Yes, Baby Quilts Again

I think I'm done with baby quilts for awhile. They are fabulous creativity exercises and stash busters. They're quick, so you don't get bored before you're done. These are utilitarian, destined for Debra's charity quilt effort, so there's not a lot at stake if you put random fabrics together on a whim. I made this quilt in a couple of hours yesterday. I took a remnant of Winnie the Pooh fabric and a stack of various blue strips.


Instant baby quilt.


Here's a close-up of another one. I pulled from what Finn would call my orphan block stash and included a couple of blocks Debra embroidered that were left over from another project. Most of this fabric had been cut into half-square triangles for a project I never made because I decided I didn't like these fabrics together after all.


When I ran short of a few hst blocks, I threw in some solid blocks. I think it made a very fresh and graphic quilt for a baby, or maybe the center of a larger quilt.


Here's the finished top I started last week from the 4-patches and the Vera-like fabric. I think that blue floral print may have been a piece of sheet or curtain.


This last one was make almost entirely of orphan blocks from other projects. I made the shoo-fly blocks awhile back, but the toile I used made them look muddy, so I set them aside. I deliberated a lot about the strips between the rows, and auditioned a lot of fabrics before I settled on these light colored strips.


It's a little busy, but I do like this one.

Here's what I learned from the process: pre-cut strips are an asset. If I needed a piece of sashing or some 4-patch blocks, it was great to leaf through my strips to see what was already cut. I've made a big dent in my store of 2.5 and 3.5" strips, so I'm going to cut into some of my fabrics and replenish the drawer. Orphan blocks are great starters for these little projects too. I think I've gone through a lot of stash in the process, but more importantly, I've uncovered some works-in-progress that I want to go back and finish. It's been a mind de-cluttering as well as a destash exercise. Next I'll be making a larger quilt for Debra's efforts, then I'm going to round up some the ghost projects that are haunting my sewing room, and finish them up and show them the light of day.

More Baby Quilts

This quilt took a bit more time than I thought it would, but it's finally done. I love making 4-patch blocks, but since I used 2.5" strips, it took a lot of them to fill these rows. The fabric on the ends is vintage, and it was fun to use up these last pieces in this little quilt. I basically pulled anything from my stash in coordinating shades of green and yellow.

I used up more of that green gingham ruffle.

I pulled this remnant from my stash for the next baby quilt. It reminds me of a Vera print. I'm crazy for Vera, the 70s fabric designer.

I cut the blue floral print into 6.5" blocks, and made big 4-patch blocks in (sort of) coordinating colors to alternate. This one went together fast. I just have to sew the blocks together now.

These quilts will be going to Debra for her charity quilt project. She just posted pictures of a large floral print that she wants to use to back and border 10 quilts for the clients of a women's shelter. I've also posted a picture of some blocks I'd like to use for these quilts, if someone want to collaborate with alternate blocks. Check out the Quilt Studio site for pictures and details.

(Not) Knitting at the Movies

There was no romantic Valentine's Day for me: Michael is in Austin visiting his daughter, so Allie and I went to the movies to see Coraline. Alex wouldn't go. Since the movie is named for a girl, it didn't seem promising to him, but Allie and I thought the movie was terrific.

We went to a nearby town to see it in 3-D, which I highly recommend. It's a visual treat, and the main story elements: a big old house, cloth dolls, buttons, and a black cat, are right up my alley. I took my movie knitting with me: my second Tasha Tudor shawl, which I'm making for my mom, but I was so entranced, I didn't even take it out of my bag.

There were a lot of children in the audience, but I would hesitate to take a very young child (say younger than 7) because the the story has some very psychologically creepy elements. Go see the movie (in 3-D) then tell me if you love it too.

There is even a pattern on the web for Coraline's sweater. Yes, the movie inspires that kind of obsession.

Here's the second Tasha Tudor shawl, which I'm making with vintage wool from my aunt's stash, just like Tasha #1. Tasha #2 is a very pale yellow, and I'm loving the color.

I went to my local yarn and fabric shop looking for a shawl pin for Tasha #1, which I finished for my aunt, and they kindly pointed me to this very economical alternative.

Remember kilt pins? They make perfect (and cheap) shawl pins. Someone crafty would fancy them up with beads and other danglies, but I like them plain and utilitarian for this shawl. They would also be handy for all those button less sweaters that are so stylish right now.


Here's my aunt's finished shawl ready to go into the mail. I'm starting to think about a multi-colored Tasha for myself.

Leftovers

So many foods are better the next day. Soups and stews are usually better the second day, and of course there's nothing like leftover pizza for breakfast. Leftovers from quilt projects are little treats too. This baby quilt was made from some of the leftovers from my Shirts and Sheets quilt. I'm sending it to Debra for her charity project.
The borders are cut from a re-purposed ruffle that must've come from some gigantic gingham curtains. I put a dent in this long strip, and still have a big piece left over.

This baby quilt was made from the leftovers of the blue and yellow quilt I'm also sending Debra. The Chinese Coins pattern was easy to put together and I used up almost all of the leftover fabric.

I also finished a Tasha Tudor shawl. I'm sending it to my Auntie Nena, who gave me her yarn stash. I got Allie to model it for me. "Old lady shawl?" she asked. Of course she totally rocked it and made it look cool.
The body of the shawl is knit from some of the vintage wool my aunt gave me, and the lace trim is knit from yarn from my stash. It's a fun mindless knit: it's all garter stitch, and the lace pattern is easy to memorize. I love this pattern so much I've started another one.
Of course the other thing about leftovers is that using them up requires vigilance and determination. I've pulled these fabrics for another baby quilt.

Short Attention Span

I was distracted from my Wheel of Fortune quilt by all the fun Debra's having improvising quilts for donation to homeless teens, and now for the babies of teen parents. I dug through my flannel scraps and put together this small quilt to send her, either for a baby, or perhaps as the center for a larger quilt for a boy. That's bad Louie posing on the quilt. If I put a quilt on the floor, a cat will come sit on it. "Thanks for the great rug," they say.



Then I looked around to see what I could whip up next really fast. My neighbor had given me these pillow shams, saying, "maybe you can do something with these." They are those mass-produced Chinese hand quilted linens, and I saved them because I like the stars and the colors. I sashed them and sewed them together, and then I realized I have lots of yellow and blues that would go with them.



I've had these blue and white patches in my stash forEVER. I had forgotten all about them and was thrilled when I found them in the drawer. The yellows came to me in a swap from Debra. What goes around comes around, right?



I even had a border fabric in the perfect yellow. The finished quilt is about 60 x 80 and this one will go to Debra too. I hope it's not too light-colored or girly.

I went though the trunk where I store some of my finished quilts and I found this baby quilt I'd made awhile ago.

It's reversible. Here's the other side. This will go to Debra too.

My thrift store deal of the week is this 2.5 yard cut of seersucker for $2.00. Talk about cheap thrills: I love these colors. I've got to get the Wheel of Fortune done so I can use the design wall and keep the quilts off the floor and the cat hair to a minimum.

Free and Wonderful

I saw two very cool freebies on the web this week. First Kyra posted pdfs of Barbara Brackman's Obama fabric that you can download and print on your inkjet printer. The files produce two different sheets: one is a medallion with images of President Obama and Vice-President Biden in an Americana design. The other features images of Obama and George Washington. Remember to change the settings on your printer to the highest quality before printing for best results. I happened to have some fabric sheets handy, so I'll be making a block to commemorate the inauguration.

Also, Pink Penguin posted this wonderful downloadable pattern for a paper pieced tea pot and a detailed tutorial. Wouldn't these be fun to make in different novelty prints?

Happy sewing!

Wings to Fly (12 x12)

I finished another little quilt in my bird series. When I went to PIQF this summer I bought some fabric with images of the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo on it. It also has little banners with quotes from her diaries. The banner I chose for the top translates: "Why do I need feet if I have wings to fly."

Frida has a fan-base all over the world. She was a woman who sought creativity and freedom and who battled the aftereffects of a crippling streetcar accident all her life, including infertility. The dramatic film of her life, Frida, in which she is played by Salma Hayek, is visually stunning, but it overemphasizes her relationship to her husband, the painter Diego Rivera.

In addition to the Frida cut-outs, I used a machine applique of birds that Debra gave me, and I set them on a vintage handkerchief. I attached the applique with French knots, which I also used to mark the edges of both the floral design and that nice moon-like circle in the background. I adhered Frida to the piece with good old-fashioned heat and bond. Then I embellished with beads, embroidery, and sequins.


I left the flounce of the skirt free, because it overhangs the edge of the hanky. I backed it with a scrap of fabric



and at the end I added a lace petticoat.



Frida was well known for wearing Mexican folk costumes. Adding sequins to the skirt made her outfit like the the costume of La china poblana, the national costume of Mexico, known for its elaborate embroidered and embellished skirt. The other banner in the piece says: "I feel like living, so I started to paint."


You can see how I lapped the hanky over the binding to preserve the rolled edge. This piece was a gift to my friend Leslie, a very talented painter and big Frida fan, who married her long-time partner recently. In California same-sex marriages were outlawed after the last election, so their union is not recognized by the state.

This was a fun project, very much like playing with paper dolls.

My Thought Process

I had made four of these Mississippi Wheel of Fortune blocks--the design is by Karen Stone--some time ago. It's taken me until now to decide that I don't want to make any more, and so I'll make a small quilt and move on. I sashed the blocks and put on a wide black and white border. But then it looked a little unfinished to me.


So I cut up a bunch of 3.5" squares and created a new, more colorful border. And I auditioned an orange outer border.

And then I thought, but I've got plenty of fabric laying around, and I just cut a bunch of 2.5" strips. So I made blocks.




I'm encouraged in this move by the Material Obsession site. They have great eye candy, and I've noticed that a lot of the quilts I've found interesting on their site, instead of getting calmer as they move outward from the middle, seem to get busier and busier. We'll see what comes next. Bunny is helping me to think it over.

There Will Be Afghans

Happy New Year to All. I hope 2009 is full of joy and creativity. I don't make new year's resolutions, but I wish myself the same: another year of joy and creativity in increasing doses.

I finished a quilt in the run up to Christmas. This one was for Michael, and I quilted a top I'd finished in 2007 featuring embroidered blocks Debra had sent me when she began her machine embroidery journey.



I layered it with a bamboo and cotton batt, which I liked a lot. It's light and drapey, and doesn't require very close quilting. Here's an old and very fuzzy shot of the top in progress.


I had to wrap the quilt before I got a proper photo of the whole thing.

I also knitted Allie this Vegan Fox stole for Christmas. The pattern is very fast and fun to knit. I'd never used fun fur, and it's actually kind of fun to knit up.

Then, between Christmas and New Year's Eve, I hit the road for a solo trip. First stop was a visit to my parents, sister and her kids. My nephew Nick, who lives in Los Angeles and works on the tech side of an insurance company, was visiting. Here he is with my mom. We all had a nice visit punctuated with too much food, and then it was time to go to San Francisco for a professional conference.

I stayed in SF with my friend Juanita and her husband Ian, and then I stopped in to visit my Auntie Nena and my cousin Mary Ellen.


Auntie Nena passed me her yarn stash. She was a dedicated crocheter for many years, and so she has the stash to show for it. "I had planned to make afghans," she said, "but then I decided I didn't want to."

Since "waste not, want not" is our family motto, she passed me four copy paper boxes full of yarn, nicely sorted by color.

Some of it was wool. Did you know that Sears had sold wool yarn? The rest is, of course, acrylic. I'm not a yarn snob, so I'll find projects that will make use of it, and what I don't use, I'll send to the local jail, where they teach women inmates to knit.

I'm excited to have received the legacy of busy hands from my aunt. It's also very sweet that she wanted me to have her stash, because she knows I'll make good use of it.

After our visit, complete with Mexican sweet bread, coffee cake, and canela, cinnamon tea, I hit the road again, and crossed the Golden Gate Bridge for the six hour drive home. It was an auspicious close to 2008, and I feel well supplied for a busy new year.