Blogger's Quilt Festival - My Star Baby Quilt

Each Spring and Fall over the past few years - I have enjoyed looking through all the wonderful quilt entries for the Blogger's Quilt Festival at Amy's Creative Side. I have been amazed and inspired by the unique, creative and simply beautiful entries that I have seen. This year, after having started my blog just over a month ago - I have decided to be a participant in this fabulous event and I am super excited!

I offer my Star Baby Quilt as my entry into the festival.

Finished Quilt Measurements: 31' x 41'

Best Category: Baby Quilt

Quilted by: Me

This quilt started from the simplicity of not having anyone to sew a quilt for at the time, but having the need to sew a quilt...I am sure you have been there before! I had been eyeing the Oz by Sanae for Moda charm packs that were sitting in my stash and had fallen in love with the 'Dots'. I wanted to make a quilt - that was colourful, but not overly bright - so I challenged myself to only use the squares in the small floral and the dots (I see a few cherries snuck into the border to finish up the lengths).

I really enjoyed practicing my wonky stars.

I always love a vintage sheet for the back - I was lucky enough to find the same sheet in 2 colour ways and used one for the binding as well (Oh! you should have seen the process for deciding which would go where...too funny!).

Thank you so much Amy for the wonderful opportunity of sharing my quilt and enjoying everyone else's beautiful work!

Hope you are all having as much fun as I am clicking through all the amazing entries! Starting a list of my faves...

~Lisa

Patchwork Pumpkin

I wanted to share my finish...

I had expected to make him some friends, but was surprised by how much stuffing he needed and am just not up for a trip out to purchase more. Would much rather head back down to my sewing room and continue sewing these...

These are my curves from this work in progress. I think I will be spending a lot of time on these this Fall!

Hope you are having a great start to your week. Happy Monday!
Linking up with 'Manic Monday Linky Party' at Sew Happy Geek.


~Lisa

It's Always a Good Day for Orange...

Orange is by far my favourite colour. So, when given the opportunity to sew with this lovely shade, I cannot possibly turn it down - and of course, Fall is the perfect time.

With inspiration from Martha at Weekend Doings (Isn't hers just gorgeous?!!) for the pumpkin decoration, I went to the fabric store and chose these...

 I already had this pattern on hand from last year (unused!)...

The Patchwork Pumpkins pattern by Retro Mama can be purchased here.

Off I go to sew up some pumpkins...

Happy Saturday!

~Lisa

Brightening up a Rainy Day...

Here is my version of the Plus Quilt. This quilt will brighten up any dull, grey day - as it is here today in the Lower Mainland of BC. I wanted to spend some time playing with bright, fun colours and this is the quilt that resulted. The fabric in this quilt is mostly Oz by Sanae for Moda, with some extras thrown in to round out the numbers.

The backing, a gentle tone of lime green - another vintage linen. My absolute favourite way to back a quilt - soft and cozy and ready for cuddling in.

I quilted straight lines on either side of the seams. I do so love this neat and organized way of quilting - it makes my brain happy. It lends itself to my penchant for neat and tidy. This green variegated thread was perfect - blending in well with the bright colours.

Now all it needs is the binding. I am going to use this black floral from the Oz line. The dark print will frame it nicely. I like to machine bind - though I have not come up with a sure-fire favourite method yet. I have tried a few and seem to change something each time.

What is your favourite way of binding? Do you have a method that works for you every time. That is my goal - I want to find a tried and true method of binding, that will give me the same results each quilt. I like to know what I am getting into!

Linking up with WIP Wednesdays over at Freshly Pieced and My Creative Space.


~Lisa

Keep on Keeping on...

 Been plugging away at this...

And enjoying EVERY minute of the process. Much fun taking place in the sewing room.



Been doing a lot of this...

And making a lot of these...

Who knew you could spend so much time moving ovals around?!!! 

What have you been up to? Have you had some productive time in the sewing room?

Linking up with The Needle and Thread Network and also Plum and June.

Happy Sewing!

~Lisa

Something New

These...

Plus these...

And this...

To equal my own version of this.

Super excited to be starting something new. Now off to the cutting mat!

Linking up to WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced and also The Needle and Thread Network.

Lisa

Something from Nothing

Well, maybe that is an exaggeration, as certainly fabric is not NOTHING - but something from very little just doesn't have the same ring to it!

This quilt began with the desire to make something from the 'dots' squares that were in my Oz by Sanae for Moda charm pack. I really wanted to stick with a small number of fabric choices. I decided to add the tiny floral print, also from this charm pack (Dizzy in yellow, orange, pink and green), and then limited myself to one solid.

I am pleased with the colourful and bright and yet still simple and classic design that emerged. This quilt is small - 31' x 41' and will live with me in my sewing room until the right person comes along - baby girl anyone?


I must share the back of this quilt, as I think it makes it just that much better...

 Ooooh, a vintage linen. My favourite. I cannot keep my hands off of vintage sheets - they just walk their way into my sewing room. I love this one and was lucky enough to find its partner in a peachy orange colourway and used it for the binding.

Having never used a sheet for binding before, I was happy with the result. Though I did grapple a bit with the cutting of such a large piece of material. Any suggestions? I hated to cut it into smaller bits, but maybe that is one solution.


Linking up to the 'Let's Get Acquainted!' blog hop over at Plum and June and TGIFF over at Echinops and Aster.


Hope you are having a Happy Tuesday!

Lisa

Patience

Planning on turning these...

 Into more of these...

With hopes that it will turn into something like this beautiful example of art at its very best.


A long-term project that waits patiently on my design wall for me to have a quiet moment to sew up a star or two. Can't wait to see the final result!



Lisa

New-to-You

As I mentioned in my previous (and inaugural!) post, I have been scoping the internet for the past handful of years growing my list of quilting and sewing bloggers that I admire. I have spent many an evening browsing through blogs full of fabulously gorgeous work and helpful tutorials. I enjoy looking at the work of others and often find inspiration that sends me off into my own sewing room to see what I can do. I have gratefully used tutorials on piecing and sandwiching and basting and binding and and and…

It is through the knowledge of others and the sharing nature of the quilting community that I have been able to continue learning about this art of quilting that I have become so taken with.

One such evening, while browsing through blogland, I came across this post from Blue Elephant Stitches and it made me happy. I do so looooove straight-line quilting and done in this random fashion, I thought looked absolutely amazing - straight and clean, and yet fun and casual at the same time. I immediately thought of a quilt top that had been hanging around unquilted for ages because I felt that it needed some ZING, but wasn't quite sure what that zing was. I loved the colours of this particular quilt, but it seemed too serious, it kept niggling at me that it was missing something. I swear quilts talk – because this one DID NOT want to be quilted as per usual (on either side of the seams, which is one of my favourite ways to quilt). Enter the random straight-line quilting – I knew it was just the thing. So I pulled out my thread, chose 3 (yes, 3!) colours…

and started stitching. Well let me tell you – it was liberating. Randomly following my heart and my eye to see where the quilt ‘wanted’ to be stitched next. I used masking tape for guidelines to help keep my lines straight. I had such fun; I quilted straight through a whole entire day (neglecting chores, dinner and responsibility et al) and share with you this….

...with which I am so pleased. This makes me giddy. So much so that I have been carrying it around with me just so I can smile at it (silly, right?!), as a matter of  fact right now it sits on the back of my chair as I type. 

I love this random star of quilting

How fun it that?!!! That you can take something from simple to ‘star’ by changing up your go-to style, and looking at it in a new way.

Have you finished a project lately that called out for something different? What new-to-you things have you tried recently?

Hope you are having fun!

Lisa