Winner!

The winner of the Hometown Christmas patterns is Nancy at Patchwork Penguin!  Congrats, Nancy!

Happy Quilting!

I did it!!

I finished the binding on the Hometown Christmas quilt in time for my guild meeting tonight!  Yesterday was a marathon movie and stitching day, for sure! 

I tested it out on our bed...it's nice and big!  I love it!  I'm going to have to look for some green or red pillow shams.  Can't wait for Christmas!  Well, really I can wait...I just can't wait to use this quilt at Christmas!  :)

 I love using up leftovers whenever possible for the backing.  I cut either 12" or 6" strips from the remaining kit fabric and added it to some other yardage for the back....

I love how the quilting turned out!

I used "Feathered Curls" panto with Antique Gold thread...

Now for those of you that have stuck around and followed my progress on this quilt, I have a surprise for you!  I am giving away the four Thimbleberries pattern leaflets to one of my lucky readers!  If you'd like to win, just leave a comment and I'll draw a winner on Friday.  I love this quilt, but I know I'll never make it again, so I'd love to pass on the patterns to someone who'd like to make it!

Good luck and Happy Quilting!!

Hometown Christmas

Last summer (or maybe two summers ago?), I vowed to make this quilt...it's called Hometown Christmas by Thimbleberries.  I've loved it for years, but it's an older pattern/kit and the fabrics aren't easy to find...so I thought I would just pull together my own thing.  But then, my friend Peggy, performed her magic and found a kit for me from a blogging acquaintance that really didn't live too far from her.  It was meant to be and I just had to make it.

Well, as life goes, I started it, then got sidetracked with other things.  It got packed away...outta sight, outta mind.  

This year our guild had a UFO challenge, so I added this to my list and vowed to get 'er done!

Here is the top all assembled.  I don't have indoor floor space big enough to take a picture of this baby!  It's huge...measuring 96"x 108".  

It's hard to even get the whole thing in the picture! 

I even have it up on the longarm this weekend.

Good thing too...'cause the guild meeting is Monday night.  Think I'll meet the challenge??  One thing is for sure...I'll have it on our bed for Christmas!

Happy Quilting!

A new project to share...

I've been doing a lot of quilts on the longarm this week...it feels good to be so productive!  I also started a new project just for me!  I'm sure like most crafters/quilters, I like to have some handwork while watching TV and also something that I can grab and go when I know I'll have some idle time...gotta keep those hands busy!  Unfortunately, I've been a bit of a slacker and haven't had anything ready to go for a couple months now!  eeekk!

Peggy gifted me with this adorable tablerunner pattern recently and I love, love, love it!  It's from Bird Brain Designs, by the way...and it's called "Snow Happens."

I finally got the fabric pressed and traced.  I must admit a little snafu that occurred...I like to back my embroideries with a lightweight interfacing.  I usually like to trace the pattern onto the fabric BEFORE ironing the interfacing on to the back of the fabric, but I added it before tracing this time.  No problem, my lightbox will shine through both layers.  So I start tracing and get halfway through the pattern when I realize I'm tracing on the INTERFACING side!  Ugh!!!  Nothing to do but start over!  Phooey!  Oh well...it's all traced correctly now and I even got a few stitches in (click picture for a closer look!).....

Another project I'd like to get done this week is my block for the Quilt Square Quilt Along.  For July, Jo gave us the option to do either of the two star blocks in the pattern...decisions, decisions...

Another interesting longarm job I recently completed.  A neighbor had a duvet cover that she loved for the fabric and color, but didn't like the "duvet" look...too messy and unkempt looking.  So we took the duvet apart, squared it up (it was really wonky!) and I loaded it on to the longarm and I quilted a nice all over meandering.  The fabric is almost like burlap, so I wondered how my machine would do...but it worked like a champ and quilted up beautifully.  She had purchased some matching fabric to eventually use for valances or something, and it ended up working perfectly for the binding.  She is very happy with the results!

Hope you all are enjoying a great week and staying cool!

Happy Quilting!

Challenges....

I recently had someone ask me if I could repair a quilt for her.  It's from her childhood and she wanted her daughter to be able to enjoy it as well.  She brought it over and this is what I saw (click images for closer view)....  

Actually it looked a little worse, because the quilt top was attached to a torn up backing....and the backing looked to be an old prequilted bedspread.  The top was sewn "pillowcase" style to the backing with no additional quilting...so I just cut around the edges to remove it.

Apparently a dog had gotten a hold of it....

 But the entire thing was threadbare with seams popping everywhere.  It had numerous piecing issues and didn't lay flat, due to some puckering in the seams.

Many, many times I cried questioned why I ever agreed to this project. I started out by replacing each and every torn square.  But that wasn't always working because all the squares are all different sizes and rows/seams don't match up perfectly.

I struggled A LOT with this thing...even thinking I needed to just give it back to her and tell her it couldn't be fixed.  But I'm just stubborn enough not to want to deal with the humiliation of telling someone I can't do it. :P  I stuck with it, finally taking my rotary cutter to it and cutting out the really bad parts and sewing the pieces I could save back together.  

This is the result!

I put little "heart" patches on some of the threadbare squares...it would have taken hours and hours to remove and replace them.  I backed it with a minkee type fabric, but no batting...it's nice and drape-y and cuddly!

 I had a few leftover pieces...I sewed them together and made a pillow...

It's backed with blue minkee for her nephew...

She picked it up yesterday and seemed really happy with the result.  I'm very happy with the result, happy to be able to help pass on a cherished memory to another generation, and even happier to be done with it!  It's not a project I'll soon forget!

Happy Quilting!

July 4th

June QSQA

Just a quick post to share my Quilt Square Quilt Along block.  You can see all the others over at Jo's Country Junction. This one was a tuffie this month....lotsa little triangles!  I had in mind to make a little table topper for the 4th of July, but so far, it's still just a quilt square.  I have a couple more days...maybe a miracle will happen!  :)

I also recently finished this wallhanging.  It's a birthday gift for my friend Robin.  Her blog is titled Life's a Stitch.  :)  I've wanted to try Tanya Ricucci "Word Play Quilts."  It was lots of fun to make...I was wishing it turned out a little wonkier, but I think that comes with practice and confidence in making the letters!  I hope she likes it!

That's all the sewing going on in my life lately.  I've been working on a few customer quilting projects, but I'm hoping to have the chance to work on something of my very own soon!!  :)

Happy Quilting!