Tag: Completed Project!

Finished: Frosted Stars Leftovers

Frosted Stars Leftovers - Front
Frosted Stars Leftovers - Front

The last time you saw this quilt was after Thanksgiving.

Last night I finished the binding while watching Oceans 12 and now it is ready to go off to its new home. I am not ready for it to go off yet, because I will wait for the end of the school and give it then. I decided I am going to go and get several large gift bags (no, I am not making them, though I probably should) and just start filling them up with quilts and Teacher Pillows. The thought of having a bunch of gifts to wrap at the end of the year makes me crazy.

I have to admit that I have never gotten over the feeling that the quilting will ruin the look of my piecing. It turns out that I am really pleased with the quilting. Colleen did more feathers, which I love. She also paid special attention to the various borders – no all over patterns for me. The other thing that is making the finishing of these various quilts much easier is giving her the binding and having her sew it on. I can just bring it home and start working on the binding right away. Wonderful.

I decided that I should take a photo of the back, so I asked my quilt holder to turn the quilt around. You get a lovely view of the back:

Smart Aleck Back
Smart Aleck Back
Frosted Stars Leftovers - Back
Frosted Stars Leftovers - Back

I like using the leftover fabric as the back, as I have said before. I prefer to use larger pieces, as I discussed when I was talking about making the back for FOTY 2010. Two panels were included in this group of fabrics. I thought it was a little odd looking, but one of them works for the back.

Finished: Purple Quilt

Michaela's Quilt -Finished!
Michaela's Quilt -Finished!

Here is the full quilt. I only showed part of it before, because it was too large to photograph in the space I had. I am going to make a second version in different fabrics with a few changes.

I wanted to get this one done so I could send it off, but didn’t get it done in time, so it will have to wait for the new owner to get home.

Finished: It’s a Merry & Bright Wrap

It's a Merry & Bright Wrap Finished!
It’s a Merry & Bright Wrap Finished!

I really finished this in December, but never got around to taking a photo. Here it is in all of its glory. It will be a gift. This is a pattern from Sandy Gervais called It’s a Wrap. Someone thought the packages looked like elephants.

The last post about this project talks about selecting the border.s

Sugar Pop CC

Sugar Pop CC
Sugar Pop CC

I still have a bit of handsewing to do, but I want to bring this to the meeting this weekend, so I am considering it done. 😉 As Margi says: My quilt, my rules.

This is a great pattern. Once I sat down, focused and stopped with my own creative drama, it really came together.

I know now why one should use the fusible fleece. It is much stiffer and makes the bag stand up very well. This one is a little floopier than my first Chubby Charmer. My closet is a bit emptier because I used batting I already had.

Bright Spring Journal Cover

Journal Cover - closed
Journal Cover - closed

Perhaps this is more summery than springy?

Perhaps I should have used more blues and greens and held on to this for summer? Nah! I was ready for some cheerfulness after the unbelievably grey skies of the past few weeks.

My plan worked. My plan was to alleviate the depressing grey that was shrouding my town. It worked! Today was beautiful out! Blue skies… no clouds. It was gorgeous, even from the window of my office. And, peeking out of my bag was this cheerful (bordering on loud and obnoxious??) journal cover. It made me smile every time I caught sight of it.

I used the Philip Jacobs fabric I bought at Always Quilting after PIQF 2010. I still want to make a bag or something larger, but I haven’t gotten to it yet.

I didn’t plan on centering the flower, but it was a pleasant surprise.

Journal Cover - open
Journal Cover - open

I used a bit of hand dyed fabric for the inside and added a little to the edges of Philip Jacobs fabric to add interest.

I have finished all of the pages my current journal, which has the Innocent Crush cover. I am sorry to be finished with that journal, because I wanted to carry it around in the Innocent Crush Flea Market bag. Adrianne brings her Flea Market bag to the BAMQG meetings and I admired it again at the last meeting. I wasn’t happy with the way my bagn turned out so I took it apart – not the whole bag yet, but the straps. You can kind of see the unevenness in the photo (the one I linked to above). I like the fabric and the design and didn’t want to just abandon it. When I made the bag, I was not able to sew the straps smoothly  which meant that I tried to ease the handles together, which, further, left tucks in them. I didn’t like the way the tucks looked. I have unsewed the handles and am working on lining them up better. I haven’t done any further sewing on them. We’ll see.

Yes, I can reuse the Innocent Crush journal cover and I might do that. For now, though, I am loving the cheerful and fun Philip Jacobs cover.

This is a quick project. I made the journal cover in about a half an hour on Saturday morning.

Finished: Black Jane Market Tote

Black Jane Market Tote
Black Jane Market Tote

I really like the Martha Negley giant vegetable prints. I am not sure why except that they are really different. This one was a much darker color than I thought when I bought it (online), which I mentioned when I made this pattern back in October. I was a little unsure what I would do with it.

This tote bag pattern is great! It is a good size and it is a useful size. I sew the straps a little differently than the pattern suggests, because I prefer the straps to be inside the seam. Otherwise this is a very clever pattern that goes together relatively easily and quickly.

I also think large scale fabrics show up very well on this pattern design.I finally learned to put the contrast fabric behind the pocket! TFQ likes to use the same fabric for the middle panel, but I like the way I have done it in the picture. I hope I remember to do it that way next time!

I have an idea in my head to make one of these a month all year. We will see: two months down, 2 bags complete.

My next wishlist item for this pattern is to make a bottom out of the fusible Timtex like stuff that Anna Maria Horner uses for the Multi-tasker tote and insert that to give the bag some stability.

Metro Coffee Jane Market Tote

Jane Market Tote in Monaluna fabric
Jane Market Tote in Monaluna fabric

This fabric was really a pain to cut. I cut it raw edge to raw edge, because I wanted the coffee cups to be right side up when I carried the bag. It really took a long time to cut, as a result.

I am pleased, however with the results. I wish I had switched the pocket fabric and the front panel fabric, but the colors go together, so I am ok with the way it turned out. I do have to sew up the opening on the inside that I used to turn the bag.

I am not working on one in the Martha Negley black vegetable print that I used before. I wanted to use up that fabric in the black for these style of bags.

I am trying to decide if I will make enough of them to give as gifts at Christmas. Shock, horror, I know, but I have to start thinking about it now, because I have to make 12 or so if I do decide to make them.

Red Journal Finished!

Red Journal - Closed
Red Journal - Closed

Here is the finished (completed! done!) Red Journal that I started on Halloween at A Work of Heart. I went to the second (and last) class on Sunday and finished. I could have done a lot more embellishing on the pages, but my ephemera wasn’t that good and I wanted space to write. Yes, I want to use this as a journal and not just a scrapbook. If my ephemera was more personal, then it would have been a good scrapbook making project, but I like the idea of writing in something that I made.

Red Journal - page 1
Red Journal - page 1

Above is the first page. You can also see the Malka Dubrowski fabric that TFQ gave me as a gift. I like the idea of see it more often. I may not really like writing in the Red Journal, but it is only 40 pages, so I can blow through it fairly quickly. What pen to use will be an issue. I see a Sharpie in my future.

Red Journal - pink crayon
Red Journal - pink crayon

The pink page looks like it was made with a crayon. I don’t remember doing it, but it came out of a big box of paper I had saved. I like it. We’ll see if I can write on it.

Red Journal - Star12
Red Journal - Star12

I really can’t say what possessed me to make the pages the way I did.  It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time.

I had homework and kept putting it off. After class last time, I knew there was no way I could finish all the sewing if I waited until the next class (Sunday’s). I was finally able to get to my Red Journal project in a serious way on Friday afternoon and evening. Essentially, in between the Frosted Stars and Frosted Stars Leftovers I worked on the pages of the signature.

Red Journal Signatures - in progress
Red Journal Signatures - in progress

I was particularly happy with this page, which was made from just an image that I had been saving for awhile. I was happy because I finally got to use it.

Red Journal Signatures - in progress
Red Journal Signatures - in progress

Making the pages took a lot of sewing. There are 2 signatures of 10 pages each, folded in half to make a total of 40 pages.

I really want to make another one of these journals. I can think of two people who would really like them as gifts. It is a ton of work, so I would only be able to make them for people who would really appreciate the time and effort. We’ll see.

As I have probably said 42,000 times, the outside of this journal is made from fabric I made by sewing scraps of red fabric together a la Shannon Williams.

Cheerful Baskets FINISHED!!!

Cheerful Baskets
Cheerful Baskets

The Cheerful Baskets is finally finished! I am pretty excited, because this quilt has been long in the making. TFQ had some trouble getting it quilted, so we dropped it off with Colleen in Long Beach and then picked it up at PIQF. She did the most amazing job of quilting it. The quilting is masterful.

TFQ put the binding on (in case I have never said, she is the fastest binder in the universe!) and I just finished with the label and sleeve.

Cheerful Baskets detail
Cheerful Baskets detail

This quilt will go and live at TFQ’s house after I get it photographed. She has a gorgeous periwinkle wall where it will look fabulous.

FOTY 2009 FINISHED!!!

FOTY 2009 Finished
FOTY 2009 Finished

My Fabric of the Year 2009 project is finally done. DONE!!!

I was pretty sick of it when I quilted it back in April, so it took me awhile to get the facing on it and then the sleeve. Fortunately, the label is part of the back.

This is not the most spectacular photo, but it is better than nothing and, I hope, you can get the idea. I am thinking of hanging it in my office . I can get a better picture if I do that.

Chocolate Box Finished

Chocolate Box Finished
Chocolate Box Finished

The last bit of the Chocolate Box I had to do was the sleeve. I made it in a short amount of time and then it seemed to take me forever to sew it on. I really had a hard time keeping the tucks out of the back of the quilt. Not sure why. Anyway, another project off my plate. Hooray!

Pillowcase Finished!

Robot Pillowcase #2
Robot Pillowcase #2

I had to finish something this weekend aside from the interminable pressing and patch cutting. I pulled out one of the pillowcases I had prepared when The Child was making his and finished it. These pillowcases are soooo unbelieveably easy. The worst part is cutting the fabric. I think I have one more prepared and then I’ll have organize more fabric to make a few more.

TFQ is making a bunch and she tried sizing down the Twiddletails pattern slightly. She said it came out fine and she didn’t have to cram the pillow into the case. I want to avoid that at all costs. I want the pillow to slide in so it is a 2 second linen changing job rather than a 20 minute pain and torture session.

One of the best things about this particular pillowcase is that the seam where the cuff, trim and body of the pillowcase all come together matched up! I was really excited about that!

Matching Seams
Matching Seams

I know it is silly, but I really like doing the best job possible so that people don’t say that I didn’t pay attention. Since these are going to kids with cancer, I really want mine to be the best they can be.

On another, but slightly related note, my mom loved her Sweet Dreams Pillowcase. She left SoCal almost as soon as she received it, but she said she used it at least once.

I am still working on a number of projects on which I have made incremental progress. That is one reason I needed to whip out the pillowcase. I needed to finish something!

Finished: Knitting Box

Knitting Box Closed
Knitting Box Closed

Yes, the Knitting Box, which seemed like such a failure, is finished. It took me much longer than I thought it would. Even though I should be done with this project, I am tempted to make another just because I would like to perfect the process as well as make a few modifications.

Knitting Box Open
Knitting Box Open

SIL likes it and I hope she will find it useful. I was nearly finished when she dropped off her child and requested a wrist band instead of the belt loop she originally requested.

Knitting Box One Flap Open
Knitting Box One Flap Open

No dice. I did not want to rip out the seam and insert a longer loop. I didn’t have it in me. Fortunately, SIL is very thin and the belt loop was generous enough to fit over her hand. It is tight enough not to slip off as she is in transit.

The above photo shows that I added some snaps. I had some large black snaps on hand, which SIL said would be fine to use. I decided I wanted something to match the piece. I looked for pink snaps in several local shops with no success. I am sure I have seen colored snaps before, but I couldn’t find any. I must have seen them online. I finally bought clear snaps and they work well to keep the box closed. I was able to finish it while she was out.

Corner Detail
Corner Detail

Part of what I wanted to do was secure the corners into a small box shape. I did that with beads and Laura Wasilowski hand dyed Perl Cotton. I hope it holds up. If not, I can fix it.

Snaps in Action/Corner Detail
Snaps in Action/Corner Detail

Above you can see the snaps and unfolding action as well as a bit of the corner detail.

Open View from the Side
Open View from the Side

I put two snaps on the edge covering the section where the yarn will come out. I thought that SIL could only snap one in order to allow the yarn to flow out more smoothly.

Another View - Closed
Another View - Closed

You can see how the yarn would come out with one snap open.

Another View - Closed
Another View - Closed

I will be really interested in how this project actually works in practice and if SIL uses it. I like the way the box looks in this picture and wonder if it will stay like that while she is on the go and knitting.

One of the things I really ended up liking about this project is how it became a group effort. I appreciate my SIL and my niece helping me figure out the solution to my challenges and to all of my readers who gave me resources. I also appreciate the opportunity to do something a little different and to Ruthann Logsdon Zarroff of Mirkwood Designs for posting the original Truffle Box pattern.

Thanks!