Friday Finish: More than one

I actually have three finishes to share today.

Three Blocks

Remember the great granny square quilt my sister and I made for our mom's 70th birthday?  I made a quilt for my sister using three of the leftover blocks and finished it just in time for our trip home.  This quilt top came together quickly once I sat down to sew.  Once again, I spent more time thinking about the quilt design than I did assembling.

sideways view

The layout is the same as the Got Pink? quilt I made for my mom years ago.  The background fabric is Kate Spain's Fandango which I absolutely love.  The fabric is so soft.

the back

I also used Fandango for the back (with a little bit of Picnic Parade by Jenean Morrison) and for the binding.  I quilted loops with some free form flowers thrown in here and there.  This was my first time using Aurifil thread, and I have to say I am hooked!  I now see what all the fuss is about.

the front

I really need to do better about taking quilt pictures.  I quickly snapped some indoor photos before our trip thinking I would get some later and then promptly forgot all about that.  I did get a cute picture of Michelle dozing under her new quilt, but I don't think she would forgive me if I posted it here.

one more

I promised a picture of Leo's quilt rack with more quilts.  If you compare this picture to the other one I posted yesterday you can tell the quilts get rotated.  It is obvious that the quilts in his house are used frequently.  I like that.

Leo's quilt rack 

The Leo quilt is a new addition.  I finished this right before his birthday.  This project has been in the works for over a year.  Most of the siggy blocks were decorated at the baby shower with others sent to out of town relatives to sign.  This time the procrastination was not entirely mine....seems this trait runs in BOTH sides of Leo's family.  The quilt is backed with Turquoise Bubbles from Jenn Ski Mod Century fabric line.  Using a sample of Aurifil thread I received in my QuiltCon goody bag, I quilted straight lines round the letters and 1/4" from the seam lines of the blocks.  The green Aurifil thread matched the background color perfectly.

baby blanket

I also stitched a little blanket for Leo's first birthday using yardage of Malka's new Simple Marks fabric for the front and backed with a denim-looking flannel.  First I basted and quilted the top together with the batting in straight lines on either side of the "blocks".  Then with right sides together I sewed the backing piece to the quilted front leaving room to turn right side out.  Lastly, I topstitched all around sewing closed the opening.

makes a soft play mat

My original quilt planned for Leo is too big for a one year old, and since I was pressed for time anyway, this blanket makes a colorful alternative.  I can imagine Leo sitting on the blanket while playing with his toys.

another cell phone picture

The Peace Baby quilt I made when Leo was born also used fabric from Malka Dubrawsky (A Stitch in Color).  I call them his Florida quilts ;-)

I'm linking up with Crazy Mom Quilt's finish it Friday.  Happy stitching!

Really Random Thursday: Hello, hello, hello...

...testing, testing...anyone still out there?

love Bernadette's rants

When I last posted over two months ago, the reason I gave for my absence was my missing mojo, and that was definitely an issue.  However, I also have been traveling so much that I haven't had a chance to sew.  Heck, I can't remember what day it is or even what time zone I am in!

I may have misjudged the size of this puppy when ordering online

How appropriate that my comeback starts with a Really Random post as since last I've seen you I have made two trips to see this guy, taken two school trips with daughter, visited the parental units with my sister, and celebrated several family milestones.

learning his colors

Did you know Pantone makes baby flash cards?  Yep, kids these days are learning more sophisticated colors than just your typical red, green and yellow.

Happy Birthday!

Leo's daddy would have loved his own personal ball pit when he was little!  Such a clever gift to celebrate a first birthday.

great marketing

Spotted this sign at the Lush store in Seattle (above) and this sign at my daughter's school (below).

yes indeed

Did you know there was an app for that?

tuning our instruments

While traveling with my daughter's middle school orchestra I got a kick out of their digital tuner.

celebrating my daughter's 14th birthday

The second school trip with my daughter occurred on her birthday.  Happy to see friends signing her National History Day shirt while eating cookies baked by another friend.

what the what?

My sister and I had fun at the "magic box".  First time renting from Red Box.  It is truly a magical experience.  I swear there is some guy hiding inside...how else do you explain it?!

The Real Thing

Visiting the parental units just isn't complete without a trip to BB's for a shrimp poboy.  We may or may not have also made a trip to Bozo's on the same day for dinner.  If we did it was for research - comparing methods of po boy making.  

youngest now in high school; middlest visiting from college

While I was away from blogland there were several family celebrations....

these three all celebrated birthdays

celebrated our anniversary....remember this 25th anniversary quilt

.....not to mention Mother's and Father's Day!

too pricey for me!

While shopping for Father's Day I noticed these matching swim trunks for father and son.  How cute for Alex and Leo to dress alike while in Florida?!  That was before I saw the price of the BABY swim suit.  Cute, but not that cute.

just some of Leo's quilts

hey there

Leo has so many quilts that he has his own quilt rack.  I don't even have one of those in my house.  Tomorrow, I plan to publish a Friday Finish post (yeah I know...two days in a row!) that shows even more quilts in Leo's room.

see you next time

Not only have I been absent from my blog, but I've been absent from yours.  I've been hanging out on Instagram since it suits my lack of attention i.e. short attention span I can quickly check in to see what my friends are up to without getting lost for hours. I can't say things will settle down much around here until September so if you're on IG let me know your handle so I can look you up ;-)

If you've made it all the way to end, I thank you.  Happy stitching,

What's Up Wednesday: Missing in Action

My sewing mojo is missing, and I can't seem to find it anywhere.

Idle and lonely

Until it returns, I'll be MIA here on the blog as well.

Maybe a trip to see this guy will help?!

In the meantime, happy stitching to you!!!

Friday Finish: Nine Years Ago

Before blogging it didn't occur to me to photograph the quilts I made.  Since then when the opportunity presented itself, I have tried to document the quilts I made prior to 2009.  Other than charity quilts, only two quilts remain unphotographed...until today....now there is just one (hint, hint Michelle).

One of my first quilts made

Several days ago I was given back this quilt to repair the label.   I made this quilt nine years ago for my beautiful mother-in-law's 65th birthday.  It was one of the first quilts I made (one of three rail-fence quilts made as gifts), and I haven't seen it in at least six years.

65th birthday quilt

It is bittersweet that I share these quilt pictures with you today, as today happens to be the sixth year anniversary of my mother-in-law's (Mami) passing.  She is missed every single day by her family.  Mami was a gentle, sweet soul who treated me like a daughter.  (She often referred to me affectionately as her blonde-haired daughter when introducing me to her friends.)  I am blessed to have known her, and I regret not telling her more often how much I love her and how wonderful she is.  You can never say those words too much, can you?

well loved and used

This is the one and only quilt I made for her and my quilting skills were definitely not up to par back then.  However, I know she loved and used this quilt because it is super soft and has more than one stain!  She kept it on her bedroom recliner and snuggled underneath when watching TV.

unraveled stitches

I only have this quilt long enough to reattach the label and restitch a line of quilting that came loose.  I have to give it up tomorrow (unless maybe my father-in-law doesn't mention it and neither do I!), but I took this opportunity to take a few pictures while it is in my possession.

partial label

The original label is quite large with three family photographs along with birthday sentiments.  This isn't the best picture, but I want to give you a glimpse of Mami's gorgeous smile.

Mami loved the color blue

I am not linking up with Amanda's finish it Friday since this is not a recent finish, but click on the link to see some wonderful finishes.

Have a wonderful Friday!  Thanks for stopping by,

What's Up Wednesday: Mini projects

I began quilting my sister's quilt and am using Aurifil thread for the first time.  So far I am loving the results.  I have to say however that I am a little disappointed that the Aurifil hasn't magically transformed me into a free motion quilting genius.  I guess only practice can do that.

FMQing

I played around with stamping on fabric and dusted off my scrapbooking supplies to make this mini quilt top.

Life is Sweet!

The cupcake block was made in my QuiltCon paper pieced class with Penny.  I stamped the words Life is sweet! on cream fabric and attached to the quilt top with flower eyelets.  My iron had issues with spitting which accounts for that damp spot you see.

never ending project

I made progress on my Cowboy/Cowgirl quilt that I WILL finish by this summer.

paper piecing

More paper piecing blocks by Penny.  I started this asterisk block and became discouraged when I sewed my fabric backwards.  I found this Carol Doak YouTube video with a solution to this oops  AFTER I had ripped apart my block.

scrappy chevron block

 Our guild's block of the month for May is a scrappy chevron block.  The tutorial for this block can be found here at In Color Order.

AAQI

Last Wednesday members of the OrlandoMQG made mini quilts for the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative.  What a talented and generous group we have!

Hope you are having a wonderful Wednesday!  Thanks for stopping by,

Friday Finish: Quick Change Trousers

I finished these adorable pants last night, and I have to say they are the cutest thing ever!!!!!

the back side

The pattern is from Anna Maria Horner's book Handmade Beginnings: 24 Sewing Projects to Welcome Baby.  I have had this book for a while and wish it hadn't taken me so long before making this first pair.  I was intimidated by the sewing pattern, but I shouldn't have been because this project was so simple and quick to make.

the front

 I discovered last night that I had every width of elastic except the 1/2" called for in the pattern.  I will run out and purchase that today, but I was too excited to wait before taking pictures of the pants.  I just had to share them on the blog today! 

cell phone photo

The trousers are reversible and I made one side with all Architextures fabric by Carolyn Friedlander.  I just love this ledger fabric!  It reminds me of my former CPA days and wanted my grandson to have a little bit of that in the first clothing I make for him.  

reversible front side

I wasn't sure if MY son would let HIS son wear graph-paper pants, so I made the reversible side more subdued.  The pants fabric used is still Architextures but only the cuffs show the ledger print.  

reversible back side

I used fabric from the Type collection by Julia Rothman for the back yoke which I think is just adorable here!  I sure wish I had pictures with the cute little guy these pants are destined for, but I plan to visit him soon.  No doubt I will take one or two pictures of him wearing the pants then! 

Linking up with Amanda's finish it Friday.

Happy Friday and happy stitching!!!