Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas!  The day we celebrate God's greatest gift to us.  The much smaller gifts at our house have all been unwrapped and I think everyone is well pleased.  The busy part of December is past and now I can relax and enjoy my family and get back to my regular sewing projects.

We spent a couple days at my parents where I noticed this card made by my aunt. Very pretty stitching!

 Most of my Christmas sewing was to make doll dresses for each of my daughters. They love these dolls.  It was very difficult to keep it a secret so their surprised delight was very rewarding.  It was fun choosing trims and fabrics for something different.

 I also made some potholders for DH's mom.  These had to be finished quickly so I tried something new - I sewed the binding onto the back and topstitched it down on the front with the machine.  The results were ok.  I was very pleased that it went so fast as I was crunched for time.

I was spoiled with roses for my birthday and  2 weeks later the white ones are still beautiful.  Outside there are piles of snow everywhere so it is lovely to have these inside.

Happy Stitching!

circle quilt update

I thought I'd post an update on my Circle Quilt blocks.  My friend and I have been getting together to work on them. Here are my first 4 blocks.  

 We worked on the double wedding ring block last night.  It was definitely out of my comfort zone.

My friend has been so patient with me. She puts up with much whining and complaining about the difficulty.  I could NOT be making these blocks without her!

 Here are both of our blocks.  Hers looks so calm and organized. Mine looks a bit wild and disorganized.  This could be a reflection of our personalities...  :0)

And a photo of the other blocks we have worked on. These will be 2 very different quilts when they are done.  It is good to be learning some new piecing skills and fun to be working on such a challenging project with a friend.

Happy Quilting!!

a gift made

I took the last stitch in the binding of this little gift quilt last night. I still need to get it in the mail but I think it can still be called an early Dec gift.

 What a fun little project this was. The pattern is called A Delightful Pairing by Kim Diehl in the Dec issue of AP&Q.  I haven't got the next issue yet so I think I got it made in under a month -must be a record for me :0)

 It warmed up to -16 degrees Celsius today ( in Fahrenheit that's 3 degrees) and the sun came out so I thought I would pop outside for a couple quick pictures.  They were quick!

I love the texture of hand applique once its been quilted around by hand. I'm so glad the sun came out today.  We've had blizzard conditions the last couple days.  Somehow the cold is more tolerable when the sun is shining.
Now I just need to get the rest of my Christmas sewing done...  :0)

Happy Quilting!

small star blocks

I always find it difficult to resist the Temecula Quilt Co sew alongs.  I did not plan to sew along with their Countdown to Christmas but after resisting for weeks these cute little stars got me.  

 

I knew they finished at 2 inches but I didn't really grasp how small they would be.

It was when Sheryl posted the center block that I caved.  Her block looked so pretty posed on her wooden tray.   She takes such great pictures and uses props so creatively.



So I made the center block.  I don't think I will commit to making the whole quilt but I am looking forward to sewing a few more of these cute little stars.  I was wanting another little quilt to use for Christmas decorating anyway...  :0)

Happy Quilting!

panel #8

I am always very excited to add another completed panel to my growing Susan McCord vine quilt. I finished panel #8 of 13 yesterday and today I added it to the others.  

My son walked by and said "Oh, you finished it!"  I had to correct him but I'm encouraged that it is far enough along to look finished to someone :0)

 I couldn't think of any creative new ways to photograph it.  I will have to work on that because it will soon be too big for any of my available floor spaces.

I will be prepping and starting panel #9 right away so I have lots of portable sewing for Christmas time.  I do think about embroidering on my Bird of Paradise blocks but so far no floss has made contact with fabric...

Happy Quilting!

next comes quilting

I finished the applique for this little table mat.  I had trouble putting it down once I got started.  I really should make small projects more often.  

 

The pattern is in the current AP&Q magazine - a Kim Diehl pattern.   I plan to machine quilt the pieced border and outline the applique by hand.  I think I can still finish this as a early Dec gift :0)

Happy Quilting!

quilting progress

I thought I would share with you the progress on my handquilting project.  I have 5 blocks quilted and 5 sashing sections as well.  There are 25 blocks in the quilt as well as a wide border so I'll be at this for awhile yet :0)  

 

 Then there's this new project I started yesterday.  This one I can blame entirely on a friend!  We were browsing the LQS a few weeks ago and she picked up this pattern and suggested we should make it together. 

 I've been wanting to make a quilt with round blocks for a long time but felt unsure of whether my sewing skills were up to it.  My friend is unafraid of the challenge these blocks present so together we will work on them.

 As much as I liked the quilt on the pattern - I would need an entirely new stash to make anything like  it so I dug out all my Minick and Simpson fabrics and will use those instead. 

 You can see how different her quilt will be.  We made these together last night.  I picked the easiest block to start :0)

DH and I had a weekend trip to LA planned for this past weekend.  As it turned out Friday was not a good day to fly into LAX.  With a detour to San Diego and a bus ride up to LA we made it just in time for the basketball game that evening for which the trip was planned.  I could not believe the weather.  It was like a beautiful summer day. We saw these beautiful roses as we cycled by the beach.  At home it snowed- nearly a foot.

It was good to enjoy the warmth before heading home to boots and winter coats.

Happy Quilting!!