Why didn't I try this sooner?

Ok, I'm stubborn.  I'm set in my ways.  I am working hard never to turn into a member of the quilt police.  But whenever I see posts about machine binding, I think "but I bind by hand, I always have."

Um, not anymore!!

I tried binding by machine and I'm hooked.  I love to finish projects - this is going to be so amazingly helpful!

There are lots of great tutorials in blogland.  I'm just so embarrassed that read them so many times before trying them.  Live and learn!

success without shopping

I am happy to have made real progress this weekend.  I finished piecing the baby quilt top, got it pinned and machine quilted.  So satisfying!

Here's the awesome part, I found everything I needed to do this project in my own closet.  I had some backing left over from a quilt that I made for my mom and binding left over from my appliqued heart quilt.  Yes, the batting was in there too.

Now here is something I never expected to see.  An empty spot in the closet.  Yes!  The consistent use of what I already own is starting to make a noticeable difference.

Now to attach that binding.  Then maybe I'll start planning another quilt. Happy Sewing!

A baby quilt

I love to make baby quilts. The size is easy to work with and the colors are cheerful. 

A coworker is expecting a little girl in the fall. I made a bunch of pink and yellow blocks, laid them out and was unimpressed. Then I remembered that the mama likes bright green. Of course I had green and pink in the closet. I whipped up a few more blocks and I'm pretty happy with them now. 

I have rows assembled. Tomorrow I will assemble the top and do some simple quilting. I'm not much of a machine quilter, I send most of my quilts to be done by someone who is great at it (Jan the Quilter), but I'm just planning some diagonal lines to hold things together. I hope it gets used and loved until it falls apart, then I can replace it with a big girl quilt.

Not much sewing lately

The past few weeks have been an exciting blur.  My son turned 18, had his senior prom, played in end of the year concerts, etc, etc, etc and is now preparing for finals and graduation.  Then he will start getting ready to head to college in the fall.  So, since I know that big changes are coming, I have been trying to enjoy his presence.  I only have one kid, so I will become an empty nester overnight.  I'm excited for the new phases of life for me, my husband and especially the boy - but I really want to savor right now.  So I come out of the sewing room a little more often, I scan quilt blogs at the dining room table while he does homework, we make sure to have family dinners most nights.

All of the fabric in closet will wait for me.

My "Go To"

Many of my favorite quilting books contain patterns using jelly rolls.  I love the beauty of those little bundles!  The way you can crack one open and have a gorgeous quilt top in a few days without over-thinking fabric choice is wonderful.

But here's the thing.  I need to make a confession.  I am a washed fabric kinda gal.  I prefer to launder fabric as I decide to use it, then press it until it's ready to behave nicely.  So that really rules out precuts for me.

So, since I want to enjoy the ease of jelly rolls AND I want washed fabrics, I have a box in the closet that serves as my supply of 2.5" strips.  And there are piles of coordinating loveliness in there.  As I finish a quilt, I slice up a few strips and add them to my "go to" box.  When I want to get to work and skip a few steps, I pull out a favorite book of patterns and a bunch of strips and get busy!

I love looking at blogs like "Quiltville" to see ways to manage my scraps.  But I do limit myself to just one box of 2.5" strips.  I know my own limitations - if I cut up more of my fabric I would be paralyzed with indecision.

The two photos above are of the same box, just with different fabrics shown to illustrate the variety in there.

How do you set yourself up for success?

Winding Ways

I have been planning a Winding Ways quilt for months, but I kept putting it on the back burner because I'm a big chicken. It looked hard. It would probably take time and care. I might get frustrated.

This magazine cover is the inspiration, and great instructions can be found inside.  I may have read the directions a zillion times prior to cutting any fabric... again, I am a chicken! 

Wow, I let myself get bogged down in negativity. But I decided that in order to succeed, I would at least need to try. I'm so glad that I tried. Yes, it's hard. Yes, I need to work slowly and carefully. The blocks aren't perfect, but they are lovely and so darn satisfying!


I'm using my Accuquilt Go! Cutter and Aurifil thread. Before cutting, I sprayed my fabric with Best Press.  I have big plans and great tools, but the key to this project is definitely my newly found positive attitude.  I CAN make this quilt.

A big finish.

Borders are on and backing fabric is in the wash. On Monday, I'll ship this off to Jan the Quilter so she can make it snuggly.

Time to get started on my next quilt top. I'm going to work in blue and white. And curves. Wish me luck!