Weaving Ribbons {Scrappy Sewing}

I have been a busy scrappy-sewing bee over the last few weeks!

I shared about the beginning of this project last week -- and have lots of progress to show today!

I am making a smaller version of the Christmas Ribbons pattern from Kim Brackett's Scrap Basket Surprises book. I've estimated that I can make half as many blocks as the original pattern with the background fabric that I have. I know that I cut more blue, brown, and green rectangles than I probably need, but I would rather not have to cut more later.

The blocks are made up of two different units; I used the cut triangles in lieu of the stitch and flip squares.

Some of these fabrics are long-time hangers-on! See the brown and white print on the top of both piles? That fabric was originally bought all the way back in 2011 and used in my Secret Window mystery quilt! (I should get this quilt out for the fall!)

Over the weekend, I'm hoping to get these units turned into larger blocks -- each block has two of each unit.

Don't forget to enter my giveaway here!

Join us for the Faceted QAL on Facebook!

Sharing at Oh Scrap!

Scrappy Stars {Finished Table Runner + Giveaway}

I finished up the table runner that I showed the first blocks of on Monday!

I made a total of twelve blocks and sewed them into a 6 x 2 arrangement, for a 48" x 16" table runner.

For the quilting, I had a hard time finding a piece to use as the backing since it is longer than a regular width of fabric, so instead, I used the quilt-as-you-go technique to add strips of the teal dot and the floral print as the "backing".

Here's what the front looks like after adding the QAYG strips to the back:

As far as adding the QAYG strips goes, I started with two strips in the approximate middle and added them at an angle, since that would be more forgiving than attempting to add the strips straight. It was very, very helpful to use the built in walking foot on my Janome 6600P for this project.

For the binding, I used the same teal dot print fabric and sewed the binding entirely by machine!

Now this table runner is reversible -- and 100% made from scraps, including the batting and the backing!

Quilt Stats:
Name: Scrappy Star Table Runner
Pattern: Mosaic Star blocks
Fabric: scrap fabrics
Techniques: Accuquilt cutting, quilt as you go, machine binding
Quilting: quilt as you go
Size: 48" x 16"
Batting: scraps
Started and Finished: September 2019
Future: TBD

Sharing at Wednesday Wait Loss and Needle and Thread Thursday!

As promised, I have packaged up a bunch of my scraps from my recent Ohio Star Baby Quilt project to do a giveaway!

Just leave me a comment on this post and you'll be entered! Please make sure that I have a way to contact you if you win, too! I might even add in an extra half yard (or two!)

Update 10/2/19: The giveaway is now closed, and I was feeling extra fun, so I picked two winners!

Lori will be the winner of the Quiet Shades fabrics and Shirley will win some other Island Batik fabrics! Thank you to everyone who entered!

Cutting Down Scraps {New Scrap Projects}

The bad news is that I have been feeling really overwhelmed by my scrap bins (and baskets and bags) lately.

The good news is that I am starting to feel like at least some of them to good use, after doing a lot of cutting with my Accuquilt Go! cutter.

The sort of bad news is that I have started a bunch of new projects in the last few weeks as a result.

The first of these projects is my Faceted Churn Dash. The grey print in the upper left corner will be my background (this was the backing of my Stash Bee quilt), the print in the lower right hand corner is my inspiration fabric (this was the back of one of my Little Fireworks quilts). I pulled yellows, teals, blacks, and a few grays as my scrappy focal fabrics. All of these fabrics came from my scrap bins, making a tiny dent.

This is also my project for the Faceted QAL I am hosting in our Honey, Bunny, and Doll Facebook group; join if you are able!

The second of these projects is intended to become a table runner, inspired by pieces of a large Asian-inspired floral in my scrap bin. I pulled a teal tonal dot (actually backing fabric scraps!) and a neutral Island Batik basic to use with this fabric. I cut enough pieces and parts to make 12 star blocks, the first four of which are complete:

The final project is the Christmas Ribbons pattern from the book Scrap Basket Surprises by Kim Brackett. Right now I just have the rectangles cut; I have yet to start on cutting the background fabrics but I have the fabric chosen. This will be made as large as I can make it from the yard of background fabric that I have.

What kind of scrap projects are you working on this week?

Sharing at Oh Scrap!

Ohio Star Quilt {Finished Quilt}

Hip hip hooray -- another finished quilt to cross off my list!

As I shared earlier this week, I quilted this quilt over the weekend. I used a tan/gold Aurifil thread for the quilting in both the top and the bobbin. It's slightly darker than the background fabric, but blends well with the block piece and on the back. I had a perfectly sized Hobbs Cotton/Wool blend batting to use with this quilt too.

A simple meander is sometimes all you need for a beautiful quilt!

For the binding, I used the leftover green fabric from the backing. I had originally set aside a piece of purple fabric for the binding, but liked how the darker green fabric finishes the quilt.

This mushroom print is my favorite of the prints that I used on the back that didn't make it in the top of the quilt. I have set aside all of the leftovers from this quilt for a giveaway -- keep your eyes peeled for that sometime next week!

As an Island Batik Ambassador, I am provided with samples of various lines of Island Batik fabrics, Aurifil thread, Accuquilt products, and Hobbs Batting to use and share with you!

Quilt stats:
Name: Ohio Star Baby Quilt
Pattern: None, Ohio Star blocks sashed with 1.5" strips
Fabrics: Quiet Shades fabrics from Island Batik
Techniques: Accuquilt cutting, free motion quilting
Quilting: all over meander with gold Aurifil thread 50 wt.
Size: 53" square
Batting: Hobbs Cotton/Wool blend
Started: August 2019
Finished: September 2019
Future: TBD

Sharing at Brag About your Beauties, Peacock Party, and Moving it Forward!

PS. Join me for a fall QAL featuring our Faceted patterns!

Sharing at Show Me Something {Purple} at Sarah Goer Quilts for January 2020!

Losing Thread Chicken {Quilting in Progress}

This weekend I had *big plans* for knocking out some finishes. During the week I layered and pinned both my Ohio Star quilt for this month's Island Batik Ambassador project and my Four Square quilt top that I made on retreat.

I had no issues quilting my Ohio Star quilt -- hooray! I used a gold thread for the quilting and did a simple meander quilting motif for this quilt. It is trimmed, but I need to prep the binding. Here's a sneak preview:

I had a two yard cut of this pink print with flowers in my stash that I thought would be perfect for the backing of my Four Square quilt. It was *just* wide enough! I decided to use my mint Aurifil thread to quilt this quilt. I thought that since it was a baby quilt, I had enough thread on my partially used cone of thread.

You can guess where this is going -- I lost thread chicken on this one.

My penchant for dense quilting really came back to bite me because had I quilted my swirls 10% larger, I would have been able to squeak by with the thread that I had. Just 10%!!

Here's the sad corner of the quilt that is waiting to be quilted:

Of course, this happened on Sunday and I live no where near anywhere that sells Aurifil thread, much less a place that sells Aurifil thread that is open on a Sunday. So I ordered a small spool of thread (and four yards of clearance fabric for a backing) and hopefully it ships this week so that one night I can spend a grand five minutes finishing the quilting on this quilt.

I went ahead and trimmed the quilt, and in the meantime, I'll be using the rest of the backing fabric to make a binding for this quilt.

I have lost thread chicken before (very notably on my Summer Patio quilt) but this time it really grinds my gears.

Sharing at Wednesday Wait Loss!

Faceted on Facebook {Quilt Along}

I am popping in today to announce a sort of spur-of-the-moment decision: I am hosting an unofficial QAL *in the Honey, Bunny, and Doll Facebook group* for anyone interested in making one of our Faceted wall hangings before Thanksgiving!

Each of these wall hangings finish at 36" square and are perfect for scraps, precuts, or yardage.

Amanda made the original Faceted Churn Dash quilt from *bonus triangles* and I made the Faceted Friendship Star and the Faceted Ohio Star quilts from 2.5" strip packs.

Again, this semi-unofficial quilt along will not be hosted here on the blog -- it will be hosted in the Facebook group only.

All three patterns are $5 each on Payhip:

Faceted Churn Dash

Faceted Friendship Star

Faceted Ohio Star

Since these quilts are made of the same building blocks with some variation, the week's assignments will focus on the general steps of each quilt -- and the number of units to make will just depend on the particular pattern you chose. 

Here's our tentative schedule:

I hope that you decide to join us for the "unofficial" QAL starting on the 27th!

Stars Align {Ohio Star Quilt Top}

The blocks I made on retreat are now in a top that is ready to quilt!

I decided on a very simple sashed setting for this quilt without cornerstones. I have a 60" square batting from Hobbs set aside for this project so I used that as my "maximum size" when deciding on how wide to cut my sashing strips. I settled on cutting 1.5" strips, so my finished quilt size will be 53" square.

Sometimes a quilt just needs a very simple setting.

I also put together a pieced backing for this quilt using some of the Quiet Shades yardage I received and some of the remaining 10" squares.

Now this quilt is ready to quilt! What sort of quilting do you think I should do?

As an Island Batik Ambassador, I am provided with samples of various lines of Island Batik fabrics, Aurifil thread, and Hobbs Batting to use and share with you!

Sharing at Wait Loss Wednesday and Needle and Thread Thursday! And Moving it forward Monday too!

Mosaic Mystery Quilt {Cutting}

As alluded to in my latest Brutal Honesty post, I am participating in the Mosaic Mystery Quilt hosted by Cheryl of Meadow Mist Designs!

As I have done for many QALs in the past, I have pulled all of the fabric for this quilt from my stash. This time, that comes with a slight caveat -- these fabrics came all together as a kit for another pattern! The kit was given to me by someone downsizing some of their stash and I gladly accepted!

The majority of the kit was fat quarters and half yard cuts, in different shades of burgundy, pink, green, and brown. The large piece of green-on-white print that I will be using for my background actually seems to be intended for the backing of the kit pattern based on the yardage listings.

For my fabric A, I picked a half yard piece of a green, brown, and white print. For my fabric B, I pulled four burgundy fat quarters (but actually only cut into three). For Fabric C, I pulled eight fat quarters of pinks -- two each of four different fabrics. I cut one of each fabric for the piecing, and have the others set aside to maybe use as the border.

I didn't even use all of the fabrics from the kit! I have another large cut of burgundy which is large enough for the binding as well as a few more fat quarters. For now, I'll be sticking with the above fabrics for my quilt, but reserve the right to change my mind and mix some of the other fabrics in.

Here are all of my cut fabrics:

For the burgundy fabrics and the pink fabrics, I did actually use multiple fat quarters, but since I cut the fat quarters stacked four each other, you can only see the top of the stacks. I absolutely love the background fabric and wish I had a whole bolt of it!

Yesterday the first cutting directions came out and that will have to wait until next week (at the earliest) since we are traveling this weekend for a wedding.

Sharing at Moving it Forward!

Child's Play {Baby Quilts with Island Batik and AccuQuilt}

It's time for another Island Batik Ambassador project!

This month we have been tasked with making baby quilts that use the "block on board" dies from AccuQuilt we received in our summer goody boxies.

The die I received was an Ohio Star die and I decided to use the Quiet Shades fabric for my quilt.

I used mainly fabrics from the layer cake for my block parts and some neutral sprinkles fabric for my background. The cutting for this was lightning fast using the die; this made it so easy to transport all of my block parts to retreat a few weeks ago!

I did a sneak preview of my blocks a in my retreat wrap up:

Here are my 16 blocks for this quilt!

Next up is sashing my blocks together!

As an Island Batik Ambassador, I am provided with samples of various lines of Island Batik fabrics, Aurifil thread, and Hobbs Batting to use and share with you!

Sharing at Needle and Thread Thursday!

Brutal Honesty {September 2019}

Two months in a row of some significant progress -- who have I become? I finished both my Magnolia mystery quilt and my Pineapple log cabin quilt prior to heading to quilt camp, and got a lot of piecing done on retreat, even if I did start a few new projects.

Completed tops:
1. Breezy Blooms C2C Bee -- July UFO project -- no progress
2. Radiant Jewel Quilt -- April UFO project -- no progress
3. Daisy Chain Quilt -- no progress

Tops partially finished:
4. Romantic Garden Quilt -- no progress
5. Monthly Wall Hangings -- March UFO project -- no progress
6. Pineapple Stash Bee Blocks -- February UFO project -- no progress

Just blocks and units:
7. Sew Kitschy Blocks -- no progress
8. Cubicle Quilts -- no progress
9. Happy Houses blocks -- no progress
10. Birthstone blocks -- June UFO project -- no progress
11. Jingle Bell Square -- no progress
12. Big Block C2C Bee Quilt -- no progress

Quilt alongs and long term projects:
13. Monthly Island Batik Ambassador projects -- In August, I made doing a starry wall hanging using our Starburst pattern! In September, we are using our newest AccuQuilt dies to make baby quilts. I started this project on retreat.

New projects:
14. Mosaic Mystery Quilt -- I have my fabrics picked out and my cutting has been started. Keep an eye out for a post on this project coming probably next week.

15. Moxi Charm Pack Quilt -- I won two charm packs years ago and am finally putting them to good use. The top is complete, so I will need to see if I have something in my stash that would work for a backing.

16. Marigold Quilt -- I made the test block, but I had to order more green fabric for the leaves.

17. Pave the Way Quilt -- I picked up the fabrics for this quilt while on retreat and I made the majority of the flying geese needed for the blocks.

My UFO for August was my Magnolia mystery quilt and for the first month this year, I actually finished my UFO *during* that particular month!

My UFO for September are my Happy Houses blocks.