Minnesota Hot Dish

How happy I was to wake up to blue skies and sunshine for picture taking this morning! An overnight rain precluded me from venturing outside but my indoor location (guest room floor) did just fine.

I am unclear about the exact start date for my Minnesota Hot Dish quilt. I'm pretty sure I bought a bundle of fabrics to get me started and I remember shopping for some blue & yellow florals to add to the mix. When I picked this UFO up again last summer the center part of the quilt was completely pieced as were the piano key borders so it was just a matter of choosing the inner border/cornerstone fabric and finishing up the borders.

I sent it out to Kathy at Stitch by Stitch Machine Quilting to work her magic and she delivered in spades. After a phone conversation to discuss ideas she went right to work. I am in love with the swirls on the main section of this quilt!

The quilting on the borders is so lovely... the feathers and the loopy swirls are just perfect for this quilt. I'm so glad I was able to capture the quilting in my photos. I decided to repeat the inner border/cornerstone print on the binding as you can see. Thanks again Kathy for making my quilt a true work of art!

The backing is muslin so no pictures. This quilt will hang on a wall in our master bedroom so I am especially pleased that it lies completely flat.

The pattern is called Minnesota Chain from the book Minnesota Hot Dish by Atkinson Designs. There are 3 patterns in this book based upon using value differently when constructing the blocks. The more traditional pattern reverses the placement that I used but I really like having the chains be the dominant part of the quilt. I would love to make this pattern again one day. The book has one made up in 30's fabrics which is just charming!

I'm linking up to Needle and Thread Thursday@My Quilt Infatuation, TGIFF@Quokka Quilts, Can I Get a Whoop Whoop@Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Link A Finish Friday@Richard and Tanya Quilts and Finish it Friday@Crazy Mom Quilts.

Valentine's Plus

You know what makes me happy on Valentine's Day when my husband is out of town playing in a poker tournament... waking up to this!

And having a son willing to assist before leaving for school...

My Valentine's Plus is finished and I am smitten! I followed Jeni Baker's wonderful tutorial found HERE using a set of FQs from an early Sandy Gervais collection mixed with some fabrics from my stash. Here are some of my favorites - candy kisses, chocolates, Robyn Pandolph mini roses, the Eiffel Towers and the pink text print.

I quilted this 64" x 75" top using white Aurifil along the 4" block lines. This is a new PR (Personal Record) for the biggest top I've quilted myself on Mr. Juki. I took it slow and enjoyed the process. This picture is edited to highlight the quilting.

For the backing I used yardage of the pink text print and then I added leftovers from 2 of the prints I used in the top and a couple of FQs.

 Here is a closeup. I do like a pretty backing!

I had just enough left of the yummy chocolates fabric to use as binding. I normally prefer a hand sewn binding on my quilts but I really wanted to get this one done yesterday. Weighing 30 minutes against several hours was an easy choice! My machine binding skills have become so much better over the last year with all of my Project Linus quilts... I attach my binding to the backside of the quilt, fold it over and line it up as I sew.

This is the first big finish for my Sewing for the Seasons theme in 2014 and it is incredibly motivating to get these fabrics off the stash shelf, use a new pattern I've been coveting and create a quilt that will make me happy every February for the next umpteen years!

I hope you ALL have a lovely Valentine's Day! I'm joining two other couples for a nice dinner out and taking a friend as my "date". And, since my husband is gone all weekend the really messy part of my Olympics Organizathon is underway... I'll post an update tomorrow.

I'm linking up to Needle and Thread Thursday@My Quilt Infatuation, TGIFF@Quilt Matters, Can I Get a Whoop Whoop@Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Link A Finish Friday@Richard and Tanya Quilts and Finish it Friday@Crazy Mom Quilts.

Four Patch & Friends

I am so excited to share this finish today! Four Patch & Friends is DONE! and I could not be happier with it after all this time. It's too big for my usual floor photo shoot so I'm using our bed since it is a nice sunny day. The quilt is draped crosswise to show off of as much of it as I can.

I saw a sample of this in a quilt shop on my way home from Minneapolis/St. Paul during the winter of 2002 and fell in love with it. The shop had a starter kit containing 40 floral 2.5" strips so I bought it along with the book "Open a Can of Worms" by Debbie Caffrey.

I was a new quilter and scrappy was kind of scary at that time. I am certain that had I not seen the sample quilt I would have never attempted it! I paired up the strips and started cutting. Each block has a small print floral and a larger scale floral. The background is a delicate white on white floral that is very hard to photograph.

Photobomb Part I

During March Madness in 2002 I pulled my sewing table out into our family room from my closet in the laundry room and pieced about 3/4's of the blocks. I have no idea what derailed me until I picked it up again in the fall of 2012.

This UFO has appeared on my blog several times - click here, here, here, here, here and here if you want to read more about the assembly process and my challenges!

Photobomb Part II

Four Patch & Friends reached flimsy status in late September 2013 and was sent to Kathy at Stitch by Stitch Machine Quilting. I have been following Kathy's blog for about a year and really admire her quilting. We had a great conversation on the phone to discuss ideas in December and she got to work.

I wanted the quilting to enhance the romantic feel of this quilt and Kathy certainly delivered! The swirling vines along the white X's are just perfect. The patchwork sections are done with loops and leaves. The detail on the borders adds so much to the quilt... I just love it. Thank you so much Kathy for making this quilt even more special to me!

I had a large chunk of this backing fabric in my stash so that was an easy choice and I found enough of the inner border green at my LQS last month to use for the binding.

Four Patch & Friends measures 68" by 84" which makes it my biggest quilt. This one is a keeper for sure... some things are worth the wait. It will find a home draped over our living room sofa this spring.

Elsa gives it four paws up! She was testing my binding stitch last night as I rounded the last corner... thankfully she settled in for a nap shortly after this picture.

Finishing this quilt was my January goal for A Lovely Year of Finishes which always provides a large dose of Lovely Motivation.  I'm also linking up to Needle and Thread Thursday@My Quilt Infatuation, TGIFF@Riddle and Whimsey, Can I Get a Whoop Whoop@Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Link A Finish Friday@Richard and Tanya Quilts, Feline Friday@sarah did it! and Finish it Friday@Crazy Mom Quilts.

And, this UFO was on my Q1 Finish-A-Long goal list HERE so I will be linking it up in April at The Littlest Thistle.

And Then There Were 3

I couldn't resist creating one more seasonal version of the Everyday Table Topper from the book "Charmed and Dangerous" by Anka's Treasures. My Christmas/Winter topper is made from Basic Grey's gorgeous Blitzen collection. I so love the color palette of this line with the cool sage and mint prints against the deep reds.

The snowmen prints caught my eye right away so I featured them when I laid out the charms.

Simple walking foot quilting with white Auriful was my choice to show off the pretty fabrics and I had a fat quarter of the ornate grey & mint print which I used for the binding.

Had I made this when the line was current I would surely have invested in more of it! Maybe I will still be able to pick up a few of my favorite prints (like the snowmen on red above) online.

On a random note... I had no idea that the markings on a cat extend to their skin. Elsa gave full consent to this tasteful belly shot although she is definitely giving me a "just take one and make it quick" look. We have had 1 black female cat followed by 3 male Siamese so this is news to me.

She also has longer fur than we are used to and it is so soft and fluffy. Yesterday I couldn't grab my camera quick enough to take a picture of the 2.5" fabric square that was attached via static cling to her tail. She had no idea it was there!

A Fail and A Finish

I've been feeling pretty confident about my walking foot quilting for the last 6 months... well along comes this spoiler. Christmas Strings new name is Puffy Christmas Strings! My last ditch effort last night to add more diagonal lines of quilting across the blocks just made it worse. These photos actually look better than the quilt in real life - it's a bubbly mess.

My usual approach to string blocks on muslin foundation is to skip the batting and use fleece for one step batting and backing. I've done 6-8 kid sized quilts that way with no problem. I spray baste to keep the layers secure.

But this is obviously not working! This fleece is a little thinner than what I normally use and I wonder if that in combination with a larger top is the issue. I'll be unpicking this during the Olympics next month and will have ample time to contemplate plan B.

I wonder if using a thin cotton batting would stabilize it better or maybe I'll scrap the fleece (although I'll miss the cuddle factor) for a fabric backing. I happen to have a box or two of Christmas fabrics to choose from.  Thoughts or suggestions anyone?

On a happier note - this cute little table topper is ready to go on my table this weekend. This is the 1st finish for my Sewing for the Seasons theme for 2014. The pattern is Everyday Table Topper from the book "Charmed and Dangerous" by Anka's Treasures and the charms are from an older Sandy Gervais line called Flirtations.

I used a medium pink thread from Connecting Threads for the quilting and muslin for backing. I wish all fabric lines included a bias stripe for easy binding!

My favorite prints in this line are the candies and the small hearts with polka dots. I also love the use of brown... it adds a nice unexpected element.

I love this pattern so much I'm currently sewing down the binding on another one in Christmas/Winter fabrics. Maybe Spring will be next... I've got lots of charm packs to use.  

I'm linking up to Freemotion on the River.

Charmed Pinwheels

UFO Finish #1 of 2014 is Charmed Pinwheels... yes I have broken free from my piecing binge at last! Can you believe my last finish post was on December 13? A new kitten, the holidays and a LOT of piecing has happened since then. I'll be closing out January with a week of finish posts.

Charmed Pinwheels began with 2 charm packs of Chez Moi by Moda (their 1st line perhaps?) that I had paired up, sewn into HSTs and then pinwheels. I used some of my border yardage to make enough blocks for a 4 x 5 block layout.

These fabrics are really vibrant and fun. I love the contrast of the blocks with the mottled solids against the blended blocks of 2 prints. The sashing is Moda Bella bleached white. I quilted along the inner sashing lines and on both sides of the diagonal pinwheels using white Auriful - the borders are simply quilted with straight lines.

I used the remaining Chez Moi yardage on the backing and selected a green and an orange print from my stash to coordinate. I liked the pop of green polka dot so chose that for binding as well. It's interesting to look at the quilting on the backside.

This quilt will be donated to Project Linus... I have quite a stack accumulated waiting for a warmish day for a trip to my drop off spot. Our schools are closed again today due to extreme cold mixed with high winds. Guess what I will be doing after I fill the crockpot with mixings for pork stew?

And, this UFO was on my Q1 Finish-A-Long goal list HERE so I will be linking it up in April at The Littlest Thistle.

Christmas UFO X2

Getting good pictures is so hard this time of year! I'm sad because I can't seem to capture the beauty of this quilt today, but I'm going to go ahead with the post and I'll try again for the money shot another day. The close up pictures are so much better. Too dark inside... too cold outside! After about 10 minutes my eyes were watering so bad I could barely see and of course my glasses were fogging over too. I see now the right edge is snow dusted a bit! Authentic Minnesota winter for you...

The pattern for this quilt is from the December 2003 issue of McCall's Quilting and it is called Christmas Fantasy. I remember getting the magazine in the mail and getting online immediately to start buying the fabrics I needed - Robyn Pandolph's Christmas Folk Art line - because I wanted the EXACT same quilt in the magazine! I was less than a year into my quilting journey at that time. I still find these fabrics to be breathtakingly beautiful.

When I pulled out all of my UFOs to take pictures for my UFO Page earlier in the year  I fell in love with these fabrics all over again and it was my dream to have it ready for this Christmas. So I am keeping the name Christmas Fantasy because (pinch me!) it is done. Merry Christmas to me!

Cindy at Tops to Treasures was so wonderful to work with on this quilt. She gave me two options to think about and I just could not be happier with the end result. Thank you again Cindy!

Moving back indoors for the back side of the quilt...

Cindy's work shows up better in this light even though the pretty fabrics don't. The rail fence blocks were from an online swap that I hosted on the HGTV Quilting Forum back in 2007. I had assembled them into a top and put it on a hanger. When I put the borders on Christmas Fantasy I started looking through my stash for some backing fabric with no luck at all.

But when I pulled out Christmas Rail Fence I thought hmm... and emailed Cindy to see what she thought. No problem she said. And amazingly it was about the same dimensions so I added the border and that's how you finish 2 UFOs in 1!

There are lots of fun Christmas novelty prints in these blocks which I have a bit of an obsession with. My Christmas stash could generate at least a dozen quilts (and I might be underestimating by a wide margin actually) so I'm excited to be able to flip the quilt over for a different look. Isn't the quilting gorgeous?

I'm linking this UFO Finish X2 up to TGIFF@Quilt Matters, Can I Get a Whoop Whoop@Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Link A Finish Friday@Richard and Tanya Quilts, Needle & Thread Thursday@My Quilt Infatuation and Finish it Friday@Crazy Mom Quilts.

And I am linking up to the Mid-Month Check In and will be linking it up to A Lovely Year of Finishes at the end of the month because this is my finish for that Challenge. Done early for the 1st time EVER!

Primary D9P

Hot off Mr. Juki and into the DONE! column is Primary D9P... the light is fading fast so I had to be really quick with the camera on these! This UFO was started in 2009 when I kept seeing tutorials online for making Double 9 Patch blocks. I had just been in a swap for 5" charms in primary colors and next thing I knew another UFO was in the making.

When I picked up this UFO again in the fall I decided to make it bigger (it's 53" x 53") so out came my charm bins and I added some different shades of red and blue to the mix.

I used a red, white and blue variegated King Tut thread for the quilting to add a little interest.

The backing fabric is a fun print I bought years ago at the Walmart in Kauai. No joke! I have no idea what I had in mind at the time (maybe board shorts for the kids when they were small?) but it sure makes me smile today. I spliced in the strip of blue to make it wide enough.

Since I liked how the yellows catch my eye across the top I used a yellow print for binding too.

This quilt will be donated to Project Linus.

I'm linking this UFO Finish up to TGIFF@Quokka Quilts, Can I Get a Whoop Whoop@Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Link A Finish Friday@Richard and Tanya Quilts, Needle & Thread Thursday@My Quilt Infatuation and Finish it Friday@Crazy Mom Quilts.

UFO Finish #70!

What a nice big number to celebrate today... UFO Finish #70 since 10/01/12 and #54 for 2013 is Bouncing Balls. The free pattern "Play Ball" for this quilt can be found HERE in the Project Linus section at Quiltmaker.com. The ball blocks are paper pieced and are fun to make using bright scraps.

I added the piano key border and a narrow inner border instead of the plain border the pattern calls for back in 2007. Then it hung in my closet along with its UFO friends until today when it came up in my quilting queue.

Back then I would have been amazed to know that it only took me a few hours to sandwich, quilt AND bind this! Walking foot waves with white Aurifil seemed to suit this happy top.

This is my second finish in a row with a piano key border. This one uses variable widths, I imagine I was cutting leftover lengths and I quite like the random look.

I found this cute flannel print for backing in my stash and decided on green dotted binding to bring both sides together. This quilt measures 40.5" by 40.5" so I didn't have to piece the backing.

This quilt will be donated to Project Linus and I have another one in the piecing stage in my UFO Collection to finish up this winter.