Life has handed me many changes lately, not all bad. In fact, there are many blessings. But, they are all time consuming.

So, my progress with sewing has been slow.

However, the blocks for this idea are nearly done. Only about 15 to go. It is based on a honeybun (I had one laying around). I call it Honey Hush.

Hopefully more to share soon.

A few weeks ago my niece had a baby girl.  So of course I just had to make a quilt for the new baby.  

 

Homeward by Monika Forsberg for Anna Maria Horner Conservatory by Freespirit Fabrics.

But I didn't really do the maths first and I ended up with left over squares.  So I decided to make a little dolly quilt for the baby's almost two year old big sister. 

But then I still ...

I am working on a tutorial for a charm pack baby/throw quilt. This is the first draft.

This one used 4″ squares and finishes at 35-1/2″.

It is a cheerful use of scraps and will be donated to the children’s hospital.

It may be a while before the tutorial is ready, but that will give you time to gather up a likely charm pack and some background fabric. Any suggestions for a name?

It started out as an untidy pile of promising pieces.

Now it is a finished quilt.

The common denominator number is 4″. That is the finished size of the blocks, except the star blocks, which are 8″. It went together fairly quickly, once I had the idea.

I am so happy with the finished product. Someone out there will be happy to receive this piece of sunshine.

When I received a hand-me-down bag of fabric with a few small pieces of this darling hedgehog/squirrel/bird print, it was too cute to throw away. Surely it could be something…

The pattern is simple, but hopefully it will make a family happy.

The nine patch blocks started as 4-1/2″ squares. The star blocks have 6-1/2″ squares of that cute print as centers. The quilt finishes at 36″. It could be made using just about any fabric.

There is something satisfying about taking another look at fabric and creating around that possibility. Thank you to all who ...

Was eine Freude, wenn ich mal wieder Kundenwünsche erfüllen darf! So, wie jetzt diesen schönen Baby Quilt 'Trip Around the World' zur Geburt von 'Carlotta'

Meine Kundin kam mit dem Wunsch nach einem Baby Quilt zu mir ins Quiltbüro. Das Baby war noch nicht auf der Welt. Damit das Geschenk gleich nach der Geburt fertig wird, haben wir uns darauf geeinigt, dass ich das Top soweit fertig mache, um anschließend rechtzeitig noch den Name sticken zu können.

Die Eltern haben sich ein Petrol als Grundfarbe gewünscht - ganz mein Geschmack! - und nachdem wir uns auf  Muster 'Trip around the World' geeingt ...

It is tempting to believe (and to show) that those leftover bits and pieces magically become a quilt. But the truth is more untidy. When I get a box or bag of leftovers, I usually have to lay them out and think about it for a while. Then, gradually, an idea starts to come together.

These pieces will be a baby quilt, about 36″x36″. I am sorting pieces and starting to create blocks: 4-patches, a few stars, some plain cut squares. And those pinwheels snuck in somehow. We’ll see how it turns out.

In June I made two quilts for people who were becoming grandparents. I knew the grandparents but not the baby’s parents that well. It was a bit of a puzzle to come up with a color scheme for the baby quilts. Both sets of parents were so kind to sent me their preferred colors and photos of the baby’s room.

Baby #1’s parents really liked the Dutch baby brand ‘Little Dutch’ which had wall paint as part of their collection. I selected some colors from the range that would fit with the colors in the photo of ...

How did I ever finish a quilt before my grandcat moved in last year?

Here, while preparing to audition different bindings on a gift baby quilt, Cleo helpfully provides aeration. Certainly, the extra movement and fur will make my binding more accurate.

For Cleo, quilts in progress provide a far better high than catnip. 

Next, the finished quilt, which I had to bring outside in order to get a picture of it flat.

This is my oldest UFO. I think I started it about 6 years ago. I found the floral print in a Texas shop in San Angelo and knew I was going to use this pattern. It's free here Spring Splash. I don't generally gravitate towards quilts with only 2 or 3 fabrics (although I do like ginghams quilts), but I thought this was a fun way to show off a fabric you really love. I've made a few versions of

 I saw this pink floral fabric in a little quilt shop in Amarillo a few years ago and simply couldn't leave without some.                                 A sweet friend was having her sewing machine serviced and I had tagged along. We always get into trouble when we're together. I knew immediately that

Happy Friday! I have some personal projects to show for the first time in a long while. These baby gifts are for a few friends having little boys. I love making these 60 degree triangle quilts for babies, so simple and dramatic.  I like to choose a backing fabric and then pull fabrics for the front based on the colors in the backing. (You can see a couple others here.)

This family is honoring a grandfather who was a pilot, so mama-to-be especially loved the backing fabric. I was happy to use some sock-monkey fabric on the front that I ...

Friend Cheri shares her leftovers with me from time to time. It is always exciting to get a new bag of possibilities.

Sort and straighten and ask, “What do you want to be?”

Somehow, I was seeing stars. And that gave me a place to start.

I added a few fabric scraps from stash and adjusted as I went along. I don’t know how I would write a pattern, or even a tutorial for something like this. It is an interesting process, though. A discovery every step of the way.

And the, Ta-dah! A quilt!

Finished size is 33 ...

You know by now how these things get started: someone gives me something. In this case, as part of a larger bundle of possibilities, there were three matching 6-1/2″ applique hearts. Much too cute to trash. I did consider pot holders, or a table runner, or a banner. But what they wanted to be was a baby quilt.

I had a little bundle of fat eights that “happened” to match perfectly. I love it when that happens. All that was needed was some background fabric and something to make centers for 6-1/2″ star blocks. I really wanted to ...

This is another of the charity quilt kits Sparkle Jane and I created several years ago. One of my goals this year is to get them all put together and delivered to people who can use them.

The colors scheme came from the tipi print–too cute! Some colors are all the same, and some are mixed scraps. Works for me!

There is nothing wrong with simple quilts. They have their own appeal.

I KNOW I saw a tutorial for this, but now I can’t find it. If you know of it, please tell me and I will update the post.

So, the point is that I had this pile of novelty fabric squares that needed a job. An Eye Spy quilt is the obvious solution, but I felt that there was something more possible.

I love the way this turned out. I had yardage of this interesting green, and it seems to highlight without overwhelming. (More of it will be featured in another upcoming quilt.) If you squint, you might recognize ...

I really like hand-me-down projects. They introduce an element of mystery and challenge my skills and assumptions.

The bag held a pile of friendship stars. Some had names written on the seam allowance, leading me to believe they were part of a long-ago block exchange. Some spin one way, and some another. Maybe that is what held the original maker back?

They finish at 6″ square, so, to make something of a usable size, something would need to be added. Sashing is an easy go-to. But, what color? Not white. Not cream. Not black. None of them worked. Oddly, as ...

(Below, a brand-new human on a recently finished quilt. Eyes are covered to protect anonymity.) 

Is romance in the air? For whatever reason, in my world, babies are a-poppin! Fortunately, I am prepared! Here's my neonatal kit: An oversized shoebox full of maybe 200 4" squares, some of them sewn into 9-patch blocks.

Unpacked, below, you'll find stacks of squares, many tourniqueted with torn white fabric strips, and the category name scribbled in pencil on torn-paper labels, in handwriting so terrible (mine) that I can barely read them. 

In the photo above, the categories, starting on the top ...

 I've been trying hard to stay focused on my 2024 quilt list, but new projects can be quite bossy. The other day I was sorting through projects on hangers...they all needed something...either a backing or a border or a binding or they were waiting to be quilted. These two fabrics were hanging togetherThey are from 2 different companies and I've had them for at least 10 years, probably longer