Birch Trees Quilt Finished

Happy Friday.  This week I finished the Birch Trees Quilt for my grandson Easton. He picked out the pattern (Bright Birch Trees from Crazy Mom Quilts) and the color palette.  I am really pleased how it turned out.

It was a real treat to work on, even though it was the second masculine quilt in a row I have made (the first was this one for my son Shane).

This quilt was #2 of my finish goals for the 2015 Finish Along which I talked about here.

I should be better about posting more regularly, because when I read other blogs, I love to see work-in-process photos. But I did take some in-process photos, so I will share them now. In the future, I’ll attempt to post more of my work as I go along. Even if no one is reading my blog, it will at least be a refresher for me, LOL!!

Making a seemingly-endless supply of scrap strips

For me, working with so many solids was new, and making those darn trees seemed never-ending. But I thought of Easton wrapped up in it, and really did enjoy the process.

Pinning up and sewing the strips. My cats LOVED them!

Notice how the sewn-in strips are in lower blocks and the dangly strips (not yet sewn in) are higher up? That is to discourage two felines who shall remain unnamed from batting them around.  I think I am going to write a book:   QUILTING WITH CATS.  Should be a best-seller, eh?

After washing, it crinkled up nicely. So soft!!  

I just quilted wavy, unmeasured lines with my Bernina 550QE, using a walking foot and Aurifil 40-wt. thread. OMG, it was the first time I have used Aurifil, and I am now a believer. I couldn’t believe how nice it was. Stitched like buttah!

The backing, which is actually a bit darker than I was able to capture with a camera, is Carolyn Friedlander’s Branches in Charcoal from her Botanics line.  I bought all the fabrics (the Kona solids and the backing) during end-of-year clearance sales. The trees were made from my scrap bins.

Finally, I made a 14” pillow with medium gray on the front. The back is the Branches fabric again, and was constructed to allow easy-on/easy-off for washing.  Now looking at the pillow, I think it looks rather plain. I wish I had quilted it first. Hindsight.

This is my second finish for this first quarter in the 2015 Finish-Along with Adrienne of On the Windy Side.

And this is what is now on my design wall:

It’s the last of my CQJP2012 (Crazy Quilt Journal Project for 2012). Better late than never!  I still have one block to finish stitching, then the process of trimming and sewing them together begins. The center needlepoint has been trimmed, and will finish at 15x15”. When everything is sewn together, I may have some areas to finish stitching to eliminate some “black holes”.  Bottom Left Corner, I’m looking at YOU!  Then I will figure out how to stabilize it before adding a black-on-black houndstooth-weave home dec fabric (a blend). I will add a hanging sleeve and most likely list it for sale in my Etsy shop.  I hope to have this finished in the next few days so I can count this as my third finish this quarter.

Linking up to Fabric Tuesday.
Come back tomorrow for my Scrappy Saturday post.

2015 Finish Along, Quarter 1 Goals

This year I plan to focus more on my stitching (sewing, quilting and hand embroidery) than I have in past years. I just feel the need to hunker down and create.  Except for family, my other activities will take a back seat. In addition to creating new quilts/clothes, etc as needed for gifts, I am also going to focus on UFOs from previous years.

To help me organize myself and stick to some sort of schedule, I have joined Adrianne of On the Windy Side in her 2015 Finish Along.  I truly believe that declaring goals and being accountable for them online helps us take the steps that eventually lead to reaching those goals. At least it does for me.  :-)

So, these are my goals for Quarter One of 2015:

HST Quilt for Shane

 As you can see, the quilt top is already pieced. Actually, the backing is also pieced (it’s very scrappy) and the quilt is now basted and ready to quilt. I am thinking I will just quilt diagonal lines in some fashion and hopefully start it today or tomorrow. The goal is to have this one finished over the weekend. This quilt is for my son Shane (an adult) who paints with oil paints. The feature fabric is Paint Pallette from Draw Near by J. Wecker Frisch.  Shane  wanted geometric and bold/bright.

Birch Trees for Easton

My grandson Easton will turn 16 at the end of this month. Naturally, he is all about getting his driver’s license and other teenage things. But Easton is also a nature lover and a sweet, loving young man who appreciates family and special things. At Christmastime we sat down together and he was excited to pick out the pattern and colors for a quilt. I had narrowed choices down to about a dozen patterns and a dozen possible colorways, and these are the ones he chose. Very masculine and outdoorsy. And I had already bought the pattern (Bright Birch Trees by Amanda Jean Nyberg), so we were totally on the same page. The Kona Cottons I bought from Canton Village Quilt Works when they had their 25% off sale at year end. The backing will be that wonderful Carolyn Friedlander Etched Trees in charcoal from her Botanics line. I am excited to begin on this quilt as soon as I finish Shane`s.

Bruce’s Banjo Lap Quilt

My DH Bruce has been waiting patiently for me to make him a quilt. When I saw the above banjo fabric (Suzy Ultman, Jazz Between Friends for Robert Kaufmann), I knew it was the one. He loves bright colors and picked the Pow-Wow pattern by Allison at Cluck Cluck Sew, which I thought was a great choice to show off the fabric colors. The backing will be the plain blue and scraps of anything else left over.  :-)  I originally hoped to have this done by Valentine`s Day, but maybe end of February is more realistic. We shall see!

Crazy for Needlepoint

My final project/goal for the first quarter is to finish up this UFO from 2012.  I have two 8” squares left to embellish (bottom right) with crazy quilt embroidery. And actually, both of those remaining two squares are already started. Then I will square up my blocks and sew them together and to the vintage needlepoint flower centerpiece. After that (or maybe before that), I need to figure out how to stabilize that needlepoint piece to give it proper support.  It is relatively heavy for its size. Finally, I’ll back and bind it and add a hanging sleeve. But the interior construction will be key to the stability and overall appearance of the piece.

So there you have it. Three new quilts and one old UFO. I think it is do-able and a good mix of new and old. I would love to hear your thoughts, my friends. And I sure love looking at others’ goals, too. Thank you so much, Adrianne, for being our coordinator this year!

Here’s to a great 2015!!

Hugs,