FF: Star Blossoms 2 Cushion.

I am thrilled to have this one complete, especially as it's a super late birthday present for my sister. It's the same pattern as my own Star Blossoms project--a table topper that I turned into a cushion--modeled from the awesome Star Blossoms tutorial from Stitched in Color.

A loooooong time ago, I made my sister a quilt for her living room. Her house is mostly tans and chocolate browns with pops of yummy turquoise. It's stunning, and I was so happy that the quilt I made fit into the decor scheme. While I've since used up almost all of the fabric scraps I had from that project, I did have a bit of the turquoise batik left. Team that up with a couple of other turquoise prints, an aqua B&C print for the center hexagons, and this tan w/ gold metallic fabric that I've had for ages, and this cushion cover was born.

I did finish this cover a bit differently than my own. I used an invisible zipper instead of an envelope closure. My own pillow's closure gapes horribly, and I didn't want that business on this gift. I also didn't put a binding around it. I really like that aspect of my own--it frames it rather nicely--but I didn't have enough of any of the fabrics to negotiate that, and I didn't feel like introducing a new fabric for binding was the right call, so plain Jane it is.

Plain Jane or not, I feel like she's lovely in her own right!

One last photo of this baby before I pack her up and mail her off! I do hope my sister likes her!

Oh, and this is my first finish from my Q3 FAL list, woohoo! Q3 list, I told you I was going to dominate you, and this is the right kind of start.

Star Blossoms, Take 2

I've been itching to starting another EPP project. I really enjoyed sewing up my first star blossoms project, and when I needed another EPP project to keep my hands busy, I opted to sew up a second. Oh, but this one will be SO different. Not as scrappy, and a completely different color palette. Oh my!

I love my Sew Together bag, courtesy of Michelle of From Bolt to Beauty, and I've been using it for my EPP and handsewing adventures.

I haven't gotten far, but I like it so far! When finished, this will be a belated birthday gift. It's already late...but I'm working on it! Slowly, but surely.

FF: EPP Table Topper.

I've been slowly plugging away at this epp table topper for a few months now. When I saw Rachel's star blossom tutorial, I fell in love with her table runner and knew I wanted one for myself, and I opted to make one to fit my small kitchen table. Of course I used hot pink and navy as my jumping off point, expanding to additional shades of pink as necessary.

As a pretty recent EPP convert, I found the blocks enjoyable to piece. I made my blossoms first, then added the navy diamonds before putting them all together. I like (not love, but like) the finished product, but when I put it on my table, it just looked...weird. The wrong size or something. So, I walked around my house putting it on a bunch of other surfaces. My table topper does not have a home yet. But I trust I'll find one soon! (Or I'll rip off the binding and make a pillow cover out of it.)

I used a navy print from my grandmother's stash, and I hand-tied it, which was a new thing for me! I have no idea how you're actually supposed to do it--I just went for it and did my own thing and it was probably terribly wrong or inefficient, but I got the job done.

This is my second finish for the Q4 FAL. You can see my original list here.

392 pieces.

When making a quilt, I really enjoy tallying up the number of pieces I will be working with. I know it's not necessarily the best indicator of complexity or anything like that, but there's just something concrete and fun about saying, "My current project uses 392 pieces."

It's true. The quilt I started cutting this morning for my quilting sensei's baby has 392 pieces. Normally I cut all in one go, but for this quilt, I'm breaking it up because a lot of those 392 pieces are tiny, and oh la la, I need a break from all of that intricate cutting. Maybe I should have waited to count up the pieces until after I'd cut them all? Probably so. (The above fabrics are not involved in this project, but aren't they fabulous? Y'all know I love a good polka dot and a good rainbow and a good ombre, and those FQs incorporate ALL THREE.)

Sadly, as my quilting sensei frequents this blog, I can't actually show you any fun pictures of work in progress. But the full reveal will be all kinds of fabulous. In the meantime, I *can* show you what else I've been working on.

I've basted the quilt for Baby H, and I was even responsible and picked up the thread I needed so I can start quilting. I have tossed around a couple of ideas on this one, so we'll see what I ultimately settle on. I hope to get this one quilted this week. I'm thinking of binding it in a navy print.

And I've worked more on my EPP tablerunner. I'm actually pretty close to finish up the top of this. I think I only have a few more solo diamonds to attach? Which is exciting. The plan has always been to put this on my kitchen table, but do I honestly want it anywhere near my children and their grubby hands? Maybe no...

On top of those three projects, I seriously need to baste my daddy's quilt and get moving on that one. I verified that my backing is large enough and I have the batting for it and even the quilting thread. Why am I stalling? Because I hate basting. I really really do.

So that's what's on the HPQ to-do quilty list this week. How about you?

FQB: Sarah's Quilt.

Once upon a time, I joined up with some other lovely ladies, and we formed a traveling quilt bee called the Fierce Quilters' Bee. In today's episode of FQB goodness, I was tasked with Sarah's awesome quilt in progress, a low volume, paper piecing, arrow bunch of true fabulousness.

I made four arrows and four low volume blocks. (Yes, those hedgehogs are all sorts of awesome.)

My fave block involved piecing together a bunch of EPP hexies, then framing them with strips. I love the look of it, and I think it will be a fun contribution to the rest of the quilt. I did not cut the extra ends off because it still has a way to travel, and I figured it's more secure this way.

This is everything to date. It's going to be a super sweet quilt top when finished!

This bee has been all sorts of awesome fun.

Stella.

Wow. Friends. Things have been intense around these parts. Not bad intense, per se, just intense. And life promises to be more so in the next year. Yikes!

I have been sewing, but it's not the super exciting sort. Lots of handstitching on my Gypsy Wife quilt. Some hemming and clothing repair. Some EPP. A bit of work on the linen dress that might kill me. AND, I finished a quilt top for my nephew, but you'll have to wait until Friday for that. I'm calling it, "When Hazel Met Andy", aka "I Love You 152 Pieces". I never name my quilts, but I'm pretty stoked about this one.

However, the most exciting news by far has been the addition of my newest baby. I'm calling her Stella. I love her so. freaking. much. I do love me my Agatha, and I will always love her. There's something about sewing on an old school machine that makes my heart swoon. Knowing that my husband's great grandmother taught her two daughters to sew on it? Super cool.

BUT STELLA. Not only is she a Tula Pink Bernina, but she's loaded with all sorts of awesomeness. Friends, we're talking a knee lift. We're talking needle up/needle down. We're talking an extension table. But not just that! Stella has a LIGHT THAT WORKS, people. (I never thought I'd get so giddy about a light, but after sewing on a machine that's over 60 years old, the small stuff is thrilling.) There are about twenty kajillion more features that I haven't acquainted myself with, but Stella and I are destined to be close.

Is she my best birthday present ever? Um, yeah. 

Handquilting.

I know things have been quiet around the blog, and there are a lot of reasons for that. Family in town, husband out of town, homeschool planning for the fall, birthday party planning for two kidlets, and my writing career is about to hit a huge milestone that has required quite a bit of my attention of late.

But that's not all. My heart has been heavy, and I haven't known what to say here. I've heard so many sad stories lately about bad things happening to people I care about. Several friends have lost a parent, people are very seriously ill, and while none of these things are directly happening to me, my heart hurts for them. It's hard to keep a positive attitude when there seems to be so much pain around.

But I'm trying. I haven't gotten much sewing accomplished during the day, but my evenings have been filled with handquilting and Netflix.

Work on my Gypsy Wife quilt is coming along slowly, but I'm enjoying it. Lots of echo quilting and straight lines, but in various colors (and weights) of thread. I love the look of it, even if it will take me until the end of time to finish.

I've started more EPP flowers for a friend of mine who recently lost her mom. I have plans to make a cushion cover for her, which I had better finish up soon since I'll be seeing her in a couple of weeks.

And I cut fabric for a birthday gift. A loooooooong overdue birthday gift. But it will be epic (I hope) when it's done, so that will make it totally worth the wait, right? RIGHT.

I usually feel a bit overwhelmed with my to-do list, but recently, it has felt impossible. My husband took this past week off though, and we crossed several things off the list. There are still several things hanging about--like fixing my dishwasher, eep!--but I'm hoping after this weekend that I will feel that the list is back under control. (Then I have to start another big mountain of things. My newest nephew's baby quilt! A quilt for my daddy! Placemats for my mama!)

I'm not the only one who feels this way, am I right? In the meantime, I will be stroking the new fabric I received this week for my nephew's quilt. I feel this quilt will be downright opulent given the number of fabrics it will require, but this baby is blood, and he deserves an amazing quilt. Come back tomorrow for Sunday Stash, and I will show it all to you! Until then, have a most lovely Saturday.