This month is going to be a busy month for me. First Pdawg is turning 1 next week. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN? Then there is the grown up job and the never ending hours right now. With that my sewing time could be pretty limited.
My biggest focus is get the Rainbow Charm quilt all pieced. I only have about 150 white squares left to work with. BIV is going to take lots of cutting.
I tried to sew the other night. Laid out the quilt to possibly do some sewing. Blahahaha says Porter. At least he had fun. He’s had some bug this week and demanding snuggles.
This is quilt number two from the same batch of scraps. After going through all of my scraps I did find a few more to add into the collection. Can you believe I have enough to make one more?
Sampling of the scraps
For quilt number two I was going with the same modern mosaic layout. The real challenge for this quilt was to minimize the repeating fabrics and organize the layout. While I have enough to do one more quilt, the stash is getting LOW.
Things I have learned from making three of modern mosaic quilt…pressing is key. You have to press regularly to keep the bulk down.
Quilt one and two do look really similar but I love the results.
scrappy quilt #2extreme close up
The back uses the same orange back like quilt one.
Do you have a pattern that you enjoy making? This may be my new favorite layout. It’s a great way to use scraps and requires you to get creative with your layout.
Marmalade had to be one of my favorite lines of fabric that came out in 2012. After making the boy and girl quilts for a set of twins, there were quite a few scraps left over. I held a giveaway on the blog for a set of potholders to be made out of the winners favorite color way of the quilts.
Darcie, a fellow member of the Indy Modern Quilt Guild, was the winner. Little did I expect to get so busy with work that I didn’t have time to create a simple set of potholders. As the scrap organization started, the scraps resurfaced and conveniently it was right before our February meeting. Time to sew.
Darcie chose this quilt as her favorite.
For the potholders I wanted to mimic the colors I used on the quilt. Kona celery and ash were added in to coordinate.
She was really happy with the outcome. Look for more this stye of potholders to be added to the Etsy shop over the coming months.
I wrote earlier this year that changes were coming in 2013. Over the last couple of months I have found myself going back and forth on what I want do with my business and blog. In ~seven weeks I will be wearing so many hats, good thing I can take challenge on head first.
Mom, health educator, and small business owner will be a lot to handle. So I decided to let you guys in on a secret. I cheat! There I said it. I cheat when sewing. Over the last few years I have been using Moda precuts to create many of my projects. Even making some of my own with varying lines. These quilts are made with just 5″ squares.
Mostly the same fabrics but very different looks.
Precuts are a great way to sample an entire fabric line with minimal investment. My favorites are charm packs, jelly rolls, and fat quarters. I may have a few in my stash currently.
Many charm packsjelly rolls, fat quarter bundles, and a variety of other goodies.
Last week I posted about my scrap management project. Oddly, this blog post was in my inbox the same week as well. 4 Easy Steps to De-Clutter and Get Healthy. Good timing. Maybe this project won’t help me get healthy physically but can affect my mental health, knowing I have checked something off my list. Plus organization feels great.
Throughout the next couple of months I want to showcase projects to really use up my scrap bins and what I have. After this weekend’s adventure of packing up all my fabric into 5 large totes, one thing is clear. There is ALOT of fabric in my stash.
If you follow me on Pinterest you may have noticed an influx of ideas on the boards. Can’t wait to share the projects completed from just the stash.
A few months ago I worked on my first Oh Fransson Mod Mosaic quilt for a new baby girl. It was really liberating to have no pattern and just piece things together. After making one of them, I wanted to make more.
In an effort to use what I have already in my scraps, I started the challenge of trying to make two boy quilts with my scraps in a modified mod mosaic pattern. I have been working on these quilts most of January and finally finished one. The pieces even traveled with me to San Francisco.
Here is the finished quilt. A lucky little guy in Pennsylvania will be snuggling with this upon his arrival.
I wanted to keep with random quilting all over. To make this just a bit different there are a few spots with a satin stitch in the corner. Of course it was to cover up an oops.
Only new fabric on this quilt is the backing. Found this great print at one of my favorite local shops, Crimson Tate. She had a great sale towards the end of December and when I saw this, I knew it was perfect.
For added security on the binding I have started machine binding the entire binding. Normally I would sew it onto the front, turn over, then stitch on the back. However, I have found it much easier to sew the binding onto the back and turn it over and top stitch on the front. I like the look better. Swim, Bike, Quilt has a tutorial posted here. She notes that there are lots of ways to bind a quilt and my style has changed even over the last year.
If you have read the blog over the last few months you realize I do a ton of custom quilts for people. Each has a unique story as to why they are being made and who they are for. Had a customer ask me to make a quilt for her grandma for Christmas. Please pull at my heart strings.
Christmas was my grandma’s favorite holiday and she demanded it was her day in our family. This would be my first Christmas in years not spending with her. She was with us in spirit. We did have a crab and shrimp boil, her favorite.
Here is a photo of the completed Moda Double Chocolate quilt that I made. I wanted to keep it simple and user friendly for the customer’s grandma. My mom noted that the backing and binding should be in a dark fabric. Good point.
The best part about gift quilts are the emails that come after someone has received them.
“my Grandmother absolutely LOVES it. As soon as she got home from the Christmas Eve festivities, she immediately put it on her bed. She even cried when she opened her gift – it was that special to her. ”
Makes me smile to hear someone else got joy out of something I made.
