Progress Times Three: Quilt Finishes

If my iPhoto calendering is correct, these are finishes 2, 3, and 4 in 2014. I've started at least that many more since the new year. Two are scrappy and I'm collecting fabrics for the other one. But, these are exciting to finish. I have the St. Louis 16-Patch on our bed. It was super easy and fun to make.

I was in the mood to cull quiet fabrics. I used many that I had and then bought some fat quarters along the way. I really enjoyed making the blocks and choosing the fabrics but when I had sewn them all together, I was ready to be done. I added one more row that is a bit random just to increase the size of it. This is the largest quilt I've made. I made it almost large enough to fit on the California King. It was all-over quilted at Quilted Works.

While shopping for fabric for another project, I found some good sashing fabric to finish the Sugar Block Club quilt from 2013. 

I had put the finished squares in a drawer but was happy to pull them out and get to work. I really like how it turned out. I stitched in the ditch on my home machine which wasn't too terrible because the quilt is not large. The batting I got was very thin but puffed up after being washed. It kind of lends the look of hand quilted work. A nice surprise! The background fabric on the front is a white-on-white polka dot which was gone from the store by the time I needed a backing. So, I got a white-on-white cute little fabric for the back. 

And the last finish is a baby quilt for my visiting teaching companion who had her third boy.

I've seen similar quilts online and wanted to try an all-solids quilt and machine quilt in circles (mine are organic!). I used the quilting guide on my machine for the first time. I would quilt like this again on a small quilt. I think I learned some things. Like, keep your eye on the guide, not on the needle.

I have never finished so many projects in one week. But, I say Hallelujah!!

On Man Quilts and Such

I am quite against making quilts for men. My husband is always warm and rarely pulls a blanket up. I've seen quilts with tools, planes, lumber fabric, and the like that quilters make for their spouses. I imagine the man smiles and thanks the well-intentioned woman, and never uses the quilt for comfort. I don't know why women do it. I think they probably made each child a quilt and feel they are leaving their husband in the cold. I don't know.

We got this kit at Quilted Works a while back (Triangle Trips). It is made with Woolies fabric which is thick like flannel and very soft and nice. The sample was on their backroom wall for a long time, in these colors. Then Mark and I met and married and ever since he saw the quilt at Quilted Works and knew we had one, he was in favor of it. This year he said it should be one of the first quilts I make. So . . .  since his birthday is at the end of March, guess what? He loves it. It is on our bed.

Linking to Finish It Up Friday!

French Roses

French Roses. Pattern by Heather Ross.

This quilt is going to a newborn girl, freshly minted and living in San Diego. Her mother waited a long time for her to get here. She has a twin brother too. They are so happy! I love this pattern so much and wanted to make it with a girly fabric. I chose some of Camille Roskelley's fabrics (and interestingly, the baby is named Camille!). I had never used them (late to the Marmalade party) and must say, the backing flannel is delightful. I will back more quilts in flannel after this!

I washed it twice in warm water and it looks nicely frayed. It was simply quilted on my home machine since it was small enough. Every time I use my machine to quilt, I decide to never do it again though this foray was more successful than my past.

Now I need to put a label on it and we're done! I will deliver it to the parents in a few weeks. I would definitely make this pattern again but want to use more subtle colors next time. The great thing about this one is that when you trim the centers from each layer of the rose, you end up with baby layers and can make a small French roses quilt after. Linking to Finish It Up Friday!

Swooning: A Joint Effort

We celebrated our first anniversary a few weekends ago. Time has flown and we've been together a million years. We started the weekend hiking at Mount Charleston. It was a very cold early morning and we brought the dog. She was dressed best for the day. I rummaged in my 72 hour kit and found some outerwear for us. We were both wearing shorts. Brunch was at the lodge in the outdoor patio (since we had the dog). All manner of breakfast foods and hot chocolate. The sun warmed us by 9 am.

We've been working together on this quilt for a while. He loves the scale and the colors. We made an effort to use solids. He loves solids. He likes it is interesting but not busy. A good description.

My birthday is Monday and he is giving me the quilting for my birthday. Quilted in swirls and some feathers by Quilted Works. This is his favorite quilt I've made. The back is a solid cream.

We are going to put it on our bed on Monday. It should stay for a while. Until something can usurp it. We'd better look around . . . . Linking to Finish It Up Friday!

Americana: Exchange Quilt

Last year, We're in Stitches (the Del Mar quilters) entered our finished Americana quilts in the San Diego Quilt Show at the Convention Center. It was lots of fun to enter as part of a group. Though, it was super to just enter at all. Here I stand in front (blocking) of my quilt. It was a really fun show to look at though I knew we could do better as a community and enter more of our wares! Several of my group entered more than one quilt and one of them won the President's Choice award.

We each did our own Lone Star and other blocks to complete the quilt. My exchange block was the houses. I had a few extra so I put two on my quilt front and one on the back. I also put three extra blocks (that didn't fit on the front) on the back. There was no real layout to go by with our quilt blocks though we used a book by Fons and Porter for our inspiration. We took liberties in the blocks we made and put them together how we liked. As a result, many of the group haven't finished their quilts. We are so tied to patterns! (I was pet-sitting when I tried this layout.)

Same place again. It took a long while to come to a decision.

Here is my layout at mom's. What finally worked for me was barging ahead and sewing about a third of it together. I loved that third and was sure of it. From there I could put the rest together. I am surprised it happened. Mine turned out to be horizontal and will be great on a wall. For now, it's on our bed. I like quilts to be used. 

I found the backing at Rosie's sale room when I shopped with Mary Morrison after the temple one day. She helped me make the decision. I put the quilt show label on and my own label. Click the photo to enlarge.

Here is a close-up to see some of the intricate work our group did. I made that little nine-patch from a Dear Jane pattern.

Here is the back with the remaining blocks.

And here is the whole finished.

I loved being in a quilt group for the show-and-tell alone! I need to join a group here. There are two traditional groups plus a modern group. I am leaning toward the modern one for some reason. Simple appeals to me. I brought this one out for July and it has stayed. Linking to Finish It Up Friday!

Wedding Quilt

The name of this quilt in the book is Liberty Fields because they used Liberty of London fabrics. Their version is one of my favorite quilts. Mark and I tried to replicate their colors but ours is amazingly different: lots of red and and turquoise. I don't know how that happens. The book is amazing. I also have the second Material Obsession book and it is also wonderful but I think I love the first one best. Here, Bodie contemplates the hanging quilt at our wedding luncheon. I love this picture because it shares some of the wonder of the day. And, I like to think people sensed something about the quilt.

 And how it was a miracle it came together in time. The pattern is "Advanced" and I don't know about you but I'm never certain I am advanced, or fluent. It is mostly pieced but the stems are embroidered and the leaves are applique. Luckily, the quilt went together better than imagined. It could have been so different.

The custom quilting was done by a lady in St. George and mother brought it down when she came early before the wedding. It was quickly bound and labeled. I sewed the sleeve into the binding which is my normal method. We put two stars on the back for both of us and our date.

  I love the look of a white quilt and so the back is white too.

It was so fun to make a quilt I had admired in the book for so long. To make it for our wedding was icing on the wedding cake (which we didn't have . . . ).

I have to urge you again to get the quilt book for hours of delight. We have this quilt on our guest bed since it is a queen size (but fits the full size bed perfectly). I admit to liking it better flat. So, one of thsee days I'd love to put it on the wall instead. I'm linking to Finish it Up Friday.

Lewis Anniversary Seal Wall Hanging

Over the weekend, we went to the Lewis Sixtieth Anniversary reunion. Everyone went. Bill and Jo Ann, all three kids, spouses, and their children. It was an amazing reunion with lots of memory and future and fun. Every meal they planned an ancestor spotlight: Look Who's Coming to Dinner. We sang "Lead, Kindly Light," made videos, heard everyone's story of how they met their spouse, heard their songs, and played games, and ate and ate. The highlight was going to the Salt Lake Temple and having a sealing session in the same room they were married in 60 years ago. Kerri and Matt planned a beautiful luncheon at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. We all wore personalized Trojan shirts (they met for real at a USC football game). We went on the Apine slide and coaster in Park City where we all stayed. It was magical.

Mark and I wanted to make them a mini quilt. Mark suggested we use the seal of Melchizedek since it figures so prominently in the design of the San Diego Temple. So we did. I handquilted the top, finishing on the way up to the reunion. It is a variation of a Swoon block.

Next week, our wedding quilt! Taking it to San Diego to photograph it were it was finished and displayed at our wedding. Today, I'm linking to Finish It Up Friday!