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.

Blog Hop Party & Giveaway! (Fabric)

Yes! It's that time of year again :) Let's make this short and sweet. First, one fun picture then onto the giveaway!

I'm giving away 6 fat quarters from my stash.
Leave a comment (read the note below, you can comment on any of my social media pages) telling me your favorite color combinations and I will put something together. My stash is so large, I'm sure I can accommodate :) I will only count one entry per person. I will announce the winner after Thanksgiving :) Have a nice Turkey Day everyone!

Don't forget to check out the other giveaways! Link in right hand sidebar at the top!

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.

Quilting: A Love Story

It's been awhile since I posted but I have tons to share :)

I finished the scrappy quilt for my Secret Santa person at work. We have our party next week. We do it later so everyone can make it. It seems someone is always on vacation around Christmas.

I hope she likes it! From my experience, everyone loves getting a quilt!

Made some progress on my Aunt's scrappy and pink quilt. This will be a queen size. It's going together pretty fast. It will be my next finish.

Finished the hexagon sewing on the Green and Hexy quilt. Just need to square it off and add the fabulous border that came with this green stash when I won it. Then, I have to make the back and quilt it.

That being said, I had to start another Hexy quilt. I need something to do while on the train to and from work everyday. It's a long ride. This one is using a huge bundle of fat quarters that I won. The collection is called Picnic Pals. I won it from Penguin & Fish.

They had a sale at Joann's this weekend. I walked out with a load of Valentine's Day fabric at basement bargain prices... with a coupon, of course! I have a year to finish it :) I got the Olive the Ostrich fabric from Hawthorne Threads.

I went to the Road 2 California quilting show in Ontario, CA. I took a class with my Aunt C. Boy was it a bitch! A quilt that had lots of tiny pieces to cut up and sew back together. It was a total mind f**k. I don't have any pictures of it yet. Will keep you posted :) Here's the pattern. The designer taught the class.

But, look at some things I picked up:

Check out these peeps:

And of course, I love the Owl fabric. Check out my pinterest board for owls :) I couldn't resist the bacon either :)

I'm still contemplating the Monday linky party, but as you all know, I tend to disappear from the blog for awhile, so maybe it would be too much work. :(

But if you got this far, pin the scrappy Secret Santa quilt to your pinterest page then leave me the link in the comments. I will send a random commenter this fat quarter. It's the poison poppies from the Wizard of Oz. I have a stash of Dorothy stuff :) U.S. only this time. Ends Saturday February 23 at midnight Eastern.

Until next time,

Mike.