Finish One, Finish Two!

I have not one, but TWO finishes this week! (Actually, I have three, but the third will get its own post next week--it is that awesome.) Both were overdue projects that I finally finished.

Dirty Bubblegum

This is a terrible name for a baby quilt, but once it popped into my head, I couldn't think of it any other way, so "Dirty Bubblegum" it is. I made this for a friend of mine who had a baby this summer, and who came back to visit a couple weeks ago, forcing me to finally finish it!

This might be my least favorite quilt I've made. I love the herringbone design (mine was inspired by Erica at Crafty Blossom) but I didn't end up digging the pink and gray. I based the color choice on the nursery of the recipient, but I just didn't love it. I think it would look nice with some white in it, but that just didn't work with this design.

Not sure why this looks so neon--it isn't!

I was happy with my idea to add the monogram (based on Amy Smart's tutorial). The nice thing about the quilt being late is that I knew the baby's name and could actually do this. :) I think it adds a bit more interest to the quilt, as well as personalization. My satin stitching could use improvement, but so it goes.

The backing is a print from Aneela Hoey's "Posy" line. I've seen the quilt pop up in numerous facebook pictures of the recipient, so I think it was well-loved, even if it wasn't my most favorite quilt of all time! And that's what ultimately matters.

Covet my apartment carpet, I know.

Joy to the Squares

I started this quilt for my brother and sister-in-law last Christmas. Then I didn't get it done. So I tried again this year, with success. They're as into Christmas as anyone I've ever met, so I wanted to get it done well in advance of Christmas so that they could enjoy it for several months. :)

I bought a layer cake of Kate Spain's "Joy" line last  year, and cut it into charm squares. This is half of the layer cake (I'll get around to making my own Christmas quilt out of the rest... someday.) The border fabric is some I found from Joann's that has blue glitter on it. I'm not sure how well it will hold up, but for a seasonal quilt, I thought it would be fine. Blue glitter sparkles fit my sister-in-law to a T, so I knew it was the perfect choice! I also love the red and aqua swirl fabric on the back--I believe it's Laurie Wisbrun's "Perfectly Perched."

I photographed this quilt on two different occasions, and got bad pics each time. Sorry!

Though it's a very simple design, I tried a few new things on this quilt. I did a dogwood quilting design in the squares, and I have to say, I loved it! Many of them are pretty wonky, but the overall effect is so cool. I also decided to go with rounded corners to spice up the squareness a bit, and really love how it looks! Consequently, this was also my first bias binding--it made doing the corners a dream! I'll definitely keep this in mind again.

My one frustration with this quilt came in the border--I used a variegated blue thread I got at my LQS, a 50 wt cotton, I believe. I just did simple loops (meant to evoke snow), but I had SO MUCH thread breakage! It was really frustrating. I tried all the usual fixes, to no avail. I think my machine just must prefer Aurifil for FMQ.

Linking up with Finish it Up Friday!

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Christmastime is here...

Well, maybe not quite yet. But I did whip up this pillow this week for a silent auction/homebrew tasting/football watching/s'more eating fundraiser at my church this weekend. Sounds like quite the event. :)

I used the very easy tutorial from From the Blue Chair to make the pillow. It's 20"x 20" and has an envelope closure. My binding was leftover from a quilt I haven't shown on my blog yet, and the backing is from Maude Asbury's "Tinsel" line--I got a couple yards for a steal somewhere last year, and I love its retro vibe. I did notice that Joann's is carrying a really similar knock-off this year. They seem to do that a lot.

Apologies for the terrible phone pics again. I finally bought a new camera card, so my photography may marginally improve soon. :) Pin It

Ronquilt Quilting

Ronquilt is all quilted and ready for his binding! I'm pretty excited. :)

The paisley quilting was a new one for me. I really, really, really like it, although it was a bit tricky given that I had to fill some odd square spaces. Ron's head is done in simple meandering, which worked well for filling odd spaces and matching thread colors. Pin It

A Cute and Quick Clutch

I whipped this up last night, ostensibly for part of my Halloween costume tonight (you can tell you're getting old when your Halloween parties are no longer on Halloween night, but instead on the closest weekend night), but I hoped it would be cute enough for future use, and it is!

The nails are for Halloween too, I don't usually go so overtly Cruella. :)

I used this tutorial and it was really quick and easy (took me about two hours, including cutting the pieces--but I'm not the fastest sewer in the land.) I was a little nervous about the zipper, since I only remember putting in zippers for garments in 4-H, and I recall them being hellacious experiences, but apparently, they're not too difficult in a clutch.

I used a teal linen from Joann's, and the lining was some "Notting Hill" by Joel Dewberry that I had on hand.

Linking up with Finish it up Friday!

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