Quickie Quilt

Found out Wednesday night last week I had been invited to a housewarming. On Saturday night. Yikes. I had to inventory my panel stash (long story for a different day) to find if anything was suitable for a boy toddler.

Baby animals fit the bill, but it took me hours to inventory the panels. Again, long story, but not today. I didn't get to actually start working on the baby quilt for the new neighbors until Friday night.

Made the panel bigger, then created a backing and layered the sandwich before bedtime Friday. I opted for straight-line quilting on Saturday morning due to the time constraints.

Finished the quilt binding (which had to be pieced from every brown solid scrap in my stash) five minutes before the housewarming was scheduled to begin. It was my first social event in years, other than church on Sundays. The quilt was a hit, and the toddler spent about an hour telling me what sound each animal made. Impressive! He could even make an elephant noise!

Linking up with Alycia Quilts.

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On Time

I'm still not sure how I feel about using AI to design fabric, but I do like how this quilt turned out.

My Spoonflower fabric arrived Wednesday. I finished the quilt Saturday. She was born Sunday.

I got to present the quilt Tuesday.

I got this one done on time because I used AI to design the fabric. I knew it was the only way I could finish a brand new quilt that fit the pink bow theme quickly.

It feels good to be timely again. I still miss Lizard more than words can say. But that's because I love intensely. Without love, there would be no grief.

Linking up with Alycia Quilts.

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Final Seams

The pillow to go with Lizard's final quilt took only two or three hours to finish, but it took me a lot longer than that to just sit down and do the project. The donors have been so patient, for which I am so appreciative.

I finally got the squares lined up in a layout I thought Lizard might have liked. and then sewed them. I was then utterly amazed at the size difference before and after stitching. I had thought this was going to be a giant pillow! I used scrap leftovers to stuff it, so it has a heavy feel. Kind of cool, in my opinion. But it does make it take longer to dry after washing. Ugh!

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Butterfly Bows

My neighbors informed me last week their June 20th baby is being induced next week. I had planned to make a pink baby quilt with bow-inspired blocks to match the theme of their new baby's room. Given recent unexpected circumstances, I wasn't sure I could get a pieced quilt together on time. I was more than three months late with a quilt for their first baby last year. I didn't want to be late again. I did something I don't do a whole lot because I like for my fabric designs to be my designs. I used AI to create 42 butterfly bows, some with very heavy editing because AI still isn't as good as the real thing. I came up with a cheater panel I am pretty pleased with, given all that's been going on.

I also made some coloring book pages in AI with more butterfly bows, and these required heavy editing, too. Nevertheless, I think this will make an appropriate quilt back. The Spoonflower fabric likely won't be here until after the new baby arrives, but quilting should take only a day or two. And, it will be a one-of-a-kind gift. Maybe one day I can turn some of my real butterfly photographs into butterfly bows with my own artistic talents and Photoshop. Until then, I think this will do.

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Lizard's Final Quilt

Three weeks ago, I wasn't sure I could ever touch my sewing machine again. I'd been trying to teach Lizard to quilt again as art therapy.

He picked out the guacamole fabric, and he did the design. I cut the batting and the solids, but he put all the charm square layers together. Meticulously.

I laid the unfinished project out on the floor to try to finish it a couple of days after Lizard's Celebration of Life. All I could do was look at it and cry for about three days.

He was able to do only the X's. He couldn't do the seams. We got only halfway through the project before he had to go into the hospital. He had planned to let me try to sell the finished quilt for him.

I finally finished it last week after two full days of working on it. I found out I can use my sewing machine again. It was painful at first, but it got easier with each block. I think Lizard would have been proud of me for sticking with it until I finished.

I posted on social media that I was thinking of selling the rag quilt in my Etsy shop with all proceeds going to The HealthWell Foundation, which made it possible for Lizard to take an extremely expensive medication for nearly two years. The Foundation helps many people afford life-saving medications. I think Lizard would have wanted that.

Within four hours of posting, I received a text from a charitable fan who'd made a generous donation to the Foundation and who asked if they could have the quilt. I will be delivering it in person this weekend. I think Lizard would be dancing with joy.

Linking up with Alycia Quilts.

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A Flimsy

I spent St. Patrick's Day mostly in the garden, where there isn't a ton of green yet, but in the evening, I was able to audition all my greens (Who knew I had 18 different verdant hues in my stash?!?) to extend my Spoonflower sunflower cheater panel just a bit.

I also was able to find Lizard's stash in the basement. I thought I remembered some sunflower fabric he'd asked me to buy for him because he wanted to make a sunflower quilt years ago. I think that was before the pandemic and before Parkinson's took such a heavy toll on him. I might be able to incorporate some of the sunflower fabric on the quilt back. I have some ideas that involve more leftovers, but the sunflower theme might need a bit of a boost.

While digging around looking for Lizard's stash, I also found a charm square rag quilt project he'd started before he was diagnosed. I'm going to try to get him back into the project now. I don't know if he will be able to do it, but maybe with a little help, art therapy can be back in full swing!

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Sigh of Relief

The plate cozy came out PERFECT! The casserole cozy could have been better, but the recipient loved it. And both are done. Finally!

So now I can actually finish other projects without guilt. Such as my cosmos fleece...

And a fleece scarf!

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Scrappy

One of my closest friends asked me (nearly a year ago now...) if I could make a bowl cozy and a casserole cozy for her. She asked if I could make them microwavable. She said I have to let her pay for them. (I normally would never charge her for anything I make.) And she asked me to use only what I have. She asked for browns. Good thing I have browns in my scraps!

Good thing I have all-cotton batting. Good thing I have brown cotton thread. Polyester blends would not be safe in the microwave.

I knew I had leftovers from Lizard's Stonehenge quilts, and I knew I'd used some in my nephew Matthew's quilt. But I had not looked in any of my scrap boxes for... probably years. Many years.

When I finally dug out the Stonehenge scraps last weekend, I realized I had enough to do some fancy piecing. I decided, however, to use up the smallest pieces and make both cozies totally reversible and completely different. My friend had bought a couple of bowl cozies at a farmer's market, and I had no idea what they looked like, other than they were done in browns. I thought scrappy would best blend with what she already has.

I am not at all disappointed with the four pieces of fabric I made. They could almost be a quilt!

I stay-stitched around all the edges, then preshrunk both the blocks and the all-cotton batting. I don't want the cozies to shrink and not fit their bowl and casserole dish once they've been used. Or, well, loved a lot.

Let the quilting begin!

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In the Pink

It's finally done!!! And the baby isn't six months old yet! I'm getting (slowly) back on track!

This quilt was so fun, start to finish. I loved shooting flowers in my garden, sometimes on the ground on my belly. (Not knowing at the time I had rattlesnakes sharing my living quarters!!!) I loved composing the Spoonflower cheater panel. I loved piecing the back with the only pink charm square pack I had in my stash. I loved piecing the borders with leftovers in my stash. And oh, how I loved quilting this one!

I think I've already reported that I had to take the longarm into the shop last fall because I hadn't used it in more than four years, possibly longer than that. I wanted to make sure everything worked right. I'd had trouble with tension and timing the last time I used it. I picked it up from the shop in October, and I almost felt as if it needed another tune-up before I used it this month because it sat so long again.

But everything works fine. My first free-motion quilt in years just a week or so ago got me back into the groove, and my goal for this quilt was fewer mistakes (which I proudly achieved!!!) and more fluidity. I feel like I'm getting the hang of driving Ringo again! This quilt made me LOVE quilting again!

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