Molasses: A Finished Quilt

A long time ago, on an Instagram feed far far away, I saw Pen and Paper Patterns post about her garden snail quilt and I was instantly in love. Then I found out that Gnome Angel was going to do a slow sew-along and I conned my friend C over at The Edgy Perfectionist to join in (and I talked Jen at A Quarter Inch from the Edge to do it too...but she ran out of steam. I think having twins might have contributed to that!).

Each week I made one snail using a different Lizzy House fabric and posted my snail to my Instagram. At the end of 42 weeks I had 42 adorable snails and with a little sashing (and a big score of long OOP Lizzy House for the backing) I now have a finished quilt!

Here is Molasses:

Each snail shell is different, but all prints are by Lizzy House.

I like how the wind shows you the back and front in this shot.

The backing is this Castle Peeps fabric from 2004. Thank goodness for strange outlet fabric stores that carry such treasures (I think it cost me maybe $10/yard?)

I did organic (my term for I didn't want to measure) straight line quilting in a light grey down the quilt. It is more functional than decorative and I really like how it looks.

This quilt will be staying with me. I couldn't give it up! But I do have to note that despite using all Lizzy House I have not made even the slightest dent into my stash. What a shame.

The Short Short Version

Work is taking over my life but I promise there is sewing and sewing-related action happening around here in small bits.

So as per The Princess Bride's epic wedding scene, here is the short, short version of what I have been up to:

This simple baby quilt for a baby literally due any day now is now done except for a label.

These lined drawstring bags were gifted to someone to brighten his day after something sort of crummy happened to him (the little one was for him and the big one for his nine-year-old Rey-loving daughter).

My pre-order of Tula Pink Spirit Animal came and SHUT UP I LOVE IT.

My birthday gift from my husband finally arrived and it is so awesome. This is Magic Forest.

Molasses, my snail quilt, got quilted and binding got made. I just need some quality time on the couch to get this binding hand sewn on the back.

And my new Diving Board fabric arrived. It is my favourite Alison Glass ever with the exception of the Ex Libris panels. This fabric is 1000% in person. I'm tempted to take it to work with me so I can just look at it all day there too.

So there is what I am up to- the short, short version!

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!