Tablerunner Bliss

Morning friends!  How was your weekend?  It was nice and not scorching hot here, so I loved it.  All that fresh air coming it changes my whole mood.

Also changing my mood, fresh new projects to work on! Fat Quarter Shop sent me a copy of Sherri Fall's new Tablerunner Bliss book and isn't it the cutest!  I love Sherri's designs, so cute and clever.   And isn't a tablerunner the perfect sized project?  It's like the equivalent of a snack... something small and fun and won't get in the way of your bigger project. 

 

To me they're also the perfect size to make seasonal, or novelty, or to explore color combinations you don't normally work in.  Or just to sew and have fun! Stitch one up as a gift! All those things. 

 

I've already cut myself a kit for the table runner.  No point in waiting right?

 

Ok, get busy and have a great week! xop

 

Sew Day

Morning Pals!  I've been busy being energetic the past few days.   We had one coolish day and OMG LIFE FELT LIKE IT WAS WORTH LIVING.  Ok, sure, that's a bit over dramatic but the summer is slowly sucking my life force with the hot weather. Thanks goodness I don't live in the hard core desert.   You'd have to give me up because I would be a complaint machine.

 

Anyway!  I managed to organize some stuff and assemble some backings and actually clean up a bit in my cutting room aka Frankie's room.  Yesterday I  thought about my little project with the Spelling Bee book and got busy cutting and stitching up the letters.  Lets just say  lack of sleep in the late afternoon made some really simple cutting and sewing a challenge.  But I persevered and it's so cute.

 

I'm going to make this into a PILLOW! What a surprise right? I think it would be cute on Frankie's sofa, and she's my favorite cutie so why not.  And unlike her mother, she actually uses her pillows so it won't go into a vault like it would here.

 

Love this book, it's got so many really adorable projects and of course all the little pictures to go with the letters.  Clever.   Lori sure knows how to cute things up!

 

Alrighty! Today is sewing group! Have a good day! xop

A Friday Finish!

Morning friends!   I have finally finished my Flower Power  blocks and have sewn them together.  The solution was easy once I got over my own over thinking, I just threw on the borders required to turn these blocks into a square and called it a day. 

 

I don't know why I want to make things more complicated.  I still like the way it turned out, and although it's not quite the same proportions, which were so perfect, close enough.   Now comes the debate.. do I have the attention span to do that narrow almost match stick quilting as in the original design.  OR, does it end up in the pile of unquilted objects? Only time will tell! Sometimes I make something just for the heck of it.  I love piecing.  

 

Today I'm paging through my Spelling Bee Book, I have an idea for a project using those cute letters.  Stay tuned!

 

Happy Weekend! xo

Warning: This post may contain complaints.

Morning peeps! We've had a lot of hot hot days here.  I know it's *just* 100 but it feels so much hotter.  

 

Ok, I ranted, then deleted it all and now we're back in blog business.  I've wanted to get a nice photo of my Jelly Roll Railway quilt for a while, so Monday I took it out for a car ride.  I really love people show their quilts off on beautiful fencing, green rolling fields behind them, maybe even a horse strolling by. 

 

 

This is California,  too hot and mostly brown, and way too sunny.  So you're stuck with pictures that are like the one above, half bleached by the sun and half in dark shade.

 

This one looks like I had it rolled up in a ball in the trunk of my car.. oh well, this is how life is sometimes.  I really loved making this quilt, even though I didn't use a Jelly Roll.  You could go through your stash like I did and make your own Jelly Roll.  Make two, one for a friend, then invite them  for a sewing date and have some fun.  Wouldn't everyone like that?   Bring snacks!  

 

I hope you're keeping cool where ever you are.   I'm grateful for your friendship and AIR CONDITIONING! xop

Do as I say...

...and not as I do as the old saying goes.  ALWAYS check the settings on your print job when printing out templates.  I know this lesson but I  was using my little Samsung tablet to print from and I never checked the settings, just printed and started sewing.

 

When it came time to stitch my points onto the rest of the flowers... they were too small.  Insert my sad face here.  I  did scale down the width  but should have spent the time to  change the proportions of everything so it would all be in scale.. but I didn't. My flowers are still so cute but now I have to recalculate everything as the blocks are no longer square and won't easily fit into that nice layout from the magazine. 

 

AND NOW I SEE ONE MY MY LEAF SETS IS UPSIDE DOWN.

 

More Pam Problems. I  am not winning with this project. 

 

I won't let it get me down.  I still love my little flowers and will do something with them.  Maybe not right away. I don't know.

 

Hope your weekend gets off to a good start! xo

 

 

 

Flower Power

Good morning!  How are things on your side of the screen?  I'm excited about my next project, this Flower Power tulip cushion from Love Patchwork and Quilting designed by Lindsay of Pen and Paper Patterns.  I love tulips blocks, there are so many ways to make them from applique to piecing and these chunky wide  tulips are great. I've seen so many great tulips lately, I wonder, are they suddenly more popular?

 

This pattern involves a row of paper pieced points, and that was a bit of a challenge to me.  I made a first pass and had complete failure, which you already know if you're following along on Instagram.  But I cut some bigger pieces and tried again with success, and in fact, the last two strips went really fast.  With more experience I would have had no trouble using the size pieces Lindsay has you cut and I appreciate the minimal waste they would provide. 

 

On a side note, the templates from the magazine are available on the website for easy printing! Genius idea. 

 

I can't wait to finish this up today.  I was just so thrilled with my little paper pieced wonders I had to share. I hope all is well with you friends. xo

Its summer.

Morning friends! Hope you're doing well. Summer is chugging along here in PamKittyVille and it's Capital H HOT!  Not a fan at all.  Luckily we live in a little valley and the fog from the coast creeps in between the hills and cools us off so most mornings are pretty nice.   Saturday morning I sat outside and read through Lori's new book Spelling Bee.  It's so, or make that sew CUTE.  What a clever idea, not only the alphabets and numbers, upper and lower case by the way, but also punctuation,  and fun new blocks, like the globe and telephone, new flowers a dog and butterfly.. just so many cute new things, and lots of cute ways to use them.  I'm not done  looking it over yet, but I got off to a good start.  Thanks so much Fat Quarter Shop for sending it to me.   Oh and also, lots of cute peeks into Lori's cute home, which I always love. 

 

Yesterday I finished sewing my rows together, finally.  I can't wait to show a better photo but it was just too darn hot yesterday.  I keep looking for pretty places to take pictures but right now every where you go it's brown and dry, not too picturesque.

 

These Jelly Roll Railway blocks are so fun to make.  With all these prints and the floral fabric for the background it's a Pam Kitty Mishmash but that's my favorite.  So much color and pattern in one place.  I'm loving the hourglass blocks that are a bonus design element created by using 2 prints, in each block.   You just make sure that you have your block oriented  with alternating prints. You could totally go wild and use many prints but for me that adds a level of complexity to the block layout my attention span can't handle. It was a very fun sew and I enjoyed it a lot. Best of all was enjoying the memories of that fun first collection using some of those prints brought back. 

 

Can you believe we're at the end of July already? Where does the time go? Hope you're having fun! xop

 

 

 

 

Catch Up

HI there how are you?   Hot?  Because its HOT people.  Capital letter hot once it heads into the 100 plus degree zone.  I don't care what Michaels is trying to tell me with all the fall foliage and faux pumpkins, it's summer and it feels like it's never going to end.  (probably because it lasts well into what most people thing of fall) BUT I DIGRESS. 

 

Since we met here last I spent a fun day with Frankie over the 4 day 4th of July holiday weekend.  I got up early and beat the traffic on the pass over the mountains.  Nothing made me happier than seeing all the fog creeping  among the redwood trees and the serious drop in temps in Santa Cruz.  We had a great time, finally went to The Buttery and also Gayles Bakery both places totally charming.  I loved the  way Gayles was decorated, lots of pretty vintage tablecloth valences  like the ones that Elizabeth made.  And oh the vintage plates.. it was all so cute.  It was cool out.  Here's the beach near where Frankie lives, this was midday, but by late afternoon it filled up as the sun came out.  But not packed, just perfect.   

 

 

I've also been doing some sewing.  Inspired by Fat Quarter Shop's Shortcut Quilt Jelly Roll Railway, I got busy cutting some strips.  It only took 24, and the hardest part is picking your fabrics.  While cruising around on Instagram I ran to Amanda's June Quilt Along quilt which is similar, different construction.  But her colors got me thinking.  Originally I'd been considering a red white and blue theme but then I got it in my head to actually use some of my very favorite floral for the background and these are the strips I cut to go with it.  I chose a bunch of my favorites from way back to my first line.  It just makes me happy looking at the prints and colors. 

And that version of the Pam Kitty Focal Floral is my favorite.   It took some serious will power to cut into the last of it, and now there's just maybe 1 yard left.   But I am making myself use what I love, it's not doing me any good in a box, right?

 

I changed the design just a bit, adding alternating corners so that the intersections will be hour glass blocks.  You can see an example of how it will look here on Instagram. I think it's a fun change.  I'll start assembly today I think, I have to pay attention  to make sure I alternate them correctly.  You could easily add to the variety by using 22 inch strips and cut twice as many.  If I worked in a shop I'd want to make kits and have sew ins using this pattern.  You could round up a bunch of pretty fabrics. What  about scrappy backgrounds?  Also very fun.  I think I saw that in one of the quilts on Instagram.  You can check out the Jelly Roll Railroad hastag here, and the Crazy Mom June QAL hash tag here. Lots of pretty quilts to see.  I can't wait to get it all put together and see if I want borders or no borders.. I know I don't have enough of the floral, but I have other whites with prints that might work.  Who knows.  I just know that it's been fun to make and I highly recommend it. 

That's it for me today.  I hope all is well with you.  xo

Aurifil DOM Reboot

Hi there friends and newcomers!  Welcome to June's Aurifil Designer of the Month reboot for June!  It's hard to believe that it was 5 years ago that we started the DOM project and I was excited to be a part of the fun.   Everyone's block was so clever, and mine felt a little less than that when I saw them all together.  Someone in the flickr group left a gentle criticism that it was not their favorite block.  So when it came time for the reboot I thought about what I could do to make it better without changing it. I looked at a lot of vintage stitch designs and I decided that since my favorite stitch was the lazy daisy, I would change all the stitches for the flowers to lazy daisies with French knot centers. 

 

I am still not a great embroiderer but it was a lot more fun.  I chose some fresh new colors that were more 'me' and I think the block is a lot cuter than it was before. 

 

Five years ago Pam Kitty Love debuted at Quilt Market, so I pulled out some of the PKL blacks and whites to use for sashing.  Very fun for me! You can read the original Auribuzz post about my block here!  I love seeing a picture of my cleaned up sewing room. You can read my post about it here.  Hop over to the current Auribuzz reboot post here!  I loved using the Aurifloss, and since finally someone showed me the secret to separating the threads my life is now complete! 

 

The colors I used are:

2888

2250

2530

1135

1148

2024

5006

2425

 

Thanks for stopping by!  Now skedaddle over to Auribuzz and get your chart and see all the posts about the DOM reboot!

Smart Aleck

The other day I was thinking about how cute Roseann's book is and wanted to make the cute little mat but didn't have any wool.  I pulled out some fusible and some fabric and got busy making it using a square of fabric as a base.  I blanket stitched all the pieces using coordinating thread, and then layered it up and quilted it, I did a 3/4 inch grid on the black gingham and then just stitched in the ditch around the circle.

 

I popped some binding on it and once I stitched it down I was ready for coffee. 

 

Its' cute I think!  It would also make a cute potholder if you put some Insul Bright inside.  OR wouldn't' it make a cute quilt block? Well I won't get ahead of myself.

 

Hope you have a good day friends! 

DO IT

I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said I was in a sewing slump.  Lots of ideas, just can't get around to doing it. Combine that with the decidedly dungeon like quality of light in my sewing room  and you have my own recipe for the doldrums.   

 

I am not immune to all the cute and inspiring projects out there, and I feel buoyed by looking at them.  Sometimes all you need is to start, so I did. I have seen so many cute little fabric boxes made using Ayda's book Made for Baby. Try over here at Krystine's blog and then here at Lauren's Blog.  Well you should go there anyway to be honest, the photos are wonderful. 

 

Not as wonderfully photographed is my little box.  I am way too excited about it.  It was so easy, and it went together so fast.  I was happy for the opportunity to use the cute bias tape with crocheted edge that Roseann sent me as a surprise. Honestly I want to make a thousand and litter every surface with them. (hahahahaha like I have surfaces with room for them I crack myself up) 

 

I guess while I'm in the mood I should go try and accomplish something.  There's some binding half sewn on that I moved aside to sew this up.. that seems easy, right?

 

HAPPY DAYS FRIENDS! xoxo

#RIP Reliable

HI there!  What's new with you?  Those of you that follow me on Instagram know what's new with me... my beloved Reliable iron started smoking up a storm on Monday and now is a goner.  I'm pretty sure the  steam generator burned up for some reason, it was only on a few minutes, I was making some binding for a small quilt, and I was just giving it the finishing press in half when it started.  So much smoke!    Later I plugged it in and it didn't steam  and I didn't hear the generator working.  It did get hot but yikes, now it's too risky to use I think.

 

I   feel like it was  the best iron I've used, the heat, the steam... the soleplate.. everything.   I babied it, never using tap water, always turning it off and unplugging.   Even after months went by. I  haven't sewn as much as normal the past 9 months to be honest. I'm torn about sending it back, do I want to invest (and it's a shipment to Canada so we're talking $40 - $50) in an iron that only lived 9 months?  That makes it a pretty expensive iron no matter how great it is.     It does have a nice warranty, you can see it here.

 

Regardless of what I decide, I needed a new iron.  I feel conflicted about investing in another premium iron and realize that I am lucky I have the means to do so.  Elizabeth had just replaced her iron, so she told me what she purchased and I went out and picked one up today. 

 

 

 

$40 and I'm back in business.  I haven't unboxed it yet, we're on a Flex Alert due to the heat, and aren't supposed to use unnecessary appliances till after 9pm. It's a California thing, like Spare the Air days!  I'll keep you posted. 

 

Ok time to turn off my computer!  I like to do my part.  Happy sewing!

The one where I still don't complain about the weather.

Morning friends!  How are you?  We're heading into the weekend and around here it's going to be a scorcher!  I've got my fans out  and my window monitoring schedule is in place so I'm ready.  I'm not going to complain YET, but I make no promises about the future!

 

Yesterday I was feeling really cheerful while doing some blanket stitching! This is a peek at a small part of my submission for volume 16 of the Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks magazine.  I really like this block and I'm crossing my fingers it is accepted.  I've been feeling very inspired to sew lately and I'm always happy when I'm blanket stitching!  It's probably my favorite thing.

 

Hope you're all doing well!  xo

 

 

All Stars!

Hi there friends! What's new with you?  I've been doing a little of this and that, some sewing, some stitching with friends, some little bits of yardwork, the usual stuff for this time of year.

 

I was very lucky to receive an e-copy of  Lissa's new book from Martingale Lucky Charm Quilts.  The photos by Brent Kane  are courtesy of Martingale, you can see more quilts from the book on their website.

 

Like all books from Martingale they have clear and concise instructions with great illustrations, perfect for those who read every word and those who like to follow the photos!   I love the cheerful colors of the quilts, but if you like a country look there are projects for you too.  The book features lots of Moda designers we know and love, Bonnie Olaveson  who made Flying Geese.

This is Spring Mosaic by Sandy Gervais.  I love this cute small quilt on a chenille bedspread! 

 

I love this one by Laurie Simpson, Tea Time.  This is the quilt  I wanted to make right away when I flipped through the book.  Of course there are many other friends included featured, these were just three quilts that popped out when I looked.  Next time I'd pick three different, the projects are all so cute. 

I wasn't kidding, I did get busy and I started cutting and sewing right away.  I didn't have charms so I just pulled out my scrap bin and chose all the white background things available.  While I didn't have the variety I would have with a charm pack of fabrics, it still is cute.  I liked that the red was a single fabric aside from 3 charm squares, easy cutting! 

 

 

I think it does capture the same look even though I didn't have some cool linen to include, instead choosing a blue and red plaid. 

 

I would have had this quilted but shocker, I had no more small pieces of batting laying around, which means thank goodness I've used it all up! I'll head out for more this weekend.  This will be so easy to machine quilt, but if I was a hand quilter it would go fast as well, it's pretty small and the small squares will lend themselves to a diagonal grid with out marking. 

 

The book is full of projects for those charm packs but you can easily use yardage or fat quarters... it's all fabric! I really think you might enjoy it! If you pick it up let me know which quilt is your favorite!

 

Hope it's all good with you friends. Happy weekend!