Random Reflections

 Here's a quilt i finally finished for my friend. I'll be mailing it off to her tomorrow. 

I finally used the last of my Verna too. Well, I think I still have some scraps but not much! 

I had won a giveaway from Rachel of ps i quilt about 1 1/2 years ago. Right before Verna hit all the stores. I won a jelly roll, a layer cake, and a honey bun. I used the layer cake for my pinwheel sampler quilt. So since I already had a quilt for myself with this fabric, I decided to make a quilt for my friend with the jelly roll.

(yes, one section of my fence is new, the other old!)

  Quilt stats:

Measures 57"x57" (I wish I would have made it bigger, but oh well!)

Pattern: Random Reflections found here

Fabric: Verna by Kate Spain

Binding: a fabric I bought at Hobby Lobby

Backing: 2 fabrics from the Verna line and some white that I had.

One more off my "to do" list! YAY!!

I'm a little obsessed....

......as you can plainly see!

(don't mind that this is laying on some extremely LONG grass that is in desperate need of mowing!)

I've got some pretty big plans for the quilting and I can't wait to get started. I wish I didn't have so much going on over the next few days!

Baby Sawyer Quilt

I have a friend pregnant with a boy and they've picked out the name "Sawyer". (so let's hope they don't change their mind!) Anyway, her baby shower is next month so I made her a ticker tape quilt. I will never tire of making these! #1, they are a great use for scraps; #2, they are super fun to make; and #3, I have yet to see one that I didn't like. Babies love them because they are 'textural'. 

 I did learn something though...I usually use a glue stick to hold my scraps in place before I sew them down. This time, I ran out of glue sticks about mid way through. So I improvised and used a temporary  fabric glue. Well, those scraps that were held down by fabric glue are stiff and kinda hard. I had no idea it would do that and I'm hoping with more washes those will soften up. So I'll wash and dry it again and see if that helps!

I've had a couple people ask me about labels so here's the label for this one.

I used Rachel's of ps i quilt's tutorial, except I machine stitched through all layers to attach to the back.

(and yes, it took me until right now that I realized I wrote July when it's actually June! Oh well, the shower is in July!)

Quilt stats:

measures: 30"x38"

made entirely of scraps from my stash and many given to me from Crystal (Thanks Crystal!!You seriously have the best scraps EVER!)

background fabric is unbleached muslin

backing fabric is one of the prints from Folksy Flannel by Anna Maria Horner

binding fabric is Farmer's Market "Pomegranite Seeds" by Sandi Henderson

In honor of the RHCP...

Red Hot Chili Peppers Symbol
 
I hunted and hunted for an asterisk block pattern that I liked that would work for what I was aiming for. Of course, no luck. I'm sure there was probably an easier way to construct this block. But me being the inexperienced quilter that I am, I couldn't figure it out. I'm pretty pleased with it except that I sewed some of the points into the seams which really ticked me off. It was unavoidable with the way the blocks were. (see, my inexperience in calculating the right measurements! Plus the fact that I suck at math!!) Oh well...
This block took forever and I'm not sure I'll make more or not. I may just try and do something with this one.
we'll see!

A Family Heirloom

This quilt was made by my husband's Great-Great-Aunt. My mother-in-law gave it to me several years ago for my eldest daughter's bed. We used it for a while but then I put it away. It's falling apart in places and I just can't risk it being completely ruined so now it sits in a cupboard. 

I've been wanting to do a blog post about it for some time now and finally got around to it. 

We don't know exactly what year she made this but she lived from 1872-1962. 

It is hand appliqued and hand quilted. Here are each individual butterflies:

The solid blue part of the quilt is hand quilted in this really neat design, too. (kinda hard to see in the picture)

Then in several places there are worn spots, like this:

There isn't a quilt label, which really makes me sad. I'd love to know when this was actually made!

This quilt fits a full sized bed. 

I love this quilt and I love that it is still in the family.

Winner!

Random.org selected a winner! 

#6: Victoria Paige @ Boutique Uniquely, you WON!

I've sent you an email requesting your address.

Thanks to everyone for entering!

Now...

....I just have to quilt and bind it!

A soon to be baby quilt for a friend.

Oh and thanks for the ideas for the teacher. Starbucks gift card and mug it is. It's what my daughter wants to give him anyway, so it works out perfectly!

Suggestions??

Totally not quilt related, but I need help....

My eldest daughter's last day of school is THIS Friday and I need to get her teacher a gift. 

Her First grade teacher is a man.

I'm rather new at this (gift-giving for teachers) but I'm staying true to form and totally waiting until the last minute, as usual!

Any suggestions???

For YOU!

Quilt measures 56"x66" and is made of vintage sheets, including the backing. it is bound with "Feedsack" by Sarah Morgan for Blue Hill fabrics.

In honor of all my wonderful readers, I whipped up this lovely Vintage Sheet quilt for you! (you'll have to excuse you crappy gray skies. We are experiencing "June Gloom" in full force here!) 

It's my 2 year blogiversary this month and I wanted to reward you! You have no idea how much I appreciate the comments, support, friendships and inspiration you all give! So this is for you. 

 I've met some great people and friends through this blog, so thank you!

 To win all you have to do is leave me one comment. BUT...there is a slight catch. I like to hear what you guys have to say, so I'd like you to answer a question for me!

What is your favorite book that you've read recently? (Or just a great book you've read)

I'm looking for some good reads this summer and would love to hear some suggestions!
I'll pick a winner Friday June 17th, 2011. This giveaway is open to everyone...worldwide.

all because of c c.....

 It's all her fault that I picked up my crochet hook again. I mean seriously, is this amazing or what? My word girl, you've some some serious talent! So I'll say it again, thank you for inspiring me!

I'm not solely working on this, so this is something that will be a work in progress over many months. I wanted something portable to be able to do when we move from California to Rhode Island in August, and this is perfect! Especially since we are driving and pulling our trailer. I'll be able to do this on the road while I'm in the truck and when when stop for the night.

Mia's Quilt

 This is for my husband's step sister who is pregnant with baby #2. They like the name Mia, so I'm hoping that's what they decide to name her! But to be safe, I haven't done a label yet.

I'm still calling it Mia's quilt for my blog though.

It was really hard to get a decent picture of this quilt. the colors are very light and muted, this was the best I could get! (If you click on the picture, it should take you so you can click it to enlarge and then see the fabrics a bit better)

Quilt stats: 37"x48"

Fabric: Robyn Pandolf's "Beach House"

I bought a roll up of "Beach House" that consisted of 5.5" x 22" (and I forget how many strips were in it) a LONG time ago from a local fabric shop. I think I mainly bought it because of the "name" of the line. That and I knew that I'd use it someday to make someone a baby quilt. I just cut the whole thing up different sized blocks and then sewed them together randomly. For the binding, I used left over strips cut down to 2.5" and then pieced together. The backing is just made of a single piece of one of the fabrics in the line.