A Lovely Year of Finishes February Goal

My goodness!  It seems like I have been posting a lot lately.  I guess that's what happens when I make lots of little things instead of one big huge thing.

I was too late to jump on the Lovely Year of Finishes bandwagon last month, but I figured I might as well join in this month.  I have a few goals for February, but of course since I had to narrow it down to just one for this link-up, I am picking the one that needs an extra boost of motivation!

Way back in 2011 I won this African Spirit fabric from Sew We Quilt.  At first glance, the Hubby told me I should make a skirt out of it.  I've been planning to ever since.  Maybe a knee length skirt using the blue or orange florals?  Or possibly the Tiki Masks if I am feeling adventurous?

Well, there you have it.  I am committed.  Among my other current projects (which feels a little strange to me - I'm not one to have several WIPs going at the same time), I am going to make myself a skirt.  Something that is definitely out of my comfort zone.  Wish me luck!

Check out what everyone else is working on this month here:

Something New: Sashiko and Reverse Applique

This week I made both blocks for the Something New Sampler.

The first was Sashiko.  I really had no idea what Sashiko was before this week.  Turns out it's a Japanese form of embroidery that looks a lot like hand quilting, only it's only done through one layer.  I had no idea what patterns to try, but I tried to keep things simple and went for two repeating designs.  Apparently, the interlocking circles are a traditional Sashiko design. 

I never would have finished these if it weren't for THIS pin.  Did you know you can use Crayola Washable markers on fabric?  My water soluble pen is pretty much completely dead, so I gave it a try and it TOTALLY works!  I just gave my blocks a little swish in some soapy water, rinsed them out good, and wallah!  No more marker.  Although my fabric seems to have shrunk already.  I guess that's what I get for not cutting my pieces bigger.

The second block was reverse applique.  I've been curious about this technique for awhile, so it was fun to try.  I like how it makes the applique look so flat.  Almost like it's just part of the background fabric.  Some people are concerned about the raw edges, but I liked the suggestion to zig-zag around the edges after cutting everything out.  Filing that one away for later...

Of course, I had to use stars for my second applique block.  The fussy cut star was an afterthought and I'm glad it worked out.

This is fun!  Looking forward to next week!

Sew Thinky Thursday: My Sewing Beginnings

I caught wind this morning of a new linky party going on at Mommy's Nap Time and was intrigued.  I've been thinking about what I would say and decided to go ahead and join in!  Emily is asking a quilting/sewing related question each week and asking people to link up their answers.  It will be a great opportunity for us to talk quilty talk without boring our husbands to death!  :)

Here is this week's question:

When did you start sewing? Tell us a bit about your sewing history. When did you realize you were really hooked?

My mom sewed a bit when I was  little, but I never took much interest in it myself.  She made lots of clothes for us as babies, which we later used for our dolls.  Both of my grandmas (now passed on) were very much into traditional quilting.  There was always a quilt on the frames upstairs at Grandma J's house and one year Grandma R made quillows for every single one of her grandkids - which we all cherish because they were the last things she made for us before she died of cancer.  I also have a quilt on my bed that Grandma J made when I graduated from High school.  I wish they were still around to see me learn and become engrossed in this new quilting movement. 

My Quillow from Grandma

When I was around 8, I went with two of my cousins to spend a week with my Aunt.  She taught us how to crosstitch and transferred some simple designs onto dishtowels to keep us busy during the week.  When I got home, I begged my mom to buy me more crosstitching supplies.  Crosstitching has been a major hobby of mine ever since.  My family watches a lot of movies and I loved having something to do with my hands.

 

It wasn't until after I got married that I started getting the itch to make a quilt.  The Hubby hates watching movies with the lights on, so my crosstitching hobby was slowing down (plus I was leaning towards learning new skills that actually produced useful things).  I have always wanted to make a jean quilt, so we saved our jeans for a year or two and then I spent practically a whole summer (in between school years - since I was teaching at the time) working on a quilt.  Since I really didn't know what I was doing, I spent most of my summer at my mom's house, using her old all metal Bernina since my cheap Kenmore couldn't handle all of that denim.  That quilt is probably still my husband's favorite.  

I tied it, because at the time I had no idea you could quilt a quilt with a sewing machine.  I thought you had to use frames every time, like my grandmothers did.  But then I started doing some research and learned about denim rag quilts.  

About a year later, my husband went on a trip to Peru (with BYU) for a week or so and I needed something to keep me busy.  So I bought a fat quarter bundle of flannels from Joann and made my first rag quilt in 2010.  I think I started to become hooked when the Hubby came home and I showed him my new rag quilt.  Then I asked him if I could make another one and he agreed!  He even agreed to let me look for a new sewing machine.  

Then the real clincher came when I discovered the world of quilt blogs and from there learned how to make and quilt a quilt completely by machine.  

First machine quilted quilt made in 2010

Some of the very first blogs I found are Oh Fransson, i Have to Say, A Few Scraps, Jaybird Quilts, PS I Quilt, Tallgrass Prairie Studio, and Amy's Creative Side.  Now I have almost 100 blogs (eek!) in my reading list and I don't plan to quit being inspired OR making beautiful quilts anytime soon! 

 Now go check out the linky party!

Something New: Folding

The second block in the Something New Sampler was the Folded Block.  This block is HEAVY (especially if you fold the strips in half like I did)!  But once I got the hang of it, it was fun to make.  My first try was a complete disaster.  I tried to adjust my block a little bit to get a slightly different look and just ended up all confused.  I figured it all out, but my block was just a little scary looking.  SO I cut off all the edges (rather than rip out all that stitching) and started over, making my strips 2 inches longer and folding them in half, rather than just 1/4 inch, but otherwise following the tutorial EXACTLY as it was given.  MUCH BETTER.

My goal is to make two of each block in this sampler, with the second block having some kind of twist to it to make it more "my own."  So I sat down and meticulously planned out my own version of a folded block.  And it almost worked out.  Almost.  I overlooked a few things and in the end wasn't able to weave my strips to get the look I wanted.  So I ripped them out and sewed them each on to my foundation one at a time.  I think I liked this method better anyway because it seemed more stable to me.  I'm not sure I'll make many more of these in the future, but it was a really fun block to make and I'm excited to see how it looks with all the others!

Here are my two folded blocks.

Also.  I never got a chance to blog about the second Bargello block I made.  For this one, I just made it so the design ran across the long side of the block, rather than the short side.

Here are my two Bargello blocks.

Up next, reverse applique, Sashiko, and a scraptastic block!

Soccer Ball

My babies' babysitter is about to have a baby boy of her own.  (Say that 5 times fast...).  Some friends put together a little shower for her and I wanted to make her something amazing because she is amazing.  I didn't have enough time for a quilt, so I decided on a couple burp cloths.  I wanted to make her something boyish, but not cutesy.  Her husband is Mexican and is a HUGE soccer (futsal) fan.  I searched and searched the web for ideas and finally found THIS paper piecing pattern.  It's quite a bit different than your average burp cloth design, and it turned out about twice as big as I imagined it would, but I'm pretty sure the recipient LOVED it (she says maybe her husband will actually WANT to burp the baby now).  Whew.  Here it is:

Since one burp cloth is never enough, I threw in another one with these cute little trucks.

Something New Sampler: Modern Bargello

There sure are a lot of new quilt-alongs starting this month, aren't there?  Luckily, I wasn't really too tempted by any in particular (too much commitment for me!), except for the Something New Sampler.  It's going to be relatively short, and a lot of the blocks will be incorporating new techniques that I have been waiting for a good excuse to try. 
Then last Sunday at church, one of the ladies announced a new project going on in our area - "Quilts of Valor."  In a few months there will be a new Veterans Memorial Hospital in our city and they are in need of quilt donations.  Normally the idea of using up my precious stash and making a quilt for someone I don't know and probably will never meet makes me nervous, but I've talked myself into it.  It will be the perfect opportunity for me to join this quilt-along, knowing that the blocks I make will be part of something useful, rather than just sitting around waiting for me to figure out what the heck to do with them.  :)
So here's my first block.  The Modern Bargello.  I've been thinking about making a whole Bargello quilt one day.  Maybe now I will...

It was really fun to make and came together during one nap time (THANK YOU BABIES!).  I'm liking this instant gratification thing.  I'm planning to stick to a red/white/blue color scheme (which seems to be what the Hospital is hoping for), with one other random color in each block.  I've got a lot of those red stars stashed away - I was saving them for who knows what.  Might as well use it up, right?  Maybe I'll use a bit of it in each block, to tie everything together.  We'll see.

As for the rest of my week - I've been plugging away at making two more rows for my Storm at Sea quilt. 

Thanks for visiting!

Pan Pads

I got a new set of pans for Christmas.  SUPER nice pans.  8 of them.  Restaurant quality, Titanium, nonstick on both sides.  Expensive.  These pans will last the rest of my life.  They are that nice.

My mother-in-law has these pans too.  She has a set of hot pads that she uses specifically for keeping in-between the pans when she stacks them.  So they won't scrape each other.  Kind of genius.  The hubby decided we needed some too.  He asked me to make some.

Wahoo!  The hubby actually ASKED me to sew something!  He loves it when I sew "useful" things.  It's been nice working on these the past few days (weeks), because he wants me to finish as soon as possible (so we can actually open our new pans) and gives me plenty of time and space to work.  :)

I'm calling them "pan pads" and I made 5.  I thought it would be a fun chance to try out a couple blocks I've been eyeing lately.  Especially since probably no one will see them.  *Even though* probably no one will see them.  It's probably silly that I went through so much work to make something no one will see, but hey.  I had fun with them and now I know which blocks I don't like and how much I really like paper piecing (with freezer paper, of course - I'm still not converted to the regular method).  :)

I also got to try out my new WALKING FOOT!  Wahoo again!  My awesome mom finally broke down and bought me a super nice walking foot that will fit my Bernina (and I'm super grateful.  I know those things are expensive).  THANKS MOM!  I used it for all of the machine quilting, and the binding as well.  It worked out great!  I'm excited to try using it on something bigger.

The bindings were all sewn on completely by machine.  I felt like I needed more practice with this technique.  I'm getting there (and the walking foot seems to help a lot), but it's not perfect yet...

Here are my pan pads!  The awesome thing was, they are all made entirely from my small scraps drawer!  I used every LAST BIT of white that I had.  Good times.

This one is my favorite.  Circle of Geese paper piecing pattern found HERE.  Simple outline quilting that looks cool on the back.

Chevrons.  This one was a quickie.   Paper piecing templates HERE.  Outline quilting that took about a minute and a half to do. :)

DON'T LOOK TOO CLOSELY AT THE NEXT ONE!!!  I've been dying to try this block for so long.  However, the tutorial I found was for a 12 inch block and I wanted mine to be smaller.  Long story short - lots of tiny pieces + a bunch of them cut 1/4 inch to small + attempting to use them anyway rather than cut new pieces (or go to the store for more white fabric) + rushing through the final steps and choosing not to square up each piece before assembling the block = DISASTER.   It looks a little better now that it is quilted.  I went for a super tight spiral in hopes that it would help hide the imperfections in this block.  It turned out okay.  The hubby admitted that it's "not my best work," but I suppose I will keep it.

Snail Trail block tutorial found HERE.  Amazingly, this one is NOT paper pieced!  It was also really quick!  I'm thinking of incorporating this block into the borders on my Storm at Sea quilt.

 Starburst pattern found HERE.  The middle seam ended up SO bulky, though.  I wonder how I could have avoided that?

I probably should have used white instead of brown for the snail trail block.  Then it would have matched better.  But that's okay.  Remember how no one is going to see these anyway?

For the backs, I chose 5 larger pieces from my stash and used the stack and slash method to make 5 matching blocks.  Hubby says they look like fronts.  I guess my pan pads get to be double sided then.  Especially the one with the spiral quilting - it's my favorite one. 

Now we can finally bust out those new pans and finally have something yummy to eat!