Stashmaster

Third time's a charm

Jelly Star #3 was a success!   I tried to be extra cautious about not stretching anything while sewing or pressing my seams open, and this one turned out pretty perfect.  My blocks are finishing at 25-3/4" - they would be 29-3/4" if I used the jelly roll strip.  Still a nice sized block - even one block framed with a border fabric would be pretty as a wall hanging or table topper.  I have 2 stars that I need to remake, and as I wait impatiently for my Fig & Plum jelly roll to arrive from Canada, I'm cutting and sewing the checkerboard sashing.

While this quilt could definitely be made with just one jelly roll, using 2 will give me the opportunity to use more strips of my favorite prints from the line and eliminate some of the darker plums, which are very pretty, but take too much focus away from the lighter prints.  I've got my fabric choices for the 2 remaining stars all sketched out.  Did I mention I'm waiting impatiently for the mailman?

My Four Seasons Swap partner down under, Soo, received her quilt from me.  I'm so happy that she likes it.  And hey - that means I should be getting a quilt in my mailbox soon.  Another reason to stalk the mailman!

Two down

My second Jelly Star didn't go together quite as nicely as the first one.  The points match pretty well, but the seams in the corners of the background squares are a little off.  Still, I really like the colors on this one.  I may redo it when I get another jelly roll, or if the third star proves it's impossible to make these stars "perfect," I may just go with them as is.  Stay tuned, I'm working on Star #3.

Know your limits!

OK, I'll admit it - I do not like jelly rolls.   Those pinked edges just aren't for me.  They stretch and I cannot get the accuracy that I always strive for in my piecing.  What was I thinking, volunteering to make this sample for the shop with 45 degree strip pieced diamonds?  Yes, it was not a good decision, but I so wanted to work with this Fig & Plum jelly roll that my shop owner brought back from Portland Quilt Market.

This is my second attempt at making a Jelly Star.  Looks pretty good, doesn't it?  I will not show you my first attempt.   It's in a wad in the closet.  I've never had so much trouble lining up seams and having poofy seams - ever.  I'm so ashamed of it.

For my second star pictured here, I trimmed the pinked edges off the strips, leaving them 2-1/4" wide rather than 2-1/2" wide.   My stars will be a smidge smaller than the original pattern intended, but they will be accurate and will not make me cringe every time I look at all the seams that don't meet.  I can just add an extra wide border if I want a bigger quilt.

But this looks dreamy, doesn't it?   And these new Fig Tree fabrics are certainly drool worthy.   Ok, I'm off to make more stars while I'm on a roll!

Does this look like summer?

Here is a finished quilt top, ready to mail "very far away" (hint...) to my Four Seasons Quilt Swap partner.   I hope my partner will like this little quilt made out of Moda's Swell fabrics.  I think based on the color preferences mentioned that she will.

No OT required!

Carrie Nelson's little story of the name of this pattern of hers - 4OT - is something about finishing this quilt while watching an exciting hockey game that went into 4 overtimes.  Well I'm here to tell you, there were NO OVERTIMES required with this quilt.  It was definitely one of the fastest and easiest quilts I've ever assembled.  Nice big pieces and everything fit together nicely - it was a real pleasure to work with this pattern and these fabrics.  I have a quilter lined up who will do this for me at the end of July, so there will be plenty of time to bind it and have it in the shop when the fabrics - Portobello Market by 3 Sisters for Moda - arrive in September.

Please, don't anyone be intimidated by a Miss Rosie pattern if you haven't made one before.  It looks like a lot of pieces, but the effort is definitely worth the result.  The hardest part of this one will be waiting until it's finished being a shop model so it can come home to live with me!

Fill 'er up!

Work is progressing on my 4OT quilt (you can now buy the Miss Rosie's pattern of your very own!).  The blank spaces in the alternate blocks are where the large star points will fill in, and I will use all the darker reds and blues in the collection.  This one is shaping up to be another gorgeous design, and it's going together so quickly, there will be plenty of time to have it quilted and bound to hang in the shop by the time the fabric arrives in September!

I finished the quilting on my Four Seasons Swap quilt, now to sew down the binding, wash and embellish it (I'm thinking some flower-shaped yo-yos).  I hope my partner will like it!

New Project

First, I would like to thank all of you who offered me such lovely words of comfort about my grandmother.   I apologize for not thanking each of you individually.   It's just too painful right now.  I hope you understand how much I appreciate all your kind thoughts, though.

After an incredibly busy 2 weeks, I am finally back at my sewing machine.   My new project is using a Moda fabric designed by 3 Sisters called Portobello Market, which won't be in stores until September.  I'm using a FQ bundle my quilt shop owner got at Market to make a shop sample.

The pattern is also new - it's called 4OT and is designed by my very talented and creative friend, none other than the heart and soul behind Miss Rosie's Quilt Company - Carrie Nelson.  I emailed Carrie asking for her advice about a pattern of hers that would be suited to this line of fabrics and she showed me this one that she designed around the very same fabrics.  The pattern will be in stores soon, but I got a special advance copy so I could get started right away, and I'm enjoying the new design very much.

There will be some larger stars that surround these 12" blocks in gorgeous reds and darker blues.   And alternate blocks with a smaller 9-patch inside a square on point.   Stay tuned to see my progress on this beauty!

Beauty in a box

I always LOVE getting a quilt back from the quilter.  Seeing that  transformation of my creation into a finished, quilted state is always a magical moment for me.  I got my blended quilt back yesterday and I'm just delighted with the results.

The pictures, of course, do not do it justice.  My quilter outlined each star and did a little loop-de-loop pattern inside each alternate block - most of which were a solid square, but some were 4-patches.   In the pieced border, she did a serpentine crosshatch through all the patches -  which were mostly small 3-1/2" squares, with some half-square triangles and some 3-1/2" x 6-1/2" rectangles in the mix.

The second photo shows the back - almost as pretty as the front with her pretty quilting design!  The quilt is really beautiful - I couldn't be happier!

Finally, a finish!

Hot Off the Press - I finished my Jelly Ohs quilt last night.  I love how faded and vintage this quilt turned out.   I had a couple of errors in judgement along the way.  For instance, my idea to use the apricot gingham for the sashing was a disaster, it was much too bright for this soft quilt.   Often the designer DOES know best and I stuck with her choice of the soft brown gingham.  I also made one block where the background fabric was too strong, so it will likely end up pieced into the back of the quilt.

I got word that my Blended Quilt is on its way back from the longarm quilter in Idaho.   I am so excited to see it.   I'll probably get it on Thursday and will share a picture then.

Next up, I need to decide on a pattern for a shop sample I'm making with the beautiful new Moda Portobello Market FQ bundle my quilt shop owner brought back from Market and gave to ME to use in a sample!   I promised to make a Miss Rosie's design and have tentatively decided to make Two Step, but I'd still like to see the new Carrie Nelson designs from Spring Market to see if there is a better choice (Carrie did tell me she designed one of her new patterns using Portobello Market, so using that pattern would be pretty perfect for my shop sample).  Stay tuned!

Jelly Ohs

This is my new project.  I'm making the Fig Tree pattern Jelly Ohs using their Dandelion Girl line of fabrics.  This is the first of 2 quilts I have planned using these fabrics.  They are very soft and vintage looking!  There are a lot of half-square triangles in this one, so it's taking a lot of time to piece these blocks.

Woo-hoo for a 3-day weekend to spend time with the family and sew!  And I don't have to work at the quilt store either.  Have a wonderful weekend everybody!