Lazy Sunday Quilt - On Friday {is that a problem?}

A little over a year ago, my friend Leona and I came up with a bargain - she would "sell" me her Accu-Quilt Go! cutter and I would make her four quilts.  What a deal, huh?

First I made this scrappy Flea Market Fancy Hugs and Kisses quilt.

Then I made this Neptune Snow Globes quilt.

Then I made this dotty Scrappy Trip Along quilt.

And the whole time I was kind of plodding along with this Fat Quarter Shop Vintage Modern Block of the Month Mystery quilt.  About the time I was finishing up the blocks and starting on the finishing kit, she decided that this quilt had some difficult memories for her and she really didn't want the quilt after all.  And this after I had made doubles of all the blocks!  Note that FQS BOM kits are so generous, I got two blocks out of almost all of them - I was thinking "a quilt for Leona, and a quilt for me."  But since she decided she didn't want this quilt, I've been feeling a little guilty....  I didn't feel like I had lived up to my part of the deal we made.

So when Leona decided she wanted this Lazy Sunday quilt (pattern by Lee of May Chappel Designs) made from Anna Maria Horner's Dowry and True Colors lines, I agreed to make it immediately.  Even though there were 112 blocks required to make the double size quilt, they were fast and easy and fun.  In a day I had the blocks made and I put the quilt together over the next couple of days.  Then it took me another two days to get around to taking the pictures.  Less than a week from start to finish, and on top of a bunch of other stuff I was doing.

Since I was trying to take photos between rain squalls, I asked my friends Bob and Billie to hold the quilt up off the ground for me, rather than my usual pin-it-to-the-fence method.  And it's sideways for the same reason.

Here's the quilt right side up, but everything else is kind of topsy-turvy.  Anyway, I love how these fabrics in this pattern make just a riot of color!  I think it will be truly spectacular when it is quilted.  I just can't wait.

Meanwhile, I finished up another baby quilt, this one for Billie's new grandchild, Locke.  Mom and Dad decided not to find out the baby's gender beforehand, so neutral colors were the thing.  Their nursery is green with a monkey theme, so I used a really cute monkey fabric for the backing.  I really had fun making these two hexie flower baby quilts (click here to see the pink one).  They're super fast and a blast to make.  I think there will be more of these in my future.

I'm linking up with crazymomquilts for Finish-it Friday.

So what have you been up to this week?

Welcome Wee Ones

I have several friends who are expecting little ones - in fact, one of these sweet little ones was just born yesterday - the first boy after 6 girls!  Woo hoo!  I'm sure his parents are excited.

I missed my friend's baby shower because unfortunately it was the same day as the ECMQG A&E Field Trip (you can read all about it here and here.)  And, of course, I hadn't made the gift yet.  (Don't tell, but I bought the fabric for this one at the A&E field trip.)

It's finished now though, and I delivered it this morning.  I hope little Kai likes it, and that it keeps him warm and snuggly.

The fabric is mostly Tula Pink Salt Water with a few random pieces added.  The pattern is the Charm Baby Quilt by Elizabeth Hartman.  I quilted it with just loops because that was the kind of mood I was in.  Loops are so fast and easy, and you don't really have to think...  and before you know it, it's done.  Especially baby quilts.  I really like making baby quilts.

I also had need to make a girl quilt, and I chose this Swanky jelly roll by Chez Moi that was just sitting on the shelf.  Bright and cheerful and girly without being too pink, don't you think?  The pattern is a new design called Ribbon Candy by Diane of From Blank Pages, and I believe it'll be out very soon.   Diane asked that I not share photos of the full quilt yet, so here's just a snippet of what it looks like.  I really love these fabrics for a baby girl quilt. I quilted it with all-over loops also.  As I said, I was just in that kind of mood.

Sometimes, I really love a quick finish project.  Makes me feel so productive, you know?

Been Quiet Around Here

It's been a little quiet around the blog lately, but I've been busy.  BD#2 came home again this weekend and we had a lot to pack into a day and a half!  She finally got all the paperwork done to change all her ID documents to her married name.  We were fortunate that we were able to get it done when she first arrived so we had all day Friday to play.  We went blueberry picking, I came home and made a pie while she went to the beach, we celebrated first Father's Day, and generally had a great time.  Scroll below for my favorite Blueberry Pie recipe.

She asked for something cute to keep her sewing feet and supplies in.  The plastic bag that Janome provided with her machine was pretty lame.  Marcy had this already-quilted fabric up for grabs in her scrap bag at the ECMQG meeting last week, so all I had to do was cut it into a rectangle, add a zipper, sew up the sides and box the corners.  It made a pretty cute bag I think.

Then I had the blocks done for two quilts, and got them put together yesterday when I was feeling a bit down that my girlie had gone home.  This one is a reprise of a quilt I made several years ago that I called "Woodland by the Lake", so I guess this one is "Woodland by the Lake II".  It is a simple Eleanor Burns Quilt in a Day Log Cabin.  I have made tons of these quilts over the years.  They are straightforward and fun.  I doubt many modern quilters really realize just how indebted we are to Eleanor Burns.  Her methods were truly revolutionary in their day.  None of the methods that we take for granted today (strip piecing, for example) really existed before she came on the scene.  Thanks, Eleanor, for simplifying quilting so much.

This quilt was "commissioned" by my friend Billie, who is a Master Photographer, and is teaching me photography in exchange for some quilting.  (I love that the quilt looks a bit like stained glass in this photo.)  I am having a blast and learning a lot about photography.  (And the chatting is fun too.)

I also had the blocks {mostly} done for this Neptune quilt for Leona.  Sorry it's hanging sideways, but I didn't want it dragging in the dirt.  This was a really unique pattern, and I had fun putting it together.  The pattern is Snow Globes, by Tula Pink, and the fabric is mostly Neptune, with a bit of Prince Charming added.  The biggest challenge to this quilt was that most of the prints are directional, and it was kind of tricky to get them all going the right direction. 

And, since it's Father's Day, I thought I would share this early-90s photo of the fam.

Happy Father's Day 

to my sweet husband and all the dads out there.  Thanks for all you do!

Betty's Blueberry Pie

For a 9-inch pie
4 cups fresh (or frozen) blueberries
1/2 c sugar
1/3 c flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon-sugar

Prepare pastry (I use Pillsbury All-Ready Crust).  Heat oven to 425.  Rinse berries and stir in flour, sugar, cinnamon and lemon juice.  Pour into crust.  Dot butter on top of berries.  Put on top crust, flute edges, and pierce with knife.  Sprinkle with mixture of cinnamon and sugar.  Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until filling bubbles through pierced crust.  Cool and serve.  (Betty says you may want to cover fluted edges with tin foil to prevent over-browning, but I don't do this.)  {Also, I always place my pies on a foil covered pizza pan so they don't boil over into the oven - I hate cleaning up that mess.}

Enjoy!

Tula Pink Giveaway Winner

I just love this little froggy - he's so expressive!

I should have done this yesterday, but I just wasn't feeling bloggy.  I woke up yesterday morning and remembered that I was supposed to attend a baby shower and hadn't made the gift.  So I started a project... that took way longer than I thought.  I ended up giving the mommy-to-be a card and a promise, so she will get her gift today.

Anyway, I'm here today bright and early to announce the winner of the Quilts From the House of Tula Pink book and charm pack (BTW:  did you see BD#1's post on Quilt Market where she met the fabulous Tula?)

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

8 

Timestamp: 2013-05-26 13:27:32 UTC

 I thought it was so cool that it was such an early commenter this time...  Anyway, #8 was

8. Joyce  May 17, 2013 at 11:17 AM

I am a follower!

Congratulations, Joyce.  I'm off to email you.  And thanks also to Joyce and everyone else who follows this little blog.  I hope you find something useful or inspiring here from time to time.

Quick Gift Idea

 The 400th Post/Tula Pink giveaway is here, and ends today at 5:00 pm Central Time.

The other day I met my friend for a little fabric shopping/dinner adventure, and I wanted to make her a little gift.  She loves Tula Pink - and in fact I'm making a Neptune/Prince Charming quilt top for her - so I decided to make a little fabric basket from the selvages and some leftover linen from my Scavenger Bag.

This little basket is super easy to make.  I used the Pink Penguin tutorial.  Instead of using the 2" squares she used in her tutorial, I took 6" strips of selvage and sewed them together, then cut them in half and mix/matched them, and sewed them on in the same manner Ayumi did, then quilted and constructed the basket.  It is a fairly easy project, and takes about an hour.

I {over}stuffed it with a few little things from my stash.  I was glad I did, because she brought me a whole bag full of fabric, including some Lila Tueller Bohemian Festival jelly roll strips and pieces of layer cake I've been coveting.  I know exactly what I'm going to do with it, which is really quite rare for me.

I've made a couple of similar baskets.  This one from LouLouThi by Anna Maria Horner.

And this little one with handles is from LouLouThi as well.

So, if you need a quick gift for someone, this could work for you.  Have fun!

400th Post Giveaway - Quilts From the House of Tula Pink

This is my 400th blog post, a fact which amazes me no end.  When I started this blog, I NEVER, E-V-E-R thought that I would really blog - you know, actually write in this forum.  Regularly write.

I really started the blog just to be able to see - and comment on - pictures of my grandchildren (gratuitous photos of grandchildren inserted here), which you know is almost as necessary as breathing, if you're a Grandma.  But once again, I digress...

I have decided to honor the occasion with a giveaway.  I really like doing giveaways.  I love reading the comments I receive.  It's so fun.  I try to answer every one, although sometimes its kind of daunting, and I know that in past giveaways I have missed a few.

So, to celebrate my 400th blog post, I am giving away Tula Pink's book Quilts From the House of Tula Pink and a charm pack of the remaining prints I have of Prince Charming.

I regret that this won't be a complete set of the fabrics in the line, as I have used and/or given away a few of them.  But there is a respectable selection remaining in my stash, and I want you to have something to work with when you get the book. 

You can see that I've used this particular fabric a lot.

So, what do you have to do to win this little gift?  You have up to four chances to win:

1. Just leave a comment here and tell me about a project that's on your quilting bucket list, and why.  Or tell me about a project you are currently working on.  That's all - you will be entered in the giveaway.
2.  If you are - or become - a follower, you get a second entry.
3.  LIKE my Facebook page, or if you have already done so, just leave a comment on my FB page and then come back here to enter. 
4.  Use your favorite social media to tell your friends about my giveaway - blog, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, etc., then come back here and let me know.

This giveaway will be open until midnight Central time on Friday, May 24.  I will post the winner on my blog by Sunday, May 26.  Please be sure you are not a no-reply blogger.  I will immediately choose another winner if I don't have your email address.

Thanks for visiting - and good luck!

"Prince Charming" Double Hexie Pillows

We all know I simply have no self control when it comes to swaps, but I really love how they stimulate the creative process for me.  While I have received some totally fab-u-lous gifts in swaps, they are not the reason I participate.  I love to try new things and make something that {I hope} will please my partner.  Without the inspiration of the swap, and making things for new people each time, I doubt I would ever try anything new.

For this project, my partner suggested a palette that is not-quite my usual style. I was really stumped until I remembered that I had this Tula Pink Prince Charming bundle sitting on the shelf that I purchased - and used quite a lot - in 2011.  In fact, I made my son pillows from it that year.

The pattern was inspired by this tutorial from Kerri and from this pattern by Jaybird Quilts. 

Be sure if you try it that you are using a 60-degree equilateral triangle template.  Yes, I made a huge mistake and had to re-cut all the triangles.  Boo.  It was a lot of extra work, but the pillow turned out OK in the end.  In fact, I kind of like the fact that the inside hexagon is smaller than the outside, but it wasn't planned that way.  LOL

I had a couple of blocks left over so for the "extra" item, I made this little hexi-ish scrap basket.  If I was to do it again, I would make the inserts more rectangular than triangular, and make it a little bigger.  It is a mere 5-inches in diameter, so it is small, but deep.  Still, it would work very well in my sewing space, which is very cramped (to say the least).

So there you have it - one more swap completed with the hope that it is something my partner will really enjoy.

Fun Mail - Indulgence

I received another wonderful package in the mail late last week, this one perhaps even more eagerly anticipated than the rest!  It came from none other than Westwood Acres, BD#1's little fabric shop, and was filled-to-bursting with yummy fabric goodness.  I was totally self-indulgent and while I felt a little guilty, I couldn't help but just sit for awhile and pet all these lovely bundles of color.

Here's what was in my box:

The Birds and the Bees, by the fabulous Tula Pink.

Chicopee by the ever-so-talented Denyse Schmidt.

Out to Sea (boys)...

And Out to Sea (girls), by the playful Sarah Jane.

Field Study, by the incomparable Anna Maria Horner.

And finally,

A lovely bundle of Madrona Road, by the delightful Violet Craft.


 With apologies to my dear daughter for messing up her lovely and precise stacks of fabric, I proclaim...

Ahhhh,  I'm in fabric heaven!

Oh, for more time to play with this yummy cotton goodness...  But for now, I have to go to work so I can perhaps buy more fabric one day.

One Last Block

This is the first month of the Sew Fun Bee S-e-w - & - B-e-e - H-a-p-p-y bee (Sheesh, are these bee names really alike, or what - no wonder I'm confused!) and Cindy was the first to be Queen.  She chose the Stargazing block which was really fun to make once I realized I wasn't clever enough to use different fabrics for each point of the star.  You have to follow the directions, though, or you and your seam ripper will get to become even better acquainted.

Cindy really wanted two blocks, but I didn't have time to make another stargazing block (these little guys get to go all the way to Ireland), so I decided to do the next best thing - I made her a simple wonky star block from some scraps in the scrap bin.  This Erin McMorris fabric always makes me smile. 

Funny, I had this block already made when she said her quilt needed more orange.  Too cool.

Cindy, I hope you like them! 

In other news, I'm playing along in craftytammie's shades of gray charm swap but I mis-read the instructions where she said she wanted them in the mail by January 15th so that she could mail them back by the 31st - I thought she wanted them mailed by the 30th.  Oops.  I felt really stupid.  I bought the fabric a couple of weeks ago, so I really didn't have any excuse.  Saturday morning early I got up and chopped charms so I could get to the post office before it closed to get them in the mail.  To try to assuage my guilt, I made Tammie a little gift.  I thought this Prince Charming hexi needlebook turned out kinda cute.

I guess I really need to start paying closer attention to the details, huh?

Fun Bloggy Stuff

Hey y'all!  Did you see what my talented daughter created???  Yes, I'm the proud mama and I just have to share.  Isn't this gorgeous?  It's Tula Pink's Prince Charming which is pretty darn yummy fabric (I know.  I've been playing with it myself lately - when I'm not playing with wedding dresses...)

Anyway, want to win a charm pack of Prince Charming - or another charm pack of your choice?  Head on over to Leona's blog and leave a comment (or four).  One lucky winner will be able to choose a charm pack from BD#1's Etsy shop.

See, I told you it was fun!

Make Mine Modern

My Make Mine Modern Swap package is in the mail.  I've actually had it ready for awhile, but the mail date wasn't til the 10th.  Since BD#2 and I are sharing a car, I didn't actually mail it til Saturday.

The package actually consists of the pillow, done pieced square in a square fashion...

A little zipper pouch, that would be great for holding things like crochet hooks or seam rippers, or maybe even a little travel sewing kit...

A little embroidered hoop...

A pinnie...

And of course, the purpose of the whole swap, 1-1/2 yards of fabric, which in this case is 6 fat quarters of Tula Pink's Prince Charming, purchased from my fave web shop, Westwood Acres.

Partner, I hope you like it!