Jingle Bell Rock Quilt - Completed!

One year after starting this Jingle Bell Rock quilt, it is finally completed. I thought I was going to finish it for Christmas 2014, but I ended up putting it in the closet for Christmas 2015. I'm only a few days late!

As I posted about it here and here, I just had to make this pattern because of the name. Jingle Bell Rock is the song my husband and I roller-skated to (yes really!) on our first date on December 17, 1962, and it has become our Christmas song. This quilt is in honor of that long-ago night.

The back is an adaptation of Crazy Mom Quilts Mini Trees Quilt with simple strips of color representing a Christmas tree. I drew the design on graph paper, did the math, and somehow got it right - it was fun! Dimensions ended up at 57" x 68".

I completed sandwiching the layers in December last year and started the quilting, but I put it away because I knew I couldn't finish it in time for Christmas. When I got it out recently to finish quilting it, it was a case of "what was I thinking?" I had started diagonal quilting on each block, and now that seems like way too much diagonal. I wish I had quilted each block in opposite diagonals instead, to add more interest.

But I'm pleased with the way the quilting looks on the back, and overall I like the result. This is first Christmas quilt I've made and kept and is the start of a collection I hope to add to every year!

Because of the riot of colors in this pattern, I was able to pull from a variety of stash and scraps and not limited to Christmas fabrics. Binding is from Sweetwater's Elementary collection, blue and white striped inside border is from Nancy Halvorsen's Curiosities, and outside green border with birdies is from Ann Kelle's Jingle collection.

I have a weakness for Christmas fabrics, and I might have asked Santa to bring yardage from Riley Blake's Postcards for Santa collection (love it!) and a few dark green Christmas fabrics.

Linking this week to Oh Scrap! at Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework

Little Joys Quilt Completed

I started this little Christmas quilt as a quilt-along back in July. Yes, life and distractions ensued, but better late than never!

I finished quilting last night, sewed the binding on this morning, and immediately boxed it up and mailed it to my sister-in-law, before I could fall in love with it and keep it like I did this one that was intended for her!

Each of the three designs - Christmas tree, wreath, and gift - was pieced from scraps. I enjoyed quilting a different design on each block. For piecing and quilting, I used Superior Threads So Fine 50 weight Genoa Gray (my favorite thread for everything), and for quilting the sashing I used metallic 40 weight in Raspberry.

The back was pieced with fabric from Basic Grey's Blitzen collection and an pretty white solid.

I had sewn a pieced binding early on, but last night I decided to use a fun print from Riley Blake's Postcards for Santa collection instead. I love the dots!

I'm linking this to Crazy Woman Quilts Finish It Up Friday and on Sunday to Quilting is More Fun Than Housework's Oh Scrap!

Christmas in the Canyon Table Topper - A Gradient Quilt

Cindy of Live a Colorful Life recently blogged about a quilt that absolutely captured my imagination. She named it Christmas in the City, and it is gorgeous! I have reread her post and gazed at that quilt dozens of times {stalking!} Click on the picture of her quilt below to read her fascinating post on how it was made. She made blocks from Tula Pink's City Sampler: 100 modern blocks (I bought my own this week!)

Cindy's Quilt - Click on it to read her post!

I love the gradient style of the colors in her masterful arrangement and was inspired to try that method myself.

A table top seemed the perfect size to experiment with the gradient style. Although Cindy's quilt is composed of sampler blocks, mine is a simple block design. I had a long-saved Christmas-themed mini charm pack that I combined with low volume creams and off-whites. I positioned and re-positioned until I had an arrangement similar to Cindy's. I matched the pieced border to the color arrangement and added a dark red binding.

The result of the color composition reminds me of a river flowing through a canyon, so I quilted curvy lines with a metallic variegated thread on the "river" portion and straight lines with regular thread for the low volume "canyon sides".

I love the fabrics in this little mini quilt. Sadly I can no longer identify many of them. My favorite was a dark red with off-white snowflakes

I do still have the selvage on the backing, and it is Tonal Cream from Minick & Simpson's Lexington collection for Moda

Now for my shameful confession: I started this mini quilt with every intention of sending it to my sister-in-law for Christmas. But when I put it on my kitchen table this morning to photograph it with my Christmas glass, I knew it would never leave the house. I will (finally) finish quilting the Little Joys quilt for her (post to follow later this week), and she'll never know the difference.

Now I want to make more gradient quilts in different colors!

Baby Girl Quilt

A few weeks ago my daughter and son-in-law drove from the Dallas area for a weekend, and presented my husband and me with a gift bag containing this little item. After about five seconds of "oh that's cute" then "wait, does this mean...?", we both started crying tears of joy! It was totally unexpected and very welcome news. "Baby Divided" on the onesie represents their universities - University of Oklahoma (hers) and Texas Tech (his). As of today she is 21 weeks pregnant and due in April, and they recently shared the news that it is a baby girl!

Our daughter and son-in-law with T-shirts that tell the story.

I had dreamed about what kind of quilt she would like and was prepared to show her many ideas, but she chose simple blocks with fabrics she loved. Most of the fabrics are organic, and all of them are gorgeous.

I am in love with the backing she chose - Pat Bravo's Ditsy Radiance from the Nouvelle collection. I included a few blocks of it on the front of the quilt to add much-needed low volume.

She loves birdies and was delighted to see them on these Birch organics.

The squares are 4-1/2 inches, and the finished size is 36 x 45.

She wanted a quilt like one she found and loved on Etsy, so I researched the fabrics and identified all of them. Only one was discontinued, and I couldn't find it anywhere. She chose Art Gallery's Bunny Binkies Funk Metallic as a substitute, and she loves the bunnies.

I marked the center of each block, made a little "orange peel" template, and painstakingly quilted orange peels with my walking foot. I love how they look on the back. The binding is Pat Bravo's Hypnotic Paramour in Rose.


They were here again the day after Thanksgiving and I finished the quilt the day before they arrived. She left it with me because she wants my label on it. I will update with a picture of her with her quilt when she returns at Christmas.

Gray Square Scramble Baby Quilt

My daughter co-hosted a baby shower over the weekend for her best friend Karlie. I decided to make and send a baby quilt, so the last couple weeks I spent planning and sewing. Karlie's colors are rainbow, and she prefers simple to fussy; I found this Gray Square Scramble digital pattern by Corey Yoder that fit the bill. I scaled it down from twin size to about 48" x 54".

Here is what my daughter texted during the shower. Check out the darling cowboy hat and boots Karlie's mother crocheted! (Can you tell we both like exclamation points? )

Moda Marbles and a soft gray dot for the small squares; light gray for the large squares

Patio Lights from Flight Patterns collection by Tamara Kate, one of my favorites, edged with leftover blocks from the front

My husband chose Kona Coal for the binding, and I think he made a great choice!

Quilting was diagonal wavy lines to contrast the straight lines on the large squares

My next project is this cute pumpkin pillow from Stitched With Love in McKinney, TX. My daughter saw it on their website and fell in love with it, so I talked to the store owner and ordered it. My daughter is visiting later this week, so I hope to finish it. This will be my first time paper piecing, so wish me luck!

Shelli's Quilt - Finished

My nephew is only 8 years younger than I am. He is my oldest brother's son and has always been so special to me - more like a younger brother than a nephew. His wife Shelli is a delight. She is quiet, funny, kind, and has been a steady rock of sanity in our crazy family. She and my nephew live near the small town in Oklahoma where my parents are buried, and every year Shelli elaborately decorates their graves for me on Memorial Day. This quilt is my small thank you to her for her devotion to a loving tradition.

I like the classic beauty of simple blocks and used a variety of fabrics in shades of aqua, red, white/off-white, and gray - Moda's Flats, Baby Jane, a Yuwa kitchen print, Bonnie and Camille Ruby, and a gray gingham by Studio E.

On the back are Modern Roses by Stephanie Ryan (one of my favorite fabrics ever) and the gray gingham, along with white. I used Jeni Baker's Nordika for the binding.

I love Modern Roses so much - I even think the selvedge is pretty, so I kept it on the quilt

On the back is "The Road to Oklahoma Meets Lone Star", blogged about here

I quilted horizontal wavy lines and added a label.

I mailed the quilt to Shelli last week with a letter (that will make my tender-hearted nephew cry). Hopefully she will like it!

UPDATE: 7/10/15 - Shelli did love it! She said it was beautiful and that she put it on her Grandpa's rocking chair to display it.