Progress

I'm usually a 'work on one quilt at a time and finish it' kind of person so I don't know what's happened to me!  I have pictures from three quilts I've made progress on (or started) and they don't include Beyond the Cherry Tree because I haven't finished stitching down the 112 cherries or even started the embroidery in block 16.  I also have what I need to start an embroidery BOM quilt for my granddaughter.  Once I start it, I'll post the link with the photos.

I've had the book Nearly Insane, AKA the Salinda Rupp quilt, for over seven years.  As soon as I saw one, I loved it, knew I had to make it, and bought the book.  The owner of my favorite shop at the time (she sold it and it's different now) had made it and brought it to a class.  I couldn't make it out of the shop without the book!   I've been looking at it ever since and thinking how hard it looks.  I'm sure CJ and Lori got tired of me whining about it because they finished theirs so I'm sure they already know.  This week I got my brave on and jumped in.  My goal is to average one block a week finished.  Some of them have close to 200 pieces in a block that finishes six inches.  Others are easier and I can finish them more quickly.  This is a project I can fit in during the day. This week, I finished the first three.

I also finished blocks two and three in the Civil War BOW Barbara Brackman is posting.

I cropped the photo of block 2 the same as the others 

but for some reason, that photo doesn't show up.  Just pretend, okay? 

I wanted gold stars on a blue ground in the applique block.  I enjoy applique and that didn't bother me at all but I chose the wrong fabric.  I couldn't get sharp points on the stars.  It may be just one block but I don't like it.  I also don't like the block enough to redo it.   The fabric is from my LQS, not a fabric/craft store, but the weave is very loose and the threads too coarse.  I shouldn't have picked it - I know better.  If I trimmed the fabric inside the points as close as I normally do, it raveled way too much so  I ended up with way too much fabric/too many threads inside my points.  I won't use this fabric for applique again and I may not use it for piecing.  I'll have to try it in a sample and see if it holds together.

My last photo this week is of the pieces for the doll quilt, Midnight Stars, Lori is posting.  I love doll quilts - they're easy to finish and easy to display.

This doesn't look like much but I'm ready for the next step.

My Circuit Rider quilt

 

It's finished - done and hung!  It really feels good to finally get it up on the rod.  I have it in front of a window that leaks cold air all winter and puts a good chill on my house.  I've had small quilts draped over cafe' rods in the past but wanted one large quilt for a prettier effect.  You can see in its lower right where the sun was hitting the window and this is why I wanted a solid backing.  There is another very large window on the front of the room (this is on the side) that doesn't let in all that cold air so there's still quite a bit of natural light coming in.  To say I'm happy with this quilt is an understatement!  I'm also surprised at how quickly the quilting went, once I finally took that first stitch, especially with everything else going on. 

If you look at my posts from last year, April to June 2009, you can see the progress on the blocks so I don't need to post all that again.  I think I know what my next big quilt project will be - along with small, doll size quilts thrown in, but I still need one or two more fabrics.  I guess I'll just have to hit the quilt shops.  Bummer, right?

What's new

This is what's new here - Nathan James, weighed in at 7 lbs 8 oz and 22 inches.  He was born last Tues, Oct 12, the same day as his oldest cousin - she turned 4 that day.  Mom (my middle daughter) had problems when labor started but they're both doing well now.  It took much longer than normal for things to go back to almost normal for her but the drs finally let them go home after many more days than usual.  Trying to get a good shot without the flash in a fairly dark room turned out to be problematic as you can tell.  It's not my sharpest picture but you can get a good idea of what he looks like - beautiful! 

Evan's quilt

Finally - a picture of the baby quilt! I didn't take one of the back but it's mostly white, like the front, with stripes down the sides made from fabrics I used in the body of the quilt. A few of the stripes are pieced. The quilt is a bit bigger than 45" wide and probably between 5 and 6 feet long. I finished it last October, long before Evan was born on December 3rd. I truly love hand quilting and and this was intended to be a special quilt for him, and one he would use, so I quilted it by hand. My daughter and her husband decided not to find out if he was a boy or girl until he made his arrival, so no pink and very little blue in this one - even though I was pretty sure he was a boy.

I have my Circuit Rider quilt marked now but haven't begun the quilting. I had really intended to do that this winter but just never got it started. It's folded up and sitting on the back of the couch in my living room so that I don't forget. Maybe I'll get it started next fall. I have other quilts to make before then and don't want something that big draped over my lap in the summer.

Happy Easter everyone!

Viral videos, pt 2

And here's the rest of the story, so far.

viral videos

Not quilt related ---

If you really like United Airlines, stop here. Otherwise, check out this video. Personally, aside from the problem, I think he's a fairly talented songwriter and the band sounded good!

Lucy's quilt

My son had a second daughter on Christmas Eve. Knowing ahead of time that they were expecting a girl made it much easier to pick fabrics for her quilt. I had something else in mind entirely when I went to the fabric store . . . something bright . . . but when I saw these, I changed my mind. For some reason, when I took the picture, I didn't think to back up and get the whole thing in the view finder. I hand quilted it with hearts in the setting squares and diagonal lines through the striped blocks. I didn't think to take a picture of the back, either. I don't know where my brain was that day.