We do believe that spring has finally arrived...maybe...again it's cool and damp outside but we have had a couple of beautiful days.
Here is a wonderful spring quilt that I finished a couple of weeks ago and it is now with it's rightful owner. I really wanted to adopt this one ... I love Kaffe Fassett fabrics and this one is a beautiful KF hexagon quilt.
This one is a HUGE quilt for a customer's son. I used a spikey swirl panto on it. Carol said she just went to her scraps and pulled the colors. Isn't it gorgeous?
Remember a while back when I posted this picture?
Well, between customer quilts and quilting retreats and just down right "I'm taking some time for myself" I finally got the quilt done!
It's Mine! All Mine!
The fabrics are Kaffe Fassett Shot Cottons, both stripes and solids. I fell in love with them the first time I saw them.
The quilt is X-Effect from his book "Shots and Stripes". I have enough fabric left over I'll be making another one!
The thing about his shot cottons ... Magic Sizing becomes your best friend. It is so light that I felt I needed a bit of stabilizer on it. Plus I was working with all those bias edges ... but a spritz of Magic Sizing and everything stayed in place.
I used a wool batting in this one just because I wanted to see first hand how wool behaves, both during quilting and during wear. It was dreamy! The quilt is light in weight but I'm betting it's going to be super cozy.
Love Love Love this quilt!!
I found this Kaffe in New York while on retreat there. There's a shop out in the woods that is basically a 3 or 4 room barn and the bolts of fabric are just up to the ceiling in all rooms.
First trip there last year and I was so overwhelmed I had to leave the building. I'm not claustraphobic but there was just too too much fabric to deal with. This year I had a list which is the way to go. I needed backings and I got backings. And this shop has just about every fabric you have seen in the last 5 or 8 years. Seriously ...
So ...
Here's some pics of quilts that have gone home recently.
This is the cutest Santa panel I've seen in a long time. And look at those feet ... "Quilt with Feet" ... hmmm ...
I quilted a star and curls on this.
This has such a sweet story. Cathy and husband have 'adopted' a school and in talking with the principal it came about that the school will be using a book about quilting in their reading program. So Cathy and husband are donating this quilt - which follows the book - to the school at Christmas. I love this quilt!
I call this one Monkey Business. Cutest kids quilt in America! I used monkeys in the quilting. Great quilt!
And this quilt is just too sweet ... pinks and purples for a little baby girl. The piecer did an excellent job and it was a pleasure quilting this one.
Geez, I'm just in one of those funny moods. I decided to take the afternoon off and just do something for myself.
I have collected a bunch of Kaffe Fassett Shot Cottons and the Striped Cottons and I just couldn't hold back - I had to get to them, play with them, and start cutting them up. Picture below ...
I just wrote a friend that I'm sometimes not sure what it is about 'quilting' that I like because:
1. Picking out fabric can be a real PITA, so a lot of times I just go for the cute fat quarter bundles. And then again, once I find the zone, I can pick out fabrics with the best of you ...
2. Ironing the fabric and then cutting the fabric can be tedious. It has taken me most of the afternoon to just complete one set of cutting directions for this beautiful quilt that I want to piece, just for me ... I'm tired ...
3. And reading directions can be a real downer ... do what? Where? How the heck do I get that piece to go with that piece? Criminy ... sometimes I just want to skip over Steps 3 and 4 and get on with Step 5, which always looks more interesting than step 3 ... but I learned early on that the directions are there for a reason ...
4. Making 280 flying geese, or 4-patches, or _______ (fill in the blank - you know what I'm sayng) is not a challenge (are you listening, Bonnie K. Hunter???), it's a punishment! I can make flying geese, I can count flying geese, but I guarantee you that at the end of the day I'LL BE SHORT 42 FLYING GEESE! I've actually accused DH of taking my flying geese ... what the heck would he need 42 flying geese for?
5. Not being Queen of Quilting can be liberating ... I can make up my own rules.
So what is it about 'quilting' that I like ... the finished product, silly! I have to admit that the journey getting there means a lot to me, even as tedious and as nerve-wracking as that journey can be. But once I finish the binding and hold that quilt up for inspection I am one pleased piecer!
Quilting for others is wonderful - I totally love it - however, it means that I don't get to do the "piecing for myself" thing a lot. And I guess I've been missing that the past couple of days.
So here's part of my Kaffe Fassett collection ... love those soft pastels ... and the stripes are beautiful! Can't wait to start putting this one together! Don't hold your breath, though ... my piecing is SLOW!!!
I spent some time this week quilting something just for me! Wheeeeee .... and now that I've had some fun playing, it's time to get back to work. Sigh ...
This is my Kaffe Fassett quilt that I pieced sometime before Christmas. I decided to put it on Max this week ... and then I had another thought ... careful now ... I've always wanted to play with two threads on top so why not try it on this quilt? There is no way that the quilting is going to be noticed because the colors and the fabrics are so awesome, so why not?
So I used two Magna-Glide threads .... a lime green and a dark purple ... on top and a pre-wound SoFine Bottom Line in the bobbin.
Let me tell you, buddy ... these APQS machines are tremendous. I had no issues whatsoever with the two threads! I tweaked the top tension just a bit ... tighter ... and away we went! I am so loving this machine.
And here it is on our guest room bed! Doesn't Snowflake the Teddy Bear look comfortable? LOL!
It is really really pretty. Love those Kaffe Fassett fabrics!
Some time ago someone in one of my quilting groups gave me an idea on how to make all those itty-bitty half-square triangles without having to pick them up, match the triangles, sew ... so thanks to the great piecer who planted this seed! When I find out who it was exactly, I'll give full credit ...
Here's the scoop ...
Since the Bake-Apolooza 2011 is done, and since all the Christmas quilts are done and delivered, I decided to work on a project that I've wanted to do for at least 4 years. I pulled out my Kaffe Fassett fabrics and pattern and I've started piecing one of the quilts.
It involves 87 snowball blocks and of course that means that each snowball has 4 corners that need to be pieced to the block and then trimmed ... and that part that is trimmed is a potential half-square triangle.
Well, I absolutely HATE HATE HATE handling those itty-bitty pieces so taking that idea from my quilting friend, I double stitched the corners while piecing them to the block.
Notice that I first sewed about 2 threads out from the diagonal line. That gives me a little extra fold-over which gives me a much better corner. Not wonky from having to s-t-r-e-t-c-h up to the corner. Then using my presser foot as a guide I did a second line. I made sure that I had enough space between the lines to provide a good seam. Not a 1/4" seam, but a good 1/8" seam. If the 2 lines are too close you're going to be cutting into a seam. Don't want to do that!
Yeah, takes a little extra time, but let me tell you ... I have some pretty nice half-square triangles ALREADY PIECED! Woo woo!!!
I love getting two jobs done at one time ... pieced snowball blocks ...
and ...
a box of perfectly pieced half-square triangles ready to be used ... wherever ...
These particular hst's are about 2 1/4" square.
