Equilateral Triangles

I started a new quilt using equilateral triangles.  The colors are a little different, but I liked them together.  I'm really liking that pinkish purple color.  I wish I had more of the Riley Blake Andrea Victoria prints (the purple with the dandelion & the dots).  The triangles are easier than I thought to put together.  I think this will end up being a baby quilt.

Some Halloween Shirts

Over the past few weeks I worked on some shirts for the kids for Halloween.  I found these cute applique designs at Planet Applique.  They were fun to make.  And for the bat eyes I used Glowy thread, so they glow in the dark.  Very cool.

A Quilt from Grandma

My Mom (Troy's Grandma) made this quilt for Troy.  He loves tractors, so this is the perfect quilt for him.  My Mom machine embroidered all of the tractors, even putting the little John Deere logo.  She hand stitched the buttons on the wheels.

 On the back she used the cute rooster/chicken fabric from the Alexander Henry Farmdale collection.

Troy loves his new quilt.

The Finished Christmas Tree Skirt (Almost)

Here's my Christmas Tree skirt with the binding finished.  I just need to add the buttons and it will be complete.  I'm going to pick up the buttons that you cover with fabric and add them on the edge, probably the large ones, since I made my loops kind of big.

I also embroidered the year on the end.  For my binding this time I machine stitched the whole thing instead of my usual hand stitching.  I used a zig zag stitch which I thought went along with the chevron design.  I think I might do more bindings by machine.

Chevron Christmas Tree Skirt in Progress

I am doing a Christmas Tree Skirt as a project at the Viking Sewing Gallery.  I found the original skirt pattern on Jessica's Blog.  I followed the smaller pattern and added a chevron in the middle.  It took a total of 96 pieces, which seemed like a lot when I was cutting all those angles.  It went together quickly though.  It's quilted and ready for the binding.  Maybe I can get it done this week.

Some Embroidered T-Shirts

Two weeks ago we had several Birthday parties in the family.  Charlie turned 3 and Anna turned 6.  I thought I'd make shirts for both of them.  I also made Charlie's little brother Landen a cute Dragon T-Shirt. 

I found all of these embroidery designs at Planet Applique. They have cute designs at great prices. 

Sock Monkey Progress

I'm making some progress on the sock monkey blocks.  I have about 61 done so far. I'm going to intersperse the embroidered sock monkey block along with some 6" print blocks. 

And here's some chain piecing that I've been working on this evening.  I'm hoping to get the top completed within the next week.  I found the funky monkey print at Fabric Shack that was on clearance, so I'm going to use that as part of the backing.  

My New Machine

Well on Friday I bought the Husqvarna Viking Topaz 30 sewing and embroidery machine.  I've been working at the Viking Sewing Gallery now for a year and a half and decided that it was time to invest in an embroidery machine.

My son Troy was so excited.  He calls it the robot sewing machine because once you hit start it sews all by itself.  So on Friday when we got it home I made him 2 robot shirts.  Can you tell his favorite color is green?

Then last night I started on working on more parts for the sock monkey quilt.  I found this cute sock monkey embroidery design free on the internet.  I also used a twister tweed brown thread that really makes it look like a sock monkey.

The sock monkey quilt is going to be a birthday present for my cousin's son, so I'm going to put his name on the front with applique letters.  I'm pretty excited about this new machine.  Now I can embroidering and sewing at the same time.  Maybe I'll be more productive.

Finished Quilting and some New Projects

I finally finished quilting my Sugar Pop quilt over a week ago and have started working on the binding.  I love how the swirls turned out.  You can really see them from a distance when you hold up the quilt.

I purchased the Serendipity pattern for the Bebe dress and found some great Joel Dewberry fabric.  Now I just need some time to sit down and work on it.

I also pulled out this quilt that I started working on over a year ago.  I'm going to try to get it made into a twin size quilt for a birthday present for September.  When I pulled it out last week I only had 9 blocks made.  I'm up to 45 now, but need a lot more to get to twin size.  

Swirly Quilting

I've been working on quilting this quilt for a few weeks now free motioning these swirls.  It's taking longer than I thought.  It looks pretty cool though, you can stand back from the quilt and really see the swirls.  The next time I get a few extra hours to quilt maybe I will get it finished.

ABC Quilt Complete and Work in Progress

Here is my completed ABC quilt.  I used the Husqvarna Viking embroidery machines to machine applique the letters.  For the fabrics I used a scrap bag from Sandi Henderson with a variety of her collections.  I love how the colors work so well together.  I used the Henna Garden in Raspberry for the binding.  The Henna Garden fabric is one of my absolute favorites.

I added the quilt label using the embroidery machine as well.  

And here is the butterfly table runner that I'm working on for an Embroidery Club project in June and July.  The little purple butterflies on the Orange Denyse Schmidt fabric are quilted using an embroidery machine.  I also straight line quilted around the squares using white thread.

  

And here's a picture of Anna, Troy and Aaron.  My sister Tracy was home from Virginia in May visiting with the kids.  Troy and Anna have had fun playing together.  And I've enjoyed holding Aaron since we haven't had a baby in a few years.  They went back home today, we will miss them.

SMS Giveaway Winner

Thanks everyone for your comments on my blog for the Sew Mama Sew Giveaway post.  I enjoyed reading what everyone's favorite new fabrics were.  Random number generator has selected #169 who is Bean.  I will be emailing you shortly.

Sew Mama Sew's Giveaway Day

http://sewmamasew.com/

Well it's Giveaway Day at Sew Mama Sew.  I'm excited about all of these giveaways and I wanted to join in the fun.  So I'm giving away a fat quarter set of the Children at Play fabrics.  Aqua Pinwheels, Aqua Dot to Dot, Aqua Balloons and Soft Pink Meadow.

So for the 1st chance to win leave just me a comment telling me your favorite new fabric.  For a 2nd chance to win become a follower and let me know you did or if you are already a follower let me know that.  Please make sure your email address is visible so I can contact you if you win.

Comments Closed - Thanks everyone for your comments.

My WIPs this week

I've started working on the back to my Sugar Pop quilt. The alternating trees are going to make a strip across the back. I love those little trees.

And here's a glimpse at a quilt I've been working on for a sample for work. I used a scrap pack that I purchased from Sandi Henderson. More details to come on this one.

The 9 Nine Patch Quilt Top and a some other new things

I started this 9 Nine Patch quilt top just a week ago. It was fast because I just used 2 Sugar Pop charm packs along with Kona Snow. I will hopefully start the back this evening, if time permits.

I have a few new items in the Rose Room. First I broke down and purchased a new iron. I was tired of my old Rowenta spitting and leaving marks on some things. This is the Oliso TG1100 with smart touch technology. I love it. You just touch the handle and the little legs retract up in. When you let go, the legs pop back out so you never have to set it upright. I also purchased a new ironing board cover and pad on Etsy.

I also bought some Flea Market Fancy reprint. These were my favorites.

And just last week I found Modern Patchwork at JoAnn's. This magazine has a lot of great ideas, well worth the price.

A Finished Owl Quilt

I finally finished the binding this morning on this quilt. I actually finished the quilt top back in 2010, but had put it aside. For the binding I used a print from Rosemarie Lavin from the Feelin' Groovy line, it had the pink, orange and green that tied everything together.

I got it back out and quilted it with squares around the stars, then I quilted around the green blocks.

I tried this morning to get Troy to hold the quilt for pictures, but he just wanted to stand in front of it.

And here is the back, I used this floral print from Barbara Jones of Quilt Soup.

Troy in the Rose Room

I was in the Rose Room this evening taking pictures of a few new bolts of fabric and Troy was helping me. He wanted me to take a picture of him and Lightening McQueen. So here he is sitting among all the fabric on the floor. And he's smiling for a change, maybe we're past that stage of making crazy faces for the camera.

Friday Shopping and Sewing

Since today was my day off, I decided to take a trip down to my favorite local quilt shop, Quilter's Corner in Finleyville, PA. I picked up this pile of fabrics. I love the red and white dots, they are Chloe's Closet Redwork by Moda. I also really loved the little grey circles, a Riley Blake fabric. And of course I couldn't pass up the Aneela Hoey Little Apples prints (those little turtles are so cute).

I came home and did a little housework. Then went to my sewing room for about an hour before getting Troy off the bus and worked on quilting my Owls in Stars quilt. I finished this quilt top back in 2010, but had put it on the stack to be quilted. Last week I found this floral print and thought it would work well as the backing.

I might be able to finish quilting this one this weekend. Then I need to choose a binding, I'm thinking green or orange. Any suggestions?

The Star

I finished the Star block this evening. I used Kona solids - Pomegranate, Cactus, Robin's Egg and Ash. Next, I think I'll try the Whirling Star from the Solstice Star Series. I'm thinking of adding a print or 2 to that one. What do you think?

*I've linked up to Sew Modern Monday over at Canoe Ridge Creations.

Have you seen the Solstice Stars?

Have you seen the Solstice Stars quilt along over at Fresh Lemons? I was checking out Faith's blog and came upon this quilt along. She also has more stars from her Summer Sampler Series here. I tried the July 20th Star (just 1/4 of it). Here's my sample:

I am in love with paper piecing. It is so easy. I can't believe I haven't tried it till now. I'm going to be trying more of these stars over the coming weeks.

More Nicey Jane Progress

I started my Nicey Jane quilt last year. I'm making slow but steady progress. It's going to be a queen size quilt for our bed, so this will be the biggest quilt I've ever made.

I've started making the pieces in assembly line fashion. Here you can see a pile with the pinwheels.

I have 5 of these large blocks completed, only 4 more to go. I think I may need to add a band of some sort at the top or bottom to make sure the quilt is big enough. I think I'm going to piece the back too so it will be reversible. Hopefully the next time I show this one I'll have the whole top together.

My First Swoon

I completed my first swoon block tonight. I purchased the pattern months ago when it first came out from Camille of Simplify. I've been wanting to try one for awhile, so finally I got some time this week to put one together. I think I'm going to make a whole quilt eventually, I just love the look of this block. These are two Amy Butler prints from her Daisy Chain collection.