Scrappy Blue Kaffe Quilt Supersized

A few weeks ago I made the cute little quilt on the steps. I liked it so much that I decided to super size it and make a bigger one. Since these are stash buster quilts they ended up similar but not quite the same. The smaller wall hanging has more teal; the bigger one has more purple. 

The smaller quilt uses a light gray Kona solid throughout while the bigger quilt is full of scrappy grays.

The smaller quilt is quilted with diagonal lines through the gray squares. The bigger quilt has diagonal lines and also has vertical and horizontal quilting lines to enhance the bigger squares.

The back is Kona solid in plum.

Both quilts have a Kona solid binding. I don't know the specific color name but it is a pretty royal blue. Quilt making has become my focus these past few months. Soon, I will reopen my Etsy store to sell my quilts. These two will debut there. Look for more finishes in the coming months.

Collaborative Quilt for a Teacher

It took two to make this quilt. My daughter wanted to make one of her friends and coworkers a quilt to thank them for making her first year of teaching so special. I helped her choose a design, then she went through my stash and chose all the fabric. We both cut, she pieced, and then I took it from there. Getting the quilt top put together is her favorite part and since I love it all, I'm happy to do the rest.

The quilting is simple, with straight lines running a quarter inch on either side of the long seams. For the focus blocks, I free motioned flowers. What, you can't see them in the picture? Here's a closer one.

You still can't see it? Neither can I, and I was about ready to skip quilting in the squares altogether. Then I turned it over on the back.

I just love the surprise of the flower on the back. Three of the six focus blocks hover around the outside edge of the quilt so they are very visible on the back. Aren't the raccoons cute?

This is the second time recently that I've gone for a lighter binding, and yellow again, too. Not sure what is up with that but I seem to be branching out with my binding choices.

So thankful for helpful children who get their arm workouts holding up quilts for me.

The cat even had to get in the game on this one. Happy for another finish!

Purple Cross Quilt Finish

It is finished. And I love it. I saw this description of the creative process on Instagram and it fits most of the things I do. It's funny to see it so well described and I am glad I am not alone...

1. This is awesome.
2. This is tricky.
3. This is sh**.
4. I am sh**.
5. This might be okay.
6. This is awesome.

This project was no different. It took a pause between the finishing of the top and the quilting. I knew that I did not want to quilt each quadrant of the quilt the same but I really had no idea what I wanted to do. Pinterest saved the day. I saw an improv block there that was quilted very similarly. Lines radiating from the center for two quadrants and echo quilting in the other two quadrants.

And the appearance of overlapping circles is pretty cool too. The special gal getting this has no idea it is finished. I will see her this Friday and can't wait to put it in her hands.

The back looks good too. Since I used basting spray for layering, I gave it a gentle wash. It has that nice crinkly look. The large circle that stands out on the back is a complete mystery to me. I did not even notice it until I saw this picture. It is interesting that it stands out when no other circle did, especially since there is no quilting around the circles.

I incorporated triangles in the upper corners of the back. A dowel should fit snugly across the top so that it can be hung if desired. I have been wanting to add this to my quilts for hanging but I am usually so excited to be at the binding stage that I totally forget. Maybe now that I have remembered once, it will stick a little better.

Another happy finish. Making quilts certainly brings me joy, creative process and all.

Scrappy Blue Kaffe Quilt

My fabric lives in open cubbies in my sewing room. It goes through various stages of organization and neatness. Here is part of it on a fairly good day.

After a while, after searching and sorting, stacking and restacking, it gets just a little messy and hard to work with. That's when it's time for a little clean up. Some days I need a break from sewing or cutting. Those are good sorting days. I recently sorted through all of my Kaffe Fassett fabric. It was very chaotic at first, but little by little it was all sorted by color.

Took two pictures to get it all in.

Usually, during this process, something starts to stand out. This time it was those rich blues. While everything else was neatly put away, those hung around on the cutting table for a little more thought.

And then I remembered some gray two inch strips that were cut for another project but didn't work. A little bit of scrap cutting and a little bit of design wall play and we have a new quilt.

I quilted it with simple cross hatch lines through the gray squares.

It's a small quilt, finishing at 22" x 25".

I like the result so much that I've cut pieces for a very similar quilt using four inch squares rather than two inch ones. It should make a nice size throw quilt. It's great to organize and stash bust all at the same time.