Curves without pins

A while back I tried sewing up some drunkards path blocks with the help of my Curve Master foot.  I had never sewn them before and I figured I didn't really have to learn because this foot would do all the work for me.  Uh yeah, not so much.  On that project I had so many mangled blocks, and I was unhappy with my color selection, so I just quit.  Now, a couple of months later I figured I'm a bit better at sewing so let me try again.  Some blocks came together for me but, most of them were just terrible messes.  I spent more time unpicking seams.  Then I remembered finding this helpful post at She Can Quilt.  I figured I have nothing to lose, if anything I will end up using a lot of pins.  I did exactly as she said and it worked awesome!  Sewing these teeny drunkards path blocks with no pins was so simple.  No special foot, no pins whatsoever.  If you haven't tried it you should give it a go, it's surprisingly easy.


Here is the new project in the works:

some fabric choices

Getting ready to roll

the layout

trimmed, pressed and waiting

Finally, a Swoon big finish!

My Peacock Lane Swoon quilt is finally done and I could not be happier!  I now truly understand the term a "labor of love."  This is the biggest, prettiest thing I have ever made.  Everytime I look at it I scream with joy on the inside.  It feels good. 

I quilted it in a crosshatch pattern, which I think compliments the pattern.  I did think about getting it longarmed, but I'm glad I did it myself.  Even the simple straight line quilting was a workout because of the size of the quilt.  I have never worked with that much fabric.

For the back I used two of my favorite fabrics from the collection bordering a scrappy rainbow strip.  I wanted it to be as pretty as the front, and I love how totally different it is from the front too.  I went with turquoise for the binding and I handsewed it on while Grandma was in town attending to the boys. 

I feel like a weight has been lifted.  I can finally start something else and not have that nagging feeling of having a massive unfinished project staring at you.

The fabrics are the Peacock Lane collection by Violet Craft
Pattern is Swoon from Thimble Blossoms by Camille Roskelley.

I may try linking up to some places if I can figure out how to do all that.

I hope everyone is having a great summer so far!

Melissa

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...