Some 2012 quilts

I love seeing end of the year quilt-making wrap ups. Thought you might too!

I wasn't nearly as good as last year at keeping records, so I've gone through some of my photos and shared my favorites. Enjoy!

Wishing each and every one of you a Happy New Year! Thank you so much for visiting my little space and chiming in occasionally! I have lots planned for 2013 - including the pleasure of making a quilt for a new grandson! Hope you have lots of great plans too!  . . . Cindy

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Lucky Stars BOM

I've decided to join in the fun with Elizabeth and participate in her Lucky Stars BOM for 2013. After I took a paper piecing class with Marsha a couple of years ago (and loved it), I vowed to keep up with my paper piecing skills. This is so perfect - one block a month and I so love fancy stars.

So I took a little time collecting a palette from the stash. I've been drawn to navy recently and thought the high contrast shade would be perfect for these complex stars. 

Though it officially starts in January, we got a bonus block today to get started. Hope to do that in the next few days. 

Have I peaked your interest? The club is only $10 for 26 patterns (13 blocks each in a 6" and 12" size) until the end of the year when it goes up to $15. Such a bargain for 13 blocks! More info: Lucky Stars BOM  . . . Cindy

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Kitchen Window quilt

This quilt top has been on the UFO pile for maybe a year? In my quest to finish up, this one is finally quilted! The pattern is from The Practical Guide to Patchwork and most of the fabrics are from Patty Young's Sanctuary line.

I procrastinated on this one because I was struggling with a quilting design. The dark brown frames posed a problem with thread color - a difficult decision for me when I have such contrast in color. I ended up with a soft orange thread and did a simple cross-hatch on the blocks. I went back with green thread and used loops in the sashing.

The backing is one of my absolute favorite prints from Sanctuary.

This is really a great pattern to show off a gorgeous fabric line! And one of the easiest in the book!

And finally, I want to wish all of you a very Merry and Blessed Christmas. May your holiday be filled with family, friends, good health, yummy food, and some fun presents (maybe some fabric!).

Peace . . . Cindy

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So where were we?

Thank you, thank you for all your comments, thoughts and prayers. We came home from the hospital, had a little slip-up and landed back in the hospital for a few days. We're home now, both of us feeling good and all is well! Amidst the tragedy that's on our minds and everyone else's, we are so thankful for the kindness that has come our way from family, friends, doctors, nurses and many of you who barely know us. My husband read all your comments and especially loved being called "Mr. Hyacinth". And if you ever find yourself stuck at St. Luke's Hospital in St. Louis (and I hope you never do), be sure to get the wonderful homemade soup in the cafeteria. There's a new flavor every day!

So I thought I'd share what's been on my design wall for the past few weeks. 

I pulled a stack of grays, aquas and soft melon fabrics and have started these blocks. The quilt is called Starstruck and is in The Practical Guide to Patchwork.

The fabrics I'm using are from Simply Color, Marmalade and Dear Stella, combined with coordinating scraps. The blocks are fun to make and I hope to keep moving along on this one.

I've also had this project on the wall for a while. The blocks are Anna Maria Horner's free feather pattern. I spent a half day playing with these blocks and came up blank with an idea for them. I would like to do something with just 4 blocks. I finally gave up, sewed them together and added a border. And honestly, I'm not real happy with the result.

The plan is to take off the borders and stare at it until the perfect idea comes along. Maybe a lap quilt with lots of negative space?? I'm open to your suggestions!

I'm continuing to try and finish up some UFO's! With just a binding to finish, I'll have another quilt to show - hopefully by the end of the week!   . . . Cindy

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A bump in the road...

You may have noticed that I've been absent for a bit. Yes, we definitely hit a bump in the road that brought my quilting to a halt. After 4 days of doctor visits and tests, my husband had open heart surgery on Friday to repair a valve in his heart. The whole thing took us by surprise and scared the dickens out of us. All is now well, though we're in for a long recovery time. But in many ways we are so thankful and looking forward to a quiet, relaxing winter at home.

So, before the bump, I did finish a couple small projects. This pincushion was for a Christmas party exchange at my quilt guild. I didn't get to go to the party and I think I ended up with a super cute pincushion.

the back...

I also had this unfinished pouch sitting on my UFO pile. Sometimes I wonder why I wait. It took me 20 minutes to finish it! And it will make a nice gift!

Just so you know - my blogging may be sporadic in the next few weeks. I'll be taking care of my favorite guy before any sewing gets done. He really is not very demanding, so hopefully I'll sneak a little quilting in here and there. Say a little prayer for us - we'll be over the bump in no time. . . .Cindy

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Dresden Fan...

Let's start with the back. One of my favorite fabric lines is Patty Young's Andalucia. I used it in a quilt for my granddaughter when it was first released. When it was rereleased this year in yummy new colors, I jumped on some yardage. And I didn't want to cut up that fun flower print, so I decided to save it for the back and use it as the color inspiration for my Dresden Fan quilt.

For the blocks I used aquas and greens and added one block in pink. I love how it pops out!

 The quilting flowed easily when I decided to quilt wavy lines concentrically on each block. A flower at each corner and a small flower in each center octagon completed it all.

There's a link on my free pattern page which takes you to this post on making the block.

Yeah! Another UFO off the list and a pretty quilt to snuggle under!  . . . Cindy

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Honey...

The first of two finished quilts I have to show this week. Yeah!

The pattern is Honey and on the cover of Modern Patchwork. The fabric is mostly Marmalade with some pieces from earlier lines by Bonnie and Camille. The lovely quilting was done by my local longarm quilter Candy.

The back of the quilt has the aqua houndstooth print from Vintage Modern. Oh how I love that print!

I changed the pattern a bit by not using any of the half hexagons that border the quilt. I love how it floats and is a little off-center. A completely different look from the original.

And I have to share with you my Birthday/Christmas gift to myself. This set of Patchwork measuring cups and spoons is adorable. They're from West Elm - a little splurge that just makes me happy! . . . Cindy

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Thanksgiving sewing...

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! I enjoyed cooking for more than 2 for a change. Did I ever tell you that I cook much like I quilt? I rarely have a list when shopping and just pick up what looks and feels good at the moment (much like fabric). When I get it home I have to figure out what I'll do with it (much like fabric). This year I made fresh cranberry sauce and added all-fruit peach pops that I had leftover from the girls' visit this Summer. A bag of apples became our Thanksgiving dessert topped with my favorite butterscotch chip oatmeal cookie. My experimenting gets results that are sometimes good and sometimes not (much like quilting). I do hope to remember my recipe when it turns out well!

Not one for crowds, my shopping consisted of a little cyber-shopping only. It left a nice long weekend for some sewing. I've been thinking about trying to finish up my WIPs and start the new year with a clean sewing slate. I'm not alone, Katy and Jessica recently posted the same resolution. So hopefully you'll see a lot of finishes in the next several weeks...

I have a few new bags on my list. First up is the Zig Zag bag from Zakka Style.

This was a fun bag to make and I'm happy with how it came out. I used natural linen and some prints from Chicopee.

 The back side of the bag is solid linen and I quilted it with a pattern of straight lines in 3 colors.

Also accomplished this weekend...

Hexagons in Loulouthi flannel. I've had this cut for a while and it literally took a few hours to sew it together.

The pattern is Rosalie from Valori Wells. These hexagons are big! 10" tall. And the AMH flannel is sooo soft - I wish you could feel it :)

And finally a couple of bindings finished. Watch for these finished quilts this week!  . . . Cindy

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Envelope Quilt!

Ta da! My Envelope quilt is done! I decided to make 3 more blocks to give me a nice 9 -block wallhanging. One of my favorite stores is Paper Source  and a picture from their catalogue was the inspiration for this quilt along with this quilt on flickr.

I think it would be adorable hanging over a console table in an entryway or in an office (a very cute office!)

The quilting was simple. Straight lines on the solid fabrics, a grid on the print and loopy-loops on the background. I found the perfect binding in a tiny zig-zag print from the Reunion collection by Sweetwater. 

I have to share with you my new tool that's been keeping me on track with my projects. I have a way of jumping from one thing to another, tidying up and putting things out of my way. Then I completely forget about them and you know what happens - UFO city. So I've been keeping an ever-changing list posted and somehow it keeps me on track. 

And finally a little splurge on Joel Dewberry's gorgeous new line - Notting Hill. Now this needs to be added to the list!!   . . . Cindy

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Courthouse Steps

My Courthouse Steps block is growing. Now 51" square heading to 63".

I hope to keep it growing. Do you think watering and fertilizing will help? . . . Cindy

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Spinning Stars Quilt

You may remember my Spinning Stars quilt. I posted a sneak peek a few weeks ago. One of my commenters hoped that I'd post a lot of pictures of the finished quilt. That was easy - a got some nice shots on this beautiful day!

The fabrics are primarily Field Study, with some Chicopee and a few prints from Anna Maria's earlier lines.

I love how the pattern forms 2 designs when the blocks are put together. This octagon shape...

And a 4-pointed star...

I struggled choosing a binding for this one. I tried all of these and the Chicopee in a purply-plum color won out. And I had just enough - about 1/8 inch leftover!

 The backing is one of my favorite prints from Field Study.

I hand-quilted with shades of blue, orange and gray just in the cream areas. The rest is machine-quilted with echoing lines in Gray Aurifil.

I think it makes a pretty Fall quilt! Don't you? . . . Cindy

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