Sister's Choice Quilts

Foundation Paper Piecing

Since my Blueberry Delight fabric arrived, I wasted no time in starching it and assembling my paper piecing supplies. I am very gung ho to get started on this Petit Four project. Supplies: What you need is a glue stick of some kind (I am using a Sewline glue stick, but a kid's school glue stick works fine too), a rotary cutter, an Add a Quarter seam ruler, a seam roller, and a small cutting mat. I also set up my iPad to help me with my fabric selection for the blocks. 

For the first eight blocks, I am using the Courthouse Steps foundation paper.

The instructions are great, telling you just how many strips to cut for the block. I cut several fabrics at once, so the cutting went pretty fast.

The sewing is easy too, you just position the fabric carefully and sew on the appropriate line in numerical order. The paper is even shaded so you are sure to place your lights and darks in the right place. Be sure to use a very short stitch when you sew on foundation paper. My machine is set at 1.5 stitch length.

As you go, you flip the fabric strips, trim to a quarter-inch seam allowance, and press flat.

The first block took longer while I was getting up to speed, but the next ones went quickly. I love how perfect paper-pieced blocks turn out! 

If you are interested in watching a foundation piecing video tutorial, Kimberly from Fatquarter Shop has several on YouTube. Here is the Courthouse Steps tutorial. She had a rather elaborate routine of creasing her foundation paper on every stitching line, which I did not do as I could not see why it was necessary. Otherwise, I followed her instructions.

Hope you are all having a great week. It's been a very slow week for comments, so I'd love to hear your experience with paper piecing! I'm beginning to wonder if anyone besides Jan, Anita, Sally, Mary, and Ina are reading my blog. Have you tried foundation paper piecing? Do you think it is intimidating? 

Archie wants to know....Is anyone out there?

Bats and Boos

A year or so ago the Fatquarter Shop did a Halloween Mystery Quilt sew-along they called Bats and Boos. The pattern is completely free on their website.

I didn't get a chance to make it at the time the sew-along took place, but I have kept it in the back of my mind as a "someday" project. The quilt obviously isn't a mystery anymore, but I'd rather know what my end result is going to be anyway. It's a small wall hanging or table topper finishing at around 40" square.

I was actually able to find the exact fabric on Etsy! It is a Moda collection from last year designed by Stacy Iest Hsu called Holiday Essentials Halloween. You could use any three black fabrics, an orange fabric, a white background and a border print in a Halloween theme. The yardage needed is on the project sheet.

The first step is to make four bat blocks. The pieces are large (for 10 1/2" blocks), and the construction is super easy.

How cute is that little bat?

This isn't how the blocks will fit together in the quilt top, but don't they make a great design when combined this way? It could be an interesting center medallion for a Halloween quilt.

If you are like me and enjoy working on a seasonal project, this little table topper might be for you too. The next step is to make four pumpkin blocks, the third step is the center star block, and then you put the blocks together and there's your little quilt! 

Hope you had a lovely October weekend. We had a house guest and were out and about for the most part, but I was able to starch and cut out my fabric, and make these four bat blocks in a couple of hours Sunday afternoon.

Fun Non-Quilting Project

When it is a known fact that one can sew, one often gets requests to make alterations or DIY home projects involving fabric. About 35 years ago, my husband and I bought a wrought iron patio set consisting of a loveseat, chair, and coffee table. We enjoyed it for years and I must have recovered the cushions at least twice, if not three times. 

Eventually, we gave the patio set to my daughter and son-in-law. I recovered the cushions for Ryan about six or seven years ago in the starfish and anchor fabric you see above. There are six cushions in all (and a couple of pillows) and the fabric was literally ripping apart at the seams. My son-in-law bought enough upholstery fabric to recover the patio furniture for everyone in the housing development and asked me if I would once again recover these cushions. 

The fabric he chose is this colorful awning stripe. I love his selection and think it will look great on the patio furniture, which is painted blue. 

But. It is striped. And any of you who sew, know that stripes bring their own unique challenges to a project! Obviously, the stripes have to match. And ideally, each cushion will be identical to the others. It took me all day Tuesday to figure out the measurements and make the first cushion. After I got my system down, on Wednesday, it was taking me about a half hour to construct each cushion cover, including zippers. 

This was a fun project and a nice change to quilting. I made some improvements to the method I had used in the past, which I think will add to the look and convenience of the cushions.

Can you believe in the history of making cushion covers repeatedly for this patio set, I never put in zippers, but always sewed the openings closed by hand? What on earth was I thinking? Well, no more. I went to Joann Fabric and bought six polyester zippers and every single cushion and pillow has a zipper for easy removal and laundering. 

Here is the happy pile of them all ready to go home. You can see all the leftover fabric in the background.


All settled in on Ryan's patio!

I guess it's a good thing there is so much extra fabric. He has just asked me to use it to make 16 seat cushions for the chairs in his tasting room....

 

 

Apple Sauce Quilt Project

Woo hoo, a new project and it isn't a sew-along.  These are the Apple Sauce quilt blocks I've made so far. I had so much BasicGrey fabric leftover from the Sampler Spree project that I decided to try to use it up by making a "companion" quilt to Sampler Spree.

I love this pattern, but sad to say, I do not find that it is well written. When I made the block several times following the instructions in the pattern, it did not come out well at all. The points were cut off every time, making me think the measurements were off. I contacted the pattern designer but did not get a response. 

I found a very similar block called Aunt Addie's Album in my Judy Hopkins 500 Quilt Blocks book. With a few modifications, I was able to construct the block, making the flying geese units oversized. When trimmed down to 2 1/2" x 4 1/2", the points were not cut off and the block looks as it should. 

These blocks are actually kind of fun to make, now that I have my system down.

It took me a while to figure out how to cut my fabrics that have a directional print. Even though this same fabric was used in the pattern sample, there was no mention of the fact that if you want your block to look like the one in the sample, you have to carefully cut directional prints on the diagonal. See the navy and brown blocks on the left? That's what happens when you don't cut the directional print diagonally.  Oh well, live and learn. I've been sewing long enough, thank goodness I figured it out after a few false starts. Also, lucky that I have loads of fabric.

I'll have some bonus blocks for the back, I guess...

Sunny Patches

I mentioned a couple of new projects that I had happened upon (or perhaps they happened upon me). One is a block of the month hosted by Corey Yoder of Coriander Quilts. Corey's project is called "Sunny Patches", and that is pretty much how this fabric line feels to me. I am using a very sunny and cheerful collection by Fig Tree Quilts called Fruit Cocktail.

Corey's Sunny Patches quilt seems like it is going to be super simple and not a lot of work, but with enough going on to keep things interesting. The quilt is comprised of 30 large half-square triangles made from 2 1/2 inch wide strip sets made from a jelly roll. (Or cut your own). There are also going to be a handful-maybe 6?- of sampler blocks spread throughout.

I have completed my 15 strip sets and made 6 out of 30 half-square triangles for the alternate blocks. The block of the month part of the project starts mid-April. Here is a link to the project introduction and fabric requirements. Corey has a YouTube video up with instructions and more information on her blog. 

I am longing for warmer weather and sunny skies, so this cheery project really appealed to me. Have you heard of it? Are you thinking of sewing along? This looks like a super easy one.

Etoiles Rouges, and Using Up My French General Stash

I have a couple of new projects to share with you this week. It recently came to my attention that a year-long sew-along started a couple of years ago called Etoiles Rouges. The block-of-the-week program offered 49 blocks, all Ohio Star variations. The program ended but was so popular, it has been offered again. For $25 you can get all the block patterns, work at your own pace, and make this gorgeous quilt.

I spent my $25 and got the whole year's worth of patterns, plus tutorials for making some of the more difficult blocks.

Feel free to enlarge this image to get a better look at the block patterns. Most of the blocks are pretty easy, but some of them are very challenging. That one on the left in my photo above had mitered corners. I mastered them, but I sure did need to take my time! What a striking and unusual block.

I have a great French General stash on hand, and I bet a lot of you do as well. What a wonderful project to use up all that fabric! I am in no rush to finish this quilt, but in spite of that, I made five blocks this weekend! There is a Facebook group where supposedly people share their blocks, but I cannot seem to get the attention of the site administrator to approve my request to join it. 

Let me know in the comments if any of you have made this gorgeous quilt, or if you might like to sew along with me. We can compare notes on some of the trickier blocks and encourage one another!

Here's my girl, after receiving her On A Roll award. It was pajama day at school, that is why she is dressed like that. It was a fun (but long) program honoring the kids who have worked hard to achieve a good grade point average.

Hope you all had a great weekend!

 

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!