Swoon: A Finished Quilt

At last. Finished. This was started in the summer of 2014 with a group of friends, all of whom also took on the Swoon pattern by Camille Roskelley. My friend A finished her quilt, six identical swoon blocks (in the same fabrics) for her niece, very quickly. I'm not sure where C is with her Swoon quilt, but I think the top is done. I'm pretty sure K stopped at two blocks, and CW made two or three blocks which she comes back to every now and then.

For me the Swoon was great practice with flying geese and colour value. It sat as an almost finished quilt top for ages because I had added the sashing but didn't want to put on the borders. That is so boring!

I decided to finally light the fire and get my (unoriginally-named) Swoon finished.

Here it is! (Note that taking pictures of such a giant quilt is HARD!):

Here it is in all it's glory. Technically it is sideways here (the quilting actually goes vertically) but my husband was holding it up and his arms were getting tired so I didn't push my luck!

This is the back. That strip goes vertically in real life. Those are HSTs I made using the trim off from the Swoon blocks. I love the impact.

 Sorry, but I felt the need to capture each block in a picture because they each shine in a different way. It would be really hard to choose my favourite one. All the blocks are made with Tula Pink Foxfield, the first line of Tula's that really captured my heart. The background is Kona Steel (at least I think so. It has been a very long time since I bought it! Maybe it is actually Ash? Opinion, Jenn from @Quarter Inch From the Edge...my colour card is missing) It is a lovely light grey.

This one might be my favourite. And I'm not even a pink kind of girl!

This one also delights me. This green and aqua combo is awesome.

Swoon will be the first quilt in a very long time that I'm actually keeping. It fits my bed nicely, but has been getting lots of use in the living room (which is ridiculous because it is so huge...I need to get to making that Alison Glass throw quilt!)

I used a Cotton+Steel print in aqua and because of the way I cut it there is lots of movement (visually) in the binding.

A shot of the HSTs from the back. The main print is an Art Gallery print I picked up from the Modernology line ages ago when it was on clearance at Sew Sisters. I love how the combo really goes with Foxfield.

This quilt is far from perfect. I lost many points and the alignment is not so aligned. But I got it done, and I'm using it and loving it and I think that is much better than being stuck on how to quilt it or how to make it perfect. I love it!

Lynn

2015: Big Plans, Long Lists

This is perhaps the most fun post of the year to write because I get to dream of all the quilts I'll be making in the coming year. Last year at this time I was less than two weeks away from having a baby and I had a very reasonable list, which I managed to (mostly) accomplish. This year I am throwing reasonable out the window and aiming big!

There are the quilts I already have on my "to do" list for the plethora of babies arriving (mostly in March)
1. Baby quilt for J's son (January)

2. Baby quilt for P&M (March)

3. Baby quilt for R's baby girl (March)

4. Baby quilt for A's baby boy (March)

5. Baby quilt for S's second baby girl (March)

6. Baby quilt for G's little boy (March)

7. I just need the binding for my friend's bridal shower quilt so that will probably be my first finish for 2015.

Other quilts I want to make this year:
1. I have an orange and turquoise bundle from almost three years ago that is destined to be a Strips and Stripes quilt from Cluck Cluck Sew. I'm hoping to gift it to my sister-in-law come May. One way or the other, the quilt will be for her!
2. An I-Spy quilt for the baby. I wanted to make one for my eldest and it never happened. My favourite so far that I've found is this one from In the Blue Chair

Picture taken from From In The Blue Chair. It is all Heather Ross prints which is very cool, but I would just choose my favourite prints from my stash. Plus, look at all the delicious solids!

3. An all-solids quilt. Perhaps an HST one. I'm thinking to make a picnic blanket with this quilt, one to enjoy this summer out on the lawn with the baby eating grass and the big kid hunting bugs while I lounge on a pretty made-to-be-dirty quilt.
4. A quilt for my husband. Oh, how he likes to whine about me making quilts for everyone and their sister and not one for my very own husband. The problem is he is soooooo picky. I think I know what I'll do, but we will see how it goes!

I also really want to take quilts off my WIP list. I want to get at least these two finished:
1. 2013 Sugar Block Club quilt
2. Swoon quilt- the top is finished except for some borders, then backing and quilting

3. Maybe a couple more borders on my crazy Aviatrix Medallion quilt? That one is going to be a WIP for a looooooong time.

Other items:
1. Fox and the Houndstooth covered book for a co-worker's birthday (January) 
2. This will be the year I make clothes! Well, simple dresses for my baby for the summer. Surely I can manage, especially with some help from quilty friend A!
3. I really want to finish my Craftsy tutorial by Angela Walters on free motion quilting patterns.
4. Pillows for my downstairs pull-out couch.
5. The rest of the Christmas stockings I started three years ago.

I'm sure many more will end up on my list. And I need my friends to stop having babies! There is also the hope that we may move this year which may mean long stretches without sewing. I hope the move happens, but not the pause in sewing!

What is on the top of your list for 2015?

Lynn

Blog Around the World

I started to sew by teaching myself after asking for a sewing machine for my thirtieth birthday from my husband. That was four years ago. After a year and a half of sewing I tried my first quilt, something I thought would take years before I could accomplish. I got totally and completely hooked. That included being hooked on quilting blogs, which led to me starting my own blog.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago when Jenn from A Quarter Inch from the Edge contacted me to ask if I would be interested in participating in Blog Around the World where she would direct her readers to my blog (and two other blogs). I encountered Jenn when I had a giveaway on my blog from Sew Sisters and she entered. I checked out her blog and a few entries in I had her on my Blogger dashboard so I wouldn't miss a post! She is sort of a Kona solids genius. Check out what she did with these strip colour quilts or how she made a silk purse out of a (Kona) sow's ear. Also check out her epic solid Starburst quilt with the coloured Aurafil quilting. AMAZING. I'm interested to see how the addition of twins (!) will impact her quilting time (she accomplishes a zillion projects a week, or so it seems). Jenn is also Canadian but she is in Halifax in Nova Scotia whereas I am close to Toronto in Ontario. Google maps tells me it would take 17 hours and 53 minutes to drive there. Ouch.

And so here I am to answer the following questions about myself, my blog and my creative process.

What am I working on?

I used to be a woman who finished projects. My quilty friends C and A would comment that I was great at actually following through and that I didn't have very many WIPs (works in progress). Somehow that has changed this summer in particular. Or, perhaps, it has changed while being on maternity leave because the addition of a new baby (on top of my almost six-year-old) has changed how I am able to work. Currently I have the following projects "on the go" (including those for which I have already selected fabrics):

1. Oldest WIP: Stitchery Dickory Dock's Sugar Block Club Block of the Month. I have the blocks made and the binding made (with the scraps from the blocks). I made this using a bundle curated by Red Pepper quilts and purchased from Pink Castle Fabrics. I already know the backing (IKEA Nummer fabric) but I have not been motivated to do the boring sashing bits.

2. Swoon. I participated in a #Swoonalong with several quilty friends this summer. I completed all nine blocks using Tula Pink's Fox Field line and a LOT of Kona Shadow. I decided to add sashing which really helped make the quilt look right. Now I just need to add the border (which are cut and ready to go) and then baste (yuck) and decide how to quilt this sucker.  I think this will end up being a 2015 finish.

3. Aviatrix Medallion. I don't even like medallion quilts all that much. Or at least I didn't until I saw Elizabeth Hartman's pattern in all Kona solids. I bullied a friend into doing it too and she is so much further ahead. This is a very very VERY complex quilt so I knew it would take ages. I have finished the centre medallion and I'm working on the grey HSTs for Border One. This one may be a very late 2015 finish or, dare I say it, 2016?

4. Grey quilt #1: A Plus quilt. This is for a friend's son, J. She commissioned me to make two double quilts for her two little boys, ages 1 and 3. They both are dark greys and lots of Kona White. I only agreed to make these quilts because I adore her and because she turned creative control over to me. I am at the hand binding stage with this quilt.

5. Grey quilt #2. This is for big brother, E. It is a Pow Wow quilt from Cluck Cluck Sew's pattern (which I LOVE). I love this quilt so much I don't really want to let it go. I have it basted it and I'm waiting for the FMQ fairy to inspire me.

6 and 7. Mint Julep and Monkey Business, simple patchwork quilts for twins due in November to a work friend. These should be quick finishes. You know, if I stayed focused.

8. Black and White shower quilt. A lifelong friend got married two years ago and I was her maid of honour. Her mom and aunt both quilt so I came up with the idea of having the guests at her bridal showers sign squares of fabric and make a "guest book" quilt. Her aunt had the squares for two years without touching it so I took over to get the project going. Now I just need time to fit it in!

9. A very modern quilt for a neighbour expecting a little girl in November.

10. A red and white quilt for my husband's stepmother's mother, Nana. I want it done for her for Christmas.

I also need to make a baby quilt for a friend from work who is due in January, a special car holder project for my nephew for Christmas and a bunch of crayon roll ups for my daughter's loot bags at her sixth birthday party. Oh, and have I mentioned I'm going back to work from maternity leave starting tomorrow?

How does my work differ from others who quilt?

I don't really know how to answer this question. I know that when I compare my quilts to that of my friend's mother and aunt, or my great aunt, I am definitely more modern in my pattern and fabric choices. I know that compared to my quilty friends I am more adventurous than one of them (she chooses more modern fabrics but more traditional patterns) and less adventurous than the other (who chooses patterns because they are hard). Maybe at only three years into quilting I don't have a solid identity yet.

Why do I quilt?

I have always been drawn to quilts. For my high school graduation I didn't want a class ring. I asked my parents to pay to have a quilt made (I guess at 18 my parents should have read the warning signs). My job is incredible and challenging and rewarding but I also need something to do that is not related to the consuming nature of my job. Quilting fits the bill because it is very challenging and I am constantly learning and my mind is busy but on something other than work. I find that refreshing. I also think I can express love through my quilts, and since I am a pretty tough cookie that is one of the few ways I do!

What is my creative process?

I read a lot of blogs and go on Instagram and Pinterest a lot. Sometimes fabric or patterns just speak to me. They jump out at me and then get stuck in my head and haunt me until I at least write them down in this little notebook I have that is just for quilting. I will sketch out or write out my thinking behind the quilt and then I will have it sitting in my brain begging to be made until I actually get to making it. The problem is getting things done because my mind has sometimes already moved on to the next project before I finish the grunt work (like basting) for the one I'm on. This hasn't been too bad until recently. The grey quilts are an example of this madness. My friend mentioned wanting quilts in dark grey for her boys and I couldn't stop thinking about it. Within two days I had sent her inspiration photos and explained my vision. She was sold without much consideration and then I jumped on making the quilts happening. Alas I am nearing the finish line but I'm already itching to make something colourful!

So that is all about me. Now check out THESE amazing women and their blogs. On September 8th they will have new posts similar in flavour to mine. Check them out!

The Edgy Perfectionist
Her title encapsulates her perfectly. Crissa works full time and yet creates the most incredible quilts and projects. She is meticulous and it shows in her work. She likes BOLD colours and fabrics like Tula Pink, Amy Butler and Kaffe Fassett. When her mojo is flowing, watch out! I think the quilt she made that blew me away the most is her Out in Space quilt. Epic. Another Canadian, but closer to home than Jenn as she is in a neighbouring city here in Ontario.

How My Time Flies
An experienced sewer and quilter, this woman can do it all. Anita makes quilts but also clothing (including her own bras!), pillows, drapes and, well, anything you can sew. And she knits, too! She works full time and she is a very detail-oriented quilter (read: perfect seam matching every time. She told me she would teach me how but I know I wouldn't have her patience!) so her finishes are fewer. Anita has been working on a Dear Jane quilt for two years and I can't wait to see it together. Also, check out her incredible landscape quilt. She made this after taking a class on Craftsy. This is her first landscape quilt. WOW. Hooray for another local Canadian!

Peas in a Pod Creations
Kymberly is American, from Iowa. She was one of my first followers on my blog. She blogs about quilting but also about her knitting (gorgeous stuff that I could never make!). I am particularly captivated by her foray into making a Farmer's Wife quilt (a zillion tiny blocks with a zillion pieces each, much like a Dear Jane) because she is doing it entirely in black, white and grey. I have never seen one with a colour scheme like that and she is so good about explaining her process with the blocks and when she makes mistakes that she can live with and when she scraps it and tries again! I can't wait to see how it looks when it is all together because I think it is going to be worthy of a quilting show.

Lynn

Swoon Update

I have been "swooning" with several quilty friends. A finished her six blocks (all the same fabric) in no time at all. C was behind me for awhile because of trips out of the country (and I was sure I was going to be able to beat her to the finish line) but then she got home and was a machine and finished all nine. Bah.

But my blocks are all finished and I love them!

It is hard to even take a picture with them all because it is so large!

I decided that I needed some sashing between each block and settled on 3.5" strips. Those have since been added. Now I just need a border around the outside and this quilt top is finished! I think it will stay unbasted and unquilted for awhile, though, because there seems to be a new baby boom around me and I have some baby quilts to whip up! Four before November!

I also wanted to share  my birthday gift from my hubby:

Violet Craft's Brambleberry Ridge. Hubby is smart. When you send him a link to exactly what you want, that is.

And when we went to Stratford for our anniversary for a play (King Lear) and dinner (at Renee's- delicious!!) I made a stop at their LQS (Ye Olde Fabric Shoppe) and scooped a few fat quarters.

I love the front two Robert Kaufman prints as inspiration points for a whole quilt. The Christmas fabric is to back some panels from Laurie Wisbrun that I bought to make this Christmas. 

I have since also done much more shopping. It is totally unreasonable how much fabric I have. I read blogs with people who have hundreds of WIPs and that makes me ill to think about. But apparently I can have thousands of yards of fabric without blinking! I need to go on another fabric diet...

Lynn

Swoon Along

I have a group of quilty friends. It started with A and C whom I began working with three years ago and discovered they quilted. We have since done shop hops and sewing days and they have taught me so much (and I like to bully C to buy fabric and I bullied her to start a blog, too. You're welcome, C.)

Well they recruited two friends from work to also start sewing and quilting. K took to it like a duck to water and already has an impressive stash. CW is very, very new but already put together an amazing HST colour value pillow. It is sooooo nice. I want one. Plus she is turning into a bit of a fabric hoarder too, so that is a bonus.

Along came the idea of a Swoon Along. The more experienced of us knew we could tackle it and figured the two newer sewers would have our support if they got stuck. We all bought the pattern and decided this would be the summer of the Swoon.

A hosted our first "meeting" at her house. She is incredibly generous with her space. Of the group of five only three of us made it but it was a blast. A even made lunch for us, shared her sewing machine (I didn't want to haul my heavy new baby all the way there) and her iron and ironing board, cutting mat, etc. It worked out fine with us three sharing and we all got a block finished! Thank goodness for generous people!

My first block starting to come together.

K starting to do her cutting.

A has piles cut because she is using the same fabric for all the blocks (and is doing 6, not 9, blocks).

K kept making cutting errors but she didn't let it get to her. I think she is learning so much!

Here is my first finished block! Love that Tula Foxfield! I'm using Kona Shadow instead of white as my background.

Here are our three blocks. I thought it was funny to see that A's block (purple) was the most "perfect" with the seams and such, mine (turquoise) was pretty good and K's was a beginner's effort (she struggled with some seams and such) but they all look amazing!

Since then I have been working away to do more blocks.

Here is block #2. 

Block #3.

I was worried that block 3 had two fabrics that were too close in value to really show the Swoon pattern but now I think it is my favourite block so far!

C has one block done but was away on our first day (she totally ditched us for another friend) and came home for less than a week before jetting off again. I know she'll keep up, though. K has a second block done (and it looks even better than the first; you can tell she is improving with each attempt) and A has another block done (it looks the same as the first). CW has come down with a nerve injury in her arm or wrist or something so she is on pause for the time being, but hers is going to be in all contrasting Kona solids so I can't wait to see how it turns out!

I hope our next Swoon Along day is as relaxing and fun at the first!

Lynn

P.S. I'm actually keeping this quilt when it is done. Like, for myself. Crazy, right?