FF: Aqua, Pink, and Purple Edition.

I finished this quilt top a few weeks ago and realized I never shared it here. Scandalous!

I had nine fat quarters and a mission: a good sized baby quilt that used the most of my fabric with a minimal amount of time invested. That sounds terrible to say out loud, doesn't it? But it was totally true. I browsed through my quilting books and landed on Tula Pink's Fairy Tale Lane from her book, Quilts from the House of Tula Pink. Only problem? The finished quilt would be much too big. (Wanna see a delicious version of the full quilt using AMH fabrics? Of course you do.)

Solution: Make 9 blocks instead of 12 and cut the sashing.

I'll be honest, it hurt to cut out the sashing since I really really love the effect, but the blocks were 16" square, and a 3x3 grid was already going to get me a 48" square quilt.

I'm not sure how I'm going to quilt it yet, but I've put it aside as other projects have demanded attention. I'll get back to it eventually.

I'm linking up with TGIFF with Aunt Marti at 52 Quilts and Crazy Mom Quilts.

Sisters' 10 Blocks--12 of 20 done!

I should have posted a progress photo last month when I hit the halfway point of this BOM, but alas, May was not my month. June hasn't been great, but at least I'm getting a few things done!

In all their glory, here are my 12 Sisters' 10 BOM blocks. There are 8 more to go, and then I'll be piecing together a *gasp!* twin size quilt. Yikes. That will definitely be my largest. We'll see if Agatha and I can handle it!

Anyone else doing this BOM?

WIP: Too Much Edition.

Hi Friends! How is your Wednesday? (Or Thursday.) June has meant the arrival of lots and lots of family members. And as one set leaves, another set arrives. (I'm not joking. One set leaves Monday, and my mom comes that evening!)

Remember this yummy stack? I'm about 2/3 of the way through piecing the 48 blocks for the top. 

I'm keeping up with my Tula Pink City Sampler blocks. I've got the first 12 done, though only the first 9 are pictured hanging from the improvised clothesline. (Blockline?) I'm really enjoying making these blocks as they're small, and they come together quickly. I've also enjoyed cutting into my Tula stash and using random bits and pieces to make up the blocks. So far, I have current Tula, old school Tula, quilting cottons, shot cottons, and some batiks. I'd like to use some linens before the project is out--I think I'll have a bit of time over the next 88 blocks--and maybe even some flannel and corduroy. Nuts? Yes. 

I've finished quilting my X+ quilt. I did some basic straight line quilting in the pluses, but I did attempt some FMQ in the X portions. While certainly not perfect, it is encouraging to see that I'm getting a little smoother with it, and my stitch length is getting more regular. I have lots and lots of threads to bury, and then some binding to get to sewing.

What are you up to this week? I'll have a finish to share on Friday--woo!--and I'm hoping to get those blocks finished up before next week.

I'm linking up this week with WIP Wednesdays at Freshly Pieced!

 

SS: The Haul Edition.

On my trip back home, I visited three fabric stores and walked away with nothing. I was good, Friends. I behaved myself.

So, it's not surprising that today, on a visit to my LQS, I went a little wild. In my defense, these are promised quilts that I'm working on, and not just me going hog wild over random fabric, though I did squee when I saw some pony fabric. I held back. I might be a tiny bit too old for a pink and purple pony skirt. Except, who am I kidding? I will never be too old for that!

Batik haterz, beware!

This pile will be made into a throw for my older sister and her husband.

 

And this, my favorite pin dot EVER to be used for my sister-in-law and her husband's wedding quilt. Oh! Have I not shown you photos of the blocks just yet? 

You're welcome.

May was my month for the Make It Modern Bee, and these are the lovelies that my bee mates sent me. Gorgeous, right? And I have to send this quilt off...so sad. I'll be sashing and bordering it with the pin dot, mostly to get it a little bigger.

There were some other fabrics, but my camera protested, and the pictures were blurry, and with two small kidlets, I'm lucky to have gotten these! It just means more fabric to share at a later date, right? 

It's Sunday, and you know what that means! I'm linking up with Sunday Stash with Fiona at Finding Fifth.

Gertrude.

Friends, this is Gertrude, Agatha's new best friend. *Squee!*

She was commissioned in 1927, and she is awesome and amazing and fabulous. Gertrude belonged to my great grandmother and was passed from my grandmother (and namesake) to my father. On our trip back home, I happened to stop at my dad's house and spotted a familiar wooden Singer case. Apparently, my father has had Gertrude since I was a baby, but he conveniently forgot to mention her existence until I spotted her lovely wooden case. Thankfully, my daddy's a nice guy, and he knew Gertrude would be happier with me.

Gertrude isn't a treadle machine, but she doesn't have a foot pedal. She is operated by a knee lever, which I had never seen before. I heard a rumor that only 15,000 of this type of Singer were made, but that's a rumor, folks, though wouldn't it be super amazing if it was true? 

Isn't she amazing? I can't wait to do some further investigation and see if she's operational!

FF: The Dress.

Hi Friends! I'm currently in a cabin in the mountains of the high desert--yes, there are mountains and even green stuff in the high desert, which sounds like a crazy incompatibility, but it's true!--and while I hadn't intended to take a bloggy absence, this is only the second time I've opened my computer since I've been gone.

However, I promised you photos, and now I'm delivering because I'm sweet like that. I finished a dress! That I wore! To a wedding--eep!

I used the Jamie Dress by Sis Boom. The pattern was ridiculously easy (even for me!) to follow, and the instructions and pictures were perfect. I used a voile from Anna Maria Horner's Innocent Crush line, and it feels divine. I did make one pattern modification, and that was to fully line the skirt as well as the bodice since the fabric is rather sheer.

Fun fact! For about a kajillion years, I thought voile was pronounced to rhyme with toile. I guess seven years of French lessons will do that to you, right? But it meant that when I said I was working with voile, no one knew what that was. (I still think it should be pronounced to rhyme with toile, but I'll get over it--probably next year sometime.)

The only problem I found with this dress was my own inexperience with garment sewing. (This came out again recently when I had another go at a skirt, which I'll share soon, cross my heart.) I had read a pattern review that suggested making the bodice piece one size larger than my measurements suggested because the bodice ran small. When I made the muslin, I originally used the larger bust measurement, which was much too large, but I thought the rest of the bodice worked well enough, so I cut into my voile and pieced it using the smaller bust measurement. I now wish I had made the size that my measurements recommended. I don't think the dress looks bad, but I think the correct size would "fit" a lot better. What this means though, is that my dress is nice and roomy, and very very comfortable, so all in all, it's not a bad thing. I'm learning about fit when it comes to apparel, and while that's a difficult concept to grasp, I'm hoping to get there!

The zipper insertion was a piece of cake--no, really--and that was probably the most complicated piece of the pattern. Of course, I had to finish off the ensemble with a bolero sweater and red shoes.

Have you made a Jamie Dress? I want to hear about it! I'd like to make some additional dresses this summer, so if you have any good pattern suggestions, hit it up in the comments! (Though, please remember my garment sewing inexperience.)

I'll be back sometime in the next couple of days with a picture of something very very exciting. But that's all I'm saying! You'll just have to wait and see!