WIP Wednesday

Wow where has the last 2.5 months gone?? Summer is over, baseball is over, soccer has started, sewing has been done, our vacation is a faint memory, the kids have been in school for 2 weeks now.

We once again went to Minnesota for our vacation. (The boys choose this over Disneyland??) We spent some time in Minneapolis - went to a Twins game, did MOA. Then ventured north to Brainerd. We have found a nice small resort on a small lake without a lot of motor boat traffic so it is nice and quiet. We did some fishing - I caught the biggest fish to my son's horror. Apparently girls are not supposed to know how to fish :)

I know not very big for Minnesota but we just catch and release

Spent a few days just sitting in a chair watching the boys play in the sand and swim. And watched a view beautiful sunsets.

Ventured up to Nisswa for their weekly turtle races. My littlest and me won the first heat of the resort races. I jumped in the air and yelled. It was so exciting!!! We ended up coming in 2nd overall.

I worked on my hexagon project. 2 years ago on the same beach is when I first started assembling the individual heaxagons. I got one flower complete in 4 days!

I stopped at a favorite quilt shop in Brainerd - Country Fabrics and Quilting. They have a wonderful assortment of fabrics that I cannot get anywhere around me.

A few fat quarters of Reunion

A few of Vintage Modern

I finally caved a bought the pattern for Basic Grey's Sweet Starlet Quilt and some yardage of Flea Market Fancy. Now to find the time to sew it.

I have had multiple projects that I have been working on the past few months. Some have been finished and some are still waiting around for me to get back to them.

Finished:

Churn Dash

A few Christmas mug rugs/mini quilts

WIPs:

This is basted but I have yet to decide on the quilting design

I have seen the Lone Starburst around blogland and fell in love with it. I have been slowly working on it using Denyse Schmidt's Meadowlark. I am using both the blue and orange colorways. My plan is layed out below - half the quilt with blue and half with orange. The four middle stars will be 1/2 blue and 1/2 orange.

 Here are a few of my favorite stars.

I just made this doll quilt today for my neice who is turning 1. I got her a baby doll to go along with it.

I also finished a baby quilt for my cousin and a matching doll quilt, plus another holiday mini quilt but have yet to take photos of them.

I think that is all for now. Hopefully I won't be away to long before the next post :)

WIP Wednesday

It has been a while since I last wrote. School has been out for 3 weeks and ball season is in full swing with tournaments almost every weekend and games that are lasting over 2 hours so alot of long days and late nights sitting in the bleachers.  My big news is that I finally broke down and bought myself a new sewing machine!!! I had been using a very inexpensive Kenmore that my husband had bought me 10 years ago. I now have a Janome Memory Craft 6300. This machine has soooo many more features than my old one and I am constantly looking in the manual for instructions. I have done a lot of straight piecing with the Janome and love it! On my Kenmore I had issues with the start of the fabric getting caught in the beginnning stitches leaving me with a big knotted mess - no more of that :) I also have almost 4 more inches in the throat area versus my Kenmore - I do all my own quilting so I am very excited about this!

I did just start to machine quilt my churn dash quilt on it Sunday night. The Janome does not fit in my sewing table as nicely as my old machine, so last night my husband helped me create a little ledge around the machine so the quilt sandwich does not droop before going under the needle. I have quilted one block each night - at this rate it will take me three weeks to get this completed!

 My king sized Swoon quilt has been my sewing project for the last few months. It measures 112" square. I am debating on what to use for backing fabric right now. I don't want to spend a fortune on material and need to investigate the 108" fabrics to see if any match.

I also just finished this flannel quilt for my friend's nephew who is 3 years old. A month ago he was diagnosed with luekemia and has been at the University hospital for testing and chemo treatments. Things have been going well and he is producing his own white blood cells so he might be able to come home today for a few days.

I resurrected this project that I started in 2010. I have 1-1/2 flowers stitched together. This will be my summer project while at ball games, watching the kids swim, etc.


WIP
1. Finish quilting churn dash
2. Decide how to quilt granny's squares quilt
3. Find fabric and quilt swoon
4. Paper piecing flowers

Liebster Blog Award

Marika of Live, Laugh, Love...Sew awarded me the Liebster Blog award !

I was so surprised to see her comment today. It was just what I needed to brighten my week. The weather here in Iowa has been cold and rainy the past few days and even with being inside so much I have not sewn since Friday.

The Liebster award (German for favorite) is for bloggers with 200 followers of less. As a recipient of the awad, you have the chance to thank and link back to the blogger who gave it to you as well as pass it along to five other deserving blogs. (I took this from Marika's blog)

I have been blogging for about 2 years now, but not on a regular basis. Between work, the house and running two boys everywhere it is hard to find time to do anything. I have plenty of blogs that I do visit in the late hours after everyone is asleep.

 

I am a self-taught quilter that is trying to learn anything I can about quilting techniques. Can anyone help me with paper piecing?? I have watched so many tutorials on it and my brain cannot comprehend how to do it :(

Anyways..
The Liebster Conventions says that :

1. Thank your award presenter on your blogblog and link back to him/her (check)

2. Copy and paste the award to your blog (double check)

3. Present the Liebster Award to 5 blogs that you think deserve to be recognized (see below)

4. Let them know by leaving a comment on their blog (will do)

5. Have faith that your follower will spread the love too !

My winners of the Liebster award are:

1. http://thelittlestthistlecraftshop.blogspot.co.uk/

2. http://sillybananasewing.blogspot.co.uk/

3. http://brigantiadesigns.blogspot.co.uk/

4. http://thequiltyarn.blogspot.com.au/search?updated-max=2012-03-29T01:03:00-07:00&max-results=7

5. http://shecanquilt.blogspot.ca/

WIP Wednesday

 I finally got the binding sewn on my larger whirlygig quilt. I did a pieced back with 3 leftover whirlygigs.

 Friday night I was able to get my churn dash quilt put together and got the backing pieced. I love the colors of this fabric! I tried to take photos of the quilt the other day but it was a little windy. I had a few neighbors watching me - probably laughing at me.

I did get my plus quilt quilted and have most of the binding machine sewn on. I tried to paper piece a small quilt that my guild is using for a ribbon topper the other night - it did not work out :( I am very frustrated with it. I was planning on paper piecing my Farmer's Wife blocks. I am going to have to wander the blogging world to try and figure it out.

Farmer's Wife and WIP Wednesday

I broke down and bought the Farmer's Wife Quilt book on Monday night. The reason??

Laurie Aaron Hird spoke at our quilt guild meeting! She touched on how she came about to do the Farmer's Wife book but mainly talked about the Pony Club book. It was so interesting to hear how the Farmer's Wife magazine gave ponies away to little kids and to read their letters that they wrote thanking the magazine for the ponies. This will be my next book purchase. I also got her to sign my book! Unfortunately this is the only photo that I took of her Pony Club quilt :(

With the warm beautiful weather we have spent alot of time outside working in the flower beds getting them ready for spring. My first tulips bloomed today. I need to take a photo - they are only 2 inches tall and the blooms about half-an-inch. So cute!

Friday I did start to work on a churn dash quilt using my Aunt Edna fabrics. I have four blocks done and just spent an hour chain-piecing some more. I can't wait to see them laid out together.

WIP

1. Finish binding on larger wirly gig

2. Need to quilt my plus quilt - still undecided on the design

3. Figure out what to use for backing of my granny squares - I plan on hand quilting this so then I will have to learn how to hand quilt and pick my threads.

WIP Wednesday

I got my baby wirly quilt quilted, bound and washed. I also got the larger wirly quilted. I will not show photos since I have done so alot lately. :)

I dragged my crabby kids to the fabric store on Saturday and found a varigated thread for my plus quilt!! (Luckily they were having a craft day there so it put them in a better mood.) But I still haven't decided how to quilt it. So......

I started working on my granny squares. I have four done and 8 more ready to sew the rows together. I love the look of the blocks individually but am not so sure of them all together. I am really bad at scrappy quilts - I love everyone else's but hate my own. But I will plug away and wait until it is completely done to make my final decision. These blocks are fast and easy to make. I might have to keep this pattern in my mind for future quilts. It would be fun to make a table runner out of them.

Finish it up Friday

I got off my lazy butt last night and took some photos of my small wirly-gig quilt before I went to bed (sorry not very good). My goal for the week was to get it quilted and the binding machine bound to the front - achieved! I quilted with straight lines, 1/4-inch from the seams. Something fast and easy.

I did do a little quilting on the large wirly gig last night but only for about 10 minutes. Tonight I am hoping to get it all quilted in a meandering stitch.

I am also hoping to start on my granny squares quilt. I cut the blocks out 2 weeks ago and haven't looked at them since.