Flying Geese Quilt with African Wax Fabrics--WIP

This flying geese quilt is something I started in the fall.  There was no urgency to complete it so it went to the bottom of the pile when I started working on Christmas quilts. 

This past week, I had a sweet dog friend visiting for a few days. I'm going to call her my "Organizing Assistant Dog."  Maggie isn't as young as she used to be and is a lot slower going up stairs.  So I tried to arrange my activities to keep us on the first floor of the house as much as possible.  My quilting room is on the second floor, so I looked around for projects to work on downstairs.  Thanks to Maggie, I got some bins of scraps sorted, the dining room work area tidied up and I got this quilt top finished. 

Maggie, my Organizing Assistant Dog.  You can see by her intent look that she is keeping me on task!!

I already had the flying geese blocks done.  Since all the precision sewing was completed, I was happy to use my light weight traveling sewing machine to sew the quilt together. 

The quilt is all improv.  I had some ideas about the background but not a planned design. The yellow, blue and orange are colors in the African Wax fabrics.  The yellow and orange are on the opposite side of the color wheel from the royal blue, making them bold accents.  There is nothing subtle about this quilt but I really like design and the way it came together.   

Thanks, Maggie!

"I Spy" Slab Blocks

I'm a member of the Boston Modern Quilt Guild.  The guild is making a few charity quilts for children.  They requested 12 1/2 inch square slab blocks in rainbow colors.  Members of the guild are limited to making 3-4 blocks--they don't want to get inundated!!

Knowing the quilts were going to children, I couldn't resist including some novelty fabrics.  There are paints and painting tools in the hot pink block.  The yellow block is more fun.  It has 

• cats
• ladybugs (2 sizes)!
• butterflies
• lemons
• flowers (2 styles of daisies and one generic flower)

I've made a number of "I Spy" quilts in the past using several different patterns.  

While I was sewing these slabs I realized this would be a really fun way to make an "I Spy" quilt.  It is so random that it can incorporate little pieces of fabrics that wouldn't work in a set pattern. A slab block "I Spy Quilt" would really make an incredible treasure hunt! 

Need help constructing your own slab blocks?  Cheryl Arkison has a chapter in Sunday Morning Quilts for a quilt called "The Missing U" which is constructed with slab blocks.  The instructions for the slab construction are on pages 48-49 of the book.  (More info about the book can be found in the Recommended Reading tab above).  Cheryl also has a slab block how-to on her blog, Dining Room Empire.  In that 2013 post, she was collecting slab blocks to make quilts for flood victims in Canada. That project is now completed. If you use the instructions on her blog here's one helpful hint from the book.  When your block is done, sew a 1/8 inch seam around all 4 sides to keep all those seams in the block from pulling apart when you handle the blocks prior to final sewing.  It's an extra step, but you'll be glad you took the time to do it!

An "I Spy Quilt" isn't on my to-do list at the moment. But I do like this idea!

Economy Block Quilt with Birdhouse Fabric Border--WIP

I finished this quilt top one afternoon last week.  The sun was shining and I decided to get a photo while the weather was good.  I finished pressing the top and used a fur-remover tape roller to remove the loose threads on it's surface.  I looked up.  The sky was dark grey, the wind was blowing and it was snowing!  15 minutes later, it was all over. The sun came back out and it remained windy--but I got my photos.  Winter in New England!  Go figure. 

I found the this birdhouse fabric, "Country Folk Wurk [sic] by Cranston Village, while this quilt was still in the "thinking" stage.  The steep roofs on the birdhouses were the inspiration for using the Economy Block as the focus block in this quilt.

I found a great backing fabric on-line at Connecting Threads.  This project is on hold until it arrives! 

Economy Block Bird Quilt with a Broken Chain--WIP

I've got the body of the Economy Block Bird quilt completed.  That's Tipper, my English Springer Spaniel, in the corner of the photo.  He's from a hunting line of Springers.  Springer Spaniels flush and retriever birds when used in hunting.  He is very "birdie"--it's in his blood.  
Note how he is keeping his eye on this quilt.  Must be all the birds the center of the Economy Blocks!!

The alternating block in the quilt is a chain bock.  Rather than have the chain track in parallel lines across the quilt, I've broken the chain by turning the direction of the chain block in each row.  I think it gives the quilt a lot of motion. 

With one more vertical and horizontal row of blocks, this would be a twin size.  I'm going to use 2 borders instead, the more traditional look in a quilt. Why?  Because one of the border fabrics is the reason why I chose the Economy Block pattern!  

One border is on.  One to go.  I'll post the finished top next week. 

Modern Twist on Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion: "Construction Zone!"

Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion Winter 2014 Mystery Quilt was designed to be a queen size quilt.  As I was assembling the quilt I decided to make a twin size quilt by omitting one of the vertical rows of blocks.  That left me with lots of partially completed orphan blocks.

I had toyed with the idea of changing the quilt to try to give it some modern aesthetic, but decided that was just too difficult to do with a mystery quilt.  I wasn't willing to wait until the reveal to start sewing. 

However, my stack of orphan bits, pieces and blocks gave me the perfect opportunity to create a Modern Quilt.   I call this design "Construction Zone."  I took the elements of the Grand Illusion quilt and laid them out the way you see them when you are sewing a Bonnie Hunter quilt together. 

On the top row are the component blocks for the outer border on the left and the border unit on the right. 

Below that is the inner border, yellow on my quilt.

In the middle of the quilt on the left are the units set out they way the final block and it's green checkered border will be sewn together.  In the middle right are some of the individual components of the focus block.  

The completed focus block with its border is at the bottom on the right. On the left are block units falling off the sewing table and piling up on the floor! (It always happens at some point in a project this complex)!! One of the fallen blocks is attached by machine appliqué. The corner of that block will extend over the border of the finished quilt. 

This was so much fun to make.  I put the pieces up on the design wall but the assembly was all improv.  I sewed pieces together, measured and cut and sewed some more.

I'm giving away the "real" Grand Illusion quilt so it's great to have this lap size quilt to keep.  And it makes me smile!

Economy Block Quilt with a Chain--WIP

Here's a quick peek at one of the quilts I should be working on!!  I've gotten distracted doing other things this week--like cleaning the cellar so that dogs have a play area in this super cold weather!

The focus unit in this quilt is the square-in-a-square block, also known as the Economy Block. This was the "hot" block of 2014!   I made 2 wall hangings using this block but this is the first time I'm using it for a bed size quilt. 

As you can see in the apple wall hanging I made last year, putting the Economy blocks next to each other can create a star secondary design.  

Economy Block wall hanging 15 1/2 x 15 1/2 inches square, Economy blocks finish at 4 3/4 inches

I didn't have quite enough of the bird fabric to do a whole quilt of Economy blocks.  So I'm alternating the Economy blocks with a chain block.  

This is all I've done so far!  Hopefully I'll get back to the sewing machine in the next few days!  

Mystery Quilt! Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion Completed Top

My Bonnie Hunter Grand Illusion Winter 2014 Mystery Quilt Completed Top!  

At the last moment, my quilt took a change in direction...and went to the dogs!  In a good way!  I'd been asked to make a quilt for a little girl who loves dogs.  Her favorite colors are pink and purple. As I was putting together the large blocks in this quilt I realized this is the perfect pink and purple quilt.  It just needed dogs!  

Some turquoise dog related print fabric was already in my piecing so the basis of the dog theme was already there. The cornerstone blocks were the perfect place to add the dogs. I had just enough previously fussy cut dog fabric in the right color way to cut out the 3 1/2 inch blocks I needed. 

Here are some of the dog blocks and one of the turquoise half square triangle patches with a ball, bones and a vanishing squirrel!   I had to smile when I saw the rabbit in the square above the pointer at the bottom corner of the quilt!  "Turn around puppy! The rabbit's behind you!!"

I deleted the last vertical row of blocks which makes this a generous twin size quilt at 74 x 88 inches.  That leaves me with 5 large orphan blocks--and some interesting ideas about how to use them.  Stay tuned!

Check out the Linky on Bonnie Hunter's Blog to see what other folks have done!  There are lots of great quilts and quite a number of quilts with variant number color ways.  This project has been great fun!

Baby Quilt in a Weekend #2: "Giraffe Party!"

Happy New Year's!  Here's a baby quilt pattern to welcome in 2015. 

We've all had this happen...we need a baby quilt and we need it yesterday!   Here is the 2nd in a series of Baby Quilts in a Weekend.  With a bit of diligence, this quilt can be completed in just 2 days.  The dishes may not get washed but the quilt will be finished and ready to wrap! 

I've had this the giraffe fabric in my stash for several years.  I found it on a excursion to Keepsake Quilting, long before grey had become a hot color for baby's rooms.  The fabric was so unique.  I knew that it would make a cute baby quilt for the right family some day. 

Because there are giraffes in the focus fabric, I wanted everything about the quilt to be T-A-L-L!  The blocks are tall and the quilting design is vertical.

The quilt blocks are simple rectangles with a 2 1/2 inch strip of Kona cotton used as an accent color.

Block of the focus fabric with the strip of accent fabric, ready for sewing

The colored strips are on opposite sides of the focus fabric in each horizontal row.  Row 1 has the strips on the right, Row 2 has them on the left.  There are 5 rows in the quilt, so there are an uneven number of right and left blocks.

The mother of the baby receiving this quilt loves celebrations. I had some fabric with tiny peach and grey pennants which matched the focus fabric. I added to to the top of one block in each row of the quilt.  They are the reason why this quilt is named "Giraffe Party"!    
 

While I love the strips with the pennants on individual blocks, and while I really did want them in this quilt, I won't use them when I make this pattern again.  I think the white strips running down the quilt in a stair-step pattern detracts from the verticality of the quilt's design.  I think the quilt is a lot more interesting in use than it is hanging up for a photograph.

Giraffe Party!  40 x 50 inches

I did part of the quilting with my walking foot and part by free motion quilting. All the quilting is vertical, running from top to bottom of the quilt. 

My cat, Chester, had had surgery the week I was working on this quilt. He came to sit beside me on my chair while I was doing the quilting. It's always a tight fit when he does this, but even tighter due to the Elizabethan Collar he was wearing. (The collar kept him from reaching, and removing the stitches at the surgical site).   At one point he must have leaned forward bumped one of the stitch choice buttons on the front of my machine.  I was quite surprised when I reached the end of my row and realized that Chester had made a design change (a hemming stitch) without my permission!  I got a good chuckle about his creativity and then did a bit of un-sewing!

The basic quilting is straight lines with varying numbers of parallel lines and varying distance between some of the adjacent lines.  I chose to do a vine and leaf free motion design through the center of the blocks of focus fabric, seen in the photo at the top of this post. When you flip the quilt over to the back, it looks like a whole cloth quilt design. It's really beautiful, making this quilt truly reversible. 

Quilting on the back of the quilt

To make this quilt:

Yardage:

• Focus fabric: 1 1/2 yards
• Assorted solid color strips: 25 strips 2 1/2 inches x 10 1/2 inches (3/4 yard if the solid color strips are to be all the same color)
• Binding:  1/2 yard
• Backing: 1 3/4 yards
• 1 crib size quilt batting  45 x 60 inches

Instructions:

1. Cut 25 blocks 6 1/2 inches wide x 10 1/2 inches long from the focus fabric
2. Sew a 2 1/2 inch x 10 1/2 inch strip of the solid color fabric to the RIGHT side of 15 of the focus fabric rectangles
3. Sew a 2 1/2 inch x 10 1/2 inch strip of the solid color fabrics to the LEFT side of the remaining 10 focus fabric rectangles.
4. Sew the quilt together in horizontal rows--5 blocks to each row, starting with blocks with the colored strip on the RIGHT side of the block.  In row 2 the colored strips will be on the LEFT side of the block.
5. Sew the 5 completed rows together to finish the quilt top.
6. Sandwich the quilt top, quilt batting and backing fabric and quilt as desired. 
7. Cut 5  strips of the binding fabric,  2 1/2 inches x Width of fabric (40 inches).  Sew strips together to make the binding. Fold the binding in half across the 2 1/2 width and press.  Attach binding to your quilt. 
8. Add a label!  You're done!

Mystery Quilt! Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion Part 5

Hard to believe we are already on Part 5 (and week 5!) of Bonnie Hunter's Winter Mystery Quilt. This week's assignment was straightforward 4 patch blocks. 

I spun the seams on the back of these blocks.  They were easy to spin. It was almost as if these blocks wanted to spin!  I do like those tiny 4 patches which appear when the seams of a block are spun.  But the sad thing is, only you know they are there!  Unless of course, the quilt survives to a grand old age, starts to wears out and someone in a future generation decides to take it apart!  

I tried to spin the seams in the pieced blocks in Part 4.  That was a struggle.  I finally decided they were better pressed without spinning.  

I suspect that we probably have made most, if not all, of the blocks needed for this quilt. I think there might just be some serious sewing activity on New Year's weekend!  I can't think of a better way to start off 2015!

Christmas Woodlands Lap Quilt

Here is my completed "Christmas Woodlands" Lap Quilt.   I went out to the local Urban Wild conservation area so I could photograph this quilt in a wood!  

As you may recall from my November 20, 2014 post, the Amanita muscaria, a mushroom with a red cap and white polka dots, is used as a Christmas ornament in Europe.  

Three ornaments I made with Sculpey Oven-Bake Clay

Click the link which follows to see pictures of this quilt when it was still a Work in Progress and to see a fabulous photograph of real Amanita muscaria mushrooms in the wild. 

I'm really pleased with this quilt which I designed in Electric Quilt 7 using a Block Turned Quilt template in the EQ7 Layout Library.  It's such a happy, fun quilt.  I'm really enjoying using it during this Christmas season.  

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!  

Mystery Quilt! Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion Part 4

It was so great to read Bonnie Hunter's instructions for Part 4  and finding that part of this step was done back in Part 1.  Bonnie is really good about looking ahead at the calendar and planning the work so that the week of the major holidays there is less sewing time needed to complete that week's step.  Thanks Bonnie!

Above are 2 more sets of Broken Dishes blocks.  It was snowing when I took the blocks outdoors to photograph them.  Can you spot the 2 snowflakes on the grey patch of the left hand block? It's such a swirly fabric that the snowflakes look like they are part of the design!

To see how other quilters are progressing, click here to view the Part 4 Linky for Grand Illusion on Bonnie Hunter's Blog.

I've tried out some titanium coated sewing machine needles this past week.  I have always used Schmetz needles and have been very happy with them.  But I had heard good things about titanium coated sewing machine needles so I purchased some Superior Titanium Coated Needles to give them a try.  I used a Topstitch 90/14 needle to do some quilting and really didn't see any difference.  But I was amazed at how beautifully the Topstich 80/12 worked for piecing.  The needle moved so easily and smoothly through the fabrics.  The eye of the needle is larger than most sewing machine needles so threading the needle is really easy.  

I'm not giving up my Schmetz needles.  I still really like them a lot.  But I'm happy to know about the Superior needles. With the titanium coating, they are supposed to last longer than regular needles.  I haven't used them long enough to comment on that yet.  However, I think using titanium coated needles might make a lot of sense when you are doing a project with lots of piecing-- like this Bonnie Hunter Winter Mystery Quilt!  

For the record:  I don't have any connection with the Superior needle company nor with the Schmetz needle company.  

Thanks to everyone who visited my blog last week based on the photo of the scissors destroyed by my dog Hazel!  I enjoyed your great comments and appreciated your commiseration!  Hazel is well, no harm done to her.  I don't think she even swallowed any of the pieces from plastic handles she chewed up!  

Here are a couple of photos of Hazel with her new wide wale corduroy Pink Pig and a well loved Nylabone-- more appropriate dog toys than my sewing scissors!

Hanukkah Mini Quilt

This weekend I went to a guild holiday party.  There were some Christmas items in the gift grab but nothing for Hanukkah.  I celebrate Christmas so the grab item I took to the party was my Selvage Christmas Tree Mug Rug. 

I realized the strip piecing I used for the tree mug rug could easily be adapted to make a Hanukkah Menorah.  

For this mini quilt I used strips of quilting cotton 1 1/4 inches x 3 inches for the 8 candles and  1 1/4 inches x 4 inches for the central candle.  The background material is flannel.  The strips between the candle strips were cut 1 x 3 inches.  The horizontal strips just above the 8 candles, adjacent to the central candle were cut 1 1/2 inches x width needed for the line of candles.  The other strips I cut to sizes that I thought looked nice.

There is a single selvage in this mini quilt.  It's the selvage from the striped quilting cotton.  I cut the strip to show the numbers from 1 to 8 --the number of days of Hanukkah.

The flames are pieces of felt.  I glued a tiny square of the rough side of a hook and loop fastening material on the back of each flame to help it catch and stay on the flannel of the mini quilt.

I put the flames on a piece of turquoise felt  to keep them together until needed. 

With the quilting, this mini quilt is just stiff enough to stand on its own when placed upright in a slightly curved position.  That was an unexpected bonus for this 9 x 15 inch mini quilt!  What fun!

Happy Hanukkah!

Mystery Quilt! Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion Part 3

It's so easy sewing green!  Well, maybe not THAT easy!  But I was really happy to see Bonnie gave us straight strip sets for Step 3.   

I set up a fence on my sewing machine to get those 1/4 inch seams perfect.  My sets with 2 strips measured exactly 3 1/2 inches.  I had a harder time when all 4 strips were stitched together. I had to press the 4 strip sets with a hot iron to get them to measure 6 1/2 inches 

Here are my 2 strip sets ready to sew together.  I cut my strips at least 20 1/4 inches long with most about closer to 21 inches long.  That allowed me to cut ten 2 inch sections out of each 4 strip set.  Overall, I needed twelve 4 strip sets to make the required 120 8 patch blocks.

My Lab mix, Hazel, who is going to be 4 years old in January, has weighed in with a dog's comment the amount of time it was taking to sew Step 3:

Right Hazel.  I hear you!  Too much sewing, not enough play time with dogs!    (Shh--don't tell Hazel---I still have 110 8 patches to sew together to finish this step)! 

Click here for the Step 3 Linky at Bonnie Hunters blog, Quiltville.blogspot.com to see how everyone is doing!

Using Quilting Scraps to Celebrate the Holidays

I settled down at my dining room table the other day to wrap holiday presents.  The table is a nice big surface and it is where my cutting mat lives.  I had brought out the wrapping paper but not the ribbons and I was at the point where I was ready to tie some bows.  

On the table was a mound of trimmings from my recent projects--strips from straightening fabrics for cutting, a few pretty selvages and a few wider trimmings from cutting the backing after a quilt was done and ready for binding.   My mom, a knitter, used yarn remants instead of ribbons on the presents she wrapped.  I decided to use my collections of odd strips to decorate my packages--carrying on a family tradition, but as a quilter!

TIP:  If you wrap presents on your cutting mat, don't use any wrapping or cards with glitter. One fleck of glitter will ruin your rotary cutter blade.   GOT GLITTER?  Put the cutting mat away until you are done and your surface has been cleaned and is glitter free.

Gifts wrapped, I looked over at the greeting cards which were propped on a table in the living room.  And I noticed that the table needed to be dusted. Only a few cards have arrived but I know more are coming. Did I want to pick them all up every time I need to dust?  Not really. 

I have sometimes hung my cards to ribbons taped to the wall.  Another Ah-Ha moment--strip scraps would make a great, colorful card swag!  And to carry on the quilting theme, I used Clover Wonder Clips to attach the cards to my swag.  Those little red clips are the best--good for all sorts of things in addition to keeping a binding in place during sewing!

Scrappy Holiday Swag with Greeting cards.  (The wooden structure at the top of the photo is the cat walk my brother build for the cats)!

The evening I that I wrote this post I went to the annual holiday party at the Proper Bostonian Quilters Guild.  We always have a Yankee swap.  When all the swapping was done, I came home with a set of 3 beautifully quilted Santa potholders.  The wrapping for this present was a fat quarter of fabric, not paper!  I appreciated this quilter's use of fabric in place of  disposable wrapping paper!   Here are 2 of the potholders on top of the FQ wrapping.  Aren't they fun?

Quilted Santas on one side of the potholders, poinsettias on the flip side.  Quilter--PBQ Guild member, identity unknown

Have fun with your Holiday preparations.  Try using some of those quilting scraps!  What else can you do with them?  Leave me a comment if you have other Holiday uses for your quilting scraps!  I'd love to hear what you're doing!

Mystery Quilt! Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion Part 2

I think the most challenging aspect of Part 2 was deciding how to cut the fabric for this block.  

I considered doing the stitch and flip with bonus blocks but decided just sewing the seams needed for these blocks was all I wanted to do.  So, no bonus 2 inch squares for me. 

I chose to use the E-Z Angle Ruler with the template taped to the back side.  Homemade templates--paper, cardboard or plastic are all easily damaged so that option had no appeal for me.  So I really appreciated Bonnie's suggestion of cutting a paper template and taping that to the back a lucite ruler.  That worked really well.

However, I struggled to get the paper template printed to the correct dimensions.  As they say, little knowledge can be a dangerous thing....but in this case, it just resulted in taking me twice as long to get to the cutting mat!!  I've used a number of paper pieced patterns from PDF files and created a few of my own.  So I was puzzled when I saw the notation on the Block 2 EQ7 printable template PDF that it was 1 and 9/50th actual size.  When I measured the templates they were slightly larger than the numbers Bonnie had listed.  The side which was supposed to be  1  7/8 inch line was 2 inches on the paper template I printed.  

So I reduced the size of the template to match that 1 7/8 inch measurement.  I thought I was ready to go.  But when I tried to match the template to the 2 1/2 inch line on the E-Z Angle Ruler--it was too short and didn't reach the 2 1/2 line.  Back to the computer.

I decided to print the template "as is" and make a block to see if it finished at the correct size. 

I use a MacBook Pro and have an HP printer.  My printer screen didn't have the scaling option "None."  Here's a screen shot of my options.

I used the Custom scale 100% option which is what I always use with PDF patterns for paper piecing. The template that printed fit perfectly on the 2 1/2 inch line on my ruler! 

My test block was a perfect 2 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches.  Good to go!  This step was really straight forward once I had the correct template.

I used a "fence" to help keep my seams that scant 1/4 inch.  I like using Scotch Brand "Restickable Strips."  This works well for me.  Just make sure you don't buy the permanent stick strips!!

I attached the first set of triangles and then pressed the blocks.  Then I sewed on the 2nd triangle. In all, that was 400 triangles to press!  Here's what I found helpful pressing all those triangles: 

• Set the blocks up in pairs on the pressing board
• Press the unopened triangle to set the stitches 
• Then slide the tip of the iron under the first triangle, closest to you, and then the one just above it, without lifting the iron.  This  goes quickly and it gives both blocks a few more seconds of heat which helps keep the triangles from popping back up, which they really want to do!

OK. That's it. Step 2.     

Here's the link to Bonnie Hunter's Linky for Step 2.  Click the link to see blocks participants have made. 

Do you think we'll be seeing green in Step 3? 
We'll know on Friday!  Have a great week!

Selvage Christmas Tree Mug Rug

Have you seen Amanda Jean Nyberg's Mini Christmas Trees?  They are so sweet.  I saw them when she first posted about them on her blog just before Thanksgiving (11/24/14).  

The other day I was sewing some Christmas pillowcases for presents.  One of my selvages had an amazing string of 18 gams (the little circles on the selvage showing all the colors needed to print the  pattern of the fabric). The gams looked just like Christmas lights to me.   I also had a selvage from a Cotton + Steel fabric that whispered "tree branches in the snow".  

Selvages with Cotton + Steel fabric

I used Amanda Jean's idea for using strips to construct a Christmas tree design.  I designed my tree by laying out the strips in a configuration that looked good to me.  I'd completed my project before I went back to read her blog.  I discovered that she has now posted a pattern for her Mini Trees! on Craftsy.  I wish I'd had the pattern in hand before I made my mug rug.  She has some great tips on keeping the strips straight (mine aren't!) and she was kinder about the strip width than I was!  

My strips are so narrow that I kept catching the adjacent seam.  I did a lot of un-sewing to release the rows!  

To quilt my mug rug, I used the serpentine stitch to make snow on the ground and I quilted the outline of of the tree in navy blue that matches the background fabric. You can see the texture but can only see the outline of the tree branches in good light. I like it--a tree at night.

My finished mug rug is 7 1/2 inches square. 

Do you like these strip pieced Mini Trees?   Buy Amanda Jean's pattern--you'll be glad you did!  She has great instructions to help you make beautiful strips and step-by-step diagrams for assembling each row of her Mini Tree.   She also posted a tutorial on her blog yesterday, December 3, 2014, on how to bind tiny things.  It's great too!

Using selvages which are stiff and don't iron flat happily was a challenge but I enjoyed sewing my Selvage Christmas Tree.  If I make another, I think I'll use the selvages with the gams which looks like Christmas lights but use regular fabrics for all the other strips.  I'd also use the tips in Amanda Jean's pattern to help keep those unruly strips straight!

Mystery Quilt! Bonnie Hunter's "Grand Illusions" Step 1

Thanksgiving is over, so that means that it's time for Bonnie Hunter's annual Winter Mystery Quilt.  This year she has named her quilt "Grand Illusions", and has is using a color scheme inspired by the decor of the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, MI.  Bonnie has picked  warm yellow, hot pink, turquoise, grass green, black and neutrals for this quilt. (Click the link to  Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville.com blog to see the Mystery Quilt steps).

I really enjoy making Bonnie's Winter Mystery Quilt.  Each of the steps is very manageable but the end result is always a quilt that is so complex that I would never make it if I saw the design before I started sewing!

The other great thing about Bonnie's quilts is that they use up quantities of scraps!  The more varied the scraps, the more exciting the quilt.  My rule this year--all the fabric has to come out of my scrap bins or stash.  After trolling my fabrics I found that the scraps in my bins don't correlate well with the colors Bonnie has recommended.  I will need to use a different color way.

Last year, making Bonnie's Celtic Solstice Winter Mystery Quilt, I swapped out the orange in her design for hot pink so there is little hot pink in my scrap/stash.  And I rarely use blacks, so that bin wasn't looking very promising either. 

My Celtic Solstice quilt, with Taffy

I've changed out 4 colors for my quilt:  

• Yellow, the constant fabric in this quilt, will be a peachy pink with a tiny green detail
• Pink will be lavender and purple in my quilt
• Black will be switched to dark grey
• Neutral will be white on white fabrics 

I'm keeping her grass green and turquoise.   I know my quilt won't have the strong color contrasts as a quilt made with the colors Bonnie picked, but I'm hoping my white will give enough contrast to keep it interesting.

As I was ironing and starching my scraps in preparation for cutting, I found a lovely strip of aqua fabric which was 2.5 inches wide.  I found myself ironing, and ironing and ironing...the strip seemed to have no end.  Then it dawned on me.  This "scrap" was a binding that I had started to make and then decided not to use.  But it will perfect for this quilt.  So I finished ironing it, folding it in half and pressed it in half the long way.  The quilt's binding was made, before I'd cut a single block!  That was a first!!

I laughed when I saw Step 1.  The weekend after Thanksgiving, the block we are making is "Broken Dishes."  100 of them!  I thought that was amusing!  But with the blocks finishing at 4 inches square, that's probably more like Tapas plates than Thanksgiving platters!

Here's what I did this weekend. 

Step 1: Done.  
Step 2 Coming Friday!   Happy sewing fellow Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt fans!

Here's link to Bonnie Hunter's "Grand Illusion" Step 1 Link-up.  Check it out to see what other folks have done so far.

Fall in New England

Harvard University's Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain, MA

Sherrrin Woods Conservation Area, Hyde Park, MA

Buds, Rhododendron species, front yard

Squash, on a neighbor's front steps

What is Taffy looking at?

Her ball, outside the fence!  (Done deliberately to get the person raking to come play with her)!

Bread rising under a doggy dishtowel

And under the dish towel.., sourdough bread with an apple based starter.  

Sourdough Bread 

Apple pie, decorated with cut out dogs and hearts

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Hat tip to Alicia Paulson whose blog,  Posie Gets Cozy, was the inspiration for creating this photo journal.

Scraps! and the new book, "Scraps, Inc."

I'm talking scraps today!  The inspiration for this post is Lucky Spool's great new book Scraps, Inc, Volume 1, compiled by Susanne Woods.  

I think Lucky Spool is publishing some of the best new quilting books!  Scraps Inc, Vol. 1 is a collection of 15 Block-based quilt designs for the Modern Quilter.  These patterns are mostly Modern Traditionalist so they should appeal to anyone who quilts.  

The book's starts with the statement that if you are looking for a book about scrap quilts, you probably a "prolific quilter."  This is reflected in the patterns in the book which run 4-6 pages long.  They have great diagrams and clear directions, but they are based on the assumption that you know how to piece block.  There is no information about finishing the quilt once you have a completed top.  This is totally appropriate for their target audience of experienced quilters. I'm delighted the pages in this book are used for quilt designs rather than information about making quilts which is readily available from many other sources.

Amy Friend who lives here in Massachusetts and blogs at DuringQuietTime.com, has a paper pieced design called "Twinkle" in the book.  I really like her palette of Spring greens and greys. You can see her quilt at the link above. Her post about this quilt also includes a discount code that is good until December 1, 2014 if you want to purchase a copy. 

One of my favorite quilts in the book is "Autumn Flight" created by Beth Vassalo.  Click on her name to see her great quilt.  She has floated her flying geese so she doesn't loose any of her points  She also picked fabrics with prints that echo the flying geese motif.  It's a great quilt. 

I have to say, the designers in this book have the best collection of scraps!  Each of the contributors in the book has a sidebar with information about how they manage their fabric scraps.  It's great fun to read about how they sort and store their scraps. So I thought I would share how I store my scraps.

If I have scraps with left over yardage, I fold the scraps into the yardage and put them away in my color coded fabric bins.  But lots of times I have scraps that are the end of the fabric.  I cut those scraps into a size that saves the largest amount of useable fabric. I try to do this as I am finishing cutting fabric for a quilt.   

Fabrics that are cut to a size go into stack and click together plastic containers.  The larger container is divided into sections--these store 2 inch strips, 2 inch squares, 3 inch squares, 3 1/2 inch squares, 4 inch squares and "bars" of fabric of varied width and length. (I'm no longer cutting fabric "bars"--it makes more sense to keep the fabric as strips which I can cut to size as needed).

The smaller bin has 2 1/2 squares sorted by color in the top layer. The bottom 2 layers have 5 inch squares. 

Then there are the bags...

On the left is a bag of 1 1/2 inch squares.  (I have no idea how I will use these yet!)  Next to that is a bag of triangles which are scraps from bindings. Those I'm sewing onto white squares to make a quilt pattern from Sunday Morning Quilts.  On the right is my bag of strings. These are any strips smaller than 2 inches wide.  I've trimmed them to be straight strips which I find more useful in my projects.  I also keep a bag of 2 1/2 strips.

Finally I have one large clear plastic bag of "stuff".  Recently I rummaged through it looking for scraps for the new Bonnie Hunter Mystery quilt that starts this weekend.  I found that I took out a number of pieces of fabrics and reassigned them to the stash!  I guess my definition of "scrap" has changed over time!

If you have a collection of scraps, pick up a copy of Scraps, Inc.  It will give you new inspiration about how to turn your scraps into great quilts! 

Single Block Star Christmas Quilt--WIP

I'm working on a Christmas quilt this week. I am using fabrics with fanciful mushrooms, and some elves, which I've been collecting for a while.  Our family lived in Europe when I was a child. As transplanted Americans, our family was delighted by the red mushrooms with white polka dots on their caps which are used as Christmas decorations throughout Europe.  These mushrooms are  Amanita muscaria and they really are beautiful.  (The results of a  quick google search to learn why Amanita muscaria are used for holiday decorations: The child-friendly explanation is that they are a symbol of good luck for the New Year and a tribute to nature).  

Photo by hansenn/iStock / Getty Images:   Amanita muscaria 

I thought this story was worth the addition of a licensed photo so you can see these amazing mushrooms their natural habitat!  Doesn't it look like a fairy might peek from the back of one of these mossy tree trunks at any moment?  You can see why this mushroom species captures the imagination!

For the quilt, I picked a template for a single block quilt in Electric Quilt 7 (EQ7).  It's a star block.  The finished quilt at present will be just over 50 inches square. I'm trying to add some Modern Quilt elements to this quilt--a bit of a challenge since I'm using Christmas and fairytale fabrics! 

I decided to build this star quilt as if it were a medallion quilt.The photo above is the center of the quilt. The paper pieced tree is a design from the EQ7 block library.  I hadn't planned to use the fabric with the little trees, but it was in my stash and echoes the center tree so well that I had to include it!

Here are a couple more elements in the quilt that are pieced and ready to use.  Can you find the Amanita muscaria in the 4 patch blocks?  The polka dot red mushroom is featured in the fabric on the right as well. 

I'm still working on the other blocks in this quilt.  More to come in a later post!