I Am Having A Tea Party

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Welcome to my Tea Party!!

I had sooo much fun making this Tea Party set. Table mat, rug mug and oven mitt.

It started off with this fabric which I LOVE. (Tea Patchwork (Color B) Japanese fabric by Yuwa Live)

Fussy cutting the sections I wanted to use stopped my heart a bit. Had to breath in deeply and just do it. Sad that I had to ruin the sections around the one I wanted. But I am thinking what great “scraps” I will have. And you know how much I love scraps. I will use the ruined pieces in other projects.

Anyhoo… I made the rug mug first. Loved the look. Decided it needed something to sit on. Made the table mat. And after eyeballing the leftovers, knew I could stretch them and make one more item. An oven mitt!! Perfect to complete the set, don’t you think.

Loving the yellow. Loving the blue. I rarely work with either. The yellow is just the right touch to bring thoughts of Spring. The feeling of sun warming your face. In my parts, the sun can’t make up its mind. Here one minute. Gone the next. It is still kind of cool. The heat is still on. So looking forward to being able to open all the windows in the house.

Well, thanks for joining me for tea. Stay a while, put your feet up. Sip a bit.

(Oh, I forgot to tell you. I quilted the set on my new sewing machine. So far it is working out great!!)

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Linking up to…

http://simplymissluella.blogspot.com/

http://www.conniekresin.com/2013/04/linky-tuesday.html

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2013/03/kid-potential.html

http://richardquilts.blogspot.com/2013/03/late-link-finish-friday-60.html

http://www.confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2013/03/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-whats-your-big.html

http://www.sew-much-ado.com/2013/03/we-did-it-wednesday_26.html

http://aroundtheblockdesigns.blogspot.com/2013/03/really-random-thursday-32813_28.html

ScrappyTripAroundTheWorld: Design Wall Update

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Any clue why this block is called Scrappy? I didn’t use scraps. I had to cut fresh 2 1/2″ strips from stash. I guess because it “looks” scrappy.

Anyhoo, I have been accumulating blocks since I first showed them to you up on my design wall the beginning of February. (On the bottom left)

I had been making them on and off in between my other projects. After finishing the Crossroads to Jericho quilt top, my attention turned to Scrappy Trip Around The World (STATW).

When I first started making these blocks, the process seemed easy enough. Cut the strips, sew them together, press, sew one side to create a tube, trim the top for a clean straight edge, cut into six 2 1/2″ sections. Whew!! I am tired just typing that.

HERE ARE THE STEPS IN PHOTOS.

Cut and sew together six strips. 2 1/2″ by 15″

Press with seams in opposite directions.

Sew one side to form the tube.

Cut tube into six sections of 2 1/2″ each.

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But wait!! Not finished. Next comes the fun part. Getting out the thread ripper and removing the seams you just sewed. Yep, you have to “undo” the seams to create those pretty columns. I prepared a few at a time so they would be ready to sew back together when the urge hit me. Pinning to match up the seams was sooo time consuming but I preferred it instead of ending up with unabutted (is that a word, ) seams.

MORE PHOTOS OF THE STEPS.

Ripping out seams to form strips.

The first time I did this, I was so confused and ripped out the wrong seams. It was a head-scratcher. Until I figured out the trick. The trick is this. Whatever fabric is on the BOTTOM is the fabric you rip the seam for next. It is like you are going bottom to top.

Ripping done. All six strips lined up with the burgundy fabric going diagonally down the center.

Each seam pinned before sewing columns together.

And done… perfectly abutted.

I pressed the blocks so I could see them all nice and flat up on my design wall.

Not happy with the “pink” sections. They stand out too much. Thinking about pulling them and making a little quilt with just them. Right now the blocks measure 76″ by 76″. Six across and six down.

One thing… I am so glad I decided to used a burgundy color for the centers. Easier to see the diamond pattern.

BTW, in case you are wondering… I am happily bonding with my new sewing machine. Janome Horizon Memory Craft 7700 QCP.

It seems to sew quieter and is much faster than my old one. I had to dial the speed down. Couple things I have to get used to. The Up and Down Needle Setting won’t stay engaged. I am constantly pressing one or the other. My old Janome had a selection on the screen and when I selected it, that setting overrode the button I pressed on the machine. Does that make sense? So.. not happy with that and also it is awkward having to reach all the way to the back of the machine to lift up the Foot Lifter. My old one was on the side. Closer to me. Oh well.

But so far, those are two things I am adjusting too. Still reading. Still learning. The main reason I got it was for quilting. (Well, actually hubby “got” it. He paid for it. He was tired of me complaining I did not have enough quilting space. What a guy!!) It has three separate quilting feet. Loving that. Going to try them out today or tomorrow. Wish me luck!!

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Have you jumped on the STATW bandwagon? How many blocks did you make? Do tell…

Go here if you would like to make your own STATW.

http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2005/06/scrappy-trips-around-world.html

Binding Day: Done, Done and Done

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OK… as you know, I had a “quilting day” last Saturday. It was National Quilting Day. I showed you the three projects I finished quilting.

Well, yesterday was Binding Day.

Binding Project #1.

I used this Michael Miller yellow fabric with huge white dots to bind my little Tea Party rug mug. Binding is 2 1/2″ folded, machine stitched to the front, then machine stitched in the ditch from the front to sew the backside. I pinned from the back and then slowly sewed while keeping an eye on the pins on the underside. I removed the pins as I approached.

I used deep plum thread on the top and yellow bobbin thread. I have to tell ya. I LOVE how this turned out. And definitely will make another.

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Binding Project #2.

I bought this WILD fabric (Alexander Henry) a couple years ago and have been auditioning it for many, many projects. But it got tossed back on the shelf more times than not. BUT for this little ticker tape mat, it was perfect.

I was trying for a wider look so I cut the binding 3″. But wish now that I had cut 2 1/2″ instead. It folded up on the back a tad bit more than I wanted. But other than that, it came out ok when I machine stitched the backside.

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Binding Project #3.

I call this fabric the “tape measure” fabric because that is what it reminds me of.

This one I did cut 3″ binding strips and left an eighth inch of batting showing to give the binding a wider look.

Not sure of the brand name/manufacturer for this yellow fabric. Will have to dive into my selvage bin to see if I still have it.

So, that is what I did on my Binding Day.

Have you tried machine stitching the binding back? Or do you prefer to hand stitch the back? Do tell..

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Linking up to…

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2013/03/soft-kitty.html

What I Did On National Quilting Day

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Last Saturday was National Quilting Day. So, I thought I would stop all that piecing and sewing and quilt something. Something easy. Easy and quick. Nothing like instant gratification to put a smile on your face.

I started with this little mug rug. (It could be a mini wall hanging.)

I fussy cut the cup from this fabric. I love it!!

Simple Log Cabin style. As I was just about finished and ready for the last round, I remembered my American Jane fabric had similar flowers as those around the tea cup. And what do you know. They were perfect. Quilting was a few straight lines. Didn’t want to quilt the tea cup.

This is the back.

Now just have to decide what to use for the binding. Probably the yellow.

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Next I quilted this table mat. Triple wavy lines.

I created the mat months ago… from all those small scrap pieces I have lots of. To bring a bit of order to the scrappiness, I purposely mixed in the yellow tape measure fabric here and there.

The back is just as functional as the front. Tired of the front? Flip it.

For the binding, if I have enough, I will use the yellow tape measure fabric.

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Lastly, I quilted something I started months ago. A ticker tape little quilt with the raw edged pieces sewn on top of pre-quilted white fabric.

It was the 2nd one I made and had planned to finish it and put both in my Etsy shop. BUT the first took so long to make (after I kept adding stuff), that I was plum tuckered out and didn’t finish the second one. It ended up in the dust collecting UFO pile. Quilting was diagonal lines following the pattern of the pre-quilted fabric.

This is what the first one looks like finished.

Now I wish I had put the Go Green on the second one. Kinda cute, huh?

So… that is how I spent last Saturday, National Quilting Day.

What all did you do? Do tell.

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Linking up to…

http://www.conniekresin.com/2013/03/linky-tuesday_19.html

Crossroads Quilt Top, Leaders and Enders Quilt Blocks and Charity Pillowcases

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It’s been awhile since my last post. But I am still here. Alive and kicking.

Want to see what I have been working on?

I finished the quilt top for my Crossroads to Jericho blocks near the end of February. Nine rows across and eight rows down. 72 blocks. Each block is 9″ square. I ended up with 20 extras and could probably make the quilt top wider or longer. But for now, I think I will leave it as is. 78″ by 70″.

It wasn’t until I was sewing Rows 3 and 4 together that I figured out an easier way to get the points to line up correctly. It isn’t perfect but I am happy with how it turned out. Here are a couple closeups.

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And in between making that quilt top, I made all of these blocks.

I am calling them my Leaders and Enders scrappy quilt blocks because that is how they were made. Sewing this way slows you down a bit but time I have. I wasn’t in a rush. There are 56 blocks up on my design wall. Ready for me to sew together.

Each block measures 10″ square. Most are Log Cabin or my version of the Log Cabin. I let the fabric speak to me and placed it where I thought it looked best.

These are my favorites.

The BEST PART… I now have my scraps totally under control. I started off with a handful of each color (except brown, saving them for later). I thought about cutting and trimming each scrap, Scrap Management, and doing what the “experts” say to do. But then I would still be cutting and trimming. I decided to Grab and Sew working from a huge pile of scraps plunked down right in the center of my work table. I even used my stash when I ran out of longer strips for the last round (10″ strip). That felt really great. Scraps and Stash. Even selvages were used for several blocks.

Did I use up all of my scraps? Nope. Still have lots left. But I did take the time to somewhat organize what was left by size. Long strips, squares/rectangles/odd shapes. And bits. LOTS of bits. A huge bag full of them. Tiny pieces 1 1/2″ or smaller. I couldn’t part with them. I will use them for smaller projects like doll quilts.

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I also made my charity pillowcases the L and E way. In between everything else. Hubby said it looked like a tornado had hit my sewing room. I have to admit, I had stuff everywhere but it was organized stuff. I knew where everything was. Originally I was setting aside two or three days a month to make the pillowcases. But sewing them as enders has worked out great.

Don’t you love these fabrics!! Bright. Bold. I made 22 for February and already have seven started for March.

Sorry I didn’t do a February roundup to show you what I made. I didn’t make a lot of stuff. Mostly I worked on Crossroads to Jericho blocks, Scrappy Trip Around the World blocks and my BOM blocks. Oh, and I made a heart themed mug rug for a swap in one of my quilt groups. I will post photos on my sidebar.

Hope you have been crafting and doing what you love. Did you miss me?

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Linking up to…

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2013/03/mini-sunday-morning.html

http://www.confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2013/03/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-little-designing.html

http://richardquilts.blogspot.com/2013/03/link-finish-friday-58.html

http://aroundtheblockdesigns.blogspot.com/2013/03/really-random-thursday-31413.html

http://www.sew-much-ado.com/2013/03/we-did-it-wednesday_12.html

http://www.conniekresin.com/2013/03/linky-tuesday_12.html

Novelty Quilt Top Is Finished

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Letters. Numbers. Crayons. Text. Puzzle pieces. And more. Enough to keep a child entertained for hours.

I finished sewing all the squares and added the borders yesterday. Lots of breath holding during the sewing.

I rarely work with blue. And I rarely work with solids. So making this quilt top provided plenty of pause moments for me. Doubts and what if’s. I so wanted to go with black for the border. My go-to-black-polka-dots which I love.

But the Camera Knows Best. Blue it would be. Unsure and all, that is what I went with.

I love how it turned out!!

For about a minute, I thought of making a second one. But I am more of a one-of-a-kind gal. I make up the design as I go and lots of times I am working with scraps and leftover pieces. With the leftovers I will make a pillow or pillowcases.

Quilting will be straight lines up and down, all around the squares. And maybe Figure 8′s inside the last border. Quilt top measures 48″ by 49″. Just large enough for a play mat or drag around quilt.

I plan to use the yellow fabric that looks like a tape measure for the binding.

The idea for this quilt had been in my head for awhile. I used 4″ squares making sure to mix up the colors and patterns plus added in a white background square where it best fit.

Borders are 2″, 2 1/2″ and 4″. I had to fussy cut the “numbers” fabric to allow for an equal amount of white space above and below the letters.

I had fun making it.

Do you like sewing with novelty fabrics? Do tell.

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Linking to….

http://www.conniekresin.com/2013/02/giveaway-and-linky-party.html

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2013/02/lazy-zig-zag.html

http://www.confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2013/02/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-productive-week.html

http://richardquilts.blogspot.com/2013/02/link-finish-friday-55.html

http://aroundtheblockdesigns.blogspot.com/2013/02/really-random-thursday-22113-end-of-era.html

Crossroads To Jericho: On My Own

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And now a few words from the Design Wall…

Last time you saw me, I was hanging around with three of my good UFO’s friends. I am on the top right and my name, so I am told, is Crossroads to Jericho.

I was little three weeks ago, only six blocks.

But look at me now!! Happy to report, I am big enough to require my own space. I am 8 rows wide and 8 rows long. Each block is 9 1/4″.

Nothing much to do so I will just hang here until my owner decides to stitch all 64 of my parts together. She might even decide to make me wider and longer. I am told there is a process called quilting. Hmmm. Wonder what that is? I will probably get folded, all nice and neatly. And stored away somewhere.

Well, so long for now. Maybe I will see you again around November. Take care.

Leaders/Enders Works Of Art

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Leaders. Enders. You know what they are, right? If you are in the Quilting Community, you know. For my non-quilty readers, it just means Do Not Waste Thread. When you come to the end of what you are sewing, grab two scraps and stitch them together. Then go back to what you were first sewing since now it has advanced out the back and can be clipped off. Keep doing this. Sewing two scraps in between your “project” sewing.

And before you know it, you have a table full of pieced scraps.

Isn’t this the cutest!!

I only recently started sewing the L/E way. Maybe about six months. I do it about 60% of the time. Because sometimes I get so excited, wanting to snatch out the fabric to see if the seams matched up that I forget. But I am trying to get up to 80% of the time. No sense wasting thread if I don’t have to. And that Gutermann thread is pricey. I only buy it when it is half off.

A few days ago, I changed up how I was sewing my L/E’s. I decided to go Round Robin. Sort of like Log Cabin style. Sewing in the round. Add a strip. Turn. Add another strip. Kept turning and adding until the block was the size I wanted.

I used the center square as my color inspiration. A 2 1/2″ square selected from my charm collection. Rest of the fabrics came from my scrap bin.

Love. Love. Love them. And those times when I don’t feel like creating art “as you go”, I will just grab two scraps and sew. Art will come later when I fit all the pieces together like a puzzle.

Are you saving or wasting thread?

Do tell….

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Linking up to.

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2013/02/mini-mat.html

http://aroundtheblockdesigns.blogspot.com/2013/02/really-random-21413.html

http://www.conniekresin.com/2013/02/linky-tuesday-starts-now.html

Perfect Everytime

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It only took two years!! I finally figured out what to do to get my seams to abut correctly without tacking them down first.

Number 1: Cut the squares accurately. Seems easy enough, you might say. BUT I was using the lines on my cutting mat as my measuring tool. The first cut was perfect. Then the next and the next got smaller. Lost some of the inches. I only JUST found this out when my cut strips looked off. Don’t know why I never noticed this before. I am pretty sure this is why the white strips for my Hugs and Kisses quilt were off. Now I measure with my quilt ruler PLUS I measure with my tape measure.

Second. I finger press the seams lightly. No ironing/pressing with the iron until the block is sewn together. I find the “raised” seam abuts better than when it is flattened by the iron.

Third. Not sure how you insert the pin to hold the seams in place before sewing but I had seen several different methods on the net. And tried them all. I still struggled trying to keep the seams from slipping and sliding. Even with a regular foot and my walking foot. And then, guess what happened? I went back to the way I pinned when I first learned to sew as a child. I pin horizontal along the seam line instead of vertical sticking into the seam. The vertical way just wasn’t working for me. I sew right up to the pin and ease the pin out as the needle advances toward it.

Works every time!!

Now that I have the 9-Patch down, hopefully I can get my other seams in my other blocks to line up.

How do you get your seams to abut correctly? Do tell.

A Design Wall Full Of Starters

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OMGosh!! Do I have a serious case of Start-itis or what!! The plan is to finish one quilt top per month. And at the rate it takes me to make one, I thought I had best get started.

This is what was up on my design wall as of the last day of January.

ScrappyTripsAroundWorld

I am seeing these scrappy quilts everywhere even though the quilt everyone references as their inspiration was made EIGHT YEARS ago. So I am hopping on an eight year old bandwagon. Better late, than never. Right? I am throwing everything I have into this quilt. Not just scraps. FQ’s, stash, charms, fabric sent to me from some of you.

Anything goes in my quilt. All colors welcome. All fabrics welcome, even the ugly ones that have been auditioned to death. I have one requirement for my design… A burgundy strip must be in the center of every block. Any shade of burgundy works. I am hoping a repeating color will bring order to the chaos of the scrappy look. Want to see the quilt that started it all? See link below.

TeachME Novelty Quilt

This started off as one of my charity pillowcases. My plan for 2013 is to make a “pieced” pillowcase as one of the twenty each month. But since I liked how it turned out, I decided to turn it into a cute little child’s quilt. Something the little guy or gal can look at and be entertained. Not sure how large this one will be. Probably lap size. It will be a “create-as-you-go quilt.”

Crossroads to Jericho

Remember these blocks?

My quilt group’s January Block Lotto. Did I win? Nope. I didn’t. The Other Donna won. And what she won is going to be so pretty as a quilt, that I was jealous and wanted one of my own. I already had a bunch of squares cut so all I needed to do was get started sewing them together.

I have a ways to go but these blocks come together fairly quickly. The size, I am thinking, will be twin size or lap quilt.

BOM Quilt Group Quilt

The Joiner that I am…sigh.. I signed up for another quilt group project in the 2nd quilt group I am in. This project will last all year. A Block Of The Month quilt. Each month we will make a different block. For January we had TWO blocks to make. Deadline to get photos submitted was yesterday. I finished them with a few hours to spare. But it almost didn’t happen. Since I was so undecided on which fabrics I would still love after 12 months of working with them. It took me several weeks to decide. I pulled down a bunch to audition. Then a few days ago, I read that purple was gaining in popularity as the go-to color for quilts. That decided it for me.

I don’t have much of these fabrics. Don’t laugh. I only have TWO FQ’s of each. LOL!! You should have seen me cutting the squares. It took forever. But I did not waste an inch. Got my fingers crossed that I will have enough for all 12 blocks. Two down…

One last thing before I go. Want to see something funny? I saw this at A Simple Life Quilts. How about you? Do you ever finish anything?

http://asimplelifequilts.blogspot.com/2013/01/hello-2013.html

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Links and Tutorials….

http://www.blockcentral.com/bom2006-intro.shtml

http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2005/06/scrappy-trips-around-world.html

http://annalenaland.com/2012/01/09/crossroads-to-jericho-tutorial/

http://www.lynnroddybrown.com/Site/Crossroads_to_Jericho__1.html

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Thanks much for stopping by and leaving me a comment. Love them. Love reading them.

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Linky parties…

http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2013/02/finish-it-up-friday-2113.html