4x7 Sewing Challenge - Week 3 Update

Howdy y'all, hope your weekend treated you well! We've finished the third week of the 4x7 Challenge hosted by Berry Barn Designs! I didn't sew selfishly every day this week, but I've gotten so much done that I don't actually mind. :) As you saw, I finished 'Peels of Patience' last week, which I'm absolutely thrilled with! It's had some cuddle times and I just catch myself looking at it on the quilt ladder when I'm not using it, it's just so colorful.

Within the last week or so, I was commissioned with not one, but two baby quilts! My MIL asked me to make one for a friend of her's and my Mom asked me to make one for a family member. Both are for girls and both are full of pink. Though I hate pink, I do have to say I like what I'm working with. Here's a sneak peek, I'm hoping to get some blog posts together later this week!

Gloomy days make for crummy picture. :P

This quilt is so happy and bright in real life!

What has been most amusing this week, however, has been when I haven't been sewing. I started walking my Mom through the quilting process this week. It's been hilarious and fun and I've loved it! She's so unsure and panicky at times (I had to make the one cut in her fabric she needed because she was too afraid), but she's having fun! It cracked me up when she was watching me draw out some quilty math in my notebook and she said it was the spitting image of how my Dad approaches his home improvement work. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree it seems! :)

So all in all, I may not have sewn selfishly everyday, but it's been another pretty stellar week. If I can get my hands on some Kona this week, you may be seeing those hexies from week 1 make an encore appearance!

Peels of Patience: A Finish!

That's right folks, I finished my Orange Peels! Y'all have been seeing these blocks since I started blogging and they are finally completed! :) All the orange peels are appliqued onto the background squares by hand using the freezer paper method. I used this tutorial that Amanda Jean shared over on Crazy Mom Quilts when she made her orange peel quilt. After that, I machine pieced the blocks together into a top.

THE TEXTURE!

I almost did the quilting with with my free motion foot, but decided at the last minute to use my walking foot/zigzag foot. I figured I could get straighter lines and be more consistent, but would have to pivot that quilt at every single corner. It was a pain in the booty, but I'm glad I stuck with my decision! The light gray thread I used just blends into those low volume squares, you almost can't see the quilting unless the light catches it! For the binding, I decided to take a note out of Scrapmaster and The Running Thimble's book and go low volume. I'm loving those little dots! :)

This isn't a very big quilt, but it's the perfect size for a car ride or to cover my lap while blogging or sewing on the couch.

And of course, a simple label. I decided to call it 'Peels of Patience' because the majority of the time I was sewing orange peels was in waiting rooms or waiting on other people. These peels saw many doctor offices, at least one emergency room, and several other places.

The backing really shows off the quilting, I love it!

I'm so glad to get this one finished and ready for some cuddles, though it will be weird to not have it to work on anymore. I'll just have to find another project for waiting rooms I guess!
Linking up with Finish It Up Friday and TGIFF! Also, this was my goal for OMG February! :) Also also, this was one of my goals for the 2016 Finish Along - First Quarter!

This quilt makes me so happy! :)

4x7 Challenge - Week 2 Check-In

Howdy y'all, another week has come and gone! Can you believe we are halfway through February? I've been sewing selfish every day this week for the 4x7 Challenge hosted by Berry Barn Designs, but I don't feel like I have much to report on. I've played with my hexies a little bit, but no progress worth photographing. Most of my selfish sewing time has been spent quilting my Orange Peels! I'm almost halfway done and loving it! :)

This quilt makes me so happy :)

Lots and LOTS of pivoting and wrestling with this one!

I also spent some time playing with my stash and making plans for future quilts. If only I could make all the quilts I want to! That seems to be every quilters lament, right? I've got fabric pulled and at the ready for two baby quilts and a pattern picked out for one of them. I've got lists for future quilts on what needs done, what needs bought, and the like. So much possibility on the horizon, I'll try to share some of those plans this week!

It's been too long since LBC had a photo op on here! Lol

What has been most fun about this week, however, was a trip to Jo Ann's with my Mom. She has decided to make a quilt. That's right! SHE WANTS TO MAKE A QUILT!! I can't contain my excitement! She had me help her pick out some supplies and has already let me know I'll be coming over to help her. :) She has two sewing machines at the house, so she said I could bring a project over and make it a sewing date! I can't wait!!

Here's to another week of selfish sewing guys, hopefully I'll have a finish to unveil soon!

4x7 Sewing Challenge - Week 1 Update!

It's hard to believe we are already 1 week into February! It has absolutely flown by! It's been a flurry of doctor's appointments, physical therapy, and birthday and Super Bowl parties for me, but I've managed to have selfish sewing time everyday this week and have kept up with the 4x7 Challenge hosted by Berry Barn Designs.

Every day except 1 day was spent playing with these hexies! I love how colorful they are in my little fox bucket. I've got an idea floating in my head for a quilt, though it's not your typical grandmother's garden or hexie quilt. I just don't think I have the patience for one of those yet! Lol. I also basted my Orange Peels one of those days, so it was a double dose of goodness. :)

The one day I didn't do any work with hexies, I tidied up my sewing space and stash, pulling out some fabrics I could use for hexies as well as some fabric for future projects. Getting it out into view will help me think of some design ideas I think! All in all, a good week of selfish sewing in my book!

OMG February: Orange You Glad I'm Finishing?

 I was so proud of my two blog posts this week that I nearly forgot about the One Monthly Goal linkup over at Red Letter Quilts! If you're like me and are a little late to the party, there's still time (I believe the linky closes on Sunday).

Dear ol' Orange Peels. :)

I batted a couple of ideas around, but finally settled on one that I've wanted to finish for a long time: My Orange Peels. I got the backing back in January after winning the Throwback Thursday giveaway. Once again, I managed to botch color matching over the internet, but I still love the print and, as I told myself, it's just a quilt back. I can hear some of you banging out harsh rebuttals to that statement, but that's what I tell myself sometimes after killing myself to make the top.

I swear it wasn't that brown when I ordered it! Lol.

I just finished basting this one tonight (my back is aching but my heart is happy, so it balances out, right?), so my goal for February is to quilt, bind, and label it! These blocks were the first WIP Wednesday I ever posted on my blog (and it looks like I started them last January, so this has been a year in the making!). Here's to a finish! 

Finish It Up Friday: Birthday Edition!

Pika-CHU!

What, two blog posts in a row?! That's right!! I finished up a little present for Mr. LBC this week since his birthday is Saturday. He's a huge gamer nerd and, like many of our generation, he still loves the Pokemon franchise. I think I hear the Pokemon theme song at least once per day in our house, my husband belting it out off key to the amusement of Elvis and LBC. While I was perusing Etsy for possible gifts, I stumbled across this awesome store that had this cool piece of geometric artwork of Pikachu, probably the most popular character in the entire series. As soon as I saw it, I saw a sewing project!

Fun doodles! It was like a puzzle in reverse. :)

So I got to brainstorming! I drew a rough sketch on a piece of paper and traced it onto some Heat n' Bond. I was a big dumb-dumb and forgot to mirror the image, but no harm in the end.

Stitching away!

After bonding it to the material, I laid out the pieces the way I wanted onto a big scrap of gray fabric and ironed them on. Then it was time to stitch all those shapes down!

This was the point I squealed in excitement because it actually looked like what I wanted!

Simple line of quilting to outline Pikachu.

I did a super simple line of quilting around the shape to let the design shine. Then I made a simple backing with some leftover flannel scraps I had.

Hullo little leopard pillow, do you like your new cover?

As you can see, I still haven't figured out the backing. Lol. I told my husband I can't keep the pillow from pooping out the back, which he got a kick out of. I MUST look up a tutorial so I get it right next time! Fun bit of info: That leopard pillow is actually from my childhood bedroom! I'm so glad to be able to make it useful again. :)

Mr. LBC loves that I called him a Pokemon Master. Lol. The things we do for love! Hahahaha

I also added a simple label, which Mr. LBC liked.

Linking up with NTT and Finish It Up Friday!

Throwback Thursday: The Final Kid Quilt of 2014

 

Howdy y'all, it's that time again! Jenn over at A Quarter Inch From the Edge is hosting Throwback Thursday again! I can't believe I still have quilts to share, but quilts for the kids in my family are keeping me going. :)

This one is the last of the 'quilts for the kids' saga that was Christmas 2014. This one was for the oldest boy of the kiddos, though he is still little in my eyes. He's in grade school and is allllllll about sports. It was surprising how hard it was to find coordinating sports fabrics. This was also the time I experienced sticker shock when buying a college sports fabric (THOSE LOGOS TRIPLE THE PRICE, I SWEAR!)

I'm not entirely sure what I was going for with this quilt. The layout is...I'm not entirely sure. I think I was running out of ideas for simple layouts involving squares and just sort of winged it! Lol. Super simple quilting and a plain backing kept with the KISS method (keep it simple, stupid!). A scrappy binding rounded things out for a quick finish.

I remember I actually delivered this one after Christmas. I got sick right before Christmas that year and wasn't able to finish this last one in time. By some quirk of fate, however, this kiddo didn't show up for our family Christmas party and didn't miss out on getting his gift that day! My aunt texted me when he opened it after I delivered it and said he loved it! I think she sent me a picture of him curled up in it on the couch around that time too.  I have to say, my favorite part of making quilts is the love they receive after they are gifted.  :)

What about you guys? Do you have a ghost from quilty past you want to share? Head on over to Jenn's and link up if you do, there's a giveaway too!