Lillian + Oliver 5: Finished!

I know I just finished a Lillian + Oliver quilt, but this pattern is just perfect for babies!  I made this quilt for one of my great friends from college.  She came to me some time after she found out that she was pregnant and I was so honored to make this quilt for her first baby!

My friend had the colors for the nursery picked out, so I did my best to follow suit - checking in with her on every decision!

Some of the fabric is from my stash and the rest of it I found after scouring the quilt shop for what felt like hours!

The back of the quilt is a flannel from Bonnie and Camille.  It is so nice and soft!  It was a great choice for the back and I just love it!

The binding is the silver and grey print from the Cotton + Steel basics line.  The grey matched the other greys perfectly and I think that the binding is just the cherry on top.  It was a great way to finish up this little quilt!

I don't currently have another Lillian + Oliver on the books, but I'm sure that I'll make another at some point!  If you're in need of a baby quilt pattern, this one is a great one!  It's quick and versatile!  Check out my other four quilts!  One, Two, Three, and Four!

Currently Listening to: Miss You by the Holdup

Another Lillian + Oliver

I didn't realize, until just now, that this is my fourth Lillian + Oliver quilt!  I had forgotten all about the first one I had made.  This pattern is just so good.  I am in the process of making another and I'm sure there are plenty more in my future.

This quilt is quite literally going to be the sister to this Lillian + Oliver I made in 2013.  That same best friend is having another baby and when I found out I said, "Okay, if you have a girl, I'm going to make her a quilt with the same pattern I used before.  If you have another boy, I'll do something different!"  She was down with the plan, so when the gender was announced, I knew just what to do!

I walked the quilt shop for what seemed like hours trying to find fabric that I wanted to use.  I picked up one fat quarter, then another... it was a slow process.  Eventually, though, it all came together!

This quilt is way more pastel and no where near as bright as her brother's quilt, but you know, I think that's just fine!  My friend has already received the quilt and she loves it, so I feel good about my choices!

I regret that I'm not certain what all of the fabrics are.  There are two pinks from Into the Woods, several Timeless Treasures cross hatches, a couple confetti dots, and I believe the chevron is Riley Blake.  The back, however, is Best Fort Ever by Sarah Jane.  I just love this little print!  I quilted the quilt with a very light pink and I think it turned out great.

This was my only quilt finish of 2014... I finally started that Modern Maples quilt I had been threatening for awhile, but it is probably only a quarter quilted.  Now I have a few other priorities going on, so I'm not sure when I'll get around to finishing that, but it's on my goal list for this year.  (Which, it just occurred to me, I should share!  Maybe tomorrow?)

Until then, have a great day!

Currently Listening to:  The House You're Building by Audrey Assaud

Holiday Frost: Finished!

Just after I started my blogging "break", I finished Holiday Frost!

This is made from a free quilt pattern for Henry Glass and panel yardage for the center motifs.  It was a pretty easy quilt to put together, once everything was cut. 

I made this quilt for my mum and she decided to send it off to a quilter, because she really wanted snowflakes.  I think that the quilting turned out great!  

I picked up the quilt from the quilter and bound it for my mum.  It was a nice activity to do on cold nights by the fire!

All the fabric is Holiday Frost by Jan Shade Beach for Henry Glass.  I'm glad I checked this quilt off before the holidays!

Currently Listening to: Put the Lights on the Tree by Sufjan Stevens

Fireworks Quilt: Finished!

This quilt has been a long time coming...  I started this Fireworks quilt back in February and it took me until now to get it finished... Although I have some fair excuses, that's still a long time!  Nevertheless, it is done now and I can relax about it!



The quilt top is made up entirely of Constellations by Lizzy House.  I am totally in love with this fabric and I love that she made a print of stars on white so that I could use it as the background.



This is a Thimble Blossoms pattern by Camille Roskelly (link above) and it was written really well!  The "fireworks" came together easily after I made the first block and got the hang of it.  It did, however, take me 6 hours to sew together two blocks, since I made them two at a time.  This is not a fast quilt, but I would say it is rewarding.



For the back I used more Constellations and Timeless Treasure's sketch in navy.  I wanted to stick with dark fabric for the back because I want to use this as a stargazing quilt (once the weather warms up again!)



I quilted it in concentric circles and I absolutely LOVE it.  I first fell in love with concentric circles when I quilted my Dad's Body and Sole quilt last year.  I knew then that I just had to have my own quilt with those circles someday.  When I was stumped on how to quilt this quilt, I thought, why not?  I used a variegated thread so it shifts from dark blue to light blue to white and I love that!



Here's number two for my 99 in 999 goal number #33: Make a quilt for each month of the year!  This one is going to be June.  Or May.  I haven't quite decided!

Currently Listening to:  Jupiter Winter by Sufjan Stevens

Halloween Plus Quilt: Finished!

This quilt is finished, just in time for Halloween!  I am so THRILLED to finally have a holiday quilt for myself!  It is so exciting to me that I don't have to rush to wash and pack it up for a new owner!  How exciting!



I am loving the way that this quilt turned out.  The pattern is from Jeni Baker's Modern Plus Quilt Tutorial.  After all the cutting was done and the layout was finalized, it was a quick quilt to sew together.  It was kind of an instant gratification sort of thing.



The fabric for the top of the quilt is all Boo Crew by Sweetwater.  I really like this line because it's not so in-your-face with Halloween colors, but it still gets the message and mood of Halloween across.



I pieced the back.  That was new for me.  I spent a whole day just putting this back together and making sure it was big enough for quilting.  I can't say that I über enjoyed the process of piecing the back, but I can say that I love the results.  So, I'll probably do it again!  The back consists of leftover squares from the top, Moda black, Kona Iron, and a bit of Pure Elements Cabernet.  I basically used what I had and it did feel like quite an accomplishment at the end of the day!



I also did something else new for me - I machine bound this quilt.  I'm one of those people that really loves to sit on the couch and bind, so I never really had a desire to machine bind, but with Halloween being less than a week away, I decided that I could at least give it a try!  I'm not super thrilled with the result, so I'm not going to link to the tutorial that I used, but I think I'll leave it.  I'll try it again with a different tutorial in the future.



All in all, I'm happy with the finished quilt!  It also fulfills a twelfth of my 99 in 999 goal #33: Make a quilt for each month of the year!!  I can now check off October!

Currently Listening to: The Peace Carol by John Denver (yes, yes... Christmas music!)

Triangle Baby Quilt: Finished!

I sewed up this quilt top awhile ago, but it took me forever to finally get around to hand stitching the binding on.  I was determined yesterday, though, to finish it and get it checked off the list!

It's a pretty crinkly quilt, and I really like that.  I think the next time I make a triangle quilt, I'm going to cut my triangles bigger in the beginning.  I think some of the prints might get lost when the quilt is afar because the triangles are so small.  I think I cut them with 4" sides...

I used whatever blue, green, and yellow scraps I had for this quilt.  I even cut a tiny bit from my stash to bulk it up.  

I used one of my favorite In My Room prints by Jenean Morrison for the back and Outfoxed by Lizzy House for the binding.

All in all, I'm pretty pleased with the quilt and I think it'll make a nice gift for a sweet little boy someday.

Currently Listening to: The Hill by Bombay Bicycle Club

Houndstooth Quilts for the Twins: Finished!

Admittedly, I finished these two quilts before I got terribly, terribly sick.  However, I am really glad to finally post them and be done with Houndstooth quilts for a (long) while.



These quilts are rewarding once the quilt top is laid out and ready to be sewn together.  Before that point, it is too repetitive and monotonous for me to really get into.  I love the finished product, but it was just a bit too much labor to get there!



To save on frustration, I would recommend squaring up anything you can square up before sewing it to another piece.  I finally learned that when I sewed together the girl quilt and even though it took a lot longer to make, it was no where near as frustrating.



I probably will make this quilt again in the future, the finished product is too good not to, but I am glad to know that I should not make that commitment lightly!



For the girl quilt I used Kona White, Kona Cerise, and Kona Iron for the back.  For the boy quilt I used Kona White and Kona Iron.



I am glad that these two are checked off the list!

Currently Listening to: Make Her Say by Kid Cudi, Kanye West, and Common

Houndstooth Quilt: Finished!

Just in time for Father's day, I finished this Houndstooth quilt for Jake's dad!

I usually wash and dry the quilts after I photograph them, but I had such little time to finish this quilt that it had to be washed the evening before I could photograph it.  So... unfortunately you can see the crinkle texture of the quilt, but not a whole lot else... Any suggestions on how to photograph a crinkly quilt?

Right after taking these photos, it went right into a box to be wrapped.  

For the front of the quilt I used Kona Iron and Kona Pacific.

On the back I used a bit more Kona Iron and also some Lizzy House Constellations.

I had a hard time with this quilt.  The pattern didn't suggest at all that any of the blocks might need to be squared up, so I didn't think about it.  Since sewing this one together, the baby sized quilts for my friend's newborn twins have gone much smoother.  I like the finished product, but it's not my favorite quilt to actually sew together.

I am happy to check this one off of the to-do list, though!

Currently Listening to: Where Are You Now by Wolf Gang

Boardwalk Quilt: Finished!

It took me forever to finish binding this quilt, but I am so glad that this Boardwalk quilt is done!



This quilt is going to be auctioned off and the proceeds will be donated to Relay for Life.



All the fabric is from Sweetwater's Noteworthy line.



I quilted it with little loops.



As always, the wind was crazy!  But I do love those floating quilt photos!  It's always hard to choose one!



My mom chose this print for the back.  I really like it!  I hope this quilt finds a good home some where!

Currently Listening to: Sleepyhead by Passion Pit

May Fresh Mini Quilt: Finished!

I barely finished this little mini for the Fresh Mini Quilt Club before the end of May!  I shouldn't have left it to the very last, but I did.  I'm so glad it's finished and that it's another thing that I'm all caught up on!



For this little quilt I originally wanted to use a solid blue background and then make the stars out of various yellow prints.  I didn't have enough blue solid, so I couldn't do that, but I knew that I wanted the starts to be the same color in different prints.  Since I'm obviously into purple lately (check out my violet hair!) I went with some of my favorite purple prints.



I used Pearl Bracelets by Lizzy House, Spookyville, Gypsy Caravan, Color Basic + Plus by Lecien and the star print that I have no idea where it came from.  The solid is Kona Bone.



I used Tula Pink's Nightshade for the back and Alexander Henry's A Ghastlie Angle for the binding.  I really like how it turned out!  I think I'm going to give this little mini to my mother, who just loves purple!  I think it would make her office feel more home-y.

Yay for another success in the mini quilt club! Three down, three to go!

Currently Listening to: Heart it Races by Architecture in Helsinki

Lillian + Oliver 3: Finished!

As I mentioned before, this is the third time I have used the Lillian + Oliver pattern.  It's a great pattern that is fairly quick and satisfying.  I think, though, that this version of the quilt is, by far, my favorite.  I made this one for my mom because she has a co-worker that will be having a baby girl in June.  I was sad when I gave this quilt to my mom.  I really enjoyed hanging it in my sewing room and admiring it.

I apologize in advance, if there is a photo over load...

It was a very windy photo shoot.

This is my favorite photo, simply because of the movement.  I think it's gorgeous.

At the request of my mother, I added this "handmade" charm.

Inspired by Karen, I added this little heart in the quilting.  I find it endearingly messy, so I left it, rather than trying again.  I think I'll draw it first next time, though.  I didn't truly plan on quilting it in!

I bound it in just a couple of evenings, far faster than I intended to, and now, it is gone!  I could make another, but I like preserving the integrity of a true one of a kind.

As I have been mentioning, I will be making some blog changes this weekend and I'm excited for the new look!

Have a great weekend, friends!

Currently Listening to: Don't Hold the Wall by Justin Timberlake