A Matter of Size

I have had this notion in my head that I would put together slabs from my extensive scraps and use my 10'x10" ruler to cut them into blocks. It is one of those "one day" projects.

Then this morning my youngest, a newly minted three-year-old, wanted to "play fabric" which means taking out my scrap bins and laying out the bits of fabric in ways she thinks are pretty. I started pulling orange scraps and soon had this in front of me:

Very improv fabric bits

Well, then I had to sew it together. I had it right there, after all. And so I put together this slab:

This seemed about ready for me to use the ruler.

When I actually put the ruler on the slab? It is actually quite comical. I think I did not have a true sense of scale when I was improv-ing my heart out.

I think I was a little over enthusiastic.

But rather than missing all those little blocks, I decided to cut it at 15" x 15" to preserve those precious bits and this is the end result:

Here is the orange block!

Now that I have made one I know that at any point I can just dig into my scraps and whip up another colour. Eventually I will have enough to put together into a VERY colourful quilt.

Improv piecing is fun, and using precious baby scraps (like that Basket print on the far bottom right or the Lotta scrap at the bottom left) is very rewarding. No measuring, no careful cutting...fabric therapy!

Breakfast

After a bit of fabric binging last summer, quilty friend C and I both decided to go on a self-imposed fabric fast with the goal of not buying any new fabric until January 1, 2017. We both stayed true to the fast...well, sort of. When Alison Glass Seventy-Six went on sale, C was losing her mind over not being able to buy it. I gave her my blessing. And we both agreed that pre-ordered Alison Glass Sunprint 2017 did not count because even though we ordered in December it won't come until quite some time into 2017.

My husband and I received a trip to Niagara on the Lake, a quaint little town for tourists, as a gift over Christmas. He told me to pick out all the fabric stops we needed to make on the way down. He is awesome.

I definitely engaged in a serious breakfast (break- fast) on this trip!

At the Quilted Cardinal I picked up these Moda Mixologie basics. I love the colour saturation.

Those purples and the top teal are already claimed by my daughter for a quilt she wants me to make her.

I also had a gift certificate for Greenwood Quiltery which announced at the end of December it is going to be permanently closing because the owner is retiring. It will leave a major hole in the local quilt store options as it was by far my favourite local(ish) store.

Two Elizabeth Hartman patterns, that sweet basic grey print, a Cloud 9 organic bear fabric that already is claimed for a baby quilt, some Kona Charcoal for my Snail Along and a bunch of other goodies. All of this was at least 30% off!

I also made a stop at Modern Bee in Virgil, an awesome, quaint little shop with the nicest owners. If only it was closer!

From bottom to top: Kona Silver, Kona Shadow and a 1/2 yard of Priory Square that I wanted and figured I would never get because it was very limited edition and quite old. The Silver is for my Snail quilt and the Shadow is for my daughter's teacher's end of year gift.

I also made a trip to Len's Mills in Guelph. My husband had never been and it is an experience, let me tell you. The front of the store (which is HUGE) is filled with the most random things. He was wandering around while I was fabric shopping texting me with questions like "Do you want a pair of bright yellow high-heeled rain boots?" or "Did you know they have an entire aisle dedicated to hot sauce?" I specifically needed to come to this store because my Lizzy House Snail quilt needs backing and I knew they still had some VERY OLD, VERY OOP Lizzy House 1001 Peeps. It is from 2009!! And it is $10/yard. A steal!

Expect to see these in my snail quilt. That purple print on the far left will be the backing.

Truly, though, I broke my fast three days earlier on January 5th at Needlework when I went shopping with two friends because friend A is making my other friend some pillows and we needed to select fabric. I was dying to get my hands on this pin of their logo! That green print will be for my Christmas quilt but those squid and octopi? They were just too cute to resist!!

Isn't that pin awesome?

So when I break a fast, I really go ALL IN.

Which of my purchases was your favourite?

Snail Along

Over on Instagram there is lots of quilting activity which is primarily how I use my account. When @gnomeangel posted about the Garden Snail Quilt pattern from Pen and Paper Patterns and a Snail Along I knew I wanted to join. 

(Picture courtesy of Pen and Paper Patterns)

You need to make one snail a week for 42 weeks (to make a twin sized quilt) and post it on #snailday (Sunday) with certain tags. You are then eligible for prizes. I just like the idea of a very manageable project that is also soooooo cute.

I've decided to use Kona Silver as my background colour and Kona Charcoal as the snail body. All the shells will be Lizzy House fabrics in colour order. I'm super excited!

Here was me laying out my very first block to figure out the tricks of the pattern:

Snail in progress.

And here he is all put together:

Goldie the snail! His shell is from Lizzy's Catnap line.

Once I got into the pattern I discovered that there is more to consider than just the fabric choices. You make half the snails pointed one way and half the other way. That meant more planning than I had originally considered. My sewing table has been a mess while I plan ever since!

If you want to take 100 fabrics and narrow it to 42 in rainbow order you need to have a plan!

Now I'm just waiting for some scraps from quilty friend C who has some of Lizzy's Constellations prints that I don't have. Look for a quilt top finish of snails in November!

Aviatrix Progress

True to my plans for 2017, I have pulled out all the bags and bits and instructions for my Aviatrix Medallion- which has been in a bag all together for at least a year- and got myself back in the game with it.

This code sheet is no joke. You could not make this quilt without it.

I had the HSTs all pressed and trimmed and never got around to making this first border, so that went on first, followed by the solid grey border. This step got me very motivated because the borders went on pretty smoothly (I am not the most accurate of quilters and so the piecing accuracy of a medallion is intimidating).

Centre and Border 1

When I got to work on Border 2 I decided to set up a grid on my design wall so I could keep track of all the parts. This made it much easier (plus it looks pretty!)

Border 2 in progress

Border 2 on the quilt.

Border 2 went on smoother than I thought it would too. My piecing has obviously improved. It certainly isn't perfect (and my quilty friend C's Aviatrix Medallion is) but it fit really well.

Then I got to Border 3. Yikes. This one took a long time.

The trimmings sure are pretty.

So many steps to make the X blocks.

The resulting blocks are pretty beautiful. However when I put on the first strip, it was about 1/2" too short. Then I put on the bottom strip and it was 1/2" too long. Um. That's probably not good. I made it work with some stretching but I am rather concerned for the next few borders.

X-blocks take a long time.

I read on someone's Instagram that Border 4 is haaaaaaard because it is small and fiddly. That has me a bit concerned. I'm slowing down a bit because my husband is back to work this week so I can't steal away for an hour here and there and because I actually have to get some of my work done before I go back to work Monday.

Wish me motivation to get this quilt top done!

Goals for 2017

Looking back at my goals for 2016, I finished EVERY goal but one...my Aviatrix Medallion. So guess what #1 on the list of goals for 2017 is? 

1. Aviatrix Medallion

This is the year. My skills have significantly improved and I want to get it done. It is my longest WIP now, and I want to be able to enjoy the magnificence.

2. Orange and Turquoise quilt.
 I put it away because it did not speak to me. It still doesn't. But I want it done. I need a low volume backing with a touch of orange or teal or turquoise so I can finish it up and ship it out.

3. Thank You Brenda Teacher quilt
Deadline: June. As always, I will make my daughter's teacher a gift. I'm not sure if I will be able to keep this up once the little one is in school too! I'm thinking of using the Diamond Tread pattern by Freshly Pieced.

4. Snail Along on Instagram.
The @gnomeangel is doing a sew along using the Snail pattern from Pen and Paper patterns. My friend C is going to join the challenge as well. All my snails will be made using Lizzy House fabric and all hers will be made using Tula Pink fabric. I'm PUMPED.

5. Ochre Quilt
There is a bundle of fabric that I set aside as needing to be made for my close friend of 20+ years and this year I want to get it done for her.

6. Improv Christmas Trees using Violet Craft. Have you seen the improv trees floating around on Instagram? I'm in love. I'll need to cut into my Christmas fabric for those for sure.

This is a pattern by Diary of a Quilter.

7. Pineapples for my Mother in Law. 
My in laws are buying/building a brand new house this year and I told my MIL I would make her a new quilt. My MIL is very calm and rarely excitable (outwardly) and so she agreed that would be lovely and that she would think about colours later. Then I saw the Pineapple Farm pattern by Elizabeth Hartman and knew it would appeal to her. I texted her a picture and she responded "YES YES YES." That may be the most excited text I have ever received from her! So that is definitely on the list this year!

8. Improv Scrap Rainbow Big Blocks

This is something I bought a big ruler for and really want to try to use some of my favourite small bits from my scrap bins this year. This could be fun.

9. Gamer Quilt for my Husband

Even though he's always hot and doesn't use quilts. He likes to moan about me never having made him one. He picked the pattern and I picked the fabric I just need to make it!

As always there will be quilts that come up and get added to my list- babies that are expected or people who deserve something special. Those nine seem totally doable and I am excited already at the prospect of getting to them. My first finish in 2017 will most likely be my text and solid 9-patch quilt, Chatter, which is almost a finished quilt top. Look for that in early January!

Which of the quilts on my list do you most look forward to seeing?

(Of interest to me only: this is my 400th post!)