Spare time quilting

At long last, my manic business travel season has come to an end. Can I say "whew"? For a while, I only knew where I was by looking at my calendar!

I did squeeze in some sewing the few times I was home. Started some projects, finished a few. Here is one I finished:

 

Regal Garden - a wedding gift for a friend of my dear hubby. I have not met the bride, but the groom told us her favorite color is purple.

This is my 2nd using May Chappell's Lazy Sunday pattern. Can I say again how much I love the pattern? This pattern allows me to indulge my love for layer cakes, and enables me to make best use of my limited (of late) quilting time.

I used an "Urban Oasis" layer cake and added both an inner & outer border.  It finished at 56" by 68" after washing.I FMQ-ed it in all over loop, nothing showy as this quilt is all about the colors.

I love the striped binding. It really made everything pop.

Syzygy

 (read on for a discount code for the pattern)
I have been planning this quilt for a while. The pattern is "Designer Star" by my friend May Chappell. She brought her quilt to our guild meeting and I was smitten! I love big, bold, one-block quilts and hers fit the bill. I bought her pattern and set out on this experience.

Syzygy (pronounced siz-uh-gee) 55" square

Lee (the genius behind May Chappell) and I are buds, yet I had never made one of her patterns. She is gifted at combining fabrics, has a fantastic color sense and is a great designer, but can she write a pattern?

Heck, yeah!

(Lee is also an excellent teacher!)

(And she won 2nd place in this year's Accuquilt Barn Quilt contest)

The pattern description states "Want to make a quilt top in a day? This graphic quilt comes together very quickly and is so fun to make! Using simple techniques, the pattern is written for a beginner, but fun for an advanced piecer as well."

The instructions are clear, concise and easy to follow. There are pictures and diagrams, and instructions available for 11 (yep, eleven) sizes! My quilt is the 55" square version. This is a great pattern for a quilt that will make a tremendous visual impact. And it goes really fast! I pieced mine in about 3 hours.

My version the pattern photo

I chose to cut into my Moda Cross Weave Natural stash for the background, some Kaffe and Tula Pink give it the zing!  I free-motion quilted in soft wavy lines to accent the star.

Like this and want to make your own? Well, Lee has graciously offered a discount to my readers!
This pattern is available in the May Chappell etsy shop. You can order the pdf or printed version. And until July 31, enter the code "kheli20" in the special instructions area and you will receive 20% off!
Check out all of her amazing patterns. Do you have an Accuquilt die cut system? The Designer Star pattern is also available as an Accuquilt GO pattern.

I believe making a quilt out of the 10" or 19" blocks would be awesome too! I am going to make a pillow from one of those for me! This quilt now is hanging behind my sofa, so we can enjoy it every day!

What are you waiting for? Go, use the discount! Make a quilt!

Why "syzygy"? The astronomical definition of a syzygy is an alignment of 3 celestial objects; for me this was 1) the perfect pattern at 2)the right time, with some of 3)my favorite fabrics!

Purple Posies in a Basket

I have been quilting this beauty off and on for 6 weeks.

Pieced by Janet, quilted by me

68" by 78"

It was pieced by a family friend, Janet, who learned quilting growing up on a dairy farm. She still lives, and works there. I wanted to quilt one of her tops as a way to honor her, her relationship with my husband's family and as a memorial to my late MIL.

The piecing is exquisite. See, Janet doesn't own a rotary cutter, she cuts each piece separately and pieces precisely. The flowers are not made of carefully pieced half-square-triangles, they are diamond shapes with exact y-seams. Perfect points. Hand-appliqued stems.

I took my time quilting, heck, this was intimidating!

I first did a tight stipple in the white backgrounds (with white thread), then left it as I built up my nerve to quilt feathers in the lavender sections. I had Isacord in a matching lavender for the solid blocks and stitched a plume in each. The border is stitched in a piano-key , it didn't need anything else.

I was happy with it, but a bit anxious to give it back. What if she didn't like it? Thats a lot of stitches to rip out.

She loved it. Her sister and brothers loved it. Her sister-in-law asked for it. (whew)
And we spent a wonderful afternoon and evening with them. And the cows.

This girl was so curious, she kept her eye on us the whole time!

Not my favorite

So, I finished a quilt that is not really "me".

Model is my delightful sweet husband!

I started it to test my "Stellar" pattern on my measurements and it fulfilled that purpose quite well.

The strips/strata that make the star are made of the re-issue of "Flea Market Fancy". I got caught up in the excitement over this line. It really is not me. There are a couple of the prints I like, and I am a big Denyse Schmidt fan, but this line, on the whole, is just not my thing.

I used Kona Coal in the background. In theory this was a great pairing, but in reality a fail. The gray felt dark, heavy and flat. And I think the quilt lacks a spark from good contrasts. Now all this is purely my opinion, so no haters please!

It looks better in the photo than it does in person.

I FMQ-ed it in my meandering swashes on a larger scale. I think the quilting helped by adding a bit in that dark gray.

Why finish something I don't love? Well, I like to finish what I start AND fabric is expensive. Also, as a creative exercise, I think it is important to try things I don't necessarily like as it makes a great learning opportunity. I learned my pattern calculations were correct. And it is one less UFO.

One more UFO to go. And I am not in love with this one either.

3 of 3, whew, why do I do this to myself?

And now, "Little Nipper" a smaller companion to "Canis Major" which used up the scraps of my dog fabrics.

This is the 2012 Raffle Quilt for Stokes County Humane Society and like the previous quilts I have made for them ALL of the proceeds go to the programs of SCHS.

I love that I could use all my left-overs. I made this star based on setting the squares 4 by 4, where "Canis Major" was set 5 by 5.

Smaller at 58.5" square. I FMQed it in my all-over swirly wave. I love it too!

Completed! (1 of 3)

Here is "Aurora":

23.5" by 23.5"

I am so enamored of multiple layers of batting. On this I started with a base of cotton batting and then 2 layers of wool batting (the last of my wool stash, must obtain more!)

I love the dimension and poof it gives.

*Why yes, if you look close, you will see dog hair used as an embellishment! LOL! We jokingly say there is an additional dog work of fur every time we sweep!

I have been exploring stars a lot this year. It is still not out of my system, you you will notice from the next 2 completed quilts! This star is made of batiks, a paw-print and Kona Snow solid. FMQ in the solid and border is 50 wt white Affinity thread, the thread in the batik areas is 40 wt variegated YLI thread.

Lark

Friday night I finished sewing the binding on my newest quilt, "Lark".

The pattern is called "Pave the Way" by Karen Gray and it was featured in the Spring/Summer 2011 Quilt Sampler magazine accompanying a delightful article about Karen's awesome shop!

The pattern was so well written and easy to follow. I will be making another!

The fabrics I used are by Amy Butler, her "Lark" collection. I love that name so I kept it for the quilt.The white is Kona Snow (my favorite white). I do not usually buy an entire collection, but Karen hat a fat eighth bundle and the colors are so bright. I do love the scrappy!

This quilt measures 71" by 52" before washing. I FMQ-ed it in my doodling style, stitching a mixture of meandering, spirals, feathers and fans. I used 2 entire spools of YLI Natural thread in the quilting, so yes, it has a lot of stitching!

First finish of 2012

Here is my first finish of this new year:

It is a commissioned t-shirt quilt for a sweet young lady. It measures 85" by 85". I FMQ-ed it on my mom's long arm.

My husband and I painted my studio on Saturday. I have been rearranging and sorting. I have rediscovered some cool fabrics! Shopping my stash has yielded some good finds. I am anxious to start some new projects. 

Happy New Year to you all!

Completed

I just finished with this quilt. 

A different direction for me.

I call it "Kyoto". It is 46" by 52.5".

My original pattern. The colored squared are from a batik charm set I bout at the City Quilter. The ground fabric is a Moda Cross-weave I have been hoarding for 2 years. I free-motion quilted in a design to mimic wood grain. 

I have more of the cross-weave I am going to use for another Asian-inspired piece using Japanese Taupe wovens I also purchased at the City Quilter. I just need more time!!!
 

By the way, today is "Veteran's Day" - Thanks to all who have served and who are serving!

It is also my brother's birthday - HAPPY BIRTHDAY KENT!  I love you!

The one I forgot

It's not that I don't like it. But I had completely forgotten to post this wall quilt that I finished in May:

Aztec Portal.

36" x 44" Hand-dyed fabrics.

It has intense free-motion quilting, but my threads do not contrast enough. Not a fail, just a lesson learned!

Finished a big one

I have been quite enamored of stars lately. And using up my scraps. Now I can reveal the combination of both.

A wildly descriptive and unique name:  Scrap Star.

This is big, 84" by 84". This quilt is larger than my pin wall at work. That is my desk in the lower right corner.

Free motion quilted on my Viking Sapphire 830.

I used YLI cotton threads. Variegated in the white/ecru solids, a light beige solid in the scrappy areas.

Got one started on my design wall I hope to be quilting this weekend.

Work has been quite busy. There is always some catching up after a vacation, but my work load has increased as well. I am glad. I like to stay busy and I have great customers to collaborate with. On a personal note, my son is starting his final semester as an undergrad, and I have written my final tuition check. Now I begin saving for a long arm!

Stunt Sewing part 2

It has been so very hot here! Brutal. And while I love summer, the heat and barometric pressure teamed up this week to give me a monster migraine. Battled this monster for 3 days. Finally feeling better, but I feel like I have been in a fog all week. Well, hubby and I are on vacation all week, so I am hoping to spend some quality time in my own sweat shop.

For my girlfriend who is opening a quilt shop, I have made this cutie, I call it "Abracadabra" because it is a disappearing nine patch.

I am not a "pink" person, but these prints are so cheery and the touch of chocolate brown adds sophistication. One more for her to go!

Completed Commission

Designed, started and completed in record time! This star is a table topper I was commissioned to make:

Measures 48" square, the blue print is from the Denyse Schmidt for JoAnn line.

FMQ with white PolyX thread. I love the texture the little mussel shells create after laundering!

Issues and completions!

I have reached the bottom of my UFO stack! YAY!

Got this beauty "Batik Windows" completed last week:

60" by 72"

My own design. FMQ with neon green Isacord polyester.

I love the rich, summery feel.

On the issue front, my home PC was zapped with a nasty virus that hides all my files and accesses. Since the old Dell is 9 years old, I sent it to the compeuter spa to see if it is worth saving. Posts will be limited until that is resolved! I am also going to Asheville with the hubby this week. One scheduled post to come. Happy summer!

on a roll..

Another completion! 

 Daydreams

This is a small (16"x18") art quilt for a challenge at my LQS (Sewingly Yours). We each received a small pice of fabric to design a quilt around. My fabric is the orange mottle fabric. I love orange and this fabric is so bright. It was fun to work with no set plan in mind. 

I pieced the background and appliqued the sun. The free motion was so fun. My new Baby Lock is awesome!

This is also a Viewer's Choice show. Maybe I'll get some votes!

My 2nd quilt for 2011

Same pattern and template as the first, but this is for a baby!

The fabric is from a layer cake by Moda, Kashmir 3.

FMQ'ed with white polyester thread. Giving to a friend on Saturday.

A completion and some snow

I completed this table runner this week:

It is 38" by 18.5" made from "Hemming House" by Moda charm pack. I made this for my MIL's friend (my friend too!) Mary.

My FMQ is getting better. I am so much more comfortable doing it.

We received about 3" of snow yesterday. It was so pretty coming down. It is early for us to have this, we usually do not get snow until Jan/Feb/Mar. Got us in the Christmas spirit! Also made my pups happy:

They have had so much fun playing in it.

Meme's Christmas Quilt

Meme's Christmas Quilt, originally uploaded by kheli.

In the upheaval of the past few months, I do not remember, nor can I find, where I may have posted this quilt. It is from the book "Carpenter's Star"** and I made it in Christmas fabrics for my MIL. Gave it to her for her birthday in September. She loves it! I love the pattern and definately want to make another. I echo-quilted around the colored arms of the star and densely stippled the white areas. I am really happy with how it came out.

*The book is "Simple Stars Beautiful Quilts" by Debby Maddy available here.

Another Finish

I put this table topper together using most of a charm pack of Rouenneries. I love the soft wine color and sashed them with a white-on-white I had in the scrap bin.

Fmq'd with polyester thread in gold. Bordered, backed and bound with others from my scrap bin.

I am going to be ready to cut into my non-scraps as soon as we get into our new home! I am also ready to buy and add to my stash! But first, we must wait the 3 weeks until closing! Limbo isn't going to last forever.

And this lovely is going to MIL, she loves to create a pretty table!

Charity Quilt finished!

My friend/boss, Kristen bought the Ruffles and Squares kit and pieced the top. I FMQ'd it.

She put a ruffled binding. I think it is too cute!

I did a stipple/meander with a heart to coordinate with the background fabric.

We have donated to our company's United Fund event. If you pledge/give a one time gift of $10, your name goes into a drawing for prizes. This is one of the prizes. We are trying to get 100% participation. I believe $10 is a good price for a nice quilt. And I know the money stays here in the community.