Monday, January 23, 2012

January FMQ Challenge

Holy cow, how is it the end of January already?!  I thought December went by fast, but January is on a mission!

I've been practicing the January FMQ Challenge hosted by SewCalGal.  Frances Moore challenged us with free-motion leaves.  At first I practiced on my white board with a dry erase marker.

Then I decided "what the heck, I'm just gonna practice on my quilt!"

I'm too lazy/busy/overwhelmed/responsibly working on UFO's/impatient to make quilt sandwiches just for practice sake.  I'd rather just make a quilt.
This is my H&I's quilt.  It's a Floating UFO. No plan. No destination.  It just hangs around until I decide what is going to happen.  Perfect for this project!  I picked a block in the middle.  I picked some variegated Aurifil thread and went to town!
Hey, I like it! It's a very thick thread (Aurifil Mako Cotton Variegated Thread in Fiesta).  It says 50MT, but I can't figure out what that means by looking at Aurifil's website. It broke on me a few times, so I think I need to use a larger needle.  Look at these gorgeous stitches:

I love the texture it gives this quilt.  Between the quilting and the backing, this is going to be the softest quilt ever :) I just did the one H (or I, depending on which way you hold the quilt!).  I think I am going to try Frances' Elements on a different block this month.  I have 30 blocks, which will make a perfect FMQ Sampler.


I think they actually look like leaves :)


Tomorrow is my birthday.   Nothing  special planned. 
If I could, I would take the day off work and sit on the beach.
But I already did that too many times this month. 
Commute. Work. Read blogs. Eat healthy. Make dinner with the hubs.
Maybe quilt a little bit if there's time. 
And be thankful for my bloggy friends.  
That's you.
<3

12 comments:

  1. Happy birthday! Perhaps you could sit on the beach for me? Your quilting looks fantastic. I like the idea of different quilting on each block. Good Luck.

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  2. Happy Birthday! I hope you enjoy your day!
    Your FMQ looks awesome! I do not have the guts to try in on an actual quilt yet. Soon though!

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  3. Happy Birthday!! I think that is the perfect quilt for a FMQ sampler. Good job on the leaves!

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  4. Happy Birthday Jen, hope your day was wonderful..xx

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  5. Happy birthday.... A nice quilt to do the challenge on - real fun to join in :-)

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  6. Happy Birthday!-) Wowsers! That is some substantial thread! I do leaves a lot and really like the texture from that pattern. When coupled with the thread, it's pretty incredible! Doreen https//Treadlemusic.wordpress.com

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  7. Applause, applause on your quilt AND your bravery at machine quilting! Love the leaf pattern and the variegated thread you used. It looks great on the quilt! I see "Hs" as my last name starts with H!

    Happy Birthday to you, too!

    Cheers!

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  8. Happy birthday! Your free motion quilting is wonderful :-) Great job! I just saw that you went to Hawaii! We are going this summer. I'm going to go read about your trip :-) I'm sure it was amazing! Have a great weekend!

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  9. happy birthday! your quilting is pretty darn good! sure am glad february is coming up ... with a new lesson.

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  10. Happy Birthday, Jen. I hope you're having a good one. I love your leaves--the sketched ones, but especially the quilted ones. I so envy folks who can FMQ. I have tried and tried and haven't been able to do anything but make a mess.

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  11. Wow, Jen!! Your leaves are fantastic!!! Happy Birthday to you a few days late!! oxoxKris

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  12. I think your FMQ Leaves look excellent. Great job.

    And, I hope you are having a wonderful birthday week too! Enjoy!

    SewCalGal
    www.sewcalgal.blogspot.com

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