Happy Holidays!

This just about says it all.  We were still deep into wallpaper removal and painting of our living room right up till Christmas.  I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays.  It's been hectic - we've also finished celebrating some family birthdays - but now that Santa's closed up her workshop for the year, I plan on enjoying this next week off with the kids.

My family does a secret Santa gift exchange and I made my SIL a tablerunner, napkins and a pot holder using French General Maison de Garance fabric.  After searching the internet and my stash of quilting magazines for a pattern, I decided I went with something very simple to feature the center floral print.

The binding is cut on the bias, and there is a slight ripple at the edges because I cut the fabric lenthwise, but otherwise, I think it came out quite nicely.  Blue woven is on the back.

At the last minute (of an already last minute project) I decided to whip up a pot holder.  The Lemoyne Star block pattern is very fiddly (set in seams) but some free motion quilting minimized the flaws. 



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Here's wishing all my readers a happy and wonderful holiday season!

Triangle Top

 I've been trying all week to find time to show you my triangle quilt top.  Well.... here it is!  The triangles are all pieced and now I'm considering adding borders to make it a bit larger.  Current size is 59 1/2" X 70".

Happy Friday, and I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Home improvement and a little sewing

I started on a huge home improvement project over the weekend ... removing the wallpaper in our living room.  We've been living with vinyl grasspaper for 10 years and it looks dreadful.  We live in a rental, so we've been pretty cautious about launching into these types of projects.  But, after successfully removing the paper in the kitchenette and revamping it into a much needed bedroom for my daughter, it was time to move on to another part of the house.
 

Wallpaper circa late 1950's with vintage light fixture.

This is what is under the vinyl.  The pink and gold coordinates with our pink and gold formica kitchen countertops!  The lady of the house obviously liked pink.  This is just one layer down.  There are several more layers going back to the 1920's.  I have my work cut out for me.

Consequently, I didn't get any work done on my Triangle quilt over the weekend, but I finished up an embroidery I started on last year. 


Christmas Tree on Acid

The pattern is a freebie from Badbird Designs.  I cut out the finished design and made it into a stuffie.  I think it looks rather ridiculous and garish, but my daughter loves it so it's hanging out in her room.  I still need to add a loop of floss to the top so she can hang it up if she wishes.

  
I also sewed a couple of blocks for my Farmer's Wife Sampler. 

Calico Puzzle & Bat wing



Instructions & completed block

This photo gives you an idea of the general layout from the book, The Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt.  That's the extent of the instructions provided.  Numbered templates are provided on a CD.  This book is a HUGE disappointment, as no measurements for the individual pieces are given.  I will probably stick with the easy blocks - the ones that can be drafted out because the pieces are divisible by 6.  I don't feel the need to slavishly reproduce an historical looking quilt anyway.

Triangles!

I cut into my Betty Dear fat quarters using my super-duper Tri Tool triangle template.  The template makes quick work of the cutting process.  Simply cut the fabric into strips, in this case 6 1/2" strips to yield 6 1/2" triangles.

The prints alternate with solids from my stash.  I have about one half of my strips pieced so far.  This will be a "smallish" lap quilt.  If I've done my math right (which is doubtful!), finished size will be approximately 60" x 72".

My design process
You might ask what happened to my earlier idea to using my Betty Dear to make wagon wheel blocks?  Well, I opened up a drawer in my sewing cabinet and my eye fell on the triangle template.  I've always wanted to make a triangle quilt, and I quickly envisioned a riot of diamonds, a la Kaffe Fassett.  After cutting out some of the fabric and playing around with the triangles, I decided I didn't like the diamonds nor did I care for the "busyness" of the prints, so I gathered up some solids.  I used some depression-era FQ I had picked up several years ago at a quilt show, supplementing with some Kona solids, and voila, a quilt pattern was born!

 
Now, if only Axel would STAY OFF ...