The Matisse is Finished!

:o)

Recent acquistions

I have started the hand sewing on the binding of my Matisse quilt.  Roscoe's Pa has seen it and really likes it.  :o)  I will snap a picture of it after I finish the binding which hopefully will be soon.  In the meantime, I will show you some recent acquisitions.

Santa brought me the 16 inch Olfa revolving cutting board.  It has been handy with squaring up the 8 1/2 inch blocks for my Matisse quilt.  No more stretching around the cutting table in rather unnatural positions to cut each side.  Just turn the board.   It occurs to me now that this picture would have been better had I had a piece of fabric on it and a rotary cutter and ruler.  Next time...

Also helpful was the 8 1/2 Omnigrip square.

And finally, Santa brought me a sleeve board which I plan to use in constructing doll clothes and little girl clothes.  I struggled with the last few items that I made from this category when pressing on my over-sized ironing board.  I am hoping this will help get better results.

 I like that I can hang this when not in use.

:o)

Almost Done and a Binding Tip!

I am finally sewing the binding on to my Matisse quilt.  All that is left will be the hand sewing of the binding to the back of the quilt.   I have really bonded with this quilt!  Note to self:  Always sew with fabric you love. 

There are many ways to manage your unsewn binding while you sew it on to a quilt.  This happens to be my way.  Roll your prepared binding into a roll.

Find a small recycled gift bag.

Place the binding roll in said gift bag and pull out the end of the roll.

Place bag on the floor next to your chair.  Begin to bind.  Voila!  The binding will easily pull out of the gift bag and stay straight as you apply it to the quilt.

:o)

Satisfied.

Okay.  We all can't be Matisse or even artists.  But there is a place for folks like me.  I can see what is good in others' work so maybe with some more practice I can be happier with my visions...or non-visions.  LOL. I am satisfied with this layout.  It is not a wallhanging.  It is a lap quilt.  It's very pretty up close.  I am ready to sew.

:o|

Oh boy.

Eh, no.  Bleh!  Back to the drawing board.  Oh.  I didn't use one.  This was improv or whatever.  Sigh.

:o(

Puzzle Pieces

Here are the blocks arranged from lighter to darker.  Next comes the fun of putting the colors together.  I have a feel for the results but I am not good with seeing what I want and then doing it.  The results are always a surprise for me!

:o)

Progressing...

I have been cutting...

preparing the binding, and making the back.

:o)

Back at it again...

I started the Matisse quilt.  Hooray! 

 Still in the thinking...

and planning stage.

PS  Got a new sewing machine light socket for my new LED light.  No more flickering.  It's awesome!

:o)

Almost good...

I picked up my machine on Saturday from being serviced.  The machine is a Bernina 1230 that I got in the 80's and I LOVE her.  The only thing I wish is that she had a larger area to push a quilt through for machine quilting. 

I got a new LED light to replace my old flickering standard light bulb.  The LED is awesome with 10 individual lights that fit flush with the machine lighting area.  What genius to come up with something like this. The bad news is the LED flickers just like the old standard bulb.  Must be a short in the socket…darn!  I’ll have to take my machine back for some more work.

:o|

I'm back!

Hi everyone!  I am home from my 24/7 granny nanny job.  It was so much fun and I am suffering from grandkid withdrawal.  I am so blessed.  New #6 is a heart-stealer and such a good baby.

Look what was in my mailbox when I got home!!!  I have always wanted a Kona Cotton Color Card.  Roscoe's Pa thought I should just order one then.  Worked for me! 

I am totally captivated with looking at all the colors and thinking of all the possibilities. 

If you ever get a chance to get one, I think you will be glad you did!

:o)

All is well!

CAITLIN GRACE made her first appearance yesterday morning at 7:57 am.  She weighed 7lbs. 15 oz.  which was funny since her three brothers were all 9 or almost 10 pound babies.  Thanks to everyone who sent such sweet wishes!  Blog friends are awesome!

30 minutes old

:o)

One more thing...

I made this little pillow

to match this quilt.

Today I took my machine for a check up (as it's been a few years...oops).  The turn around time for getting my machine back is two weeks.  That makes me nervous to have her gone for that long.  But I'll be busy with other things so maybe I will be able to 'let it go'!

:o)

Finally!!!

Things have been crazy busy since the new year, and my days are going to get busier for the next month.  I have missed blogging and probably will be missing it alot in the next month or so due to the birth of granddaughter #3.  But I plan to return full force this Spring.  (Ah Spring...I am so ready for SPRING!)

I have been sewing a bunch the past couple of weeks.  I made a changing table cover and new curtains with trim for my grandson and his soon-to-be born sister's room.  I didn't take pictures.  I honestly finished these things late at night and they went to Roscoe's house the next morning.  Maybe I'll get a picture later as I will be spending some extra time there soon.   (Okay...all my time!).

Today I officially finished the baby girl's quilt.  It might be my favorite quilt to date.  (I say that after many of the quilts I make!)  It is soft and yummy.  Here are pictures!

Before washing...

Another....

And after washing...

Another...

And one last shot of the soft crinkly version...

Baby girl's C-section arrival is scheduled for Wednesday morning.  Can't wait to see her!  Can't wait to learn her name which has been decided but kept as Top Secret by her parents.

:o)

Pink Baby Blanket Finished!

I finished my crocheted baby blanket last night for GD#3.  I used a pattern I found on the Project Linus website.  I have used it before here and another time before I started blogging.  This time I used a J hook and one strand of worsted weight Simply Soft yarn in Soft Pink.  I added a scalloped edge.

Moving right along...

Progress report

The baby quilt is coming together nicely.  I just need some TIME!!  Here are some squares:

:o)

Sewing again!

I am finally back in my sewing room.  Hooray!  I have started work on the much talked about baby quilt for my new granddaughter who is scheduled to arrive in ONE month. 

I found one more fabric (the check in the center) to go with the assortment I had already collected.  The fabric for this quilt came from Charm, Ohio; Bellevue, Washington; and Mankato, Minnesota!  I am really happy with it.  Pink and yellow were the colors I chose for our wedding forty plus years ago.  I still love the combo.

I had an idea but wasn't quite sure how it would look so I played on my design board.  I had originally planned to use the 'plain' white fabric (white stars on white)  in the same fashion as I used the 'solid' pink (Moda Marble)and 'solid' yellow (Moda Marble).  But it didn't suit me. So I did some more cutting and trimming and arranging.

 I relegated the white to be the binding.  (I like to make the binding and, if possible, the backing, before I start piecing the quilt.  I hate to finish a top and have to stop to prepare the binding and back.  This way I can just keep rolling.)

This is my current arrangement.  I took pictures of it and have been rotating the pictures to help me decide if I need to tweak some things.  I need to sleep on it.

:o)