Snowflakes

It's snowing!  At least it's snowing in my living room with these adorable snowflake pillows.  I'm feeling pretty good about checking a few handmade gifts off my list.

I made these pillows using a paper pieced pattern by Amy of During Quiet Time.  I downloaded the pattern from her Craftsy store.  The pattern includes the block in three sizes (6, 9, and 12 inches).  The small pillow above uses the nine inch size.  I finished the pillow with a self lining envelope back, using a tutorial by AmandaJean and some cute polka dot binding. The fabric on the back is Laurie Wisbrun's Brrr! from a couple of years back.

The lumbar pillow (16 x 26) uses three of the six inch blocks.  I decided to quilt it with white thread, and I like how the thread blends into the snowflakes but stands out on the red fabric (Kona Rich Red), creating a pinstripe effect.

 

With two gifts finished, I decided to make a Christmas pillow for us to keep.  I went a little crazy with my scraps and made improv letters and a strata background.  It's wonky in a festive way, don't you think? 

 

I got to play around with a new free motion quilting design I learned in a Craftsy class I'm taking by Christina Cameli.  The pebbling is a fun contrast to the hard lines of the piecing, and I love the little touch the asterisk pebbles add.  I'll be back soon with a full review of the class!