A Finish!

It has been a long (like embarrassingly long) time since I have had a real ‘finish’!! Oh sure, there have been lots of starts – but no finishes! I had forgotten how good it feels!

Do you remember the Seams of Opal quilt? That I posted about and did tutorials one, two, three and four about? I also had an update about it here.

Well – this is the grand finale of updates!

When my nephew ‘baby Jack’ was born – I knew this quilt had to be his.  It is the perfect ‘throw on the floor and add baby’ quilt – lots to look at and tons of texture.

Originally 100 6 inch squares large – it had been made smaller because somewhere between Ohio and our final landing place I lost 6 blocks! And really – I didn’t feel like going back to the beginning (see massive tutorials above!) and he is just a small baby (and he isn’t a twin!) so how many square feet does he need? AND my mommy is going to take some of the (now) extra blocks and make him a big floor pillow to go along with it!

So without further adieu (and I really need to paint that floor – add it to the studi-O-rganization)

Here it is! I LOVE HOW IT TURNED OUT! If there is a repeated fabric in here – it was an accident! So much to see and ‘spy’ and if each block is 6 inches plus about  2 inches of sashing then this quilt is about 62*62 inches (or about 5 feet square). Plenty big for lots of activities!

And the back ain’t no slouch either! This quilt is a quilt as you go ‘a la Allison’ (again, see tutorials above) and each block has a different backing fabric and therefore it is a reversible ‘I Spy quilt’! Can you say ‘greatest Aunt ever is forgiven for  not having this ready for his birth???’ Hey, I can try, right?

A closer view of the front.

A much closer (and slightly out of focus) view of 1 block. Each block has a different free motion quilted motif in the center square and then the rest is ditch quilted.

I used my prized  Bias Tape Maker
for this quilt and really, I can’t say enough about this machine! I love it! It spits out perfect bias tape every time!

I hope this little guy loves it (the quilt, not the machine) as much as I love him!

Oh and YES there will be an organizing post very soon! Starting with Fabric:)

Trying to podcast is sometimes like…

calling a really good friend and getting a busy signal! Frustrating; but you really really want to talk so you keep trying.

My frustration is trying to coordinate ‘time’ with ‘umph’ – you know what I mean?  Because I know that it will be long phone call – so much to say, catch up on, laugh about – but it has been so long that I wouldn’t even know where to start!

I need to tell you guys about so much! Moving; the house; the sewing set-up; the latest project (this is a goodie for everyone), and so much more!

My parents are in town at the moment but I promise – a new episode filled with quilty goodness is SO on the way!

Now for a pretty picture…. From the NQA show … and a UFO of mine… inspiration to finish!

And Sew it is…

I had a FABULOUS time at the National Quilt Association’s 41st Annual Quilt Show in Columbus, Ohio yesterday.  Today, June 20th is my 39th birthday – all I wanted was to go to this quilt show without the twins, for the whole day, and without being expected to prepare breakfast, lunch, or even dinner.  Thanks Jarrod for giving me everything I wanted:)

The quilts were so extraordinarily gorgeous – this was one of the first times that I actually spent time (because I had it!) looking at all of the quilts, photographing some, and drooling over many more!  I hope to be able to keep posting more of these impressive quilts over the next little while!

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Gee, I guess I can TOTALLY relate to getting carried away!

It is SO big that the whole quilt isn’t even displayed! It is folded over at the top.

The detail is incredible.  I mean, look at that basket! All of those lines are appliqued – all of those flowers are made up of many layers… wow.

Little, Tiny Circles.

I love the color choice of this flower! It is all 1 piece and it is perfect.

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More to come!

Seams of Opal Progress report!

For anyone who hasn’t been following along with the Seams of Opal project – you can see video tutorials here:

Part 1 – getting your materials together and start cutting

Part 2 – sewing with the paper piecing method

Part 3 – Free Motion Machine Quilting with Freezer Paper Templates

Part 4 – Assembling the QUILT AS YOU GO!

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And now for the progress report – I have finished paper piecing 100 blocks (finished 6.5″) and I have also finished free motion quilting the center square for all of them.  Now I am stitching the ditch for the remainder… Wonder if I can finish before the move!

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Assembly line paper piecing…

Assembly line trimming….

Closed up a free motion center square (each is different)

It’s coming along!

I wish real estate could always be this easy.

Seams of Opal Continues…

The seams of opal quilt continues on toward the 100 block goal… I have pulled it out again and started to chain sew/chain press/ chain cut/ repeat!  So easy to pick up and put down without losing my place! So little time lately to get into the studio so this is a great one to have out.