Big Fun - A M&M Quilt

Been busy working on a new quilt for a special boy. He's autistic and absolutely fell in love with this M&M quilt top I had. I told him that it would be his as soon as I finished it.

So it's taken a while; I promised him this quilt at the end of February and just finished it up today.

The backing fabric has all the M&M characters and the words Big Fun - hence the name of the new quilt "Big Fun".  And it was a lot of fun making it.

Rainbow Afghan Finished

The whole thing is together. Now all I have to do is finish weaving the ends in. I can't believe that I forgot to post a picture. 
In total there are 16 blocks. They're each bordered with white, then stitched together in white.  Then there is one row of a white border done in double crochet and the last bit is dark blue for a border wave design.

Its been so cold we've slept under this for a few nights even without having the ends woven in.

For the Saints Fan in my life

My husband is a Saints (American) football fan.  Its funny that he's a Saints fan because he didn't grow up in the US.  When he moved here to the States, I gave him a year to learn the rules of American football and another year to learn the different teams. 

So the one year, he watched all the games and declared that "Whoever wins the Super Bowl will be my team." 

 2009 - Saints won. 

And that is the story behind this quilt. 

I'll be quilting it with a fleur de lis this summer.  I'm also not sure if I'll be adding another border or two. Perhaps a skinny solid black, a medium size yellow border and then a wider Saints border.  :)

 

And here's a close up of one of the blocks.  I fussy cut the helmets so they'd be the centers of the stars.  Can't wait to see my guy cuddled under this one watching football this fall and winter. 

"Cracked" Pot - Focus Picked

So, guess what.  Based on my INFJ nature, I thought I might have a directional print stuffed somewhere in my stash, and went looking.  I did have something awesome.  :) 

Now I just have to pick coordinating fabrics. :)  This is going to be very fun.


I'll be able to use up my oranges and yellows.  Who knew that orange was going to be considered a "dark"?!?

Show Quilt - Top done

My quilt Pieces of Me is going to be shown with Stretching Art and Tradition exhibit at the Philadelphia National Quilt Extravaganza XX held September 19-22, 2013.  I'm so excited to be participating in it.  My quilt won't be judged, just exhibited.

The theme is Hi, it's Me!  so I've been working on Dresden Plates because of the circular nature of life.   I wanted to start out with larger ones and work towards smaller ones, all with things that represent who I am.

My husband helped me come up with the center idea of putting my silhouette in the center and as the Dresdens go from larger to smaller have a piece of the silhouette covered up.

So, let me share a bit of what each Dresden represents.

Pink and Purple - my DD's favorite colors and represents me as a woman.
Blue and Anchors - my Dad used to be a commercial fisherman, I grew up at the NJ shore and had a boat before I had a car.
England and Red Paisley - my love of travel, DH is from England originally and I was in Puerto Rico studying Spanish.
Coffee Beans and Blues and Browns - One of the things I love, coffee.  The blues and browns represent my love of Mother Earth and Nature.
Pencils and Cream Crosses - My profession as a teacher and my faith.
American Patriotic - I'm American, part Native American, and where a lot of my roots are.

I'm not showing off the final outcome with the quilting.. but I will share that it's bound in dark green. :)

The Big Reveal: Rainbow Carpenters Star

Here's the finished Carpenters Star.

Add borders if you want, then quilt and bind.

There you go - a Carpenters Star quilt without any Y seams. :-)

All previous parts to the tutorial/sew along:

Stitching The Rows Together 

Row Stitching Instructions 

Cutting Instructions 

The Beginning: Picking Fabrics 

All that's left is for me to decide if I'm adding borders, or not and the quilting.  I've got a few ideas on how to quilt it, just need some time.

Picking the thread to quilt it.  A friend taught me to NOT lay the spools of thread on the quilt top like this:

And why not you ask?  Good question.  Thank you Jess for helping me out. :)  If the thread is all coiled up on the spool you won't get a good idea of how it would look laid out over the different colors of the quilt.  What should be done is to pull some of the thread off the spool and lay it over the quilt top more or less what it would look like if it was quilted.   Try it on the different colors and see what works for your particular quilt top.  It also depends on if you want the thread to blend in or stand out highlighting the quilting.

For me, I picked the rainbow thread.  See how pretty it looks?  Now all I have to do is decide on the quilting motifs.  If you've got any suggestions - I'm open to them! :)

Sew Along - Stitching the Rows Together

A more detailed explanation of how to sew each row together is coming along shortly. I need to get my husband to help with the computer aspect of labeling things. 

Two rows together:

Halfway point:

Using 8.5" *unfinished) squares, it currently is 32.5"x64.5" (unfinished)

 

Ok.. I really need to get a design wall. The floor thing isn't working out to well. LOL.

Previous Parts to this Sew Along:

Sewing Instructions

Cutting Instructions

Choosing Fabrics

Sew Along - Rainbow Carpenters Star - Stitching Instructions

Let's get stitching!

For this, it's a bit fiddly at first to get the pieces sewn together. My advice is to take this quilt one row at a time.  There are 8 rows.

Because of the Half Square Triangles (HSTs), I press my seams open to reduce bulk, but you can certainly press to the dark side.

Example:

Front:

 

 Back:

 

Row 1:
Step 1 - Sew:
Blue HST to Background HST
Dark Purple HST to Background HST
Light Purple HST to Background HST
Pink/Rose HST to Background HST
Background Square to Background Square
Background Square to Background Square

Once all the HSTs are sewn together and the background squares are sewn to each other, press the seams open (or to the dark side - it's your preference).  Pin together and set aside.  Label this section Row 1.

Row 2:
Step 1 - Sew:
Background Square (don't stitch to anything)
Light Green HST to Dark Green HST
Dark Green HST to Blue HST
Dark Purple HST to Background HST
Pink/Rose HST to Dark Red HST
Dark Red HST to Red HST
Background Square (don't stitch to anything)

Once all the HSTs are sewn together and the background squares are sewn to each other, press the seams open (or to the dark side - it's your preference).  Pin together and set aside. Label this section Row 2.

Row 3:
Step 1 - Sew:
Background HST  to Teal HST
Teal HST to Dark Green HST
Background Square (don't stitch to anything)
Blue HST to Background HST
Pink/Rose HST to Background HST
Black Square (don't stitch to anything)
Red HST to Orange HST
Orange HST to Background HST

Once all the HSTs are sewn together and the background squares are sewn to each other, press the seams open (or to the dark side - it's your preference).  Pin together and set aside. Label this section Row 3.

Row 4:
Step 1 - Sew:
Background HST to Yellow HST
Yellow HST to Background HST
Background HST to Dark Green HST
Dark Green HST to Blue HST
Pink/Rose HST to Orange HST
Orange HST to Background HST
Background HST to Tan HST
Tan HST to Background HST

Once all the HSTs are sewn together and the background squares are sewn to each other, press the seams open (or to the dark side - it's your preference).  Pin together and set aside.  Label this section Row 4.

Row 5:
Step 1 - Sew:
Background HST to Tan HST
Tan HST to Background HST
Background HST to Orange HST
Orange HST to Pink/Rose HST
Blue HST to Dark Green HST
Dark Green to Background HST
Background HST to Yellow HST
Yellow HST to Background HST

Once all the HSTs are sewn together and the background squares are sewn to each other, press the seams open (or to the dark side - it's your preference).  Pin together and set aside.  Label this section Row 5.

Row 6:
Step 1 - Sew:
Background HST to Orange HST
Orange HST to Red HST
Background Square (don't stitch to anything)
Pink/Rose HST to Background HST
Background HST to Blue HST
Background Square (don't stitch to anything)
Dark Green HST to Light Green HST
Light Green HST to Background HST

Once all the HSTs are sewn together and the background squares are sewn to each other, press the seams open (or to the dark side - it's your preference).  Pin together and set aside.  Label this section Row 6. 

Row 7:
Step 1 - Sew:
Background Square (don't stitch to anything)
Red HST to Dark Red HST
Dark Red HST to Pink/Rose HST
Light Purple HST to Background HST
Background HST to Dark Purple HST
Blue HST to Teal HST
Teal HST to Dark Green HST
Background Square (don't stitch to anything)

Once all the HSTs are sewn together and the background squares are sewn to each other, press the seams open (or to the dark side - it's your preference).  Pin together and set aside.  Label this section Row 7. 

Row 8:
Step 1 - Sew:
Background Square to Background Square
Pink/Rose HST to Background HST
Background HST to Light Purple HST
Dark Purple HST to Background HST
Background HST to Blue HST
Background Square to Background Square

Once all the HSTs are sewn together and the background squares are sewn to each other, press the seams open (or to the dark side - it's your preference).  Pin together and set aside.  Label this section Row 8.

Coming up next - how to sew each row together.

Previous - Cutting Instructions 

Beginning of the Sew Along - Fabrics Needed

Sew Along - Rainbow Carpenter Star - Cutting Instructions

All righty!! Ready to do some cutting?

 

From your BACKGROUND - 16 SQUARES, 32 TRIANGLES

Dark Red - 4 Triangles

Red - 4 Triangles

Pink/Rose - 8 Triangles

Light Purple - 4 Triangles

Dark Purple - 4 Triangles

Blue - 8 Triangles

Teal - 4 Triangles

Dark Green - 8 Triangles

Light Green - 4 Triangles

Yellow - 4 Triangles

Tan - 4 Triangles

Orange - 8 Triangles

When you do the cutting and trimming, make sure that you're consistent with the rulers that you use. Whatever ruler you use to cut your squares - use that one to square up your Half Square triangle blocks. Consistency is important.  Over the years I've found that each ruler is slightly different - so whichever ruler you start cutting with, keep using that ruler. It'll save you a ton of heartache.

Sunflower Table Runner - UFO Done

Done!

Given to my Grandmother yesterday. :)  She LOVED it. 

Goddess Miniature Quilt - Complete!

It's finally completed! After I did some of the quilting, I put it away and it was in the box with some other UFOs and just never got bound.  But it's finally bound and complete!

May I present to you: Goddess of Spring

This will be the first in a series of 4 quilts - all of the Goddess.

Forest Friends - Complete

Finally complete!  2013 is going to be the year of me finishing up UFOs. See, I'm keeping my promise.

This was kind of languishing in my UFO bin. I had all the blocks pinned into the rows that I sewed together, then sandwiched it and quilted it in a green thread.  Sulky looks awesome when it's all quilted up.

Forest Friends was my very first swap quilt. I asked for wonky or improv (a la Gwen Marsden) blocks. Got back all but one, so I made a spinner block. Adds interest I think.

The binding is a grey blue which pulls out the blue in some of the tree fabric.

Having a "Crumby" time..

Well, not really. I'm not in a bad mood or anything! While blog hopping again, I found Bonnie Hunter's awesome tutorial on crumb blocks again.  Naturally, I just *had* to try them again.

I think at one point I started making crumb blocks, but they got put to the side, and the scraps just went into a Rubbermaid bin. And I kept making bigger things, and the scraps kept adding up. So I went digging into the pile and started randomly sewing pieces together.

Instead of trimming the blocks at 4" (because that's way too small for me!) I made mine 6.5" unfinished - the size of one of my most used rulers.

Because I'm super geeky, I'm putting a little sticky tab on the back of each block with the row it should go in, and the total number of pieces used. I'm hoping to embroider the number on the label when I finally get the quilt done. It'll be my big work in progress, but I'll get there eventually.

Star - BOM - January 2012

I'm participating in a BOM (Block of Month). January's block is the BrassTown Star from Quilters Cache.

I've not done this block before, somehow I missed it - and it's GREAT!! So awesome to have fussy cuts in the diamonds! I'm using a fabric I got about 2 years ago, and I'm so happy to have a use for it!

Anyway, here's my BrassTown Star.


What do you think?

Received Boom Blocks

Wow. I've received a few Boom 6 Blocks. I'm so excited.

And it begins again.. Boomerang 6

I'm INSANE. Yep. I've joined Boomerang Six! I joined 2 groups again, and said that I'd be a standby if a small group needed someone else to "play."

I swear, sometimes I really think that if I didn't do these Boom swaps I'd never get any large quilts made.

Wanna sneak peek of what I'm sending for one group? Curious as to what 35 envelopes stuffed with a Fat Eighth looks like?? Sure, I know you are! And of course I live to share!

This particular fabric I've been holding onto for 6 years or so (I think.) It's a Robert Kaufmann print and I just love it to pieces. I finally made the first cuts into it. Let me tell you - cutting it hurt, but at the end of this Boom, I'll finally have a quilt for MYSELF!!!



I only had enough of the coffee print fabric for 16 envelopes (I've designated myself to making 4 blocks with this print...) So.. this is what 16 envelopes looks like stuffed with the F8th, a letter - the original is handwritten but I photocopied it - and no addresses on the envelopes or stamps just yet.


And this fabric is going to be for DD. She picked it, she wants bright happy colors. Since there are 35 people I send to, and I'd already had 16 people, there are 19 Fat Eighths here, and I'll be making some blocks with the leftover fabric I have. I'm sending out 10 yellow Elmo F8ths, and 9 Pink. DD told me that I have to make her at least one pink block - so there's the 20th block.




And here is a photo of what 35 envelopes looks like! Each has a letter inside it, and the F8th in a baggie.



Now, all I have to do is decide on what I'm sending out to the second group. I do have an idea, but I think it'll be a surprise - and I'll post all the blocks as I receive them and maybe someone can guess. :)

Quilt Goddess - A Miniature Quilt

I'm working on it. One of my friends saw my pile of WIPS and UFO's and dubbed me the Quilt Goddess. I highly doubt it, but it inspired me to make a miniature quilt of the Goddess.

I'll probably donate it to the AAQI. I'm hand quilting it. Might take a while. :)

Finally Sold Pirate Table Topper!

I did a couple craft fairs about a year ago and no one wanted this pirate table topper I made. I have another one too, just need to get some better pictures of this one. But, it finally sold! :D Yay!

Argh, I'm a Pirate:


Truer Colors on Argh, I'm a Pirate:



This is the binding and backing of Argh, I'm a Pirate.
My bindings take me a while to do since I only hand stitch them to the back. I try to get at least 7-10 stitches per inch for binding, just to make sure that it won't come out easily.


The Quilting on the Back of Argh, I'm a Pirate:


This is the Pirate Table Topper 2. Somehow I don't have a good picture of the finished one, but I'll get a good one before Tuesday when I send the girl her 2 table toppers, pincushion and coasters.


This is the Pincushion that started it all. The woman saw it and said, "I love pirates" so it's now hers, and so are the two pirate table toppers.