This quilt is big as a Panda Bear!

 

Olivia's HUGE Panda Bear Quilt. 

The pattern is for a crib sized quilt, but I added a row to both the top and side b/c I didn't want her to out grow it too soon.  Then when it came time to add the outside border, instead of adding a 3.5" one, I upgraded it to 6.5" 

Yep, I'm pretty sure she'll be able to use this on her toddler bed now, then the sofa and even take it with her when she leaves for college!!!

What little girl doesn't love pink & purple?? They're Olivia's favorite colors too!! This quilt isn't something that I think is pretty but she la,la,loves it b/c it's panda bears!! ... and that's all that matters - that she loves it. :)

Now I just need to see about getting it machine quilted for her - and I have enough pandas left over that I can make her a matching pillow case.  I'm hoping it will be ready for her bed when we move into our new home soon!

Love from Indiana!

A quilt for Olivia

First off, I'm so thankful that I happened to have my camera with me today and was able to take these first two photos. When we got home and I noticed Paul Thomas running out to the street as he *LOVES* to check the mailbox and thought that what he was up to - but today he did something new.

He tugged and pulled on the garbage can until he had rolled it all the way up the driveway and put it back into it's usual spot by the garage door!  I snapped a couple photos and even video taped him pulling b/c it was just so cute! and so surreal that he's growing up so fast!!  I asked him when he was done how he liked it - and he gave a thumbs up and a sideways thumb, b/c he liked that he was strong enough but didn't like that the can was smelly. I've never smelt anything when pulling up the can before. Funny! :P

 

I know I've been away from my blog for a while now - and I'm so sorry!!  Summer is suppose to be a time of relaxing, sleeping in, and just doin whatever you want when you want....right? Well not with my kidos! We had 1 week of lazy days of summer, then as of this week activities have started and been keeping us busy each day and night!  Nora's been going to "Safety Town USA" school for 2 hours each day and swim lessons each evening. I'll try and post about that later and share photos.  She will "graduate" tomorrow night :)

Here's what I've been busy with today - not that I actually had time for sewing - I guess it's my kind of crazy to begin a new project when there are about 833 other things I need to be doing.  The twins turned 5 years old Monday - but the party/cookout isn't until Saturday at my MIL's home.  Guess what I thought she needed to have as her gift from momma.... yep you guessed it! A Panda Bear quilt!

The above photo was where I was - when suddenly I didn't like the looks of it. :(  The pink I'd chosen was just too loud beside the panda fabric.  And paired with the lavender, those 4-patches were looking sorta muddy, no contrast.  So then I got the idea to grab "Jack the Ripper" and unstitch a block, use some WOW fabric and make up a white & lavender block to see what that looked like.

 

I put it up on the design wall.  Stood back and looked - even took photos so that perhaps I'd ask my facebook quilter friends for their opinions.... then I noticed this (photo below)

 

A whole stack of "twosies" ready to be sewn into 4-patches.  I'd be NUTS to think about seam ripping all of those apart and starting over!  That would mean I'd be taking Jack the Ripper with me to swim lessons tonight and possible hanging out with him all night after we got home too!  Um, no thanks. Keep on keepin' on Bonnie!

So here's what the design wall looked like around 3:30pm today! This pattern is one that "Quilts for Kids" organization uses and it really goes together fast!  Only theirs is 5X6 rows and I wanted mine to be a little bigger so I made enough that it will be 6 blocks by 7 rows.  I don't want Olivia to outgrow it too soon!  Their pattern calls for a 3.5 outer border of the focus fabric, but I'll use a 6.5" size to grow it a bit more. :)  It's gonna look great!

That multicolored stripe wasn't even what I had planed to use - I had bought several yards of it for pillow cases - but it works! and helps to tie in that darker pink don'tcha think? :)

 

Here's another of the same pattern and nearly at the same stage of completion done up in blue, green and yellow.  I loved that yellow fabric when I spotted it on the "Spot the Dot" sale at Hancock's.  It was 75% off and I'm kicking myself for not buying all that was left on that bolt!  As I would have loved to make this one another row wider and longer too, but couldn't.

Monday I returned to the store and it was NO where to be found. :(  That's when I spotted the Panda Bears on the same table marked 75% off making it just over $2/yard. So I bought the rest of that bolt!!!  Should have enough for Olivia's quilt and pillow and a dolly quilt too.  She loves panda bears.

As for the inner border on this one - not loving it as much as I did when I had it laid out at the store, as from a distance it reads as a clashy green color. Oh well, it is what it is.  Who knows maybe after it's all quilted and washed up it will have grown on me??   It's just a shame that this one can't be for me to use on the sofa b/c it's kid sized... I so love blue and yellow together!

And guess who wanted to race me upstairs?  PT is always shouting "ReadySETGO!" before I'm ready.  That little cheater, look at him with one foot already out the sewing room door!. lol

Love from Indiana!

I finished my Guild Block Challange!

My guild meeting is tomorrow night and I made my block for our April Project today. The blue paisley fabric was the challenge fabric that we were given to use and add anything from our stash to it to create a 12.5" block of our choice. - instead of using a white or WOW background I used the same Kona Ash color that I've been using for my Banister's SOW-along blocks (aka Farmer's Wife) and I think the grey background turned out nice.

Does the block look familiar to you? Why yes, it is the same as the charity blocks "Louisiana" that I posted photos of earlier this week.  Here I had been racking my brain trying to come up with a block to make for the project - and there it was on my design wall staring me in the face. *Ding*Ding*Ding*  talk about a light bulb moment. lol

I got an email today that before the guild meeting they will be giving a workshop on making bow tie blocks. Nothing to bring, just show up early at 5:30pm if you want to learn about it.  Not sure if I'll be there that early.... but maybe?   Tomorrow night is also the last night of swimming for the kids - I'm gonna miss their "BIG JUMP" off the diving boards but David will be there to see it.

 Next up,  moving on to getting caught up on the SOW-along... they've given instructions for 24 of them... and I've made only 13 so far - that top right basket has to be remade b/c it turned out too small..... and the top left strings block was just a leader/ender bonus block as well as the log cabin block below it.  

Randy's Blog has a nice SOWalong button that I added to my sidebar - clicking it should take you to her blog.  She gives us 3 blocks on the First and Third Wednesday each month so it's not so overwhelming.  Also she shares the cutting instructions for how she makes her blocks.  

Bonnie Hunter has also been participating using shirt parts that I mailed her for her birthday this year - and she's shared paper piecing templates for two of the blocks in recent blog posts. *just make sure when you go to print them you set the Page Scaling to NONE.*

Janet over at Rogue Quilter has added a tab at the top of her blog page that points you to all the blocks that have been given by Randy so far.  CLICK HERE to take you to that page if you think you might want to participate ----or if you are like me and need to catch up. ;)

 .... and in case you're wondering - no I've not started machine quilting PT's Dino quilt/rug yet.... call me a procrastinator, yep, that's me!! LOL  This week and weekend is just not the time to get started on it.... the kids have gymnastics and swimming 3 nights and on Friday night Nora has a dress rehearsal and photos for her First Holy Communion that will be Saturday afternoon.... which also means a house full of family on the way....  So maybe next week will be a better time to start machine quilting that quilt ;)  Remind me though in case I forget. lol

Love from Indiana!

Aahh! Therapy!

I know that I'm posting this long after JudyL's Design Wall Monday - but yesterday like so many Mondays, there were just other things to accomplish and sewing wasn't one of them.  After picking up Nora from school and overseeing her homework, it was then time to quickly help get the kids changed for gymnastics so they'd have time to eat before their classes started.  I then spent the next 2 hours with them at the Gym, and because I promised them that if they did well during their class - as in pay attention to their teacher and follow instructions - that I'd go by McDonald's and buy them a dessert - it was 8:45pm by the time we made it home last night and just one look at my husband after walking in the door told him that "I had reached my limit of kid time."

They still needed their doses of antibiotics, and baths.... oh, did I forget to mention that last week Paul Thomas had ear ache pain come on strong one afternoon and so we found a Walgreen's Take Care Clinic and yes, he indeed had double ear infections and tested positive for STREP and so did Nora, Olivia and I. 

Anyway, back to last night....  David said, "I'll give the baths to the kids and oversee books and prayers, why don't you go do something for you..... go relax."  Well maybe not exactly those words... and maybe it wasn't his idea to even offer the baths ;) but in the end he obliged and all was good.  I got to spend some time "In Therapy" with my sewing machine and I made some blocks for charity. 

The double pinwheel blocks will be mailed to KC1930 for the HGTV Sunshine Quilters. She uses this "Louisiana" block often and makes up the cutest quilts for children. The other 2 at the top are for the April drawing for the www.BlockLotto.com and are called "Hot Cross 9-patch"

After I saw her post showing the blocks set on point I couldn't resist! Don't they look nice? And this setting only takes 13 blocks to make.  They are so easy to make!  Hope to make up a few more to increase my chances of winning ;) maximum is 9.  

http://www.blocklotto.com/2012/04/sophies-bakers-dozen/

So I'd say my therapy session was a success wouldn't you?  Tonight is swimming and *maybe* just *maybe* I can talk David into another night of overseeing baths???  Well I won't hold my breath.... lol but I do hope to do some more sewing and make more blocks for the BlockLotto.com

Love from Indiana!

Paul Thomas' Dinosaur quilt / Guild Project

I've been away from the computer for the past 40 days, but there are a few things I've been busy with at my sewing machine.  This is one of them, a Dinosaur quilt for my 4 year old Paul Thomas.  He choose the dino fabric first and then helped me pick colors to match it.

This year, instead of doing a mystery quilt, my guild decided the group project would follow along a past Fons & Porter article that showed what they did while out to sea on a cruise ship. It's where everyone choose 5 half yard cuts and used 4" cut strips and then cut using the EZ Angle Ruler and Companion Rulers.  

There are many design possibilities, just takes some planning.  The handout worksheet did have 3-4 examples.... and honestly that is what I used to draft up my design plan in EQ. 

Paul Thomas even helped me after I got it drafted in EQ, and helped arrange the color placements.   He's so funny calling it "his RUG"  hahaha.  Nora helped snip apart chain piecing and handed me pins and took them out... she wanted to learn to use the iron to press but with Paul Thomas playing in the same room I wasn't comfortable letting her use the iron yet.... maybe another time when there's not as much "help" in the room.

About 2 days later this is what it looked like on the design wall.

Now I just need to decide if I want to add borders and if so buy it and add. Then I can machine quilt this one (I think) just simple stitch in the ditch type of quilting. Only thing is, PT wants to use it NOW.

The dino fabric beside the top is what I bought for the backing but now I sorta think it might look good on the front too.  I think I have enough blue to make a small 2” cut border before a 6” dino fabric border….  Without border it’s only 40” square and I’m afraid he’d outgrow it too soon with feet sticking out the bottom… but of course if he might still be using it when he’s that long, then perhaps dinos need to only appear on the back and not the front?? Decisions. :) 

It’s bright which is so unlike anything I’ve done before. It still makes me smile thinking of how Paul Thomas keeps calling it his rug. lol  Guess I need to finish it up soon - the next guild meeting is April 26th and I'd love to share it during "Sew-n-Tell" ;)

I'm linking up with JudyL's Design Wall Monday linkup today.  It's been about 6 weeks since I've got to sit at the computer and visit everyone who shares a posts' blog and see what they are working on.  I know I don't have time today to play catchup from what I've missed out on, but I will get around to it in the evening hours after kids are in bed.

If you found me from Judy's link up, please leave a comment and say Hello. It's always fun to welcome new visitors to my blog! :)

Love from Indiana!

Design Wall Monday - TWO Tops to share!

Today is Monday which means for quilters time for show-n-tell also known as JudyL's Design Wall Monday :)  But today instead of taking a photo from my sewing room design wall, I'm gonna take you outside and show you two tops that I've put together.  It feels so good to have rows sewn together and to this stage!

 

First up, my most recent blocks on the design wall - this top is called Hand Me Downs and comes from Bonnie Hunter's first book Scraps & Shirttails.  It will have another 12 star blocks that will become part of the outside border.  The pattern calls for a 9x9 block setting, but I only had enough navy homespun setting fabrics to make mine an 8x9 block setting.  It will be perfect "sofa size" :)

 

After getting the shirtings cleaned up and put away for now, I spent time looking for the solid shirts I'd saved to use for my outside borders, but could not locate them. (Remember I'm not 100% unpacked in the sewing room, and anything still boxed up is just gonna have to stay that way until we buy our new home.)

So I opened up the next USPS Priority - that was labeled "My Blue Heaven" and thought I'd see about putting more of those blocks together.  You may remember that before we moved from Texas, I borrowed a few Priority Boxes from the USPS and used them to kit up a few projects so that I'd have something to work on here in the rental house... and b/c those boxes are red/white/blue they are easy to spot! :)    To my surprise, the blocks were already partially sewn into segments and several had pins in them from the last time I'd had them out on the sewing room floor - so it was easy to spend the afternoon sewing them together and getting these rows into a TOP! :)

Did you see my little "Monkey Helper" in the photo above???  Olivia was so willing and ready to help hand me pins off my magnetic pin holder Sunday afternoon. :)  I sewed together 5x5 large stars and it was taking up the whole floor and then some.... and thought surely this was big enough....

...and couldn't wait to take it upstairs with me to see how it fit our King size bed.   You can't tell from the photo but the side closest to the camera has a nice hangover and should be perfect after I add a 2" border of blue and then 2" finished HST's and another 3" of blue.... but the opposite side of the bed the blocks are ending right at the edge of the mattress - so it needs another row to be wide enough....  GOOD thing I have more sets of blocks left in my project box!! :)  Yeaaa! :)  

We only have my 1st ever quilt that I made for David before we married that we use on our bed and it's not quite wide enough but we make it work... at the time he had a King size waterbed so hangover amount wasn't considered - just enough to tuck in each side.... but this one will fit the bed or ELSE. lol

I took this photo today, outside hanging over the neighbor's fence.  Aren't all those scraps scrumptious!  ;)

  
Lastly, above are two photos of EQ7 design plans that my friend Crazy'boutquilts came up with :)  This will give you a better idea of where I'm headed with the "My Blue Heaven"quilt.

EDITED TO ADD - I'm so thankful that Crazy'boutquilts and I spent a year swapping these blocks!!  It was a lot of fun getting envelopes of blocks made for me every few months and certainly helped to make this project have not only more variety, but less of a challenge.  :)  She is also the one who introduced me to Triangulations software for making many HST's at once!  Thanks Sandie!!!

Be sure to click on over to JudyL's blog and take a look at what everyone else has shared for Design Wall Monday. It's my favorite place to visit on Mondays! :)  Have a great week everyone!

Love from Indiana!