Better Than The Sum of The Parts

I am on a roll with zip bags.   I don't know why, but Julie's tutorial just made it seem so easy, and it really was. 

This one was made from 5" squares, so it is four times the size if the originals.

I used a stack of squares that I rescued from a very poorly pieced lap quilt top I bought in a bunch of stuff at a church sale. The squares were cut perfectly, but the seams were the wonkiest ever, so I 'unsewed' them. The fabrics were not ones I would likely purchase, but my goal was to use it to practice some "dot-to-dot" quilting from Angela Walter's Craftsy class. 

The squares were a great size for the designs that Angela teaches, and now that I finished it, I don't even notice the individual fabrics. They just all kind of become a color pattern. 

After I filled it, it began to take on a box shape, so I am thinking about possibly adding a snap to the ends so that it would stay that way.  

One change I made with this bag is that I quilted the lining to the pieced shell so the seams inside are raw edged.  I don't think that will matter, though, as this size will more likely be used for closet or shelf storage.

I plan to make a couple more of these bags. I think they will be good fmq practice and since they zip, they will keep the dust out of whatever is inside. 

How  do you use 'ugly' fabrics?

Sewing Something!

I finally got back to the sewing machine!  

Craftsy sent me an email with a screaming deal discount  (75% off!) on a class of my choice.  I guess they do that if you haven't signed in for a long time.  Their strategy worked, and I am glad because I had been wanting to enroll in Leah Day's class "Free Motion Quilting a Sampler". 

It was my intention to take the class and use it as a guide to quilt the top I made in the "2012 BOM" class, but I had resolved not to enroll in any more classes until I finished all the ones I had already paid for. 

 I couldn't pass up the deal, though...

After watching a few lessons, I was really itching get started, but first I had to get some organization reinstated in the sewing room. I made good enough progress to have a modicum of workspace, even though I still have loads to tame. 

I basted my eye spy quilt first, because it is smaller and because I had a back all ready to go.  I didn't really have a quilting plan in mind, but I didn't want to stipple or pebble, because they both bore me to tears and it is hard to stay consistent. I decided to try Leah's 'echo shell' which is kind of a Baptist Fan variation and do an all over design. 

I will just say that I made every error possible.   It is not a quilt I am emotionally invested in, though. It was intended to be a charity quilt from the get-go and it will be a good quilt for dragging around, making a tent or spilling things on. 

Of course, I got a bit better as I made my way through the quilt and I identified some areas for improving my set up, so I am feeling pretty good over all.   I am  finished with the quilting.  If I can finish up the binding today,  I might have some stash usage to report this week.

Which is good, because I added some this week   I just couldn't pass up Heather Ross' "Briar Rose". And, I bought a fat eighth stack of "Bluebird Park" a new Moda line that is super cute.  That makes about 8.5 yards I need to work off!

I better get to it!

Finished! The Quilt Formerly Known as Poor and Sad!

 My thread came yesterday and I finished up this quilt today.

It is quilted, bound and washed.  And, the stains came out!

I tried out a new motif and refined a couple of others.  I still have opportunity to improve in consistency in my fmq, but making progress.  I do feel good about the pieced back and the binding.  The binding is pretty even, front to back, and that was an area that I really worked at on this quilt.

This quilt measures 49" square and it goes in the donation bag!

Friday Finish - Autograph Quilt!

It's a little late in the day, but here is my Friday finish.

I changed up the layout of this quilt over the course of making it - first, to keep it small and second, so the focus is on the autographed strips.  I narrowed the border pieces and turned it into kind of a stacked coin (dollars?) layout.  

I quilted  the vertical strips with loopy scallops - some of them look like I did them in italics, but I got a lot better by the end!

 

In the other sections I practiced several other motifs. 

I machine stitched the border, since this will only be a wall hanging. I have seen machine sewn bindings that look nice enough to be "seen", but mine do not, unfortunately. 

Last night at guild meeting, a member asked for donations of toddler quilts for a program that gives birthday parties/gifts to children in low income families.

I have a lot of estate sale/thrift store fabric and quite a few juvenile panels that I think I could make into some cute quilts.  I am pretty confident that my free motion quilting skills are at the point that I could do them pretty quickly, but I would like to be able to machine stitch the bindings so they will be sturdier and also, quicker to finish. 

If you have a favorite machine binding tutorials to recommend, I would appreciate any tips!

I would love to have 5 or 6 quilts to deliver to our next meeting!

Go here and here for more Friday Finishes and Free Motion Quilting!