Weekend Sewing

Here we are at blog post 101! Thanks to all of you for your warm wishes for me making it all the way to one hundred posts. I'm not really sure how I had enough to post about in that many posts in just over a year, but I'm happy you're still here reading with me!

I've got a few finishes going on now, which I'm super happy about so I can dust off the sewing table, re-organize, and tackle a bunch of projects that have been on the back burner for too long. And start a holiday project or two. And then there is round 4 of the Pillow Talk Swap! But first I think I'll just take a few days away from it all and just knit. I don't love deadlines but I seem to have more than my share right now.

The Bliss quilt is almost finished. The top has actually been done for a month or two but I just haven't had time to quilt it yet. It's a gift for my mom's birthday - which is tomorrow! - but do you think there is anyway on earth I will actually finish? No. I thought I could knock out some quick free motion quilting, but after drooling at Brioni's quilt for so long I really wanted to go with these cathedral circles. So here I am at the ninth hour and not even half way done. But it looks great and I think my mom will be impressed once she finally gets the quilt! A sneak preview for her will have to do for now. Good thing moms are a forgiving bunch:)

And I'm just on the last leg of hand sewing the binding on this one, and I'm dying to show it to you but it's going to have to wait a couple more weeks! It's my very first tutorial and I'm a bit nervous about all my instructions working out. 

It's made with the new It's a Hoot line from Momo -  it's so cheery and vibrant and I couldn't wait to sew it up. Yardage is coming out soon and I'll definitely be investing in lots of the prints for the old stash.

Well I'm off for a rockin' Saturday night of quilting but I promise not to get too wild! 

I've discovered the secret.....

to successful quilt basting!

And Happy 100th Blog Post to me!

Far Far Away Quilt done!

I really, really love this quilt. I've been sitting on my big ol' stash of Heather Ross's Far, Far Away since it came out last year and just couldn't resist it any longer. It is the first quilt I have made that I am happy with the pattern, workmanship and quilting from top to bottom. I have finally gotten a handle on my new Bernina and I just adore the Stitch Regulator - it makes free motion feel like painting with thread. I think I also finished it more quickly than any of my others.  Using a combination of some very simple blocks and a few wonky star blocks was both breezy and satisfying. I used Kona white as the sashing but all that double gauze makes it super soft and cuddly.

(One of the only sunny mornings we've had up here lately)

I decided to get a little more creative with the back than I usually do (because by the time I finish the top I am impatient to finish!). I pieced it with some more wonky stars and a patchwork border. I may even like the back more than the front!

And a close up of the blocks....

The binding is an organic chartreuse polka dot from Cloud 9.

For now, this one is my chosen cuddle-up-on-the-couch quilt, and will probably stay that way for a while.

Lucky me! (And a Far Far Away sneak peek)

I just had to share a little view of the back of my new Far, Far Away quilt.....I think I almost like it better than the front! I'm still hand sewing the binding and then it needs a wash and a photo shoot before I show you the whole thing. I'm totally loving it!

Sooo....besides it being a completely gorgeous and warm Seattle day, this week has pretty much sucked at the L&N household. We had a big release at the winery this weekend and we were all feeling pretty wiped out by Sunday night. Then Mark started complaining of a pain in his lower right abdomen. This is a guy who does not even make a peep if he has the flu so I knew something was wrong. His doctor ordered at CAT scan for Tuesday and sure enough he was ordered off to the hospital for an emergency appendectomy. After a night stay he is home with some pretty bad discomfort but luckily they got to it before it ruptured! So dealing with that (and consequently crabby husband) and a little girl who has decided to refuse her naps the last two days = mama who needs a little time to blog with glass of wine in hand!

Well here is the big, bright spot in my otherwise trying day: My pillow talk swap from the super talented and generous Ryan (imjustaguywhoquilts)!! Can you believe I was lucky enough to get this awesome Katie Jump Rope cushion cover?? If you love it as much as I do and wish it was yours, never fear! Ryan has just completed a detailed tutorial on his blog. Check it out here.

As if that wasn't enough, he also sent over a sweet little gardener set and cute crab toy for Lucy, and some beautiful journals for me. Thank you so much Ryan, and I'll get some photos up soon of the stuffed pillow in it's happy new home.

Good Folks Disappearing Nine Patch

Finally she is done! I started this quilt waaaaay back in September and just finished the hand binding last Friday. It was originally intended for a friend's wedding gift but I was talked out of that idea. I am actually glad because now I love it and it looks pretty good on our new sofa.

We have been enjoying some beautiful, sunny weather up here in Seattle so I took this quilt down to our neighborhood park for a photo shoot. I love the little crocuses in the background. We usually get a little flirt of spring here this time of year, but by the time March is in full swing the weather turns downright nasty again. So we take full advantage of the sun while we can!

This is the first quilt I have done on my new Bernina QE440. I chose a little swirly design to compliment the squarish angles of the pattern and used a mauvish/wine colored thread by Mettler that looks great with both the cool and warm colors of the Good Folks prints. It was so much fun to use the BSR stitch regulator but I clearly need TONS of practice to get it right. 

The disappearing nine patch is a fun pattern, and if you are looking for a good tutorial, I used the one from P.S. I Quilt, found here .

I just did a simple pieced patchwork out of leftover scraps with the Filigree print in plum for the back.

I think this will make a great picnic blanket!

Little Folks Voile Love

I am in love with this fabric line - I think I have mentioned that before (Ok, I love everything Anna Maria makes)! I also fell madly in love with this quilt made by Megan (philistine made). Well, I jumped in and eagerly started cutting my half triangle squares. I think I was in a bit of denial that the voile might possibly be a little tougher to work in such a precise pattern - it is a bit more slippery than regular quilting weight fabric. And accuracy is not exactly my strong suit.

Needless to say, I have spent a little bit of time with my seam ripper and my husband asked me to step away from the project the other night - that's when you really know it's time to take a break (and a glass of wine!) So I woke up that night (morning) at 4 AM lying there and just had to get up and sew. I think I just needed to slow down and now things are going a bit better. I also remembered that I had some spray starch and I really think it made a huge difference. I just love this pattern with these fabrics and would be pretty heartbroken if I had to scrap the project. It will probably be pretty slow going but here are my first couple of blocks.

By the way, the solid is Robert Kaufman Ultra Sateen which I thought was a better choice than the Kona to match with the voile. Also I prewashed all the fabrics first - I think just out of paranoia of working with the voile. 

I have a couple of other things I am working on I hope to show you soon. It has just been a little tough around here lately because Lucy is in full force teething mode and my normally happy girl is a little fussy  at the moment. OK back to the sewing while she is napping soundly!

Welcome Home New Baby!

Soooo, I made a rather large unexpected purchase this week. Here she is - the Bernina 440 QE! I really wasn't planning on this right now, after quilting my last two quilts it became painfully apparent that I really needed a new machine. My old Brother just wasn't gonna cut it anymore. Listening to it moan and groan and practically overheat during quilting was pretty pathetic. So I just went to investigate at my LQS who is also a Bernina dealer and all I had to do was touch this thing and I was sold. I'm easy, I know, but this foot pedal free stitch regulator is truly amazing (plus they were offering a deal and 12 month no interest financing!) So far I am absolutely thrilled with this machine.

I have had this Good Folks quilt top done since September so I have been using it to play around with the quilting function. It should be all finished up this week so I'll show it to you soon!

I have also joined Doll Quilt Swap 8 - my first time joining this popular swap. I have been hemming and hawing on what to do for my partner, who seems really sweet and easy to please, and I've been wanting to try dresden plates for a long time now, so here is a sneak peek:

My partner seems to like blue and dresdens so I hope this will be a good fit for her. I am totally frightened to stitch it on so I hope I can figure it out. Alright, I am going to go relax with the husband with a pizza delivery (diet breaker tonight, but a reward for the 7 pounds I have finally dropped this month!), some wine and my knitting project. I hope everyone is having a relaxing, crafty weekend!

Quick Sneak Peek: My Dream Flea Market Fancy Quilt!!!

Remember these guys?

I started this quilt waaaaay back in September with the Old Red Barn Co. quilt along. Well, life -the holidays, taking care of Lucy, trying to get my butt to the gym and my mom's Christmas quilt all got in the way. So with the new year, I decided there was no better way to get started than to get back on this project.

Here is a look at our kitchen table/sewing room yesterday:

I really couldn't wait to show you a little peek. I just finished the top and snapped a pic. I can't even begin to tell you how much I love this. It is now after 11:30 PM so I had better get to bed but I can't wait to get started on the backing tomorrow!

Garden Party quilt

It is finished! And just in the nick of time!

This is my mom's Christmas gift. It is queen size, by far the biggest quilt I have ever made. The thing was an absolute beast, and both my little machine and my body took quite a beating. I made this using Anna Maria's Garden Party line - my mom fell in love with them and I have been keeping this a secret for awhile now! I used 28 different fat quarters ordered from sewlovefabrics on Etsy. For the quilting, I used Gutterman %100 cotton thread and did a fairly close stippling, my first time doing free motion. It was time consuming but pretty fun and easy once I got the hang of it. The back is a pieced Cyan blue Kona cotton solid and it turned out a bit wonky so I don't want to show it to you. Luckily when it was washed and dried all the flaws mostly disappeared. Since I was in a rush I also tried machine binding for the first time, which for me was a disaster. I'm leaving it as is for now and then I will undo and hand bind it before it goes on her bed.

I hope she loves it! I am really excited to give this to her. I need to get in all wrapped up in time for tomorrow, so goodbye for now!

Wishing all of you and yours a very Merry Christmas!!!!!

Another Happy Day in Fabricland

Yipee! Yesterday I hit the Munki Munki Marshall's jackpot! Snowmen on flannel!

Shoes! Lipstick! Coffee! Polar Bears! Even the elusive OOP Coke Travelers! And full-length cotton poplin Camper Van robes! Lucky for me my mom is a Marshall's regular so she has been on the lookout. These are of course not all for me, some are for some of my lovely swap friends. If you have been searching Marshall's for Munki, too, now is the time to try because once they hit one it is only a matter of time before some of the other locations start receiving some too!

To top it off, I got a long-awaited parcel from Japan containing one of my all-time favorites, Little Peter Pan, and in three colorways. I couldn't resist buying a yard of each. These came from Sonatine on Etsy and she may have a bit left if you act fast. I'm pretty sure this line is long OOP and was too excited to see it pop up!

I also wanted to show you that, yes, I actually DO sew sometimes, not just shop for fabric! I have been trying to do a little work on this simple nine patch using all my Munki prints. It has been so much fun to cut into these fabrics. I am shooting for a twin size quilt for Lucy's big girl bed one day, so I have quite a long way to go, but I'm in no rush. I just wanted to play with the layout a bit, I am thinking of somewhat of a rainbow color-gradation.

I will be drawing the winners for the giveaway this weekend, too - so exciting! I can already tell from all your awesome comments they are going to wind up in a great home.

A Quilt only a Mother could love.....

Okay, maybe I am exaggerating. This was the quilt I made for my mom's birthday last week. It is actually the first quilt I had ever started - I began it back in the spring before Lucy was born. I love Anna Maria Horner's Good Folks line so much and it seemed to fit my mom's personality well. Plus, she is the reason I am back to sewing again so I wanted to give her my first quilt as her birthday gift.

Ahh, the first quilt top ever! I am sure many of you can relate to this: I was so eager to jump in I really had no idea what I was doing. I have learned so much about quilting from the start to finish of this project that by the time I even finished the quilt top I was totally dissatisfied with my work I thought about tearing it up many times. But, in the end, it is pretty and my mom loves it. Oh, and if you are wondering, the pattern was a free one from Anna's website, the Folk Dance quilt (the flaws in the quilt are a result from not reading her pattern, the actual pattern is fabulous if you follow it correctly!)

Here is a view of the back. Very simple patchwork piecing and I quilted with a simple quarter inch stitch on either side of the zig zag seam. The quilt was hand bound on the fly to finish it in time for her birthday. It feels so good to finish one, and my mom really loves and appreciates it. That makes it all worth it!

Help with quilting, please.... and early fall dinner

Good Folks quilt top, originally uploaded by Lucy & Norman.

Here is the finished quilt top I made for my girlfriend who just ran off and got hitched. I adore Anna Maria Horner's Good Folks line - so bright and cheery. I made this with the left overs from my mom's birthday quilt (WIP - I won't show you that one until I'm done) and bought a few prints in the blue colorway to add in. It is a Disappearing Nine Patch (great tutorial here) and I have no idea how to quilt it up. I know I don't get a lot of traffic through here yet, but any ideas or suggestions? I want the lines to be pretty organic so they don't draw attention to my less than perfect corners.

Here was last night's dinner. Chiogga & golden beet salad with fennel and grapefruit followed by simple roast chicken and baby red & fingerling potatoes. Pretty damn good if I don't say so myself. All washed down with some yet-to-be-released wine my talented husband made. I just wanted to show you the placemats I whipped up for Mark's birthday last month. He loves the Echino line and I thought this print with the little spider piggy was especially fitting - the man loves pork in any form. While I love our everyday plates (from Pottery Barn), some of them are a bit wobbly and it drives Mark crazy. I just but a little fusible fleece in between the linen and a canvas backing, and wah lah! Problem fixed and Mark loves them.

Zig Zag Sneak Peek

Lucy took a nice, long nap yesterday so I actually made some progress on my Old Red Barn Co. Zig Zag quilt.

She is 16 weeks old today!

This is my first-ever real quilt (well, I do have a few WIPs) and I am actually loving how it is coming together. The fabric is the fabulous My Folklore collection from Lecien purchased at superbuzzy. They had fat quarter bundles! I am doing a simple 1/4 inch on each side of the zig zags, which is going pretty well - I did spend a good hour with my seam ripper however!

Thank you to Amy and Dana from the Flickr group for leading the quilt along. It has been so invaluable to a new mom like me who wants to learn to quilt but can't get away for a class to have this instruction and support. The next quilt along begins September 1rst and will be led by quiltdad, who is leading us through Wonky Log Cabin blocks. I'm super excited for this one and will reveal my fabric choices soon. I will hopefully be done with the Zig Zag this week and post the finished product!