Tula Pink Mini Finish

I had the hardest time deciding what to do for my rainbow mini swap. I got a jelly roll of Tula Pink True Colors on a really great sale and I figured I could use that. When it came down to it they were too small for many of the patterns I liked. So I went with simple and let the fabric speak for itself. This project is #2 on my Q1 FAL.

Here's what I started with. So many possibilities!

Here's what I ended up with. I really like it but I'm almost constantly worried that it's not fancy enough. Some of the people in the swaps are going way over the top with intense piecing. My partner really liked Tula Pink and I didn't have any so I was limited by my budget and stash.

I had a lot of fun with the quilting on this one. Spirals are always a cool look and I really think it pairs well with the plus pattern.

The back looks so neat with the quilting and the cool movement in the print.

I know I say it every time but I love the zigzag stitch on the binding. It adds fun texture as well as security. Plus, I can't hand sew a binding to save my life.

That's me for the week. Thanks for stopping by! I've made great progress on my Primrose quilt done in Miss Kate and may have a top to show next week. Also, I'm working hard on a amigurumi donkey that should be done quickly. Until then, I'm linking up with Finish It Up Friday.

I Heart You! Quilt

I super puffy heart this quilt!! I can't even tell you! I have been planning for this quilt ever since I first saw the pattern quite a while ago. I knew I wanted a low volume background with a bit of a kick and a non-traditional heart color. It came out dreamy! This quilt is #9 on my Q1 FAL list. It feels great to get another one marked off! Prepare to be overwhelmed by photos.

Right off the bat I'm going to show it off in all its glory! The pattern is I Heart You from Vanessa of V. and Co. I can't even tell you how much she is one of my favorite people and her fabric and patterns are so fun! The heart is made from one of her ombre prints which are in stores now. The background is the awesome ledgers print from Carolyn Friedlander's Architectures line. She does the best low volumes and this one has purple in it that is an exact match to the ombre!

Backing up to the piecing I was really nervous about this! I am garbage at random. I found a method that works for me though. This is my oldest daughter Miya, who is also a quilter. I have her, or one of her adorable siblings, sit with a large bowl and all my pieces. They mix them up very well and hand them to me one at a time. As you can see from the previous picture it works wonders and I don't overthink it.

Here's a close-up of the two prints together. The whole top only needs two prints and it come out wonderfully thanks to the ombre fabric. See what I mean about that low volume background? Just the right amount of something so I won't worry about that much white but not overwhelming. LOVE! You can see the quilting here too. I mostly did a meander with matching thread. However, I did quilt in something special...

It's surprisingly difficult to photograph given the size of them but I quilted in an A + J for my husband's and my initials. They are each over five blocks tall so over 15" a piece. I love how it's subtle but a fun little touch.

I modified the pattern a bit to get the size I really wanted. The choices were 108" square or 54" square. Neither appealed to me so I did the math to do one in the middle-ish at 80" square. It's a little too small for our bed but serves as a great second quilt or one to snuggle under while watching movies.

Another fun angle of the quilt in the snow. It was actively snowing when I got this picture but it turned out so well anyway. There are 232 HSTs in the quilt and I had to make and them trim them all but it was so so worth it!

One of the best things about this quilt is that it was nearly 100% stash!! I had to supplement the binding a little because I ran out of my favorite matching purple but even the 5 yards for the back I had on hand from a remodel sale at my LQS. I love nearly free projects! Also, look how cute the tag is on this one, perfect for this quilt.

Here we are in front of it! Aren't we cute?!

I heart you!

Quilt Stats:
Pattern: I Heart You by Vanessa Christensen
Fabric: V. and Co. Ombre in Eggplant and Ledgers from Carolyn Friedlander's Architectures. Backing and binding from Simply Style by V. and Co.
Quilting: FMQ by me on my domestic
Size: 80" square

Thanks for stopping by and putting up with my picture overload. That's me this week. I have more in line to share next week and I can't wait! Until then I'll be linking up with Finish It Up Friday.

Thimble Blossoms Mini Sampler

I finished my Thimble Blossoms mini sampler quilt this week. I'm so happy with how it turned out. I had a lot of fun making this one even with the tiny pieces involved. This project is #1 on my Q1FAL list and also my OMG for January. I expected it to take me longer but I knocked it out pretty quickly in my excitement.

Here it is! I love it! The design credit for the sampler goes to Chrissy from Sew Lux. She figured out how to combine all the mini patterns from Thimble Blossoms. I just used her idea and put this one together. Although, I didn't have the Dilly Dally mini pattern on hand so I faked it - making it a bit too big on accident.

I did the paisley motif free-motion quilting again. I love this! I may be an addict now. It looks so fancy but is quite hard to mess up. These flowers are probably my favorite part of this mini and I may need a large quilt from them.

Here's another shot with the quilting. I use Aurifil 50wt for all my quilting and piecing. It's just easier for me to only need one weight on hand. I also like how it shows off the design, not the thread.

Another thing I love about this quilt is that it is 100% stash! I've been trying to focus on using what I have this quarter instead of buying something new. It is going so well so far! I had to cover up the name of my partner just in case. This is for the Thimble Blossoms Mini Quilt Swap from Instagram. I hope she loves it as much as I do!

 Thanks for stopping by! I had so much fun making this one and I'm already on to the next thing! I nearly have my I Heart You! quilt top done and I'm over halfway through my cable hat. I hope to be able to show off at least one of those next week. Until then I'm linking up over at Finish It Up Friday.

Boo Boo Bunny and a WiP Update

This year I'm trying not to work on too much at once. I find it helps my productivity if I'm more monogamous in my quilting and knitting. I have several projects waiting in the wings with some level of completion but I try to focus my time and energy on one at a time. Thus far in the year I've finished up four projects, one of which I'll show you today. I'm already marking things off my Q1 FAL list! I also have a few WiPs to show you and another finish to share later in the week.

First, the finish. This is a Boo Boo Bunny, pattern by Blue Sky Alpacas. This is #14 on my Q1 FAL list. It's a small project but it took me out of my comfort zone with knitting. I haven't really ventured into shaping much and picking up stitches for the back flap was new. I'm so happy with how it turned out! Bonus, I have an extra ice pack so I can make another one!

I also started #15 on my list this week. Then picked it out and started it again. I'd made the pattern I was using before and it really didn't come out well - much too big. So, instead of trying to mess with gauge I just switched to this pattern that I have also make before which fits like a dream. This is the Traveling Cable Hat by Purl Soho. I'm around halfway through it and it is going so well!

I also made all the HST for my I Heart You quilt. Now I have to trim them. With good music on or a fun show in the background this is actually one of my favorite things. It's a good thing too because there are 232 of these to trim.

I also finished these blocks up this week. I'm doing a block exchange with 18 women from my church. There are my 18 blocks. This is a 12.5" Raspberry Kisses block. The math was done for me by the fabulous Vojen on IG.

I also made time to finish up my Thimble Blossoms Sampler with Cotton and Steel fabric. I'll show this one off later this week.

Thanks for stopping by! That's it for me this week. I hope to make more progress on that cable hat and finish trimming those blocks soon. I'm linking up with Freshly Pieced.

First Quarter Finish Along Goals

Once again I have a long and happy list of goals! I'm excited to finally be getting to more of my stash projects. These project are almost 100% stash which is why they're on my list this time. I need background for one of them but otherwise I have everything I need. I've already finished two projects this year and hope for many more to come. Without further ado - my Q1FAL list...

#1 Cotton and Steel Mini - I'm planning on turning these into a B&C sampler mini just like the one Sewlux made. It should be fun for my partner in the B&C mini swap. This is also my OMG for January.

#2 Tula Pink Mini - This bit of lovelies will turn into a kaleidoscope mini for my Rainbow Mini swap partner.

#3 Hello Darling Mini - This will be a mini for me so I can play with Hello Darling while I figure out what to do with my amazing FQB.

#4 Road 15 Mini - This will be a row house mini for me with the black print as roofs. I'm excited about this one!

#5 Cloth Basket - I made my youngest a whole cloth quilt out of these prints and have enough to make some cute little baskets next for her treasures.

 

#6 Schoolhouse Tunic - After my seven Sailor Tops last year I decided to branch out into a new pattern for me. I will have a Schoolhouse Tunic in each of these prints.

#7 Girl Pajamas - It seems we have a major shortage on pajamas that fit. My LQS was having a remodeling sale and I got enough to make four pair for $35. The three girls and I will all match.

#8 Sparklettes Quilt - This is a quilt for my middle child. I have all the prints cut out and just need to pick up some background before I can put it together. This is the Fat Quarter Style book.

#9 Valentine's Quilt - These two lovelies will become the I Heart You quilt pattern from V. and Co. The top is an ombre print from one of her older lines. I'm really excited about his one and hope to finish before Valentine's day.

#10 Norway Quilt - This bunch of awesome is going to become a scrappy Norway quilt with a low volume background. I'm so excited about this and have been planning and collecting for a while.

#11 To The Point - Another ode to V. and Co. project. The top print is for the quilt top and the bottom for the back. This was also a remodeling sale find and should be a fun addition to our beds.

#12 Star Quilt - I may be the most excited about this one. I finished this quilt nearly 2.5 years ago and haven't been able to afford to get it quilted. One of my IG people was asking for quilts to practice on (she's amazing already) and I volunteered this one. It should be done in time to poke the binding on a have it finished this quarter!!

#13 Primrose Quilt - My youngest has been patiently waiting for a quilt of her own. I have all the prints, back, and binding ready to go I just need to hop on it. It's going to happen this quarter!!

#14 Boo Boo Bunny - I've been wanting to expand my knitting again to try shapes. So, when I saw this kit at my favorite shop in Des Moines I had to have it. It should be a pretty quick finish.

#15 Cable Hat - I just finished this hat in aqua this week. I loved it so much I'm now making it in pink! With the right needles, Addi Turbo, cables are going so well for me!

Well, there's my wishlist for the quarter. It's actually usually longer than that by at least five projects but I wanted these to be all stash this go around to help save money. Making all the things can be expensive! I'll be linking this up with 2016 Q1 FAL as well as WiP Wednesday.

Whale Mini and Cable Hat Finishes

I have my first two finishes of the new year to share with you today. One of them only took me a few hours and the other was started last week. The Preppy the Whale mini was #8 on my Q4 FAL list so I'm glad I eeked it in just in time for the linkup.

Here's my finished Preppy the Whale mini. This project was 100% stash and start to finish was about five hours with dinner and bedtime breaks. I super love it!

I used the serpentine stitch on my sewing machine to make it look like waves on the quilt. I had just the right amount of Navy to bind the quilt too making it understated yet contrasting at the same time. I'm super happy with this one! I may make more of these in the future.

 I also had time for finish up this Cable Knit hat this week. I love it, especially the color. This is my second attempt at cable knitting and it worked out so well! I had better needles this time (Addi Turbo) and it made all the difference. The pattern is Henrietta Hat.

Well, that's me so far this week. I had to get this finish posted so I could link it up to the Q4 Finish Party. I am planning on making my Q1 FAL list this week so you can hop on back for that. I've got a lot of fun projects in my brain just waiting to come out!