Have I Been Busy?

I keep thinking I haven't done much quilting lately, but actually I have. I just haven't been doing a lot of piecing.  So what have I been doing?

I broke two needles trying to free motion quilt this table topper. After lot of unquilting I finally used my walking foot and stitched in the ditch. Also got the binding on...done.

I made two Trick-or-Treat bags for two very cute little boys.

I took the Juki off the frame so I could quilt the butterfly quilt. I've finished all of the in-the-ditch quilting, figured out what I want to quilt in the blocks, made a sample block to test...looks good huh? It's been sitting like that for three weeks.  Can you say CHICKEN!

I am making two very simple rag quilts. I've had this flannel for over 10 years. It needs to be gone. I've finished all the snipping on this one and the other is all ready to be put together.

And I've done lots...

and lots...

of binding. I really really really like these table toppers. Really.

I cleaned out my bookcase. Put all my patterns in sheet protectors and grouped like patterns in binders. Sorted all the magazine. Sorted the books...and shocker, got rid of some of the books.

It only looked that organized for about two seconds.

I did do some piecing. I cut out this Maple Island BQ3 quilt a few months ago and pieced all the blocks last weekend. 

Aren't the colors wild. I finished the top this afternoon but it needs ironed before I can show it off.

AND I went to PIQF yesterday! More on that soon.

I guess those little things really do add up.
 

Much Better

  
The blah wedge table topper is no longer blah. I liked Rose's suggestion to use yellow in the center and found a small piece that match one of the fabrics in the wedges (makes all the yellow really pop out)...then I lightly stuffed it and button tufted it.

And now I love it! I think it looks very vintage.

I still made the Halloween version but I used a fabric design I found here. Fewer fabrics (all stash), quilted with binding and it only took a day to make. Plus bonus points...its done BEFORE Halloween. Now I need to make one for Christmas.

Beverly's (a local, smaller version of Joann's who carries high quality designer quilt fabrics) had a big sale this Labor Day weekend.  I was weak...very weak...and doing a bit of a happy dance.

Over 17 yards of fabric for $64 (including tax)! Most of it was only $2.97 a yard and wonderful, pretty Marcus Brothers fabrics! Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know...I need fabric like I need a hole in my head but remember I'm weak. ;o)

  

Making Progress

 

I've made a dent in the pile of quilting projects.

 

For both of the embroidery wall hangings I echo quilted the embroidery then "copied" the floral pattern in the border fabric as the border quilting design.

 

Loopy flowers...and square edged flowers.

Nancy gave me her extra Day Break blocks, I've made table toppers with them and quilted each one a little different.

I love how these turned out. I can't wait to quilt my Day Break quilt...I just have to decide which motifs to use.

The only piecing I did all month was this little table topper...

 

It's just kinda blah...I really like the original String Ring table mat. It was very fast and easy to make but I think mine is too scrappy (and still needs the rick-rack added). I think I'll try it again using Halloween fabrics...black, orange, purple and tan...I think limiting the number of colors will help.

 

I've been fighting a (losing) battle of the ants the last couple of weeks. Today I found them in the pantry. I cleaned out the pantry, bug sprayed the bejesus out of it and have had it closed up for about an hour.  Guess I'd better get back to the kitchen and put everything back...I did need to clean out the pantry but not like this. ;o)

 
The green and cream half square quilt top is done. I decided at the last minute it needed to be a bit bigger and have another spin. I really like it but part of me wishes I'd taken the time to have the lines flow into the second spin instead zig-zag. I had a hard time working the second spin in, by the time I figured it out it was late and I was grumpy.

I have lots of quilting to do. I ran out of safety pins or the pile would be bigger. I took the Juki off the frame so I can use it to quilt the butterfly quilt.

And I have a finish! Even the binding is done. I quilted Picnic with double loops in a sage green thread. This is not a big quilt but it took three spool of thread for the top and bobbins.  Are they putting less thread on spools? I emptied one spool filling four bobbins then ran out of bobbin and top thread with about 10 inches of quilt left. I swear my larger quilts didn't take that much thread.

 

My adventure for the week:

 

 

My tire blew out on the highway at about 8 p.m. Not too bad as I was already slowing down to take the next exit. Thank goodness for a large shoulder on the road, the Highway Patrol, CSAA and a good spare tire. I was back on the road in 30 minutes.

 

We've had a lot of fires in my area. Below is a very pretty, very smoky sunset.

 

 

Prolific

I think I've mentioned it before Nancy is a very prolific quilter...

A mystery quilt from our local quilt store.

I don't remember the name of the pattern but I love the colors.

And her Day Break quilt...she went a little overboard when she was cutting out the blocks, it takes two people to hold her quilt up.

I'm trying to be prolific also...I finished my Day Break quilt...only takes one person to hold it up.

I made a ton of green and cream half square blocks years ago with a different pattern in mind...it probably would still be in the closet if I stuck to the original pattern...still have a few rows to add, don't know the pattern, I used a picture I took ages ago for the design.

Picnic is loaded on the frame (it's almost done).

The butterfly quilt is pinned. I know what design I want to quilt in each 9 inch block, which I can't do on my frame. This is the first quilt I finish after I started blogging almost 6 years ago.

These are ready to be pinned...other than I need to find backs for them.

I'd say I have a little bit of quilting to do.

 

Distracted

Jayme and I took a detour from quilting this past weekend.  We are both late blooming hippies...

 

We tie-dyed for the first time ever...what a mess, but lots of fun.

 

We used the same dress, but different techniques...this is the original dress.

 

 

Jayme folded her dress in half, drew a line across it, then fan folded it. Cool.

 



 

I did a traditional spiral. After applying the dye to the wedges I sponge brushed the whole thing with purple.  Groovy man.

 

We had a bit of dye left over so I grabbed a couple of old white t-shirts and tried a couple of other techniques.

 

 

My hands are still purple.

Peace.
 

 

Not a Pieced Back

  
So. How can I tell a story about a pieced back for the Modern Amish quilt when I've never shown a picture of the finished quilt? This is the last post I did on the quilt.  Here is the finished Modern Amish quilt:

Finished the quilt top in 2013.

Last year I decided I had lots of scraps left over and would make a pieced back for the quilt.  Well that didn't happen. I didn't like how it was going so put it away...for a year.

Worked on it again last weekend. By the time I finished piecing it I decided to make it a quilt top. I didn't want to hassle with trying to figure out the center of the quilt top and the center of the back and trying to line them both up so the center of the back was in the center of the top. Makes me stressed just writing that. So I made another top. Little bit smaller than planned but it uses up the last of the gray most of the solid scraps from the original quilt.

Now I have to find a back for both quilt tops.