Binding started.....................

Yesterday felt like a binding day so I sewed the strips together and got it sewn onto the quilt.  I have hand stitched one long side and half of a short side so far.  I'm sure a print wouldn't have been the choice of a lot of people but it just felt right to me.  Click on the photo for a closer look at how it is looking with both front and back of the quilt.

I showed a new die a few days ago and I cut up some batik scraps and sewed some of one of the blocks shown on the die.  It obviously isn't working well with light, medium and dark used randomly.  All of these blocks are made of 2 fabrics each.  The blocks are 3" finished.

I made a few more blocks with 4 colors per block and very light fabrics for 2 of them.  It looks like this is the way to go, 2 values with fairly high contrast.  I will sew some of the other block on the die today.  

 

More binding in my future................

Two quilts are back from my longarm friend Robin and I sent 2 more home with her.  I should have every large quilt quilted by the end of this year.  I know I want to hand finish the binding on the Kaffe Fonthill quilt but I haven't decided about the pink heart quilt yet.

I finished sewing the last seams of the neutral color 16 patch top and the staystitching around the perimeter at 10 last night.  I'll get it pressed and photographed today.

Now I need to get back to cutting pieces for future quilts, long range intense cutting.  Meanwhile I'll probably do some sewing on a quick quilt.

 

What's next.............

There is one more batch of neutral batik 16 patch blocks made in 2018.  (photo taken in daylight in the studio) I have one top ready to be quilted that is throw size and this one will be 72" x 96".  I might start the layout on the design wall today.  I have been working on fabrics for a friend's quilt and should have that done by tomorrow.

These are most intense of the tiny blooms of mini Sedum.

The third kind of mini Sedum is just sending up some flower stalks.

The tall Sedums are starting to show a little color in their blooms.  There is one plant this color and 2 plants of the color behind it.  When they all change color the difference between the plants isn't as noticeable.

There are more plumes on the green Coral Bell.  

The blooms on the Zinfin Doll hydrangea are getting deeper pink as we approach autumn.

My Flare Compact Hydrangea bush has some flower buds on it but I'm not sure if they are ever going to completely open.  The tag says it will get 2-3 feet tall at maturity.  I will keep watering it and hoping to see more from it.

 

Second finish for August 2024

I wasn't sure I would finish the binding on this one last night but it was done by 9:30 so I had plenty of time to photograph it too.  Since it is small I could do the photography in my main floor studio.  I don't like to go down to the basement late at night.

This neutral color batik quilt is 49" x 65" and has Hobbs 80/20 batting in it.  Most of the gray fabrics in it lean toward blue so in some light they look gray, in other light they look blue.  My longarm friend Robin quilted it with a gray-blue thread.

I'm really happy with the striped binding.  It is very subtle but adds a little excitement to this quilt.

Two fabrics on the back.................

Still hand stitching the binding.  Here are the 2 fabrics on the back of the quilt.  I have most of one long side left to stitch.

I did planning yesterday, sizes of backings and battings.  I need to clear off a couple piles on the table and then I can start cutting the battings.  I'll be looking for backing fabrics for 5 quilts too.

We got more rain last night around 8.  The Chicago news mentioned our town on the weather segment and said there was tree damage and maybe a microburst.  The wind was really strong as the storm approached.  It was dark when the storm was over so maybe I'll hear more on the local FM station this morning.

Sorting through stash.................

I'm still sorting through stash for things to destash and post on my other blog.  I'm hoping for a post tomorrow morning.

It was hot and sticky as forecasted yesterday.  We got a nice little surprise shower in the afternoon and got about a tenth of an inch of rain.  It would be nice if we could get a little more rain.  They are saying a dew point of 78 tomorrow...that is tropical humidity.  I'm glad I have plenty to do inside.  

Interweave top finished...............

It didn't take long to finish this top yesterday (Interweave - free pattern from Timeless Treasures).  It is all batik fabric.  I used 56 fabrics instead of the 42 called for.  I also didn't use the side borders which allowed me to cut the strips for top and bottom longer and to have more squares in each column for the center of the quilt.  It is 55" x 74" compared to the 48.5" x 56.5" quilt in the pattern.

In this collage you can see the difference between the measurements I used for cutting on the 2 Interweave quilts that I have made so far.  I'm not sure which proportion I like better because individually I like both of them.

Last night I made a test block for the other quilt top I had chosen to work with.  I will only have one block with each pair of fabrics as I start it.  I may change to 2 alike after I have used the first batch of strips.

I pulled all of the Kaffe fabric strips that were less than full width but at least 18.5" long.  I need to find some more medium value prints since these are mostly dark.

 

12 more columns...............

Two hours of sewing created 12 more columns sewn together, 6 to go plus sewing the 3 sections together.  There is one green strip and one lavender strip in this second section.  I should be able to finish this top today.

Rain was predicted for yesterday afternoon and evening.  I check the radar on my phone app and every storm either split and went north and south of us or dissipated before it got here.  Same forecast for today........I wonder if we will get any rain.....

I spent the morning going through my blue and turquoise regular print fabrics (not batiks or designer fabrics) and pulling out the ones I need to sell.  I need to move more of my fabric to the main level and the only way to do that is to destash.  Greens are next.  I have already done yellows.  Just thinking out loud here as I plan ahead.

A finish for May 2024.................

I needed a break from my other project so I sewed the binding on this Shoo Fly quilt. (directions for the block on Lynn's blog, Solids on prints on her label list.)

I'm considering this a child's quilt because I used several novelty prints in the blocks.

It is 36.5" x 56" so it could be a big sister or brother quilt when gifting a baby quilt.

I used Hobbs 80/20 batting.

I have had the backing fabric for quite awhile and I'm sure it was on sale for a good price.

There are several novelty prints in this group of blocks. (Click on the photos to enlarge them) 

The white with black fabric has several animals in it. 

I like the little stripe I chose for the binding.

More of the novelty prints in the blocks.

There were 2 sessions of sewing on this Interweave quilt top.  The first 10 columns are sewn together so I'm a little over a third done.  It will probably take me 2 days to finish it because this is the boring part.  I have some vacuuming that needs to be done today.  Another boring thing.

Finally yesterday morning we got over a half inch of rain and then the sun came out later in the afternoon.  I think the tomato plants grew about 3" because they were so happy.  I think I see 2 volunteer tomato plants coming up in the raised bed too.

Quilting.............

This quilt has been loaded on the longarm for over a week and is finally quilted.

I decided on loops on this one with a light color variegated thread.

I chose a multicolor stripe type fabric for the binding.  I cut it but haven't sewn it yet.

I finished sewing all of the columns for the center of the Interweave quilt and I think this is the final layout.  I sorted the strips that will be sewn to the top and bottom of each column to be in the same order as the center strips.

One batik was narrower than the rest so I have to look for a 2.5" square to replace the piece that is not wide enough.

Third quilt top for May 2024............

The last seams were sewn on the pink/blue quilt top in the middle of the afternoon yesterday.  I got it pressed shortly after and took its portrait.  It's a small top, just 48" x 60".  I like to have small quilts available to gift to others.

Last night I started sewing the center columns for the blue batik interweave quilt.  This is 15 of 27 that will be in the quilt  This isn't necessarily the order of the strips.  That will be decided when I get the next 12 sewn and added to the group.  The strips that will be added to the top and bottom of the columns are 16" long.  

Today is supposed to be the best day of our 3 day weekend.  Rain predicted for Sunday.  If it is like yesterday.....there wasn't enough rain to even wet the bottom of the rain gauge.  The storm split again and mostly missed us.

Prep work.................

There were severe storm warnings last night so I unplugged the sewing machine and did prep work for this Interweave quilt while I watched season finales of the 3 FBI shows.  As of 11:15 last night we hadn't gotten a drop of rain although the wind was strong most of the day yesterday.  Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin got most of the big storms.  

I went out in the late afternoon to take a picture of this shaggy center peony.  I had to hold onto the stem to get an in focus shot because of the wind.

I'm only seeing one Dianthus plant this year.  There is usually another with red flowers but so far I don't see any sign of it.

I took a picture of the 2 Peony bouquets that I cut on Monday.  

I couldn't resist a photo of a view from the top of the bouquet on the left.

A quilt top for April.................

I really like this quilt top, but then I like all of the quilt tops I have made with these neutral color batiks.

This one is 55.5" x 72".  The next one which will use the rest of the blocks will be larger.

Here are 3 of the others made with most of the same fabrics and a few different in each quilt.  Unfortunately the lighting on the one on the right is bad and I sold it so I can't take another photo.

I mowed grass for a half hour and then went to the garden center and got some plants so I didn't get anything else cut to sew last night.  I just continued with the 3" 9 patches since they were already paired and still on my sewing cabinet.  It got up to 65 yesterday but Wednesday is supposed to be in the 40s.  I'll keep my new plants in the garage for a couple weeks.  I have 5 windows in there so they will get plenty of light.

Decision made.................

I made these neutral color 16 patch blocks in 2018 and there are 174 of them.  I had been trying to decide if I should make one almost king size quilt or 2 smaller quilts.  I did some figuring (for about an hour) last night and decided on one quilt 72" x 96" and another one 56" x 72".  There will be 3 blocks left over.  Now I can start playing with layouts.  I think I'll start with the smaller one because it will fit on my design wall on the mail level.

This is a quilt top I made in early 2018 with a lot of the same fabrics.  I made at least one more quilt top of the same fabrics and I sold both of them as tops.

When I went out to get my mail I knew I had to capture this view in a photo.  We have the frost/freeze warning for 2 nights so I'm hoping the blooms on the Redbud trees will survive.

 

Busy hands, happy life..............

I like to keep busy with fabric whether I have a project or not.  I have 2 project boxes full of Marcia Derse scraps and I keep looking at them and they don't look inspiring in the mess in the box.  I decided to loosely sort the strips by several lengths and slip them into plastic bags.  The odd shaped pieces will go in another bag.

Then if I decide to make blocks similar to this mock up, I will have an easier time selecting the strips.  Sorting is an easy job while watching TV.

There were a lot of pieced sections left over from other projects and from previous playtime.  They will be bagged separately too.

Yesterday morning I found another stack of 1.5" batik squares.

That meant I had to sort through them and find 4 alike of as many light fabrics as I could.  There are enough sets here for 40 more 3" 9 patches.  The dark fabrics will be assortments of fabric because there weren't any fabrics with 5 alike.

I'm working on a major reorganization in one area of my basement so I'm not sure when I'll start an actual project.  I do have a box of 16 patch neutral color blocks, enough to make 2 throw quilts so I could start playing with those to break up the work time.

I took a few garden photos from inside the house yesterday.  Look at the buds on this Coral Bell!  I think this one is called Snow Angel.  I have 2 or 3 of them.

This is the group of Tiger Lily plants in the back garden.  All of the green around them is the rampant roving Lily of the Valley.  At my age there is no chance of me being able to dig them all out.

It's hard to see the little flowers here but the Lungwort/Pulmonaria plants are getting big and bushy and full of blooms.  I'll probably dig some out and pot them and give them away.

I can't help it, I have to take photos of the pink buds opening on the Redbud trees.  They are talking possible frost/freeze early Saturday morning and early Sunday morning.  

Surprise, surprise!.  Look what I spied when I was opening the blinds yesterday morning.  This is part of an older cactus with white flowers that used to bloom at least 3 times in a season.  The plant was not doing well so I saved 3 small sections that were healthy and planted them.  This is the second time for this one to bloom.