Star Value block and a couple from Joan

 

First off I want to share my do. Good Stitches block for September.  This is MY month to come up with a design for the rest of the gals to make.  I wanted something that was scrap friendly, simple to construct, and I also wanted it to have a bit of a secondary design to it when all the blocks come together.  So I kept my eyes peeled while checking out various blogs, and when I came across Melissa's Star Value block tutorial- That was it!  Perfect!  She even has instructions for 5 different block sizes!  This is the 20" size--you cut out 3 and 3.5" squares.  Yeah, it's a lot of squares, but once you get your fabric selections made and everything cut out, it goes together pretty darn quick. 

 

If you want and idea of how a dozen of these blocks look like all together- here's Melissa's

 

So, the Haven group is off and running to make this block!  I can't wait to start getting them in the mail...

 

 

Alright.  Now, here are a couple things from Joan.  Isn't this baby quilt adorable?  Those little animals in their sleepers...Awwe. 

 

She wanted an all-over design, so I did a feathered swirl.  It turned out pretty cute. 

 

She also had this table runner. 

 

Just do a meander she said.  No problemo there!  Thanks Joan!

Jessica's baby quilts

 

Jessica made these two adorable baby quilts.  This one was for a friend's little boy.  His name is Berek or Bearet or Bear.  I can't remember which, but I know they are calling him Bear, so this little quilt is soo perfect!

 

I quilted swirls and some large pebble patches here and there.

 

Then there is this sweet little one. 

 

I did an all-over design with curly Q's and flowers.

 

 

I'm so glad I get to quilt up your quilts Jessica!

 

Jessica's oh deer! (again)

Jessica was commissioned to make this quilt from the Oh Deer fabric line.  She has made this quilt several times before and has sold them on her Etsy site. 

I quilted a super-sized echo swirl all over to keep the modern/contemporary vibe.

 

 

This large print makes an excellent backing.  Jessica did make a couple of twin sized of the same quilt as well, but I didn't get photos of them.  But it's the same quilt, only smaller, and I quilted an all-over design that I've posted before.   So I guess it was nothing new anyways!

Karen's Recipe Cards Quilt

Karen had me quilt this neat Recipe Cards quilt.  She had a concept to make the green part look like grass.  Hmm, I think I can do that!

So here's the grassy part.

For the cards I made each fabric a different texture- pebbles, horizontal lines, and swirls.  

Karen tells me that she plans to enter this into the Iowa State Fair in their new Modern Quilts category.  I'm very excited to check out this new category and see her quilt in person.  Again.  There is always a lot of really great quilts to see at the State Fair and always look forward to the exhibit.  

 

Thanks for letting me quilt your awesome quilt Karen!

Carol's Blue Embroidered Stars

Carol's husband does all the embroidery work on these blocks while she puts the quilts together.  Sounds like a good trade to me!  

I outlined each row of the star and the center star.  Then I went around the outside with a McTavish/banana type filler.  For the sashing I changed to a navy thread and tried a new (to me) design I saw in an old Dawn Cavanaugh article about tiny borders I had ripped from a magazine.  (Fons & Porter perhaps?)  I really like how it turned out, although it was tricky figuring out how to turn the corner with it.  

The back!

Ta daa!  Or, as my little guy likes to say: "Daaa!"

Aunt Connie's

 

This quilt is another Mom-Sister-Me collaboration.  Except I barely sewed anything- just a few QST units together.  My sister did the applique a couple years ago while on bed rest with kiddo #2.  Mom supplied most of the fabric and I think and probably did a lot of the piecing.  Me?  I did the quilting of course!  The pattern was in Fons & Porter.  I'm not sure of the issue, but I'm guessing summer of 2011. 

 

 

 

The quilting really blends in, but I did a free-motion flowers/swirl in the pieced part.  Feathers in the flowered borders...

 

 

And kept it simple with a meander in the applique background.  This is for my Aunt for her 65th Birthday!  I think it turned out very pretty and know she is going to love it!

 

 

Here's the back where the quilting is a bit more visible.

Grandpa's Baby Quilt

This baby quilt was once my husband's Grandfather's baby quilt.  His mom has had it in her possession for a LONG time.  It is very worn and very thin.  There are holes here and there.  She ended up ironing interfacing to the back of it and had me quilt it.  

 

The previous quilting lines were still apparent so I used them as guidelines for this loopy pattern.

Seeing the variety of prints was pretty neat.  I'm sure most of them were remnants from clothing.  She used a solid white fabric for the back in case you were wondering.

 

The steam boat print was my favorite.  I imagine they were actually pretty popular when this quilt was made!  I don't know if this quilt will last another 100 years, but it might come close!

QBB Quilts

I finished up a couple quilts for Quilts Beyond Borders.  I debuted this top a few weeks ago, and was able to get another top together too.  These quilts were made using up random blocks and leftover units I had laying around- mostly from other people, a few of my own.  I had them as PIGS.  You probably have a few PIGS of your own lurking around.  (Projects In Grocery Sacks)  I don't know what I was saving them all for...just waiting for the perfect little project to use each one in I guess.  Well, I finally came to my senses and thought I will NEVER. EVER use these all up separately.  I should just put them all together in one wild quilt.  So that's what I did!!

I did NOT make the compass block.  My super talented Mom did.  Although I did put the curved corners on- which resulted in a super wavy block.  Oof.  But I was able to quilt it out.  

And then I went wild with the quilting as well- doing each section differently.

And here is the other one- a bit more vibrant this time.

I quilted everything but the kitchen sink in this one!  feathers, pebbles, swirls, leaves...  No flowers though.  This is supposed to be a boy quilt. :)

I even used up leftover blocks from this quilt for the labels.  One of the requirements is to machine stitch the bindings.  I'm a bind-by-hand kind of girl, so this was a challenge for me.  The peach binding I stitched in the ditch from the top.  Which resulted in a lot of skipped places on the back.  So while I'm repairing those-from the top side, and having to go back a third time in the same spot... and in several other spots,  I decided to just stitch from the backside from then on.  That worked out a lot better!  Oh, and the back is flannel btw.  

So the binding isn't pretty, but it is very secure!  So, off they went in the mail to Karen in WA to be whisked away to an orphanage in the mountains of Haiti.  Until that is I checked my email today.  Karen says:

We pick the best of the wonderful quilts we receive and sell them, with the quilter's permission at the Houston Quilt Festival.  Yours are particularly striking and interesting.  Would it be okay with you if we put them up for sale.  (Houston is our only attempt at getting operating funds - we sell quilts, items from Ethiopia and some etc. like table runners)  let me know.  Thanks

Well, gosh.  OK I guess that's ok with me!  I was really wanting it to go to a poor little kiddo, but I said if it would benefit the organization more to sell it, then go ahead.  So if you are at the Houston Quilt Festival, you could actually see it OR BUY IT!!  

I guess if I make another quilt for QBB, I'll try extra hard to make it less striking and wonderful so that it will actually go to a kid in need!  ha ha!  So  in the end I de-cluttered my sewing space a little bit and was able to help out a very deserving charity in the process.  Win-win!  Karen's tag-line in her email I think sums it up pretty well...

"Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us every day."  S. Koch

Finish it up Friday

Katie's Funky One

My sister Katie made this one.  It's pretty funky!  So I went with some funky quilting.  

In the improv-pieced blocks I did a heart/crescent shaped star in each block.  I only had to mark the diagonal lines as you can see.  I also wanted to have different textures on her setting squares-since she made all the effort to have them in two different fabrics- and did a large pebble on one side and giant loops on the other.

For her pieced stars, I did a bit more traditional feather.

In the funky raw-edge applique flower blocks, I just meandered in the background.  It's super hard to see I know, so you'll just have to believe me :)

This odd-ball block I was nervous about because I used a high contrasting thread, but I think it turned out pretty cool!  I used a silver/gray colored thread throughout the whole quilt.

And on the pieced edges I did a big heart, small heart design.  

I hope my quilting was funky enough for you Katie!  I always have fun with your wild quilts!

Katie's T-Shirt Quilt

I *almost* forgot about this one.  I quilted this one up back in early May, but it got buried in my photo files.  Ahh well!  My sister Katie made this T-shirt quilt using up shirts from her high school and college days.  It was fun to do - partly because I had/still have a few of the same shirts (one I still wear regularly!)  and could reminisce as I quilted.  

And also partly because I could just go wild with the quilting!  

The always slightly inappropriate college dorm floor t-shirt...

The light gray backing shows off the crazy quilting pretty well.  

(Those lighter lines are from the lovely vertical blinds btw)

Enjoy your T-shirt quilt Sister!  

I wonder---I could probably make one out of some of my old college t-shirts...  Uh oh.  I think I just added another sewing project to my list!