C2C2: Alison's Quilt

After finishing up with Stephanie's quilt for the Coast to Coast Traveling Bee, I quickly jumped into getting Alison's done. There are two reasons for this: 1) I'm moving soon. I don't want to accidentally lose or pack any of this lovely quilt! and 2) Get a look at those fabrics! How could I not get excited to work with such a cheery group?

For C2C this year, Alison requested a 48" row featuring any kind of block we liked--within reason, of course. I opted for a Greek Cross block, and I used Fresh Lemons Quilts' tutorial. Alison had sent along this super fun set of charms and some additional yardage, and I opted to use a yellow solid for my background fabric, mostly because none of the other rows had gone yellow, and isn't it such a sunny shade?

This is my favorite of the four blocks that I made. I really like the fabric used for the center cross.

And here are all the rows making friends with each other. If I'm remembering correctly, Alison is planning to sash these lovelies together, then throw a border around the entire thing. Yum yum yum yum.

Friends, this concludes the Coast to Coast Traveling Bee for me for this year. Well, until I get my own quilt back, of course! For the second year in a row, this bee has proved to be challenging, but super rewarding. I'm so thankful to the ladies who sewed along with me. Onto next year!

Finished Magnolia Mystery Quilt

BAM. It's done, and none too soon, as it was a gift for my super awesome good friend L, and I am so excited that after working on it for A YEAR, I finally got around to finishing it and sending it along its way. Spoiler alert: she loved it!

This is the Magnolia Mystery Quilt from Cheryl of Meadow Mist Designs. This is the second mystery quilt that I've finished by Cheryl, and I LOVE them both. I'm a bit ashamed to tell you the first one STILL isn't completed, but it's waiting longingly for its time to shine. One of these days....

I kept it simple and straightforward with this one's quilting. Black stipple in the batik areas, and straight line quilting in a lime thread through the blocks. Woulda shoulda coulda gotten a picture of the back to show you the yum lime against the super awesome Grunge dot print, but I didn't. Lately, it's a struggle to remember my first name!

I so enjoyed making this quilt, and I am so pleased to know my friend loves it. She has been such an important influence on me, and I was thrilled at the idea of gifting her something that I made with my own two hands.

I'm going on seven years of quilting now, and there's something still so magical about that!

C2C2: Stephanie's Quilt

It has come to my attention that I still have not one but TWO Coast to Coast Traveling Bee quilts in progress to share with you! I've actually finished up my commitment to that bee for this year, and this year's quilt tops have me soaring with excitement. BONUS: I can't WAIT to get my own quilt back!

First, up, Stephanie's quilt. I lucked out and found Stephanie's original blog post showing her quilt start and a bit of her inspiration. Stephanie shipped it to K, who shipped it to Chelsea, who shipped it to me, so I'm the fourth person who had the privilege of working on this lovely.

This is the bulk of Stephanie's quilt as of now. You can see her original trees, and also the flying geese K added and the tulips from Chelsea. I added a row of butterflies down the right side to follow along with the nature prompt. I felt like there was a lot of plant life, so we needed some insect life too.

I had so much fun picking out the fabrics for the butterflies. I kept the bodies the same fabric, but each butterfly had different colored wings.

But I didn't feel right about just sending the super fun to piece butterflies, so I went back to the cutting board...

...and churned out a row of Ohio stars. Of course, I did my quilty math totally wrong, and instead of fitting over the top of the quilt, it hung seriously over! Thankfully Alison, the next person in the chain, is a total peach, and she said she'd add the stars for me after making her own additions. Whew!

I'm not gonna lie, I struggled with the theme for this one. Not because it was particularly hard, but the prompt was nature, and I am SO not a nature-y kind of girl. Have any of y'all seen the Jim Gaffigan sketch on camping? I think it's in his King Baby special, but the line that always sticks out to me is when he says he's "indoorsy." SPOT ON, Jim Gaffigan. I'm not a nature kind of girl, I'm just indoorsy.

I'm starting to think about round 3 of the bee...sure, it's only June, but I'm a planner! Hopefully I'll have Alison's quilt to share with you next week!

A Geranium Dress for Vanilla

One of the perks of taking a three month blogging hiatus is that I actually have a few things to share with you! This whole, I'm moving soon business has been taxing to say the least, but I've managed to get a few things finished, including this super cool Geranium Dress by Made by Rae for my Vanilla Bean.

This green and white print came from my grandmother's stash, as did the gingham lining. I'm fairly confident they were purchased at the same time, and for the super high cost of eighty-six cents! I don't know when my grandma purchased these lovelies, but my daughter is rocking some sweet threads, let me tell you.

It's obvs not perfect, but I am so pleased with how it turned out. The buttonholes aren't *perfectly* spaced, but I like to think people will be so enthralled by my adorable daughter that they won't even notice the buttonholes.

Speaking of perfect, it looks as though I was totally bomb at matching those stripes and pleats from the skirt with the bodice. Between you and me, because we're friends and all, it was a TOTAL accident in cutting. But like, I'm not complaining. It looks fierce.

I also finished up these stuffed pups from the Woof Woof Panel by Stacy Iest Hsu. The little pups are done too. I was watching a friend's kidlets when we suddenly encountered a quilt store in the wild. It wasn't my neck of the city, so I kinda sorta dragged three young boys into a quilt shop. (For the record, they were extremely well behaved.) We saw these pups stitched up, and the oldest boy suggested I make the pink one for Vanilla and the blue one for his baby bro. It was a most excellent plan, so of course I agreed.

Coast to Coast 2: C's Quilt

I shared K's quilt with y'all earlier this week, and today I'm back to share C's quilt with you!

C's quilt was the first one (other than my own) that I tackled for C2C this year. I feel like the first round is always super tough--you're setting a major tone for future additions! And I struggled with C's quilt. I felt like I could go a conservative route and tack on some trees, or a sunshine in the sky, or a river underneath, and I sketched out numerous plans. I researched natural features in NH, where C is from, and I even considered improv piecing a waterfall. But none of those ideas felt right.

What did feel right was a retro travel poster idea. I reached out to C, who was okay with my idea, and I went to town! I googled retro travel posters and looked for ideas. I ultimately decided to frame the mountains with a white-on-white print and a chocolate shot cotton, which totally looks black and way too much in the pic above, but it's really a tad more demure.

For the lettering, I used a red and white polka dot because I knew I wanted red. Yummy, yummy red. I bought an alphabet pattern from From Blank Pages, and it was awesome. I would totally recommend it!

This was a teaser I put up on instagram, and I asked readers to guess what it was going to say. Some of the responses were totally awesome.

Next I'll work on S's quilt, but I have a brief break because I haven't received it just yet. Here's hoping I can squeeze out another quilt or two and maybe even cut into the fabric I purchased for two dresses this past weekend. (Yes, two. Apparently my fabric-buying self-control went out the window this weekend. I blame it on the snow and my need to wear sundresses without heavy tights and boots.)

Do you have any fun weekend sewing plans? I'm going to be staring longingly at my tangerine knit fabric and my Moneta dress pattern. Maybe???

Coast to Coast 2: K's Quilt

So, apparently I haven't posted about the second quilt I've worked on for Coast to Coast 2018, but I just finished this one yesterday, and I'm super excited about it, so you get to see K's first. (Though I'm not gonna lie, C's is another sort of super cool.)

This is what I received in the mail a few weeks ago. K had started with the awesome paper pieced center, and C had put it on point (SUCH an awesome decision) and added the patchwork. K requested movement, and I thought one way of furthering that goal would be to put it on point again.

So I did.

My initial plan was to do stripes. The starting point is gorgeous with a yum low volume/color balance, but I thought the use of minimal LV and bold colors in my round would be a fun contrast. (It also feels like a total Audrey move, not gonna lie.) But stripes seemed kinda...boring. And since K is not only my quilt bee buddy but ALSO the person who introduced me to quilting, I couldn't just slap together a set of stripes and call it done. So I added triangles, which I think was the right move.

The fabrics I chose for this were a yellow pin dot I had in stash, an Alison Glass print in orange (one of my fave prints from her), some grunge in a cream, a fun batik I picked up, and this purple stripe print, which I think seals the deal. Like, it would be cool without it, and I almost chickened out and went with a grunge in purple, but the saleslady caught me putting back the stripe-y bolt and pretty much strong-armed me into it. (In the best sort of way--she was lovely.) I was worried the stripes wouldn't line up and it would be super obvious, but I think it works out okay.

I also chose to piece the yellow and orange at different widths, so in two corners, the yellow is more prominent, and in two, the orange is more prominent. I obviously didn't make the width too different because I don't think most people would notice, but I had hoped it would add to the movement theme.

I seriously love this bee!

Finished Tula Pink Patina Quilt

FRIENDS. I am so incredibly pleased to let you know this quilt is DONE. I need only drag it down to the post office and send it to my niece, woo! (And when I say drag, I mean drag. This thing is heavy!)

This is the Patina Quilt from Tula Pink and Angela Walters' book, Quilting with Tula and Angela. I had originally intended to echo quilt around each colored bit, but the turning was wreaking absolute havoc on my shoulders, and I wasn't going to be able to finish it! So, I just did the center row, and then I stippled the two ends.

For the back, I used a tie-dye flannel because these are my niece's fave colors, and she loves tie-dye! So it was meant to be. However, using this flannel is part of why the quilt was so heavy! It should be nice and comfy for snuggling though. Worth it!

For the binding, I used Cotton + Steel's Sprinkles print in navy, plus a hint of lime (Kona Chartreuse, probably). This is my second finish from my Q1 FAL list, and I am SO excited that it's done! Definitely a win in my book. It will most likely be my last finish from that list, but two is better than none!

Now, if I can manage to get a few more quilt tops basted, we'll be in business!

FF: Magnolia Mystery Quilt Top.

This morning, chaos abounds! I set myself a reminder on my phone to email a picture of my finished Magnolia Mystery Quilt top to Cheryl so I could be a part of the parade. I had waited until today to send it, hoping that I would have a finished quilt, but that is not the case! And then, when I went to pull up the photos of this quilt, I realized I 1) can't find the photos I took of the finished top, and 2) I NEVER wrote a blog post about it. #winning!

So hooray for me, I managed to squeeze in a small photo shoot amidst homeschooling, and I'm dashing out a quick post before I forget again. I say quick...we'll see if I can tamp down my typical verbose self.

Here is my finished Magnolia Mystery Quilt top! Cheryl from Meadow Mist Designs runs a mystery quilt every year, and this is my second time participating in the fun.

This quilt was a BLAST to piece. Like, I seriously thought to myself multiple times during the process that I was having so much fun, and for a girl in a chaotic season of life, that makes this all the more special. Team that up with the fact that this is destined for a very important person in my life, and I have some serious feels for this quilt.

I didn't participate in Cheryl's mystery quilt last year, and I kicked myself for that decision. You see, I STILL haven't finished my Midnight Mystery Quilt from the year before, and I told myself I couldn't until I finished that one. (It's all pieced, I'm just waiting to get it long-armed.) When this year rolled around, I told myself I could, as long as I could find all of the fabric I would need in my stash. And I did! The black batik was a huge piece of fabric a friend gave me a few years ago, the green is a super fun swirl print that I can't remember the name of, though it's quite possibly my favorite blender ever. The turquoise is a mix of an Alison Glass print and a Grunge Dot print, and the purple are two blenders that I had in stash. I have enough of the black to use as binding, and I scored a ridiculously loud print for the back for $2.49/yard, but I think I'll let that be a little surprise.

FF: Wayward Transparency Quilt!

I'm pretty sure you've seen fifty kajillion iterations of this quilt because everyone made one, but here's mine! (Of course fifty kajillion iterations were made--this pattern is bomb!) But just in case you haven't seen one, this is the Wayward Transparency Quilt by Quilting Jetgirl, which was part of a super fun awesome QAL. I always love Yvonne's patterns as they are extremely easy to read and understand, and they turn out some super sweet quilts!

These photos were taken after the quilt's first wash. I particularly love the crinkly goodness that a spiky meander leaves a quilt. I quilted everything in a mint thread that matches the lightest solid. I was concerned it might be too pronounced on the darker triangles or possibly distort the transparency effect given the quilting design that I had chosen, but now I think it's just fine.

I did machine stitch down my binding, something I'm choosing to do more and more often now, but this time I used my zigzag stitch. I've done this on a couple of other quilts, but I thought in this case it would particularly suit given the spiky meander.

And the back is a big chunk of a Joel Dewberry print, plus some scraps I pulled out, including my beloved C+S tigers. I only ever managed to find a fat eighth of that print, and now I'm left with a small scrap, but as this quilt is heading to a super sweet baby boy, I'm happy to share.

This is my first finish of my FAL Q1 list, and it's already February! I better get moving! :)

Purple Moneta Dress

I finished this dress a few weeks ago, but getting photos taken? Well, that was another matter entirely! This is the Moneta Dress by Colette. I used a purple knit fabric from Jo-Ann's to make a muslin for this pattern, but of course I hoped that it would be a wearable muslin. I think I have worn this three times since I finished it? So success! Because you see, I have some pink octopi fabric just waiting to be transformed into a super awesome dress!

The Moneta pattern was easy to follow, and the dress came together easily. The only area I struggled was the neckline. It was hard to get that to lay flat! (This is a complaint that I've heard from a couple of people, so if any of y'all have made this pattern and have any advice, help a girl out!)

Before I cut into my octopi, I think I'll try a size down. This feels a little big to me, particularly in the arms. But I do love it! And I'm excited to add more  Monetas to my closet.

Oh! And tell me! Are there any knit patterns you particularly like? I've got a few things from Patterns for Pirates on my list.

Lito's Quilt.

My middle son has finished his first quilt! We used fabric from the collection Little Kukla by Suzy Ultman, backed it with an Alison Glass print and used a gray Kona solid (steel, maybe?) for the binding.

I bought these fabrics early in my quilting tenure, when I used very little self-control when it came to fun novelty prints. I'm proud to say I have a bit more self-control now and occasionally even buy blenders and solids! But I had a half yard of each print hanging around in stash, and Lito liked them, so we cut 6" strips and sewed them together, easy peasy.

We had a ball working on this! It was so much fun, and to see my kidlet so excited about quilting made my heart super happy. I don't think quilting will surpass his love of Legos, at least for now, but I'm thrilled I got to share one of my favorite things with one of my favorite people!

We debated gifting this to his younger sister, but since she's not exactly lacking in the quilt department, we ultimately decided that this lovely will be headed for Project Linus.

And hopefully Banzo and I will finish up his quilt soon, and you'll get to see that one as well! Spoiler alert: it has monkeys! 

2018 Q1 FAL list.

Dudes, I cannot even remember the last time I did this. (It was probably only a quarter or two ago, haha, but it feels like ages!) And I'm up for another round, so here is my list in all of its AWESOME glory.

1. Wayward Transparency Quilt - needs to be quilted and bound
DONE!

2. Magnolia Mystery Quilt - needs to be quilted and bound

3. Midnight Mystery Quilt -
I'm hopeful this is the quarter that this goes to the longarmer--
I have no idea how to have them quilt it!!!

4. Patina Quilt - I'm a third of the way done with the quilting
DONE

5. C2C Quilt - need to baste, quilt, bind

6. Triceratops Moneta Dress - 

I made a purple Moneta dress as a muslin, now I'm ready to make more!

7. Octopus Moneta Dress for ME--have pattern and fabric

AND

8. A Matching Octopus Geranium Dress for my daughter--have pattern and fabric

Let's cap it at eight. That's more than enough for right now! I'm linking up with the 2018 FAL Q1 linky party! Woo!

Coast to Coast 2 Quilt Top Start

Last year, I helped start a traveling quilt bee called the #coasttocoasttravelingbee. Along with five other super awesome quilters, we stretched our skillz to the max and produced six super awesome quilt tops. (Here's mine!) I had such an amazing time, and it was pretty obvious that C2C had to happen again!

My 2017 quilt top was inspired by a mountain range, and it was fun to create based on a place. (I had never made a quilt like that before!) I had thought at first that I would use water (particularly in the form of rain) as the base for this year's quilt, but my initial work following that pursuit was...um...bleh. And not me at all! And you know how sometimes it's good to do things you're uncomfortable with and push yourself to try new color schemes/techniques/things? Well, this wasn't any of those things. It was just bleh.

At this point, I had a couple of weeks to produce something worthy of this year's C2C group. After spending MONTHS laboring over the water/rain idea, I searched through my folder of quilt ideas/patterns/inspiration, desperate for something.

And then I saw these awesome Butterfly Charm Blocks from lillyella. And they'd looked pretty fun, and what if I did a rainbow? So I did.

At first I'd planned to make 9 and then do a nine-patch grouping, but after talking with K, she suggested maybe a ring of butterflies would be awesome.

And I was like, I have this nine-patch idea cemented into my brain! I can't betray that! And besides, it's going to look fierce! And then I laid out a ring of butterflies as K suggested, and it looked AWESOME (and meant less paper piecing) and how could I say NO?

This is what I've sent to the always fab Alison, along with some rainbow goodness. Yes, please, butterfly charm blocks. YES, PLEASE.

Who wants to guess what will get added? I'm SO excited to see where this group of awesome quilters will go!

Tula Pink Patina Quilt Top

Friend, last time we chatted about this Patina Quilt project from the book Quilt with Tula and Angela, I had just begun piecing all of the strips. There was piecing, then more piecing, then more piecing! All.The.Piecing. By the time I finished piecing, I was thoroughly OVER IT, but then I sat back and looked at it and ooohed at the prettiness of it all.

I took this photo back in SEPTEMBER. I basted it in October. I started quilting it in November. And then I'd work on it between holiday gift-making and holiday prep, and then, just when I thought I could start working on it again with some serious dedication, I wrenched my shoulder somehow, and wrestling with this lovely and my sewing machine, Stella, seemed like a terrible idea. (And I found out it was because I'm stubborn and didn't want to be inconvenienced by hurt shoulders so I sewed anyway, and after ten inches, my shoulders were a world of pain, so I stopped and crashed on my couch with a heat pad.)

My shoulders are feeling (mostly) better now, though I'll admit that I'm hesitant to pick this quilt up again just yet as I don't want to re-injure them! But hopefully I'll be able to get er' done soon. As of right now, I'd say I'm about 1/3 done with the quilting, which I'm calling a MAJOR success.

This bomb cyclone thing and its terrible weather rendered us housebound for a few days, and while that was super lame, I *did* manage to get another quilt not only basted, but quilted! The binding is even picked out--though not prepared--so hopefully I'll be sharing that with you soon.