CANDY CANE TWIIRL AND INTEREST QUILTING FAILURE

 I finished the very last of my quilt show boutique table runners last week.  I am done!!!!!!  Off to sewing for myself and finishing a couple of fall items that were left in the dust this last month or so.

This little beauty is Candy Cane Twirl.  Not for the faint of heart for sure.  All those points and joints just waiting for a seam that is one thread width off to cut them off or cause a gap.  I got this first one done, and thought should I attempt number two.

The second block is always easier than the first.  It is 20" by 36", I skipped a third one.  Not enough Christmas scraps to do the third one.  Love it, off to the quilter tomorrow, goes on the Christmas table this year.  

I had an interesting  issue with quilting this table runner I was doing for my quilt guild's quilt show boutique.  The white border fabric became a major quilting issue for me.  The white dots are a rubbery material.  While running a serpentine stitch through them I was leaving puncture holes and breaking the thread.  Cute fabric, but a complete failure to quilt on it.  I ended up scrapping the entire runner along with another using that same fabric.  Yes, I did try a couple sizes of different needles, no success, and impressions did not iron out and marks at the needle entry do not go away.  Word of warning, pay attention in the future that I do not buy fabric with this type of material. 

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TABLE RUNNERS AND DOGGY PLACEMATS

 I have spent this past week doing pretty much just making table runners for my guild's January quilt show boutique.  Nothing really new just major sewing, quilting, and binding them.  

I have a bit of an assembly line going.  I really want to get this chore done and move on.  

This is the pile of completed ones waiting for me to finish them by hand sew the binding down.  Unfortunately I also another 7 left to start putting together.  But then I am done.  

This is our little Yorkshire Terrier Zoey.  My next project is for her to make some placemats.  Earlier in the year our area had an overtake of ants.  Everyone had issues with them, outside and inside.  Pest control did no good what so ever for anyone.  Zoey's didn't gobble up her breakfast, she liked to come and go all day with a nibbles here and there.  Unfortunately the ants decided her food was yummy.  Zoey found her bowl full of ants and declared she was never going to eat out of a bowl again.  The ant issue has since been eliminated, but Zoey refuses to eat anything out of a bowl now.  We usually put her bowl on a placemat, so found that if we just dumped the kibble on the placemat she would eat it, and she did decide to eat it all up right then and there to avoid the ants.

OK, yes she is a spoiled dog.  At a recent Hobby Lobby fabric shopping trip, husband saw these dog themed fabrics, and I have been assigned to make some placemats for Zoey.  We have had a few special themed mats for her in the past, but now mats have to be washed everyday rather than only changing them every few days.  That is 7 mats a week, I had better start sewing.      

   
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BOUTIQUE TABLE RUNNERS AGAIN

I am back to making table runners for my guild's quilt show boutique coming up in January.  Earlier in the year I finished up a pretty good stack of them for them, but they are asking for more.  Table runners are a big hit at the boutique and sell like hotcakes.

Last week I made up a charity quilt with these fabrics left over from a fat quarter bundle.  I still ended up with lots of them still in the scrap bin.  They are now ending up in table runner for the boutique.  There seems to be no end to them, as I have multiple squares cut and lots more of these runner to make with them.  

At our guild meetings there is a free table each month that offers all sorts of odds and ends of things we want to rid ourselves of.  It is a treasure trove of patterns, magazines, sewing tools and scraps of fabric.  I grabbed this fabric off the table and managed to get this one table runner put together with it.

And this fabric on the table too.  I have 2 more of these ready to sew up into table runners as well for the boutique.

My thanksgiving table runner is finished.  I got the binding on it this week and am so pleased with it.  Those floating leaf point were a challenge but so worth it.  Makes that leaf block center just really stand out.  

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FALL PROJECT FINISH & MOVING INTO THE NEW CHARITY QUILT YEAR

I am just finishing up the second of the last of my fall quilting projects.  My charity group distributed all 325 finished quilts to 6 different agencies this past week.  Now it is back to filling the storage container for next year.

My Autumn Nights quilt is finished.  Wished I had managed to get it finished sooner, it is off to the quilter this week and not sure it will get back before the end of this month.  No issue I may just hang it up in my sewing room and enjoy it through November anyway.  

This is my first finished top to start off the first quilt for me into the new charity group's collection for next October.  It measures 50" by 60".  

Now if someone could please tell me how this much of a 45 piece  fat quarter bundle and that quilt above along with 4 placemats, my Rosemary and Thyme quilt and a Tulip and Vine runner can be leftover.  It is a mystery to me.   

I'm off to making up a few more charity quilts for the group.  Cleaning out some of my grey scraps.  Men's and boys quilts are hard to manage.  I think this one does the trick in that department. 

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FROM PUMPKINS TO FALLING LEAVES

I have spent this last week just working on my own projects.  Making some good headway with fall seasonal items.  This is my favorite time of year and I love the new fall seasonal fabrics available now.  I am pretty sure the Fat Quarter Shop loves me.   

I finally started work on my November holiday table runner.  The Falling Leaves fat quarter bundle I ordered is just beautiful and came with a panel that I cut and used on each side of the center pieced block.

I got the pattern for the center block, must admit it was a bit complicated with all the HST's and I did not make life easy for myself as I wanted the leaf points to float to avoid cutting them off when sewing the sides pieces on and binding the runner.  I know a quilter does have to have some math skills, but no one said geometry was needed as well.  

Sure appreciate this Quilter's Select quilting ruler, which helps tons quilting this piece without having to use marking pens.

Binding all prepped and ready to add.

I finished the last of my pumpkin runners, it is off as a gift for one of our daughters.

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PUMPKINS AND AUTUMN LEAVES

I was really busy this past week.  I joined several members of my charity group and we sorted and bagged up 325 quilts for six different local agencies in our area and deliver them.  My grandson brought me a pair of firemen's uniform pants to hem.  Good thing I love him as alternations and mending is definitely not a favorite thing I  care to do.  These were complicated in that they have a buckle and velcro strap that is used to chinch the leg around their boots so the end of the pant legs don't catch on fire.  These were too long, they wear them sorter than normal length and had to be hemmed up 4 inches, which required the buckle and strap to be removed and moved up.  Sewing through multiple layers of heavy fabric, taking off the buckle and strap and getting it back on in the right position was a bit scary.         

I finally finished my first Delft Blue block #1.  Compared to the pattern I have drastically limited the leaves and flowers.   Not sure where I plan to go with this project.  I have sort of fallen out of love with it.  Have to see where I do with it.

I did a bit of cutting table clean up this week. I happened onto this rotating storage container on Amazon.  It has replaced multiple containers that I used to stash little rulers, marking pens, glue and other small tools.  I can finally stop searching all over the table for small items, all in one place now.

I am back to working on week two's blocks of Autumn Nights.  I have one more to go and then can put the small quilt together.  These little guys are buggers.  Not fun at all!

  

I have gone a bit pumpkin crazy this past week.  These little guys are fun and will be making a few more of them for our guild's quilt show boutique coming up in January.  I might keep this bottom one for myself.  Working on one with black fabrics that I really like too.

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AUTUMN NIGHTS & DELFT BLUE

I have continued to work on my own projects this week.  It is normal for me to always have multiple project going, I tend to get bored so switch back and forth between them.

I finished Week 1 of my Autumn Nights Mystery Quilt Along this week.  These are fun and the Fat Quarter Shop offers the patterns free along with Youtube tutorials.

The points on these stars are fussy and small finishing at 1".  If one pins on the star fabric piece they often shift while sewing them on the drawn line.  I discovered that if you use a glue stick it holds so much better and you are going to trim off that underside anyway so it doesn't cause any sticky issues.

My second project I just  have just started, again is a free pattern and instructions at suzyssitcom.com.  The pattern is a monthly offering and there are several different appliqué patterns offered.

This is  block number 1, where I am so far.  I do not plan to add the cup and tea bag and probably not as many of the flowers either.  I have a good deal of experience doing appliqué projects.  My method is machine appliqué with a small buttonhole stitch with matching colors of thread.  Suzy's patterns are wonderful, but they are not beginner friendly to my way of thinking either.  Instructions and layouts are sometimes scant and a bit confusing at times.  But if you do enjoy appliqué by what ever method you prefer it is definitely worth taking advantage of them.

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ANTUMN NIGHTS MYSTERY QUILT ALONG

At last with just having finished off 2 more charity quilt tops I am finely getting on to some fun projects of my own.

Last week I stumbled on to this Fat Quarter Shop Autumn Nights Mystery Quilt Along.  The patterns come out once a week.  I was able to print off the first three, and purchase fabric for them and started it this past week.

I got the three pumpkin blocks done in no time at all and they were fun.  They measure 7.5" by 8.5".  I only ran into one problem.

You need to cut the fabric strips after joined with a 7.5" square ruler on the diagonal.  I don't have one, I have an 8.5, 9.5, 10.5,12.5 and a 16.5.  I tried using the 8.5" planning to cut down to 7.5", but that didn't work.  I am not going to run all over town looking for one.  So plan B was to make myself one.  A quick trip to the recycle can in our back yard, pull out a wine box that we had just tossed in there after restocking our wine refrigerator and I made myself one, thank you Trader Joe's.

This is the last baby quilt top I made for my charity group when they requested baby/children's quilts.

This quilt is also going to the charity group, however it originally was not planned for that purpose.  I have been working on these blocks as a wedding gift for a family member and was ment to be king size, 100 ten inch blocks.  I had 30 done when the couple decided to end their engagement.  So decided I wasn't going to have them sitting around for who knew how long.  No one in the family close to thinking or old enough to get married.  I had exactly the number of blocks needed for a 50" by 60" quilt top and was able to cut a binding and off to the charity group it goes.

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DE-STASH FAILURE

 I have spent the last 5 months or so working on charity quilts with my guild's Warm Wrappings program.  At least a good part of my motif has been an attempt to de-stash some of my old fabrics that have hung around in the bins and closet for years.  Frankly it has not been all that successful but well worth the try.  

I think this is number 17.  Most of these are left over William Morris fabrics.  My plan was to keep this one, but once I got down to the last row to finish have decided I am not that excited about it.  I am sort of done and have plans to do something else for a while in the sewing room.

De-stashing has really not worked very well.  This is the reason why.  I went on a bit of a shopping spree.

And a second shopping trip as well.  The Fat Quarter Shop is addictive, and my oldest daughter helped with a Mother's Day gift card from Connecting Threads that I have been saving, and another I just got from her for my birthday.  Now just have to dig up a pattern or two and get busy.     

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END OF THE CHARITY DRIVE & BUTTONS SAVED THE DAY

 This past week is the last week of getting quilt tops finished up for my charity group to complete their final end of the year donations drive.  In October we will send off to 5 various agencies in our area  a total of approximately 350 finished quilts.  Then I am off to working on some fun projects for myself.  I just ordered two fall fabric Fat Quarter Bundles so cannot wait to dig into them. 

This is my last three.  I love the simple child's quilt with the elephants on it, and I think this blue, red, and yellow quilt could make a fun older child's quilt too.  Nice to be finished with this latest project.

Last week's blog had me lamenting about my pumpkin wall hanging quilt's leaf error.  It took me a couple of days and lots of wonderful advice from comments to decided that it was still worth hanging it in our entry hall.  I decided if I could find a caterpillar button or some other garden bug button sewing it onto that leaf would be a fun idea.  Unfortunately I was not able to find any of those, but in my button box, a carry over of hundreds of buttons my husband's mother gave me, I found these two little bumble bee buttons.  Yesterday I finished the binding and hung the quilt up in the entry hall.  We love it!

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QUILTING'S UPS AND DOWNS

The quilter returned two of my recent finished projects.  I still have my Rosemary and Thyme quilt top to get off to her over the next week or two.  Putting quilt backs together is my least favorite chore so we shall see how that goes.  

Yes my pumpkin wall hanging is done and if you have not immeditately noticed it in this picture, you have a much better eye than me.

Yes that lower left leaf.  Dispite putting all the blocks together, joining all the rows, I missed this.  I did not discover it until it was returned by the quilter.  She never noticed it either, as she would have immediately called me to get it back and fix the issue.  Will I hang it in the entry hall this coming fall as planned.  Yes, maybe and see how many of my family and quilting friends notice it. 

The quilting on it is beautiful, I think that is the most irritating thing about the whole situation.  Am I toying with making it over again, but frankly I am more likely to just hang it in my sewing room on the wall above where I sew to remind myself, perfect isn't always going to be obtainable.

The second quilt top returned after quilting has come back at least in my mind perfect.  I did have custom quilting done on it and it is just really nice.  This will go into my guild's quilt show in January.

While I am pretty disappointed with the pumpkin quilt outcome the New York Beauty quilt has just come out so nicely.  Best to just laugh at myself and move on to the next quilting project.

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