Vroooom, Vrooom!!!!

Well, the Scrappy Quilt Fabric Swap (Round 2) is finally over :) I'll probably do another one in a few months.

I wanted to get some sewing in today, but I realized I had not really blogged in a while (besides announcing the swap, etc.).

Sew... here is a finish that I have not shared yet. It was commissioned by a friend of my husband. It's for her boyfriend who is really into NASCAR and specifically Tony Stewart. I know. It is seeew not me :) But I schooled myself really quickly. There were a couple of licensed fabrics out there with his number and signature sew I started with that. I then went to ebay and picked up some Tony Stewart Tshirts (new ones!)...Picked up a little NASCAR fabric and some blenders to go with that. I then got some black and white fabric to do some tiny patchwork like checkered flags. I know you can buy checkered fabric, but I thought it would be more cool to make the patchwork. I quilted it in a flame like pattern :) It's very srappy looking and there is not much focal point going on. But, that's my favorite kind :)

She loves it. As for the boyfriend he gets it next week on his birthday :)

Hope you all are sewing this weekend.

Until next time,

Mike.



I have Google+ comments activated, so you can only comment if you have a Google account. If you do not have a Google account (and don't really want one) you can comment on my Facebook page, Twitter feed, Flickr, Instagram, or Pinterest pages! ...On any of my photos or posts!!! I love getting comments! You can also email me at amateurquilter at gmail dot com! I will always respond! Thanks for stopping by! .... Mike.

The Blue Peacock (and the one that got away...)

Hi Everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful 2013 and finished lots of quilts. I took a look back while I was updating my "finishes" page: I counted 8 lap size or larger quilts (2 oversized twin/full), 2 baby quilts and several other small projects that I finished in 2013. It seemed like it was a lot more!

Anyway, here is another finish that I have not officially blogged about yet. You may have seen a picture here and there, especially on my instagram account, but here goes.

A friend/neighbor commissioned me to make this quilt. He picked out the fabrics. I designed it on EQ7 then whipped it up :)

It measures about 72 x 84 inches. I spent a total of 33 hours working on it.

 I was planning on doing some fancy quilting on it but after I showed the client some options he insisted on a stippling. I was fine with that as it's the easiest and I think the most quilty looking design :)

 Here it is about halfway quilted on the long arm.

 Some nice outside pictures before all the snow arrived.

 The border had very large printed blue peacocks on it. I could not make them fit without making the border over sized. Sew, we decided that one of them should come off the border and onto the quilt blocks. I got the idea at my Quilting Club meeting from one of the members.

 This was the first time I had ever done any "in depth" applique. I used wonder under, then cut one of the shapes out and appliqued him on top of the one peacock head in the lower right hand corner. I added some extra batting for added texture then stitched around all the feathers and such, not just the edge of the shape. 

 This is the under side of the quilt top.

Overall he and I were very pleased with the outcome.

I have a few more finishes to share, but I will save them for another post. They are already on my finishes page.

I'm going to link up at Link a Finish Friday. They are having their 100th Friday finish post this coming Friday! You should stop by!

Happy 2014!

Until next time,

Mike.

I have Google+ comments activated, so you can only comment if you have a Google account. If you do not have a Google account (and don't really want one) you can comment on my Facebook page, Twitter feed, Flickr, Instagram, or Pinterest pages! ...On any of my photos or posts!!! I love getting comments! You can also email me at amateurquilter at gmail dot com! I will always respond! Thanks for stopping by! .... Mike.

Gettin' Squirrelly

I have had sew many finishes in the last few months, but I have been sew busy making last minute quilts and projects that I have not posted any of them (although you may have seen a post here and there on my instagram, facebook or twitter accounts). Today I am going to show you one and hopefully I will get the others blogged soon!

This quilt was commissioned by some very dear friends for one of their family members that was turning 60 in November (on Thanksgiving!). The only stipulation was that it had to have a squirrel theme :) Sew, we scoured the earth (even Seattle, Alaska and Canada when we were there on a cruise) looking for anything that might work. We bought online from fabric.com and ebay as well. I designed the layout on my EQ7 and then pretty much winged it from there. Here are some pictures:

 As usual I used leftover fabrics for the back of the quilt. They also let me keep any of the leftovers, probably about 3 yards in total.

I quilted it with a leaf motif and viny loops :)

Although it was technically a twin size (72 x 84 in.) it just fit on top of this queen bed. In total I spent 16.5 hours from beginning to end. It was easy and fun, especially working with such crazy prints! And, the pattern was perfect for large, medium and small prints!

 

Anyway, the recipient was just "nuts" about it :) I hear it was a great birthday celebration. And to top it all off, I got paid to do something I love. The money I made will definitely help me support my habit.

 

On a side note, the winner of the Blog Hop Party Giveaway from last month was Tami C. She chose the colors red and green. She has already received her prize in the mail.



 

Hope all is well my friends! Happy holidays to you all!

 

Until next time,

 

Mike.

I have Google+ comments activated, so you can only comment if you have a Google account. If you do not have a Google account (and don't really want one) you can comment on my Facebook page, Twitter feed, Flickr, Instagram, or Pinterest pages! ...On any of my photos or posts!!! I love getting comments! You can also email me at amateurquilter at gmail dot com! I will always respond! Thanks for stopping by! .... Mike.