Will I have withdrawals?

The past few days I have let several quilts go to new homes.  I know I can't keep them all, and I need to do this, but dang I love them.  The good side is they will be used and loved rather than just being put away where they aren't seen.  These two have a common theme -- fall!  Everyone must be loving this time of year and wanting something to decorate with or warm to wrap up in.  

Oak Leaves N Reel

I believe this fabric is a Sandy Gervais print "Trick or Treat"
I pieced it years ago and just got the quilting done, cottons and flannels

Look at those cute pumpkins and leaves

I will share pictures of some others in a separate post. 

December Scrap quilt

This scrap quilt used some remaining "Figgy Pudding" scraps and measures about 20" square.  The strips of rectangles you see were one-inch pieces I had remaining and I pieced them in strips adding white sashing between the rows.  I added a small red stop border and then 2 1/2" squares four the outside border.  It was a good use of very small scraps and found a nice little spot on my desk at work.   

December Charm quilt

This charm quilt was made with the fabric line "Figgy Pudding" which has been hanging around in my stash for a while.  I used a Schnibbles pattern from Miss Rosie's quilts.  The pattern is amazing, but it didn't work with this fabric line.  You cannot  really pick them outbut there are three different blocks in this pattern -- 9 star blocks, the center of each being a pinwheel, on the outer edge of the star blocks a shoo fly block is trying to peek out.  I think the quilt (actually a table topper, it is under 40" square) needed more fabric that was a solid or very small print for the blocks to stand out better.  But, even though it isn't necessarily a favorite, I have gotten several compliments on it, as I have mentioned a few times, my camera isn't taking the best pictures these days.   

Rhonda

October Charm Quilt

Last month I used my scraps to make a Halloween Quilt using 2 1/2" strips.  Needless to say I had lots of fabric left over from my Halloween stash (that's what fabric hoarders do).  I am hooked on using a solid black background fabric and thus I decided to try another Halloween project using 5" squares (charms).  Halloween is almost here so I am cataloging these ideas for next year.  I love the double pinwheels that seem to flow throughout the quilt.

I used a pattern called "Xs and Os" by Olive Tree Textiles.  I modified it a bit by adding borders using 2 1/2" strips left over from my other project and more black and this is what I came up with.  I did a simple loop design for the quilting with purple thread.

The back of the quilt was from my stash of Halloween yardage that I try and purchase when the season is over for a wonderful discount.  This stripe and purple print with witches is just bewitching!

It's another favorite.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Rhonda

September Scrap Quilt

September's scrap quilt is more of a "stash" than scrap quilt.  With Halloween just a few weeks away I pulled out the Halloween stash.  Talk about scary -- I had more fabric than I thought.  It was so much fun opening that container, cutting 2 1/2" strips and sewing this project.  I used a pattern from Jaybird Quilts and a new little tool called a lazy angle ruler (it is like a grown up toy for quilters).  Tomorrow it is on its way to a new home and the quilting starts on the next one ... stay tuned. 

Rhonda

Works in progress

I haven't finished my scrap quilt for this month, or my charm quilt -- and am not going to meet my self-made deadlines but I do have pictures of my finished blocks to share.  This was to be my June scrap quilt which is made using the fabric line Oasis by Moda which my girlfriend gave me from a quilt she made.  I have had to purchase a little bit of a yardage, so I have enough for binding and backing, but am going to get a quilt measuring approximately 80 x 80 out of it.  There are nine patches, star blocks and borders.  Here's a glimpse ...

Hopefully in the next month or so I will have the blocks put together and quilted and a completed project to show.

May scrap quilt

This month's scrap quilt is designed using leftovers from this quilt I made for a customer.  She doesn't sew so she gave me the scraps.

Although there was not an abundance of fabric left over from this project, I wanted to use every little piece.  So I cut the few scraps I had into even smaller 1 1/2 inch squares, I then cut 5" squares from a solid cream and stitched the 1 1/2 inch squares right sides on the diagonal of each corner of a 5 inch cream background square. This formed a triangle in each corner.  When the squares were sewn together they formed these cute little offset squares -- I think they were happy to meet each other.

This was the result of their reunion ....

It has taken me a little while longer than I thought it would to piece this together.  And -- as if that wasn't enough, when I was trying to determine how to use some more scraps to sew the back, this was the result ...

I now have a sweet little quilt for a baby in aqua and brown that could be for a boy or girl -- and if you don't like one side, just flip it over and use the other.

Better get back to sewing.  Next month's scrap quilt won't be a baby size and there's lots of cutting and stitches and triangles and squares ... stay tuned!

May Charm Quilt

It's a new month and time for more quilts ... I'm behind on the scrap quilt so the charm quilt is getting posted first this month.  There is hope for summer as there is some green grass poking up in this picture.  I don't know if I am more excited about the quilt or the grass and the fact it was nice enough to actually take a photo outside.

May's charm quilt was made using another Moda fabric line called "Oh My" by Sanae.  I can't decide if the fabric has a retro or modern look but I wanted the quilt to actually have a vintage look so I used a pale yellow background fabric.  I made the pattern up myself (and had to have some input from my mother as to the layout when it came to the diagonal rows).

For the quilt back I used a dot rather than a floral with a darling fuchsia for binding.  And below you can see the floral pattern I quilted into the pinwheels. 

Happy May!

Baby quilt using fat quarters

A month ago I posted a picture of a quilt made from Dr. Seuss prints.  This little quilt was made using the same pattern, but using black, pink, lime green and white.  It is fun how to see how different each quilt turns out. Oftentimes someone will tell me they don't like a pattern, but it is usually because they aren't fond of the fabric used.  I felt the same way about this pattern, but love the pattern having made it with fabric that I like.  It is simple to make, takes 8 fat quarters for the top, and I can sew, quilt and bind the entire quilt in less than a day.

And just wait until you see what I am making from the scraps!

Finally ...

I made this wall hanging for my mom for Christmas this past year.  It has sat all folded up in her sewing room like a silent child being punished, and she didn't hang it on her dining room wall.  I thought she didn't hang it up because she did not like it and didn't want to hurt my feelings (is it inappropriate grammar to use didn't that many times in a sentence?).  Tonight I walked in her home and much to my surprise look what was hanging on her wall!!!  Yay, it did my heart good. This wall hanging is the first machine applique quilt I have completed.  I quilted around the applique pieces and then used a small meander to make them pop up a bit.  Yes I gave myself a big pat on the book when this was done.

April's charm quilt - Central Park

This month's charm quilt was made using 2 charm packs (remember a charm pack is a stack of 42 -- 5" squares) of Kate Spain's fabric "Central Park". I pieced together 5" blocks, cut them in half and half again creating squares and rectangles (also known as a Disappearing 9 patch block).  You can lay them out in several ways to sew them back together in rows (soon I will show you the Halloween table topper I made -- yes you heard me right HALLOWEEN!).  There are some absolutely gorgeous pieces in this line of fabric (I want to buy some yardage) and it was so much fun.  It didn't take long to sew, quilt and bind.  I used a large daisy print as a backing and a solid yellow for the binding.  It brightens my day to look at this quilt and makes it feel like springtime (although I don't think it will ever quit snowing and/or raining here in Idaho).

My idea of a layer cake

My sister, Julie, has shared some of her decadent layer cakes with you on our blog.  There is no question that she is a very good cook and extremely creative in her presentation.  As for me, I don't make decadent layer cakes.  I prefer to bake a sheet cake.  They taste the same, they may not look as pretty but they don't take as long to stack and frost and do all that greasing and flouring and wax paper stuff so they come out of the pan.  (Ask my sister sometime about the SHEET cake I made her for her 40th birthday).

My idea of a layer cake is well -- a little different -- I use a fabric layer cake to create a quilt.  (A fabic layer cake is precut 10x10 inch squares, normally about 42 of them).  This particular layer cake, pictured below, is called "Sunkissed" by Sweetwater. It features yellow, green, pink, orange, gray and cream. It is springy and fun and beautiful and won't leave any extra inches on my hips because I don't need any more. 

The actual sheet cake pictured above, if you are interested, is a Banana Cake (yummy, tastes like banana bread with frosting).  Here is the recipe. 

2 c. sifted flour
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1-1/3 c. sugar
1/2 c. shortening
1/2 c. sour milk or buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. ripe mashed bananas
1/2 c. chopped nuts/pecans
2 eggs-beaten

Add shortening and dry ingredients.  Add 1/4 cup milk, mashed bananas and mix until flour is dampened; beat 2 minutes.  Add beaten eggs, nuts, and remaining milk.  Beat 1 minute.  Turn batter into greased and floured cake pan.  Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until it springs back with touch.  Cover with tin foil and let cool.  Once the cake has cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting and store in the fridge.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
4 oz. softened cream cheese
4 T. soft butter
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. powdered sugar

Beat altogether.  Frost your banana cake and store in fridge.

The tutorial for the quilt that I made out of the Sunkissed layer cake can be found at P.S. I Quilt under the tutorial tab.  Rachel Griffith is extremely talented and has wonderful quilt tutorials she is kind enough to share.

Julie's layer cakes always taste better -- but mine certainly have fewer calories :o)  Here it is all baked and frosted.

April's scrap quilt

I have been so excited for April to come to share this month's scrap quilt with you.  A few years ago I made a quilt from a fabric line called "Tiddlywinks".  Of the scraps I had left, some pieces were large and others quite small and uneven.  I took a piece and started adding some very uneven pieces to the sides ... and then even more uneven pieces and trimmed the blocks to a specific size and sewed them together.  There is no rhyme or reason to this quilt but I am very pleased with the final result. 

I stayed with my uneven theme and put a row of scraps in the back.  It was a fun addition to the plain brown.

The end.

Christmas was late ... or maybe it was early

A girlfriend asked me to make this for her in 2010.  I decided it would make a delightful Christmas present and told her I wouldn't charge her that I would make it as a gift for Christmas.  I love giving handmade presents. The problem was ... I finished it and gave it to her on March 28, 2011 (it was snowing here in Idaho and was white on the ground) does that still count as Christmas 2010 or was it an early gift for Christmas 2011?  Either way -- I think she liked it!

Coneflower Crazy by Buggy Barn Quilts

I have always wanted to make this quilt and recently a friend asked me to make one for her.  I was happy to do it.  What I didn't know about this pattern, was that each block contains 46 pieces ... times that by 25 blocks and what do you get?  It took me a while, but I love the way it turned out.  It was fun to have some flowers around in the middle of winter and it is now beautifully displayed in the entry of my friend's home.

March Scrap Quilt

As I have said before and you will hear me say many times throughout my posts, I am a fabric addict.  Not only do I have a lot of projects to make, I tend to keep the scraps from past projects -- because you never know when a 1-2" piece might come in handy.  Each month I have set a goal to try and complete a quilt using nothing but scraps!  (I am pretty secure in knowing I can do this for a year).  My scrap piles continue to grow with each new project (kind of like yeast when placed in warm water to dissolve).  For my March project I pieced 2 1/2 wide strips of various lengths together in rows and sewed a neutral fabric between each row.  I love the fabric I found for the back of the quilt; the green dot I used in the binding complemented both the front and back and pulled it all together.  It turned our darling and I have enough of the brown floral and green dot left to make a little pair of pants for a new baby ;o) 
I can hardly wait to share April's scrap quilt with you! 

Dr. Seuss Quilt

When my sons were growing up some of my favorite books to read to them were the infamous Dr. Seuss. We have quite a collection. Needless to say, when a Dr. Seuss fabric line came out I absolutely HAD to purchase just a few pieces to make something. I decided on a project with fat quarters and this little quilt was so bright and fun it totally made my day. How could you not be happy?! The back of the quilt has some of the favorite characters such as The Grinch, Horton Hears a Who, Cat In The Hat, The Sneetches, The Lorax, etc. A couple of months ago I got some books out for my nieces to read -- one of the books Trevor (my oldest son) had written his name in big letters. It brought back many memories and I wished I could sit down and read to him again.
Rhonda

Rhonda's quilts on the clothesline

When my sister and I decided to start a blog, we wanted to share some of our favorite things. If you were to ask me what I enjoy the most, this picture says is all. I have a delightful grandson, Kobe, who is 3 years old, a new granddaughter expected in April 2011, and I am passionate about quilting! Last fall while several quilts were hanging on the clothesline, Kobe was playing hide and seek in them. I have not only a large quilt collection, but a larger fabric collection (many would call it an addiction). Needless to say, if I am not spending time with family, you will find me sewing and quilting. I am looking forward to sharing my favorite things with you.