Monday, Monday

Some pictures of the baby quilt I finished for a friend back in April.  This pattern is a Rita Hodge tutorial that I fell in love with.  I added a border.  I see many more of these in my future.  This quilt made me so smitten with small reproduction and vintage prints, and I have a nice stash of those building for future projects.  Throwing the modern hexies on the binding (this is an older Angela Walters Art Gallery Legacy print) ended up being a really nice and gentle contrast with the other fabric choices.  Also…super old Jo Ann print…the red and white pinwheel candies motif on an orange background?  Love it.  Good luck ever finding that again!

And of course, one of my helpers.  PS, I <3 this machine.  Really.  And my new non stankin Fiskars cutting mat.  I know everyone loves Olfa but WOOF!  I can't deal with the off gassing chemicals.

slacker!!

Apparently I am terrible at blogging!  That's okay, I tend to get distracted and like to nibble away at a million projects at once.  A lot has been happening around here but let us start off appropriately.

You will see more of these as there are some fine baristas in my area that I really must visit…at least thrice weekly.

I have some finishes to share, and in the hustle and bustle didn't really get the best full size pics but hopefully you will get the idea.  This one is my first queen size quilt for my oldest friend, Jesse.  Many weeks of "Jesse's Quilt" sung to the tune of "Jesse's Girl" have been heard in my house.

fabby selection

pretty cut strips

george helping with the layout

pretty trimmed stack o blocks

oooh so pretty, let's see that again

finished quilt top

getting my FMQ on

werkin that quilty sammich

some blocks up close

dem berries

a bundle of cuddly watermelon

This is an Elizabeth Hartman pattern from her Practical Guide to Patchwork, one of the first books I got to assist me on my quilty odyssey.  I started with a smattering of bright JoAnn batik fat quarters, a gorgeous cream batik, and a vibrant floral on white.  I mixed in some pale batiks from other projects and also some prints from Spring House, Reminisce and Happy Go Lucky.  Somewhere along the way I decided to attempt an ombre with the sashing, which may not show well in the pictures, but I really liked how it worked out.  Binding is a Tula Pink print and after the quilt top was finished I asked Jesse: "Fancy some strawberries?" because who doesn't freakin love Briar Rose?  I mean, come on now.

I always think of Hank Azaria's character in The Birdcage, Agador, who says "you can't handle my Guatamalaness" which sounds like "you can't handle my watermelon-ness" and I have said that many times about this quilt.  It doesn't exactly match Jesse's bedspread although it speaks to it.  I was in the mood for something bright, and she really likes it anyway.

Pretty watermelony, no?

I will be bombing the blog in the coming days to catch it up on what's happening.