missmikol's place

Donation Quilts

2011-05-23T14:52:00.006-06:00

Kylie was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrom (HLHS) which is a rare and complex heart defect present at birth and has a low survival rate. Kylie is now 2 1/2 and is going in for her 3rd heart surgery in the next few weeks.

My sister helped organize a fund raiser to help with medical bills. Kylie really likes pink and purple, so I put this quilt together for her. Hopefully it will be a little comfort to her.

I put this quilt together for them to use for a raffle or auction during their event.

Kylie, we wish you the best. We'll be keeping you and your family in our thoughts and prayers.

Going Private

2011-05-09T09:24:00.003-06:00

Getting things ready to get back to this whole blog thing and decided to go private with my family blog. If you'd like to have access, please leave a comment with your email or send me an email. Thanks so much and I'm looking forward to be posting about our lives again.

Welcome Baby

2011-01-16T21:41:00.002-07:00

Meet my little guy!

Everything went well and Gavin is just perfect! He will be 4 weeks old on Monday, I can't believe it has been 4 weeks already. This little guy, and his sisters, is where all my time has been these last few weeks.

I hope you all enjoyed your Christmas and have had a wonderful start to the New Year!

Embroidered Wallhanging

2010-12-18T08:51:00.002-07:00

Merry Christmas everyone!

Here is the wallhanging/table topper I put together for my 'Pollyana' on the HGTV board. I posted about these embroidered blocks earlier in the year.
Here is a closeup of one of the blocks.

I sent it off to its new home earlier this week. I hope my polly likes it.

Maternity Pics

2010-12-04T08:52:00.004-07:00

Hello Everyone!
Some time has passed since my last post, and just want to share that things at home are improving. Everyday has its own set of challenges, but we're getting through a day at a time.

I have a friend that does photography and she had me over earlier this week for a photo shoot. Here are a couple of my favorites...

...you can see a few more on her site. Alicia Kinne Photography She did headshots of my girls last summer, you can see them on her site as well. They are the 3 girls that pop up together at the top of her site.
Thanks Alicia, I enjoyed our visit and you always do such a great job!

This baby boy still has no name but should be making his appearance on the 20th of December. I can't believe the time is so close, but I'm so excited as well.

Some of my friends on the HGTV board have been throwing a baby shower for me. I have been receiving packages and things from them here and there over the past few weeks. I should have a post about that soon. :c) Thanks all, for everything!

Crazy Dayz & D9P

2010-11-02T05:49:00.003-06:00

Hello everyone....I am hanging in here and trying to keep my girls in some sort of normalcy. Our household life has changed over the past handful of weeks. Without going in to detail, my husband has decided to move out and isn't sure if he will be back or not. It has been hard, is still hard, but the days seem to be getting better? not sure if that's the right word, but the girls and I are slowly figuring things out.

Anyway, with that said, I haven't been down in the sewing room much lately at all. My sister, Summer, has a friend that go married a week ago and she made them a quilt. So for the past few weeks, she has come over and gotten be down in the sewing room to help her get it put together. It was good therapy for me, just wish I could get down there a little more often on my own. Maybe one day I'll be able to again. We will be moving back into our old house the first part of December and then this little baby boy will be arriving a few weeks later. So it may not actually happen, on a regular basis anyway, for a few months.

Here is the finished quilt all rolled up and ready to be gifted.

Here it is draped over the back of the couch.

We used 3 of the colors for the binding and I think it turned out super cute. We did a disappearing 9-patch pattern and added a couple of plain borders. There is just an all over meander stitch for the quilting. The couple loved it and told my sister "it looks professional." :c)

Happy Sewing!

Changing The Way...

2010-09-05T16:06:00.002-06:00

...I shop for fabric.

The time has come and we now know what flavor of baby we have coming to our family in December. Our appointment was on Friday and we are very clearly going to be welcoming a little BOY to our home. I think the shock is finally starting to fade as we were pretty sure it was going to be another girl.

Looks like I have some sewing to do before this little guy arrives as everything in our house is pink or has pink somewhere in it. I was doing a quick look at the Fat Quarter Shop and came across this FQ pack.
Sports, dogs, monkeys, I think it is just cute...and look...not a drop of pink in there. :)

Wacky August PCs

2010-08-30T21:51:00.002-06:00

The end of August is here and all Wacky Holiday Postcards have been received. There was quite a list to choose from, see here.

Here is the card I made and sent to all in my group, National Radio Day.
And here are all the cards I received...

Top: Natioanl Eye Exam Month, Race Your Mouse Day - x2
Bottom: Relaxation Day, Toasted Marshmallow Day

They are all great, thanks everyone in my group!

Mini Peek

2010-08-28T21:22:00.002-06:00

I made another mini quilt this last week, it is for a swap on the HGTV board. I can't show the actual quilt until after the swapping, but here is a little peek at the colors and things.
Thanks to dumpr.net for the fun transformation of my peek pic.

Thread Catcher

2010-08-24T22:23:00.002-06:00

I put this thread catcher together the other day using this tutorial.
I read through it a couple of times in the afternoon and after I put the girls to bed, I went to the sewing room and went from memory.
My straps are a little narrow so I just stitched them to the bag rather than using the velcro. I filled the pincushion with crushed walnut shells I had bought at the local quilt shop.

This is another gift I put together for my Polly for the "All I want for Christmas" swap on the HGTV board. I probably should make one for myself so I have someplace to put my thread clippings rather than just on the floor.

Embroidery Project

2010-08-18T12:15:00.003-06:00

OOOOPPPS.....I just made this post and posted it to the wrong blog. Didn't realize it until I went to view it. :P I put on my family blog.

So, here we go again...My friend, Bingo Bonnie, was one of my roommates when a bunch of us HGTVers got together in NH last year. She gifted me with a couple different embroidery patterns, fabric blocks, floss and needles.
Here is a set of 4 blocks called A Christmas Wish by Gail Pan Designs. This is a free pattern with 9 blocks.
I already have plans for these 4 blocks, so I'll have to make them again along with the other 5 to have a complete set. These 4, I plan on making a wall hanging for my secret polly this year.

Thanks for sharing this pattern with me Bonnie, they went togother quickly and they are so cute.

Still Around

2010-08-12T20:54:00.002-06:00

Hey everyone...just wanted to let you know I'm still around.

I haven't done too much piecing since the last FNS a few weeks ago. I did make 2 sets of postcards. One set for a wacky August holidays and one set for unique September holidays. I mailed the August PCs earlier this week and can't post a pic of them yet because they are still in transit. I will post them when they arrive at their new homes and I have received all of mine. September PCs will have to wait to Sept to get mailed and posted.

I have quilted 2 quilts. A neighbor of mine does not sew but if she sees a cute fabric, she has to pick it up. Well she caught a wim the last couple of weeks and decided to turn these fabrics into something, so she put a couple of quilts together. I was thinking I should snap a pic before giving them back to her, but didn't. She brought another one over to be quilted this week, so maybe I can grab pics of all of them when I take this one over to her.

News on the homefront...

Here is my belly at 20 weeks. I went in for an appointment this week, but we didn't do an ultrasound, so we don't know the gender of this baby yet. Brian and I are pretty sure its another girl, but you never know I guess, there may be a surprise for us at our next appointment...it will be an ultrasound appointment for sure.

FNS Results

2010-07-24T20:42:00.002-06:00

I ended up working on my Postage Stamp Quilt. I have 6 - 17" blocks that have already been put together but I decided to make it a little bigger before adding the borders. One of my friends asked me how I was coming with this quilt while I was in Portland. Thanks Chanlady! You got me motivated to work on it again. I was running out of purples but had picked up some more last week so I was ready to go.
As you can see, I put together 5 sets of strips that I will get trimmed up and put into blocks soon. I also wanted to try my hand at doing Cathedral Windows. I'm working on a mini so I started with a 6 1/2" block, did my folding, put blocks together, and started adding the windows. Here is what I got done.

I'm going to try and get this mini finished up this next week.

It's time for FNS

2010-07-23T17:20:00.002-06:00

I've missed this the last couple of months with vacations and different things, I actually forgot it was tonight until just a few minutes ago. Brian took Becca and Anna on their first backpacking campout today, so its just me and Kaitlyn at home tonight. I should be able to get a little sewing done.

Friday Night Sew-in

Now, I just need to get a game plan of what I want to work on. I have a Scraps to Treasures quilt that needs some attention, I've started making more blocks for my Postage Stamp quilt, I have a new mini in mind that I want to start, and some fabric post cards I'd like to get started on. I have a couple of hours before I'll make it down to the sewing room so I hope I'll figure it out before I get down there. I'll post tomorrow with what I worked on.

Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show

2010-07-12T19:04:00.003-06:00

I took a trip up to Portland, Oregon over the weekend to meet up with a group of ladies from the HGTV message board. As part of our get together, we jumped on a bus and headed to Sisters for the outdoor quilt show. It was a wonderful trip. I want to say that I read in their pamphlet that they were expecting 20,000 people for this one day event. The article also said that it took 500 volunteers to hang the 1,300 quilts that were there.

We got off the bus and headed toward the quilt show when we saw this van greeting everyone. It was totally covered with this custom quilt. Isn't it amazing?
Here is a little sampling of what was there. I know I didn't see every quilt there was, but I sure got an eye full. Plenty to look at and lots of inspiration. Enjoy the show.

Inside one of the buildings, they had a group of fractured quilts. I tried to look for a good description of what a fractured quilt is and just couldn't find one. Basically, there is a picture that get divided into sections, each participant get a section and recreates their part of the picture with fabric, all sections are then put together.

There was also a contest for the show and the theme was "Stars Over Sisters." Here is the second and third place quilts.

And here is the Grand Prize winning quilt.

The show was amazing. Some of the members of our group met up with Bonnie Hunter from Quiltville. Some others in the group met up with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims.

Getting Ready

2010-07-01T10:46:00.003-06:00

This time next week I'll be packing for....

This year we are meeting in Portland and going to the Sister's Quilt Show. COF stands for Circle of Friends, this is a 'retreat' when a bunch of us from the HGTV board meet up and visit, sew, teach and learn from one another. We met in MN the first year, next was TX (I missed this one because I had just had a baby), last year we met in NH, this year is OR, and next year is already in the works for NC.

I have my challenge piece done, now, I just need to get back into the sewing room to finish up my show-n-tell. SSHHH...I'm planning on taking my Round Robin, if I can get the binding on and get it packed up enough to fit into a carry on.

She started out UGLY

2010-06-09T20:20:00.004-06:00

A little bit a go, I posted this Challenge Post about the 'She started out Ugly' swap. Here is the fat quarter that I sent off to be worked with.

Towards the end of May, I received my package in the mail. This is the collage I came up with showing it in the box and all layed out. Nickilee made this drawstring shoulder bag with a matching wallet/cardholder. She also sent along some pins and a fat quarter with hearts all over.

In return, here is what I put together for Nickilee. Here is her fat quarter, it is also the background for this collage. I knew as soon as I saw it that I wanted to do a 4-patch-posie. This pic shows the back and the front, along with a little drawstring bag I put together for her.

I wish I had a better pic of the front of this mini. Here is a pic that Nickilee took and shared on the HGTV site, it's the 4th post down. Thanks Nickilee, I had fun swapping with you. And a big thanks to Quiltaholic for hosting this.

Pay It Forward - Received

2010-06-08T07:07:00.000-06:00

Back in September, I signed up for a Pay It Forward swap. I signed up on John's, aka Quilt Dad's blog. When signing up, I agreed to make a gift for 3 others within the next year.
I received my gift from John last week. I was so excited to rip into the envelope and see what he sent.

A linen bag, a Soire'e charm pack, and a card. This bag is huge! I wanted to show it filled with somthing, so I grabbed my 2 gallon pitcher and placed it inside. It stood it up pretty good, but still did not fill this thing.

Thanks John, I have lots of ideas on where this bag will be used. The colors are so fun and I'm looking forward to turning these charms into something.

Ladies that signed up on my blog....I really hoped to have your gifts sent by now, but just know, it is always on my mind. I will have your gifts out in the next month or so, I hope. :c)

Embroidery Mini - Sent

2010-06-07T18:40:00.002-06:00

Well, here it is. This is the mini I made for the Quilt Blogger's Embroidery Swap. The gal I sent to doesn't have a blog or a photo album that she posted, so I'm not sure if she has received this yet, but I thought I'd take a chance a post it here anyway.
This mini was made for Narelle in Australia, she requested that beads be used. I've used beads before, but not with embroidery. I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to do with it so I played with a couple of practice pieces.

This is what I came up with and I like how it turned out. I did a bead here and there up the stems, and I used the beads to fill in each of the petals, and also the bee's wings.

I hope it meets up with Narelle's expectations, or at least comes close to what she had in mind.
Here is a quick pic of the back as well.

I had a good time swapping with the Quilt Blogger's so I'll have to keep my eye open for another one.

Embroidery Swap Received

2010-05-27T22:28:00.002-06:00

I have not been on the computer much the last couple of weeks. I thought I'd better check in and get something posted.
I joined the Quilt Bloggers embroidery swap and that has now come to an end. There were 99 swappers from all over the world. I'm not sure if the quilt I sent off has been received yet, so I'll give it a few more days and then I'll show you what I sent.
Here is the quilt I received:
It was made by Lida K. from the Netherlands. Thanks Lida, I love it and the color is great.

Spring Fever Bingo

2010-05-17T14:49:00.003-06:00

In Stitches is hosting another bingo game. Just pick 25 of the many words they have listed. Send in your list and wait for the fun to begin.
They will be having daily giveaways for those that leave comments as well. Here is a pic of some of the prizes they have up for grabs.

Head on over and check out the Spring Fever Bingo game.

Here is my word list:

porch, thunderstorm, peony, playground, hummingbird, breeze, kites, rainbow, columbine, lemonade, warm, daisy, lilac, showers, dragonfly, robin, tulip, sweet pea, gardening, park, outdoors, barbeque, festival, sparrow, orchid

ALS Quilt

2010-05-12T11:43:00.002-06:00

My husband has a cousin that was diagnosed with ALS, aka Lou Gehrig's Disease, in November of 2008. Steve Russon is in his early 50's and has been married to his sweetheart for almost 30 years. They were blessed with 3 daughters and a son (Jenni, Kari, Kim, and Kyle) with 2 still at home.
Steve's kids are setting up a fund raiser and golf tournament to help with medical bills, hospice, and things. Steve has been confined to a wheelchair and his cute wife has quit working so they can spend the rest of his life together.

When I heard they were organizing a fund raiser, I told them I'd send a quilt down. I put this top together at the end of last summer and it has been sitting, waiting for a purpose. I know it isn't very masculine, but I think it is fun and someone will want it. Now that it is quilted, bound, and pics taken, I need to get it boxed up and sent on it's way.

Challenges

2010-05-02T08:36:00.003-06:00

I took on a couple of challenges this month, and so far, this month has been crazy. I added these pics to a post almost a week ago and am just now (mon. 5/10 @ midnight) getting back here to talk about them.

Challenge #1 ... She started out Ugly
We were partnered up and sent each other an UGLY fat quarter. We have to use at least 90% of the FQ and send finished item(s) back by the end of the month. I was paired up with Nickilee on the HGTV board and here is the FQ she sent me.

Funny thing here, we both sent each other a FQ that we won during a FQ bingo game. I took a pic of the FQ I sent to Nickilee but am going to wait to post it with what it turned in to.

Challenge #2 ... UFO Challenge
We signed up by posting a pic of an unfinished project. We had from April 12-May 12 to get it finished. I thought it would be easy, but as I said before, it has been a crazy month. I had these blocks and needed to get them turned into something. I put them together and added a border. Now it has been sitting for almost 2 weeks to get quilting and bound. I have until Tuesday at midnight to post a pic of my finished quilt along with a close up. I'd better hit the sewing room first thing in the morning.
I just realized as well, my BOM class is this Tuesday night and I haven't put my block together yet. Guess you know where I will be every spare minute tomorrow.

Embroidery Mini

2010-04-30T11:30:00.000-06:00

If you've noticed, there is a button on the left sidebar for an Embroidery Mini Quilt Swap. This is the first swap I have signed up for that is not on the HGTV board, this is on the Quilting Bloggers site. I haven't done any embroidery for probably 4 or 5 years, so, I was a little nervous but decided to jump in anyway.

Here is my finished 'practice mini.'
The finishing measurement is 7" x 8.5".

I will be making a different mini for the swap, it needs to finish at 10" x 12". I will be adding another element that was requested. I'll share pics of the new one in June after it arrives at its new home.

Here is a closer look at the design, I hope it isn't too fuzzy.

This is "Bee Amongst the Daisies," and is a free pattern found at the Stitching Cow. Lenna offers some other free patterns there, and also has lots to look at on her blog.

Pinwheel Apron

2010-04-28T11:17:00.002-06:00

I finished up this apron last night for my "Pollyanna" for a Christmas swap on the HGTV board. I had these pinwheels put together and was going to make a mini quilt but was running out of fabric. So it got set aside while I worked on some other things. I made it back to the store for more fabric and decided to turn it into an apron instead.

I found this pattern and tutorial at TipNut, this is Nana's Reversible Half Apron. I just realized I didn't get a pic of the other side. I used the lighter green in the bottom, center pinwheel for the back. It turned out pretty cute, I hope "Polly" likes it.

R.Robin Returned

2010-04-26T07:36:00.006-06:00

My Round Robin has returned from the quilters. It is beautiful.
Here are some shots.
I had to open it up and look at it before I grabbed the camera. Then I set it back in the box and pulled it out little by little for the pics. :c)

Everyone that worked on this robin did an amazing job.

Now we have reached the center of the quilt.

And here she is in all her glory. Now, I just need to come up with a name for her. Any suggestions?

Margaret Gunn is the gal that quilted this for me. You can see some better pics of the quilting on this post on her blog, Sewing & Quilt Gallery.

Here are the HGTV board names (in working order) of all the ladies that worked on this for me.

* Bingo Bonnie

* sluvs2quilt

* terri911

* terrima917

* IB1RU12

Thanks again to all of you!

Pinwheels Done

2010-04-19T20:26:00.002-06:00

Here are the last of the pinwheel blocks for the Pinwheel Sampler Quiltalong with Rachel at p.s.iquilt.

Block 7...I went off on my own this week. A different block was chosen for this week but I wasn't sure about the colored border where none of the other blocks had a border of any type. I know this is a sampler, but I chose to make these instead. I put together 4 pinwheels making a 5th in the center.

Block 8...We had creative license for our last block, any pinwheel block we wanted. I searched through blocks at Quilter's Cache and decided to go with Shooting Star 2.

Next week is sashing.

April's FNS

2010-04-17T19:13:00.002-06:00

I put these braids together a few weeks ago. Last night, for the FNS, I was able to get it all put together and quilted. I was able to finish up the binding this morning.
It measures 19" x 31.5"
and is currently sitting on my dining table.

Scraps to Treasures

2010-04-09T20:07:00.004-06:00

I signed up to participate in the Scraps to Treasures Challenge on the HGTV board this year. What does that mean? Well, everyone sends in a pair of 6" squares for all participating player in a different color value, ie. light/med/dark. We were able to send in an optional 3rd square if we wanted. Here are a little more than half of what was sent back to me.
Now I have to try creating a quilt using at least a 2" square from each fabric. The size must be a minimum of 36"x48" or 42" square. I have found a pattern that I'm going to use. I have to keep everything secret though until the end of the challenge. All the quilts will be posted and members of the board will be able to guess on who made which quilt and voting for favorites and things. There have been many beauties made in the last few years, I only hope I can come close to putting something descent together.
I want to say the challenge needs to by done by October 1st and then voting will take place. So, about mid-October, I will be able to post pics my quilt for you all.

Toteable Towel

2010-04-01T18:04:00.003-06:00

A few weeks ago, I was looking around blogland for some type of something that was not 'quilty' that I might want to try my hand at. I followed a link somewhere that led me to The Long Thread. There are so many different items there. At the bottom of her clothing + accessories there is a toteable towel. Here are the directions for the Tote-able Towel by Anna Maria Horner.

I had my girls pick out a towel at the store the other day. They are still little so we just went with a regular bath towel. I picked out some fabric that matched and went to work. Here are their color choices and one of the towels all put together.

Here they are all rolled up.

These are so much easier for them to tote around. They can just swing it over their shoulder and off they go. No more fighting with bulkiness or having their hands full. I'm ready for some boating and days at the pool.

Pinwheels Block 6

2010-03-29T16:29:00.003-06:00

Here are my 2 colorways for block #6 for the Pinwheel Sampler Quiltalong.
I think we have 2 more weeks of making blocks. They are looking good together, just need to decide how I want to finish them.

Charity Quilts

2010-03-26T13:08:00.002-06:00

Tickets are now on sale!
There are over 30 quilts up for grabs. All funds from this raffle will go to The Ronald McDonald House.
We were each given a color that we could use different shades of and we could only add one other color. This is the quilt I made for this project. Take a look here to see other quilts that have come in so far for the raffle. There are some beauties in there.
Tickets are $2 or 3 for $5. Let me know if you are interested in purchasing some tickets and I'll send you my address. Thanks much!

Pinwheels and a Peek

2010-03-24T21:57:00.003-06:00

I put together block 5 in the pinwheel sampler with rachel. I'll have to lay all my blocks out and see how it is coming together. I did decide to frame my first blocks and bring them up to the 12.5" size.

I signed up for a Christmas swap this year over on the HGTV boards. There are 13 gift themes to follow and 7 optional gift themes. One of the 13 themes is "All about Green." Here is a little peek of what I'm working with for this one.

I've started my project but haven't taken a pic of it yet. I hope my Pollyanna will like it.

About to Fly

2010-03-18T22:32:00.003-06:00

I am getting the backing ready and then my Round Robin will be flying to get quilted. I posted about this quilt in October for the Fall Blogger's Quilt Festival hosted by Amy. I have dug this top out of the box from our move to get the measurements. It measures in at 78.5" square.

I also realised I never went back into my post and added the ladies that worked on this with me. I will list them here using their HGTV names:

bminor, aka bingo~bonnie, added the flying geese
sluvs2quilt, set it on point with the green half stars and paisley border
terri911, brought in the gold and green border
terrima917, added all those flower blocks and copied the center stars in the corners
???, added the final round, the burgundy and green outer border

Sorry, I don't have the last ladie's name. I remember someone dropped out early on and I'm not sure if someone filled in for this round or if it went to our coordinator for the final round. I'll have to post on the board and see if someone claims that round.

I'm excited to get it quilted and finished up. I'll share some pics of this Robin when it flies back home.

***Edited*** I went back through my tote that held my RR for our move and I came across the last sheet of notes from the ladies that worked on it. The last round was added by IB1RU12. I'm glad I found this sheet and can put all these notes together.

Burgundy Buttons Giveaway

2010-03-17T09:45:00.004-06:00

Amy's Creative Side is having a giveaway!
There are 4 different ways you can enter to win.

a Verna Jelly Roll and 2 yards of complimentary fabric

Click here to post your entries. Good Luck!

FNS is this Friday

2010-03-16T19:40:00.001-06:00

Make sure to sign up with Heidi if you are going to join us so you can be entered into the drawing. You can visit and share pics on the flickr group as well.

I will be a little late this time. We are a host house for our neighborhood progressive dinner. I'm not sure what I'll be working on, but I have plenty to choose from.

A Few Blocks

2010-03-16T12:26:00.004-06:00

Yay, I was able to get this month's block done for my LQS's BOM the same week that class was held. We signed up a couple classes ago for our finishing kits, but they haven't had time to get them all put together yet. Hopefully they will have them done soon so I can get started on some of it. Here is the link to the quilt we are doing, Pieceful Nights by Lori Smith. This block is called Milky Way.

I have also been doing the Pinwheel Sampler Quiltalong with Rachel at p.s.iquilt. We have been making 2 of each block in different color ways. Here is block #4.

You can see lots of these blocks in a variety of fabrics at the flickr group. I am using the Hello Betty layer cake I have had laying around. I'm liking how they are coming together.

Reversible Cape

2010-03-13T11:38:00.002-07:00

I have a niece, CJ, that is turning 3 next week. Her mom is about ready to burst with twins and is stressing about not being able to give CJ a birthday party like they have talked about. So my sister and I are putting together a little party for her and she has requested a ladybug party. So that got me thinking...I can make her a ladybug cape. I'm not sure if she'll like it or not but I thought it sounded fun.
I went out and bought the things I needed and went to work. As I was sewing on the ladybug dots, I thought I could put something on the other side of the cape and make it reversible.
Here is Kaitlyn, my 2 year old, modeling both sides of the cape for me. I just made up my own pattern and it went together fairly quickly.
I think I will put the cape on her at the start of the party so she can wear it for the festivities. I bought some ladybug stickers and will make a big flower on a poster board to play 'stick the ladybug on the flower.'
I think I may have to make up a few capes for my girls as well, or at least for the dress-up box.

LQS BOM

2010-03-08T16:42:00.003-07:00

It's that time of the month again, class at the local quilt shop. I'm a little behind in posting these. Last month, I hadn't started my block until the morning of class. You have to take your finished block to class to get the next months kit free. I got it done and here is the block we made for our February class. It is a variation of Tea Party.
Here we are in March and class is tomorrow night and I put my block together this morning. This is our sixth block and it is a variation of Uncle Sam's Hourglass.

Maybe this month I can get to my block a little sooner. There is no room for error if I wait til the last minute. That doens't give me any time to go to the LQS and get a replacement piece of fabric if I get the cut wrong. :)

PSQ Block

2010-03-04T15:24:00.002-07:00

Well, I did it. I finished the first block for the Postage Stamp Quiltalong. After sewing the first few strips together I thought, this is going to be a slow process because of all those seams that need to be matched up. Then I got in the groove and all the seams matched up pretty well so it wasn't as bad as I thought.
Since making this first block, I have completed 2 more. These ones came together a little more quickly than the first. Here is a little closer look.

I'm getting excited now to see the finished result. My plan right now is to have 6 blocks and add some borders to finish it off. Each block is 17" x 17" finished. I may do more blocks, I'll have to see what I have left after getting the 6 done.

Postage Stamp...

2010-03-02T20:10:00.004-07:00

...Quiltalong has also started. Heidi posted the first set of instructions a couple of weeks ago but I didn't have my 'background' fabric so I couldn't start then. Can you see what 'theme' I'm doing?

A couple years ago, I participated in a Fat Quarter Birthday Swap. The colors I requested was purple or cream. So when my birthday finally rolled around, I received a handful of purple and cream fat quarters. I wanted to do something with the purples but it wasn't at the top of my list. When the PSQ was coming, I thought that would be a good use of my purples.

I now have my strip sets to put together into blocks. I should be able to get some pics posted soon.

2010-02-27T23:00:00.000-07:00

Here is the second block in the Pinwheel Quiltalong.

I didn't adjust the size on these blocks. I'm still not sure if I will frame in the first blocks I made to increase the size. I may just make new blocks and put the smaller ones on the back or something.

I was looking at the flickr group for this quiltalong and there are some really cute prints and color combos being used. So fun.

Quilt Alongs Started

2010-02-22T09:15:00.004-07:00

Rachel at p.s. i quilt is doing a pinwheel quilt along. I have a Hello Betty layer cake that was just waiting for me to do something with, so that is what I chose to use for this quilt. Block One has been posted and I was able to get right to it. Here are 2 of the first block.

I had to decrease the size of my cuts by a 1/2". The layer cake I'm using doesn't have duplicate prints, and I couldn't get all the cuts I needed from my 10" squares. I will decide later if I want to adjust the future blocks or just frame these ones up to make them the same size as the others.

Friday Night Sew-In

2010-02-20T11:03:00.000-07:00

Last night was the Friday Night Sew-In with Heidi and Bobbi.

I decided to downsize a block and make a mini. I chose the Contrary Wife block. I made 9 blocks and added 2 borders. Each block is 5-1/4" finished. This mini measures 22-1/2" square. On another note, all fabric was from my stash so I can count this as a stashbuster project as well.

If I don't get this quilted and bound before next months FNSI, then that will probably be my project next month.

Thanks Heidi and Bobbi!

Mini Bargello

2010-02-18T14:34:00.002-07:00

I played earlier this week and put together a few mini tops. I will have to post pics of them all soon. Right now I want to show the one that is finished.

A few years ago, a bunch of us from the HGTV board met in MN. It was lots of fun to meet up with these ladies, visit, shop hopping, and learning. One of the classes I went to was on Bargello. Some of these quilts look so complicated, but they aren't too bad. I was given a kit at the class and brought it home and it ended up getting set aside. I came across the kit over the weekend and decided to put it together.

This is my first Bargello, and it happens to be a mini. It finished out at 7" x 10".

V-Day Postcards

2010-02-14T23:31:00.001-07:00

I participated in a quilted postcard exhange for Valentine's this year. Each card I received was very different from the others, they were all a fun surprise to find in the mailbox. Here are the postcards that I received. Here are the postcards that I made and sent to the ladies in my group.

Nothing too fancy, but still fun I think.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Pillowcases and Kids

2010-02-08T19:29:00.003-07:00

I have had some extra kids the last 5 days, a niece and 2 nephews. I had mentioned that maybe we could make a pillowcase while they were here. Monday morning came and I was reminded of this mentioning. So a little later we loaded up the truck and headed to the fabric store. I was interested to see what type of prints they would all pick. Me and 6 kids...the lady checking us out told me I was a brave woman. :c)

Here are their choices.
We got home and trimmed everything up. I walked everyone through pinning the edges together and rolling up the body. We got everything pinned and our first seam sewn. After the cases were pulled through the tube, I lost a couple of kids to their DSIs and things. But we made it through and got them all done.

Here is a closer look at the boys' pillowcases.

Here are the girls' choices.

Lastly, here are all the kids holding their pillows.

Kelton (11), Cameron (10), Becca (7)

Anna (5), Kaitlyn (almost 2), Maili (6)

Maybe when I have some extra time and don't have kids running circles around me and asking for this and for that, I will go through my stash and get some pillowcases made up for the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge.

Postage Stamp Quilt

2010-02-05T07:56:00.001-07:00

Have you ever wanted to make a Postage Stamp Quilt? Now is the time to do it. Heidi is hosting a quilt along and says it will be easy.

Here are the details...
and here are the fabric needs...

A flickr group was just set up as well.

Q4K Kit Arrived

2010-01-27T06:17:00.001-07:00

The package from Quilts for Kids arrived on Monday!
I was so excited to see what the theme was they sent me that I ripped right into it. With a house full of girls, I don't get to play with "boy" fabrics too often. Look how fun this is.

Race car blocks, orange and red for the 4-patch blocks, stripes for the inner border, and flags for the outer border...and look at that background.

With everything we are tying up before we head out of town, or the country I should say, I figured I wouldn't even touch this until we got home. Well, I took some time while some laundry was going and made the 4-patch blocks. I still had a little bit of time to go and look what I got done.

This went together pretty quickly. I was surprised I got this all pieced before I had to leave it and get back to packing, cleaning, cooking, etc... The rest will have to wait for next week.

Happy sewing everyone!
I'm off to enjoy some sunshine.

Feb's Friday Night Sew-In

2010-01-25T00:56:00.003-07:00

Heidi and Bobbi have announced the date for February's Fiday Night Sew-In, it will be on the 19th. They are having a give away tied to this again. You work on your project Friday night, post a pic or two on Saturday and they will draw winner on Sunday.
I just found out that I have a dinner to go to on the 19th, but I should be able to get a little time afterwards to work on something. We are headed to Mexico at the end of this week so I'm not thinking about my project at the moment. I'll have to let you know what I'll be working on sometime after we get home. Hope to see some of you there.

Comforting Kids

2010-01-21T21:58:00.002-07:00

Have you heard about Downy's Touch of Comfort Quilt Project? It is a team effort with the non-profit organization of http://www.quiltsforkids.org/

My friend, Bonnie, posted about this last October. I wasn't able to help out at that time, but I'm feeling more comfortable with adding a little something now. A couple days ago I went here and requested a free kit. They send everything but the batting, they ask that you donate that to the project. They would also love to get a quilt from your stash, if you are able to do so.

I ordered my kit a couple nights ago. While the girls were in school and my 2 year old was napping today, I put this quilt together. I was able to get it done start to finish ToDaY. That feels good.
Here is a closeup that shows one of the squares, the border, and the quilting...don't look too closely. ;c)

Another shot with it folded up a bit.

Now to wait for the kit to come so I can mail both quilts off together.

Here is the Gallery, if you'd like to see some quilts they have received. Here is a Fact Sheet if you'd like to see more information.

Make an Apron

2010-01-19T20:57:00.000-07:00

I don't have an apron...well until last night.
My girls all got their own aprons this past Christmas. All 3 girls were wearing them the other day while we made cupcakes. I had gotten some powdered sugar on my pants and made the comment, "I need an apron." While we were at the store yesterday, my 5 year old reminded me I needed to get myself an apron. I have a link on my computer to over 100 free apron patterns, but could never decide which to make. Last week there was a link to a video shared with me for a 'quick apron.' That is the style I decided to run with last night. Here is the outcome.
This really was quick. I grabbed a set of 2 towels (these aren't tea towels but close to the same size) and a 1/2 yard of fabric. I had fabric that I could have used at home, but I used this as an excuse to walk through the fabric department. :)

Now that I have an apron, hopefully I can avoid the little dots I sometimes get on my shirt and/or pants. The only trick is, I have to remember to put it on.

Here is a link to the video that inspired this apron.

Quick Apron part 1

Quick Apron part 2

Here are links to some other free patterns:

TipNut 52 patterns

TipNut 50 more patterns

January Fiday Night Sew-In

2010-01-16T23:07:00.002-07:00

For my Friday Night Sew-In, I worked on stitching the binding on my Crayola Quilt. Actually I worked on it pretty much all day Friday.
Good New...it's done!
I'll get some other pics of the completed quilt soon.

All Quilted

2010-01-14T09:40:00.000-07:00

My challenge quilt is all quilted!
Here it is all folded up, I still need to get it trimmed and bound.
Here is part of the center. I used a blue thread for the quilting, so it doesn't show to well in this pic. I need to get a good camera still. I got one for Christmas, but it didn't take good pics, so it went back. Back to using the cell phone camera for a bit.

Here is part of the back, this shows the quilting better here. It looks good from a distance, just don't look too closely. :)

I'm hoping to get it trimmed and the binding strips cut and sewn together today. I would love to get the binding all on and finished, I just don't see that happening today.

Quilt Taffy

2010-01-11T19:31:00.004-07:00

The other day, I just had a quick few minutes of computer time. Anyway, I stopped over at Quilt Taffy to see what they'd been up to and they were having a give away that day. I entered real quick by leaving a comment then had to chase after my toddler.
I had an email the next day letting me know I had won the giveaway. Guess what arrived today? There are 4 Fat Quarters of American Vintage with a school days theme along with a zippered pouch.

I'm hoping do put a mini quilt together with these. They are too cute.

Thanks Corrie and Des!

December BOM

2010-01-10T18:49:00.002-07:00

I missed my December BOM class, I remembered about it the following morning. It was a couple weeks before Christmas, so it took me a little while to get in there and pick up my Dec. block kit. I started working on it, and cut one color too short. I didn't get back to my LQS for another week to get a replacement piece.
I was able to sit and get it done today. Just in time too, our next class is this Tuesday. This block is a variation of Baker's Dozen. Hopefully this months block won't take me all month to get to.

Challenge Top Done

2010-01-08T20:44:00.003-07:00

The top done :c) This is for the Crayola Quilt Challenge. More than 30 quilts will be raffled off with the funds being donated to The Ronald McDonald House.

My color was Midnight Blue. I could use different variations of my color and add only 1 other color. This is what I came up with.

Here is the center.
Here is the full top.

Now that its done, I think it might be a little long. It measures 58x97. I'm thinking about shortening it a little. I'll let it sit over the weekend and see what I think come Monday.

Friday Night Sew In

2010-01-07T01:19:00.003-07:00

The ladies over at Handmade by Heidi are hosting a Friday Night Sew In. They have chosen next Friday, January 15, as the first date for this year.
So find something that needs a little attention and work on it. Post about it and share a pic on Saturday to have a chance at a give away. The button on my side bar will take you there, go check it out.

AQS Give Away

2010-01-06T07:32:00.000-07:00

Win A Quilting Studio!!

American Quilter's Society is having a give away!
Head over to enter and to check out all the prizes.
Entry's will be accepted from Jan 4 - March 1.

Have a Heart

2010-01-05T21:17:00.003-07:00

At my local quilt shop, they have these cute little hotpads in the shape of a heart. With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I thought now would be a good time to give it a try. Here is the picture on their kit.
As soon as I got home, I opened it up and pressed my fat quarters. My kit came with 2 fat quarters, 3 pieces of cotton batting, along with the pattern and instructions. I was pretty excited to put it together and got started right away.

It went together pretty quickly and I still have a little more than half of both fat quarters left. After layering the hotpad you sew all around the heart. Trim batting and backing to match the front heart, stitch the center from top to bottom, and bind.

Ta-Da...I still need to add my little loop. I don't think it will ever get hung up though, so it may never get added. I did learn that I'm not good at binding on a curve. I will need to practice that if I ever decide to do a scalloped edge or a curved corner on any future quilts.

2010

2009-12-31T22:26:00.004-07:00

I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy New Year!
I wish you all safety and health this year as well as plenty of time to quilt.

Challenge Progress

2009-12-28T22:26:00.003-07:00

I was able to take some time today and work a little more on my Crayola Challenge Quilt. I did 4 D9P blocks and mixed them up a bit.
I added a couple french braid rows to make it more rectangular. I haven't trimmed it up yet, but here is the layout I am thinking of.

I'm not sure if I'm sold on all the red around the center, so I'll play with it a bit and see what I think. I'll fill in the open space with a blue tonal.

It may be a few days before I can work on it again. If there are any thoughts or suggestions out there, I'd love to hear them.

Summer's Project

2009-12-27T01:32:00.003-07:00

My sister made some fleece throws for some of her friends for Christmas this year. One of her friends is an Eagles fan, but we couldn't find Eagles fleece anywhere. We did come across some cotton and she decided to tie him a quilt instead. We took everything to my house and got it all prepared, sandwiched, and pinned. I sent her home with a hoop so she didn't have to set up the big frame all by herself. Wouldn't you know it, she ran short on the Pearl5 she had picked to tie it with. So a couple days later she came over and we ran to the store to grab more. We went to the same store we bought everything from and as I was looking through some quilt books, Summer went for a quick walk around the store. When she made her way back to me, what was she holding? Yep, a bolt of Eagle fleece. It was about gone, so I assume it wasn't new to the floor...where were you two days earlier? Anyway, here is Summer finishing up the last couple of rows.
Here is Kaitly, my little helper as I pinned the binding on. I gave her some pins so she could help me on the other side of the quilt, otherwise, all my pinning ends up out of place and scattered across the floor behind me. I hope it isn't too dark to see.

Now that Christmas is over, I need to ask Summer how her friend liked his gift. Oh, I almost forgot, I got a new camera for Christmas. I have taken a couple pics, but they look a little fuzzy on the display. I haven't put them on the computer yet, I'm hoping the display on the camera just has a smaller pixel quality and the pics will be clearer/sharper on the computer. If not, I will have to take it back for a different one.

Missed My Class

2009-12-21T20:24:00.003-07:00

Well, I missed my class this month for the BOM. I realised it the next morning and didn't make it in to get my December block until this evening. While I was there, I took a couple of pics. Here is the "Traditional" colorway.
And here is the 2nd colorway they were offering. I want to say they are calling it "Primrose."

I now have my block kit and should be able to get the block put together sometime after Christmas. Hopefully I'll get it posted here soon.

Holly Jolly Blog Bingo

2009-12-10T18:00:00.005-07:00

The fun begins on Monday, December 14

The In Stitches blog by The Quilt Shoppe is hosting a Holly Jolly Blog Bingo. They have a list of words and you pick 25 of them for your list. They will post 7 words a day and you can call BINGO when all 25 of your words have been posted. You have to email them your entry by midnight (PST), Sunday, Dec 13.

They have a wonderful assortment of items that will be sent to the winner. They will also have daily drawings from the previous days comments. They will also be offering a discounted item every day for that day only. Head over and check it out.

Fabric Post Cards

2009-12-10T14:41:00.002-07:00

I mailed off some fabric post cards yesterday. If you haven't tried these, they are pretty fun to create or play with. It is even more fun when you open your mailbox and find one waiting for you. When I started making these a few years ago, I used this tutorial by DebR at Red Shoe Ramblings. There a quite a few different tutorials out there now, just do a search for fabric post cards. On mine, I us a fusible on 1/2" strips to "bind" my post cards. Also, you can use Drapery Lining on the back of these. That way you can use a regular pen to write with. This time I just used some muslin and a fabric pen.
Here is the front and back of my Christmas PCs, I did them all the same this time, and the front of a 'just because' PC.

Here is a sneak peek at another project I have started. I signed up to make a quilt for the 2nd Annual Crayola Challenge on the HGTV boards. The quilts will be raffeld off in 2010 and the funds will be going to the Ronald McDonald House. There will be over 30 quilts, I will post a link to the album when they all get done and ticket sales start.
Here's how it works...Basically, a crayon is drawn from the box and that is your color. You can use variations of that color and add only one other color. The color that was picked for me was Midnight Blue. I was going back and forth if I wanted to use white, cream, or red as my second color. I decided to go with red and was able to play with it a little this morning. Here is what I have so far...

I have an idea of what I want to do with the border of my OBW. I'll try to get it worked on so I can show you another update soon.

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-12-01T23:27:00.003-07:00

I have been computer-less the last week or so. The power cord to my laptop bit the dust and Brian has been working from home since his shoulder surgery, so I haven't been able to get online too much.

Just wanted to take a quick minute and get some updates posted. I made it to the LQS and picked up some border and backing fabric for my One Block Wonder. I also grabbed some binding fabric for my Disappearing 9-Patch. Also, while bringing in some Christmas boxes, I came across my original OBW. I will have to get it finished quickly, it has a Christmas feel to it so now would be perfect. Hopefully timing will let it happen. If not, I'll have it done by next Christmas for sure.

I had to run into the school and pick up a Christmas surprise book order from Becca's teacher last week. On my way into the classroom, I noticed all these Pilgrims the kids had made up on the wall. I took these pics...

...isn't that sweet? If you can't see it too well, here is what it says:

I am thankful for

my mom because

she makes quilts

for kids in the hospital.

What a good kid! She brought this home before Thanksgiving and gave it to me. She is my shy one and when I asked her to tell me what she wrote, she told me no. I was getting dinner ready, so I told her I couldn't read very well and I'd need her to help me. It worked, she read it to me and gave me a big squeeze.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Domino & Square Variation

2009-11-22T19:16:00.002-07:00

I have finished my November block for a local BOM. It is a variation of the Domino and Square block. This one went together a lot easier than October's block. :c)
The LQS is going to be getting finishing kits put together in the next couple of months so they can get the rest of the fabric out on the floor. I'm excited to see my Pieceful Nights all done. I have a while to wait as we are only in month 3.

OBW Trimmed

2009-11-20T18:13:00.003-07:00

My OBW is all pieced and now I have trimmed off the top and bottom points. Now all I need to do is figure out what I want to do with the borders.
I was hoping to have the borders all on by today, but that just didn't happen. My husband had shoulder sugery earlier this week and I haven't made it back down to the sewing room. We are hosting Thanksgiving at our house this year, so I don't know if I'll make any progress this next week either. We'll see, I may be able to get a few minutes here and there.

OBW Strips

2009-11-17T07:56:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of the next steps of my One Block Wonder by Maxine Rosenthal. This pic is showing the upper right corner of my layout. I am sewing the half hexagons together top to bottom to make a strip.
Here are some strips sewn together and layed out again. Aren't they fun?

You should get the book if you are interested in making one of these. Very informative and walks you through step by step. Maxine also goes over different fabrics that would work prints to avoid. She also has a second book out called One Block Wonder Encore! This one includes new shapes and multiple fabrics. I'm excited to get my hands on it, I'm hoping to get it for Christmas. :c)

OBW Layout

2009-11-14T08:11:00.003-07:00

More progress on the One Block Wonder.
Sorry for the fuzzy pictures. Our camera is still on the fritz and so I'm using the cell phone camera.

Anyway, I have put 3 pieces together to make a half hexagon. There should be 2 identical pieces that match up.
Overlap them about a 1/4" or so and pin together. Here are all my blocks layed out.

This is probably where I get hung up the most. Sometimes it takes me a while to decide if I like the look or if I should move things around and try another look. This time I am leaving it as is.

This is actually the same stage my original OBW from a couple years ago is at. Only now, it is rolled up and in a box somewhere. I will have to look through my pics and share a snapshot of that one as well.

2009-11-13T09:30:00.002-07:00

I took a little time and worked on my Paper Piece Challenge yesterday. This is a challenge going on over at the HGTV board. I was a little behind, and now I am current - for a few weeks anyway. We each made our own PP center. Round 1 needed to have PPing in the corners. Round 2 needed to include diamonds. I went off on my own and decided I wanted to put it on point. So I designed my own setting triangles and went with it. The lighting wasn't the best and I'm still using the c.phone camera. Hopefully you can see it.
November's challenge round is just to include PPing somewhere. Now to decide what I want the next round to look like and hopefully get it done by the end of the month.

Piecing the OBW

2009-11-11T14:13:00.001-07:00

I was able to get some sewing done. Here is a pile of triangles waiting to be added to the pieces that are stitched in the chain below.
And here are those pieces all pressed open.

With this method, there are no Y seams. You are making hexagons without making hexagons. You are basically making half hexagons, and then pinning the halves together to make a whole for placing your layout. If that doesn't make sense right now, I will post pics when I get to that point.

New Look

2009-11-09T23:56:00.002-07:00

Do you like the new look?
My blog, not me. :P

I think this one is simple, but elegant, and won't take away from the pics I post. I think the last look I had was a little busy and maybe a little too cutesy? Anyway, hoping this is a little easier on the eyes.

Starting Another Project

2009-11-09T07:43:00.000-07:00

I know, I should finish a project or two before starting a new one. I just get too excited and have to start. I saw this fabric on the red tag table and thought it would make a pretty One Block Wonder quilt.

Here is a little history: A couple years ago, I went to MN to meet a bunch of ladies from the HGTV Quilting board. A handfull of us took on a side project. We brought our fabric to make a Once Block Wonder quilt. The first night, we worked on our cutting and the next night we started putting pieces together. I came home and got my piecing step finished and put them up on the design wall. There it sat for a few months before I took it down to get things packed up to move rooms in the house. And now, 2 years later, it was packed up again for our move to the new house and is still sitting in a tote. Oh, and best of all, Maxine Rosenthal showed up at our retreat with a trunk show. It was so fun to hear her talk about this method and to see all the quilts she had done using it. Just beautiful! She always used a piece of the original fabric as part of the backing so you could see what the quilt originated from.

The first step is to cut 6 repeats.

Next, you pin your fabric together matching up points along the WOF. Once it is all lined up, you cut your strips. I cut these ones at 3.5" and got 3 strips from this fabric selection.

I started cutting my triangles and played with the layout of a couple different sets. Here is a layout of one of the sets.

I have cut the triangle from two of the strips so far. Maybe I'll be able to get the last strip cut this evening and can start sewing them together. I do plan of finishing this one. :P Please call me out on it if you don't see a post about it every so often. Thanks!

Christmas Minis Swapped

2009-11-08T08:04:00.002-07:00

I was partnered with AngelaC on the HGTV board for the Christmas Mini Swap. I found this fun snowflake fabric and also the blue with scattered dots on it. I decided I'd do a snow theme and made this. The pinwheels have a 3D effect and the thin white border is actually a flange border, meaning it's like a little flap. I quilted it with a few little swirlies and also some little snowflakes. I don't know if it shows up too well in this pic. My camera is on the fritz so I had to use the camera on my cell phone. I call this "Let it Snow."

My package came, and here is what it looked like when I took it out of the envelope.

Inside was this wonderful mini and a couple of extras. Angela sent along an Add an Eighth ruler, the fabric it was wrapped in, and a set of 12 - 2 1/2" PP block patterns. She said she bought these before she new she didn't like PPing. I will put them to good use. :c)

Here is a pic of the back so you can see all the great quilting she did. It is amazing. There are pockets in the two top corners for easier hanging. I need to start adding a sleeve/pockets to the minis I make, I hadn't thought of it before.

Again, here is a pic of the front in all its glory.

Thanks again Angela, I absolutely love it!

If you want to see more Christmas minis that were swapped, check out Bea's Hive. She is our wonderful hostess and does a great job.

2nd Tuesday BOM

2009-10-28T00:01:00.002-06:00

I made it to class on the 2nd Tuesday of October, whew. There was a Halloween party that the youth were putting on for the primary, so my older girls stayed there with a neighbor while I took Kaitlyn to the demonstration.

The October block is Lighthouse. Don't look at it too closely, its done and that's all I can say. The chart for this block was a little off for me. I think if a future block gives me trouble like this one, I'll try to find directions elsewhere and just make any measurement changes needed.

I was going to take a pic of the other color way that was offered, but it is off being quilted. Maybe it will be back for the November demo and I can get a pic then.

Happy Piecing!

Fall Minis Swapped

2009-10-23T13:05:00.002-06:00

I'm a little behind in getting these posted, but here they are. On the HGTV Quilting Message Board, I participated in a Fall Mini Swap. We were assigned our partners and we were on our way. The only thing we could request was 'no pumpkins,' otherwise, it was designers choice.

Here is the mini I made for MyJack, aka Jackie in MI.
And here is the mini MyJack made for me. Aren't the colors great? She also sent me this cute little tin with 4 Gutermann threads. Thanks Jackie, I love it!

Holee, aka Bea in PA, has been our organizer for these mini swaps. She has done a wonderful job and keeps us all on track. If you want to see all the fall minis that were exchanged in this swap, you can see the show here.

Now, off to work on the Christmas mini.

Quilt Festival

2009-10-13T15:10:00.004-06:00

Here is my entry for the Blogger's Quilt Festival hosted by Amy at Park City Girl. There are now over 500 quilts to see, go check it out.

In 2005, I signed up to participate in a Round Robin that was being hosted on HGTV's message board. We made our center block and sent our robins on their journey. I decided to make Evan's Star that I got from Quilter's Cache. Other than a basic paper pieced block to learn the how to, this was my first attempt at paper piecing. I added the burgundy and cream border so that I could remove the paper on the back of the block. I have to say, after all was said and done, it turned out pretty good.
Every 4-6 weeks, a new package would arrive at my house awaiting a new round. It was fun and sometimes challenging to add a border that would flow nicely with the rest of the quilt.
I don't remember the time frame exactly, but around early Summer 2006, my robin flew home. I was so excited to get that box open and see how my center block grew.

Here is a corner to show a little closer look.

And here is the full top.

I will have to measure it and get that posted.

I'm sorry ladies, I don't have everyone's name right here that worked on this. I do have it in a box in my sewing room and will add it here when it gets unpacked. I will go searching and get it on here soon.

Thanks for looking around.

Disappearing 9-Patch

2009-10-03T00:05:00.002-06:00

I walked into one of my LQS the other day and looked at some charm packs. One set really caught my eye, Panache by Sanae for Moda. I ended up getting 2 packs for a total of 84 squares. I came home and put together some 9-patch blocks. Below is a single block as well as 9 blocks all laid out...
I then cut all my blocks in half from top to bottom and from side to side. The first pic shows the cut block, the other 3 show some of the different ways you can put the blocks back together.

Here is the disappearing 9-patch top all put together.

I have sandwiched and quilted it...yay!! Now it is folded up waiting for me to get some fabric to bind it with. I just used a solid soft pink on the back, it is what I had on hand. What color do you think is screaming to be used for the binding?

Pay it Forward

2009-09-30T09:37:00.009-06:00

As I was strolling around blogland, I came across this Pay It Forward idea and just had to play. I found it on John's site, aka...Quilt Dad. Luckily I was one of the first 3 to sign up, so I get to play. Here is how it works.

You can receive a personal, handmade gift from a talented crafter, and all you have to do is "pay it forward" and agree to do the same for three people. Once you accept, you will receive something from me within 365 days. In turn, you will have 365 days to fulfill your end of the deal.

So, if you'd like to receive a handmade gift from me, and are willing to make and send a handmade gift along to 3 of your readers, let me know in my comments.

**I have my 3 players....

...but you should check out their sites as they will be looking for 3 people as well:

http://cosmicjingle.blogspot.com/

http://vintagegiraffe.blogspot.com/

http://farmandwuzzies.blogspot.com/

Intro to BQF

2009-09-28T14:07:00.004-06:00

Amy at Park City Girl is hosting a Blogger's Quilt Festival beginning October 9th. She also did one in the spring, check it out... Spring Festival. I have added her button for the festival on my side bar. Here is Amy's introduction for the festival:

The Blogger's Quilt Festival is for quilters of any genre, or skill level - no matter your style we want to see your work!! The Blogger's Quilt Festival is timed around Quilt Market especially for those of us not able to make that pilgrimage to Houston, but if you go to market you are still welcome too :)
So pick a quilt to showcase, just one, and be thinking about the story that goes with it. What did you learn, what did that project help you through, or to overcome. Did you make it for someone special, or to raffle off at an important event?
And there are lots of prizes to win too! I have a great group of generous sponsors, all happy to inspire and give fabulous bundles!

So be thinking about what you want to share with everyone and let's all join in. See you there!

Top Done

2009-09-24T15:07:00.003-06:00

Yay, another top is done and ready to be added to the pile of 'waiting to be quilted.' This is the quilt that was done as a Quilt-A-Long at the Old Red Barn Co.
I was digging through one of my boxes, looking for something, and came across the blocks that were done and the strips of the second set of blocks. I took some time the next couple of days and got the top all put together.
I looked back to see when I started this and was caught off-guard that it was the first part of June...really?? Anyway, it is finished now and waiting on me to decide if I want to add borders or just finish her up.

Fall Minis

2009-09-15T00:33:00.001-06:00

The Fall Mini Swap is coming due over on the HGTV MB.

I put this mini together and got it all quilted and bound for the swap. After it was finished I decided I just was not happy with it. I can't send it out if I'm not happy with it, right?
It measures about 14 1/2" square.

Over the weekend, I took advantage of some time where I was able to sneak into the sewing room and came up with another game plan. I quilted and bound it on Monday, and just finished attaching the label.

Here is a quick peek...

I'll post a pic of the full mini after it arrives at its new home with MyJack in MI. I do have to say, I am much more pleased with this one.
It measures just over 17" x 21"

New BOM

2009-09-13T15:46:00.004-06:00

One of my local craft stores just started a new Block of the Month quilt. I went into the store for one thing and came out with that thing and also my signups for the new BOM. They offered it in two different colorways. Now I don't remember what they were calling the other colorway, but I chose to do the 'traditional.' I will have to take a pic of the different options when I go back in there.

The quilt is called Pieceful Nights by Lori Smith.
The finished size will be 63 1/2" x 63 1/2".
Our first block is China Doll.
Here is my completed block.
It turned out pretty well, even with my mistake. ;)

4PP Done

2009-08-25T13:37:00.002-06:00

It's done...

Here is my finished mini 4-patch posey.

It measures 11 1/2" x 14"

The 4PP was fun putting together. I have some fabric with a larger print that I want to do 4PP with. After I get my swap items done, I will take some time and work on it. It is so neat to see the different looks each block can have.

I was going to maybe use this for my fall mini swap, but I wasn't as careful with my points in the border. So, I will be making another mini for the fall swap. They go together pretty quickly so no big deal. Off to search the stash and see what I want to do.

Borders on my 4PP

2009-08-23T02:50:00.003-06:00

We've sold our house!! :c)
With that being said, we have been busy sorting, hauling, and cleaning the last few days. It is amazing to me how much stuff gets collected in a couple of years. I did take a few minutes a couple of times and added a couple of borders on my 4-patch posey. I know these pics aren't the greatest, I had to use the camera on my cell phone. Anyway, you get the idea.

Round 1...

Round 2...

I thought it would be ok to have some movement just on the 2 corners. But when I hold it up and look at it, it looks like it is stretching out towards those corners. Oh well, I'm just playing with this one so I'll leave it and see where it goes. I think I'll add another border using the print I used for the posey blocks.
Be back soon!

4-Patch Posey

2009-08-16T16:35:00.004-06:00

I was introduced to the 4-patch posey a few years ago. I have wanted to make one and just have not taken the time to do so. I had some time the other day and decided to give it a try. I had took a fat quarter, cut a few strips, found the repeat and cut some 1-1/4" squares. Then I took some time and had fun seeing the different looks each block created. I sewed them together, gave them some corners and sashed them together. We'll see what she grows into...

$50 Giveaway!!

2009-07-29T22:21:00.002-06:00

Rachel at p.s. i quilt
is having a giveaway...

Thats right... $50 gift certificate to Fat Quarter Shop

There are 3 ways you can enter. #1 - Leave her a comment on what your favorite color combination is to work with. #2 - Blog about her giveaway. #3 - Sign up to follow her blog.

Good Luck!!!

Paper Piecing Tutorial

2009-07-16T23:54:00.005-06:00

If you are wanting to learn paper piecing or need a quick refresher...I hope this step by step tutorial will help. Please let me know if you have any questions - or if you have a success story, please share. Thanks so much and Good Luck!

This is what the pattern looks like that I will be demonstrating. The numbers are your guide as to the order to sew your sections.

...

Here are my supplies:
pattern - folded on all interior lines (this comes in handy)
fabric, rotary cutter, ruler, mat, glue stick (not pictured)

...

I like to use bigger pieces of fabric to make sure that everything gets covered. It is easiest for me to measure the area and cut it as a rectangle, square, whatever the case might be. I line up the ruler on the stitch line and cover all seam allowances.

...

Here is the same pic with a little splash of color so you can see what I mean better.
RED is the actual part of the fabric that will be seen on the block. BLUE is the 1/4" seam allowance.
GREEN is the measurement that I take to cut out my fabric.

...

I am placing my #1 piece of fabric. I will barely dab a bit of glue stick on the back of my foundation paper in the #1 area and place my #1 fabric. (I do this because I will trim my seam allowance and don't want my fabric moving before I get it stitched.) Wrong side of fabric against wrong side of pattern. This pic show the foundation paper folded over along the stitching line.

Note: This section #1 goes from side to side and top to bottom, so I cut my #1 fabric to cover the whole block.
...

I then take my ruler and place it on the fold of the paper at the 1/4" line and trim the fabric.

...

I place fabric #2 edge lined up right along the edge of fabric #1, right sides together.

...

* A QUICK TIP *
...

If you want to check to make sure that all the area #2 is covered, fold the paper over and you will see if it needs adjusting or not.

...

This pic is showing that area #2 is not completely covered and your fabric #2 will need to be adjusted.

...

**Tutorial Continued...

...

Hold everything together and take to the machine. You want to sew along the line on the pattern. REMEMBER you will want to go through the seam allowances as well. This is another place where your folds come in handy...you still have a line to follow.

...

Not sure if you can see it here or not, but this is showing the stitching from edge to edge (going through the seam allowance).

...

Press open. You can finger press if you want, I like to use the iron.

...

Flip it over, fold pattern back at the next stitch line and trim as before. You may need to rip your paper along your stitches through the seam allowance. You can kind of see it in this pic on the left side.

...

Again, place fabric #3 edge along the edge of fabric #1, right sides together. Do your stitching as before and press open.

...

Here is what you end up with.

...

Flip it back over and trim along the seam allowance line.

...

Here is your finished piece.

...

WAIT....don't rip your paper off until you have all your PP sections sewn together. The paper helps to hold your fabric steady while you sew, the bias is not always your friend.
This is just showing the paper being removed.

...

There are different techniques of paper piecing out there, this is just what works for me. I've heard people tell me I have extra steps and it wastes a lot of fabric. With doing many PP blocks, and more than a handful of times of not getting my cuts right or my sections covered....this is what I do. I hope this helps...now go give it a try. :c)

A Few Blocks

2009-07-12T17:20:00.005-06:00

A few years ago, there was a swap that was started called an F8 swap. You would pick your fabric and send everyone playing a Fat Eighth. They would then make a block using your F8 and whatever other fabric they chose. They were so fun! You got to play with all different prints and play with different patterns.

Anyway, we have been challenged to turn these blocks into quilts. Is that what we are suppose to do with them? :c) I have quite the stack of different sets of blocks from these F8 swaps, I guess I should take up the challenge and get some of these put together.

Here are a couple of blocks from some of the F8 swaps.

This one is from the very first set. There was no theme associated with this one. The fabric I sent to everyone is the lighter pink with the different colored princess crowns. This block was made by Txswbzy.

This one was from our first Christmas F8 swap. My fabric has the gold background with the christmas ornaments and things on it. This block was made for me by Shey.

I hope I can start putting some of these together next week. Still in the process of getting things moved from one house to the other.

Porch Pots Give-Away

2009-07-06T21:25:00.002-06:00

Amy at Kati Cupcake has a kit to give away.

A Quilt Kit, with Amy Butler Fabric in it! This is Porch Pots by Quilt Soup, and you could be the winner of this lovely kit. It measures 60" x 68 1/4".

Visit her blog and leave a comment, make sure to let her know that I (Mikol) sent you her way. I'm not sure when the give away will happen, she doesn't have a date on it right now. Visit soon!

Happy Birthday America!

2009-07-05T12:09:00.002-06:00

I was in a Patriotic Post Card swap over the past few weeks. Here are the post cards I received, minus one. I have another one somewhere in my house. I think one of my little helpers found a new home for it. Anyway, thanks to everyone that was in my group! It was fun to get these quilted post cards in the mail.

I hope everyone had a great and safe 4th of July!!

Parade Time

2009-06-26T22:53:00.006-06:00

The Parade of Homes opened today.
Whew, now we can relax a little and focus on our poor house that has been neglected the last little while. I got my quilting room set up last night (with help from friends) and finishing touches this morning. Here is what we ended up with for parade viewing.

I borrowed some items from my friend, Stacey. Her dress form and the prom dress she made for a niece, a basket of patterns, the heirloom blessing dress and bonnet for her daughter and other little dresses that she smocked.

The pink and green quilt under the window was a block of the month I did at Hancock Fabric. This quilt is the one that really got me into piecing quilts. It still is only a top, I think I'm going to send it somewhere to get quilted at some point.

I have the mini that Quiltnanny made for me, and a copy of the one I made for her hanging next to the window. A mystery quilt I did from Planet Patchwork a few years ago, and a wall hanging I borrowed from my friend, Susanne. A couple of quilts are folded up in the basket on the floor with a porcelain doll my granny made, dress and all.

Thank You!! everyone that helped. The house turned out amazing and we couldn't have done it without you.

The parade runs through the 12th of July. I'm getting excited to be able to use this space. Brian will be happy when I'm using this space and not dragging my projects all over the house. :c)

Sundance

2009-06-12T07:46:00.003-06:00

Our family went camping last weekend, and one of the mornings we went for a drive. We ended up driving to Sundance. We walked around the grounds and shops and I came to this quilt on the wall in one of the buildings. Isn't it great?

Here is a closeup of the bottom right corner.

Back at home, lights went in this week at the new house. I have the center light and 2 sets of track lighting, and also a huge window that will give me a bunch of natural light. Here is a pic of one set.

I'm excited to get moved in and start using this space.

Sew-Along

2009-06-02T21:15:00.005-06:00

Yesterday while looking at some things in blog land, I came across a blog called Old Red Barn Co. They are doing a sew-along and have some great prizes. They just started week 3, but this is the first week they are sewing so I thought I'd jump in...not like I have anything else on my list. ;c) Last year she gave away this quilt, and for months people asked her to share the pattern. She didn't have a pattern, just put together fabrics that she like and winged it. This is the quilt that she is doing for the sew-along.

Here is the Schedule of Events

Week 1: Gathering of supplies. -prize-Olfa Sets
Week 2: Cutting the fabric. -prize-Rowenta Iron
Week 3: Sewing/Trimming blocks to size. -prize-Sulky Thread
Week 4: Assembly of quilt top.
Week 5: Quilting the top, batting and backing.
Week 6: Binding.

Here are the fabrics that I will be using. I was going back and forth at the store as to what colors to use. Mostly it was this selections or with a patriotic feel. I decided to do the bright colors in this assortment.
I have washed and pressed them so far. Now, they are waiting for me to cut them. I had to take a break and put my girls to bed and thought I'd post this for you all real quick.

Not a great pic, I'll try to get a better one after cutting them. I will also let you know what they are at that point too. :c)

Mini #2 is Swapped

2009-06-01T09:39:00.002-06:00

I might be jumping the gun a little, but I hope not. The mini quilt swap #2 has been swapped. I received mine on Saturday. I'm hoping that my partner, Quiltnanny, gets hers today.

Our theme this time was ~Summer~

Here is the mini that Quiltnanny made for me. I hope this pic shows it ok. I think it screams summer. Makes me want to go to the beach! Thanks Claire, I love it.

Here is a closer look. Isn't it fun?
And the colors are great.

I put my pics in backwards...oh well.

Here is a close up of the mini I made for Quiltnanny.

Here is the whole thing, I hope you like it Claire.

I enjoyed putting this together for you.

I like doing these minis. They go together pretty quick and are fun to play with different patterns and fabrics.

Little Skirt

2009-05-20T00:37:00.003-06:00

The black and cream quilt that I started for the May wedding hasn't been touched since my last post about it. The wedding was last week, so the quilt will now be for Christmas or for their 1st anniversary. The last little while has just been super busy. But I did sew something.

The day before the wedding I was on the search for something for Kaitlyn to wear. I found a dress that could possibly work, it was yellow but looked a bit on the greenish side. I came across some 'fabric' that was the perfect color. I grabbed it, found a shirt, and also picked up some silk flowers. After the girls went to bed, I went to work. I made Kaitlyn a skirt and put together a couple of flowers, one for her outfit and a smaller one for her hair.

Here is Kaitlyn, a little hungry, a little tired, and not very happy about it. Brian didn't like the flower for her outfit, so we just went with the one in her hair.

Here is the Bride, the flower girls, and Kaits.

The 'fabric' that I found was actually a table cloth from the clearance shelf. I brought it home, cut a strip off WOF, stitched it up and added an elastic waistband. I also hemmed up the raw edge on the table cloth and it is still long enough to be used for its original purpose. :c)

Mini Swap #2

2009-05-05T22:48:00.002-06:00

I signed up for another mini swap. :c)

My partner that I was assigned it Quiltnanny and our theme this time round is "Summer." She told me that she'd like something in the shabby chic style. While I was in NH, we went to Keepsake and I found the fabrics I'm going to use. Here's my selection.

I have it all put together now and just finished tacking down the binding. I just need to get a label put on and it will be ready to mail.

Here is a little sneek peek...I will post the full mini after it is received by Quiltnanny.

Border #1

2009-04-10T17:00:00.000-06:00

The first border is on!
Looking at it now, I think I should've made the inner black strip a little wider. Oh well, its on and we'll take it from there. Now I'm trying to decide if I want to do another border of some sort or a row of blocks.