WIP Wednesday

It's been kind of a strange week of progress. I did get 5 new mug rugs in various stages of completion.

I also made the binding for my grandmother's quilt, although, I'm not done quilting it.

I've spent a lot of time trying to reorganize my fabric stash.

Needless to say, I feel like I've worked a lot, but not much to show for it.

Here are this week's stats:
In-process: (9)
Express Your Love
Grandma's Quilt
Charming Squares Quilt
Mug Rugs - 6 in-process
 
New projects: (5) 
5 more mug rugs

Finished (0)


I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday!

 

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

ROY G BIV, That's A Lot of Fabric!

I LOVE solid fabric and I've been collecting it for a few years now. I really didn't understand just HOW MUCH solid fabric I had collected until I started organizing my fabric stash!

I seem to be heavy on the aquas and teals, but I do have a pretty good range of colors (and neutrals)!

Pieces range in size from 1/2 yard to multiple yards. I've never done a ROYGBIV (rainbow) quilt before, maybe I have one in my future!

Now just to be fair, I have collected some fabric to donate. Life is just too short to bother with fabric you just don't love like anymore.

The baggies are big, 2.5 gallon size filled with scraps. The grocery bag is filled with yardage. This all will be donated!

I'm linking up with A Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday and Free-Motion by the River for Linky Tuesday.

   

Color Me Quilty!

 

Pat

The Christmas Mug Rug March!

I was at a quilting retreat for the past three days. Well, it was just during the day, went home every night, but it was fun to quilt with all of my mom's quilting buddies. I mainly worked on mug rugs for Christmas.

I got five pieced and three of those quilted. Still have to trim and bind.

With the two other mug rugs I've made, I have seven of the twelve I need for Christmas gifts done. Getting there.

My Making Christmas List So Far: (I'm sure to add more)

Sewing List
12 Mug Rugs - One done, six in-process
Alter 3 Shirts - given to me by a family member two years ago (that will teach them not to give me clothing to work on!!!)

Non-sewing list
Peanut Brittle
Fudge

Linking up with Kristy at Quiet Play for Making Christmas week 3 (this is my first week, I'm a bit behind)

 

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Fall 2013 Blogger's Quilt Festival

I love  Amy's Blogger's Quilt Festival, I've participated every time since Fall 2011. It is a wonderful opportunity to share, not only beautiful quilts, but the stories behind them.

For this Festival, I'm going to share my Stratified Layers of Life and Love quilt. It truly is a quilt from my heart.

Front

This quilt was made for my step-daughter and her new husband - their wedding quilt. It is meant to warm a relationship that has had some good times and some rocky times. Being a step-mom of grown a woman is not easy, nor do I expect it's easy being a step-daughter when you've lost your real mother and would like her there to share important moments in your life. But life has layers and different compartments that build up and make new connections. It is those layers and connections that give dimension, complexity and richness to life.

Love the second time around is never the same as  first love, but that doesn't mean it's not as good. This is second marriage for both my step-daughter and her new husband. They each have two wonderful kids that add layers of warmth to their new family, coming from different sides, touching new places in their hearts.

Love reaches even into the corners and borders of your life.

My step-daughter is a director of a local library and orange is her favorite color. I thought is fitting to use text fabric and multiple shades of orange for the back. Blue is my son-in-laws favorite color.

Even from the back, the love shines through!

It is my hope that my step-daughter and her new husband will feel loved when they sleep under this quilt. The inspiration and passion for this quilt deign was entirely drawn from both of them.

This is a queen sized quilt, assembled using QAYG (quilt as you go) methods, pieced and quilted with Aurifil thread and Quilters Dream Puff batting. It was quilted on a domestic machine, Pfaff QE 4.0.

I am entering this quilt into the home machine quilted category. 

Please follow the link to see and read about the other quilts in the Fall 2013 Blogger's Quilt  Festival at Amy's Creative Side

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

WIP Wednesday

I've been working on my Charming Squares quilt this week and it seems to be progressing well. I got the back made and the quilt basted. Now I've started to stitch in the ditch. I still plan on free motion quilting it, but this will at least get the pins out of the way.

About half done with stitching in the ditch!

The back

I plan on stitching in the opposite direction, creating squares. I plan to leave the charm squares unquilted and the grey quilted quite heavily - you know me, quilt the snot out of it. I think it will look cool because I'm using a high loft poly batting, the charm squares should really POP!  I really don't have an intended destination for this quilt, but it's fun to work on.

 I also have to add to my list this week, since I didn't do a WIP post last week, my mug rugs.

1st Mug Rug

2nd Mug Rug

Only have to make about 10 more of these little babies!

Here are this week's stats:
In-process: (3)
Express Your Love
Grandma's Quilt
Charming Squares Quilt
 
New projects: (1)
2nd Mug Rug

Finished (1)
1st Mug Rug

I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday!

 

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Charming Squares Quilt

I really have been at loose ends lately, but yesterday I decided to work on my Charming Squares quilt. I made this quilt top this summer, while on staycation, for something fun to do. It's just been sitting on my WIP list waiting patiently.

I pieced the back yesterday

Detail on the back

Basted using boards

I am always amazed at how fast you can baste a quilt using boards (click here for pin basting and here for spray basting, if you want to see how it's done.)

Now I'm ready to start quilting.

Today I'm linking up with Marelize at Stitch by Stitch for Anything Goes Monday.

Tomorrow linking with A Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday and Free-Motion by the River for Linky Tuesday.

   

Color Me Quilty!

 

Pat

   

FMQ Friday

I have to say that I haven't been very productive (sewing wise) the last few weeks, basically since I finished my Layers quilt. I think I've rested enough, so last night I decided I had to quilt up this little typewriter mug rug.

Microstippling around the typewriter.

I stitched around the keys

The back

I was able to pick up three yards of Insul-Bright last night at Jo-Ann's. It was ON SALE!

I put Insul-Bright in the mug rugs so they can be used as trivets or even pot-holders. I figured they might actually get used if they were multipurpose! Two mug rugs down, about ten more to go!

I'm linking up to day with Leah Day for FMQ Friday!

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Mug Rug

I pieced another mug rug last night. I'm out of Insul-Bright batting, so I'll have to wait to quilt it. I think it's kind of cute for an office. With this one and the one I made on Sunday, only about ten more to go!

Okay, so here's a random thought for the day: How many of my workstudy students know what a typewriter is? OR have ever used one?  I'm afraid to ask! ;)  To show how old I am, I got a typewriter for my high school graduation (pre-computers).

I'm linking up today with A Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday and Free-Motion by the River for Linky Tuesday.

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Mug Rug Central

After finishing my last quilt, I decided that I needed to work on something just a wee bit less massive. So I decided to start making some Mug Rug/Trivets for Christmas gifts. So this is my first attempt at a Mug Rug.

Finished size is 7 1/2" x 11 1/2".  Is that too BIG???

 I used a layer of Insul-Bright and a layer of Warm and White batting. I was thinking that it could be used as a trivet, if the recipient preferred.

The back

I used some scraps from my last quilt (Stratified Layers of Life and Love). I even had just enough of the faux piped biding that I used in the quilt to go around this little Mug Rug.

 I figured I get a mug at the dollar store and make some peanut brittle or fudge to go with this for Christmas presents. I think that works.

Color Me Quilty!

Pat