French Braid Mug Rug

I wanted to make a little something for a lovely business acquaintance who did something very nice for us, so I decided a mug rug would fit the bill. I checked with her assistant who assured me that she does drink coffee and that she likes "jewel tones and peacock colors".

I found a cute pattern and tutorial on Craftsy by Diane Knott of Butterfly Threads. I had never tried braiding before, and I loved it!

Although I really hadn't planned to use batiks, I found some brightly colored batik charm squares I had purchased years ago, and they were perfect.

For the back and binding, I pulled from my very jealously guarded hoard of Utopia by Art Gallery Fabrics.

Now I want to make a French braid quilt!

Sewcial Bee Sampler Block #1 - Patience Corners

UPDATE: I have changed the photo on this one to show the changes I made to the original block!

The other day I happened to see a post about a new sew-along starting Feb 1 hosted by Art Gallery designers Sharon Holland and Maureen Cracknell. I normally don't give sew-alongs more than an interested passing glance, but this one really appealed to me so here I am on block one!

The first block is Patience Corners and is composed of HSTs (half square triangles). It has been awhile since I made HSTs, and boy did it show. I cut and sewed a total of 3 times before I got it right. There is a reason for instructions, and I obviously did not read and comprehend. I won't detail the errors, but let's just say I was amused the first time and disgusted the second time until I did it right the third time.

I spent part of the day choosing fabrics. I already had a color scheme in mind based on a a palette of Kona colors in bright tangerine, orchid, buttercup, turquoise, gray, and cream, and the "dot" part of Carrie Bloomston's Bird Dot in cream (Windham) will be the sashing. The tentative backing is Flight Patterns by Tamara Kate (Michael Miller). It is pretty busy, but it has the colors and might be a nice contrast to the solids on the front.

This is the original block - I have updated the block as you can see in the first picture

You will find the downloads for the blocks here.

Hello, Bear Toddler Quilt Flimsy

The quilt flimsy for my great-great nephew is complete - now all I have to do is decide on backing and binding!

The Hello, Bear fabric line by Art Gallery is just adorable.

I added sashing in coordinating fabrics, and this gray and cream checked French Farmhouse by Andover Fabrics made a nice neutral contrast. Sadly I can't find any more of it!

Jack is always in on quilting decisions.

Moorland Blanket CAL 2017

Instagram is going to be the source of bankruptcy for us. I see many creative ideas and opportunities to purchase patterns, fabrics, and most recently - yarn! One of the quilters I follow is also a crocheter, and she had purchased yarns for a Crochet-Along with Lucy who blogs at Attic24. Lucy is a crocheter from the UK who features gorgeous photos of crochet projects as well as scenery from one of my favorite places - the Yorkshire Dales.

(Attic24 photos)

She created a pattern with yarns reflective of the colors of a summer moorland vista. The yarns she chose for the project were available as a set for purchase at Wool Warehouse in the UK. They were reasonably priced even with shipping, and I loved all the colors so I ordered them. They arrived in incredibly fast time!

Jack can't wait to get at the skeins and play with them!

The yarns are soft and supple, and the colors are gorgeous! The ripply pattern looks pretty simple using double, half-triple, and triple crochet stitches. In spite of having at least two quilting projects in the works, I want to maintain my connection to crochet, and the CAL seemed like a good incentive. The tutorial is available here. The CAL is featured every Friday on Lucy's blog. I am already two weeks behind, but I have good excuses (LIFE!) and I'm not pushing myself.

Bits and Pieces, Soup, Stranger Things, and Life

I am finally cutting into the Hello, Bear by Bonnie Christine for Art Gallery Fabrics that I purchased for a baby quilt for my great-great nephew (I think that's right). The fact that he is 3 should tell you what a procrastinator I am. I am hoping that he is still young enough to enjoy the forest-y nature of the quilt!

Last month I bought myself a new acrylic ruler. I started my quilting life in 2010 with a Big Daddy (24-inch) and Big Mama (12-inch) both by Trudie Hughes. I loved them but had noticed lately there was a bit of a warp to the larger one, and I wanted one that wouldn't slip on the fabric, so I purchased an Olfa frosted ruler. I love it! It stays put beautifully when I cut fabric, and I like the frosted feature - it seems to help me see what I'm cutting a little better. I've already ordered the 12-inch size as well, to replace my old one.

In a strange turn of events, my husband, who has never wanted to eat broccoli or cauliflower, tried them both raw in a salad at a cafeteria and now wants us to make those salads at home. Finally I get to make my sister-in-law's recipe that I have had so many years! While my husband is out of town I made Closet Cooking's Roasted Cauliflower Mushroom Soup. It was delicious and I will definitely try this on my husband to see if he likes cooked cauliflower!

While we have had many blessings the last two years - love, family, a new granddaughter, good health, stray kitties, a move to a beautiful 5 acres in a national forest - an ongoing distressing situation will finally get some resolution, and it looks like 2017 is going to be a much better year for us. Joy is on its way back into our lives!

First Finish of 2017 - A Baby Quilt

I made this for a friend's baby, who was born on December 27. I finished it last night, so I'm only a little bit late!

I only had this photo of their nursery to go by, so I pulled prints and auditioned them on my design board with my iPhone held next to them. I was able to find everything I needed in my stash.

I decided I wanted a truly improvisational quilt, so I simply started cutting blocks and fitting them together like a puzzle. It was not as easy as I thought it would be, but I enjoyed the process. To give it a little bit of uniformity I added a row of blocks in the middle.

I utilized some fabrics I've hoarded for ages - Patio Lights from Flight Patterns Collection by Tamara Kate for Michael Miller and part of a panel of I Heart You by Moon Cookie Gallery for In The Beginning

I had enough of Patio Lights for the backing.

Last night I added a low-volume border of black dots on white, an aqua binding, and a label.

I'm very happy that I now have a fence and pretty scenery for photos!

QUILT STATS:
Size:
42 x 32

Fabrics used:
Patio Lights from Flight Patterns Collection by Tamara Kate for Michael Miller
I Heart You by Moon Cookie Gallery for In The Beginning
Kona Solids
Gooseberry by Lella Boutique for Moda
Downton Abbey Lady Rose Collection for Andover
Ebony Pinhead by Michael Miller

Thread:
So Fine by Superior Threads #50 Genoa Gray
Purple embroidery thread

Things I Learned:
Improvisational piecing

Happy Holidays Christmas Pillow and Buntings

A few weeks before Christmas my daughter sent me a link to a Christmas pillow on Amazon and mentioned she would love a seasonal Christmas pillow like her Thanksgiving pillow. She gave me creative license, and away I went!

Using a combination of different designs from Gail Pan (inspired by Christine) and Maggie Robertson Design, I fashioned a Christmas pillow with embroidery and a bit of rudimentary applique.

I used a bit of glittery embroidery thread for the garland hanging off the house and simple embroidery stitches for the pillow.

I added a kitty and bird for my cat and birdie-loving daughter!

The back is from Riley Blake's Postcards for Santa collection and was my daughter's favorite of the fabric photos I sent her.

A few days after her pillow request, she also asked for a bunting for her fireplace as well as a smaller bunting to hang above her daughter's crib.

For the fireplace bunting I used the same pattern as for her nursery bunting and fabrics primarily from Postcards for Santa.

The baby's bunting was composed of Christmas fabric from my stash and white felt with buttons purchased at Hobby Lobby. I am particularly fond of the Frosty Fun by Clothworks fabric (upper left and lower right). Oh I might as well as admit it - I am fond of most ALL Christmas fabric!


Now I already have my eye on a Christmas pillow to make for her next year.

Happy Holidays everyone!