Around the Neighborhood Quilt

We’ve all done it. We’ve walked into a quilt shop in search of one piece to finish your current project, and something catches our eye. Could be the latest bundle of fabrics that just arrived, or a collection of fat quarters that you’ve had your eye on. In my case, it’s always the sale corner. I CAN NOT resist the sale corner. Beautiful quilting fabrics for $6/yard? Yes please!!

I found this cute set of fabrics calling to me in the sale room. There was a blue print with little houses, kites, hopscotch, and pathways along with a green print with pets doing all sorts of cute things around picket fences. I had no idea what I was going to do with it, but I was confident this fabric needed to be in a quilt.

 

Even though there were only two prints, they were busy and had lots of things going on. I decided to fussy cut the blue fabric so that each snowball block had something different going on. Then, I decided to use the green print as the “pathways” through the neighborhood. I framed the snowballs with white to add some contrast.

 

Once it was pieced together, I decided to use a bold red for the backing and the binding as a strong contrast color. For the quilting, I wanted to practice my elongated meander in a circular pattern. I wanted to keep going with the “path” idea, and thought it looked a lot like a maze in the hedges.

 

Finally, I attached one of my tags to it and finished the binding with a hand stitch. I was ready to declare this project done. But, alas, I had scraps, including a bunch of small half-triangle squares. They needed completion too.  

 

I sewed them together as a center of a small wall hanging, but it was a little too small. I added the last of the green print and blue print as an oversized border that is framed with thin strips of white.

 

I used the same red on the backing and the binding as I did on the bigger quilt, and hand stitched the binding. It pulled a bit when I was quilting (a risk of working with that many small half-triangle squares). It gave the quilt a slightly rolled look. That’s a bummer but I love how it turned out. This is a nursery set with the larger quilt measuring 45 x 65 and the smaller one measuring 25 x 35.

Hopefully someday someone will get to enjoy it. Until then, I continue working on new projects, and continue to be tempted by fabrics in the sale corner.

Quarantine UFO Series #4, Rainbow Fruit Quilt and Trivet

Rainbow Fruit Quilt

Every time I go into a fabric store and see fabrics with fruits and veggies, I was mesmerized by their color. I love the richness and amazing variety! I was collecting pieces until I had enough to make my fruit and veggie basket quilt. I actually ended up with enough blocks to make 2 smaller quilts, and a bunch of scraps. I just couldn’t let any of it go, and of course, had to find new projects for it.

I made a 12 inch block with the leftover ½ triangle squares that created a wonderful rainbow look. It was put away, like so many other projects I had been working on, and forgotten. As I worked through my UFO pile, I started to venture into my “lost blocks” pile, which is where I found the rainbow block. I pulled it out, along with the scraps, and tried to figure out how I can use this stuff up. I tried and tried, and couldn’t figure out what to do. I was chatting with the hubby about it and he asked why I needed to keep that block in the quilt if I had enough fabric to make a new one? Huh, good point!

I took the block out and started to layout the leftover pieces. I came up with a rainbow style layout creating a real pop of color. I set it on a black background, bringing the colors out even more, and then used the last of the scraps to create an off-set border.

So… then I needed a backing. I went into my stash and found a picnic table pattern with ants crawling on it. Could NOT be more perfect! My daughter saw it and said she wanted a face mask made with it. As much as I loved that idea, I needed all of it to make the backing. I trimmed it with a little black to get to the size I needed. Worked excellent!

The quilting was a simple straight stitch crosshatch on the rainbow element and then a basic meander on the black. It keeps the attention on the colors and rainbow style. I’m really happy with how this turned out. I’m so glad I saved these fabrics, and thought outside the box to create this.

Of course, the block that started this project was still unaccounted for. I decided to make a simple trivet with it. I used the very last of the scraps to make a patchwork backing and used a simple straight stitch for quilting. It is now gracing my counter with its bold colors and providing function when I pull something out of the oven.

And with that, I have yet another project finished. Love how I’ve been able to clean through my fabric stash and unfinished projects at the same time.

Of course, going into the UFO block pile opened a door, and now I have more projects I want to get to work on. Let’s see...

Quarantine UFO Series #3, Squared Stars

 Squared Stars Quilt

 

Several years ago, when I first started quilting, I wanted to make a quilt with a book I had found. It had a pattern for an easy-to-assemble blocked star pattern. Essentially, you sew 2 strips of fabric to a center fabric strip and then cut using a quilting ruler at a tilt so the strips are triangular. When you assemble it, they become stars with blunt points.

 

When it was all finished, I confess I wasn’t thrilled with how it turned out. The colors were too simple, and the pattern didn’t allow for much interest in its color movement. I didn’t know what my plan was with the quilt at the time, so I filed it away and began working on other projects.

 

In the UFO pile it has sat… all these years it has been forgotten and shuffled.  I didn’t have the heart to get rid of it. I felt an obligation to finish it, but I lacked the motivation I needed to make it happen.

 

A few years ago, on our annual trip to San Diego, I bribed my family with treats to stop at my favorite fabric shop there; Rosie’s Calico Cupboard (If you’ve never been to this store, you really should check it out. I haven’t been in a while, but I was always in awe of the huge selection and reasonable prices.). I had a list of backings I wanted and how big of cuts I needed. I found a beautiful fabric with similar colors as the front of the star quilt and decided it had a lot of interest and might counteract some of the simplicity on the front of the quilt. I brought it home and put it with the quilt top, in hopes of motivating me.

 

Well, years more went by and I stopped quilting all together for a bit. I’d look at my UFOs and think of how I could finish them, but it felt like a time-sucking task I couldn’t handle. Enter quarantine. All of a sudden, time is not the issue and I am out of excuses. I got to work and tried to focus on getting it done. I decided on an all-over circle meander with 3-pointed twists mixed in to match the pattern on the purple fabric. I used a purple thread so it wouldn’t be too noticeable on the back or the darker areas of the front.

 

While working on it, I was unhappy with how it was going. I kept second-guessing myself and wondering if I should pick it out and start over. I didn’t realize how bold the purple thread would be on the yellow fabric, and wasn’t sure how I felt about that. But I pressed on. I told myself I wasn’t a fan of the quilt in general and it was just for practice.

 

I used the leftover backing fabric for the binding and finished it off with a hand-stitch. I included my tag for the year finished, but even that got too hot under the iron and melted a bit. It seemed poetic on a quilt that had given me such trouble and disappointment.

 

All was said and done. There was nothing left for me to do with this quilt. I shook it out and looked back at what I’d created. Huh… actually don’t hate. In fact, I dare say, I might actually like it a little.  The purple stitching on the yellow fabric added just the interest I needed, and when looking at the whole thing at once, the quality of the quilting turned out pretty nice.

 

I am so happy to have this UFO done and I can put it away. I have thought about donating it to a good cause, or maybe gifting it to someone. Not sure yet, but for now I will sit back and revel in the fact that one more project has been completed! Yeah!