90th birthday quilt

I made this quilt at the request of my mother in law. She commissioned it as a gift for her mother and gave it to her this August for her 90th birthday.

It was a challenge to make, each piece is a one inch square. The entire quilt is 79 inches square; I'm not a calculator, but that is a lot of tiny squares! I had many arguments with this quilt, we had a hard time living together for a while, but in the end it came together and I met my deadline.
I quilted it with dark brown thread in a meander pattern, I wanted something simple because the blocks are detailed. (and because I was ready to bind it, put it in a box and mail it far away from me)

I do think it is a beautiful quilt and I am glad that my mother in law and I could choose the fabric and the pattern together.

Fabric Boutique shopping spree in Vegas

While on vacation in Las Vegas last month I made time to take a cab over to Fabric Boutique. Not a typical Vegas outing, but I really enjoyed the store. I bought a lot of fabric to make some Christmas gifts. The cab rides there and back to the hotel were not cheap, so in order to make the trip worthwhile, I had to buy a lot of fabric. At least, that is how I am rationalizing the shopping spree.

I am planning to make several shopping totes using the Heather Bailey pattern, New Leaf Folding Totes. The food fabric will be the placed in the center panel and the other two fabrics will be the inside and outside of each tote. Exceptions: the garlic purse will have the dark brown fabric on the inside and outside of the tote, and the blue floral fabric will be the center panel for the fabric group without food.
I am going to spend this weekend sewing with my aunt and cousin. We have been known to sew until two in the morning, so as long as I can do that without making any late night mistakes, I should make a lot of progress.

I also bought fabric for a reversible purse, Heather Bailey's Marlo Bloom Handbag.

Honestly, I may need to keep this one for myself. I haven't made many things that are reversible, but if I can do it successfully I think this bag will turn out to be pretty cute. I know that when I see my aunts this weekend they will be skeptical of the purple and orange combination, but I am hoping that there is enough orange in this purple batik to pull it all together in the end.

Ty Pennington fabric challenge

After brainstorming about some different local charities and non profit organizations the Austin Modern Quilt Guild has made a decision about where the product of our Ty Pennington fabric challenge will be donated. We have decided to use our many beautiful blocks to make two quilts. These two quilts will be donated to two families living in North Austin whose homes burned down on August 22 of this year.
Thanks to the organizations that helped our guild to make this donation possible: Westminster Fabrics and Ty Pennington Fabrics for donating 12 yards of fabric from the stunning Impressions collection, Walker Hall Design for donating additional Pennington fabric, and The Quilt Store in Austin for making a donation as well.
Thank you to all of you in the guild that have helped by making one or more blocks to use in these quilts.
I am very excited to start the next step of our process; piecing the tops and backs of these two special quilts. We should be ready to deliver them to the families very soon.

One of the first...

This is one of the first quilts that I made when I began quilting in 2009. I bought a kit that included the pattern, as well as all the fabric for the top of the quilt and the binding. The blocks are 8 by 16 inch rectangles so the quilt top was easy to put together. I bought the backing fabric from JoAnn Fabric and Craft, and quilted it at home on my Brother machine with dark brown Guetermann thread.

My grandmother told me that as a quilter, I should keep one of my first projects for myself so that after some time has passed I can refer to it and then clearly see the progression of my skills and creativity. I keep this lap quilt on the arm of my couch and I use it when I am watching a movie or to take an afternoon nap. (each of these is a rare occurrence, who has time for naps when there is sewing to be done?)

While I think this is a well made quilt, I do see a difference in the workmanship between this quilt and the things that I make now. I am so lucky to have two wonderful grandmothers and an aunt to learn this skill from and share ideas with. (Even though  they give the stink eye to some of my more modern ideas and fabric choices.)
I have learned to share those modern ideas with another great quilter, my cousin Robin, as well as my fellow members of the Austin Modern Quilt Guild.

Wonky bento box block -12

This last block was so much fun to make, there are several options in terms of layout once each individual area of color is completed. I chose this layout after a great deal of shifting pieces around and much debate. Next step: figuring out how all twelve blocks will come together. Stay tuned!

birthday quilt for baby f

Check out this fun new quilt, I just finished it last week. It is a birthday gift commissioned by a mom for her sweet girl. She brought me lots of baby clothes, many of which hold special memories for the family. One of the pink plaid outfits was what the baby wore to meet extended family for the first time! I used these clothes to make the blocks for this quilt top. I was also able to use some of the flowers and decorative pieces from some of her clothing to add texture and visual interest.
I quilted it myself on the long arm machine; I have been getting lots of quilting practice lately. Soon I will have "mad meandering skills" like my cousin Robin, The Tipsy Quilter.

Wonky star block -11

I am almost finished with this project! I am so excited to start putting this Block of the Month quilt together. I'm not going to use scraps for the back, binding, and borders, so I will have to make some decisions about color soon. Stay tuned to see the quilt top coming together.

Secret quilt update, final

I am probably posting too many photos of this quilt, but I just really enjoy the colors and layout. I am submitting this to the 100 Days of Modern Quilting online exhibition today.
I can't wait to give this gift and also to let my grandma see the finished product. I didn't get a very good reaction from her when I showed her the fabrics that make up this quilt, they are just not her style at all, but luckily this quilt is not for her.
I am submitting a total of three quilts to the modern quilting exhibit, I will keep you posted if any of my quilts are included in the exhibit.

Modified nine patch block -10

 This is the tenth block for the block of the month project I am participating in as part of the Austin Modern Quilt Guild. It is a modified nine patch. I am getting excited to finish the last two blocks so that I can make decisions about sashing, borders, and quilting. Stay tuned!

Jacket for baby e

I made this jacket for a friend. She needed a gift for an upcoming baby shower and brought me this jacket. We picked out fabric together and I appliqued a bird onto the back of the jacket. I "put a bird on it," as the saying goes. The project was simple and didn't take too long; it was good to get some practice machine stitching around the curves. I sewed the feet on by hand.
I hope the momma likes it!

Linking up with Pam's Pillows and Cushions Link Party at Threading My Way.