Fast Fun Quilt

After finishing up all the quilting on my Round and Round Quilt, I needed something easy-peasy.  A while back I had purchased a kit with this great chevron pattern and knew this was the one for me!

I bought it because (1) I didn't have to think about which fabric to use, (2) It looked easy, and (3) I could practice quilting different designs in all the different chevron strips.

I'm tagging along with my husband this week while he has meetings and we are soaking up the sun in Tucson right now. I've forgotten which magazine that this came from, but I do remember the fabric is from Art Gallery's Nordika collection - super soft and very nice to work with.

Oh, and here's a photo I just have to share. Since I don't have any grandkids yet the next best thing is to have a grand-kitty.  This is my daughter's kitty, Copper. My daughter is a gemologist and jewelry designer, hence the name Copper. And hence her title, "Copper Goes for the Gold (necklace)" in honor of the Olympics this month.  It's all fun!

Isn't that about the cutest kitty you've seen?

Well, no sewing or quilting for me this week since I am away. Instead, I'm catching up with all my quilty blogging friends, and longing for a car so I could go visit Tucson quilt shops! Oh, well. My pocketbook will thank me for staying put.

Remember to quilt with a smile,
Barb

Linking up with Work In Progress Wednesday at Freshly Pieced and Linky Tuesday and Quilt Story's Fabric Tuesday.

One Small Step Forward for Me!

Thursday I put the finishing touches on my Round and Round quilt. And to say I was thrilled to be done with it is truly no exaggeration!

Round and Round Quilt quilted, bound and finished!

I initially won this Camille Roskelley pattern from a give-away hosted by Michelle who blogs as Mrs. Sew And Sew.  She sent such a nice little note with it, that I thought I'd just go ahead and work this up. I liked the design, and I thought it would be a great quilt for me to practice my free motion quilting on my longarm machine.  Well, that it was, but it took forever and a day longer than I anticipated.

Closer view of the round-abouts

I loaded this quilt and started the design motif for the center of the rounds based on a design borrowed from the Spring Blossom quilt in Judi Madsen's new book Quilting Wide Open Spaces.  I knew that I was going to take an all-day class from Judi at the AQS Quilt Week in Phoenix, and so I wanted to get acquainted with her book before hand, and be ready to put my new-found knowledge to work once I got home.

After I created a template for the center flower, and I learned how to mark the floral designs in the center of the stars.  After stitching in the ditch around all those dang triangles of each star, I did a simple curlique around the remainder of the quilt.

With so much negative space to fill up, I recreated the star pattern to float down through the negative space on each side of the quilt. That was fun!

Originally I had not been certain if I liked the deep gray tone of the background fabric, so I wanted something bright to liven up the backing.  Much to my delight, I found this wonderful fabric (I've forgotten who made it now.) and it was on sale - score!  Its gray tones coordinate well with the front.  Oh - the stars on the front were made from two charm packs of Moda's Breezy Batiks.

All in all, I'm pleased with my results.  I got a thumbs up from my local quilt guild gals, so that made me happy.  This was quite a fun pattern to piece together, too.

This project was on my list for finishes in the 2014 Finish Along!!  On to my next project now!

Remember to quilt with a smile,
Barb

Linking up with Needle and Thread Thursday,  Linky Tuesday Quilt Story, Thursday Favorite Things Blog Hop and Can I Get A Whoop Whoop?  
2014 Finish Along  

Go For The Gold

This month is just flying! I love watching the Olympics in the evenings, and I must say, I tuned into live streaming of the Women's Half Pipe event yesterday to watch the finals.  Our hometown sweetheart, Kaitlyn Farrington, from Bellevue, Idaho (population 2,300) had made it into the Finals and I just had to watch right then and there. Couldn't wait for the evening broadcast.

And guess what? SHE WON GOLD!!! How awesome is that? Pretty darn cool.  Here's a little video that her coaches and friends made for her to watch just prior to her winning ride.

Good Luck From Sun Valley!! from Mark Oliver on Vimeo.

The take away from this video shows that there are years and years of hard work behind each and every medal these Olympians earn.  The same is true of our quilting.  I don't really know when I will feel like I've 'arrived' when it comes to longarming. Impatient as I am, I want to be there NOW!  I know that's just not possible, so I practice and learn and practice some more. Learn from my mistakes, and forge ahead. Get up the next day and do it all again. One day I will arrive!

On a different note, here's my February block for the Aurifil BOM.  I like how the colors in the fabrics interacted.

I'm almost finished with my Round and Round quilt - just have to put on the binding. Whoowho!! I'll post pictures of that tomorrow.

So for now, remember to follow your dreams and enjoy the ride,
Barb

Linking up with Needle and Thread Thursday and Linky Tuesday.

Facelift

Of all the weird things!

I woke up this morning and decided my blog needs a facelift. Where did that idea come from? Crept in there from some far corner of my brain.

And today, of all days, to add this task to my To Do List! I need to pack because I'm making the trek to Phoenix for a few days of Quilt Show Loveliness at the AQS Quilt Week Phoenix.  I'm taking longarm quilting classes from Lisa Sipes and Judi Madsen, and will get to spend some fun time with my husband's aunt - golf, cocktails, maybe take in the Dale Chihuly glass exhibit at the Botanical Gardens. Who knows what - just relax and enjoy the moments.

Relax, Barb. Just relax. This blog facelift will definitely wait. I'd better pack. My plane leaves in a few hours. YES!!!

Oh - I finished binding my first quilt for Scrap-A-Palooza! Even snuggled in it last night. Fun, fun, fun! And this is one of my February goals for A Lovely Year of Finishes. Right on target.

I apologize here - cannot figure out how to get the photos turned correctly. But you'll get the idea!

Remember to quilt with a smile!
Barb
Linking up with Freemotion By The River's Linky Tuesday and Quilt Story's Fabric Tuesday

February Goal for Lovely Year of Finishes

Well, shoot. I made my January goal too difficult. It just wasn't realistic with everything else I had going on.  But I did feel accomplished to get the Round and Round quilt pieced. And I have finally figured out how I am going to quilt all the negative space in it.

Looking at the calendar, February is a short month, plus I'm going to be gone for nearly two weeks, so I will make my goal easier.  My goal for February is actually two goals.

1.  I want to finish quilting the Round and Round quilt.

 

Sneak Peek at Round and Round Quilting

 2.  I will bind my Freedom Quilt, which is a project for Scrap-A-Palooza.

It's hard to see the quilting, but it's a floral motif and works well!

That's it. #2 will be easy. #1 is taking forever and the next day, but I will get it finished because if I don't, I can't get anything else quilted until it's off the frame. Good incentive for me. 

Looking forward to seeing what everyone else is working on for February!

Remember to always quilt with a smile!
Barb