Finished Night Music

Finished Quilt!

Well, I got home from that vacation and just went to town quilting. I am really attempting to minimize my works in progress, so I REALLY wanted to finish this quilt before starting on another...which I already have planned, and am motivated by the imminent due date of my old roommate's baby boy (as long as I get it to her while the baby is under 1 year it still counts, right?). Needless to say, the motivation was there, and I just had to figure out how to quilt it. I decided on a square spiral originating in the center of the quilt. Due to my aversion for marking lines it gets a little squiggly from time to time, and the crispness of the angles is off, but I think it works as a whole. I even used my walking foot guide, so these are the most even lines I've quilted so far!

Quilt Back

I backed the quilt in two prints I picked up that I felt really went well with the color scheme and feeling of the quilt. The one on the left is Anna Maria Horner and the one on the right is Tula Pink (not solid blue!). I forgot to add a label while I was binding, so I appliqued one on after it was all done. It's in the lower left corner, and is my typical stamped label (no close up - whoops).

The whole shebang. 

I designed the layout myself, and made it a row quilt. The center is made up of 12 blocks, then on each side there are two rows of 6 log cabin blocks, and the ends are flying geese. My process involved cutting all the strips for the cabins and adding in some red, yellow, and lighter blue strips in each size. As I went along I used the kona jade and black as my base colors and added in other pops randomly. I didn't get to see what it would look like until I put it up on my design wall. Regarding my design wall, I only have one when I've finally bought some batting and am about to piece a quilt top, so they are temporary fixtures in the apartment. I don't usually lay out blocks on the floor, so it's all guesswork until I get to the end. I added in some of my leftover fabrics as spacing between the rows and as a border around the quilt. I also bound the quilt in some of the scraps. I like how the quilt maintains the feeling of colorful chaos, but there are still places where your eye can rest. 

Quilt and end of summer flowers (not mine, I went to a park on the waterfront).

Now the quilt is resting on the couch under a cat, and I'm all set to start my next project!  

Finish Along - Q3

I decided to participate in the 3rd Quarter of the Finish Along hosted by The Littlest Thistle. I'm hoping it will keep me more focused and get me to finish the projects I'm working on. I am definitely a 'list' person, meaning whenever I need to buckle down I hand write a to-do list, then I work through it, physically crossing off each item as it's completed. Hopefully this digital version will work just as well!

I want to quilt this (king sized) guy: 

Birds and Butterflies Quilt

I've got it all basted and I have a quilting plan in mind, I just need to start marking it and just do it!

I need to quilt and put together this pillow cover: 

Zipper Pillow Cover!

I've got it and the back set up, I just need to get everything to size, baste, and quilt them. The recipient's birthday is at the end of the month, so that's a good motivator.

I'm halfway through my second attempt at this dress:

Colette Moneta

My first version is awesome! Now I'm making the version in the image (version 1), and so far it's a little smaller than I'd like...something went wrong with the lining...hopefully it'll finish ok!

I want to finish this quilt, but probably won't get past the top, if I even get that far: 

Southwest inspired quilt top

While I still love this piece I kind of hate how inaccurate (in my eyes) my piecing is. That'll teach me for making a challenging pattern before I worked on my piecing precision!

I've got a few other projects, but I think this is enough to list for now. The summer heat really puts me into slow motion...especially without any AC in my sewing nook!