Finished: Squares and Strips Bed Quilt

This quilt took 3 days to make…the quilter 1 week to quilt…and 6 weeks for me to get the motivation to bind it.  Geesh.  I’m so glad I finally found that motivation though because I love it.

The backing is a flat sheet.

I get lots of questions about using flat sheets as backings.  I buy them when I see single flat sheets on sale if they are good quality, then I wash/dry them and trim off the edges.  It’s a heck-o-lot cheaper than buying designer yardage and if you buy nice sheets they feel the same or better.

The quilting was done by my friend Kathy.

She did that freehand…which requires a lot of patience…which is why I am not a long arm quilter.  It adds such a beautiful texture to a super simple quilt.  If you need quilting she is affordable and fabulous.

 

The tutorial and a photo of the whole quilt top can be found here. 

Odds and Ends

The past couple of weeks got away from me in a good way…enjoying the last bits of summer.

While my sister was in town she made that cute little chevron quilt up there…but I haven’t touched the sewing machine in 2 weeks!

Between nice lazy days on the beach we’ve been painting…lots and lots of painting.  The new house needs a fresh coat of paint…and painting over a high-gloss midnight blue bedroom takes awhile! 

Between that I have my furniture red0 projects…what’s a few more projects right?

I stitched up my first hole-in-a-quilt today.

 This quilt is loved.  It’s our Go-To park/picnic/drive-in movie/road trip/campfire/read books in bed/movie night/fort making/naptime quilt…so it’s a lucky quilt.

Now it has a scar to prove it. 

If you haven’t had a change to visit and read about the Action Kivu Fundraiser you can read about their great cause and story here.   They are almost to their goal! 

Scrappy Chevron

It’s finished!  It only took a year and a half but it’s done.  :)  My Mom started this quilt and we worked on it slowly when I’d visit…now that its done I’m not sure why we didn’t finish it sooner!

All those different prints look like a big fat mess together until you pair them with the solid color chevrons.  The solids pull everything together so nicely. 

You can find a free pattern for this quilt here.

The backing and binding are from her stash.  We made this a tad smaller than the inspiration pattern so it’s a generous throw size.

I like making quilts with my Mom because she does all the work.  Now that we live just down the road hopefully there will be many more!

Boy 1 Quilt

Love love love love love love love this (wrinkly) quilt top.  Once in a rare moon a quilt turns out better than I thought it would in my head…this one definitely did.

My boys share bunk beds so I altered this a bit from the pattern to make it fit a thin mattress.

I made the sashing strips 1 1/2" instead of 2" and I left off the borders. It makes it about 65" x 85".

I mixed in lots of solids and small prints, the same fabrics as boy 2’s strip quilt.

The goal was to make a quilt he can use now and into his teenage years…during which he’ll love this quilt so much he’ll never leave me never ever ever.  :)