Cozy Plaid Fabric Goodness

I made pillowcases :)

I love that they are coordinating, but not all matchy-matchy - His & Hers pillowcases for my Mom & Dad :)

It feels a bit silly and little-kidish to give my parents handmade pillowcases, but I wanted something I could finish quickly, instead of adding to my WIP list.  And I know my parents will appreciate them.

The fabrics are all DS for Joann's.  Two different colorways of the same plaid, {I Love Plaid!} and the same grey dot for each.  My Mom loves pink & grey together, so naturally I thought of her the first time I saw this fabric.  The yellow plaid kind of looks to me like someone went crazy with a highlighter :)

And can I just say how tickled I am that what was just a pile of fabric in my stash yesterday is now two pillowcases, ready to be useful?  Does anyone else get excited about that kind of thing?

*If you followed the link above and are wondering, I have used that tutorial to make pillowcases that I donated through an LQS :)

I won't be back to my blog until July.  I'm unplugging myself for a few days, because I'm just plain exhausted & something has to give around here.  So I'm cutting out my tv & computer time until I get a few important things taken care of & get better rested.  I'll catch up with you all later, ok?

H2H Finish

I finished my H2H quilt, yay! :)

My little helpers were nice enough to hold it up for a picture - I just love those red rain boots sticking out :)

That great, crinkly texture is one of my favorite things about this quilt; the whole thing is just so soft and drapes nicely, as if it has already been lovingly broken in.

My original plan was to bind with a navy blue fabric with pink flowers that has been in my stash for a long time.  Unfortunately, it didn't age well.  When I opened it up to iron & cut, it was faded along the fold lines :(

I'm running out of larger pieces in my stash, so Plan B was to cut a strip from each of several darker purples.  I'm pleased to have found another option that {in my opinion} looks so lovely, and didn't involve a shopping binge :) 

I really am trying to cut down the size of my stash, because I don't have much storage space in my house & because I don't want my pretty fabric to sit in the closet until it fades or yellows.  It really is sad to pull out a fabric you have been hoarding, waiting for a special use, only to find it in that condition. (I have fabrics with a 2000 copyright on the selvedge, and some probably older than that, if you are wondering)

I used a pastel varigated thread for quilting.  Varigated threads are great for people like me who have a hard time settling on just one color :)

I pre-washed most of these fabrics at my Grandmother's house before she passed away, so the whole quilt smelled like her house, {until I washed it at mine} making it all the more pleasent to hand stitch the binding down :)

At different stages, I've loved & hated this quilt.  As I was joining the blocks together, I really thought it was going to be awful.  I'm glad I didn't banish it to the stack of UFO's, because now I've completely changed my mind about this quilt.  Funny how the right boarder & binding can do that for you.  And how Plan B can turn out better than your first choice.

Tomorrow is Friday, and we all know how blogland loves to party on Friday, so I'll be bringing my quilt around and linking up :)  {I'll update this post to say where when I do}
TGIFF @ Quilt Matters
AmyLouWho Sew & Tell
Confessions of a Fabric Addict Whoop Whoop Friday
Richard & Tanya Quilts

In Progress...

{hand stitching} binding :)



Edited to say: I'm linking up to the H2H linky party over at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.  I'm still stitching the binding, but expect to put this in the mail on Monday.  A broken washing machine, kids' sports, etc all got in the way this week, but that's life, right?  Anyway, I will be posting about the finish Monday or Tuesday, so stop by then to see it :) 

Dorothy gets FMQed

Hey everybody, it's TGIFF time!!!

I've got my finish, how about you? :)

This top has been pieced for awhile, so the big news here is the quilting.  {can't you hear Dorthy singing Over the Rainbow?}

I did an all over meander for the inner portion of the quilt, but in the boarders...

I tried a free motion baptist fan! It's my first attempt, and wobbly as all get out, but it was a fun design to try.  I was fighting my machine's very limited throat space - for the larger arcs I had to stop and roll/unroll the quilt once or twice per arc.  But I've got what I've got, and for a first try I don't think this is too bad :)

I backed the quilt with Toto :)

I didn't measure the finished quilt, but it is a good lap size.  We will be using it for picnics.
The weatherman is calling for sunny skies this weekend - I think the boys & I need to break in our new picnic blanket :)

Ok, now it's your turn! I can't wait to see your fabulous finishes, so link 'em up!

Save the Date & fabric

Some days, you are lucky I just type at you instead of talking to you :) 
I have a nasty head cold that is making me sound like Darth Vader when I breathe.  A very sneezey Darth Vader, hehe

Want to see my free Japanese fabric? 

These are all remnants, long skinny strips, leftover from making home dec iteams.  The lady who makes the home dec iteams saw the sign welcoming quilters to the retreat I was at, and left off garbage bags full of these remnants for the quilters to take :)



I'm hosting TGIFF this Friday!  What do you say, meet me back here to link up your finishes?  I'm quilting a top to show you.  In between perfecting my Darth Vader impersonation :)

It's Festival Time!

Hello Everyone! I'm squeaking in my entry to the Blogger's Quilt Festival at the last minute! :)

This is a quilt that, frankly, I've blogged to death.  I really feel like I should apologise to my regular followers for blogging it again but hey, I did take it out for new photos at least  :) 

I made this quilt as part of the DPQAL, which ended long before my top was complete. 

I started quilting 9 years ago, and this is the first {non-mini, snuggle under} quilt I've made for me.  And I love it.  There was one attempt to snatch away this quilt, but I don't think anyone else will be making that mistake....

This quilt taught me a lot about my how I like to quilt - my process.  Prior to my DP, I planned out all the details, bought fabric, and got to work.  Then I'd get really, really bored.  Lots of WIPs were born this way.  I've realized that the problem with this method is that all the creative decisions are made first, then all that is left is mostly non-creative work.

My Drunkard's Path quilt started when I bought 6 half yard cuts of Happy Mochi Yum Yum without a plan.  When the DPQAL started I knew I wanted to join in, but couldn't buy all new fabric for it at that moment, so I turned to my stash {I seriously love my stash!}.  I bought an equivalent amount of Kona Coal, and cut as many pieces from each fabric as I could, without being concerned about the size of the quilt I would end up with.

It wasn't until I had pieced the quarter circle units that I started playing around with layouts {did I mention this is my first curved seam quilt?} and chose to make print and grey circles.

Look at these great stripes that could have been - someday I will come back to this design :)

In the end, I went with the checkerboard look.  I had four blocks leftover, which I had every intention of using on the back with some quilting cotton.  But when I was shopping at Joanns, I saw a great grey plaid flannel, and since I just have to stroke every fabric I see, I did.  The bolt went into my cart so I could stroke it while I finished shopping for what I was there for in the first place.  I had every intention of putting it back.  Then to my surprise, the bolt just jumped up on the cutting table with my other fabric!  Obviously, it was meant to be :)

Ok, all that to say I learned that I like to take a relaxed, figure-it-out-as-I-go & stay-open-to-new-design-directions approach to quilting.  And in the end, I'm much happier with the finished quilt. 

Here is a quick run-down of the details:

fabrics are Happy Mochi Yum Yum {which should always be said to the rhythm of the conga dance} & Kona Coal

66" square-ish

backing is a grey flannel from Joanns

that's my Mom modeling for me!

and those four extra blocks are going to be a pillow.  Unless they decide to be something else...