Baby Barrage, Part II: Baby Bloom

This is one of the most special quilts I have ever made. When I first saw the pattern, I knew I would make it for my niece one day. Problem was, at that point, I didn't have a niece. However, now I do! She was born a couple of weeks ago, and she is the cutest and sweetest baby ever. Of course. :)

The quilt pattern is "Bloom" by V & Co. The original quilt is larger, and has a white background. I didn't think so much white was a good idea for a baby quilt, so I used some Robert Kaufman Quilters Linen print in Silver or Platinum (can't remember which I ultimately chose!) I have a few notes on the pattern at the end of this post, because as written, it didn't work well for me.

(Sorry for the indoor pics. The weekend we visited her, there were 45 mph wind gusts every day. An outside photo shoot wasn't going to work well!)

I quilted the background (I did not quilt over the flowers) with a paisley design. I quilted the whole thing in about 3.5 to 4 hours, and my wrists were NOT happy with me about that decision the next day! But it looks so great, if I do say so myself... so it was worth it. :)

The backing is from Jenean Morrison's True Colors. It is such a neat, busy print! If you're new to FMQ, it's just the type of backing that will hide a multitude of sins, because you can barely see the quilting at all on the back of the quilt.

My niece, A, is not a huge fan of the quilt yet. But hopefully that will change. :)

Here's another picture of her, because she's cute. :) 

"Baby Bloom"
Pattern: "Bloom" by V & Co.
Fabric: "Simply Color" junior jelly roll, Robert Kaufman Quilters Linen print in Silver/Platinum
Backing: Diamonds in pink from True Colors
Quilting: FMQ paisley by me on my domestic machine
Finished size: 42" x 56"

A few notes on making the beautiful Bloom pattern:

Unfortunately, the method for turning petals outlined in the Bloom pattern did not work for me! Like, at all. I tried some practice petals, and the small ones in particular did not work out. The pattern calls for using a very, very thin fusible web, stitching it to the petal shape, then cutting a slit in it and turning the petal inside out. This... was a disaster! The fusible web (and I made sure to buy the one listed in the pattern) was too fragile to allow fabric to be pushed through it, and it invariably ended up shredding all the way to the edge, resulting in a sloppy, unevenly shaped petal.

What I ended up doing was tracing the petal template onto heat-proof template plastic, and then cutting out the petals with a 1/4" seam allowance. Then I "painted" starch onto the edges and used a mini iron to fold them over. After they cooled, I took the template out. As you can imagine, this was fairly time consuming. However, I did end up with petals that looked very nice and had smooth edges. I used Roxann's glue to lightly glue the petals in place before I stitched around them.

Linking up with Finish It Up Friday and Fabric Tuesday!

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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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WIP Wednesday: Dirty Bubblegum, Drunken Lucille, and a crazy little thing called Love

Hey there! I hope the three remaining readers I have are enjoying life and having a good time sewing and whatnot. I haven't been around much this summer, but such is summer sometimes. It's been good! I've had adventures in Michigan, Kansas City, and Nebraska, and I've enjoyed them all. Follow me on Instagram if you'd like to get a taste of them! (@  c m b husker --with no spaces)

I've actually been stitching up a storm this week. I hate when people have weddings and they just spring them upon you at the last minute. Wait, what's that you say? Weddings often have months and months of previous warning? I'm actually just a procrastinator, so it seems like they are sprung upon me?

I guess that's true. :)

I'm headed to yet another wedding where I will be a bridesmaid next week on the lovely island of Nantucket (fancy, schmancy!) I decided I should start the quilt a few days ago. Inspired by Kelly of Jeliquilts' LOVE quilt, I thought that was just the thing for this particular wedding.

It looks black in the photo, but it's actually navy and Nantucket red--the wedding colors.

I really like the fabrics I chose for this, even though I wasn't pumped about the Nantucket red at first--it's grown on me. My favorite fabric is the "Les Amis" on the left side of the "e". I also really like the salmon-colored camera print--the groom is a photographer, so you can imagine how thrilled I was to stumble upon that one!

The letters aren't paper-pieced, and this top goes together SO quickly (if you don't make three mistakes cutting the large pieces because you are terrible at math, like I did). It's a Tula Pink pattern, available here.

I also started cutting (optimistically) on a quilt I'm calling the "Drunken Lucille." Its real name is "Drunk Zebra," but the back is going to be done in a fabric line called "Spa" and if you're an Arrested Development, hopefully you can figure out how I combined those two. :) The pattern for that is available here. While the design of the quilt is stunning, I'm disappointed in the quality of the pattern. All four pattern pieces are shoved onto one piece of paper, and when it's printed, it cuts off the side of one of the pieces! Since lines are just a little bit important in paper piecing, it's disappointing to have to redraw 56 pattern pieces, especially when I paid $8 to NOT have to do that! Not sure why the designer didn't just use an extra piece of paper and make sure that the pieces had adequate room to breathe. Oh well. The world is an imperfect place.

And I finally finished trimming all of my Dirty Bubblegum squares. Here's the layout:

Not sure when I'm going to get this one done. The baby it is intended for is already a month old! Good thing she lives in Arizona, so she shouldn't be freezing quite yet. ;)

On a serious note, it's hard to believe that 9/11 happened twelve years ago today. It seems so long ago, and looking at the world today, it's had such far-reaching and negative repercussions on such a large portion of the world. It is amazing what an impact a few evil people can have. But I also remember the incredible unity and caring that happened in the days afterwards. All we can do is pray that we will someday see peace, for the wisdom of leaders, and that we will do good where we are able.

Linking up with WIP Wednesday!


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WIP: Back in the Saddle

After a month of sleeping at my own apartment for a grand total of one night, I finally returned this past Saturday, and am enjoying having a place to myself again (though probably not as much as my cat is enjoying having an other-cat-free dwelling!) A couple weeks visiting the boyfriend and a couple weeks at my mother's house trying to help her move, and here I am, almost in August, feeling like I've done nothing this summer! But such is the nature of summers.

My mom's move was an immense project--she and my dad bought that house in 1979, so I'm one of the few people I know who didn't move at least once during their growing-up years. My great-grandfather built the house in 1921, so even though it is almost 100 years old, it has had only two owners! So it's been an emotional move--not to mention a difficult one in the physical sense, since houses tend to accumulate a lot of things in 34 years. :) It is really strange to see the house emptied out. Luckily, she is only moving one block away--to the house my grandparents built. I guess we are a family that prizes familiarity!

Last night I finally returned to the sewing machine for a bit. I've got a baby quilt I need to send to Arizona, since the baby was born, um, last week. (It's not like there's no warning on these baby things, yet I never seem to get them done in time...)

My first instinct was to name this quilt "Dirty Bubblegum" but I might have to rethink that one.

This is my first time using triangle paper. I think I like it, though I hate tearing off paper. Overall though, I do think it streamlines the process. I'll evaluate fully once I get them all done.

I've also started cutting for a quilt that is going to be the best, most amazing quilt ever. I'm really excited!

Linking up with WIP Wednesday.


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A Little of This, A Little of That

So, I really haven't blogged much this month! Or sewn, really. I spent some time after New Year's with my family and friends in Nebraska, and had a great time. Then I drove to Michigan to spend some time with the boyfriend. We had a great time together too!

Fancy dinner (Christmas tradition) and then the symphony! We're so posh.

Now, I'm finally back in New York, and ready for a new semester to begin (well... ready-ish). Thankfully, I have a Tuesday-Thursday class this semester, so I get one more day (today) to prepare! I'm only a TA this semester, instead of an instructor like I was last semester, so that means a good deal less preparation on my end, which is great, since the class I'm TAing is totally out of my area and I know nothing about it. :)

Yesterday afternoon, after unpacking my car (which, after driving halfway across the country and living out of it for a month, looked like a hoarder car) and getting things in order, I made a couple of Valentine's projects I'd pinned on Pinterest. I'm so happy with how they came out!

This argyle heart wreath is my favorite. The tutorial can be found here. I used a 12" wreath form, and 14 hearts that were about 2" x 2". This is a very easy project, though the tediousness of wrapping yarn around a wreath form should not be underestimated. Do it while watching a movie or a few TV shows. I plowed through four episodes of Arrested Development just in the wrapping stage.

Worth the carpal tunnel.

But isn't it SO cute?

I also made the Valentine canvas that Quilt Story wrote about last week. Very quick, easy project! The hardest part was keeping cat hair out of the Mod Podge (in retrospect, doing this on my living room floor was probably not my finest thought.) I made the little one to brighten up my dreary basement office, because we're in the middle of the gray six-month stretch of winter here.

Speaking of the six-month winter, I'm blaming that for the horrid lighting in these. I couldn't get good lighting no matter where I put them in my apartment. Sorry!

Christmas Placemats

This is something I never blogged about! I wanted to make placemats for my grandma out of this fabric ever since I saw it last summer. She's not actually Swedish, but she married a Swede and did so wholeheartedly, and now can out-Swede many a Swede. Of course, I waited until Christmas to do it, and the problems I had with them meant that it was January before I finally finished them for her.

I hate them. They caused me so much trouble! And why? They're placemats, possibly the easiest sewing project on the planet. I initially wanted to bind them, but that was just a horrific disaster for whatever reason. Seriously, I've never had problems binding things, but it just was NOT happening on these. So I topstitched around the edge for the rest of them.

What fun fabric though, huh?

Sigh. I never want to look at them again. But since they're my grandma's, I'll probably have to. :)

Cake Carrier Fail

My birthday is at the tail end of December. I made a cake to take to a New Year's party to celebrate. My mom had stored some leftover Christmas goodies in the oven in order to save counter space and protect them from the dog. She had warned me to make sure I took them out of the oven before I pre-heated it. I said "sure thing" and promptly forgot. And then this happened.

The cake inside was miraculously ok and unharmed. But I did have to buy a new cake carrier for my mom. :) At least she was a good sport, and we got a good laugh out of it!

Linking up this miscellany to Plum and June's Monday link up, which is being hosted by the very sweet, kind and extremely talented Heidi this week. Here's to more actual sewing in the near future! Pin It

MY Baby Quilt!

A crazily busy month has meant that I've done very little sewing, and I'm currently back in Nebraska to visit my grandparents and mom, and particularly my grandma who isn't doing so well. I am really grateful to have made it back to see her for possibly the last time, even though it is difficult to see her like this.

But while I'm back at my mother's, I spied my very first quilt at the bottom of the bed and decided it deserved a little post of its own!

I had a few more pics, but for some reason, Blogger keeps uploading them with the additions of large neon stripes. This one miraculously emerged unscathed on the fourth try.

My aunt made this for me when I was born, and I slept under it for pretty much every childhood nap that I can remember. The back is bright pink flannel, and I always loved that it was "fuzzy." The fabrics are very 1980s (which makes sense, I suppose!), but the pattern is timeless and I have always loved it. It is so well loved and well washed that it feels like butter (in a soft way, not a greasy way!) I never once noticed (before becoming a quilter) that some of the seams don't match quite right and that there really is very minimal quilting (she outlined a few of the "around the worlds.") There's a good lesson in there--our recipients really don't mind or even notice the imperfections, they just love that they had a quilt made for them. I think that's true even if the recipient isn't a child. It's a good reminder to just enjoy the process of making and the act of giving (to others or to yourself!) and to realize how immaterial the small imperfections are.

Hope you are all having a lovely week! I'm hoping to maybe finish up my yellow and gray quilt in time to enter it into the Bloggers Quilt Festival, but class and Hurricane Sandy may conspire against me! Then again, if I can get it quilted and the binding on, there are worse ways to ride out a hurricane power outage than by finishing the hand binding of a quilt. :) Outdoor photographs may be out of the question though!

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