Layer Cake Quilt

I finished this last summer just in time for my parent's visit. It is a king size quilt that I quilted on my old sewing machine.

String Quilt

2009-Update

I decided that I wasn't going to finish this project so I gave all the pieces to our Community Service quilts at Guild and two quilts were made up to give to a local Hospice

Here is one of the quilts that someone created with my pieces, I am so proud that they are finally done!


String Quilt, made from hundreds of 1-1/2" strips I had rolled up on cardboard paper towel tubes that I decided to sew all together, I sewed together 10 yards (yes, TEN) of strips...



The bits cut from the yardage and stored in a box....

Crochet Throw Rug

10/14/07

Well, this sat under a pile of stuff until last night and I pulled it out and finished. I don't like it as much as I did several months ago and need to move it from UFO to something silly that I use as a bath mat. So, it is done and will be used.



Week of 4/8/2007

I saw an article in a magaizine and wanted to try something myself.... used up 129" of fabric so far!

Modern Quilt with Amy Buttler, Valorie Wells & Friends Fabrics

I bought the fabric this spring at Hancock's of Paducah in their sale table. This is the first of two, maybe three projects I've completed with these colors.

10/7/2007

I put a label on and finished the binding. Tied off the last of the quilting and pulled all the basting stitches out. It is going on my bed at retreat this November.


9/15/07

Last week I *finally* finished quilting the top and got the binding sewn on. I am reasonably pleased with it. I've put it away for the time when I feel like hand stitching the last step of the binding as well as tying off the quilting. But I am eager to start the new quilt that it has inspired another quilt using the leftovers from this one.

9/6/2007
Decided early on that I would use my standard Meander pattern to quilt with.


8/26/2007
I got the top done, the border is a little different than I had first imagined it. I sandwiched it together and am ready to start quilting it.


8/19/2007
Did make some progress even though distracted by other mini projects:


6/7/2007
In 2002 I finished a Quilt that was inspired by Piet Mondrian's paintings. I used complicated colors rather than his usual primaries, as I was very inspired by his mathamatical application of his lines. He didn't just draw them randomly. He studied and agonized over them for months, even years.

Then in January, 2003 I started fooling around with the notion I could design a quilt by formula and it would look great every time. I did a great little fabric sketch of what I wanted to do and had it "all" figured out. At the time I thought I would teach a class, and had written notes about how I would explain my method. Anyway, life moved on and here I am in 2007 all inspired again!


I bought this fantastic fabric that is all large print and wanted a way to show case it with out cutting it too small, when I remembered my little sketch.

4/29/2007
We had an hour after the show to stop at Hancock's of Paducah. They have a back room of flat fold, bolt ends for 3.98 a yard. I went a little NUTTY! 24 yards! (you do the math.... that's a hundred clams) I really need to find a pattern that will show case the loveliness of these great fabrics that won't require me to cut them into little pieces. They are so out of character of the other fabric I possess, but right in character with how they make me feel

(A bit of a weird reference to 24, but I sort of felt like Jack digging through the flat folds and dodging other eager hunters at the store. And then I came up with the magic number of 24 yards... and I do like the show. "I promise to do everything I can to get the fabric home safely and not let if fall into an enemy's hands, I promise")

So I worked up a new design in Adobe Illustrator and started cutting. I just love it. My interest in my original quilt "formula" is up again and I need to figure out my original notes and see if I can recreate it again. I still think it would be a fun class because everyone's quilt would turn out different, even though the technique would be the same.


4/30/2007
Soooo, the next exciting idea.... I have a really nifty design worked up to show case my treasure trove of recently purchased fabrics (Amy Butler, Jane Sassaman, Valori Wells, Martha Negley) . I want each beautiful print to be showcased in the quilt and not cut up too small. I have a design I created about five years ago with some other fabrics, but have repurposed it to work with these.

Tonight I've finished drafting the design and am really excited by how they fit together. The design will involve these fabrics


6/3/2007

Paper mockup to check full size scale (since I designed it on the computer and had only seen it on my computer screen until then)

PS,
I had designed the quilt for large scale prints, based on a design I had created earlier. I didn't have this quilt in mind when I bought the fabric, I bought them because I loved them so. But, once I got them home I dug out an old design I had sketched up and they were a perfect match.

New design inspired by earlier quilt:
"Piet's Trip Through the Cosmos" ©2002


6/6/2007
Well, I finally "allowed" my self to cut loose on this project. It contains some of my currently favorite fabrics, I think I've slobbered on enough about how much I love them, and the fact that I got most of these out of print lovelies for only $4 a yard! It is going together fast! I have a lot left over and a thinking of making another one....



I am also itching to quilt my favorite junkie-stippling-swirly stitch all over it too, so I can snuggle under it soon!

Leaf Quilt Wedding Present

6/19/2007
My cousin emailed to say that it arrived and she has put it with the other gifts to be opened on their wedding day.

6/7/2007
I don't know why I drug my feet mailing it, I suspect because I had so much fun making it. I took a lot of pictures and can make another one if I want to... I could have sent it Monday, but I waited until today. I wrote a nice card and sent some washing instructions too. I really hope they like it.... I think they will... I always feed odd giving hand made gifts, even when I know they will be liked.
Timon had to put in his paw of approval on my wrapping, or maybe he just wanted to eat the raffia. I shooed him off when ever he tried to snack on it, but I know he sure would have liked to.


6/2/2007
All of it, Label and Sleeve. Now I just have to write a nice card, include some care instructions, find a box, and put that puppy in the mail!


5/31/2007
I just finished the binding for my Leaf Quilt. Now for a sleave and label.....

5/27/2007
Just got the center/middle done this morning. Still need to quilt the border and of course the binding and an appropriate label.

Carefully quilted around the 3-D squares so they came out even more puffy than when I first made the top. Did a leaf vein on the leaves themselves, and then echo quilted aroun each leaf. It made the most sense...


5/15/2007
I couldn't quilt the Leaf Quilt as planned through the middle of the square "thingies" because they were so thick that the quilting line looked forced and jaggie rather than elegant and straight the way I imagined it. ....urgh!... more stitch ripping. So I drew up a complex path of weaving around the squares in my sketch book and am using it as a guide to sew around. May look cool, the squares appear like they will be puffy. I sure hope so!


5/8/2007
It is bigger to fit the bigger top...


5/6/2007-
I am much happier with the larger size, just have to do some quick modifcations to the backing and I can Sandwich! It is about 61 x 45", just right for a TV snuggle. Need to finish it before the 31st so I can mail it to the Bride in time for her June wedding.


5/5/2007-
Sewed the back for my Leaf Quilt

BUT..... Now I am second guessing myself into thinking I need to make it bigger. I think will add an extra border to the top and bottom so it could be used a lap quilt, besides as a wall hanging.

Regardless, I've already planned my quilting of the leaves and the sashing.

4/22/2006-
I finished the Leaf top. All I need to do is make the back, sandwich it and quilt it (yup, that's it). I had no idea how it would turn out when I started and a pleased with where it ended up. Should I do another? Maybe, I like this technique, but maybe something different than leaves. I should sketch for a bit about it. Something more abstract? Less symetry, I dunno... I like it when the fabric tells me what to do, this one sure did.


4/21/2006-
A detail of the square in my quilt top.


4/19/2007-
I added some squares to the sashing and am now choosing my border. Because of the way that the squared are inserted into the seams I will have to cut the border the same length of my blocks. I think this fabric (which I just love with the blocks) will be okay with seams. I will have to let it marinade a bit more...


Technical note:
the squares were introduced to me on a Simply Quilts episode (QLT-743) featuring Ami Simms

4/15/2007 Evening-
Last bit before bedtime.... these trimmed to 12-1/2" blocks, unfinnished and are currently pinned to my design wall.


4/15/2007 Afternoon-
I plopped the blocks I made up on the wall to arrange...

I think I like this arrangement best, so I will add some purple sashing. (I am still apprehensive of what I've got here, but want to finish it so I can make the next ones) The good thing is that I don't hate it, and already have ideas of what I will do next. It will be just the right size for a challenge my guild is having, so the tea cozy will have to get made out of something else, or from the left overs...

4/15/2007-
Well, the voices and I have been having a conversation again... I've been contemplating making a leaf block for a few weeks and was inspired by Sande's Tea Leaves blocks and the technique I learned last fall at my guild's retreat "Stack a new Deck". Briefly what happens is: Layers of fabric are stacked up, cut, shuffled, sewn back together, trimed to a uniform size, sashed, batted and quilted. My Onion Peal quilt was a result of that class.

So here is my twist, is it good? I don't know yet, I will mess around with these blocks today and see what happens. I am hoping they may become a gift for my cousin's wedding, but as a back up I might just turn what I have into a tea cozy ... or something.