Monday, May 25, 2015

Design Wall Monday

I have a lot to be thankful for on this Memorial Day.  I am proud to be an American.  My grandfather served in World War I and survived or I wouldn't be here today.  So many people gave their lives for our country.  I grew up going to cemeteries for Memorial Day putting flowers on deceased family member graves.  It's hard to go to my son's grave but I decorated it along with Doug's parents who are in the same plot.  Doug's grandfather purchased a plot of six graves in 1925 in the little country Teakean Cemetery in the middle of farm fields.

I have a lot of machine quilting to do in the month of June and there are 11 days of school left this year.  I am ready for a break!

I have been busy working on my quilt for the Quiltmaker Scrap Squad.  My reveal is in mid June, but here is a teaser.  I do love those bright colors and the blocks look awesome on my design wall if I say so myself!  I am toying with borders now.

 This quilt was made from leftovers from my Strippy Pyramids quilt I posted last week.  The quilt evolved based on how many strips I had.  I looked for coordinating solids in my stash and came up two shades of blue.  I don't normally do charity size child quilts with so much white, but this is the way it worked and I love the modern look.  My issue now is binding (planning ahead for having it quilted!).  I don't have enough blue and I could do green or the orangy color or I could go scrappy adding in some blues to the orange and green.  I ruled out red, it didn't look right.  Even though orange is my least favorite color that is the binding color I am leaning towards.  The quilt top is 43 X 54.

Linking up with Patchwork Times.

Monday, May 18, 2015

Design Wall Monday - finished tops!

For a few weeks I had a couple scrappy small charity quilts on my design wall.  I had used them as leader/enders when I was sewing other projects.  I actually have them sewn together now into tops! Plus I got the pyramid quilt top together.  I have a lot of machine quilting projects going on so all these will go into my collection of "to be quilted" tops.

Wallhanging from leftovers from making this quilt for Quiltmaker Scrap Squad

made from 2" squares (1.5" finished) charity quilt top.  It's very purple, my favorite color!
Strippy Pyramids - double bed size
For years and years (at least 20) I have been sewing 1.5" squares together as leader/enders.  Of course I have made several other quilts in between using this same technique but bigger squares.  I have been sewing them in rows of 16 squares and throwing them in a box not pressed.  Over the years I have sewn some of the blocks together.  I thought surely there was enough for a quilt...  I have six completed 16" blocks and enough strips for four and a half more blocks.  Hmmm.... not quilt the 12 blocks I was planning on but getting there!  I will do a solid sashing some year when I get more blocks done.  It's very busy!
1 inch finished squares randomly sewn squares
Check out Patchwork Times for lots more inspiration!

Monday, May 11, 2015

Design Wall Monday

I feel like I am swimming in projects and not finishing anything but I keep seeing so much inspiration! I have my latest Quiltmaker Scrap Squad fabrics and design picked, ready for cutting and piecing.

My Fire Island Hosta is currently off the design wall, but not finished.

I made another Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt block and now I really want to get a bunch more blocks cut out.  I hadn't worked on them since 2012!

I started the Farm Girl Vintage by Lori Holt Sew Along and have 3 six inch blocks made.  I am using a mixture of fun "girly" prints I have been collecting over the years.
Farm Girl Vintage Blocks
The project below is the one on my design wall currently.  While I was at a retreat at Reflections Inn at the end of April a friend ran out of projects.  I had obtained a jelly roll of Mixology Fabrics at a retreat last September in McCall, ID hosted by Craft Taffy the sister site of Quilt Taffy.  As a side note I highly recommend their retreats and I'm signed up again for this September.  There are still openings. 

I had seen a cover quilt on a Scrap Quilts magazine by Fons and Porter called Strippy Pyramids and cut the strips and have been hauling them around.  My friend Rosan pieced the strips together and I put the triangles on my design wall.  I have the top two rows sewn together, along with the bottom two rows (they are piled up on the floor).  I realized there is no purple in this quilt!  I guess I am branching out.  My quilt guild friends will think this is funny because I would NEVER use orange and yellow for years and years!  Now they are showing up a lot more!
Strippy Pyramids

I have some machine quilting to do and lots of end of the year school stuff and field trips going on too.  I am linking up with Patchwork Times, check them out for other Design Wall projects!