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

UFO and USO's

Last year I really worked hard to clean up some UFO's (UnFinished Objects). I did such a good job, my list is gone. Well, there are a few more UFO's in my stash, deep down. But what I want to work on this year are USOs: UnStarted Objects. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to a quilt shop, bought fabric for a quilt I just HAD to make right then and the fabric is still sitting in my stash. I'm not talking about the odd fabric I've picked up to go into my stash, I'm talking about whole quilt's worth of fabric. Anybody else do that???

So this year's goal is to make some of those quilts and UFO Sunday will be my push to get going on some of them.

My current project, the koi pond quilt, is one of those quilts. I picked up this fabric last summer on a trip to Keepsake Quilting. I mean, how can anyone go to Keepsake and not buy fabric??? Well, I digress. So I've started this quilt to use this fabric, no new fabric was purchased in the creation of this quilt. I have the top completed, now onto the back. Again, I had the backing fabric in the stash, although not purchased at the same time. I wanted something to reflect the koi theme on the front, but more abstract.

 I'm kind of liking the the simplicity of the back. I have more of the navy fabric to add on to the top part.

Front

Back

I also tried another sample of the machine embroidered koi. I used the Quilters Dream Puff batting, which worked just fine, but still had a knotty mess on the back. So my next step will be to mark a sample and FMQ it.











On another topic, today is our third meeting for the Ithaca Modern Quilt Guild. I'm pretty excited how well this seems to be going. We are going to set a schedule for projects and demos we want to do.  Yippee, Skippee!!

Linking up with Leah Day for UFO Sunday!

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

But It Was On SALE!!!

Last weekend, I was fortunate enough to visit Keepsake Quilting in Center Harbor, NH. A lot of you might get their fabulous catalog, but it is nothing in comparison to walking in the store. One word - OVERWHELMING!

Now, I will be the first to admit that I need more fabric like a need a new hole in my head. But it was on SALE and, in NH, there is no sales tax! Tell me, how could I pass this up???!!!

Twenty-five 10" squares for less than $17. The two on the right were remnants

Even some shot cottons thrown in for good measure (they were not on sale, but just had to have them)

I just fell in love with this print - less than $7.00 a yard.

Just remember: The more you spend, the more you save!  And I saved a lot! ;)

Color Me GUILTY!

Pat

Organized Heaven in 2011???

Every year I try to have a motto, as opposed to goals. This year was "Organized Heaven in Twenty Eleven". Now you have to realize that I am not organized by nature. As a matter of fact, I'm quite a messy person, but I love to work/live in a neat space. Over the past year, I have been working to figure out how to best organize the HUGE fabric stash that I inherited from my mom in September 2010. I started by putting a lot of the "smaller" pieces in several dressers. That didn't work well.

The room the dressers are in has poor lighting.

Still left to organize

Solution; "Mini Bolts" stored in a double Martha Stewart bookshelf. This represents over 175 pieces of fabric ranging in size from a fat quarter to multiple yards. Still have lots to wrap.

To make the mini bolts I got 3 packs of comic book boards.  Comic book boards are 6 3/4" X 10 1/2", acid free cardboard, in packs of 100. Each pack is about $10.00. Such a deal.

I still have a lot of organizing ahead of me. But my motto for 2012 is " All's Well in Twenty Twelve".

Happy New Year!

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Every Story Needs a Happily Ever After!

To go along with "Once Upon A Time", I now have "Happily Ever After". I'm doing everything double since I'm making two twin sized quilts for two adorable little girls. I have quite a few more embroidery blocks and each one takes over an hour to do. I like the results so far, so I think it will be worth the time!

Embroidery Library design

While organizing my ample fabric stash I found these great purples. ( a mire fraction of purple stash)

This is my favorite!

Fairy Frost! How can I not put this in the quilts???

I like this one too!

I was also organizing my stash yesterday. Since my whirlwind Christmas sewing frenzy, my stash looks like the Tasmanian Devil has visited my sewing area. When I'm all done, I will show pictures.


Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Addicted To Color!

I just had to join in the fun over at Quokka Quilts for her Blogger's Choice Fat Quarter Bundle sponsored by the Fat Quarter Shop. FQS is offering one lucky person a fat quarter bundle all of their own choosing as a prize.

The cool thing is, they are not offering fat quarter bundles. They're offering a WHOLE HALF YARD of 15 fabrics of your choice - 12 prints and 3 solids.  Sew here are my choices!!!

Yummy, rich tangerines, plums, periwinkles and greys. Here is the list of the actual fabrics.

1. Primativa Tangerine Wonky Dots
2. Primativa Charcoal Rustic Florals
3. Outfoxed Purple Triangle Toss
4. Rainbowesque Batiks Red with OrangeScroll
5. Floral Folio Dark Violet Wavy Stripe
6. Primativa Charcoal and Plum Wavy Reed
7. Impressions Purple Plaid
8. Annie's Farm Stand Orange Ring Dings
9. Outfoxed Peach and Purple Wild Vines
10. Primativa Plum Rustic Florals
11. Floral Folio Dark Orange Wavy Stripe
12. Primativa Plum Wonky Dots
13. Michael Miller Violet Cotton CoutureSolid
14. Kona Cotton Medium Grey
15. Kona Cotton Periwinkle 

I was thinking these fabric would be cool to try out my new Sew Kind Of Wonderful  Quick Curve Ruler. What do you think of these fabrics? Are they too wild?

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

My Design Wall! What Do You Think???

I've been a bit under the weather the last few days. Nothing dreadful, just enough to knockout any extra energy after work. But this morning I woke up with a design idea and I had to put it into action.

I have 7 of the pieced blocks, orphans from my mother's stash (I don't think she pieced them, probably from a swap or bee). I recently purchased the 1001 Peeps, then realized that I think this will look pretty good with these blocks. Add in the dark purple and white to keep it from getting too busy. There are two little girls that I would like to make quilts for their birthdays in February. What do you think?

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Santa's Slowest Elf...

....that would be me!

What on earth possessed me into thinking it would be "Cool" to make 17 Christmas stocking by Thanksgiving???!!! One for every family member, even the furry ones. I can say that I'm pleased with the 6 I have done so far.

Hung on the mantel stairway with care!

Lovingly lined!

I am lining each one, to give it a finished look. Only 11 more to go! Ugh! The bright side, I'm using stash to make all of these stockings creating room for more fabric.

Color Me Crazy Quilty!

Pat

An Unexpected Find

I inherited my mother's SABLE! No, not a fur, Stash Accumulated Beyond Life Expectancy. It is amazing what I find sometimes as I dig through bins of fabric and old projects.

Machine embroidered snowmen and gingerbread-men!

Only ONE angel (notice the "L" on the bag)

I love the one and only angel...my mother's name was Lois! I think she's happy!

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Dyed, Pressed and Varied

I can't encourage you enough to try dyeing. Think of the endless number of projects you could come up with using these luscious hand dyed fabrics. I just can't help myself.

All neatly pressed (thanks Kate)!

Check out the fourth one from the bottom (light lavender)

Amazing color variations

Hand dyed fabrics make a cool background for embroidery

Well I'm off again on a new quilty project, sew just Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Quilt Outing

I love to go out quilt/fabric shopping, even if I don't NEED anything. I find it gives me loads of inspiration. Sew this past weekend, my friend Kate and I headed out.  I had been wanting to go to a local quilt shop that I just recently found. What fun and inspirations. They have one of the largest selections of modern designer fabrics I've seen, batiks and a huge classroom.  Oh yes, I will be going back to Quilters Corner in Ithaca, NY!

Color Me Quilty,

Pat

Color To Dye For!

OH MY GOSH!  I totally forgot what a rush it is to dye! You really have to try this, if you haven't already. Honest, it's easy (albeit a little messy, best done in a basement or garage). My dyes haven't lost their umph, they look great.

So this morning Kate and I got up (had a first cup of coffee) and went to the garage to check our dye pots (or in our case dye baggies). We brought them over to the deck (my washer and dryer are right inside the door), and proceeded to wring out the fabric in each baggie. Meanwhile I filled the washer with warm water, added Synthrapol and white vinegar. We did Kate's batch of 18 fabrics first, put them all in the washer at once. Then we did my batch!

Now for the big TA DA moment!

Mine are on the left (heavy on the greens) and Kate's on the right (rainbows)

Humphrey needed a little attention, too!

Well, I really didn't need more stash, but WOW Color Me Dyeing!

Pat