Quilt on frame...

#1 Put backing & top on bars.  Connect backing to leader.

#2 Place batting between the two while the top is still rolled up.

#3 Put top in place making a sandwich and pin.

 

#4 Quilt all 3 layers together.  The quilted part is rolled up to the right.

Quilt on frame.  It took me 1.5 hours to set it all up.  I have been quilting on it another 2 hours and still have at least an hour left to go in quilting.  I rarely enjoy this step.  It is an area that causes stress on me.  My needles break, my thread breaks, stitches get skipped, ect.  I want so much for my quilting to look good and that is hard to do if my machine is giving me problems.  Today was no exception.  I am sure if I understood tension, differences in needles and threads more than I do, things would go better.  I also threw in more complications by using nylon thread over the cotton I always use.  It just looked like cool thread.  Hopefully my issues will not be too noticeable to many and the recipient will be pleased.  Once this is complete, I get to make the binding, machine sew it on and then hand stitch it.  That is my favorite part.

Thanks to my husband for watching the kids all day while I did last minute shopping for this and then worked on the quilting.  Impossible to do while watching a 1 yr. old.

Quilt Top

Here is my finished quilt top.  It stressed me out some again today but hopefully it turns up as good as it looks now.  I will be putting it on the quilt frame tomorrow and hopefully quilting it some as well.  I need to first run to the store and pick out a thread color I want for the quilting.  This will be the thread that everyone sees.  Any suggestions on a color?  Peter suggested yellow.  I was thinking maybe blue.  If I pick blue, the stitching won't be so noticeable in the darks such as the blue boarder.  If I pick yellow, it will be very noticeable on the darks.  Hummm....

Colorful and car themed with some yellow cars in the mix.  Just what Grandma-to-be ordered.

Sew... Frustrating

So, I have been working on the cars quilt.  I sewed all the strips together over the last couple of nights.  Now since this was more like a scrappy type quilt, I did not plan out the lengths of all the stripes.  Last night was the time to cut the excess off to make the quilt a solid rectangle.  Easy, right?  I was pulling my hair out last night and snippy at everyone.  I actually told my son last night, "Do you see Mommy is upset?  I'm not upset with you but that can change very quickly.  Please make good choices."  My problem was, I could not get my line to cut the fabric straight and once you cut, it's over.  You have cut the fabric and no turning back.  I measured one side of the quilt 72 inches.  Then I measured the other side 72 inches.  And yet, it was clear that they were a good 2 inches or so off of each other.  We could not figure it out.  Fabric stretches and gets wonky as a friend use to tell me.  The only solution to get it done right was to seam rip ALL the stripes apart, cut them each to 72 inches and then repin and sew.  That was going to set me back days!  Finally, my math man for a hubby suggested I measure the diagonals.  If it is really rectangular (or the goal) the diagonals should be the same.  He did the math.  I assume he used a^2 + b^2 = c^2 as that comes back to me from hs.  Anyway, we marked where the corners should be and ta-da it was pretty much on.  We used a very large level from the garage to be the guide for my rotary cutter and it seems to have worked beautifully.  Wow.  That was a lot of stress!  Next time, I will have a goal in the length I want the strips to be and take care of it before I sew them all together.

Then I had to decide if I wanted a boarder.  I was thinking no but the hubby was suggesting yes.  I had purchased 4 yrds (at $3/yrd) of blue fabric to be the stripes between the colorful stripes (which I never used).  So, I figured how much of that could I use for the backing of this quilt.  I figured out that I would use all but 24 inches of the 4 yards.  So, I then had a 40 x 24 piece of blue fabric left over.  I figured how many 40 inch strips I would need to create a boarder and then did the math to see how big those strips would be.  They came out to 7 3.25 inch strips.  Perfect.  With that math, I was able to use up ALL 4 yrds without waist and got both the boarder and backing for $12.  Good price.  I will still need to get to the store to buy more blue for the binding but will only need 14 inches of it. 

I have also decided that I can take the parts that I labored over cutting off and make them into a baby quilt.  There is just enough.  Now I have to get the 8 stripes that are differing lengths to be 5 stripes with the length of 45 inches.  Will buy some more blue for the backing and binding for that quilt as well.  It will be a surprise baby quilt for the recipient (if she doesn't read this before she gets it).  I did most the work already and she has already paid for the materials.  I may as well make a matching baby quilt with the left overs.

I will post pictures in a day or two...  maybe in a few hours if I get some more time to sewing.  I am so close to getting this on the quilt frame and finishing it up.  That will feel SO good.  Once I get it on the frame, it should take about a week to finish given the life interuptions. 

Sew Happy Swimming

I love making these hooded towels.  I think of the child who will enjoy it for years.  Years of playing in the tub.  Years of it at the pool side.  Here in Michigan, it is years on the beach.  I never had trouble getting my kids out of whatever when I have their hooded towels in hand.  They love them.  This particular hooded towel is for my boys' second cousin who is still on the way.  It's my first Hello Kitty towel and I have faith she and her mom love Hello Kitty.  I can't wait to see pictures of this little sweet pea all cozy in her towel. 


Surprisingly, it is not very hard to put one together.  No, I am not going to share my secrets here as I do find them my best seller.  But if you really want to learn how, you will find a way.  I never followed a plan.  I purchased one for my son and then studied the construction.  I found that the one I purchased fell apart quickly so I improved on here techniques.  You can do the same.  This works with lots of things you see at craft shows.  Study it.  Find out what it is called and google it.  Many bloggers put tutorials on the web for you to follow along.  Some days I just sit for hours seeing what tutorials I can find and then print off the cool ones.  I keep them all in one 3 ring binder and create my own "book" of future projects.  I love how easy sewing can be and how you can surprise yourself with all the cools stuff you can make in a short amount of time.

The last birthday party is today and then I need to refocus on sewing and finishing the quilt I got such a great start on.  Here's to cooperative boys- both big and small!  (fingers crossed)

Sew... Happy Birthday!

I have been spending the last week juggling a sick baby and preparing for/ baking for a 6 yr old's birthday.  My oldest turns 6 tomorrow... Valentine's Day.  I always found myself sad and disappointed when it came to Valentine's Day, growing up.  It is nice to have big celebrations to focus on now.  Who knew Jesus could make a holiday so special?  I made a Transformer cake and we had a small party for his friends at the church, Saturday.  Tonight, I finished the cupcakes.  They will go to school tomorrow during the Valentine party but won't be eaten until Tuesday.  (I just pray my big boy doesn't get sick between now that then... the cough has started.)  Saturday, family is on their way for another little party.  Guess who will be making another cake.  lol.  I have had lots of practice and improve each time.  I will try to post the picture of the cake I made for my hubby last year.  You will see how far I have grown in a year.  :)

Can you tell the frosting was too thin?  Fingers crossed.

Wish the red was redder and the blue was deeper.  Next time...

The cake I presented to my hubby a year ago.  Can you tell it was a flop... literally?

Got the itch...

What is it?  I got the itch to have a mini- can do in one day of interruptions- type of project.  I was shopping yesterday and came across this fabric and was ready for something new.  I like to just figure it out as I go with no pattern.  That is much easier to do once you have some quilting skills.  I always worry that my calculations will fail me and it just won't work- will be too small.  This is another example of a project made as close to the line of no return as possible.  Another quarter inch smaller and it would have never worked.  I always find myself wanting to add a half inch to the next one so as not to cut is so close.

I like the colors of the fabric and the print reminds me of water.  It reminds me of the lake I grew up on in Indiana.  I remember the seaweeds clinging to me feet and the slight thrill that gave me.  But... I'm not sure I am in love with the fabric.  So, what next....  I guess I will enjoy it but when I see fabric I could die for (figuratively speaking), I will be remaking this.

Did I tell you what it is?  It is my new Kindle case.  Not sure it is visible in the photo, but there is clear plastic holding the kindle into a pocket.  The first case I made a few months ago was only a sleeve to slide the kindle into.  I can not read from it while it is in that case.  This one gives me more options.  I take joy in being able to whip something up quickly and easily.  It probably cost me less than $5 to make this and took an afternoon and evening (with the interruptions a mom and wife get) to complete it.  These things go for like $30-$50 online.  I get to pick my colors and if I don't like it, I can try again (or tweek my design).  I love sewing.  It has opened up so much for me and my family.  I hope you are discovering fun things to create as well.