The next hand-quilted project: The Naked Forest

This "Naked Forest" quilt already has a story.

I used a great tutorial from Film in the Fridge. Her work is always fresh & modern - it was a perfect choice for all of the green print fabrics I'd collected.

Once I completed this quilt top, I knew I wanted to hand-quilt it.

I sent it to Melear Fabrics to baste on their longarm quilting machine.

They shipped it back to me, but the address was read incorrectly by the postal service. It ended up three states away, sitting in a holding area. Fortunately, the folks at my local post office were able to track it down.

There were a few very uncertain weeks.... Luckily, it arrived 27 days after it was shipped, unharmed.

Here, you can see the black basting thread up-close.

I started quilting it on Sunday, December 18, 2011. Today, I have 4 of 169 blocks quilted.

Let's see how long it takes for this to finish!

(If anyone wants to help the hand-stitching....)

details: 104x104, backing: Kona Tarragon, expected binding: Kona Basil Green, Batting: White Quilters Dream Request Loft W3K

Waverunner in Red

I saw this tutorial at Bumble Beans and knew I had to make it. This is for a good friend's TV room that is without color - until now.

The top came together pretty easily - in just two afternoons. The quilting and binding took less than a day. Improvisational piecing was more enjoyable than I thought it would be.

Not having straight lines is a little bit daunting.

I put a warm, fuzzy, light blue flannel on the back. You can't see this in the picture, but there's a light design on the binding fabric.

I really enjoyed working with all of the solids in this quilt!

Details: 60x80, flannel backing, 2.25in binding, grey quilting thread

The Tupperware Quilt is Complete

It's been a long time coming and this is finally complete. I've blogged about this quilt here and here. I'm so glad to be done with it! Here you can see its crinkly goodness after its first washing:
Here's few closeups of the hand stitching:

I've been feeling so good about the hand-stitching on this that I've decided to start another hand-stitched quilt.
I fell in love with this quilt on Film in the Fridge and decided to make my own.
I have 169 blocks -

Here's an almost-finished top on my bed:

I will add a narrow white border to this before it's basted. For the back, I've chosen a solid Kona tarragon. The binding's not yet decided - I am leaning towards Denyse Schmidt's Sugar Creek Kitchsy Tile Cornflower. Looking forward to some hand-stitching! Anyone want to help? At 102x102, there's enough room for a lot of hands to quilt this....

It all started with tupperware

Amy, from Amyscreativeside.com, is hosting a Blogger's Quilt Festival to coincide with Quilt Market. To see some amazing quilts by bloggers everywhere, click on the link below:

I'm pretty sure that my love of orange is directly related to my love of all things from the 1970s.

What really epitomizes the color palette for me is, and always has been, my mom's funky set of tupperware:

I've always loved this set!

It's still in pristine condition, too. That handle really keeps the set together.

My name is on the bottom of the yellow bowl, made with a labelmaker much like this one:

I can't think of one thing that wasn't labeled with that label maker.

Coming up with a palette for a quilt for myself wasn't too hard. I usually start with orange.

Above is a shot of all of the blocks together, but not in the final arrangement.

Below, all set together:

The best part of this quilt, tho, isn't the color palette.

(even tho they're all my favorites)

The best part about this quilt is that it is just my second quilt hand-quilted piece.

And, it is the quilt that brought all of these fabulous people together to put it in a frame and help me start hand quilting.

We put it up in the driveway - on my grandmother's frame.

We used the quilt stands my granddad made.

Above, the backing is pinned to the boards first.

Then (below) the batting and top are attached.

And the quilting began.

These two great gals took me into their quilting circle!

Some quilt-enthusiasts showed up to support us:

Here's a great picture of one of my grams' best pals, showing me how it's done:

It was a perfect day to start a fun 70's tupperware-inspired quilt!

Particulars: 42 blocks, log cabiny, cotton batting

Progress to date: 29.5 blocks complete, binding machine-stitched to the backside.

Anna & her commissioned quilt

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

Icepalooza has taken over the Midwest.

I woke to this kind of icicle action:

Just a mere week ago, we had this much snow:

(and I'm hoping for much, much, more)

Oh, how I love a winter storm.

And, of course, my trusty sidekick can't get enough of the magical white powder, either.

Today, I took advantage of the time iced-in and finished up two quilts.

The Striped Monster....

100x100 inches.

I have been collecting striped fabrics for years. years.

Finally, I finished the quilt top with them:

I braved the cold for a few photographs.

It was treacherous!

And wonderful.

This is a second, baby/lap size - about 40x50 inches.

The stripes came out a little screwy - I think it was too much for my baby camera to handle.

Purple Plainspoken for my niece, Ashley

I finished and gifted the Purple Plainspoken quilt to my niece, Ashley.

This is Ashley á

This is her quilt â

She chose purple camo for a fun, warm, flannel backing:

Fake-napping for Aunt Patticakes, so I could see it in action:

First Snow!

Winter's finally here!

We woke to our first snow....

Stella couldn't be more pleased.

You can't see it too well in these photos, but Stella's sporting a new collar from Dublin Dogs!

It's the eco-Lucks Blitzen. It's a nice festive splash of color.

This is the "come out and play" look she's perfected.

The gods have given us snow... let's not waste it.

Tho, she's been in the holiday spirit for weeks!

Snowy weather is perfect for sewing....

I have been working on two very similar quilts - one for my niece, Ashley, (commissioned) and another, smaller, quilt for a new friend I met when I bought something from her through craigslist.

Here's a sneak peek of them.

This is the smaller one, created for my new craigslist pal:

I finished and shipped it and realized I didn't photograph the finished piece.

Take my word for it: it turned out great!

I think she'll really like it. The cobalt blue flannel on the back will make this a great lap quilt for her.

Next, is Ashley's quilt laid out on the floor.

The key to the plainspoken pattern is variety within the palette!

And, for the back - purple camo flannel!

what a hoot.

I hope she likes it.