Operation Wood Hollow

I follow the Quilt Story blog.  A post of theirs a few days ago led me to Julie's blog Having Fun Quilting.  Julie was asking for quilts to be donated to bring comfort to those whose homes have been lost due to the wildfires out west.  I have had a mini Swoon laying around for months.  I had been holding on to it to drop it off at my LQS so it could be donated locally.  Well, I have not been to the shop in months and so here was the perfect opportunity to get it somewhere it was really needed.  I guess it was meant to stay at the house for this reason.  I really hope the quilt makes someone happy at least for a moment.  Here are some pics of it.

You can read more about Operation Wood Hollow here.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Sorbetto, Tornado, and keep calm

A while back I made a Sorbetto top.  It went smoothly, and I even did a full bust adjustment.  The way the top fits is nice.  I used some Denyse Schmidt Aunt Edna fabric from Joanne's.  It's pretty fabric but I think it's just a bit too heavy to be right for this top.  It feels like I'm wearing a scrub top.  I may add some buttons to dress it up a bit.

I enjoyed that Colette pattern so much I felt brave enough to attempt the Iris shorts.

  Everything was going well until I got to the waistband part.  For some reason it seems like my waistband is too short, but I've cut carefully and I have been meticulous with my 5/8 seam allowance.  I cannot figure it out so hopefully my friend can help me.  It is now in a bag, on a shelf, away where it can't frustrate me. 

These came in the mail recently.

I absolutely love the keep calm print!  I only ordered 1/2 a yard but I think I want to buy more.  How cute would a bag be in this print.

I started another project.  I knew I shouldn't have but I was itching to so, oh well.

In other news, we had a tornado touch down in the back yard today.  It was really scary!  I was in a closet with the boys, a flashlight, a bottle of water, and a phone.

Thankfully we are all safe and had minimal damage, but other people in the neighborhood weren't so fortunate.  I always thought I was pretty safe from most natural disasters living in Virginia, but between the earthquake last year and now tornadoes, I know crazy weather can happen anywhere.  Hope you all are well!

 

Weekend joys

Got a new book, and working on this pattern for myself this weekend.  I've never sewn shorts before.  I'm anxious to see how these turn out. 

What's everyone else up to?

A doll, a bag, and binding

This is the Greta Doll I sewed up for a little girl who turned one.  I used Retro Mama's great pattern.

I am in the process of sewing up another one for my niece who is turning two.  It is a very easy pattern to follow.  She also offers a separate pattern to make dresses for the dolls.

I was given a secondhand GPS, which came with no bag to hold all the wires and stuff.  I figured it was the perfect opportunity to try Jeni's drawstring bag tutorial.  Since I have a bunch of leftover Peacock Lane fabric I used that.  I love it!

And then there is still Swoon.  I finished the quilting and binding weeks ago and then took a break from it again.  Just this Friday night I finally sat down and began hand sewing the binding.  I just have to be in the right mood to mess with it.  It will be done eventually.

marking the beast & plugging away

Just a quick update.  It was a nice, relaxing, productive Sunday.  Wrangling this monster sized quilt through the machine isn't as bad as I thought it would be.  I got into a nice groove and went to town with the straight line quilting.

Lots of tape.

I used 1 inch wide tape, placed 2 inches apart. I've been quilting 1/4 inch away from the tape on both sides, which leaves me with lines 1 1/2 inches apart. I plan on doing a crosshatch pattern. Tedious work but I think it will be worth it.

I still have a long ways to go...

Short sessions

I have been able to get some sewing done.  Swoon is sashed, and I have a plan for the back.  I have just taken a break from working on it.

I treated myself and bought some fat quarter bundles from Pink Castle Fabrics. 

After staring and petting these stacks for too long I finally cut into them and made this.

I love it so much!  Especially the newsprint backing.  I used the circle of geese tutorial at Chasing Cottons.  After getting through the paper piecing on that I was hooked.  I found these gorgeous compass blocks and had to make one of my own.

I was able to do it in a day in short sessions.  The pattern is from equiltpatterns.com and it's only .99.  I have already downloaded another star compass block that I look forward to working on.  Not sure what I will do with the blocks but I enjoy the paper piecing.  I have to get back to Swoon though.  I think I'm stalling because I'm scared at the though of quilting it.

Almost done

Last week the grandparents came to visit from WV.  I let grandma have all the time she wanted with the boys while I got to sew.  It was so nice and much needed.  According to the definitions I have found on the web, I have a colicky baby.  It has been a bit rough to say the least.  I was thankful to get some time to myself while someone else tended to the little ones.  Another bonus of getting to sew was working on this!

I had bought a refurbished project Runway Brother off of ebay.  Never again!  It lasted a few months and then crapped out on me.  It could not be fixed so I had a great excuse to get this lovely.  I love it!  It comes with an extension table and lots of accessories.  It's nice and heavy too, not light and cheapo feeling.  I'm very happy with it so far.

So here are my last blocks finished up.

I was going to do 12 blocks but this thing is big enough!  Next up is sashing, and I just ordered batting, backing, and binding fabric today.  I am going to attempt to quilt it myself but I am not sure of the design yet.  I would really like to try the baptist fan design from this tutorial at Don't Call Me Betsy, but we'll see.

Here is the layout I have settled on.

It would have been nice to have more fussy cut centers, but working with a FQ bundle left no room for picky cutting.

Man, do I love this collection!