FF: Turquoise Deliciousness!

It's done!

My older sister is one of my favorite people on the planet, and around May, I decided I wanted to make her a quilt for her birthday in June. Added bonus? My brother-in-law's birthday is also in June, so I intended it for both of their birthdays. Easy peasy, right? I'd have it done by the end of July for sure, right?

Wrong.

When I calculated out my fabric requirements, I forgot to consider seam allowance, so I had to go back to the fabric store twice to purchase additional fabric. When I finished the top, I wasn't sure how to quilt it or what kind of backing I wanted to use. I had other deadlines pop up, and this quilt sat patiently waiting.

I ultimately wound up using a gray sheet and quilted it with a mixture of FMQ and straight lines in black, turquoise, and ice blue thread.

You can see the quilting a bit better on the back. Some squares were really dense (you can see the pebbling in the bottom left corner) and some squares were not. I have a post with some close-ups of the quilting here.

I modeled this quilt from Julie Herman's Raspberry Dessert from her book Skip the Borders. Her quilt is set on point, which is really striking, but I decided to nix that in favor of setting them traditionally, which was much easier and gave the quilt a very different look that I loved. My version measures 60" x 80", and it is the largest quilt I've pieced and quilted myself. I wasn't a huge fan of wrestling it through Agatha's throat space, but we made do, and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be if I'm being truly honest. I bound it in the dark fabric I used in the center of the squares, and after a couple of marathon binding/Miss Marple/Murder She Wrote sessions with my quilting sensei K, the binding was practically done.

I dropped it in the mail yesterday morning, and my sister and brother-in-law should have it sometime next week. I enjoyed making this quilt, and I hope the recipients love it too! I'm linking up today with Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts and TGIFF hosted this week by M-R of Quilts Matters. It's also a finish off my Q3 FAL list! Woo!

FMQ Practice.

This week, I've been quilt wrangling a 60" x 80" lap throw through Agatha's rather ample, but still crowded feeling neck space. This is the largest quilt I've tried to quilt myself, and I'm about 25% of the way through.

I started with some triangles, which involved a lot of turning. I had intended to do the entire quilt in this pattern, but when my shoulders started aching thirty seconds into quilting, I decided to try a new plan--a different bit of quilting on each block.

Next up was pebbling, which devoured almost an entire bobbin of thread. (I see myself running out of thread very soon.)

And some leaf thingie-ma-bobs in the corners.

But my proudest accomplishment is my feathers. I tried FMQ because I wanted to quilt feathers, but it wasn't until last night that I actually gave them a shot, and I was pleasantly surprised. I don't think I'm ready to quilt my Marie quilt--and after this, I'm fairly confident I don't want to wrestle a queen size through my machine--but I'm happy to have gotten one step closer to this goal.

I still have a lot to learn about FMQ. I'm getting better at regulating my stitch length and getting into a good groove. While I see so many flawed areas, I also remember my first FMQ attempts, and hooray! I have improved. (And if I really want to feel better, I can think about the quilting lines on my first quilt ever, which looked as though I was very drunk when I sat down at the machine.) 

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!