Summer is almost over... if climate change hadn't been shifting our seasons it would have been done already, but I'll take 80-degrees-days into September & maybe October!
I started the summer making outdoor pillows for the porch my hubby was building onto our house. We've had a patio to enjoy since we moved in, but a covered porch allows being out in a rain storm, a nap outside, furniture that can stay out! So the pillows were done and he said we needed curtains to block the late-day sun, so I made those too.
Have you worked with outdoor fabric? It unravels when you just look at it and I was working on an 11 x 6 foot curtain of it! Sew a line first, then cut next to it--lesson learned the hard way! Once those were finished I could go back to sewing quilts!
It's been a very productive summer for me--now it's time to catch up and see what I've been up to....
I started the summer making outdoor pillows for the porch my hubby was building onto our house. We've had a patio to enjoy since we moved in, but a covered porch allows being out in a rain storm, a nap outside, furniture that can stay out! So the pillows were done and he said we needed curtains to block the late-day sun, so I made those too.
Have you worked with outdoor fabric? It unravels when you just look at it and I was working on an 11 x 6 foot curtain of it! Sew a line first, then cut next to it--lesson learned the hard way! Once those were finished I could go back to sewing quilts!
It's been a very productive summer for me--now it's time to catch up and see what I've been up to....
I did meet my June's 'One Monthly Goal' (OMG) and finish the quilting on my "Sand & Sea" quilt. I even finished the binding, washed it & put it on the bed to use.
I used washable markers (oh yes, I tested them first!) to mark my waving quilting lines. I have a table behind my machine to keep the quilt even, and I added a second table to my left to hold the quilt up while sewing. That really helped since the quilt is Queen-size and, although I used a thin batting for summer use, it weighs a ton!
I used washable markers (oh yes, I tested them first!) to mark my waving quilting lines. I have a table behind my machine to keep the quilt even, and I added a second table to my left to hold the quilt up while sewing. That really helped since the quilt is Queen-size and, although I used a thin batting for summer use, it weighs a ton!
I worked on my Rainbow Spiderweb quilt this summer, too. I finished the top in June, then looked at it for a couple weeks before forcing myself to finalize the quilting design by making it my OMG for July. It was more intricate than I've done before (by machine), but I marked it carefully and worked out a way to quilt it side-to-side, so I would not have threads to bury!
I finished marking it, and just quilted it. A good finish!
I finished marking it, and just quilted it. A good finish!
August was filled with the latest Curated Quilts Mini Challenge (black & white), and my County Fair entries. I have loads of B&W fabrics that remind me of the 80's, and animal prints: cow and zebra! I went at this challenge whole-heartedly! I sketched over 20 designs and sewed 8 of them. Some combined into one quilt. I ended up with 4 quilts I was pleased with, of which I entered 2: the top left two in this picture.
I entered quilts into the Great Geauga County Fair again this year. Mostly I made "Baby Blanket Blessings" quilts for the NIC Unit at Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital. When I saw they had brought the category back, I just had to make quilts for it!
It also was my OMG for August (3-5 quilts). It turned out to be the only OMG ever that I did not meet: I only had 4 quilts done by Sept. 1.
It also was my OMG for August (3-5 quilts). It turned out to be the only OMG ever that I did not meet: I only had 4 quilts done by Sept. 1.
I did however get them all done in time to be donated to the Hospital, so I call it a win.
The green and brown quilt ("Frog on a Log") was the one I entered and won 3rd Place with--the rest were donated without entry.
The green and brown quilt ("Frog on a Log") was the one I entered and won 3rd Place with--the rest were donated without entry.
There were 7 categories I had quilts to enter into this year. I received a ribbon in 5 of them! My patchwork pillow won 1st Place; my quilts received 3rd Places and an Honorable Mention.
I'm so thrilled--the quality of all the work entered this year was fantastic! And I'm honored to have won in that field!
I'm so thrilled--the quality of all the work entered this year was fantastic! And I'm honored to have won in that field!
Once again I am taking part in Cheryl Brickey's Mystery Quilt Along. This year it's "Mosaic Mystery Quilt." These are so much fun! I asked for a peek at the finished quilt with last year's mystery, and then I wished I hadn't. Not this year--it's a mystery until the end!
So far we've cut out all our pieces & sewn houses with some of them. We'll be working on this until April, so its just the start.
I decided to make 2 quilts: a batik version with a scrappy background (lots of low-volumes), and a red & white version that will use some Eastern-European style, old-timey prints I received from my Aunt Lil when she de-stashed a couple years ago. They look Russian and Scandinavian to me and I wonder what she was intending to make with them? I'm using the Russian-style red print for the background because I have 4+ yards of it.
Currently I'm working on a marketing piece that will be released in October, so no pictures yet! The binding will be added today, pictures taken this weekend and hopefully sent out by Monday. I can't wait to show it off!
So that was my summer of sewing... what have you been up to?
So far we've cut out all our pieces & sewn houses with some of them. We'll be working on this until April, so its just the start.
I decided to make 2 quilts: a batik version with a scrappy background (lots of low-volumes), and a red & white version that will use some Eastern-European style, old-timey prints I received from my Aunt Lil when she de-stashed a couple years ago. They look Russian and Scandinavian to me and I wonder what she was intending to make with them? I'm using the Russian-style red print for the background because I have 4+ yards of it.
Currently I'm working on a marketing piece that will be released in October, so no pictures yet! The binding will be added today, pictures taken this weekend and hopefully sent out by Monday. I can't wait to show it off!
So that was my summer of sewing... what have you been up to?