Quilt Finish: Chai Tea Latte

Two weeks ago, Pat Sloan posted The Coffee Shop block in her 182 Day Solstice Quilting challenge.  I was at a quilt show, so I had to wait 6 entire days to start stitching her block into this quilt:

I looked at her pattern and screamed (to myself, since I was in an airport*) "Ribbon Candy!"  I thought that the ribbon candy would add great texture to this quilt, and I think it did!

I added two borders to Pat's pattern (The Coffee Shop) and my Chai Tea Latte quilt is approximately 53"x53"

I'm in a neutral fabric phase right now, so expect to see a lot more quilts from me with little contrast:

I'm enjoying letting the quilting provide the contrast in my quilts.  I am using an oatmeal-colored thread so that it contrasts ever-so-slightly with the cream fabrics but still blends with the caramel loosely-woven fabric, too.

I've never been accused of being subtle, but I'm so enjoying playing with subtle contrasts in my quilts!

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*Can you imagine the reaction if I suddenly screamed "Ribbon Candy!" out loud in an airport?  I don't even want to think about it!

Tempted: Social Butterfly

I think I need to turn off my computer.  Every time I go online, I find another beautiful quilt that I just have to make.

This week's temptation is Social Butterfly.

I won't make this quilt.
I won't make this quilt.
I won't make this quilt.
I won't make this quilt.

But if I did, wouldn't these fabrics look sweet?

These are all in my stash, so making this quilt would kind of be like cleaning.  Right?

Found in my Sewing Room

I am on a year long quest to bring order from the chaos that is my sewing room.  I've accomplished much, but still have a long way to go.  A long, Long, LONG way!

I just found two bags of quilt pieces that had me asking "What can you make of that?"*

Apparently I was "into" browns at the time.

I think these are parts of two separate quilts.  Since these are all made from five-inch squares (nickel squares), I think they were from this book, maybe Sunny Lanes and Four-Patch Plaid?  I've made most of the patterns in this book, as well as another one of Pat Speth's books.  You might say I'm a huge fan of hers.  Learn more about her passion for five-inch squares HERE.

I will put these in a basket next to my sewing machine and try to piece them into some giveaway quilts in between other projects.

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*This? Well, I can make a hat; I can make a brooch; I can make a pterodactyl!

Cutie Quilt: Picnic Patch

I love Cutie Patterns.  There, I've said it.  I love the Cutie Patterns that I have designed, naturally, but I also love the rest of the patterns in the collection.

Picnic Patch is my favorite quilt to machine quilt.  When I finish piecing one and think "Now I get to quilt this" I get all warm and gooey inside and it feels like Christmas.  Yes, I'm weird.

There is a wedding in the extended family.  I don't know the bride so I chose neutral fabrics for her quilt:

This quilt is 72"x72" and I hope it can be used as a casual throw.

I divided my neutral strips into "pinks" and "yellows" and placed them on the quilt so each block was framed alternately with pink or yellow:

I quilted all of the strips with ribbon candy:

I told you it was like Christmas!

I was able to get a rare winter natural light photo, so here's a glamour shot of the quilt:

I loved working with neutrals so much that I've pulled all of my neutral fabric (yardage, precuts, and scraps) into a bucket and have plans to create many more quilts.

Which of my Cutie Patterns should I remake in neutral fabrics?  "All of them" you say?  Why yes, I think I shall!

My Happy Place: Never too much Light!

My sewing space is the family room of my house.  It has walnut paneling and walnut floors, so everything in there is dark Dark DARK!  I live in the woods along the Appalachian Trail, so even on the sunniest of days I get 4 hours of sun at most (the trees and mountains block the sun).  Basically, I sew in a cave.

I recently installed a design wall and now have no idea how I ever lived without it.  I lay out each block on the wall above my machine and piece it without worrying that I'll turn a square or triangle between the cutting table and the machine.  The problem with my design wall is that it's dark in that part of the room.  My sewing machine is in that same corner, so I'm piecing in the dark.

Well NO MORE!

You can see in the photo how dark the top of my design wall is.  My sewing area is so bright now!   The photo doesn't show just how amazingly bright it is now.   I bought some wall mounted spotlights and will adjust them over time to find the perfect lighting angle for my piecing.

While I was thinking about lights, I replaced all of the dead bulbs in my overhead lights (3 of 12 were dead):

As they die, I'm replacing them with LED bulbs which are so much brighter!

I bought myself some LED magnifying clamp lights several months ago and they live on my cutting/work table:

I also have one of these lights in my living room where I do my hand stitching.

I have a few more ideas to improve the lighting in my sewing room, but I'm so overwhelmed with the improvement today that I sing "Ahhhhh (angel chorus)" every time I turn the lights on in here.

Have you made any lighting improvements in your sewing area?  Please share!  These old eyes of mine can use all of the help they can get!

Living With Quilts: S'Mores Snowmen

Before I show you a photo of a quilt in my living room, I need to tell you about my cat Kermit.  I don't show photos of poor Kermit because he is old and blind and frail and not very attractive any more.  He's 18 years old and has had a very, very good life with us.  He is failing and we will care for him until the very end.  Despite his tendency to scream at the top of his lungs at all hours of the day and night (and during my quilting videos), we will miss him when he finally leaves us.  Then we will buy new furniture.

You see, he and his brother Spike destroyed our living room furniture when they were younger.  Spike passed nearly 8 years ago and we said we'd hold off on new furniture until after Kermit left our family.  Did I mention it was 8 years ago?

So many times I've been ready to order a new living room set, but Kermit is failing in ways that are messy and I don't want to add my 'new furniture stress' to his final time with us.  So we wait for new furniture.

In other words, pay no attention to my awful furniture in this photo.  Destroyed furniture means that we love our cat and I'm not apologizing but I am explaining

So, about the quilt--  during the winter months, I bring out this snowman quilt:

I bought a charm pack of this delightful S'mores Snowmen fabric from Moda when I was on a quilt shop hop in Salt Lake City about seven or eight years ago.

I loved this fat quarter pack so much that I bought every bit of this fabric that I could find (cough * jelly rolls * cough * fat quarter pack * cough * half yard pack * cough * yardage * cough * panels * cough * more charm square packs * cough).  I have used some of the fabric for a wedding quilt.  It was the only way I could keep Alexis from stealing my little sofa throw.  Seriously!  She threatened to break in and steal my quilt because she loved the S'More Snowmen that much.

I still have a bunch of this fabric left, so expect to see more marshmallow snowmen quilts in the future!

Summary: BOMs and other quilting this week

I've made a bit of progress in my sewing room this week.

I worked on an old Block of the Month quilt from the Quilt Basket from 2013.  The blocks are all animal themed.

Bear paw:

Snowy Owl:

Snail Trail:

Puss in the Corner:

I worked on Pat Sloan's 182 Day Solstice Challenge.

The Coffee Shop:

Quilt Math:

I am currently current on this quilt, but won't stay that way because of my travel schedule.  I'll play catch-up as I can.

I also worked on Pat Sloan's The Children's Library quilt.

The Poky Little Puppy:

I look at my sewing room and feel so behind, but I just realized I have posted 61 BOM blocks this year so far... and that's not nothing!  I'm not sure I'll be able to continue the one-a-day rate now that Quilt Show Season is upon us, but I'm going to try a little longer.

One of the reasons I feel so behind is that I see New! Pretty! Quilts that I just have to make.  Quilts like Pat Sloan's The Coffee Shop.  I might have accidentally pieced this top:

Just because I wanted to quilt it like this:

I'm a bit under the weather so I've cancelled all of my weekend plans and will stay home and quilt all weekend!

Happy quilting weekend to you, too!

Finished: Tuffet

Raindrops on roses
and slippers on tuffets:

These are a few of my favorite things.

The fabric is Rosecliff Manor by Emily Taylor Designs for Riley Blake.

I made this tuffet at a class at the Quilt Basket.

Tempted: English Rose

Hi, My name is Debby and I'm a Quilt-a-holic.  I have scores of quilts in process and scores more unstarted.  I have more fabric in my possession that I can use in my lifetime.

I am trying to finish the "in-process" quilts before I start new quilts, hoping to get to the point where I can focus on only a handful of quilts at a time.  I think I would do better at this if new quilts didn't tempt me all of the time.

I'd also do a better job at not starting quilts if friends like Roni wouldn't make me start new quilts by using strongarm tactics like sending me messages that say "Look at the quilt I just finished" which makes me think "Hey, I have that kit somewhere in my stash.  I really want to make it... Right NOW!"  Like I said, strongarm tactics.

So I pulled out the quilt kit:

and it's close to the top of the "Quilts to Make" stack.

I've made this quilt before -- full story HERE -- and already know I enjoy making the pattern.  The last time I made it, I quilted a simple overall quilt design.  This time, I hope to do some custom quilting like... ribbon candy?

You knew that was coming, right?

Hi, My name is Debby and I'm a Quilt-a-holic.  A happy, happy Quilt-a-holic

Quilt Con Recovery: The Fiber Cure

I had an exhausting week at Quilt Con.  Early morning wake-ups (cough*2:30am*cough) to catch flights as well as working long hours in the classrooms daily left me a bit drained today, my first day at home.  I wanted to get caught up on a bit of sewing, but something shiny distracted me when I started to make last week's Solstice Challenge block.

SQUIRREL!

So I accidentally pieced the entire Coffee Shop quilt and forgot to make the single block that I actually needed to make for my Solstice Challenge!  When my Handi Quilter Stitch 510 and I get together, we always get ourselves into trouble like this!

I'm thinking of adding a 1 1/2" brown border and then a 4 1/2" cream print border to make this quilt 54"x54".  What do you think?

Apparently I'm still in my neutral/low-volume/blended quilt phase.  Whatever you call it, I see no end in sight.

I absolutely can't wait to quilt this quilt.  Shocking no one, there will be ribbon candy.

Cutie Quilt: Vintage

Have you ever had fabric so pretty that you couldn't cut into it?  And then it sat on your shelf for years until you found the perfect quilt for it?

I bought a fat quarter pack of Ella Blue's Terra Australis 2 fabric the last time I was in Australia and petted it for a few years before I decided to make this 90"x90" quilt:

The pattern is Vintage, one of my Cutie Patterns.

I quilted the entire quilt using my In The Pinks FabuLux thread:

(My winter photography has improved, but is still not great).

Since I only had a fat quarter pack, I had to piece the border and binding:

I just need to make some pillowcases and then this pretty quilt will spend a month or so on my bed!

I have at least 16 fat eighths left over in this fabric line.  Which Cutie Quilt should I make from the oh-so-pretty leftovers?

Happy Place: Welcoming Me Home

I am traveling home from Quilt Con in Savannah, GA today and wondered what I could post about improving my sewing room when I'm not even there.

For the first time in forever (sing along if you must), I cleaned my sewing room and cleared all surfaces before I left.

My cutting table is free of projects and debris from projects:

It is ready and waiting for me to dive into whatever caught my attention at the show this weekend.

My sewing machines and longarms are empty and clean and awaiting their next projects.

Even though my sewing room isn't magazine-photoshoot-ready, it is cleaner and tidier than it has been in years and I can't wait to get back in there and create something happy!

Living With Quilts

I've never considered my decorating style to be overly "quilty," but as I look for quilts in my home to post every Sunday I realize just how many quilts grace my home.

I have a space in my living room that hosts a rotating group of quilts -- Thimbleberries Club quilts from 2003 (I had to look that up).

Here's Winter Scape:

My challenge is remembering to change this quilt before the middle of summer!

Weekly Summary: BOM

I'm making progress on my local quilt shop's batik BOM from 2013 or so.

Bear Paw:

Snowy Owl:

Snail Trail:

Puss in the Corner:

Goose Tracks (please be impressed with the paper-piecing.  It's not my #1 skill):

Apparently my quilt shop offered this same BOM quilt in two colorways this year and I signed up for both.

Monkey Wrench:

Turtle:

I'm still at Quilt Con in Savannah and hope to make more progress on these BOM quilts when I get home.

Quilt Finish: Allietare

Big quilt alert!

I finished my Bonnie Hunter Allietare mystery quilt a while ago and am tickled to report that it is happily living in its forever home (with one of my bridesmaids!):

I love Love LOVE this quilt and wanted to see it in the perfect home.  It is

I typically quilt my Bonnie Hunter mystery quilts with an allover swirl pattern and did so again on this one.  I chose my Mellow Yellows FabuLux thread:

If you want to learn to free-hand quilt this swirl pattern, here's a 50% off link to my Craftsy class that teaches this pattern.

This makes FOUR Bonnie Hunter mystery quilts that I've finished.   Sadly, I still have at four more here waiting for me to finish them.  Hopefully I'll have them all done by Thanksgiving when Bonnie (hopefully) posts a new mystery for us all to enjoy

Tempted: Smile at the Rain

I'm trying to be good, really I am.  I'm trying to finish the projects clogging up my sewing room instead of starting New! Pretty! projects that are just begging me to adopt them.

While trying to be good, I was stumbled upon This Pattern and I need to make it.  I really, really need to make it.

Would it be less like cheating if I made it from scrap fabric?

I was thinking patriotic fabrics as a Quilt of Valor.

Or maybe this happy-scrappy collection?

What fabrics will you use for your Smile at the Rain?

Lament

Pat Sloan releases her 182 Day Solstice Challenge free quilt block today and every Wednesday until the summer solstice.  This is the first Wednesday I won't be home to stitch up the block and stay current.  I'm a little stressed about that.

Today I am on my way to Quilt Con, the Modern Quilt Convention, in Savannah.  Being there will make me forget all about my stress!

These are the Solstice blocks I've made so far:

I promise to catch up as soon as I get home next week.

Are you quilting along with this challenge?

Cutie Quilt: Irresistible

I am tickled to announce a new Cutie Pattern -- Irresistible!

This quilt was inspired by a spool of thread.  This spool of thread:

It is a simple four-patch quilt that can be made with a Cutie Pack (16 fat 1/8th cuts of fabric).  The pattern includes four sizes and I made the queen sized one.

The quilting on this four-patch quilt really changes the look of the quilt:

Close-up:

Even closer:

Since folks are going to ask, I kept track of how much thread it took to quilt this queen-sized quilt.  Here's the result:

I used about 1 2/3 spools (700m) of FabuLux and 7 DecoBob bobbins.  So now we know!

So many people chimed in with a "This quilt is MINE!" when I was making the sample.  My daughter saw this quilt on my binding chair while she was cat-sitting during my Harry Potter trip.  She sent me a trip that said "For future reference, this quilt is mine."  I had to send her a "Too late!" answer because the quilt already has an owner waiting for it when it finishes its time traveling as a sample.  I will make my daughter a copy of this quilt and she'll get it even sooner!

I can't wait to make this quilt in other fabrics and sizes.  It is so fun to machine quilt and watch the quilt transform from "meh" to "WOW!" before my eyes!

Happy Place: The Waiting Room

Last week I wrote about how I've been cleaning out my sewing room and donating unneeded craft supplies.

As I'm digging through, I'm finding scores of projects in various stages of incompleteness.  I can't work on 100 projects at a time (trust me: I've tried it), so what do I do with all of these found projects while they patiently wait their turn?

They go into large ziploc bags and then into holding bins:

Isn't that just a delightful mess?

For scale, here's a side view:

I really wish I could say that I only had one of these overflowing bins in my sewing room.  I have never finished counting the number of in-process projects I have;  I usually give up hope as I approach 200.

In a perfect world. all of these bins would be empty and I would only have a few projects in process at any time.  This sewing room isn't in that perfect world, so the projects just sit and wait for now.

Sigh.