June 27, 2013

English paper piecing with hexagons AND diamonds - oh my

We recently took a road trip to Montana for a total of 32 hours in the car. I had a blast with my son playing, eating, reading, laughing, looking, talking, and just plain starring at him all of that time. While he was sleeping or playing on his own, which was a minority of the time, I worked on a little hand-sewing project I brought along with me. And as many sewing/quilting projects seem to go, I started with one idea in mind that quickly went in a whole new direction. That's part of the fun, right?

Road trip project sneak peak I


Originally, I was just going to sew up a bunch of hexagons for a couple baby quilts I want to make for friends having baby girls this year. But the hexagons I had printed out on card stock paper for cutting and piecing were separated by little diamonds, and I thought wow, what I could I make with hexagons *and* diamonds, and low and behold I ended up with this little number...

Road trip project sneak peak II


...which was really fun, so I continued and before I knew it, I had created something interesting (to me anyway). You can see the basting stitches are still on. I am not going to take them out until I get some starch on this baby, but I think I am just going to applique stitch it to a small piece fabric and just put it somewhere near my bed to look at it. I have to admit, it was really time consuming, so I don't think I will make another one, but I do think it's a pretty little thing that will always put a smile on my face and remind me of all the enchanting time I spent looking at my son on that road trip.

Road trip sewing


Of course, this picture will also remind me of our time together, which will be cherished until the end of time (he's working very hard to balance all of the animals; he was even careful moving his head to smile and look at the camera phone...there is nothing more adorable)

Casper, WY in our car right now.

June 12, 2013

A baby quilt finish for my coming nephew

This is the first good baby quilt I've ever made, and I've made two. (The first baby quilt I made was in 2010 and was a bit of a design disaster. I still posted it on my completed projects page since it was my first, but I am not proud of it. I didn't know anything about choosing fabrics and putting them into a complementary design. Plus, I finished it a week before I found out I was having a baby boy and didn't do well choosing unisex patterns and colors, so it didn't end up being right for my son.) Anyway, I'd like to call this my first real baby quilt!

Baby Quilt - Forest Path


It's called Forest Path, because of the way I designed the shashing and because of the forest animal theme. My nephew will be born in the Colorado Mountains at about 9600 ft altitude, so it is fitting that his room is themed forest animals. His mom has done a great job decorating it, and I hope she enjoys having this quilt around.

Baby Quilt - Forest Path

Being a working mom, I have started to machine bind my quilts. It's much faster and stronger, so for both of those reasons, I choose to do it more and more. However, it still takes skill, and I'm not perfect at it, but I'm improving. Here are more pictures. I have another baby quilt to finish for some friends' baby boy due one day after my nephew, so I better get cracking!

Baby Quilt - Forest Path

Oh, and the back in flannel!

Baby Quilt - Forest Path

With this quilt, I hope my nephew will always know his Aunt Loves him!

Baby Quilt - Forest Path

June 1, 2013

A mini-quilt finish: Urban Energy

I recently finished this quilt for one of my favorite DJs in Denver. First post here. I don't think this quilt would have come together like it did, without having the final owner in mind. Thank you Nate Ishe -- this quilt was inspired by your mad skilzzz on the decks!

Modern Mini Quilt - Urban Energy


A little more about the project...this was the first time I played with half square triangles (HSTs). I can now see why HSTs have always been so core to quilting designs, old and new. There are so many creative ways to put them together; I can't wait to do more.

Modern Mini Quilt - Urban Energy

Although I have some baby quilts coming to a completion that will follow a little bit more of a traditional design, this quilt was inspired by wanting to do something different, with bold colors, using solids and modern patterns, and playing against the grain to create something that could appeal to both the female *and* male aesthetic. That's the kind of quilting I'm really into.

Modern Mini Quilt - Urban Energy


The fun of this design was in the impromptu nature of putting it together. I played with layout for weeks, moving colors and patterns around as more and more of design unfolded. I loved how shapes kept coming together within the colors and patterns. I love the points and arrows. I love how if you look closely, you can see an abstract heart in the overall final composition. (Which was only realized after I rotated it 45 degrees counter-clock-wise after it was all done, another unfolding of the design, but the final one.)

Modern Mini Quilt - Urban Energy


This is a mini-quilt designed to be a wall-hanging at 20x20 inches. I will enter this into a Modern Mini Quilt Challenge just for fun (hey, it's not a mainstream design, but you never know, maybe it will stand out in the crowd and inspire someone).

Modern Mini Quilt - Urban Energy