Quarantine UFO Series #7, Stained Glass Quilt

Like I mentioned in my last quilty  post, Hawaiian Flowers Quilt, I dragged my kiddos off to BOM quilt class every month back in 2014. They were such troopers about it, and we created great memories together. After finishing the first set of blocks (12 months = 12 blocks) I was ready to get to work on finishing it. And then I got distracted... by a new BOM that was starting for 2015... I couldn't resist.

They changed the rules a little bit for the BOM this round and I couldn't resist. We were given a strip of Ombre fabric that went from selvage to selvage. That way we had the complete spectrum of each color. What cool fabric!

 

Each block had a different pattern and it was my challenge for myself to try to keep black between each piece of color fabric and to have the color spectrum go from lightest in the center to darkest on the outer edges of the block.  Most blocks worked out great! A couple had colors against each other, and that's okay. I love how vibrant the colors are and how the black really makes them stand out.

After 12 months of block making and monthly classes, life was starting to get busier with kids starting school and preschool and everything got tabled. I had all of the blocks, the colorful scraps and a big cut of black fabric to finish it, but it wasn't happening.  Other projects that needed to be completed quickly took precedence and I hoped eventually I'd be able to get back to this one.

 

Now that I'm cleaning up and completing UFO's, it was this ones turn. I decided to use the colorful scraps to make cornerstones for the sashing and mixed them up around the quilt. Otherwise, it's all black so the color in the blocks would really be bold and pop!

 

 

 

For the quilting, I wanted to keep it simple on the colors so I used a black meander on the black fabric and simple squares in the center of each color in the color of that fabric. It looks really cool on the back of the quilt to see the black meander moving through the blocks. 

 

 

I didn't have a plan for the back, but I knew I wanted something that represented all the colors on the front. I found this awesome watercolor fabric that is so vibrant and bold, and yet much lighter in color. It was a great contrast to the front while still pulling on the colors. I used that same fabric for the binding, and am happy with how the colors are represented all the way around.

 

 

 

 

Another gem finished! So many wonderful memories sewn into this quilt. I'm so glad I finally finished it. This will be a quilt for days when things feel gloomy in the winter as the colors are so inspiring and heart-warming.

Quarantine UFO Series #6, Hawaiian Flowers BOM Quilt

 

It feels like so long ago, and just yesterday at the same time. Back in 2014, when my kids were little (I’m talking 2-4 years old) I was craving some artistic outlet with others interested in my same hobby... quilting. At the time, there was a particular quilt shop that had an amazing BOM program called The Block Buster Block of the Month. Basically, you pay $3 and get 2 cuts of fabric and a pattern to complete a 12 x 12 inch block. As long as you complete your block and share it with the group in person at the next monthly meeting, you don’t pay again. There isn’t enough fabric to complete the whole block, so you add some of your own. The theme for this BOM year was batiks. It was perfect! 

 

 

The colors reminded me of flowers and a Hawaiian experience, so I added a green and a yellow from my stash. You’ll see in each block those colors are running themes. I also used scraps from previous months to enhance other blocks as we worked through the month. I made sure to imagine my flower in each block on point so that I would be able to complete the quilt on point as well.  

 

 

I had so many ideas and ambitions with this project! It was just what I needed. After a year of taking kids to meetings (and them behaving so well at every one) I had a completed stack of blocks. I started thinking about how to set it and searching for fabrics for sashing and backing and binding, oh my. But then, they started another block of the month that I was in love with too, and the project got tabled so I could make another set of blocks. A whole other story that I will be sharing soon.

Life got away from me. I only did those two years of BOM’s before we couldn’t make the commitment anymore, and I had enough work to complete already anyway. Kids got bigger, and busier, and I really wasn’t doing any quilting at all.

 

 

So, this is a quarantine story… and this was definitely a UFO that needed love and attention. I had found sashing, backing, and binding and it was all sitting on the shelf waiting for me to complete it. Now was the time.

 

 

I used the very last scraps of my green to create a few leaves and a vine that encircle the blocks. My husband wasn’t a fan of the asymmetrical design, but I love it! I felt like it added interest and a unique flavor.

 

 

At first, I struggled with how to quilt it. One night while trying to fall asleep, I had a brainstorm to use a meander in a circular pattern on each flower to give it waving petals look. Then, I used a meander with leaves in the sashing and borders. I finished it with a 2020 label tag and a hand stitched binding. Done and IN LOVE!!

 

 

I am so happy I finally finished this wonderful quilt. Every time I look at it, I’m reminded of the wonderful outings with my children to the shop for class and then off to lunch for a treat. This was an awesome project!

 

Baby I's Quilt

During this quarantine time, I have been keeping myself distracted with quilts. I have been trying to post them on here to keep a record of all my work, but I’m struggling to keep up with all of the projects I’ve completed. It’s a good thing to clean out all of the plans I’ve had over the last several years, but I discovered I have several fabric bundles for babies.

I have scraps from previous baby quilts, and baby fabric packs, and of course fat quarter bundles, and random pieces I just couldn’t live without. I started to think about who I could make a quilt for, but most of my friends are past baby stage… except one.

 

A friend just had baby #4 right when we went into quarantine. Before stay home orders, I hadn’t thought of making a quilt for her. Hadn’t even crossed my mind. Once we were stuck home and I was faced with all of the fabric and projects I’ve collected over the years, I realized this was an easy answer. She really has all of the basic baby needs, so a gift was tricky anyway.

 

I decided to use a popular half-square triangle pattern and laid it out to create an off-set diamond pattern. I used fabrics left over from my sisters Baby boy quilt (5 years ago!) called Bartholomeow’s Reef.

 

While I had enough for the front, I didn’t have enough large cut for the back. I pushed my luck and actually found some on etsy so I ordered enough for this quilt and a little extra as I still have enough fabric left to make at least one more, maybe even two more baby quilts with this.

 

I finished it with a simple ¼ inch straight stitch following the diamond pattern, and of course added a date tag so I remember when I made it.

 

I also used the stripe fabric for the binding. It creates such a wonderful border for the quilt with movement and interest. I’m not usually a fan of stripes, but something about that fabric calls to me.

It took a few weeks to get it to my friend and her baby, but I finally did and hopefully they will enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it. This was a fun, and relatively quick finish.