Quilt #2

 My second quilt is finished!  I purchased the fabric before Chelsea was born and began working on it in October of last year.  I had hoped to have it done by last Christmas but knew that having a 2 month old at that point would probably hinder my sewing time. Ha!  Did it ever!  But no pressure.  Instead of being 6 months late, I'm going to say it's 6 months early for THIS Christmas.  Convenient, huh?  I created a Christmas quilt because I wanted to start the tradition of bringing it out every year right after Thanksgiving.  It'll reside in our living room during the month of December for evening snuggles.  Then, during the week of Christmas, everyone gets a turn having the Christmas quilt on their bed with Lee and I getting in on Christmas Eve.  Then the Christmas quilt will go back into hiding until the next year.  I have a feeling I'll be the only one excited about the Christmas quilt but that's okay.  

The quilt was intended to be lap size and measures upon completion 53 x 44.  Those are kinda odd measurements but I didn't work from a pattern and I wasn't comfortable going any bigger since this was only my 2nd quilt.  I used a layer cake of Kate Spain's Joy fabric line for Moda.  The back is also from the Joy line.  The binding is Flutter by Amanda Herring for Riley Blake.  When you see a larger panel of it, it resembles an old-fashioned glass ornament shape (at least in my head it does).  The front border is Kona Snow. 

I followed a tutorial for a double slice layer cake quilt and used that as the focal point of the quilt front.  It was SO easy to put those blocks together.  I actually finished those last November.  Then I couldn't decide if I wanted to add borders or not.  I like the look of the white against the colorful blocks so it worked out okay.  I had a lousy time making the quilt "sandwich" on this one.  I'm still a quilting newbie and probably should have spent more time making sure my bottom layer was free of creases and wrinkles.  When I went to do my straight line quilting, some parts of my back bunched a little.  It was frustrating.  I fixed some areas of it but left others because, uh, it adds character???  Lesson learned.  I may stick with baby quilts and table runners for a while before trying a larger quilt again.  Or I may have somebody else do the quilting for me on a larger quilt.  I enjoyed doing the binding this time and 3 out 4 corners are mitered correctly so I'm getting better!

Now I'm working on a wall hanging for Chelsea's room and I have a whole bunch of new fabric to play with.  Gotta get started!  It's great when you find your sewing mojo :)

Baby Quilt Revealed

This 33 inch, square quilt was created with a charm pack line called Calico Candies by Michele D'Amore.  I thought the colors and old-fashioned prints would stand the test of time and were dainty and charming.  The border is yardage from the same fabric line.  I didn't take a photo of the back because it's yellow flannel -- nothing too special.  

I followed a baby quilt tutorial from the Missouri Star Quilt Company (Love Jenny Doan!) that was really easy.  Once I finished the quilt top, it sat in the closet for quite a while so that I could think about how to finish it up.  I toyed with having someone else do the quilting for me in a swirly/stippled pattern.  I toyed with learning how to free-motion quilt myself.  I spent a lot of time on the Internet researching and learning.  Eventually, I decided to handle it myself and go for a linear, modern look.  I bought a walking foot on eBay and gave it a go -- straight line quilting is fun but hard work and time consuming!  Then came the hardest part -- binding.  My binding is pretty messed up, I'll admit.  I tried a machine binding technique that may have been above my head; my corners look pretty lousy.  But the whole process from start to finish was meant to help me learn about quilting....and have something cute to pass onto Baby Girl.

So, will I make another quilt?  Funny, you should ask.  Last week I purchased a layer cake of Christmas fabric (see here).  I've always wanted to make a Christmas quilt that we could snuggle under as a family during the Christmas season (Yeah, we don't really have cold weather in Los Angeles for TRUE snuggling but it's a nice tradition just the same).  It'll probably be about the size of a lap quilt; I don't think I'll ever had the patience or skill for a large quilt.  Baby quilts, wall hangings, and table runners are perfect for someone like me with a short attention span.  I'd start working on it now, but oops, I'm having a baby soon.  Guess I'll begin working on it during late night feedings?? 

It All Started with a Dollar

This story has a brief timeline that goes a little like this:

Lee brings home a few random books for me from the church rummage sale.

I read one of the books in 2 days.  It's titled The Quilter's Apprentice by Jennifer Chiaverini.

I start thinking about how interesting quilts are and become fascinated by the terminology (who doesn't love a hobby with words like "charm pack, layer cake, and jelly roll"???)

I find out I'm pregnant.

I discover via Amazon that there are twenty books in this quilting series.

I continue reading the series and am now up to book #10.

I spend 24 hours on bed rest due to some genetic tests and look up "how to quilt" videos on Youtube.

Via Youtube, I discover the wonderful tutorials from Missouri Star Quilting Company.

My mind starts to play tricks on me -- "you should make a baby quilt!" I hear over and over.

I spend weeks studying up on quilting, knowing it's a hobby that's a little out of my league.  Plus, I already have photo albums, scrapbooks, and a cross-stitch project to finish....don't really need to add to my "to do" list.

We find out we're having a girl.

One day later, I purchase a charm pack of girlie fabrics. 

The timeline jumps several months to this week, when -- ta da -- I finished my baby quilt. Just in time too since Little Miss Cook could come any day now.   Soooo the quilt and LMC have gestated about the same amount of time.  Interesting.  Tomorrow I will share photos of the finished product and review what I've learned about quilting.