Friday, June 29, 2012

There are just days you shouldn't sew......


Yup...something just wasn't right and to top it off, this is the one I had problems with at retreat and thought I had fixed it this afternoon after doing some ripping out and re-sewing.  (sigh).

So, instead of calling it a day, I ripped yet again. 


....and then I had # 4 Swoon block.  

So, I thought I am finally on the right road. 

I put this one (#5) together, but now I am not so sure I like it all that much. 


Oh darn.....there is just not enough contrast in this block. 


Maybe I will just put this block on the back of the quilt  and cut out a new one if I have enough French General scraps to do it. 

Then I started sewing #6 and then this happened. 


I grabbed two instead of one when I was trimming.  Thank goodness I didn't totally ruin the segment.  All I had to do was put another background square on it.  

I have laid out block #6.


I think I will sew this one together tomorrow.  I am getting frustrated and don't want to make anymore mistakes. 

Do you have days like this?

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Back from retreat....finale

So you don't get sick of hearing about my retreat, this will be my last post on it....but I have to say that I am still reveling in all the inspiration (we had two nights of show and tell), happiness and relaxation that I gleaned from it.  


Here we are all gathered on the spiral staircase.  We stayed at the Mercy Center in St. Louis, MO.  I highly recommend it.  Nice accommodations set on beautiful grounds (although I never do get out to enjoy the grounds because I am having way too much fun inside). 

The second project I worked on while at retreat was a Houndstooth baby quilt in baby blue and white Kona Cotton.




I sewed all my strips and started cutting out one strip at a time, sewed together the row and then would cut out the next.  Time just flies by way too fast, so I will be finishing this one at home. 

I plan on making two more of these.  One will be baby pink and white and the other one like the pattern's picture, charcoal and white. 

I do want to share with you a couple gifts that I made for my car mate and my room mate.

I made the Flapper purse.  I am going to have to make myself one because I think it would be great to carry when you don't want to take everything that you normally carry in your regular purse.  


This one is in rust batiks. 


I love this black one, too.  Very graphic, I think. 

There is a pocket on the outside and two on the inside. 




Great for some cash, credit card, I-phone and I.D.  

Well, that is it until the next time.  Wish you could have all been there.  





Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Back from retreat....continued


While at retreat I started Swoon. ....and if you noticed, I am using up my left overs of my French General, although there might be another quilt in that line yet (although I think three are enough). 

I had a heck of a time getting going on this quilt.  Don't know if it was all the chatting and laughing at retreat, but I ended up sewing together the wrong pieces and them cutting them (had to put that one aside) and then started stitching together another block wrong (put that aside before cutting).  

Finally got three blocks put together.  


I think I am going to love this quilt.  I did purchase the background for this quilt as I didn't have enough to even make a scrappy background.  Since being home, I have all blocks pinned together and some new pieces cut out for the ones that I ruined.  

Did want to share with you a couple other things that I received at the retreat.

 

One of the gals made each of us a scrap box (you'll notice the free FQ that I have in mine that I got at Quilts Plus).  It is collapsible and goes together with velcro.


It's pretty cool.  

Also, on our swap table there was this yardage of fabric for free.  I got a couple yards of the leafy one and the other one is about 2-3 yards x 36", so I am thinking it was used for a backing, but hey...it was free and I am sure I can find a purpose for it.  


Then to top it off, when I got home, my back order from Hancock's was here with the 2 yards of baby pink and 2 yards of charcoal.  


The pink and charcoal are for two  future baby quilts.  I  started working on a baby blue one at retreat. This was my second project at retreat and I will post  pix of that  on my next post.  


Monday, June 25, 2012

Back from retreat.....purchases and prizes.....

Just got back yesterday and spent time today unpacking and thinking I need to get this stuff incorporated into my stash before my husband gets home!!! OMG......did I go a little off the deep end.


Modern Vintage.....Vintage Modern....Doesn't matter, I bought tons of it to make the Sunwashed pattern by Fig Tree.  Of course, my friends say I have enough of this fabric for 3-5 quilts.


This was all purchased at Quilts Plus in Indianapolis, IN and Jackman's in St. Louis, MO. 

Went to a new shop in St. Louis called Fabric Rosherie and bought a couple yards of this cute children's print.


Picked up some wool for this cute pumpkin pattern.


Picked up a few more pieces for the Gathering Baskets, too. 



Stopped at a neat little yarn shop called Kirkwood Knittery in St. Louis looking for a particular gadget


but ended up buying yarn for socks because they had a 35% sale on ALL yarn.


As for secret quilter gifts, I found these at my station everyday.


and a puzzle, too. 


My car mate gave me some yummy maple syrup from Canada and a couple fat quarters of her Hawaiian fabric.


My roomie gave me these.


There is a package of animal print magnets, a folded gum wrapper coin purse, a little knitting tool on a key ring and the purple fabric (?) that is really silk.  It is called a Silk Hanky that you can stretch out and make yarn.  I am really going to have to check that out.  It feels absolutely luscious. 

There's more but I will add them when I post some pictures of the projects that I worked on while at retreat on my next post.  So, stay tuned.....

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Good grief....

 I packed up all my stuff yesterday for retreat; and, also, got a pattern in the mail from a friend that was for a charity quilt for our guild.  Well, I thought I would just go look through my stash to see if there was something I could use for it. 

That hunt took me to a crayon challenge from a couple (or maybe more) years ago.


I pulled these two crayons out of the box and we were supposed to make a quilt in those colors for the following year to show at our retreat (the same one that I am attending this coming week).  Well, I bought the fabric, but never made the quilt. Soooo....with the bag of fabrics for that quilt, I decided to make the charity quilt instead.  Cut out all my strips. 
All the pieces were lying on the floor, so I thought maybe I can quickly sew them together to get them out of the way.

Next thing you know, I have a quilt top for charity.



I should have just taken it to retreat to sew it, but it was all laid out and in my way........oh well. 

Needless to say, I had to unpack a couple things to get this top finished.  Now to go put them back before I forget to take them along with me. 

I think I am going to stay out of the sewing room until I pack the car. 


Friday, June 15, 2012

Getting packed....

Not leaving until Tuesday after work, but my sewing is all packed.

Got the suitcases out along with my design wall.


Projects are cut out.

Swoon....


Houndstooth baby quilt in baby blue and white.....


(I had ordered baby pink and charcoal gray from Hancocks of Paducah, but those colors were back ordered).

I am taking along my hexies to do something mindless....


I figure I can do these while chatting.

Bringing some knitting that I haven't started yet.


I will have to concentrate on this project though...if I even get to it.

Got my shopping list together for the Gathering Baskets (which I have most of the fabric for)  and a Fig Tree quilt that I want to make.




Just need to start thinking about clothing. 

Still waiting to hear from my quilter about my Beyond the Cherry Trees.  Sure hope she gets it done before I leave.  ....tap....tap....tap.....

Getting anxious all the way round. 









Sunday, June 10, 2012

Getting prepped for retreat....

I must work well under pressure as I have been busier this weekend in the sewing room  more so than I have been in a very long time.

My Swoon is all cut out now and this is what I decided on for my background.


Strips are cut out here, but I have since sub cut them to their specific sizes.

I whipped together a pillowcase from my stash  that our group is collecting to donate to a local Children's Hospital.



The blue is a gradated blue from very light to the nearly navy so here you see the front and back of the pillowcase. 

I have, also, made two  gifts (somewhat time consuming little numbers)  that I can't share yet, but to have gotten all this done since Friday impresses even me!

I still have one baby quilt to cut out that I want to work on, but I think I will be able to find the time to do that.  I may have all my sewing stuff, gifts and whatnots ready to be packed long before I need to...but that would make me very happy. 

Well, back to the sewing room.  Still waiting to hear how the Beyond the Cherry Tree quilt is coming along.  It won't be long.


Thursday, June 7, 2012

tap....tap....tap....

Beyond the Cherry Trees is at the quilter's.



Binding is made.....and I used this fabric which was the largest piece I still had in my French General stash.


I guess while I am "not so patiently" waiting, I will make some more hexies.


tap....tap...tap...





Saturday, June 2, 2012

Prepping a retreat project.....

I thought I would squeeze out one more quilt using the left overs of my French General fabrics.

Swoon.
I have chosen these fabrics with their mates to make the 9 blocks.


Here I have the center stars cut out and have the corresponding background wheel underneath them.


...and now all the pieces for the blocks are cut out.

One difference though...since I am using up my scraps, I had this one picked out for the background wheel and came up short one 3 1/2 block. "darn"  I was sure there was enough fabric, I think I just cut it out in the wrong order. 


I had to settle for this one, but it is ok, too.


I still have to find a background fabric, so as soon as I can get to a quilt shop that carries French General, then I can get the background cut and this quilt will be ready to go.

Now, this will be the third quilt with these fabrics ....and most likely the last one, too.

There was the Beyond the Cherry Trees and the Gwen Marston liberated baskets, but I still have this much fabric left over from the Cherry Trees. I think I may have gotten carried away. 


I am NOT going to make another quilt with these fabrics.  It's time to move on to something new or complete some of my UFOs. 

Well, ALMOST one project cut out for retreat.  I need to get busy, it's just around the corner. 

Michigan quilters, take note

  Come see us at our first Quilter's to Quilter's sale.   Don't know what that is?  Well, it will be 28 quilters/vendors selling...