Tiles

Let me begin by saying that my camera just is not capturing the richness of these colors.  I took closeup pictures hoping that would help, but it doesn't.  It just won't capture the texture and gold flecks of these Artisan Spirit Shimmer fabrics.

I don't play with precuts very often.. I never know what to do with the pinked edges.  Should I cut them off?  Measure from the outside edges, or the middle or the inside of the pinked edges?  There is also the possibility that the precut piece isn't exactly the nominal size on the package.  I've had 2 1/2" strips that were a little narrow, and some a little wide.  This isn't a problem for something like Jelly Roll Race quilts, but if the pattern needs exact cut sizes, that can cause trouble. In this case, the packages of 10" squares came home anyway because it was just too pretty to stay on a store shelf. 

An idea for a scrap quilt had been simmering for a while and it occurred to me that I might be able to make it from precut 10" squares instead to use up the pretties that came home. Technically, I should have been able to cut four 2 1/2" x 10" strips from each square, but the square wasn't quite square so I had to settle for fewer cuts per square.    This leads me to a question for users of precuts and patterns:  would you rather have the cutting instructions assume the theoretical maximum possible cuts, or less efficient cuts that result in  leftovers but won't cause problems if the precut pieces are not quite the size they should be?  Please chime in with a comment!

Next on the list for this project:

• Find a better name
• Settle on a design to use up all the bonus HST generated in making the quilt top
• Quilt and bind 

So maybe a late summer finish?  That may seem sluggish, but the garden is calling, finally, after a long winter!

Fundy Skies version 2

 I'm on pins and needles.  I sent this off to the longarm quilter last week.

I finished putting on the borders first, of course!  I just didn't get a picture of the full top before handing it off.

I'm on pins and needles because I don't like giving up control. Hand quilting this one is out.  I'm way too slow and I'm not even halfway done the quilting my daughter's twin size quilt yet! I also can't machine quilt this queen sized top on my domestic machine with the desk and space that I have without hurting my sholulder. I really don't want to go back to physical therapy again so I gave in.   Liz of A Quilted Memory in Nevada, IA is very good at listening to what kind of quilting I want, and she does a very nice job.  I'm sure it will be lovely when I get it back, but I will still be twitchy until I actually see it!

Next up...something with these Artisan Spirit Shimmer fabrcis by Northcott:

Throwback Thursday - Star Soup

Sandra at mmmquilts! is hosting Throwback Thursday the first Thursday of every month.  I missed last month, but here's my contribution for May.

I think the pattern was called Star Soup, though I can't remember who it was by because, ahem, I didn't attach a label.  Maybe this will be a lesson to me a dozen years later: remember the label! This was my third completed quilt, finished in Sept. 2006. (I know the date because the photo was dated.) It only took me a couple of years to make.  Piecing it went fairly quickly but the hand quilting slowed down the finish.  This was in my "one finished quilt every two to three years" period.

I quilted a diagonal grid lined up with the star points, stitched in the ditch around each star, and quilted a little heart in most of the stars.  The rest of the stars have letters to spell out my daughter's name. 

I used a painting stencil to trace the letters.  I did not and do not free-hand that well!

I bought all the star fabrics and the background at Poppin's Parlour in Pentiction, British Columbia but by the time I had assembled the top and discovered I didn't have enough background fabric to use for the border we had moved to Iowa.  Being short of fabric was entirely my fault, by the way, not the shop's.  It turns out that if you make a quilt larger than the pattern plans for, you'll need more fabric.  Who knew ?  :)

Anyhow, I couldn't find more of the same fabric, but another blue with slightly larger hearts scattered all over fit the theme so I went with that.

This quilt has been well loved and used. Though it was replaced as Laura's main bed quilt several years ago, it still gets pulled out now and then for extra warmth.  I curled up under it on the couch recently and decided I need to make another flannel quilt.  It is so soft and cuddly!  I'll get right on that...or maybe just add to the list?  That list is getting very long...