Dream Big, Little One Quilt

This was never even a UFO. Just 2 pieces of flannel I picked up probably 10 years ago at Joann's in Amarillo, TX. I still think it's cute and thought it was high time it became a quilt

It finishes 45"x51" and as fast as I've been handing out baby quilts lately, it won't be long before it makes it's way home to welcome a new arrival.

It's not a cheater cloth - it's actually pieced, but it came that way on the bolt. It's a combination of minky and flannel and it's incredibly soft. Sandy quilted it with a design called Chantilly Lace.

For a sweet quilt that I didn't have to piece, it sure took a long time to finish.

S'mores Quilt Finish

 This project started back in 2013 when I saw this quilt 

in this magazine.

I made 1 block immediately 

And then started pulling fabrics

Then, for whatever reason, it always ended up getting pushed aside, but I loved making the blocks whenever I would drag it back out. I enjoyed making them so much that I made more than the pattern called for so my quilt is bigger.

It was fun to use up scraps

Then I stalled out when it came time to choose fabric for the sashing. Nothing felt right. I don't have a lot of options locally, but I'd always look and pop into quilt shops when I was on the road. I finally settled on this sale fabric that I found online. I still wasn't convinced it was the best choice, but it was what I was going to use.

I reaĺly dislike piecing quilt tops that are on the diagonal, but this one was worth it. The little economy blocks are a favorite of mine

I shared this shot in a previous post, but it made the cut for this one again...Skeet's too sweet.

Sandy used a design called Mother Goose that shows up nicely on the back.

I pulled a print from my stash for the binding

At 88"x88" it will be a good fit for the guest room bed or a nice addition to a fundraiser although DH has taken a liking to it.

I am so tickled to have this one finished after all these years!

Under the Needle: August

 These monthly Under the Needle posts really help keep me on track. I still sew what I want to sew, but I don't feel so scatterbrained and I often start writing them at the beginning of the month, giving me something to aim for. Shall we begin with the mess in my sewing room? I really need to address this. Sigh.

I made all the blocks for my Americana 250 quilt last month, but I pieced it into a top, pressed it, made the backing and binding this month and the victory laps have been completed.

I cut everything out for this Saddle Ranch quilt this month. I made the binding, but have yet to sew the first stitch for the top

I got sidetracked by this Tres Leches project that I posted about HERE

The result of that rabbit hole is that this Country Christmas top was cut and pieced

As was Open Range

My Don't Fence Me In quilt top was pieced last month, but I pressed it well, and made the binding. It's getting a Minky backing.

My S'mores quilt is up in the binding que and I just started adding stitches to it in the evenings with Skeet's assistance.

I also added the binding to this Teriffically Tilda 2x4 quilt, making it a finish this month

And this Safari Stars baby quilt is now beginning it's adventures with a sweet little new arrival.

A busy month that had me moving lots of projects closer to a finish and that's always a good thing.

Tres Leches Quilt Project

I don't spend a lot of time watching television or scrolling through social media, but I do watch the girls at the Fabric Patch and a few weeks ago they mentioned this Tres Leches quilt pattern and they casually suggested folks whip one up and they'd do a show and tell on October 1st for fun. Sure. I can do that.

Simple pattern. Easy stitching. Plenty of choices in my fabric pantry. And yet, I struggled. I could not settle on what I wanted. I could have made 10 quilt tops in the time I spent choosing and discarding options. Silly.

I finally settled on a panel of squares but had to re-figure math so that the fabrics would line up with the squares and then my quilt ended up ridiculously long and I complicated everything by piecing borders on the side and I didn't like it at all. Then when I snapped a picture of it off the deck I thought, "Well, that's kinda cute." 😄

Then I felt like I ought to make another one to prove I could follow instructions. 😉 So back to square 1. I opened this bin of western fabric that I've had for probably 20-30 years...long before I made quilts.

And I pulled these 3 fabrics for plan B. The selvedge on the horse fabric says 1996 so it's well-seasoned.

And before I knew it, a quilt top was born...and I just so happen to need a little western quilt.

Lessons learned?

Keep it simple. (Work in progress) 

Don't overthink it. (Long road ahead) 

Follow instructions. (Eventually) 🙃

Enjoy the journey. (Absolutely!)

Safari Baby Quilt

 A friend of ours and his wife had their first baby a few months ago. He is an avid hunter and was our Safari Club chapter president for a few years. He's also the service manager at the Ford dealership and I laughed when we took our truck in last month for a recall issue and DH and he poured over maps of an area where DH drew a tag for an Orex in January before they even checked in the truck. 

Just that morning, I had thought about hunting down some safari fabric to make a baby quilt for J & T. I went to look at emails and there was one showcasing this new fabric line and it included a 25% off your entire store purchase.

It could not be more perfect and the timing was serendipidous

I usually have a hard time settling on a pattern, but this time it was clear. I chose the Scattered Stars pattern

I scaled the blocks down from the original pattern when I made my Love You S'more x2 quilt and I thought it would be perfect for this project. I think this pattern is a fun way to showcase the fabrics

I backed it with Minky because Minky backed quilt seem to be the ones that are always reached for first. This is the first quilt Jackie or Sandy didn't quilt. We have a very small quilt shop about 55 miles from us and I thought I'd give them a shot. The owner does the longarming and she did a very nice job. She quilted a pattern called Animal Crackers that has safari animals in the design.

It finishes at 45 x 55

I hope this little quilt will be loved and dragged on many adventures!

Terrifically Tilda Quilt Finish

 In June 2022, the only UFOs I had were at the quilter's and I was ready to start something new.  I had been on a mission to sew up my collection of jelly rolls. This is a different type of fabric than I usually gravitate towards, but I'd noticed it in a few quilt shops back when it came out and I was drawn to the quilts made with it. I never bought any and by the time I decided to, I ran across 2 Tilda Plumb Garden jelly rolls on sale in 2020 and brought them home. 

I don't buy Tilda fabrics anymore because they are more expensive and I really have come close to reaching my capacity for stash storage anyway. And I finally decided I love fabric so much more once it's in a quilt so I am challenging myself to use what I have and that's pretty easy to do when I've got so many great choices. That led to these becoming a Jelly Strip Stash Buster Quilt. 

You can find the tutorial from Cluck Cluck Sew HERE. I didn't want to think, I just wanted to run fabric under the needle and this fit the bill although it probably took me longer to pair up fabrics than it should have. 

Still, 42 blocks came together over the course of about 10 days. And then it sat. For almost 4 years. Yikes. But I finally dug it back out in March and made another 39 blocks

I was short 1 block and cobbled one together

I still have the 2nd jelly roll, but didn't want to break it open for 1 piece. I cut a variety of the chambray fabrics for a scrappy binding

Sandy quilted a design called Asian Fan that complements the quilt top nicely

I was stumped for a backing. I couldn't find anything in my stash that I thought would work and I finally settled on this print that I picked up at Hobby Lobby. I wasn't completely sold on it, but I really like it now.

I like the way everything came together and at 62" x 74", it'll make a good throw quilt

I'll have to come up with another plan for the 2nd jelly roll. But for now, I think this will work. I like this simple, modern take. It looks somewhat like patchwork which is always a winner in my book.

Log Cabin Cowboy Quilt I Did Not Make

 My sister-in-law was up at my in-laws' recently and my MIL was agreeable to parting with a few quilting related items. Once my MIL began to get irritated, they stopped, but she said she wanted me to have this quilt top. I am honored. She doesn't remember making it, but she absolutely did. At 102"x 118", it is huge. 

I need to hunt for a backing, but It's just a hodge podge of so many old western prints combined into one fabulous scrappy quilt! 

We're thinking she made it about 20 years ago so the fabrics are probably 20-50 years old or whenever western fabrics were first produced.

 I don't know if low-volume prints were a thing back then, but she found some great ones to include 

She hand quilted every single quilt she ever made and part of me is considering doing the same with this one. Is that the crazy part talking or should I have it machine quilted?

I could use your input. My SIL is a quilter and she thinks it's crazy to hand quilt it. 

I'm on the fence....and of course it's barbed wire so I'd like to pick a side because it's a tad prickly up here. 😂