Sister's Choice Quilts

Lost My Mind and Found Another

You all are going to think I've lost my mind, but I have joined another sew-along. Moda Fabrics is hosting a sew-along called Midnight Moon, based on Carrie Nelson's book/sew-along "Summer Moon". I have always, always wanted to make that quilt, but never have. Mainly because the quilt calls for a tremendous amount of fabric (half yard cuts of everything, plus more), and requires the sewer to make three different sizes of each block. 7 1/2", 6", and 4", if I recall properly. I get bored quickly, and just don't have it in me to make three of the same block at this point in my life. 

My approach to this sew-along is that I am going to only make one of each block, in the six-inch size. My quilt won't be large, but I think if I use a diagonal setting, or use a plain alternate block, it will be lovely.  The quilt with three different sizes of each block is just stunning, but it isn't for me right now. Each week I will make two different blocks (while everyone else is making a total of six). The sew-along has been going on for two weeks so I have four blocks completed.

You may notice that I am using an assortment of Fig Tree fabrics from a couple of their Halloween collections for the Midnight Moon project. I have a slew of fat quarters and will have plenty to make 24 or more 6" finished blocks for a Halloween sampler quilt. 

So, here's the thing. Remember this block? This was my supposed start on Moda Blockheads 4, block one. Using the same Fig Tree fabrics. 

I have switched gears totally. I am now using those Fig Tree Halloween fabrics to make the Midnight Moon sew-along, and have gotten different fabrics to make the Moda Blockheads project. I know this is convoluted but bear with me.

I bought three different fat eighths bundles of Linzee McCray fabric collections to make the Moda Blockheads quilt. Flour Garden, Flowers for Freya, and Morning Light. All in those gorgeous navy, grey, aqua, and yellow colors. Thelma from Cupcakes n' Daisies is using this same fabric to make her Blockheads quilt and I was blown away by how much I liked it, so I got some too. Thelma is planning a much more elaborate setting than I will do, and she is making her blocks in two different sizes. You should definitely follow her on Instagram and see what she does. It is bound to be way more interesting than what I come up with. Again, I may use a diagonal setting, and will probably leave out the pink/coral fabrics in my blocks. Our quilts will be very different, I am sure. I think it is fun to see the different results quilters achieve when using the same fabrics. 

Here are my first four blocks. They are all 9 1/2" unfinished. 

Eva will be out of school soon. Even with not being able to sew on the weekends when I am with my dad, I think I should be able to get in a lot more sewing time this summer than I have for quite some time.  I hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew. I have a lot of UFOs at the moment and hope to wrap up a few of them when I have more time.

At any rate, I have been itching to get some sewing done and these new projects will keep me nicely occupied! 

Centerpiece Tablemat Pattern is a Real Winner

I've got something cute for you today. A new mug rug pattern that would be an adorable Christmas gift. I think I may make a batch of them and give them to some of my besties for Fall/Halloween season. Who wouldn't love a seasonal mug rug?

The pattern is "Centerpiece Tablemats" designed by Terri Staats for Sweet Treasures. I saw it on Instagram, and there is a whole #centerpiecetablemat link you can follow to see what others are doing. Check it out. They are so darn cute, you won't be able to resist. The small mug rug size is around 9" and the largest could be turned into a Christmas tree skirt.

It took me about an hour and a half from start to finish. I started a little after 4 PM and finished just before 6 PM. You should check out the Halloween ones made with Kitty Corn, and the Christmas ones made with Swell Christmas. So adorable!

I was really wishing for a tutorial because I am such a visual learner. If I can't find one, maybe I will dive in and try to make one!

Hope you are all having a great week.

Baby Steps

I snagged an hour yesterday and scooted up to the sewing room and got my fabric cut out for the Buffalo Check Halloween Table Topper by Carried Away.

Easy to follow instructions and I had a sense of accomplishment that I even achieved that much! 

I completed the first four checkerboard rows. The difference in shading between the white and the "light" fabric is subtle, but you can definitely see the difference. Next up are the star blocks, which will feature that crosshatch fabric in my first photo.

This project should go quickly, so that achievement will do wonders for my sewing morale!

Eva and I are getting through the second week of homeschooling just great. Today our fun project was to make a pink pom pom pig. She was sure pleased with how it turned out! Not sure what in the world she will do with it, but she sure had fun making it.

Thanks for all the reminders of great retro cookie recipes in the comments to yesterday's posts. I will be making molasses cookies for my husband soon. I sure wish Eva liked peanut butter cookies, they are my favorites, but I never make them. Remember "Ranger Cookies"? I think that was the name. They had everything in them: coconut, oatmeal, walnuts, m & s. Gosh they were good.

New Fall Project in the Planning Stages

Just look at this adorable table topper by Carried Away. It is two patterns in one, and I want to make both of them. The first one I plan to tackle is the Halloween/Pumpkin version. I have all the fabrics on hand, which are mostly scrap-sized. When I bought the pattern, I noticed that the exact Moda Solids you need for the checkered design were listed on the back of the pattern instructions, so I went ahead and ordered a couple of yards of the light grey and the darker grey.

FYI, you need 98 Bleached White, 178 Etchings Stone, and 128 Stone. The other fabrics are from a layer cake of last year's Fig Tree Halloween collection. They have a new one out now that would also work great.

I was itching to get started right away, but I caved in and did my starching first. It is so darn hot here, that my fabric was dry in about 20 minutes, I swear. Look how hazy the air is from the drift smoke from the fires. The air quality has been "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" which is me, with my asthma.

I am quite excited to start a small manageable project like this little table topper. I am overwhelmed with all my bigger ongoing projects, so will switch gears for a while. It is getting me down not to have finished anything in so long. When I finish this little project, maybe I will start on the second one, which is little Christmas presents instead of pumpkins. Then I will have two little quilts to send out for quilting. I love having a new seasonal project to display.

Hope your week got off to a terrific start!

 

Spring Brook Charity Mini Quilt

I worked on the Spring Broom Mini Charity Quilt yesterday. I only got four yellow flowers done, but that's ok. The picture above is from Coriander Quilts website. It is a free pattern you can print out here. My fabric choices will be similar, but I have a grey solid and a green solid that I am using for the leaves, stems, and flower centers. 

I was exhausted by the time I finished the four yellow flowers. I had spent hours starching fabrics for two other projects, plus ironing them. Then my husband and I actually planted real flowers in containers on our front and back porches. Then I cut out all the pieces for the Spring Brook Charity Mini Quilt. It is amazing I got any sewing done.

I think this is a super cute little table topper or wall hanging. You should definitely take advantage of the "free" pattern. Fatquartershop is requesting some sort of a donation for the Make A Wish Foundation in return. It's a great cause. 

Hope you all had a great weekend. I had a lovely time with my father. He has lost his four bottom teeth! I suppose that is common in people who are approaching 100 years of age. He refuses to see a dentist of course. 

The stuffed peppers I made were a success. Neither of us could finish our portions, so even "Cooking for Two" is making more food than we can eat! I bought another Cooking for Two Cookbook by America's Test Kitchen, which appears to be excellent. For my husband and me, I prepared Chicken with Penne Pasta, Mushrooms and Gorgonzola which was just amazing. You can make it all in one pan, and it was truly easy and fast. I will be making a lot more recipes from that book. And I still ended up with leftovers! 

Summer in Kansas is Calling to Me

I am getting quite excited about sewing this new project. It is Summer in Kansas by Carrie Nelson. I want to make this quilt exactly like she did because I can't imagine it being any more perfect. She used two different collections, Canning Day by Corry Yoder in the photo above, and Summer Sweet by Sherri and Chelsi below.

You need a layer cake and a mini charm pack of each. These are older collections and I couldn't find mini charm packs, so I went with the regular size. These fabric collections are just so summery and fresh looking. The colors do not exactly match each other, but somehow they just "go".

You also need 6 yards of Bella 98, and two #11 Cake Mix recipe packs. No doubt about it, this quilt is labor-intensive, with all those half square triangles. Still, I think it will make a fun summer project. I know I posted on this a few weeks ago, but I am just getting in the mood to begin, I guess.

The pattern is free. Here is a link. Well, I have a lot of starching to do, don't I? 

Have a great weekend everyone!

 

Fancy Summer Breeze

Isn't this pull of fabric happy? It is a combination of Lori Holt's "Prim" and "Flea Market", Corey Yoder's "Spring Brook", and Lily Ashbury's "Fancy". I think Lily Ashbury was ahead of her time with those fun bright-hued fabrics. They are hugely popular now with designers such as Lori Holt and April Rosenthal putting out two or more collections a year.

My Lily Ashbury fabrics are several years old and were pulled out of my "Happy Fabrics" bin for a new project I have in mind. 

How cute is this pattern "Summer Breeze" by Carried Away? That border is wonderful. It is a mini quilt, only 26" square. I have enough fabric to make six of these quilts, I swear. I will just be dipping my toe into it. I sure do love shopping from home!

Here is my first little test pinwheel block. I think I love it.

What prompted this new project, when I have six UFOs in process?

Well, I was trying to get out some springy table toppers/runners to decorate for Easter, and was sorely disappointed in my lack of them. I had plenty of fall decor, but not much cheerful, light and appropriate for this time of year and going forward. These rich, color-saturated colors are perfect.

Please somebody tell me I have enough fall-colored quilts. And for heaven's sake, if I start yet another red and white quilt, somebody call the quilt police.

La Rouge Baskets and Half-Square Triangles

I think I mentioned in a previous post that my son gave me a large quantity of beautiful French General fabrics in dark pinks and faded reds. As it happens, the most recent issue of American Patchwork and Quilting has featured a gorgeous basket quilt made with French General fabrics. I was so inspired, I did not have to think twice about making this quilt. It is a big undertaking, that's for sure. 

The quilt is queen-sized (92 1/2" square), calling for 64 8" basket blocks and a border of 52 6 1/2" basket blocks. Good grief, that is a lot of basket blocks.  This quilt is going to take me awhile.

Basket blocks call for a lot of half-square triangles. Each of my 8" blocks needs 12 half-square triangles. I will be making two blocks at a time, and wanted an organized system for making them. I decided to go with Star Singles triangle paper in the 1 1/2" finished size (2" unfinished). There are a lot of triangle papers out there, and I was introduced to this brand about 12 years ago and prefer it to the others. I order mine from Shabby Fabrics.

The secret to successfully using triangle papers is to use a very small stitch on your machine. I set my stitch length to about 1.65. With two fabrics right sides together, stitch on the dotted lines all around the paper.

Trim it up on the outside solid line.

Cut it in quarters on the solid lines. Then cut each of the four squares in half on the solid diagonal lines. You will have eight half-square triangles from each triangle paper. Since I need 24 hsts for two basket blocks, I use three triangles papers to get the right number of units.

Here is a trick for removing the paper.  Fold the paper on the seam line and crease with your finger. Because of the tiny stitch length you used, that paper is going to tear off so easily.

And you know what? If you have stitched carefully on the dotted lines on the paper, your triangles will measure exactly what they should be when you press them.

For my "system", I am filling individual sandwich bags with the units to make two identical basket blocks. Once I fill all my sandwich blocks, I will start making the blocks. Right now I have 12 blocks ready to sew together. Once I empty all my sandwich baggies, I will start over cutting the units for more basket blocks.

I am pretty excited about this project. I know it will take me the better part of the year, but what the heck. I certainly am not going anywhere....

In other news, my dad is still doing well. Recovering from his mild stroke, no aftereffects from the COVID vaccine. I won't go stay with him until Friday afternoon this week, then I'll come home Sunday and one of my other sisters will take over. Our snow melted, but we are expecting a big storm any day now which could bring more. Fingers crossed I won't have to drive in it!

Hope you all are safe and warm and cozy!

 

 

 

 

Jelly Roll Jammin'

The Internet has been all a-buzz about jelly rolls in the past couple of weeks, so of course, I had to do something with them too. Primitive Gatherings has just come out with a really pretty new collection called "Redwork Gatherings," as well as a pattern, especially for jelly rolls.

This quilt is so easy. As a matter of fact, the name of the pattern is "Take It Easy." Honestly, I think you could make it in a weekend! The quilt is good-sized, 72" x 78". If you love red and white quilts, this could be a lovely addition to your collection.

I got my strips all starched and ironed, then cut into the strips required by the pattern. I can plug in a podcast or an audible book and stitch away.

Did you start any jelly roll projects as a result of the recent promos of them? I know I don't use them enough. It is a fun way to use up every bit of a couple of jelly rolls! You could even make it smaller and go with just one.

Saying goodbye to September. Don't let the door hit you on the way out.

It's All About Contrast

See what I mean?  I made the block on the left as part of the Moda BlockHeads 3 Sew-Along.  Block #37 "Broken Dishes" by Laurie Simpson. My first effort did not have much contrast.  It's ok but look at the difference in the block on the right. Greater contrast in the color tones makes the block on the right much more interesting, I think.

This block pattern is worth printing out, even if you are not doing the Moda BlockHeads 3 Sew-Along.  The construction of it is totally unique. You might think it is four hourglass blocks with larger background corners attached, but you would be wrong.  The construction of this block is so different.  Go ahead, make one. It will blow your mind!

Much starching of fabric has been going on. Out on my side porch, rack after rack of fat quarters has been saturated with spray starch and hung out to dry. I got it all ironed yesterday, and I am ready to start a new project.

Aaahhh. Just look at those beautiful fabrics.  Evelyn's Homestead by Betsy Chutchian for Moda. Plum, green, black, pink, and navy. I will use these in a new sew along sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop, called Sewcialites. If you haven't heard about it, you must click on the link and read up on it. I think it is going to be so much fun.  Whether you like modern fabrics or more traditional ones, this may be a project that appeals to you. Kimberly Jolly of FQS will do videos every Friday on how to make the blocks, setting suggestions, and more.

I need another sew-along, or any new project whatsoever like I need a hole in the head, but what the heck.  Life is short; you might as well be sewing. And that's what I'll be doing this weekend.