Sashed, Quilted...WIP Wednesday

Needs trimming and binding, which I'm hoping to tackle this week. But we've got birthdays and holiday stuff going on, so who knows. I'm off to see the other WIPS at Freshly Pieced!

Picnic in City Weekend - Finished!

I'm so delighted with how this quilt turned out.  I was a little blah about it while it was coming together (I think I was just in a funk that had nothing to do with the quilt itself), but now I love it.

The pattern is called "Picnic," and it is from Kim Brackett's Scrap-Basket Sensations: More Great Quilts from 2 1/2" Strips.  I pieced it using a jellyroll of City Weekend by Oliver + S, along with some Kona white yardage.  The finished size is relatively small, 48" x 60", which is perfect for a picnic quilt.  I didn't take any pictures of the back, but it is the same aqua with polka dots that you see in some of the blocks.

I wanted to keep the quilting simple, as I'm sure this quilt will get much use, so I used an all-over pattern called "rose stipple." I'm totally loving the long-arm quilting now, and this pattern was the perfect break from some of the complex free-motion work I had been doing both personally and at MQX.

 As a last note, I picked up Superior Threads So Fine to try out, based on reviews from a number of professional long-arm quilters. It's a polyester thread that is extremely thin so the idea is to add texture with the quilting while allowing the thread to disappear into the background. Even being as fine as it is, it is an amazingly strong thread, and I give it a definite thumbs-up. It is, indeed, so fine.

Designer Mystery Block of the Month #9 and MQX West

This is the 9th block in this series -- just 3 more to go! I do enjoy putting these blocks together, but they are time consuming. I think I have the setting all planned out once I have the blocks completed, but that will probably be a few months down the road at my current pace!




I have also been working on the October Stash Bee blocks -- they are really cute, but I think I'll wait until I have all four blocks complete before I post about them.

Finally, last week I was able to attend MQX West, the Machine Quilter's Expo.  It was SO cool!  I was somewhat intimated at first, thinking I might be out of my league.  But it all turned out great -- I met some nice people, and everyone was very enthusiastic and supportive. 

I was able to take a handful of classes, including classes from Angela Walters and Gina Perkes.  These are examples of Angela's and Gina's quilting awesome-ness.

This is a sample that Angela brought to class on quilting modern quilts.  The straight lines were done with a ruler, but everything else was free-hand FMQ.

Another section of the same quilt by Angela Walters -- she demonstrated both quilting motifs during class.

This is Gina Perkes' blue ribbon quilt that was on display -- it is called "Ambrosia."  The quilting was completely hand-guided.  I always wonder how long a project like this took?

Detail of quilting motif from Gina Perkes' Ambrosia quilt.  This picture is just an example of how intricately quilted and pieced this quilt was -- absolutely amazing.

100 Quilts For Kids and a Giveaway!

Last weekend we were over visiting with the boys' baby cousin, who is now 2 years old.  She's a pretty high-energy kid and was having a great time playing with her "gunga," a blanket that her mom had made.  It was pretty funny how a simple, inanimate object such as a blanket could provide untold amusement and provoke such riotous laughter.  My own 8-year-old has his baby blanket that he still carries around and sleeps with at night.  It has accompanied us on every trip, including our recent one to Germany.



So, as I was making up this chevron quilt, I thought the best home for it was with a child who might receive some comfort from having his or her own blanket.  I will be donating this to the Portland chapter of Project Linus.  This group is pretty remarkable -- the group holds sew-ins and accepts donations of new materials or handmade child-sized blankets and then distributes them to children in need at area hospitals, women shelters, and other charitable/social organizations.


As I'm so in love with this HST chevron design, I wrote up a quick tutorial. You can go to my store blog at LiMa Sews for the rest of the details on this blanket, tutorial, and a chance to win the Lizzy House fabric to make your own version!

I'm linking up to Lily's Quilts and the Manic Monday Linky Party at Sew Happy Geek, so go check them out!