Fussy Cutting Ribbon Hearts

 This weeks Project Quilting Challenge I knew was going to go along with a busy week.  As that to a few other sew alongs I am taking part in and the Quilt Guild Project I am semi in charge of.  Then I am still just not feeling better.  So when the Challenge Came out, I was sooo unsure of what to do. 

   I had already planned a project and pulled the fabric for my Guild Project on Sunday.  I somehow at first thought I  could use this as my weekly project also, then I realized there wasn’t much to fuzzy cut and it wouldn’t be right.  But I loved the fabric...

So, on to pulling out some more fabric.  My Guild project is a Holiday themed small project each month. A month ahead of the holiday.  So next month is Valentines. My counterpart in planning picked an Accuquilt Wonky Heart die.  I then added a square in the square to give my beginning sewers an option a little easier.  They could do a runner, placement or a pillow. 

I fussy cut some breast cancer material that’s probably been in my stash for about 10 years. Leftover from an early quilt and matched it with some pink that was also at least 5 years old.  The ribbon hearts are left floating about the center of the blocks. 

I combined 4 squares and 5 wonky hearts to make the pillow.  This leaves a hidden star in the setting. 

The Wonky heart dies make 2 hearts with rotating colors.  This making 2 of the same, but opposite pillows.  

I backed the pillow top with scrap batting and a piece of polyester blend to quit.  Then quilted the top with loops and simple hearts.  

Sewed on the envelope backing.  Then stitched around the edges to give it an awesome pillow finished look! 2 small projects that make me smile.  Already know who I am giving one of these too!! 

Lake Moultrie Low levels despite the rain

For my first trip out of the house in 2 weeks, Frankie and I took a trip out to the boat landing down the road. Perfect Social Distancing!  

We have been watching the water levels drop.  He’s been riding out there every day.  I have been too sick to leave the house.  

Today,  I felt ok enough to go for a short walk.  

The walk was exhausting but so worth the views.  I have not seen the lake this low since 2008. It actually went lower then this that year, but each time it does,  the view and things you see are amazing.  

We are blessed to live right off the lake and enjoy it all the time.  Well, this area has actually been one of Frankie and I, special places.  We go there too often. A consistent for us for over 25 years. 

All of the amazing cedar stumps still visible there 80 years later.  80 years after they formed the lake. 

The beauty of each.  How smooth and soft they are to touch. 

They are so amazing to just look at sticking up random everywhere we usually take the boat fishing.  

A short pleasant walk that meant the world.  One I really needed and enjoyed.  

Even the few breaks in between.  

The puppy playing 

And the Cypress Knobs/knees.  The big trees system is amazing! 

And I really could go on and on with photos! 

Look at the awesome ridges

Gray Anchors in the Waves

I get so excited for Peoject Quilting to start.  Mostly because I love a Challenge!! And the challenge of this, means that I finish a project!! The first weeks challenge is the Pantone color of the year or a Gray and yellow quilt.  Hmm,  I don’t have much of those 2 colors.  

I have a need to make a few baby quilts.  So I started by pulling out the fabrics that had both gray and yellow in them. I laid them on the kitchen table and couldn’t decide.  So Frankie walked thru and decided!! Sometimes you need the second person.  

I then went in the room and found the rest of a charm pack I had left to match the fabric.  It’s called Lakeside Gathering by Moda, a 2015 collection. I then did some playing and found a scrap gray that went with it well. 

So I commenced to cutting.  The gray was the leftover of some backing fabric. So I had to make multiple cuts to make it work.  I decided to go easy since I had a busy week and getting over Covid. I just did a plain pinwheel quilt. 

I alternated the gray and yellow with the leftover charm pack squares. Then I laid them out randomly in the quilt. 

To add some size,  I added a thin 1 inch finished border of gray. Then a 4 inch outer border in the yellow. 

I quilted it using the walking foot with Wavy random lines to appear to be like waves. Just a simple touch. Then a straight line in the gray border and then back to the waves in the outer. 

I backed it with a pieces backing of the leftover yellow and gray. Then did the binding with the last of the gray.

I keep forgetting to put labels on my quilts, so I picked one of my 2021 new Sweetwater ones and ironed and sewed it down.  

Challenge 1 done!! On to the next.  And one of my goals this year is to label my quilts.  So this one has the year!! Perfect way to start it off! 

The photos are taken at Russellville Boat landing.  We are having historically low lake levels.  So with the name of the fabric line and living right off the lake.  We have the perfect location!!

Quilts that sooo Need to get done

Every year I kinda make a list in the notes section of my iPhone of quilts in progress and quilt dreams or just plans.  Well,  in the time I suddenly have to rest,  I thought it would be neat to be like my friend Bea Lee and make a list of quilts for the year. 

 She lists all her projects and at what stage they are all in.  So my challenge is to make the list, add to it as I go and find things in my cabinet and empty baskets in 2021.  But then, keep using up my scraps.  My other goal, is to try and use up fabric instead of buy.  I really want to be able to put all my fabric in my cabinets and not have anything stuffed somewhere.  

As time goes, this post is sadly going to grow,  yep as I discover more undone things and another box. But I stopped at 30 for now.  With my goal being to finish at least 2 things a month,  I should be able to get a big chunk of these done this year. 

1- House quilt- lots of pieces and rows together

2- Small old antique embroidery quilt- only the original blob lock and fabric pulled.  Plan to box the blocks in, maybe like a log cabin.

3-Harvest Road Quilt- blocks cut, a few pieces sewn together 

4-Debbie row by row- omg, so much to do

5-Rooster on board- one section done.  I think this will be a retreat quilt for this year

6- Pumpkin quilt-  fabrics pulled and all in a box

7- Pineapple place mat- needs to be put together and quilted

8- Jelly roll quilt-  undid it for a race demo in class.  Sewed a few corners and now it’s sittin a box. 

9- Moma quilt- I need to make several of these, but for 2 years,  I’ve had fabric pulled for at least one and sitting in a box. 

10- Sunflower quilt- made with my friends daughters clothes for her kids 

11- Sunflower 2- same as above

12-Sunflower 3- yep, same

13- Bow tie quilt-  I cut a bunch of scrap squared to make this and never did it. 

14- Bea Lea Jumbled Sampler-  Accuquilt quilt fit the year

15- Sewcialites- 12 blocks out of 36 blocks done

16- Ultimate beginner Sampler- needs borders, top done. 

17- T quilt from years ago-  at least 2 blocks done.

18- Stained glass window-  lots of blocks done years old

19- animal embroidery-  needs just a few blocks. 

20- Kaffe embroidery quilt- needs borders.  Top done,  at least 2 years old

21- Yenter embroidery-  needs a few blocks finished

22- batik embroidery-  needs a few blocks finished

23- crown of thorns.  Has a few blocks cut out. Several sewn together 

24- Tree quilt- not started

25- Scrap log cabin quilt- not started

26- Selvedge aqua quilt-  some selvedge blocks done

27- string block quilt-  random sized string blocks 

28- pineapple sampler quilt- 3 blocks started. 

29- batik HST quilt- lesson from class

30- persimmon dreams block of the month

31- Pat Sloan star quilt

Yep, all to go along with my year titled Finish!! 

Hunters Star Scrap Quilt

My first officially finished Accuquilt quilt.  Well, outside of class. I bought the cutter back in the spring and my friend Bea Lee suggested the Hunters Star Die.  

Well, it’s about the same time the Scrap Star quilt challenge came out.  So you know it fit this challenge perfect.  

Besides the border and backing, the quilt is 100% scraps.  Even the binding is leftover from another quilts backing. 

Honestly,  using batiks with the Hunters Star die may be the best.  No worries about reversed directions.  Because of the grooves in the Accuquilt pieces this became an awesome leader and ended quilt.  Especially for the 700 masks I made this year.  

I ended up finishing the top at Luthridge in October at a quilt retreat and just never had time to finish it.  So I added the borders this week. One that I also auditioned above at camp.  Yep a leftover. 

The quilt ended up measuring 65x76. 

Then FMQ with a random loop fan looking design I saw on Pinterest. 

Then I made this cute pillow out of all the scraps! 

The backing is a large piece of yardage I bought at a guild fabric sale. 

Our lake levels are drastically down, providing the perfect setting for some photo taking! This quilt may stay with me, well, at least for a little while!