New life...

Remember how I said that five of my co-workers were having babies this spring?  The shower for baby number 3 is tomorrow, and I am READY!  I pulled out a small top that I finished a couple years ago, thrilled to see that I had also already pieced a backing and stored them together.  Good thinking, Erin!

I pressed and basted on Thursday,

quilted and started binding it on Friday,

Instead of just plain cross-hatching again, I stitched on both sides of painter's tape in a modified cross-hatch.

I don't watch nearly as many shows as I would like, but binding a quilt is the perfect time to watch.  This is Heartland - I absolutely LOVE the scenery!

and finished binding it on Saturday (today)!

It is currently in the wash, and when it comes out, I will sign it, wrap it up and pat myself on the back.

The block is inspired by Melissa of Happy Quilting's Summer Breeze pattern.  The sashing and cornerstones to create the little Shoo Fly blocks in the corners and middle are my own spin on the pattern.  I'm happy to say that I used up every bit of the fabric scraps that I chose for the front by incorporating them in the back. 

The quilt measures 39" square and is destined for a little girl who is due later this month and whose name has yet to be revealed.

That is FOUR finishes for me already this year.  What took me so long to jump on the "simple quilting on the domestic machine" bandwagon?  Yes, I love to hand quilt, and I will likely continue to hand quilt those that I make for my own family, but I'm definitely going to keep machine quilting these tops that I've completed over the years who have been patiently waiting their turn to go under the needle.  Hmmm, which quilt should I do next?

Actually, working on a baby quilt and thinking about new life has been sustaining me during what has been an emotionally trying couple of days.  On Thursday, I learned that a friend with cancer was just told she has no more than 100 days to live.  I want to find a quilt from my stash of tops to finish up and send to her to let her know I'm thinking of her.

And then, this morning I received the phone call that my beloved aunt suffered from a ruptured aneurysm yesterday, and is now in a coma with a CT scan that reveals that she is brain dead.  The doctors say there is no hope for recovery.   They removed the breathing tube and she is breathing on her own now.  They say she doesn't feel any pain, but that it is only a matter of time before she is gone.  I'm alternately numb with shock and weepy with grief.  She is one of the most beautiful, loving, generous, fun and fierce people I know, and I am going to miss her deeply.

This is a happy memory from a visit the boys and I made to her house two and a half years ago.  She was pretending she was going to drive off in our new Jeep.

I will be linking up with Oh, Scrap and Monday Making.

Shoo Fly Breeze?

Remember this quilt I started back in 2012 based on a photo I'd seen of Melissa Corry's Summer Breeze quilt?

Remember all the trouble I had figuring out the pattern so I went ahead and bought the pattern?  Well, someone's having a baby, so I dug through my UFOs to see what was close enough to whip together quickly.  This one won, even though I had to rip out some seams to fix some glaring mistakes (I left the little mistakes in there).

It measures 39" square (ish)

Man, I love this quilt!  Even with just seven fabrics, it makes me happy.  But now that I look at the pattern that I bought, the dimensions are not the same and my setting is different, so it isn't really a Summer Breeze quilt, just one inspired by it.  What to call it?  Shoo Fly Breeze is all that comes to mind, but that's not really an ideal name for a baby quilt.  Any ideas out there?

Definition of a baby quilt

Babies are everywhere around me these days.  Two of my local friends just had babies.  My younger sister just discovered that she is pregnant.  And last week I received a text from another friend that she is having a baby, too!  You know what that means, right?  BABY QUILTS!!!

Part of me wants to use quilts that I've already started rather than start new quilts.  I have so many UFOs that it is embarrassing.  But what makes a quilt a baby quilt?  The size?  The colors?  The pattern?  I pulled out some of my current and not-so-current projects to see what I have to work with. First, there's the blue quilt I started this week.  I've got 30 of the 50 blocks done.  It should be 50" square, or I can make it 40" x 60".  Which size would be more useful?  Which will look better?  We'll have to see.  Would this work as a baby quilt?

I started this scrappy log cabin thinking it would be a baby quilt, but then had second thoughts.  What do you think - would this work as a baby quilt?

I've got many more blocks of this version of Bonnie Hunter's Virginia Bound than I thought.  I could finish a baby top in an evening from these.  But I kinda had my eye on this one for myself...

These bright blocks Summer Breeze would make a nice baby quilt, don't you think?  The only problem is, I only have one completed block and two  nearly completed blocks.  There would be a lot of work for me to get this one finished up, but at least I had the foresight to keep the fabrics together with the blocks so I didn't use them I something else.

I've got a bunch of these I Spy blocks I've been making from novelty fabrics that come into my possession.  I guess that is always an option, but the thought of working on this doesn't excite me right now.

Maybe my flannel buzz saw blocks?  Flannel would be so soft and cozy for a baby!  But where ARE my flannel buzz saw blocks? Uh oh, UFO missing!!  It's probably for the best - I doubt I want to work with flannel during these warmer months, anyway.  Hopefully it will turn up before fall...

But look what I DID find!  I'd already started quilting this one, so I'm making an Executive Decision and declaring this a baby quilt!  It has just been bumped up to the top of my hand quilting list.

Any thoughts or comments?  I'd love to know how you approach making baby quilts.

Keeping the postman busy

I gotta tell ya, there are some gadgets out there that just THRILL me!  Two came in the mail yesterday:

a double dog leash so I can walk my 176 pounds of dog flesh (apparently, together my pups are about 20 pounds overweight - I'm not saying how overweight I am, but if walking them helps me shed some pounds too, then BONUS!)

These aren't my dogs, but the lab looks quite a bit like my Biscuit

a Beam N Read hands free 3 LED light.  I foresee much more hand quilting this summer.  See, here's the problem:  I like to hand quilt while watching something.  And I long to use my home movie theater more.  But the movie theater has a projector and screen, so you need to have the lights off for it to really work.  If the lights are off, then I can't see to hand quilt.  Enter the Beam N Read!  I've been wanting one for a while, but hadn't gotten around to getting one (I'm pretty cheap, guys; I talk myself out of lots of purchases because I don't NEED them).  I finally decided to treat myself, and I LOVE IT!  I used it while reading to the boys at bedtime last night.  I used it while closing up the chicken coop last night.  And I pretended to use it in the movie theater last night, but didn't actually quilt because the other thing that came in the mail was...

the first disk of Cranford.  Who was it on here who recommended that?  I watched the first episode and loved it!  I look forward to having time to go down there and watch the next episode - maybe tonight?  But anyway, I didn't hand quilt because with a new series, I need to pay attention, get used to the accents and figure out the characters, otherwise I'll be lost.  Perhaps on episode 2 or 3 I can multitask.  Certainly with McLeod's Daughters or Glee (my current watches).

I'm also sending something OUT in the mail today.  Yesterday I finally made my star block for Beth at LoveLaughQuilt.

For Beth's Starry Quilt project

I also started my Zig Zag Quilt Challenge quilt - I want to make another baby quilt, so I'm using a multicolored polka dot and some solid primary colors.

Fabrics for Zig Zag Quilt Challenge

The beginnings of my Zig Zag Quilt

And for my leader and ender project, I made a couple more blocks for my Summer Breeze quilt. I think I am only going to make 3 more for now, and make this into a baby quilt, too. I have enough bed-sized quilts waiting to be quilted - I think my new projects should be smaller.

Lots of other things going on on the deisgn wall - ignore those

So yesterday was a GOOD day - great mail, progress on projects, some time to relax in the home theater.  Here's hoping today will be a winner, too!

'Cause I'm stubborn like that

While visiting some Sew Mama Sew giveaways today, I came across a quilt pattern that I just loved, Summer Breeze by Melissa Corry.  Isn't it lovely?

"I can make that," I said to myself.  So when I got home, instead of hand quilting my Good Fortune Lil Twister (which needs to be done by June 2 for the baby shower, mind you), I pulled out some fabrics and set about making one for myself.  And quickly discovered why people buy patterns where the designer has already done the math.  I couldn't get one part of the blocks to line up for the life of me!

I ripped out seam after seam, and still couldn't get things to line up.

I cussed and nearly cried, but the seams still wouldn't line up.

I grit my teeth and vowed to figure this out - but so far, no luck.

If I know me, I will try again tomorrow, and possibly the next day, too. And eventually I'll have a whole quilt worth of imperfect blocks.

But even if I do figure it out, I'm going to buy the pattern from Ms. Corry - she is a better woman than I am figuring out how to make this lovely quilt.