WIP Bella Donna

couldn’t resist my Tula Pink Nightshade this week.  I got a fat quarter bundle of all the prints in the collection from Fat Quarter Shop, some Robert Kaufman Quilter’s Linen (Iris) and some Kona solids (Baby Blue, Petal, Thistle) from eQuilter and a healthy dose of Patricia Bravo’s Oval Elements (Crocus, Amethyst, Vintage Blue and Smoke) from Hawthorne Threads.
finished a quilt top this week, too with some stash fabrics and a (new to me) book

I don’t think I actually finished anything on my quilt to-do list, but I enjoyed sewing freely this week – quilts without a specific purpose (though the Nightshade quilt is for Halloween), and no pattern – we should all do that more often!!!
little sis Neptunia is helping me link up to Freshly Pieced’s WIP Wednesday

We are Siamese if you please…

that song played through my mind when sewing with this fabric from Michael Miller (We are Siamese in Cream).  I bought it with no particular quilt in mind, and out it came this weekend when I decided to just pull some of my stash and sew WITHOUT a plan.  Though, the real starting point was the Denyse Schmidt Flea Market Fancy Bouquet (Red) fabric, which I love, love, love.  I want more of both, so not really sure if I did much to lighten my fabric load. 

also used Kona Coal, Sherbet Pips by Aneela Hoey for Moda, a matching red (not really sure which/when/where that one came from), a pink and white polka dot from VIP by Cranston Print Works, and a Tiny Gingham from Michael Miller.

this quilt was inspired by Hop, Skip & A Jump from Denyse Schmidt’s book - Denyse Schmidt Quilts, an oldie but a goodie.  Mine’s a little less wonky, and not two-toned, but I think you can see how one might’ve come from the other.  I can see me doing something much closer to the inspiration quilt someday.  It seems like a very versatile quilt.  and I LOVE red and white together.   

I wanted this book for the Drunk Love pattern – I’m thinking of doing something similar with my Tula Pink Nightshade fabric.  had one heck of a time tracking down a copy since the book is out of print now.  I could’ve bought it from Amazon (I believe it’s still available there) but I like to page through quilt books before buying.  I ended up finding it at The Needle Shop (LQS in Chicago) – and found more inspiration in it then I thought I would.  Yay!  :-) 

Not Just a Swoon Starter

Nora’s Swoon finished!

 

Robert Kaufman Quilter’s Linen in Taupe

from Pat Bravo’s Summerlove Collection (Art Gallery fabrics); Retro Harmony in Cocoa, Malibu in Sun, Passionate Spirit in Peach, Tokens of Love in Aqua

from Joel Dewberry (Westminster/Free Spirit fabrics); Modern Meadow Collection: Acorn Chain and Herringbone in Pond, Heirloom Collection: Ribbon Lattice in Amber and Chrysanthemum in Jade and Paisley in Amber.

and Michele D’Amore Dandelion in Dark Aqua from Habitat collection (Benartex) and some Heather Ross Mendocino seahorses for the (ubiquitous) SHQ label.

QuiltCon Challenge Block

 

saw this challenge here and got excited.  I do this a lot with all the challenges out there, but then I think about how many people actually enter and my enthusiasm kind of dies.  BUT – I’ve been wanting to try out Moda’s Bella Solids, which are one of the fabric bundles listed in the fat quarter shop link on the challenge website AND – the blocks that don’t win will be made into charity quilts, which I wouldn’t mind being a part of. 

so I bought this bundle (at fat quarter shop)

(and used their photo, which I hope is OK because they photograph these colors much better than I do)

and started playing with fabrics.  this is the second time this week I’ve ignored deadline quilts and just cut and sewn – and it’s quite liberating.  I spent some time matching prints in my stash to these colors.  I seem to be stuck in print-mode, but tonight it was actually more fun to play with solids.  I can always work on those deadlines – tomorrow… 

zig zag

 

I got 3 columns of the zig zag together. have to cut more pieces this next week to continue. also need just a little more of the green Ty Pennington Moorish – one piece short… I can’t remember why I thought I had to do this some way other than half-square triangles, but I’m actually missing HSTs. just a little too much bias for me!

a friend of mine sent me fabric for my birthday – a Paris print to match Lili’s Paris trip.  such a wonderful gesture.  It was around my birthday – and made me so happy. 

only another quilter could truly appreciate how nice it is to get a package of fabric in the mail!  I am currently waiting for fabric for the back of nora’s Swoon AND have coming to me – a bundle of fat quarters from Tula Pink’s Nightshade collection.  I’ll be haunting the mailbox this week! 

WIP Wednesday Land Shark

 

seriously in love with this guy!  have a friend at work who’s got a weird love of sharks and I can’t wait to see her reaction when she gets to work tomorrow and finds this guy on her desk!!!  pattern from funky friends factory, 16 inches in length, fabric from equilter.com – Tropical Lei Garlands from Trans Pacific Textiles because my friend also loves Hawaii and has family there…

belly is a Hello Kitty (oxford cotton) pretend patchwork fabric (she also likes Hello Kitty) with some scraps of felt for mouth and teeth.

finished one quilt and one top this week.

here’s the baby Irish Chain, front and back

and Nora’s Swoon flimsy (isn’t flimsy a much more fun description than “top”?)

which doesn’t seem to photograph well – hopefully when it’s complete I can get some nicer photos of it.  might help to actually leave the sewing room…  it’s softer than these pictures suggest – I think it will be very nice for little nora.  I’m getting pretty good at the Swoon blocks, and it was so satisfying to actually put some blocks together!  I’ve also learned that Pat Bravo and Joel Dewberry fabrics play really well together.  I’ll definitely combine them again.

I’m hoping to find some time for the Farmer’s Wife QAL this weekend, will definitely get to the elephant zigzag quilt and I’ve got some dolphins in the queue, too.  Pop Stars can wait a little bit and Pickle Dish and Puddle Jumper are also on the back burner.  I’m going to have to re-baste that darn Pickle if I don’t get to it soon…   that would be a bummer!!!  :-)

happy sewing – and watch out for SHARKS!!!

linking to , walking the dogs and then enjoying your WIP posts… 

Baby Quilt (and my baby)

I had a little helper today for taking pictures of this finished quilt. It’s 40 inches square and my first Irish Chain.  I’ve wanted to make one for a while and I’m happy with how this one turned out.  I don’t have any idea how the mom has decorated for her baby girl, so I hope this will work for her.  I used various pinks and purples I had on hand, including two different Pat Bravo Oval Elements – currently love this print so much, I feel like I should buy it in every color.

backed and bound in Kaffe Fassett Lotus Leaf in Wine.

my helper’s camera-shy. 

but not my label!  :-)

WIP Wednesday

I finished the top of this quilt, which was no more than fabric and a thought last week.  I’m hoping to finish it by next weekend, so everything else keeps getting pushed aside.


side note – it’s for a high school friend’s GRAND daughter.  When did my classmates become old enough to be grand parents?!  I don’t feel that old.  But, my daughter just got her driver’s learning permit this week – so I might age a lot between this WIP Wednesday and the next.  


If you look at the picture too long, you might get dizzy.  I did.  something about the focus.  I really need to learn more about photography.

with my HR mermaid Swoon blocks, who are playing with the sea animals until I can give them more attention.











The third block of the Summer Love Swoon was pieced this week.  Here's what's great about the online quilting community.  It's been pointed out to me since posting this pic on flickr that the top goose is flying the wrong way!  I'd like to think I'd've caught that before gifting it, but what if I hadn't???  of course, now I'm back to an unfinished block again.  Oh the joy of the seamripper...
This needs to be finished by the end of the month.  I’m a little stumped on the fourth block.  I’m hoping the fourth completes the set, but I have a suspicion that I might need to make a fifth block and put the “extra” on the back of the quilt, which could make for a nice back, so not the end of the world.  I love this light blue Joel Dewberry fabric – I have it in the darker blue for the back of the Puddle Jumper quilt, which is currently on the back burner. 




the elephants are still hanging around waiting for me to get to them.  They’re such patient animals, so kind – they say “no pressure – and hey, that block looks great!”.  I like the support – they’d be nice to keep, but, alas, they too are destined for a friend’s baby.  They have a July due date, so still some time left to enjoy them on my design wall.


maybe they should've mentioned that errant goose?  








and I finished a runner for my desk at work, which wasn’t on last week’s list at all :-) (there’s more detail on that in my last post.)
hoping to get to play with this week: Farmer’s Wife QAL, Pickle Dish (!), Pop Stars.  thinking of starting this week: Melly & Me Dee Dee, Funky Friends Factory Sammy Shark.  That Heather Bailey/Jenean Morrison elephant seduced me to the softie side (4/15/12 entry, he’s worth a look!).


Happy WIP Week everyone!!  It’s nice to be part of this club. :-)


ETA - the link, Donna, don't forget the link!