Scrappy Improv Strip Quilt

If you've been reading my blog for a while, or know me at all as a quilter, you know I love scraps.  I also love improv quilting.  Put them together, and I am in my favorite sewing place.  This scrappy, improv strip quilt was sewn up just for fun.  I had the idea to play with value and strips again, but in a different way from Partly Cloudy.  Instead of short strips used in strip sets, I sewed the strips end to end to create long, narrow columns.  And instead of concentrating the darkest values in the center, I put them at the top and the bottom of the quilt.  The lighter strips in the middle become the focus of the quilt. The varying lengths of the lighter strips makes the design dynamic.

I like how the quilt moves from pink to orange to yellow as well.  These bright, warm colors just scream summer to me. 

 

While I was playing with my scrappy strips, I sewed up a few improv log cabin blocks.  They never get old!  I used three of my favorite on the back of the quilt.

 

The quilt finishes at 58" x 71" and it just the right size for napping or picnicking or napping at a picnic.  I think it would be sweet in a girl's room at the end of a bed too.  The quilt is listed in my etsy shop. SOLD

Pink Cross Quilt

After a stretch of making exclusively improv quilts, sometimes I crave a simple, traditional project.  My pink and neutral scraps bins have also been getting rather full, so I started searching for a single block I could make, using just two fabrics in each block, featuring the pinks as the primary shape.

 

I settled on this cross block, a simple variation of the nine patch. My blocks finish at 9 inches.  The pieces are quite small, making them perfect for using scraps! If you are looking for a pattern, you can find a similar block in issue one of Love Patchwork and Quilting designed and made by Holly DeGroot of Bijou Lovely.

I had a lot of fun pairing each pink scrap with the neutrals, and the blocks are very quick to piece.  I chain-pieced about four at a time.

 

I quilted figure eights across each row.  Three inches was a very easy size to create, and the rows make for a clear horizontal guideline.  I definitely recommend this free motion quilting design, particularly if you have seams to guide you.  Very speedy!

The backing is a very popular print from Ikea which is particularly useful because it is about 60 inches wide.  Sadly, I believe it has been discontinued.

 

The binding is one of my favorite prints from the Botanics line by Carolyn Friedlander. I really want a bolt of it.  I think it would be fantastic as a background, in the place of a white solid.  

 

 

This 36 x 45 baby quilt is destined for my etsy shop.

 

 

Waves Quilt, Sunrise Colorway

I finished up another Waves Quilt in sunrise colors.  This design makes a bold, modern statement, while it's clean lines are simple enough to work well with a variety of nursery themes.  Gender neutral colors likes these warm solids makes the quilt is even more versatile.

I backed the quilt in a diamond print from the Simply Color line, and I picked a contrasting aqua binding.  I don't know why I resisted the orange and aqua combination for so long.  They are made for each other!

 

As with my first Waves Quilt, I created a different free motion quilting design in each color with matching thread.

The quilt is listed in my etsy shop.  Also, I am writing a pattern for those of you who would like to make your own Waves Quilt. The PDF pattern is available for instant download here.

Waves Baby Quilt in Pink

This simple baby quilt was a response to my son's request for a gift for his teacher's baby.  She had her first child today, a little girl. 

I chose a clean, modern design that has been in a my sketchbook for a while.  It was quick to make (which was necessary since he asked me to make it just a week before her last day!), and the solids I picked create a great space to showcase free motion quilting designs.  I quilted a different design in each color with matching thread.  Each of these designs can be found in Angela Walter's  book Free-Motion Quilting.

 

I picked three shades of pink from my stash, white, and grey sketch binding. 

I hope it is used and loved for years.  It was a pleasure to make for someone who has put so much time and care into teaching my child.

I have plans to make a couple of these 40 x 50 quilts in other colors for my etsy shop, but you know what they say about plans. Want to make your own Waves Baby Quilt?  The pattern is now available as an instant download PDF.

Busy City Pattern

Well before he was even 18 months old, my first son would point and hoot at every truck or digger he spotted through the window from his car seat.  By three, he could distinguish backhoes from front end loaders and correct me on the finer points of cranes and forklifts.  When he was ready to move to a big boy bed, I knew I had to make a construction themed quilt for him.  I found there to be so little on the market for boys and definitely nothing that would appeal both to his interests and my own modern aesthetic.   I'm pleased to say that Busy City, a pattern I created as a licensed designer for Empty Bobbin Sewing Studio, does just that. It is inspired by the quilt I designed and made for my construction crazy four year old.  It includes so many of the things little people notice all around them in the busy city.

The pattern shows you how to create paper pieced vehicles, buildings, trees, and more arranged in various ways to create unique, customized quilts and pillows.  It includes 35 block patterns which are the same size, so they can be used interchangeably, allowing you to personalize every project in the book.  The pattern includes instructions for a twin sized quilt, a baby quilt, and two pillows. (Thanks to Shea for letting me use her photos.)

Each project is designed to be customizable in a number of ways.  Not only can they be made with just the blocks you choose, the blocks are grouped by level of difficulty.  Quilters who are less experienced with paper piecing, have no fear!  Detailed paper piecing instructions are included, and you can begin with the simplest blocks or choose to use only those blocks in your project.  Those more comfortable with paper piecing can tackle the more detailed blocks, although all the blocks are suitable for intermediate quilters.  The baby quilt and pillows are quick projects that use just a block or a few blocks, and of course the heirloom twin quilt uses 35 blocks.   All the block patterns are included on a CD, so you can print out just the ones you want to use in two size options.  There is no need to photo copy or trace patterns.  Yay!

The projects are so easy to tailor to your child’s specific interests.  If your little one is into farming, you can use the tractor, pickup truck, and barn blocks.  The house becomes a farm house and the trees an orchard.  If he is interested in race cars, you can make a pack of cars in different colors and include the tow truck and ambulance on the sidelines.  You can make a charming little neighborhood of houses and trees with a school bus.  The possibilities are as numerous as the children for whom you sew, both boys and girls!  I made this 12 inch pillow cover for my new niece.

Each block pattern is paper pieced, with additional templates to create wheels and treads which are appliquéd onto the completed block.  By using black fabric with white polka dots, you can mimic the look of tires while using a single piece of fabric for each wheel.  I used fusible web and machine appliqué, although you can pick the appliqué method of your choice.

I'm so excited to partner with Empty Bobbin Sewing Studio to publish this pattern.   It is especially fitting because Shea was the one who first encouraged me to create a pattern for this quilt.  My response was, "No way."  Ha!  But that seed of an idea stayed with me, and once I had the pattern writing experience and the appropriate software, this pattern grew. Here is a list of places you can purchase Empty Bobbin Sewing Studio patterns.  Busy City is shipping to stores now and is already available at Pink Chalk, Superbuzzy, I Don't Do Dishes on etsy, Hyggeligt in Canada, and locally at the Bernina store on Metcalf and Sarah's Fabrics in Lawrence, KS.

Update: Busy City is now available for purchase as a digital download from Empty Bobbin. Download the pdf here.

As always, I would absolutely love to see what you make with my pattern.  You can email me or upload a picture directly to the flickr group.

Those of you who are still reading definitely deserve a shot at a free pattern.  Leave a comment, and I will choose a winner, at random, Saturday morning.  Does someone come to mind when you look at this pattern?  What blocks do you think he or she would like best?  For a second chance to win, hop over to Shea's blog where she is also offering a giveaway.  Giveaway now closed.

Voile Color Wheel Quilt

I am very excited to become an aunt for the second time soon.  My niece should arrive next month.  An added bonus: I get to sew for a girl!  My brother requested I keep the pink to a minimum, so I decided to create a color wheel.  It's not too pink, right?

I used my 22.5 degree wedge ruler and a self drafted template to piece the curves in quarters.  There are just sixteen wedges in this 40 x 40 quilt, as opposed to the 52 in the gorgeous color wheel quilt from, Last Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts, making this a pretty quick baby quilt.

The fabrics are all voile by Anna Maria Horner.  I got a quick start on the project with a fat eighth rainbow bundle of voile from Westwood Acres. Since there is no white voile, to my knowledge, I searched for a solid of a similar weight.  I'm so pleased I found Art Gallery Pure Elements in Snow at my friend Elizabeth's new Etsy shop, Cucire.  This solid has a smooth, silky hand, making it a nice match for the voile.

I kept the quilting light, and backed and bound it with more voile.  This quilt is so soft and lightweight - perfect for a summer baby.

 

One Final Finish for 2012

My last finished quilt for 2012 is actually something I started back in the summer of 2011.  I got all excited to make a quarter log cabin quilt after seeing the rug in this photo.  I sliced up all the solids into four and half inch squares and one and half inch wide strips and started making the blocks, only to find them overwhelming when I put them side by side.  Somehow the rug was perfect, but the quilt was too busy.  All the colors together were too loud for my taste, so I tried limiting the color palette.  I ended up with these six inch, finished, blocks.  

I tried laying them out together, and I still didn't like them.  Disappointed, they went into the closet for a year and half.  Do you have UFOs (unfinished objects) like that?  Well, now that I have a design wall I decided to pull out this sad stack of blocks and see if I could arrange them in a way I liked. Some reconfiguring and white sashing made them more pleasing to my eye, and I ended up with a small baby quilt at 35 x 35.

 The straight line quilting design I chose reinforces the quarter log cabin design in each of the four quadrants.

The backing adds a little whimsy to a quilt that might otherwise be a bit too serious for a baby.  Hopefully this gender neutral quilt will suit some modern nursery perfectly.  It can be found in my shop.

Handmade Christmas Begins

I'm getting a late start this year, admittedly, but I couldn't let the start of the advent season go by without making at least a few gifts.  I used it as an excuse to make some frame purses after falling hard for so many by Kelly.  While I didn't get to take her class at Sewing Summit, I did follow the links she graciously posted on her blog to the tutorial and etsy source for materials.  If you're at all curious, you should try them out.  They are quick and easy to customize.  I made one with the basic template which has a flare at the base.

I tried one with rounded corners.

I made one with pleated strips of Liberty.

I made another using quilt-as-you-go, but only snapped a few Instagram shots before gifting it. That was my favorite method, and it was fun to use so many treasured scraps.
I found a little time to make the Idea Pouch by Michelle Patterns with some Washi fabric I have been saving.  This project backfired though, since I like it so much I need to keep it.

I have a few more handmade Christmas gift ideas up my sleeve.  Let's see if I can get them done in time.