not as they appear on screen, with added enhancements that I tried to remove!):

Sunday: worked on finishing up my niece's quilt (that has been 75% quilted for two months now, and has just sat there...but now it's all quilted and just waiting on binding!

Monday: nada (I thought about cutting binding strips)

Feeling good!  Progress has been made towards getting some UFOs complete!  Linking up over at Life in Pieces!  Have a great week!

15 minute challenge...Week 2

I did a little better this week on the 15 minute challenge (hosted by Kate at Life In Pieces).

Tuesday I dug in on the last three blocks for the T-shirt quilt and got each one about 75% of the way there:

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday...nada...I have found that when I work night-shift...that's the time in the week when I pretty much hit a wall and about all I can do is sleep and eat and work...and think about sewing.

Saturday I got the remaining side done on the T-shirt Quilt blocks and now all I have to do is piece the blocks together.  I also started on the California Race quilt for my Mom:

Sunday I worked on California Race:

Monday was more California Race:

So far I'm feeling really good about joining this challenge.  It's definitely helping me to see when I can actually make time to sew with my work life being as hectic as it is.  Nice part...after this week...back on regular daylight hours for a few weeks; bad news...it's only going to get busier at work between now and September!  It will be interesting to compare this week to a month from now to two months from now...to see how it all changes (or maybe it won't!).  I 'm just happy to be sewing a little more regularly!

Later!

because I can...

...I started a new quilt this weekend...I threw caution to the wind and chose ignore all of those unfinished pieces stacked all over the place...and started a new one of these kinda quilts.  It started with this:

which became this:

and I totally screwed up at one point and had to cut and re-do one piece (got the wrong side sewn to the right side and well...gotta fix those things; and it's hard to actually tell in this pic...which is why I think it was hard for me to realize I was sewing the two parts together wrong in the first place!):

and is slowly...but surely becoming something like this:

a few more steps and the top will be done!

now the truth is...back around Mother's Day my Mom came to visit and I told her to pick from my stash of Jelly Rolls and Fat Quarters some fabric she liked and I would make her a quilt similar to the ones for my nieces.  So she picked the above fabric...and there it sat...until Saturday...when she was on her way for another visit!  So like any good child (who tends to procrastinate, bite off more than she can chew, and is easily bored with one thing and must quickly move to another) would do, I got some sewing done before she arrived so I could show her that I had been diligently working on that which I had promised her.  Yeah, I'm awesome, I know!  LOL!  I'm calling this one the California Race (you know...California Girl fabric...Jelly Roll Race style...I'm so creative!)

Have a great week!  See you tomorrow!

White Rabbit...the finale

I don't usually talk about batting...because I really don't know enough about batting to sound educated when I talk about batting...but I figured since I usually share other pieces of the quilt process...today I would add batting to the conversation.  Here is the quilt batting I normally use:

and I say "normally", but with the exception of one quilt...all my others are finished using Hobbs Batting...sometimes the fusible, sometimes not.  I like the fusible...but have become partial to using basting spray instead of fusible batting...basting spray is so much faster, holds better over time (you know...when you start quilting...and then let it sit for a few weeks...then quilt some more...maybe it's just me) and I have fewer problems with wrinkling the back as I sew.  However, basting spray has one major draw back...it stinks!  I have to let the quilt lay out for a good hour to two hours after basting to let the fumes die down...otherwise it's just too much when you have it all around your face while wrestling your quilt through a machine.  Anyways...back to batting...

Hobbs has been great for me...but...hubby went to pick some up for me yesterday...and well...there was no Hobbs to be found!  Massive dilemma...so he picked up a new can of basting spray (was almost out) and a different batting...after I try it out, I'll let you know if I like it or not.

Moving on!  after a few hours of this:

I ended up with this:

funny story....the binding was giving me a massive headache...kept bunching up and sliding all over, and the finished binding was really NOT pretty...and then I realized...I had the wrong foot on my sewing machine!  The foot I normally use when sewing the binding has always worked well for me...and I had my 1/4 inch foot on, and it kept catching the fabric in odd ways...oh well!

and finally the finished white rabbit (modeled by Guy):

and now...what to work on next?  I could finish up MHQ, or finally get back to some FWQAL blocks...or finally make a decision for T's quilt...or...I could just do nothing....

Did I mention I signed up for this:

Because I totally need another WIP!  Looking forward to the class, which is being aught by Rachel Griffith of PS I Quilt.  You can read more about the class here.

anatomy of a quilt back

ok...so before I worry anyone...I did the get the white rabbit to the church on time!  or in this case, to dinner on time!  but before I share with you the final result...have to show you some pics of what I was up to around 11 pm on Thursday night!

So...the quilt back...had to hit a big box fabric store for this due to time constraints...and was so happy to find some Kona Taupe...it was an almost perfect match!  (thankfully I had enough remnants from this quilt to throw in something for the backing of the white rabbit!)...and I had little struggle in figuring this one out...but considering the process figured I'd share it!

So...I got the top finished...then started by laying out the Kona Taupe...then tried to figure out what pieces I was going to add...it's pretty much just a jigsaw puzzle...

once I got the mental picture of the back...started working on the sewing...

and then finished it up!

and then I had two of the three pieces I needed to get this quilt finished!

white rabbit

I'm feeling a little like the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland...I can't be late...must rush...long story short...on last minute notice we have some family who will be in town this weekend for the USC/Kentucky football game...and we'll be having dinner with them Friday night...they are recently married and we were unable to attend the wedding.  Soooo...hubby was very concerned that we didn't get them a wedding gift...well it just so happens I had pretty much all the elements of a quilt top, and the getting the quilt top sewn together won't take long...so I said...well...do you want to give them a quilt??  (their wedding invitation specifically stated no gifts...but hubby...is well...he is what he is).  Hubby's response to my suggestion...GET TO SEWING!  LOL!

So remember this quilt?  Meet it's soon to be fraternal (close but not quite identical) twin:

and I even had enough of the border fabric and binding fabric left over:

now I just have to get the top assembled...and buy fabric for backing...so tonight i'll try and finish up the quilt top...and then tomorrow I'll make a run to the LQS and see what they have in the way of matching/similar/anything for the backing...and get that pieced together tomorrow night...and start quilting!

Did I mention...we are meeting them for dinner Friday night?