Baby Blankets and more….

My goal of sewing a block a day for my Pony Club Quilt has gone out the window this past week. I’ve decided it was time to get a bunch of baby stuff done for my granddaughter who is due to arrive on August 23rd. We are having a shower for my daughter the end of June and I want to have some things done for her by then. So I’ve been making burp pads and receiving blankets…..

I’ve got over 20 burp pads made and about 13 flannel receiving blankets made….I give a lot of both of these away whenever I know someone whose had a baby, so I usually try to have some extra on hand. The next item on the agenda for my new grandbaby is another quilt, which Lesley picked out…It will be a chevron quilt.I’ve been embroidering in the evenings while I’m sitting in my comfortable chair….I’ve got two more of the large blocks and two more of the smaller blocks to embroider and then I’ll be ready to start on the piecing of my Vintage Tins quilt….

I’ve also been doing some stitching on my wool quilt, “Primitive Garden”….only one more border and it will be done! I just got the last one in the mail about a week ago….This border is the one on the left side…..Now only the top border to get done and it will be ready to send off to be quilted!

Happy Quilting! Kris

This & That

Well, today I did a lot of everything. I canned two canners of meat….got 15 pints and 1 quart…we should be good for a year at least. Got locked out of my house for about 10 minutes, but thankfully I got back in….I did a bit of sewing and a bit of embroidery. Even cleaned some house.

I’m not sure what I’ll do with this embroidery…maybe a wall hanging or just frame it and hang it in my sewing room.

These are the last four blocks of my Amish with a twist BOM….I have 3 more months of this quilt, but the last three are the borders and setting blocks. I’m excited to get this one done.

I’m about 3/4 done with the lower border of my Primitive Garden BOM….only two more borders and I’ll be done! I’ve been working on this for 12 months and only two more to go.

I’m on vacation in 1 1/2 weeks….I am sooooo ready!

Happy quilting!

Kris

‘In The Beginning’ Baby Quilt

I just finished this baby quilt for my daughter Lesley, who is expecting her first child in August. When I saw this fabric it was love at first sight.  I loved the bright colors and the theme of the fabric which is Genesis and the things God made in the first 7 days. I bought the center panel and the cloth book panel and cut the book into 6 1/2” blocks, and then filled in with a 9 patch block and a star block. The red and yellow fabric were not companion prints, but filled in very nicely.

I bought the new Crab-Apple Hill Studio’s pattern, Vintage Tin….of course lots of embroidery which I love. Don’t know when I’ll get started on this, but I doubt it will take me too long to get it done.

This is the 10th BOM from Primitive Gathering’s Primitive Garden pattern. I just got the next one in the mail, so I guess I’m a bit behind in this BOM….but I should be caught up in another week or so. This flower pot design will only take a day or two to finish. Then only 4 more months, which are all 4 borders and I will be done. I’m sure I’ll be sending this to my friend and machine quilter Kelly Kreft in Colorado. There is no way I want to tackle this on my sewing machine. It makes me nervous even thinking about trying to free motion quilt this myself.

Hopefully it won’t be such a huge winter storm that they are predicting for Wednesday and Thursday. We need the moisture, I just don’t want to be driving during the blizzard.

Have a great week, and Happy Quilting!

Kris

Finally! More sewing time…..

Well, it’s after Christmas and things have settled down a bit. I’m still very busy at work, but not quite as many hours. I’ve been hiding in my sewing room whenever I get the chance and I didn’t realize how much I missed my sewing machines! I’ve gotten the idea of making some table runners and I’ve gotten carried away as usual.

This is the one I’m working on now, it’s a bear paw that kind of looks like fall leaves….I’m making it out of batiks, I’m anxious to get these sewn together and see how they will look.

And my jar quilt table runner….this was very fast and easy. It was lots of fun too….someday I’m making a larger quilt with jars. I have plenty of fabric for it too!

As you can see, I quilted the word ‘Ball’ on the jar….

The ‘Amish with a Twist’ BOM I’m doing…..it doesn’t look so good now, but just picture this with black fabric….looking better already isn’t it?And here is my Primitive Garden BOM….I love doing this hand work, This one is almost done, about another 45 minutes and I’ll be ready for the next one.

I’m on vacation next week and three days of the week after that…Oh Happy Day…I am so ready to just stay home and do whatever I feel like doing.

Happy Quilting everyone!

Kris

It’s been too long!

As you will be able to see by all of the pictures below, I’ve been a very busy person. The big project I’ve been working on is finishing my mom’s Civil War Chroncicles Quilt from 2011. She has the center all done and now I will finish all four corners, there is a lot of work left to do in this quilt. The border alone is 60some 6” blocks, and the blocks I’m working on now are 14”. I’m not crazy about this quilt and I wasn’t from the first time I saw it. I love the fabric in it, but I think it’s just too ‘busy’ for my liking. The good thing is that I get to keep all of the scraps from this quilt and that is a substantial amount of fabric! Below is a picture of what this quilt looks like finished. Looking at this makes me think I have a long way to go yet! I’ve also gotten one of the borders sewn on my Farmer’s Wife Quilt, I’m having a hard time deciding what to use for the outer border….when I decide I’ll post a picture of it.

I have to make four of each of these block and I have 8 made so far…..

My wool BOM from Primitive Gatherings has been fun for me. I’m waiting for the 7th block now.

I’ve also been doing a lot of handwork on my large and mini hexie quilts. I’m planning on adding 4 more rows of flowers to my large hexie quilt and then see if I think it’s big enough to add the borders and applique. I have about 6 more flowers to make and I’ll have enough to get it done!

The picture of the single hexie above is my 1” hexies and the picture of the hexies all sewn together in color rounds is the 1/2” hexies. These two qults will look completely different. I’ve decided to mostly concentrate on the larger ones right now because that quilt is almost done.

And last but not least is the dress my daughter volunteered me to alter for a friend of hers. I HATE altering anything, but I’m being nice and doing this one anyway. It’s is almost two sizes too big, and it’s got boning in the seams in the bust. I HATE boning in dresses that need altered! I have the hem taken up and am almost done adding spaghetti straps, I’ve taken in the side seams in the hip area and now I need to finish the bodice part. I’m not taking this dress apart, I will ‘cheat’ and just take tucks under the armpits. No one will ever see those and it will work out okay I think. I sure hope it will anyway, cuz that’s what I’m going to do!

Well, Happy Quilting! I’ll try not to stay away so long next time!

Kris

My Vow……I won’t start any new quilts until I have at least one that’s started completely finished.

We’ll see how my vow works out….I’m going to do my best to get some things finished before I start another new project. I am getting the itch to start something new, and I just can’t let myself do that. I did finish all 111 blocks from the Farmer’s Wife Quilt. I need to pick out the sashing and the cornerstone fabric soon. I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m a ‘piecer’ not a ‘quilter’…..I love piecing a quilt, I just am not too interested in doing the free motion quilting to finish it. I have to make myself do it.

 

My mini 1/2” hexie quilt has been very fun to work on. I’m ready to start the 4th color around, I’m enjoying this one more than the 1” hexie quilt I’m working on also.  My hand is in this picture so you can see how small these hexie flowers are. My next  color round will be green flowers. This will be a very special quilt when it’s done….all hand sewn!

This picture is of the larger 1” hexie quilt I’m working on too. I’m not sure how big this one will end up…..it will have white borders with some flower, vine and leaf applique in one of the corners.

Here are the four blocks that I’ve completed in my Primitive Garden Quilt BOM….I just got the 5th block in the mail yesterday and I’m ready to start on it. I’m having a wonderful time doing this quilt. And yes….I really do believe I’m obsessed with quilting, my house isn’t as clean as it used to be, and I could stay locked up in my sewing room for 10 hours a day and not think anything of it.I might come out every once in a while and get something to eat and drink, but other than that…..I could stay there forever!  This is an expensive hobby too. Fortunately, of the quilts I’m working on now three (both hexies and the Farmer’s Wife) are scrap quilts, so I don’t have to buy lots of fabric for them.

It’s time to go back to my sewing room and have some more fun!

Happy quilting, Kris

Vacation time!

It’s a great week to be inside…..very warm temperatures again this week. I’ve been sewing a little, making jelly and going to the hospital in Cambridge to visit with my mom. It’s been a good week to have a vacation just so I can be with mom. I would appreciate prayers for her, she’s getting old and is having a rough time with her memory and just getting around. My sisters and I have some tough decisions to make in a few days. It’s nice to be able to get lost in my quilting and to forget about the ‘hard’ things that we well be discussing and deciding about our wonderful mother. Mom is my sounding board for whatever project I’m working on, she definitely has opinions and ideas about any current project I’m doing…..I love you mom!

I made Strawberry/Rhubarb Jam and Pinecot (pineapple apricot) Jam this morning! Yummy! It’s fun to get some more jams and jellies put away in my basement. They are wonderful gifts and taste so good on toast or bagels. I’ll be making some chokecherry, and wild plum in the coming week……I think I can make jelly out of anything….I have an ‘eye’ for berries in the ditches!

I should be done with my fourth Primitive Garden Wool BOM in a few days, it’s going very well. I enjoy all of the handwork.

I am up to Block number 91 in my Farmer’s Wife Quilt sampler…..I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now. I am having fun with this quilt and will probably start on the Farmer’s Wife Pony Quilt Club Sampler as soon as this one is done.

This is a pattern I bought in Kearney on Monday, they had a sample of this made in the store and I really liked it. I thought it would be really cute done in wool. I wanted to go to the Wooly Mammoth and see what they had for wool and over dyed wool, and found out they are closed on Mondays during the summer. I was extremely disappointed since that was the main reason for my trip to Kearney. Hopefully I’ll get there in the next couple of months or so.

Happy Quilting! Kris

Retro Flower Quilt will be done this week!

Well, it’s true, the Retro Flower quilt for my daughter Lesley will be at her house this coming weekend. I just finished quilting it and have the binding on…just need to stitch it down now. This has taken me a couple of weeks to complete, I’ve done a little bit every day.The binding isn’t sewn on yet in this picture, it’s very colorful and made from 5 different fabrics. I’m anxious to get the hand stitching done on it.

A couple of close up pictures of the quilting, I feel like I did an okay job….I like the overall look of it, but I’ve got some minor little glitches. I’d say a good job for the first large quilt I’ve attempted to free motion quilt. I think I like the back side as well as the front!The second BOM from Primitive Gatherings…I am really having a wonderful time doing this quilt. I’m anxiously awaiting the June BOM! I love the wool, it’s so bright and colorful.

My hexagon flower quilt is growing! I try to sew a few on every day….I’m really liking it! This one I’m keeping for myself.

My birthday was Friday, I ended up working until  almost 9p.m. that day…..I was delivering bunches of flowers and Sherrie’s Berries to Moms for mother’s day. It was a stressful work week. I do love my job and am hoping it will calm down this coming week!

Off I go to get some binding sewn down!

Happy quilting! Kris

Primitive Garden Wool Quilt

I had to post again because I’ve gotten my Primitive Garden Wool Quilt started. It’s a block of the month from Primitive Gatherings and it started this month. I saw this quilt being made in a quilt shop on my route. I absolutely loved it when I saw it and got the bug! It’s very expensive, but I think it will be worth every penny, the BOM lasts for 14 months. I’ve gotten all of the wool fused to the the block and now all I need to do is the blanket stitch around the wool pieces. I plan on doing  that in the car on my way to KC this coming week. These pictures do not do the color of the wool justice….it is beautiful. This is going to be a fun one for sure.

Happy quilting! Kris

Vacation Time!

Well, I’ve been busy the last week and a half and I’ve been neglecting my blogging…..Had a very nice Easter, we had a house full for dinner after a very good church service. I’ve also worked some overtime so didn’t have lots of spare time this past week. The wonderful news is that this coming week is VACATION time! I’m planning on doing lots of sewing and then at the end of the week, we’re going to Kansas City to visit our daughter and her husband. I’m ready to see them and hopefully stop at a few quilt stores when we get there.

I’ve become obsessed with hexagons. I made an Aunt Grace’s BOM and I had to make about 8 hexagon flowers for it. By the time I’d finished the last one I was hooked, and thought it would be a good idea to make a quilt with them and use lots of my fabric scraps. I started making them in my spare time about 3 weeks ago, and evidently I must have lots of spare time because the total count so far is up to 100 hexagon flowers. I’m cutting out hexagons from card stock and you can print them from many different websites on line. I’m using 1” hexagons and have pretty big plans for this quilt, I’d like to  do some hand applique in the borders of this one, ideas for this one are swirling around in my head, by the time I’ve made enough hexagons, I should know more what I’m going to be doing to finish this quilt.

I‘m also a huge Nebraska Husker fan and I found this fabric and thought this is just perfect for me. Don’t know if I’ll actually use the Husker ‘flower’ in my quilt, but I just might not be able to resist! GO BIG RED! I like the other ‘word’ flower too, it will be in the quilt for sure. 

I’ve finished my Patriots in Petticoats BOM and I’m glad to see the end of that one. It’s about 100x100 when finished so it’s going to my friend Kelly Kreft in Colorado to be quilted. It’s just too big for me on my domestic machine to try and free motion quilt. I think I’m so tired of this one I don’t even like it anymore. Hopefully when it’s quilted I’ll fall in love again!Since we’re going to KC to visit my daughter, I was going to make a good try at getting her Retro Flower quilt done. I ran out of white fabric and only need one more 6” strip for the top border. I can’t find any within an hour distance of here. I meant to stop in Norton at the quilt store and get some on Friday, but completely forgot until I was almost home. Every other quilt shop is out of the true white. I guess that means it will have to wait another week or so.

My big project now is the Primitive Garden BOM from Primitive Gatherings. I got the first one in the mail about 10 days ago and I just started working on it this weekend. My goal is to get all the pieces on the block before we head to KC, so I can do the hand work (blanket stitching) while on the road. It doesn’t look like much yet, but hopefully I’ll have it done by the end of the week. I think this one will be lots of fun.

Happy quilting,

Kris

P.S. I’ve also become addicted to Pinterest the last couple of weeks! I’ve gotten too many new quilt ideas….Not  enough time in my  lifetime to do them all!