Sweet Little Nine Patch

I started this quilt almost a year ago. Although extremely simple it is one of my absolute favorites. 

My original plan was to make my Mother a set of placemats for Christmas but once I started making these tiny nine patches I couldn't stop.  They finished at 3.5 inches and were a cinch to make with strip piecing.  I did myself a favor though and cut my strips in half and that made a huge difference in ripples.  I mean ... NO ripples!  I learn a little with each quilt I finish and my lesson with this one is to use shorter strips and alternate the sewing direction with strip piecing.  Such a big difference!

After I while I'd hit my limit with the cuteness and just sewed all my patches into an Irish chain pattern.  The result was a quilt that is 40" x 46" , just perfect for a couch and a lap. 

My label on the back :)

For the first time I  hand quilted with quilting thread instead of Perle cotton and I love the finer, daintier look.  Chunky is fun and cool for some quilts but I felt this one was a little more refined. 

My progress pictures on my instagram account so you can check them out there ... along with all my gratuitous doggie pics.  

I'm linking up to the Blogger's Quilt Festival over at Amy's Creative Side in the hand quilted category.  Take a hop over there and join the fun. 

Blogger's Quilt Festival Fall 2013

I'm submitting my newest quilt in the Blogger's Quilt Festival and entering it in the hand quilted category.  Apologies to my regular peeps for the repeat, but how can I not enter a quilt I named "ode to autumn" in a fall quilt show.

The beginnings and ideas sprang from a color challenge in the Old Red Barn Co quilting group and a stack of Lotta Jansdotter fabric.  The large prints were a challenge in themselves as I wanted to showcase some of the fabric and was looking for a way to leave big chunks of print.  An improv coin quilt turned out to be the perfect solution.  With autumnal solids and the fall palette I was set on creating a quilt that would honor the warm slices of colors seen throughout the Northeast.

I hand quilted the entire quilt top in mostly straight lines but with some random patterns thrown in there to break it up a little.   Yes, I quilted the whole entire quilt top by hand.  Are you gasping?  I hope someone is because I have to admit I've received less than stellar reactions from my non-quilting friends.  "Wow. That looks like a LOT of work" with a slow head shake was my most popular reaction.  Prompting me to agree and gush, 'Yes, but it's amazing, isn't it?!" Geesh people.  Make me draaaaaaag it out of you .....

The quilting commenced in March and finished in September with serious lulls during the humid months. Perle cotton #12 is my current favorite quilting cotton.  It's a bit finer than #8 but is still chunky enough to be noticed. 

41" x 63"

I can see already that I'm going to be spending many quality hours perusing the beautiful quilts over at the Quilt Festival.  I'm sure I'll find tons of inspiration and with the cooler fall weather I'll be invigorated to start some new projects. 

Baby! Oh! Baby! Granny Squares

The granny square phenomena that's been sweeping the quilting blog interweb even reached into my little part of the world.

I made this baby quilt with the Old Red Barn Group that I started my quilting journey with three years ago and we used this  tutorial from Jolene at Blue Elephant Stitches.  The best part of this quilt is it was a true scrap buster and I actually used all the scraps I have accumulated from my past projects.  Memories flooded back as I cut, sewed and reflected on the changes in my skills (better  ... I hope) and the knowledge I've gained from my many, many learning experiences (as I euphemistically call my mistakes).  I've got a long way to go before I feel even remotely accomplished but I have come a long from where I started.

::  hand quilted  :: perle cotton #8 :: 35" x 44"  ::  backed with a print from Joanne's ::  scrappy binding ::  that's all ::

I'm linking up to the Bloggers' Quilt Festival at Amy's Creative Side.  Please go over and check out all the wonderful bloggers and their fantastic quilts.  Be warned .... you'll be there a while!

Kallie Lou

Hand quilted, freshly washed and out on a photo shoot.  May I introduce Kallie Lou,  my kaleidoscope quilt.

50" x 70"

I am probably the last finisher of Betsy's quilt a long but a finish is a finish.  And a finish is pretty exciting over here at the Bailey Girl household.   I was a little nervous starting a project that involved templates, points and lots and lots of cutting but doing this step-by-step with a fun group really kept me going.

I'm still in love with hand quilting. If you want some of my tips click here. 

I loved picking out the fabrics.  Anna Marie Horner, Tufted Tweets and Denyse Schimdt in all their quilty glory.    Was that a little dramatic?  Nah .... I didn't think so either.  I  backed it with a duvet cover that I bought at a garage sale.  It was so nice to not piece a back.  

I'm entering Kallie in the Blogger's Quilt Festival hosted Amy.   Pop over there and enjoy the beautiful quilts and read their inspiring stories. Make sure you have a drink and some snacks nearby ... you'll probably be there for a while!

I'd like to thank the stage crew.  
They make a photo shoot in wildlife refuge a little less ridiculous 
and a lot more fun.

BQF Baby!! Hand Quilted Log Cabin

My Bloggers' Quilt Festival 2011 quilt is fresh out of the dryer and it's still warm as I post this.  It's 100% hand quilted and I can say one thing about hand quilting for sure .... it's NOT a quick process.  I've been working this quilt for months and am so happy with the finally finished results.

Rainy day photo shoot.  My son is standing in about three inches of water. 

These are some hearty, chunky log cabins and I love the added texture and color the perle cotton #8 added with the hand quilting.   I figured some hearty squares needed some hearty quilting.  I used all the leftover strips to add a border and the final size is 48" x 62" ... perfect for a cozy couch quilt.
 

I hate to choose favorites but I just love the blue square in the lower left corner.

Looking back I see I was working on the squares in February and quilting in April .  If I continue with the handwork I guess my blog postings will be far and few between unless I write "still hand quilting" updates once a week.

I love the way the quilting shows up on the back

Attempted close up of the back

Thanks to Amy for putting this Festival together twice a year.  It has to be a monumental task but it sure it a fun way to meet other quilters and see some amazing quilts!  Click on the link below to check them out.

Blogger's Quilt Festival

Made with love for my youngest son

This is the quilt I chose for the Blogger's Quilt Festival.  It's the quilt that got my whole family tired of hearing me say "wonky log cabin."  It's the third REAL quilt I made but the first one for one of my loved ones. 

I made this quilt for my youngest son Carson to take to college with him.   He could see I was having a hard time with him leaving, and he could also see that I was really getting enthused over quilting.  One day when we were talking about college (I admit ... I may have been tearing up a little) he said that he thought an orange and purple quilt would be cool to have on his dorm room bed.

I'll never forget that he said that.

I LOVED making these squares! 

Working on this quilt gave me real purpose and was a blessed diversion after he left.  I was bound and determined to give him the coolest orange and purple quilt in the whole world.   Carson is a fun person to design a quilt for because there are so many interesting facets to his personality.  He's an awesome guitar player, a physics loving geek, a mystery science theater lover, an avid reader, a drum line member, a .... Well, I could go on and on here ....  

For the very first time I went to internet fabric shops (who knew!) and poured over the fabrics to find the perfect ones.  I even swapped for the first time when one of my new flickr friends offered to send me a fat quarter of Michael Miller guitar fabric.  I found a funky orange martian print,  some kooky birds, bright purple rings and yards and yards of kona eggplant and tangerine. 

My favorite square with the martian peeping out

I loved making the free flowing wonky log cabin blocks.  I was free to design each one individually and each one was my favorite.  Oh the excitement when I'd get the final trimming done and could see the new creation!  I felt like I had a good eye and could balance out the wonkiness perfectly.  I was trusting myself and things were coming together perfectly.  It may have been about this time I said "wonky log cabin" one too many times for a certain person.  Ahem. 

I gave this quilt to my boy during his Thanksgiving break from school.  I'm not sure how much a quilt really means to a nineteen year old boy but I know he loves that I made it for him.  When I look at it I just remember how kind it was of him to say that he wanted it. 

Ok Jada!  You can be in the back shot.   

Carson today with his adorable girlfriend Jessica.  I was making them stare into the sun.