Pureed flowers

My mom's birthday is this coming Monday (Aug.25) and I figured I better do something for her, since she is my mother and I love her DEARLY!

What better way to show love than a quilt? At least that was my way of thinking... so into the stash I dove. I came up with a stack of 20 fat quarters that I got at the most amazing discount from my local quilt shop. They aren't all prints I would normally put together (and really, only about half really appeal to me on any level), but I'm always up for a challenge and decided I would try it anyway.

Because time is of the essence, I figured I'd go simple in the technical construction of the piecing of the top. And so it's together. One day for cutting and sewing the strips. All while homeschooling too (yesterday was the first day of school).

I even pinned it to the batting/backing and got just a few lines quilted thus far.

It was hard to work on for a while because I wasn't loving it. At all. I don't know if it was the simplicity (and that it's not quite what I had in my head) or if I just didn't like the prints at all... but it was challenging.

So now I need to finish the quilting and move on to the binding ... and we'll see if I can get it completed in less than a week.

edited to add: I'll sneak in the dimensions here... it's 62" x 72" ... all the strips are cut 4" wide and at varying lengths....

And then... oh, I can't WAIT to move on to other projects. I have a Feliz I've been just dying to cut into but I'm a bit nervous and worried it might take some time... after this is done, I just need to dive in. I can't let it just sit because I'm nervous I might mess it up.

opposites attract

My husband claims I make nothing for him.

Of course he's completely wrong on that. I've made him a pillowcase and a pair of pajama pants (which the dog chewed up).

Wait, that doesn't count for much compared to the oodles of dresses, pants, shorts, shirts, etc., that I have sewn for the girls? I guess not.

As it turns out, his birthday (shh.. his 30th) is next Friday. Last week I had a brilliant idea: make him a quilt.

You know, because quilts are "quick" projects... right? It's something I can throw together in two weeks.

Well, I've just about managed to do it.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

One of the best things of this project was it's cost-effectiveness. I purchased the material for this quilt *gasp* at least two or three years ago (yes, see, I'm a lovely wife... I *thought* about making him something... I just never got around to it). I dug out the bag (original bag from the fabric shop, still holding the very same material it came home with) and it still had six half-yards of orange fabrics and six half-yards of blue fabrics.

Why orange and blue? Because they're the colors of his favorite football team -- the Denver Broncos.

But I didn't want to purchase Broncos fabric... I wanted this to be 'classy' (no offense to those who sew with team fabrics).

(sorry, I know most just want pictures, but I'm a story-teller)

While I do love seeing the results of quilting, sometimes it can be challenging for me. Actually trying to follow a real pattern really doesn't suit my personality. I just can't do it. But randomness? Ah, that's right up my alley.

So, I cut out a bunch of 6" squares from the fabrics. Then I sewed them into half-square triangles. And my randomness went to work (all the while I was praying it really WOULD all work out!).

So, I pieced and pieced and pieced (or at least it felt like it... along with not being able to follow a pattern, I easily get bored... I don't have the attention span of a good quilter).

And the result of the piecing? Oh, I love it. It's so much more amazing than I could have hoped for.

I'm always amazed when I finish any project, but especially quiltling ones.

It All. Worked. Out.

All those random fabrics came together and formed *this*! Now really, how amazing is that?

I pinned it all up last night and quilted it also (nothing terribly fancy, but it will work). I thought about at least starting the binding, but it was already 2 a.m. and I couldn't do it.

So I'm hoping to be able to show the finished quilt later today or at least tomorrow.

And, for the record, I finished piecing the top in three days... and during those three days I really didn't a lot of sewing time.. but I got it done and I'm quite pleased. Now, onto the binding!

What a quilt!

I'm so very excited about this quilt... I machine quilted it thoroughly (a square spiral of sorts) and I even did the binding properly! I sewed it on with my machine, folded it over and HAND STITCHED it to the back. I've never done that before.

Now, it's not the biggest quilt on the block.. in fact, it's a bit on the smallish side since the squares are 4" x 4" ... but it's just right for my littlest :)

The backing is just a nice pink with white polka dots fabric I've had for a while.

The strips along the edges are a favorite Heather Ross print of mine. I *adore* this print and the colors with it... and the feel of the fabric is divine. It's slightly brushed which makes it oh-so-soft!

Here are some of my favorite fabrics in the quilt (though I am quite partial to them all ;) ):

Top left: more of the Heather Ross dandelions print, this time in pink

Top right: a very fun Euro fabric

Bottom left: a GORGEOUS Oilily reprint... it's probably one of my all-time favorite fabrics. While the print is perfect, the feel is amazing. It's like a silky, drapey poplin. I wish I would have bought more when I did (though it's terribly pricey here in the states) because I'd love to make something for ME out of that!

Bottom right: a coordinating stripe for many of the Heather Ross prints... again, this is slightly brushed for an oh-so-soft feeling. The stripes run vertically on the fabric, but I cut them on the bias to add a bit of fun!

I love, love, love this quilt. I think pink and orange (with a touch of red) is just so fun and warm.

I have the quilt in the dryer right now (having gone through the washer already) to see what fun it will bring when it's all properly quilted up!

The present..

Not another past post, but a post for right now... the present.
Quite clever actually, since one of these completed projects is a present for somebody but they don't even know it yet.
Yes, another strip purse. My machine is logging in many miles with all this tiny quilting for sure.
I don't know what my favorite part is for sure... either the lining or the strap (which is simply three pieces of material two inches wide braided... all raw edges left exposed so that in theory it will fray just a bit, which I think will look stunning).




And then my other project completed last night was a quilted placemat. Or at least that's what I started out making.... and later I felt it's almost too big as a placemat and would be so suited for being a tablerunner of sorts (but little). I haven't a clue if there's a word for what I'm trying to explain, but it would be perfect.
One side is a Kaffe Fassett print, and really I'm not always quite a technicolor junkie fan, but this one spoke to me in a big way. And the other side is one of my very favorite pieces ever and I had just a fat quarter of it -- and I used it all!
It's hard to get pictures that do it justice because it's such a tactile creation. I keep walking by it and petting it. I'm still amazed and how much a few straight lines will completely change a piece of fabric. When the two pieces were initially turned and topstitched they looked nice, but nothing special. Now with the square spiral quilting, it's taken on a new life... and I still can't believe it! I'm going to have a good time playing with various quilting techniques and how they change the tone of a piece completely.