Positive Signs and NTT

Oh. My. Goodness!  Somebody send me some wood so I can start building an ark over here.  We just cannot seem to get away from the rain for more than two or three days at a time, and this has been going on since the fall.  We did have two glorious days of sunshine this weekend and my parents were in town visiting, so my dad and hubs held up my latest quilt for some great photos.

I'm calling this one Positive Signs.  Obviously the crosses/plusses helped me decide on the name, but also, this is my first quilt finish after some pretty major life upheaval, and it feels so wonderful to be back in my studio.

All of my leftovers for this quilt (and there were a LOT after my cutting mishap) went onto the back, and I think the varied width of the strips make this really fun.

This quilt was finished with a nice, easy stipple, and I absolutely loved doing it.  There's just something about the smooth, gentle curves that is relaxing, especially when I have awesome music playing.

When cutting up my leftovers for the back of this quilt, I realized that I had a full half yard of this dark blue print, and decided it would be perfect for the binding.  Because I rarely buy fabric in larger cuts than 1/2 yard, that was certainly a pleasant discovery.  This is from the Macrame collection for Cotton and Steel, and though I usually prefer more solid bindings, this one turned out great.  Best of all, I didn't have to buy more fabric to get it finished!

This quilt has already gone home to live with my Mom (and Dad too, though this one's a little girly for him), and I've already started cutting fabric for a new quilt to hang on a wall in my new home.

What you're seeing here is a variety of 1.5" strips from about 35 different text, cream, tan, light gray, and metallic gold prints...plus a few bits of green for good measure.  This is quite a departure from the riot of color I've been working with for the past few weeks.  I'm so excited for this project to take shape, and I can't wait to reveal a little more to you so stay tuned for updates!

I'm super excited to show you some of the fantastic highlights from last week's party.  Sandra at mmm! quilts shared this stunning quilt-

I just love the scrappy beauty by Anorina at Samelia's Mum-

These curvy string blocks by Sally at Crafts, Cavies, and Cooking are gorgeous!

And finally, this lovely quilt is by Cynthia at Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework-

Y'all are just amazing, week after week.  Okay friends, party on!

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It's Not Easy...Being Green

Pardon me while I date myself as a child of the 80's with Kermit the Frog's signature song.  Despite the fact that I haven't heard it in over three decades, as I worked on this quilt, that song kept working its way into my mind.  I'm okay with it, though.  I'll gladly own up to my love for the Muppets!

I am so pleased with the way this quilt turned out.  I was able to fit 34 different greens (all from stash) into this quilt, and they play so nicely all together.  I love how green, depending on the specific shade, can be earthy or opulent, soothing or energizing, soft and sweet, or loud and brash.  I guess lots of colors run the gamut of emotion like that, but I notice it more so with greens because they are my favorite.

I just had one little hiccup in getting this one finished.  Someone in my guild was destashing her thread, and I got a whole cone of Superior Threads King Tut variegated green thread. I intended to use it for piecing and quilting, and the piecing went off without a hitch, but when it came to quilting, my machine just wasn't having it.

I have never used a thread stand, since I usually just use regular spools that fit my Bernina.  I put the cone in a mason jar behind my machine and that worked well for piecing.  Not so much for the quilting part though.  It was late at night, and I couldn't get the thread to feed through my machine with correct tension for free motion.  Instead of being patient (shocking, I know), I gave up and quilted it with white Aurifil instead.  I was just tired of ripping quilting stitches.   Even still, I do love it quilted in white.

In trying to make the thread cone work, I was doing a little research and realized what a great deal the larger cones are.  I had no idea!  Note to self- buy a thread stand ASAP, and start taking advantage of those thread cone savings!

On the back, I used up as many scraps as possible, though with 34 prints, some had to go back into my cabinet for another day.

I opted for a solid green Kona Clover binding, and DID use the variegated green thread to stitch that.

I honestly don't know that I love any other colors enough to make a monochromatic quilt from them (aqua/teal is probably a close second).  What about you?  Have you ever considered (or made) a monochromatic quilt?

Absolutely, Positively

This quilt was absolutely, positively done in a hurry!  I started cutting the fabric on Saturday morning, and I didn't even get a chance to write a post for it mid-process.  Y'all know that once summer arrives, quilting happens at all hours of the day and night around here, but I had a very specific reason for speediness with this one.  I found out that my dad is passing through town on business, and since this quilt needs to get to my mom, I decided that I would finish it quickly so that I could send it back with him.  It just seemed easier than shipping it!

This quilt is a departure from my norm in a lot of ways.  This is my very first plus quilt, and I have to say that it was fun to put together.  The one thing I wasn't used to was having to draw it out, and rely so heavily on my drawing when I laid out the design. Usually, once I have the design in my mind, I can conceptualize it and not need to cheat by using the drawing.  The center of the quilt is fairly straightforward (the complete plusses), but keeping the partial plusses on the edges laid out properly was a little tricky.  I don't really know why.  It was't terribly onerous though, and I will make this pattern again for sure!

The person who will be receiving this quilt likes very modern design.  I definitely think this pattern, along with the mod feel of the prints fit the bill.  These fabrics aren't ones I had seen before buying them for this quilt.  The majority of the fabrics are called Penelope by Camelot fabrics, and I think the more muted colors are so pretty.  Other than Sand and Sea Glass, this quilt may be the most low volume quilt I've ever made.

The name I chose for this one is a also little different from my usual choices.  Since the pattern is so distinct, I wanted to include it in the name in some way without actually using the word "plus."  I like that the name Absolutely, Positively can be used to describe lots of different moods, and I think it sounds catchy!

Well, I'd say that summer has absolutely, positively started off on the right foot!  Pardon the pun, I just couldn't help myself!