Black, White, and Batik all over

I was a busy sewer this week-end! Even though my little brother came to stay with us for the week-end, I still managed to squeeze in about 8 hours worth of sewing on Saturday. Which is good, because Friday and Sunday were big busts.

I put together the first three blocks of Black and White Delight. The pattern calls for black, white, and a different accent color for each block. I decided to stick with black, white, and green. Luckily, I had just bought a large stack of green fat quarters at Joann’s, so I was ready to go!

January

February (I didn’t think I’d like this one. But I love it in real life!)

March (oops, just realized I put a piece in wrong. I’ll have to fix that!)

I need some more black and whites. I see another trip to Joann’s in my future!

I also paper-pieced the first block of Jewels in the Crown BOM. I love paper-piecing! Everything turns out so perfect. I just hate the waste that goes along with it. I'll have to get more batiks too! Don't you love these colors?!

Fabric Rummage Sale

Saturday was a local guild’s annual rummage sale. I have been looking forward to this day all month! I arrived a few minutes before the doors opened. The line wasn’t too bad, only about 15 ladies in front of me.

The line grew quickly behind me though! As soon as the doors were opened, the crowd swarmed the tables. There were about 12 tables piled high with fabric, notions, books, or thread.

There were a lot of different kinds of fabrics, not just quilting cottons (wouldn’t that have been wonderful?!), so you had to be careful on what you grabbed. This is what I was looking for: cotton fabric, yardage, price. If it was less than $1.00 and made of cotton, I threw it in my bag.

There were probably about 60 other women there too. So I wasn’t exactly mulling over my purchases, more like shoving as much cute fabric as I could into my bag. I first walked in and found a good table. I picked up a bunch of cowboy-themed fabric.

Then I wandered around the other tables and didn’t find as much good stuff. So I went back to the first table, kicking myself for not grabbing as much as I could the first time.

There were a few large ziplock bags holding a handful of fabric that I scooped up.

I stumbled across an American Jane panel by Sandy Klop.

Then I found this cute piece of fabric in a bundle. I kept coming back to it. I finally decided that I loved the retro mommies and would buy it just for that piece of fabric. This was my biggest disappointment. Seriously, the piece of fabric is missing half the top and half the bottom. Their heads are chopped off! It’s so cute too. Does anyone know who this is from? I would love to grab a yard or two.

Final damage: $60. 2 bags of fabric, two stacks of magazines and books, a thread holder, a huge bag of blue Gutterman thread. One hour. When I came home, I said “Wait, where’s that other thread I got?” Which taught me: toss it in your bag. You can think about it later. Also, bring your husband to hold and carry stuff for you. I would have grabbed a large package of batting but didn’t have any place to stuff it and maneuver around all the other ladies. I had to shop in two trips, which took up precious time. The whole sale was ravaged in about an hour.

I’ll be back next year!

UFO Bust Progress

This week was a big step forward toward completing a UFO.

I basted my quilt.

This is the first top I ever pieced. It is from a beginning piecing class taught at Quiltique (in Henderson, NV) based on a book by Alex Anderson. Of course, I changed up the pattern. I thought why spend all this time on a teeny quilt that won’t even cover you up. I made extra blocks and added sashing and cornerstones. It’s been hanging on my wall for almost 2 and a half years. *hangs head in shame*

I found this fabric in my closet and decided that it would be the perfect backing. I have no clue what it is. It feels like faux suede. It is very heavy and super soft. It will give My First Quilt some depth and heft.

Hopefully.

Hopefully it won’t ruin the quilt.

If it does, then I learned something. If it doesn’t, I have a nice warm quilt.

Basting was a pain. Literally.

I basted it on our kitchen floor. We have a tiny apartment galley kitchen. It is long and narrow. There was about a half an inch on either side between the quilt and the wall. The backing is just a hair bigger than the quilt top. I duct-taped the backing to the kitchen floor, then sprayed it with basting spray. I put the batting down and smoothed everything out. I know you are supposed to spray the batting. I think I had a good reason for doing that, but it escapes me now. I sprayed the batting then smoothed the top on. I was putting in some pins to secure all the layers when I realized that the top and back weren’t lining up. So I pulled it apart and did it again. Luckily, the backing is so heavy that the basting spray couldn’t hold it well.

Of course, after looking at this quilt for over 2 years I finally decide to baste it on a week-night about an hour before bed. By the time I got everything repositioned correctly I couldn’t stay up any longer to secure everything with pins. My back and knees were so sore. I folded it up and draped it over my sewing chair.

Maybe this weekend I can decide how to quilt it and get started!

And on a completley unrelated note: Aren't these the most beautiful radishes you've ever seen?! We got a new grocery store in our neighborhood full of fresh, affordable produce. These are the healthiest radishes I've ever eaten.

Civil War Blocks

I’ve been banging out my Civil War Blocks. These are so much fun! My new plan is to spend Sunday laying on the couch, watching TV and cutting fabric on my coffee table. It’s such a relaxing way to spend the day. I hate cutting fabric! This way, I get them all cut out. I stick them in Ziplock baggies and stick them on my sewing room corkboard. I don’t even label them. During the week, I grab a bag, lay the pieces out and guess which block it is by scrolling through the Civil War Quilt Blog. Then I sew it together and keep the baggie for next Sunday. They are so easy and fun to put together!

Except this one. I don’t know what happened. Too many bias edges maybe? I trimmed the three rows down so I could sew them together. I thought it looked nice until I checked the size. It’s from a quarter of an inch to a half an inch short all the way around. Geez.

I found a great blogger who really breaks down the construction of the blocks. She even has suggestions for chain piecing and other piecing shortcuts. I know if I really think about it, there are a ton of time-saving tricks to utilize. I’m just lazy! Lillian's Cupboard is a great blog full of quilting, family, and recipes (waffle-grilled cheese sandwich, anyone?)

Resolution Revisit

The first quarter of 2011 is over. How are my resolutions going? Let’s take some time for a revisit, shall we?

1. Get Healthy. Well, the weight loss never happened. Or…hasn’t happened yet. Any day now…I’ll start a diet…wink, wink. I feel round and a little roly-poly but happy. With the nicer weather here we are getting outside more: playing on a softball team, playing in the park, walking along the river. We are having fun and enjoying our newlywed status. There’s been no cigarettes, or crazy cravings, so we are doing fabulous in that department!

2. Spend 15 minutes per day in my sewing room. I’m doing pretty well! Except for that month with no sewing machine. The break was nice. It was a reminder that quilting is a hobby, not an obsession!

3. Learn how to embroider. I could do better! Embroidery is not nearly as fun as quilting. I need to learn some stitches. I have been working on the Birdie Stitches BOM, but haven’t completed one yet.

Ugh...horrible picture. I promise it does look better in real life. I need to learn a french knot so I can do the eyes!

4. Practice more FMQ. With my sewing machine down for a month, I didn’t go much FMQ in the last few months. I did quilt two small projects. One I like, one I don’t. I am thinking of joining along in Thread Head's Free Motion Quilting Challenge . You FMQ everyday for two weeks and results are guaranteed!

5. Buy a home. We are still saving money. We have a budget and stick to it like glue. We’ve also stepped up our debt repayments and are serious about paying off that credit card.

So there I am. Seems pretty obvious what I need to do. Be healthier. Surprisingly, spending 15 minutes per day in my sewing room is no longer as important to me. I'm not stressing about my creative time. The weather is great, I'm busy, I'm happy, and my quilts are coming along!

LizzieB prizes

My package from the LizzeB Girls arrived today! I actually won two prizes from them within a short while, so they shipped them together.



I won a bundle of their new fabric line: Tuscadelphia! These fabrics are fabulous. Here are some of my favorites:



I love that font print. (I don't know what else to call it!) It says "home is where the heart is," There's no place like home," "Love at home," "Beauty all around," and "Peace surrounds." Pretty cool, huh? Some close-ups:



And some Aurifil thread!



How fun!

Have you heard of the LizzeB girls? They are so much fun. They just began to write these stories that I love: The Adventures of the LizzeB Girls, it's a few chapters (so far, but I see a book in their future!) of two quilters who get themselves into pickles solving crimes, and then get out using notions. Kinda like a quilter Indiana Jones! They also produce an online magazine, design fabric, write a blog, and make the cutest quilts! Check them out!

UFO Bust Report

My first UFO Report. Ack! I'm linking up at Blackberry Creek Home Arts.

Well, I don’t have a Bust to report, but I do have some progress! I have been working on my Layer Cake Quilt Along blocks this week. It feels so good to be catching up on this quilt along and to be progressing on my UFO Bust Goal too! I find that it helps so much if I cut and prep on the week-end and during the week I have my grab-n-go bags. Just like my cooking plan: prep and cook on the week-ends and save the easy stuff for the week nights.









I am almost caught up!

I also put my first UFO on my To-Do list for April. Once I jump in and start quilting it, it should go quickly from there. Procrastination, why do you curse me?!