City Stitches: Retro Flowers Quilt Along: Piecing your quilt and ...

Newer blogger, but you got see her tips for piecing, they make a lot of sense. Things I knew, and wish I would pay more attention to!!!! And, if you got this far (lol) there's a giveaway from FQS!!!

City Stitches: Retro Flowers Quilt Along: Piecing your quilt and ...: Have you pieced all your blocks?! I sure hope so. Because now it is time to piece the quilt top! And if you like free jelly rolls, read on ...

Peace Out

I'm doing another block of the month at Quilt Story. I really like this one because there is a ton of leeway. They just tell you what kind of block to make and you do the rest. There are only 12 blocks, so I am doing 2 of each to make a larger quilt. I haven't decided yet, but I may add a sashing and border that will make it even bigger. I prefer quilts that get snuggled with rather than those that you hang on the wall. Here are the pictures for my March blocks, for which the theme was 9 patch:

The purple in the left block is from an old work shirt that was going to get thrown out. The rest are just bits and pieces I've collected here and there. I don't know why I was attracted to the peace fabric. I just had to have it and I had no project in mind. I haven't decided if I am going to keep going with it on future blocks for the BOM.

Later!

Peace out!

Mike.

Prince Charming

So, just what exactly is a "Charm Pack?" I know, I've Googled it. But, really what's its purpose? Is it cheaper? Does it save you time? Is it convenient? Are the ones with the jagged edges really the size they say they are?

Coming from someone who has not been doing this long, I'm perplexed. I just don't get it. I saw some on Craftsy or Groupon or whatever that were on sale for now only. When I calculated the yardage, it was not a "real" deal. Even though they were like 40% off. Then I noticed they were advertised for 5.5 inch squares, but they had a shear cut (zig zag) so I was wondering: Is the 5.5 inches measured from the outer point or the inner point? And, how functional is it, if you just want to sew squares together? I can't imagine not having a straight line when I sew squares together. I would never be able to discern a quarter inch seam!!!

Anyway, leave me some insight into this in the comments. Remember, I'm just an amateur.

I web-lifted the photo, so please let me know if I have violated your copyright. (I'm not gonna buy one until I understand the reasoning behind it!)

Mike.

To Steam or Not to Steam, That is the Question.

So, yesterday I was assembling the blocks on the quilt for my mother, and I realized that some of the bulky seams (which I had pressed open) were not very flat. So, I decided to steam those babies and you would not believe how flat they came out. I had been told previously by many others that steam is bad for the fabric. "Don't do it, it will [insert reason here] to your fabrics." Well, I wanted to know what others think?

I'm not talking about "pressing" versus "ironing." That is, pushing across the fabric versus just pushing down. I know that this can stretch the fabric and make your piecing "wonky" shaped and therefore more difficult to assemble. Does anyone have any insight into this?

Here are some pictures of the seams, one with steam, one without:

You can tell which is which, huh?

So, just curious. Comment on what you think. And if you do not follow me, please do. I am in need of followers :)

Another question: 

If you could buy a long arm quilting machine, which one would you buy? I went to a show in NJ last weekend and tried two (for the first time ever) and I want one. And, I will find a way. I love doing them on my home machine, but I'm an instant gratification type of person, and I loved it!!! The guy that showed me said "you've done this before, haven't you?" and I said, "Yes, on my home machine!!!" Send me your thoughts in the comments. 

I also wanted to mention that next to my design wall (on the left) near the computer where I type this are signed, framed photographs of Kenny Chesney and Ben Affleck. So, they are watching over me :)

Any my friend Sheela's band (love you sweetie)!

Until next time,

Mike.

BOM, BOM, BOM, BOM, BOM... BOM BA DOOBY...

So, I didn't get selected for the Modern Mini Challenge, but it does appear that the finalists were quite talented. Either that, or they had a lot more time on their hands than I did. I think maybe we need a challenge/contest that would give beginners or those that don't have 5 hours a day to spend on piecing and quilting a chance :) Anyway, I BOM'd again today. Here are the photos:

 The Craftsy March block (1 of 2).

 Moral Support.

 All six of the blocks so far.

 Another Block of the Month at Quilt Story I am doing that I just started.

Hope you all enjoy the photos and progress! I find them very "peace" ful.

I'm linking up at Work In Progress (WIP) Wednesdays at Freshly Pieced and Create and Share at Trendy Treehouse:

Until next time, 

Mike.

I BOM'd today :)

The Craftsy BOM is sooooooo beginner. It's perfect for me. And, I'm learning a TON about piecing. That's why I was so excited about March 1st coming up. (Here are January and February). Well anyway, I finished the first block for March (there are 2 blocks every month):

It's called a String Block and you use what's called Foundation Piecing to do it.

The following pics are of my progress:

I was very impressed with it. It's very different. The one strange thing I noticed is how thick the fabric layers/block become as you go along. My only concern is that when I quilt it I will break a needle because of all the layers (especially with the seams). But I think the end result was absolutely beautiful.

Until next time, I love comments, +1's, followers and shares on Facebook or email :)

Mike.

Big Fat Queen on the Wall!!!

I blogged about this quilt in my previous post ...and here. But check this out:

It takes up my entire design wall!!! And, that's not with the border. It will be difficult to baste (I spray baste). I might need some help from my husband. Anyway, I love the optical illusion. It's great. Now I need to work on sewing all 42 of the blocks together! Just thought I would share due to how impressed I was with the enormousness of this project (is that a word?). Google confirms. I also had a seam ripping moment. I had accidentally taken the orange block and the turquoise block and sewed them along the diagonal with the wrong side of fabric facing the right side (after I cut it). Sew, I had to rip those seams out and sew them back together without using the line/double seam/cut technique. And I have to say, I saw a seam ripping technique on Leah Day's blog that said rip every 4th stitch and then pull it apart. (It may have been a comment on a post, as I cannot find it.) It worked wonderfully. I'm surprised I had never heard of that before.


Since I already finished the Modern Mini Challenge (voting starts March 5th), I made some progress on this one. I will post when it's time to vote on the winners of the MMC. Please come back then and show me some love :) (votes). I blogged a little about it here. I'll send out a reminder.

Please comment, +1 me, follow and share this with others!

Anyway, until later.


Mike.

It's Good to Be the Queen...

So, I'm making Log Cabin blocks, then drawing a line diagonally on the back of one, sewing a seam on both sides and cutting it in half: 

It gets repetitive and boring, so I have to work on it a little at a time and intermittently work on something else :) It's from a pattern called A Simple Welcome that I saw on Easy Quilts from McCall's.  It's going to be a Queen sized quilt, so it's a big deal since it's my first one of this magnitude. There will be 42 of these blocks and a six inch border. In the end, this quilt will belong to my mother.


Later,


Mike.

Modern Mini Challenge, Printable Fabric Labels, and a Simple Welcome!

I haven't written on my blog in awhile, so I thought it was time since I had a spare moment. What I thought I would do was share some of the things I've been working on since my Block of the Month post on the 12th.

The first thing I wanted to share relates to something I blogged about here. I wanted to know how you sign your quilt. Of course I always try to use some sort of fabric on the back that relates to The Wizard of Oz. But I really needed a way to put words on the back. I decided to purchase some printable fabric sheets from Avery:

In the photo you can see the box it came in, and the sheet on the right is my first printed label. I ended up putting it on the back of this quilt.

The fabric sheets are fusible, so after I cut it out with my rotary blade, I ironed it to the back (after I washed the quilt). It seemed to work out well, but I have asked my Aunt Carrie to let me know when she washes it if it held up. For the label design I used my digital scrapbooking software, My Memories Suite, to create it and then print it.

I have also been working on the Modern Mini Challenge at Ellison Lane Quilts. I decided to make a mini for our cat, Mitch. He really needed something to lounge on in the kitchen. I noticed that he really liked laying on my works in progress or my unused batting, so I am making him his own quilt.

Above is Mitch laying in the kitchen in his favorite spot on towels that we used to wipe our feet when it is wet outside. (The back door is in the kitchen.)



I decided to go with colors that match the kitchen. Three of the walls are painted Candied Yam (obviously not the wall in the picture with Mitch above). And, I thought slashing and sewing would be the most modern piecing technique I know how to do.



The back fabrics are pictured above.

Anyway, I will blog about that more when it's time to enter the contest.

I have also been working on a queen sized quilt for my mom. I am using a pattern that I found in the latest issue of Easy Quilts from McCall's. It's called "A Simple Welcome." 

Here are some pictures:

I suppose I will blog about that when I finish it.

Anyway, I should get busy!

Until next time,

Mike.

I be BOM'n...

I've been doing the free tutorial at Craftsy for the Block of the Month. I just finished February. There are 2 blocks every month (20 total) and they are designed to teach you new piecing techniques. January was an Asterisk and a Wonky Pound Sign.  February was a Chunky Chevron and a Balkan Puzzle (Windblown Star). The cool thing about February was it focused on half square triangles and 2 different ways to make them. I was very impressed. My second finished quilt was made with half square triangles, but I sewed them together individually and did not realize there were other techniques that could be easier and save you time. 

The first technique (used on the Balkan Puzzle) was to add 2 inches to the size of the finished square and then sew the two fabrics together all along the outside of the square (all four edges at once) then you cut it on both diagonals. You end up with 4 squares from one, already sewn together after you cut it.

The second technique (which I like the best) was to add one inch to the finished square (even though you only need 7/8 inches added) then draw a line on the diagonal of one of the fabric square backs and sew the 2 fabrics together a 1/4 inch on each side of the line, then cut along the line. You end up with 2 finished squares, but what I really liked about it is that you have to square it down to the finished size which makes them come out as perfectly finished squares. Sometimes when making the half square triangles the old fashioned way, they come out wonky. This makes them perfectly shaped!

Anyway, here are the photos:

I used fabric that I had in my scrap pile for most of the stuff, but some of it was fat quarters that I had picked up over time. I hope you enjoyed! I am looking forward to March. It's called Foundation Piecing, but that is all they information they give you. I have no idea what that is, and I'm not going to Google it :)

Until next time!

Mike.

Who da BOM?

So I decided to do my first Block of the Month. I started late so I just finished my 2 blocks for January. I have to say that I am using techniques I have never used. In fact, as an amateur, I never thought I would use these techniques, but I am glad that I tried them. I had fun! I followed the January BOM from Craftsy. It was fun and easy. I did not follow all the background fabric/sashing requirements, I just used whatever I had on hand. So, it's scrappy, .... and wonky... and helplessly devoted to the scrap bin. But, I'm having fun. Picture below:

The first block is an asterisk. The second one was a wonky pound sign..... FUN!!!!


'til next time.


Mike.

What to do now that my first quilt top is finished?

About 7 years ago I got the inkling of an idea that I might want to learn how to quilt, so I bought a couple of books on how to quilt (Quilting for Dummies, etc.). I found a beginner project in one of the books and went out and bought everything they suggested I need (many things I still have and never used). So, I have this material that I've carted around (2 addresses later) that is sitting in my basement in a storage container (with the book that had the project I was planning). After finishing the top of the rainbow block quilt and watching several videos and reading a multitude of tutorials on free motion quilting, stitch in the ditch and quilting with a walking foot, I was scared that I would ruin the rainbow by trying to quilt it with no actual practice (other than practice quilt sandwiches), and decided to take up that old project stored in the basement.

It had very little material in the "recipe" so I started wondering (at this point I had a concept of how much material a project would take)... I started wondering if there was room for miscuts. As it turns out, there was enough material, but the size of this quilt was supposed to be for a wall. Here is a block and the finished front:

I think the pattern is called "Ribbons."

I'm not the kind of person to hang a quilt on the wall. I like a little functionality. If I'm gonna hang it on the wall, it better be detachable in case of a blanket emergency! And, it needs to cover (at least) my legs!

So, at the advice of my Aunt C. I decided to be a little creative and make it bigger. At this point, the material was so old, I knew I would never find more of the same to make more blocks to extend the quilt. I took it to Quilter's Corner (nice store) when I was in Virgina for Thanksgiving visiting the family and picked out more fabric that would go with it. Now the front looks like this:

The original design would have stopped right before the white and light blue print checkered border. Now I have a 60 x 60 inch throw.  But at this point, I'm still afraid to quilt it. So, I start working on making a back for this quilt and the rainbow quilt.

Instead of using one print or color for the back. I like to use a variety of fabrics and at least one print that will tell the user/recipient that I made it, like a signature. My friends and family know that I like the Wizard of Oz (and I'm from Kansas) so I try to use something that will reflect that on the back.

These are the fabrics that I chose. Some were left over from the front. The yellow with red print is actually little ruby red slippers. I hang it over the quilt top on my wall to make sure I have enough before I start cutting and sewing. And, I can see sort of what it will look like.

Now it was time to practice quilting on some more sandwiches. Here's a picture of one of my first ones:

I was really just doodling and getting a feel for free motion. It was such a headache in the beginning, I almost gave up. I was having so much trouble, I couldn't imagine putting a bulky quilt in the machine and trying to do this. Just getting halfway decent stitches was a problem, not really because of me, but because I would always forget to set up something correctly with my machine after putting on the darning foot. So, I decided, everyone needs potholders for Christmas! Stay tuned.

Mike.