Finishes | Evening in the Garden Quilts

March 14, 2014
by Valerie 13 Comments

Pinwheel Finish

I finished the Disappearing Pinwheel quilt this weekend. This was a quilt-along we did on Twitter, during the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Sew-In, using a tutorial from the Missouri Star Quilt Company. I think A.J. talked us into it. Not sure. See other Twilters’ versions here. I made it entirely from stash, so for that reason alone it was a good project. Those aren’t wrinkles, they are shadows from bare tree branches.

If the last project was Cotton Candy, then this is Orange Sherbet. I used six (I think) different large floral prints and a light orange blender fabric. Also, I transposed the center pinwheels, though I hadn’t planned to originally, so they don’t contrast much. With all the bias, it was a bit wonky and wavy and puffy, so I quilted it all over with feathers. There are feather circles in every circular area, hearts and designs in the diamonds created by the corner triangles, and continuously around the border.

I marked a little for the hearts, but that was it. This quilt was a bit large and heavy to drag around under the machine, so my feathers aren’t perfect, but it was good practice, and it really tamed the top. I’m amazed at how flat and square it turned out.

One of my favorite parts is the backing. It’s an amazing dragonfly batik, thick and soft, and dyed like rainbow sherbet. The orange Bottom Line thread I used in the top and bottom blended nicely in some places and showed more in other spots.

I don’t think I would make this pattern again, but it did come together pretty quickly. It was fun seeing how the blocks were turning out as we were working together.

See lots of other finishes at Whoop Whoop Friday, and TGIFF, which is at Quilt Matters today.

March 7, 2014
by Valerie 8 Comments

Scrapitude is Finished!

Last fall, Sandy‘s friend, Charlotte, started a mystery quilt named Scrapitude with their guild. Sandy asked to post the steps on her blog, and the rest is history. Her readers and many of us on Twitter (#Twilters) grabbed our scraps and got started cutting. This was my first mystery quilt, so I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I knew that Charlotte does beautiful work with scraps. I had trouble letting go of control of colors, and I didn’t completely, but this is the scrappiest thing I’ve made. And it turned out pretty well.

I started with these.

They looked like this all cut up. I decided to use several shell pinks for the background pieces.

From those pieces we made these blocks.

And now I have this quilt (80″ square). Yes, it’s very pink. I think the colors work really well together, but I hadn’t realized it would be quite so …pink. It is cheery and fun to look at, with all the different fabrics. It will live in my guest room, so people will get it in small doses.

I stitched the stars in the ditch, with an orange peel in the centers, using an “old rose” colored Bottom Line thread. I quilted the whole pink background with an unmarked orange peel motif in pale pink. I had a lot of fun with that part, and I really like the texture.

The back is shell pink and olive batik.

It was lots of fun to sew these with everyone else, but the best part is seeing how differently they are all turning out. Keep checking this Flickr group to see the progress.

I’m linking up with Whoop Whoop Friday at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

February 21, 2014
by Valerie 14 Comments

A Pair of Finishes

This week I finished this pair of special order quilts. Both are made with the same fabrics and Kona Snow. They will head off in the mail today to brighten a pair of loveseats in the customer’s living room. Currently there are antique quilts there, and these will be a fresher and more washable alterative.

These quilts are great small sizes (40″ x 60″, 40″ x 65″), so they were quick and fun to put together and to quilt. Well, this triangle one cost me a day, but that was due to my own math challenges. Yes, to make HST blocks, you add 7/8″ to the finished size of your desired block. I will remember that now! I’m happy with the straight line quilting, especially now that it’s washed and crinkly. I quilted in all the ditches, and then 1/2″ away on both sides with the walking foot and white Bottom Line thread.

The string quilt wasn’t really strings, but 1 1/2″ strips cut from yardage. I quilted it in the ditches with Bottom Line, and then added huge leaves with white Sulkey rayon thread. I didn’t count, but I think there about 32 leaves all over the quilt.

All and all, a fun project to brighten this oppressive winter.

Can’t wait to see what you’ve finished.

I’m linking up to Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

February 7, 2014
by Valerie 7 Comments

Log Cabin Finish

This quilt has been a while in the making, but it’s all finished now. I completed the blocks in the middle of July, 2013, and put the top together sometime this winter. Then I quilted it during the Quilts of Valor Sew-In and Sports Ball Sew-In this past weekend. Monday I added a bright blue binding that I think is perfect.

This quilt is all made from stash. The red “chimneys” are 2 1/2″ and 3 1/2″ patches from my bins. The “logs” are all strings, except for the wolf and owl fabric. This seemed like a good use for it, except that their eyes do stare at you!

This is being donated to Quilts of Valor, so I was planning a quick job on the quilting. I stabilized it by quilting in the ditch between all the blocks using Bottom Line thread.

Then I marked a wavy line down either side of the columns and rows of blocks (I think straight lines would have looked odd on these really wonky cabins), and switched to a medium blue Masterpiece thread so the stitches would show more. I used the walking foot, thinking I would sew on the marking and a line on either side. I found I wanted to add one more line in each area (24 extra trips across the quilt), and that came close to catching every strip of fabric in at least a bit of quilting.

The plan was to quilt a star outline in each red patch, but, again, that didn’t seem like enough, so I stippled around all thirty-five of them. I’m really happy with the effect. It has enough quilting, and the waves make a nice effect as they undulate across the surface.

As always, I enjoyed sewing with the #Twilters and others who joined us for Super Bowl weekend. The QOV Sew-In was very quiet by comparison, at least on Twitter. Maybe Facebook and Instagram were more chatty. I also got the idea folks were sewing in groups, so they had plenty of live company. Maybe they got more done than those of us who sew with one hand and tweet with the other all day! I won a prize from QOV, so I’m not complaining.

This will be heading off to Heather as soon as I get finished looking at it hanging over my stair railing!

What have you finished? I’m linking up to Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

January 24, 2014
by Valerie 10 Comments

A Bright Quilt in the Snow

Yesterday I put a bright blue binding on this very Bright quilt. After washing, I took photos of it in the 9ºF weather. I waited for some lovely late afternoon light, but it was a quick shoot and this is all you’re getting, so enjoy! (No cats were harmed in the photographing of this quilt. They all had the sense to stay inside.)

What started as playing around with some strings that don’t fit into other color schemes evolved into quite a project, but the results are good. I think it says something about my former taste in color that I had this many ~~garish~~ very bright scraps, let alone enough brilliant fabrics to piece the back.

I still love color, but not quite as saturated as these prints. This wasn’t a planned slow quilt, but each design decision along the way led to another. I set the bright strings off with 2″ strips of black prints and black Kona solid. I’m really happy with the visual interest from the black prints. Then I sashed it with black Kona. It was beginning to resemble a vintage crazy quilt. Then the border needed to be black, but not all black, so I pieced in these bright triangles from scraps I had set aside for another project.

Nice effect, but still too much black, so I quilted wavy lines through the sashing using a purple/teal heavy cotton Sulky thread. I cut basic patterns for paisleys for the border, then free-motioned the details using Superior’s “Lava” in purple/teal/lime.

Each corner is different, and I tucked a few surprises into the little ones on the sides. Each block has a basic paisley surrounded by stippling. Marking was tricky, because of the contrast in color.

First, I cut sticky templates from Contact Paper, and tried to sew around them. That worked, except this large (60 x 84″) quilt scrunched around a lot, and the template wanted to come off. What worked best was to stick the shapes to each block, then trace around them alternating washable marker with white mechanical pencil. Then I started experimenting with threads. Thin black Bottom Line was invisible on the black stripes, but too harsh on the prints. Regular invisible thread was fine on the prints, but too shiny on the black. I settled on smoke colored invisible thread. It’s visible on some of the prints but very unobtrusive, and blends well into the black, with just a little shine. So this was a quilt for experimenting and learning. And lots of ripping. And it works now that it’s finished.

What I would do differently: use a black batting. I totally spaced on that. I guess that I seldom make dark quilts. It looks fine for now, I just hope it doesn’t beard down the road. It did cause me to vacuum my studio, which is always a good thing.

Hope you accomplished as much as you wanted this week. I’m linking up with Finish It Up Friday and Whoop Whoop Friday.

December 31, 2013
by Valerie 3 Comments

Wrapping Up 2013

An interesting year (aren’t they all?), lots of ups and downs, happiness and sadness, laughter and tragedy. Some of that is documented here in the quilts.

That’s a lot of quilts. I don’t have one favorite. The most meaningful was probably the flowers for the Project Hope Online Quilt Show, that Sandy and Sandi organized in the wake of Sandy Hook and the Boston Marathon. I pushed out of my own comfort zone, and was awed by the variety of responses.

This year the #Twilters on Twitter named themselves and cheered each other on daily during Sew-Ins, give-aways, and project advice, sharing happiness, heartache, and food and pet pictures. Big moments or small, it’s wonderful to have friends who understand. There began the Quiltcast FitBitters group and #QHC (Quilter’s Health Check? I forget again!). Between us we’ve walked millions of miles and lost lots of pounds. All that while being darned creative!

This is my 201st blog post! Thank you all for reading, responding, and commenting! I’ve met some wonderful people from far away places, and it is such a positive community. I plan to keep it going in 2014.

Getting It Done

I know that I accomplished a lot by focusing on the goals I set as part of Getting It Done with Patchwork Times. We all had a lot of fun encouraging each other, and the limited number of goals each month was very helpful. Hopefully, we’ll do it again, but I can also do it myself for 2014. December’s list is vague, because not everyone has received these yet. Also, I forgot photograph some before they were wrapped. 😦

December Goals

1. ~~Quilt for DS (Christmas)~~

2. ~~Placemats (Christmas)~~ and a table runner!

3. ~~Pillowcases (Christmas)~~

Here is my list for the year.

January Goals

Make ten pillowcases to go with the two I have for donation.
Make HST commission quilt
Make string commission quilt
Scrapitude, step 4

All of you have a safe and festive New Year’s Eve. Join us tomorrow for our New Year’s Day Sew In on Twitter, #NYSI .

May 2014 be prosperous, healthy, productive, and peaceful for you.

I’m linking up with Getting It Done at Patchwork Times.

December 13, 2013
by Valerie 5 Comments

One Gift Finished

This week I finished the green and white quilt I’ve been working on for my DS, who attends Marshall University. It’s a nine-patch, so, really, it sewed up fairly quickly. I just got a bit tired of green.

Marshall has changed their green over the years. It’s currently a shade brighter than kelly (emerald?), but at a game one sees every shade, from hunter to this current bright green. So I just rummaged through my 3 1/2″ scraps and my green bin to find a variety of greens that don’t go together at all, but seem to get along in this quilt. These may be my last pieces of the chartreuse and teal Mirror Ball Dot. The white is mainly Basic Gray Grunge, with some white, snow, and the odd bit of Fairy Frost.

The backing came from Kelly of SewmuchfunWV on Etsy (and has a different green from any on the front!).

So that’s one of my December goals finished, and I’m making good headway on another (which I won’t be showing before Christmas!) See what everyone’s finishing over at Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

December 6, 2013
by Valerie 11 Comments

Chevrons is Finished!

The snow made a nice backdrop for this quilt. I seemed to plod along on it, but it was worth it.

50″ x 66″

Cotton prints, solids, and batiks.

Warm and white batting

Superior Bottom Line, Art Studio, and New Brites threads.

I try to do something more or different every time with my feathers. These have a double spine and echoing. That really gives them some definition.

Today we’re remembering Nelson Mandela, and the difference one person can make in the world.

Snow is falling rapidly here. The schools are closed, so that makes this a Sew Day, doesn’t it? Time to work on Christmas gifts. What have you finished?

I’m linking up with Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

November 22, 2013
by Valerie 6 Comments

Pink and Green Cabins

I finished this quilt and finally found a pleasant day for photographing it.

It’s a big throw, 60″ x 82″. I blogged more about making it here.

I know fabric is fabric, and the last inch costs the same as the first, but somehow a quilt made entirely out of strings seems like a dividend.

I quilted it with diagonal lines using the walking foot. I used pink and green Superior “Living Colors” and “Nature’s Colors” threads.

I’d love to see what you’ve finished.

I’m linking up with Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

November 8, 2013
by Valerie 8 Comments

Oh My Stars: Two Finishes!

Here is the first of my two finishes from this project. I love the fabrics and the minty green background (Kona “Mint”!). This one has lots of crinkly texture from all the stippling. I don’t have too many UFOs, but this one has been nagging me, and I’m glad it’s finished, and in time for Christmas.

This project came from “Oh My Stars! ( a Quilt-Along)” by Sheila of Thought and Found. She organized this almost exactly two years ago, and she did a great job offering twelve different versions of Sawtooth Star. I never intended to make all the very detailed versions with my large-scale Christmas fabric. I stuck with four of the simplest, and I’m happy with the result. Some quilters did amazing things with this pattern, though. Check out the Flickr group to see some.

This first quilt measures 52″ x 72″. I quilted all the blocks in the ditch, and stitched the diamond design into the plain blocks. In the border, I quilted 8″ and 4″ Sawtooth Stars, and stippled everything else in the green background. That was a lot of stippling, and I was glad it was finished. The texture is great, but it’s not very original.

The backing for both quilts is a busy green print from my mom’s stash. I had in mind all this time that it had stylized Christmas trees on it, but they’re just triangles. Looks good, anyway.

The second version had a few problems. I needed more Kona solid for the borders and to fill in the empty spaces. I like the effect of the extra space in the design. Unfortunately, when the Kona came, it was not the same color as the original. As a sometime knitter, I know all about buying enough of a dye lot for a project, but I hoped that Kaufmann had it down to a science. Also, it seemed a little thinner than the original. The difference doesn’t show much in these outdoor pictures, but under artificial light it’s pretty noticeable. Not awful. I did arrange it carefully, and hope it looks like a design decision.

Then I made the decision to quilt the feather border using a red, green, gold metallic thread. I can’t blame Sulky for the problems I had with this. This thread is really old (and I still have a spool and a half!), and seems to have sort of formed to the spool. My machine does very well with all kinds of threads, and I did a test first and had no issues. The thread didn’t behave too badly for the spine and first side of the feather border. It seemed like the farther I got into the spool, the worse it got. It stuck to itself and seemed rough in the machine. I found that if I manually pulled off a few lengths of thread first, I could sew a few feathers, but there was still breakage.

That, and Yuri’s interest in this process, didn’t make for very smooth feathers. I thought this might be a job for Sewer’s Aid lubricant, but my JoAnn had never heard of it. In desperation, I took the spool to the garage and gave it a good spray with a can of silicone showing pictures of cars and boats. Wha la! Magic! Sewed like a dream. Wish I had done it when it first started acting up.

Anyway, this one is quilted all over (in Bottom Line – no problems there!) in a four-sided feather design on every twelve inch block or group of blocks.

It shows better in the empty spaces. I really think this is a much more interesting effect, and the border turned out okay after all the drama. This is my favorite of the two (also voted on Twitter!), and it’s staying home to be my sofa quilt this Christmas. It’s 48″ x 72″. Krissi really liked the first one, but I don’t think she’ll notice.

These two jokers were lots of help. Kind of takes the “free motion” out of free motion quilting!

I’m sighing with satisfaction and linking up to Finish it up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts and Can I get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Evening in the Garden Quilts

Adventures in Fabric Art

Category Archives: Finishes

Pinwheel Finish

Scrapitude is Finished!

A Pair of Finishes

Log Cabin Finish

A Bright Quilt in the Snow

Wrapping Up 2013

One Gift Finished

Chevrons is Finished!

Pink and Green Cabins

Oh My Stars: Two Finishes!

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