A Princess Quilt from OCD

Our feature today is from one of our favorite quilters in blogland, Kristie from ocd: obsessive crafting disorder.  She's awesome.  And we love her projects.  Today's is no exception, a princess quilt for her princess.  It's hard to go wrong with Heather Ross fabrics too!  Kristie has a great design for design, layout, colors, ya know.  For some eye candy check out her finishes and tutorials/patterns.

It's been 2 years since I bought my Far Far Away 2 fabrics.

And one year since I promised a birthday quilt for The Middle Child.

And 6 months since I started the quilt.

Anyways, it came one year plus a couple weeks after the birthday deadline, but all was forgiven when I presented her with her own very Mama-made special quilt :) My girl is now SEVEN, and full of fairy tales and fashion and make believe and creativity and helpfulness and caring and so many wonderful attributes. I lucked out getting this kid, I tell you, she is so much more than the sum of the best bits of her dad and me. Love her to pieces.
I finished the quilt while away at the cabin, and spread it out on the grass and had her sister lead her over with closed eyes for the unveiling. Big grins from ear to ear!

She spent time studying all the blocks and declared the owl running away with the underwear as a favorite, along with Rapunzel.
For the top, I used Kate's Fussy Cut Fairytales pattern, which I modified to make twin size. It is a great compliment to these fabrics, and I adore the distinctive floating border! On the back I used some leftover pieces and pieced them together with blocks of pink and green solid.

I quilted with an overall stipple. Man, it was a heavy quilt to move around given all that linen content in the Heather Ross prints! The quilt was hand bound in a Kona solid. Don't ask me to remember which one. It made a nice and cheery frame!

She loves it. I love it. I really do think it is my favorite quilt to date. And it looks fantastic on her bed. Just need to make a matching sham or two! And the sweetest part was, that night as she tucked her in snugly under her new quilt, she said, "The thing I like best about my quilt is that you made it for me, Mom!". A true princess.

Monkey Ladders Quilt from Sweet Dreams by Sarah

Love this darling quilt from Sweet Dream by Sarah...and it's a tutorial!  Yay!  I definitely love a pattern that lends itself to showing off your favorite prints, and that's what she did here.  Super sweet and simple, great variation on a coin quilt.  Make sure to check out Sarah's shop, her finished projects and some more great tutorials.  Thanks Sarah for sharing!

These little monkeys had me at hello!  I had no idea what I was going to do with this charm pack when I first spotted it, but I had to have it. 

I wanted to do something simple, that would show off the cute prints in the line, but still feel fun and whimsical.  I've made coin stack quilts before, but I wanted to do something a bit different... 

So here we have, monkey ladders!  The "coins" reminded me of rungs of a ladder for some reason, and the name just stuck in my head.  This is a very versatile pattern that you can make using really any charm pack you might have, and finishes up as the perfect size for a baby or crib quilt!  Here's what you need... 

Materials

1 Charm Pack (I used Grow with Me by Deb Strain & Daughters by Moda) (note: you only need 40 of the charms, so pick out two, and add them to your stash, or save them for the back) 

1 1/4 yards background (I used Kona White) (the cutting instructions require exactly 36 inches of cut strips, so you will want a bit extra for squaring up when you cut, etc.) 

1 1/4 yards backing (I used the white monkey print from the Grow with Me line)

3/4 yards for binding and to piece the backing (I used the green solid from the Grow with Me line) 

Cotton batting, approx. 45" x 45", to give you a little room while quilting. 

All measurements assume you use a 1/4 inch seam! 

Cutting

Charm pack:  

• Take the 40 charms that you'll be using, and cut them in half, so that you have 80 strips that are 2.5" by 5". 

• Don't worry about keeping them in any particular order, since you'll actually want them to be randomized in your quilt.  

Background:  

• Cut 8 strips from your background fabric that are 3.25" wide by WOF (width of fabric from selvage to selvage - assumed to be 42" - you will need to make adjustments if yours is different!).  
• Subcut these strips into 10.5 inch lengths, so that you have 32 pieces that are 3.25" x 10.5".  
• Cut an additional 5 strips that are 2" by WOF. 

Backing: 

• Cut your backing piece along the fold so that you have two pieces that are half the WOF by 1 1/4 yds long.  

Binding/Backing: 

• Cut two strips 5" by WOF for inserting in the backing (alternatively, you can cut one 5" strip, and attach those two leftover charms to either end!) 
• Cut 5 strips 2.5" by WOF for binding strips.  

Piecing the top 

Your goal is to make 16 sets composed of 5 strips each.  Pair up the strips and sew along the long edge. 

I recommend pressing after each seam, but the great thing about the way that this quilt is pieced is that it doesn't matter which way you press the seams - there won't be any matching up of corners or points here!  Press the seams toward darker fabrics where necessary.

Keep sewing the strips together, picking out the strips to use so that the colors and patterns are fairly randomized and distributed.  You should end up with 16 strip sets that look like these: 

Next, we add the white 3.25" by 10.5" strips on the sides to finish out the blocks.  

Take one strip and align with one of the sides of your strip set.  

You can pin this, if needed, but if your seams are ironed nice and flat, it shouldn't move around on you too much.  Stitch these pieces together.  

Hint:  chain piecing here can make this step go by very quickly! 

Once one side is sewn on, flip the block around, and sew the strip on the other side.  I would recommend NOT pressing before this step!  Keeping the first strip right where you sewed it will help you to get the second strip aligned and will help to keep the block nicely square. 

Once both sides are sewn on, go ahead and press those strips out!  

Now you've got your 16 blocks ready to go! 

Note: this picture of the block was taken after the others were sewn together! That white strip on top is actually from the adjacent block. 

Lay them out in alternating direction, keeping an eye out again for the randomness of the fabric placement.  Arrange the blocks in a 4 by 4 arrangement.    

Once you've got your blocks set out in the arrangement you like, start stitching them together.  I'm not a fan of long seams, so I usually sew the blocks together in quadrants, and then sew the 4 quarters of the block together.  

Once the 16 blocks are sewn together, it's time to add the border.  Take the 2" background strips that you cut earlier, and snip off the selvage ends.  Sew one strip to the edge of the quilt, and then use a ruler to trim off the edges, to keep the quilt top square.  Do the same on the opposite side of the quilt.  

You'll need your border strips a bit longer on the other two edges - approx. 45".  If your WOF is long enough, just sew those on the two remaining edges, and trim to square up.  If your WOF isn't quite long enough (mine wasn't!), take one of those 2" strips and cut it in half.  Sew one half of that strip to each of the two remaining strips to make it longer.  Then go ahead and sew the border strips on the remaining edges of the quilt.  (I'm so sorry, I don't have pictures of this step!) 

That finishes up the quilt top!

To prepare the backing, we're going to insert that strip that you cut from the binding fabric into the backing fabric so that it's wide enough.  You can either sew 2 5" strips from the binding fabric together  to make one longer strip, or you can sew the two leftover charms on either end of one 5" strip to make a longer strip.  Sew this strip along the cut edges of the backing fabric, so that it's inserted right in the middle.  Press the seams out, and make sure your backing fabric is well pressed for pucker and crease free quilting!  This is how my quilt back looked, on the finished product: 

Sandwich up your quilt - backing, batting, and quilt top.  Baste, and quilt as desired!  I used an all over meander on mine.  Stitch together your binding strips, and bind the quilt using whichever method you prefer, and you've got yourself a quilt!  

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As a side note, my version of this quilt is currently for sale over at my Etsy shop!  

Be Mine Quilt

First I've got a winner from our awesome Cotton Blossom Farm giveaway:

The Amateur Quilter said...

I liked their FB page as AmateurQuilter. :)

Congrats!!  I'll be in touch! :)

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Do you remember this little stack of lovely prints from Saffron Craig?  The prints are called Magical Land in pinks.  (PS Check out her darling new line, Wombat Wonderland, love!)

And a finish!  I told you you'd be seeing a lot of finishes from us lately, just this week Dottie, then Sail Away Skirt and now:

Be Mine!

Can you guess why I named it that?  ;)  I wouldn't say that pinks/reds are out of my comfort zone because I LOVE color.  So I guess neutrals would be out of my comfort zone or something :)  But I always always gravitate to blues and greens.  Even if it has red or pink or purple in it  I always think, "You know what would look lovely with this...a blue (or green)!"  Lol.

So for me it is so striking!  And so different, I love seeing it hang over my quilt rack.

The pattern I used was pretty simple (just one I came up with, I didn't use an actual pattern).  I used coordinating Michael Miller solids.  And they matched perfectly.  And if you haven't seen/used MM solids yet I've heard a little misconception out there, that the solids just match their lines.  Which may be true but I use their solids ALL THE TIME, there are sooo many colors, they definitely work outside their lines as well.

I went for a super scrappy back which I think works for this line really well.

I have to tell you, the size of the quilt directly correlates to the look on my husbands face when I ask him to squat for pictures.  Yesterday it was overcast (in hot AZ) and I asked him to help me take some pictures.  We had 3 quilts to do, and they started out his height down to a baby quilt.  This one was in the middle.  Ahh...so funny, I didn't know how put out a grown man can get :) 

The quilt is roughly 40 x 50, a throw or child size.

And the quilting.  Oh the quilting.  Aunt Wendy is amazing (she's in Utah if anyone wants her info).  Like I've been saying, with baby girl coming in October I've got so many projects I've been finishing up lately I've just been saying "One for me, one for Wendy, one for me, one for Wendy...".

There you have it ! My pretty in pinks, reds and purples Be Mine quilt.  I think it might look really cute with a little princess in the middle of it :)

25-patch and More Quilt from Julie's Quilts

Every quilt has a story...thus why we created Quilt Story! :)  But some have more than others, this quilt is the perfect combination for me!  Sweet simple story entirely incorporated into the quilt.  Sorry you'll have to read to find out.  This quilt was made by Julie from Julie's Quilts...stop by and see some great quilt and block inspiration, and check out this sweet story of another quilt she made for another child in need.  Go Julie!!

Back in 2010 while I was pregnant with N, my cousin was also pregnant with her first child.  Our babies were supposed to be about 5 months apart.  Little did we know that her daughter would be born just 2 months after N weighing in just over 2 pounds and 14 inches long.  K spent almost 3 months in the NICU before she was able to come home.  

During her stay in the NICU, her parents decorated her incubator with receiving blankets.  Just after her first birthday, her mom asked me to make a quilt out of the receiving blankets.  The large squares in the quilt are K's receiving blankets and the 25-patch blocks are made with Twirl by Me and My Sister Designs.  I quilted with white thread in a meandering pattern.  The quilt is all washed up and snuggly and will be delivered to K next week.  I can't wait to see photos of this happy, healthy, almost 2-year old with her new quilt!!

The quilt is twin sized or a double coverlet.

Out to Sea by Sarah Jane

If you fell in love with Sarah Jane's debut line, Children at Play for Michael Miller, then hold on to your chair...you're about to see some unbelievably darling fabric if you haven't already.  Her newest line, Out to Sea, is out-of-control sweet and whimsical, have I let you know that I'm smitten??

Heather and I have so many plans going on for this fabric, so exciting!  Several new patterns featuring this line will be coming out by August, so excited!!  The fabric should be available online and in shops starting in August.

Now as much as I tried to control myself, I couldn't.  I tried to finish up a couple of other projects before I got my chubby little fingers on this...but it wasn't meant to be.  Sigh.  I just had to cut into it!  I found this tutorial (thank you Pinterest!) and knew it would be perfect little project to finish up fast.  With a few little changes/additions I made this super sweet dress for baby girl:

I added sweet little pleats in the front, that was my first time doing that and I think it looks so cute!  And of course I added the bow :)

Since my little one isn't here yet I'm doing my best to ensure everything I make will actually fit, lol!  So I added a couple of button holes and buttons to make the straps adjustable.  The size is about 6-12 months, the pink anchor elastic will hit her just under the armpits.

And the back view.  Two little sailboats.

Yes...I do stop to look at it several times a day.  That fabric is just so cute, I could throw a scrap of it on a stray dog and want to adopt it.  Right??

Thanks for indulging me!  Soon this blog will be titled "Megan's Unborn Daughter...oh and Quilt Story" :)

2 Quilts for 2 Girls from a quilt is nice

Super sweet quilts and sweet stories from Nettie of a quilt is nice.  Nettie is a stay at home mommy of three cuties and has been quilting for 10 years.  She has a finished quilts list that most quilters (especially me!) would be covetous of!! :)  Hard to pick a favorite but this crazy geese quilt is definitely at the top!  Also see Nettie's tutorials for some great quilting tips too!  Thanks Nette!

 

My oldest daughter is 7 years old, and just before she was born I made her this baby quilt.  She LOVED that thing (still does).  It went everywhere with us, church, grocery store, airplanes, bed.  It was her number one comfort item.  Over the years it has suffered from wear, and eventually she didn't "need" it as much.  But it was still always in bed with her. 

Fast forward 5 or so years and my 2 year old discovered how soft and cuddly it is, and pretty much stole it from her big sister.  Luckily she just likes it for sleeping, but it has always bugged her older sister.  I haven't been super fond of it either.  It's pretty ragged, and I don't want to see it completely wear out.

One day, my 7 year old suggested I make a new one for my 2 year old.  I thought that sounded like a fair plan, so we went to work making a new one for Christmas.  At first I wanted to make it as close to exact as I could, but decided I didn't want to buy any fabric for this project, so really only the pattern is the same.

I kept warning my 7 year old that this might not work.  Her sister might not care for a new, crispy quilt.  She might just want her older sisters quilt that is broken in and soft.

But you know what, it worked.  My 2 year old loves her new quilt and was even willing to give back the old one!  Yay!

I love both of these quilts, they seem so sentimental to me.  I keep wondering if I'll have to make another version for our next baby.