My New 36 Patch

So, I believe I mentioned awhile back that I was going to make a new 36 patch quilt. I made one a number of years ago as a sew along with Amanda Jean of Crazy Mom Quilts. It has always been a big favorite of mine. I have long wanted to make another one. This time, I am using a bunch of my favorite fabrics by some of my most favorite designers. Here is my progress report:

 These are a couple of prints from Laurie Wisbrun. The way I assemble the block, some end up upside down, but no big deal to me.

      These are a couple of Lizzy House prints.

   These are some very sweet Heather Ross butterflies in two different color ways.

     These are two more Lizzy House prints.

 These are a couple of Sweetwater prints from my most favorite of all time Sunkissed. I know there isn't as much contrast in these two, but I love them all the same.

This is a Heather Ross print, paired with a Dear Stella Mini Confetti Dots. I used to have that dot fabric in almost every color way. I am sad it's gone.

 This is two Denyse Schmidt prints from Flea Market Fancy reprint. A bit hard on the eyes, but kinda cool.

 Two more prints from the Sweetwater Sunkissed line. I have a few more from this line to include.

 And two more prints from the Flea Market Fancy reprint. This is the last of the grey seeds that I have and I just had to include them here.

Here are two prints from Sandi Henderson. The green is from Meadowsweet collection and the red is called Henna Garden, a classic.

I am doing this quilt, not only because I love the first one, but to sort of immortalize all my favorite fabrics that I have either been hoarding or am almost out of by now. A nice way of keeping just a bit of each one.

If you want to do something like this, it only takes two 2 1/2 inch x WOF strips of two fabrics to make a block. You sew the two strips together with a 1/4 inch seam and press it. I like to press it open. Then, you cut these into 2 1/2 inch units and sew them together until you have the 36 patch block. You will have some extra pieces to use either on the back or in another project.

Once there are 36 of these blocks made, I will join them all together to make my quilt top. If you want more detailed instructions you can search Crazy Mom Quilts. I know her blog isn't active any longer, but all her tutorials are still up there.

Today I am hoping to finish the last side of the binding on my 100 blocks quilt so I can wash it and have it to show you, maybe tomorrow?
Have a lovely Friday.

A Bouquet of Geraniums

I have to admit, I have fallen in love with sewing for children again. I used to do it when my girls were little. I loved it in part because it took so little fabric to make them things. Also, almost instant gratification for most things. A great combination for a mom who needs to sew. Now that I have a granddaughter, dresses are my thing...again! (I did sew for the boys but they are getting really big now.)

Rae's Geranium pattern is the best. Several options and so easy to make. I have made several, since the time N was a wee thing, but now that she is older and walking, she loves pretty dresses. Yay!! I have today, three more to show you.

 First, let me tell you this dress is white. Pictures were taken under the green umbrella in the heat of the day. This is a knit dress. I found that sewing with knit is not hard, but it does slow me down to keep things going correctly, which is fine. Careful is good. The little bit of stretch this knit has should help keep her in this dress for a while.

 And when you stitch in the ditch at the high waist it practically disappears altogether, which is great! The knit has a great drape to it as well.

 After I made the first knit dress, I wanted to do another and I found this one, actually Made by Rae, so it was perfect! N is going to love these doggies!

 The third one is a cute Dear Stella bird print I found on sale at Hawthorne Threads. When I got it, I suddenly decided to go through my stash and try to find something to pair with it for the top. I found this Dear Stella Confetti Dots in the exact color as the pink birds. How perfect is that? Many times a manufacturer will use the same colors making matching easier.

 Buttons are all done on all three. My button hole struggles are getting better. I have done so many lately that I am starting to understand the machine and the button hole foot.

Last minute I decided to add a pocket, just one. It fortuitously sits right below this sweet little bird. How cute is that?
If you like sewing for little girls, I would highly recommend this pattern. Now there is an expansion pack available that has sleeves and collars and I think I would like to get that so I can make some for fall too. Have a great Tuesday and I will talk to you soon.

5-6 Years in the Making

In an effort to spur myself on to finish some long languishing WIPs, and because I knew that fatigue would also hold me back this year, I joined up with Adrianne at On the Windy Side for her quarterly Finish Along this year. In trotting out the WIPs, I found this one and I am delighted to be able to share it as finished.

 There is a story here. You knew there would be, right? The fabric is the very first pre-cut I ever bought. A Jelly Roll of Fig Tree Quilts Gypsy Rose. The soft, beautiful colors called to me at that time. I pulled the jelly roll apart and played with the strips. I grouped them in color family order. I counted them to see how many there were. There were 7 groups of 5 strips, with 5 leftover that were grouped by default. I sewed the groups together and measured, divided and cut them into squares and set them on point, a first for me too. I played with them on my design wall and finally settled on this arrangement and sewed them together. I bought a border fabric, since back then every quilt still had a border in my world. And the top was done.

 And I was stumped as to what to do next. It hung on my design wall for a while. And then, I gave up and took it down. I folded it and put it away and moved on to other quilts...for almost 6 years.

I began looking at some of my older, unquilted tops about a year or so ago. I began with the smaller ones, so still, this one waited. I finally pressed the wrinkles out and hung it on a hanger to keep it better. I was waiting for inspiration on how to finish it. I finally got it. I have started making notes when the inspiration hits, because I will surely forget later on. I started quilting it in the first quarter, after finally piecing a back. It's hard to tell here, but each square is quilted with a large Mum type flower.

 The half squares along the edges are a back and forth loop in each strip of the square and the border is a wavy sort of zigzag that I have done before.

 One of the hard things was choosing the binding. These colors are so soft, and have a tone to them that is very much a Fig Tree Quilts specialty, in my opinion. I had to work from stash, so I went through everything, looking for a more subdued option.

 And I found one, confirmed by my daughter when I sent her a photo of the two options I thought might work. This beautiful pale green Dear Stella Confetti Dots. I had exactly a half yard and only one little 1.5 inch strip is now left. I love it so much more than I even thought I would.

And the back? Here it is. A big chunk of an Amy Butler print in pale blue, and bright borders of Birds and Berries by Lauren and Jessie Jung pulled from a layer cake that has been hanging around for about 3 years. I have used bits of it before. Now that I see it again, I wish I had more of it.

 Just look at all that crinkly goodness just out of the dryer. My favorite part of every quilt I make.

And so now, a mere 6 years after I bought it, I love this finally finished quilt so much more than I would have thought. Is it time that does that? This beauty is going to live at my middle daughter's house. Being the only female in the house means she needs some feminine touches and this one fits the bill perfectly. A happy ending.

It's WIP Wednesday!

Lots of sewing going on here. I am making new pillow cases for the grandsons. Here is what I have so far:

 This one is for B, who finally has his own pillow and needs a case that is his and not his brother's.

 This has to be one of the cutest lines ever, with the dapper foxes and the glasses over houndstooth.

Then, for V I made bicycles and topped it with Confetti Dots by Dear Stella. Love how this one turned out. Now, gotta go stash diving and find something J would love! I also started quilting on the baby quilts.

I am quilting diagonal lines on this one, two inches apart. Loving it so far. Linking up with Freshly Pieced today. Talk to you soon.

Sunday Stash #3

So I am trying to document my stash here to you all. I am stash fasting, although I didn't actually "join" the official group. I do have plenty of stash that I acquired during the last year so that is what I am going to show as we go through the weeks.  Ready?

 These are 1/2 yard cuts of Confetti Dots by Dear Stella. I had been wanting more dots in my stash. When these came out, I knew they were for me. I had a hard time choosing colors. I wanted them all, but in the end, I bought these 6.

When I bought the Confetti Dots, I also found these on a clearance sale. These are also by Dear Stella. I love their stuff! Unfortunately, I don't remember the name of these and the selvedge only say by Dear Stella. I bought a whole yard of each of these.  Thanks for dropping by. Linking up with Sunday Stash at Molli Sparkles.