TNT Thursday; Quilter's Roll Clips

 I used to have someone else quilt my quilts for me or I'd try them at home with my regular foot.  They were always such a pain that I resisted picking up the chore of doing it myself again.  Recently I discovered the value of a walking foot and the fun of free motion quilting.  I am in love with doing it myself now and may only send off the really huge ones.  I've found with a little difficulty I can quilt a twin sized at home but I have yet to try anything bigger.  While I was at JoAnn's during coupon commotion I found these Quilter's Roll Clips.  I was excited that something so cheap (I got them for $5) could make my quilting experience better.  I tried them out today and I'm linking up with TNT Thursday with Melissa at Happy Quilting.

Here are the Quilter's Roll Clips in the package just in case you didn't know what they might look like.

I got them out to use them and my cute three year-old Amelia thought they were big earrings.  To give everyone a laugh I tried them on.  I think I could totally rock these given the right outfit and they actually stayed on pretty well, lol.  Not really, well they did stay on but I wouldn't wear them.

Here they are doing their proper job.  They came six to a package and I probably could have used less and maybe I'll do three to a side when I'm working on the middle.

Tightly wound like this gives me so much more room!!  I had no idea my machine could be anything other than a miserable quilt trap!  It made working with it much easier.  I was using the walking foot at this point and needed to pivot a lot!

While in the middle of quilting with the walking foot I thought, "This is dumb!  I should try it with my FMQing foot."  The lines weren't as straight and it took a little getting used to but it was much easier!  I've never tried straight lines with my FMQ foot.  I'd just used a regular then a walking foot before.  This kind of quilt with lots of turning seemed just right.  I'm outlining all the curves in the swirl pattern.  While working with this I found the roll was better positioned off to the side of my machine but I still liked the clips because it kept it all contained.

I loved the clips and would recommend them for keeping this more orderly.  If nothing else they make a fabulous fashion accessory!  Thanks for stopping by!

TNT Thursday: A HST Pink Quilt

 I'm excitedly linking up with Try New Things Thursday hosted by Melissa at Happy Quilting.  I have never before made a quilt of all half square triangles.  I'd made a few quilts that had HST in them but never a full one and so I was excited to conquer this new, to me, thing.  Piecing the triangles was kind of monotonous but the rows went together really quickly. As of my post yesterday I only had 112 of my 280 squares sewn together.  Twenty-eight of them were sewn into two rows.  I worked on it through nap time and a little after the kids came home from school and I finished up the whole quilt!  It was pretty impressive.

Here's the completed quilt top.  I just LOVE it!  It went together so fast and the scrappy feel is just what I wanted.  I'm typically not great at making scrappy but I put all the pieces in a big bag and tried not to look as I picked them out.

Now comes the debate of how to quilt it.  I'm totally at a loss and would appreciate help.  I narrowed it down to two different choices...

This is the first choice.  I'd use this template with spray chalk to transfer it and then free-motion quilt it.

This is the other option.  I found this quilt HERE at JAQS Studio.  I love the way it looks and emphasizes the zigzag-ness of it all.  It would be fairly easy to do with my walking foot.

 So what do you think?

Let's Get Acquainted!

I've been excitedly waiting for my day of the Let's Get Acquainted blog hop to come around.  There have been so many fun stops along the way!  Earlier this week there was Anne from SpringLeaf Studios and Kristy from Cotton Addiction.  Today I share the spotlight with Chelsea from Pins and Bobbins.

In honor of the blog hop I wrote a fun tutorial on how to make this Handprint Crab Mini.  That's in the previous post.  This post is designed for you to get to know me and my blog a little bit better. 

Here's the link to the tutorial for this mini.  Isn't it cute?

I think the best way to get to know the crafty side of someone is to look at what they've made.  I love quilting.  It was my first crafty obsession.  Then over seven years ago while on bed rest while pregnant with my first child I picked up crocheting.  I'm pretty obsessed with both at this point.  There are some collages with links below but if you'd like to check out all of what I've made either click on the tabs at the top or follow the links here for Completed Quilts/Top and Completed Crochet Projects.

1. Hexagon Park   2. Double Wedding Ring   3. Owl peter/Paul   4. Plaid Apple Core   5. Tetris   6. Cartwheel   7. Disappearing Walk in the Woods   8. Argyle   9. Appliqued Animals.


To date I've made 41 quilts/tops.  It was hard to narrow it down but these are sure my favorites.  Now on to crochet projects.  I love crochet because it is so fast and there is no limit to what you can create!

1. Woven Scarf   2. Necklace   3. Viking and Crab hats   4. Dragon   5. Mama and Chick Pot Holder   6. Sock Monkey Hat also Here  7. Crochet Christening Gown (no. 2)   8. Homestyle Ripple Afghan   9. Christening Gown   10. Self-folding Hot Pads   11.  Preemie hats.


Another great way to get to know someone's crafty side is to see where they work.  This is where all the magic happens...

My sewing table.  Yeah, I totally cleaned it off for this picture.  It's not typically this clean but it's so nice to have this much space!

This is my paper-crafting area.  I love the shelves to store all my things!

I adore the big windows that let all the sun in but they also made it really bad for this picture.  It's a nice little space and with four kids and a hubby I'm lucky to have this much space to myself!

 Here's a bit of Q & A for your reading pleasure...

      - How long have you been quilting - I started with a Sunbonnet Sue quilt in 1997, I think.  It's hard to remember that long ago.  I was 14 going on 15 and really wanted to try quilting. With a fun quilt book in hand and many many cute fabrics I was ready to begin.  Or so I thought.  My Mom is not a quilter and I know of no one else in our family that attempted quilts before me.  Although I do come from a long line of women who sew they do mainly clothing and I even have an Aunt that makes and alters wedding dresses (she's AMAZING!).  This lack of quilting background really put me at a loss when quilting.  I had no idea there was such a thing as a rotary cutter or that it could be combined with a ruler and mat to create more accurate cuts.  I had a ruler, a pencil, and a pair of scissors.  My seams really didn't match up very well and the whole thing had a bit of wonkiness to it. I'm sorry to say I don't have the quilt or even a picture of it but I do have a pillow I made to match the quilt.  For the whole story on that go here.

       - Favorite quilting tip(s) - As I learned while making my first quilt you really need to have the right tools for the job.  That means having a rotary cutter, mat, and ruler.  Make sure your blade is sharp enough to cut.  Make sure you have enough thread that matches what you're working on.  Also, take your time.  Sloppy cuts = sloppy quilts.

       - Favorite blogging tip(s) - Remove the word veri-freaking-cation!  Everyone HATES having to tell if that's a EQGS or an EOGS.  Save them the trouble and just take it off!  I removed mine shortly after I started my blog and I've never had a spam comment.  As an extra precaution I've put up comment moderation for posts older than 30 days.  It seems that when I had problems on my other blog from spam comments it was always on the older posts.  Also link, link, link.  It's the easiest way to cite a source for anything and to help people find other posts in yours or others blogs.  It takes a bit more time but it's so worth it!

       - Favorite fabric (or wish list fabric) - Ruby by Bonnie and Camille for Moda jumped into my head first when I saw this question but there are a lot I'm loving right now.  I find this question amusing because it wasn't until October of 2011 that I even knew that designer fabric existed.  I'd never heard of Moda or Michael Miller or any of the other well known companies that I'm in love with now.  I always bought my fabric at Joann's or Hobby Lobby.  I never even thought to look at who made it I just needed to know if it matched.  I'm floored by the quality of the more expensive lines and I'd be hard pressed to go back.

       - Favorite craft book - I haven't bought a craft book in years!  I get most of my patterns online now and download them to my Nook or print them out.  Although the book I've found the most useful over the years is "I Can't Believe I'm Crocheting!"  It has so many pictures and runs though step by step.  I'm an avid crocheter now and I may even love it more than quilting thanks to this book.

You can get this book here or try the updated version here.

       - Favorite book (or book you are currently reading) - I adore Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. It's quintessential science-fiction and even though it was written in 1953 he captures so many of the nuances of our day.  He predicted so many of the technological advances it's mind boggling.  In the book the people, in an attempt to create a balanced society, have banned books.  They feel without them people will be on the same level intellectually.  Thus, Firefighters instead of putting out fires start them to burn the books they find hidden around the city.  The novel follows one such firefighter as he struggles though life in this environment.

       - Favorite children's book - Who could pick just one?!  I'm loving Llama Llama Mad at Mama right now.  The illustrations are priceless and I love how it gives a glimpse into my child's mind.  The book follows little Llama as he goes to the store with his Mama.  It tells how he feels and what he experiences during the trip.

       - Favorite quilting tool - Again with the hard to narrow down!  I think it's got to be my rotary cutter.  How did I every survive without it?

       - Favorite music to listen to while quilting - I adore the various albums from Glee.  Seriously great music all in one place.  I find myself singing along while I happily work away.

       - Favorite TV show while hand stitching - I find that I am MUCH slower if I try to watch anything while hand stitching.  I just stare at the screen and have the needle limp in my hand.  Occasionally I'll pick up something I'm working on while watching TV but I don't turn it on while I'm quilting on purpose.  Instead I listen to music, see the above question, or enjoy a moment of silence if my four kids are asleep.

       - Binding - by hand or by machine? - I used to ALWAYS do it by hand.  Then I discovered machine binding (it's my lack of quilting heritage striking again) and it's pretty difficult to go back.  I bind by hand if it really needs to look perfect or if there are too many curves in the edge like this quilt.

       - If I'd only known - what you wish you knew about blogging before you started your blog - To take more pictures!  Before my blog I never took pictures during a quilting process and I usually only took one of the finish.  It wasn't always in the best light and didn't show off the quilt as it could have.  Now I know and I take all kinds of pictures during the process and when it's finished.  I take from different angles and in different light to make sure I capture its fabulousness for posterity.

Thanks for stopping by and sticking with me for this long post.  I tend to be thorough when blogging.  Be sure to keep scrolling or follow the link to the tutorial.  Also check out my blog hop buddy Chelsea from Pins and Bobbins.  Since my first ever attempt at a blog hop post is definitely trying a new thing I'm linking up with TNT Thursday by Melissa over at Happy Quilting.  I also made the collages in my blog and I've never tried that before.  Hurray for new things!

WiP Wednesday and TNT Thursday: Quilts Galore!

I didn't do a WiP Wednesday post last week because I had nothing to show for my week.  I added captions to some scrapbook pages and made a bunch more but no real other progress.  I certainly made up for it this week!  I quilted and bound my Walk in the Woods quilt to finish it up.  I made a quilt from start to finish for charity, and I finished the top for my Tetris quilt and have begun quilting.  I think all of that warrants a link up to WiP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Since I'm already linking up I figured I'd add this post to TNT Thursday at Happy Quilting where you talk about new things you tried.  I tried using my walking foot for the first time and LOVED it!  Seriously best idea ever.  I also am trying my hand at hand quilting using cotton perle.  I've hand quilted before but never with perle and I'm loving the look of it.  It adds a whole different feel to the quilt than regular quilting.  Too bad my fingers aren't loving it.  Anyway, on to the post.

I'll start with the two completed ones...

This is my disappearing nine patch done in the fabric A Walk in the Woods by Aneela Hoey for Moda.  I love everything about this quilt!  It was so fun and fast and this is the perfect fabric for this pattern.  I free-motion quilted it doing giant loops.  To read more and see more pictures of this quilt see the full finish post here.

The day I finished binding the Walk in the Woods quilt I started on my Quilts for Kids quilt.  I requested a kit from their website and in a few weeks they mailed me all the fabric I needed.  I simply had to put it together, add my own batting, and ship it back.  It was so fun and fast and left me feeling great about using my talents to help kids in need.  See the full post here.

Making this quilt I got to use my walking foot for the first time ever.  I was pretty excited about that.  I got it half off at Joann's and it was really quite a steal at around $10.  It's amazing what a difference it made in my quilting.  The lines are so even and so straight and it was so easy to use.  In fact I think I sewed straighter with the walking foot than I do normally.

Yesterday I made the last block from my Tetris quilt and put it all together.  This is from the Tetris Quilt-A-Long hosted by Melissa at Happy Quilting.  I added the top three rows and the gray side panel on my own.  The idea came to me late one night as I was wondering what kind of fabric I'd use on the border.  I think this is much more fun!  See full post on this quilt here.

After finishing the top yesterday I got right onto quilting it.  I spray basted then decided to use cotton perle in gray to quilt it.  It's a really good match to the gray solid I chose for the backing.

The quilting is kind of hard to see because it matches so well but I did a running stitch around each of the Tetris Pieces.  It's pretty neat how it outlines them and you can see the pieces on the back side.  It's better in person than the picture.  Although doing this I remember why I don't hand quilt.  I don't mind the process I just hate how it turns my fingers into hamburger.  I guess I need to invest in a thimble.  The problem with thimbles is that I have large man hands.  Well, at six feet tall most of me is large and my hands match.  It's difficult to find a thimble that fits me but I'm sure I'll have fun looking around my local quilt shop anyway.

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to check out other works in progress at Freshly Pieced.

TNT Thursday: Spray Basting

 I have a bunch of quilt tops lying around and I wanted to try spray basting.  I've never attempted that before so I was pretty excited to try it out.  Before I would use two by fours and tack them down then pin the quilt and remove it to machine quilt.  It was kind of a pain.  I'm linking up with Melissa at Happy Quilting for TNT Thursday because this is totally new for me!

Here I am taping the back down.  Sadly I don't have a floor large enough to accomidate a twin quilt so I invaded my friend's house with my four kids to play with her four kids and she taught me the ins and outs of spray basting.  It was so fun and helpful! 

Here's the first quilt all basted and ready to go.  LOVE!  My friend Leila told me to put a pin every 12" or so on the top.  She said it wasn't necessary it's like "wearing a belt and suspenders at the same time."  Cute analogy!

Here's the second one.  The pattern is found here.  It was more of a pain to baste than the first.  I got the backing taped down with the help of Leila's oldest daughter ( I think she did better than I did) and then I got the batting sprayed on.  When I was nearly done spraying I ran out of spray glue (bummer!) . Thankfully Leila had some more.  Sadly I used up all of hers too before we were done.  I had to pin the top on to the batting.  What a pain!  If there was anything that could have shown me the value of spray basting it was doing both ways back to back.  While pinning every 4-6 inches I ran out of pins, seriously what else could go wrong?  So I have them all pinned right on one side and then just enough on the other side to make it not fall apart.

In the end it was quite the adventure and I'm thoroughly sold on spray basting!  Hurray for trying new things!

WiP Wednesday and TNT Thursday: New Addictions

 I had so much fun this week!  I picked blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries with a friend.  We went to a parade and carnival in a local town, I tried out knitting and Tuscan crochet, got a bunch of fun new crafty supplies, FINALLY made progress on my crochet fusion blanket, and made my first block in the Tetris Quilt-A-Long!  What a busy week!  I'm linking up with WiP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced and TNT Thursday over at Happy Quilting.

Here's my small fry with a blueberry.  He just LOVED them.  We started by picking raspberries and he thought those were okay until he tried a blueberry.  Later when we put both on his plate for lunch he ate all the blueberries and donated the raspberries to his Dad's cause.  The next day we went back for more blueberries and some blackberries.

Saturday brought a parade to the city next to us and our family had so much fun!  Don't worry, all those kids aren't mine.  I have the three next to/on top of me and the one in the orange ball cap on the red chair.  The rest are good friends old and new.

I attempted knitting for the first time ever!  I've crocheted for over seven years now but felt the urge to try what other people have told me was the easier skill.  It may be my years of crochet experience talking but I think they're on something.  Knitting was TOTALLY harder for me.  I'll have to hold the verdict until I've been doing it for more than two days.

Here's my first knitting attempt.  This is a garter stitch.  I was able to cast on, do the stitch, and later bind off.  I learned all of this from a book that came with my knew knit kit (Susan Bates Learn Knitting).  I think it might be easier if I did it while watching someone like on youtube but the computer was unavailable.  It's not perfect but I'm pretty proud of my first attempt.

I also tried Tuscan Crochet.  FAIL!  Seriously, this was an epic fail!  I tried three times and this is the best I came up with.  There are enough rows here that it should have been flat and pretty but it looks more like a Churro.....

See the resemblance to the above crocheted thing?  Yeah if only it was tan not pink I would have totally made this.  Too bad I wasn't attempting to make a churro.

Look at all my fun new crafty things!!  Thank you Joann for a fabulous coupon and sale combo, also my cute hubby for supplying the funds.  I got my learn knitting kit, some yarn, the crochet thread I need for my fusion blanket, two quilting templates (one as dragonflies and one has roses both with meander) and pencils to draw them on.  A Tuscan crochet hook, a walking foot, and a 1/4" foot.  I haven't tried as many of these as I've wanted to but I hope to in the next week.

I finally finished sewing and flipping all 99 charm squares for the crochet fusion blanket.  I had to sew 198 squares together, trim the corners and then flip them right side out.  It took a lot longer than I wanted it to.  I still have to do two rounds of top stitching before I can do a blanket stitch with my crochet thread and THEN I can finally start to crochet around them.  I thought this project would go much faster than this and it's getting a tad frustrating.  This is Sassy by Sandy Gervais for Moda in case you were wondering.

This is the stockinette knit stitch.  To make this I had to knit one row then purl one row.  I was okay with the knit row but the purl row gave me a bit of a challenge.  It was difficult for me to switch in my brain from one to the other.  I also learned that while the stitches may be "easier" there are so many more ways for knitting to go wrong.  For example, if your crochet hook falls off, not really a big deal.  If your knitting needles fall off, oh my freaking gosh it's a mess!  Yeah, not a fan!  As a consolation prize my hubby saw this and said, "hey, it looks like a sweater!  Could you knit me a sweater?"  Um, yeah right!  I've only been doing this for two days!

Here's the back of the stockinette knit stitch.  There are a few problem areas but I'm still pretty proud of it.

Yesterday was the first block post for the Tetris Quilt-A-Long.  I was so excited I had my block completed within an hour of finding the post.  See the full post on this block here.

I had so much fun crafting and playing this week!  I love it when productivity and good times come together.  Here's to another great week and thanks for stopping by!