Dragon Baby Quilt featuring Lewis and Irene Fabric

This is one of those quilts that was plagued by errors from the start - first of all I mis-cut a strip to piece the blocks, so only had three of the blocks ready to go.  After purchasing enough fabric to re-cut those pieces I realized that I had sewn one side of each block wrong because of the directional fabric.  So there was some ripping and re-sewing to do.  From there, the top went together nicely and the quilting made me very happy - loved the thread I chose!

I kept thinking about quilting flames on this to match the fabric, but decided to go with swirls, and I really like how it looks.  I used a fun variegated fabric with oranges and yellows, so it looks great with the flames!

Then came the binding.  Can you believe it, after piecing every last bit of the green, I was short by 12 inches!!!  So while I was working yesterday, I purchased 2 inches of fabric to finish the binding.

So now it is finished at last!  Isn't the fabric with eyes on it fun?  It makes a great backing!

This is the planned version of my Baby Nines pattern.  I love how quick it is to make a little quilt - if you don't make any mistakes, of course!  This one is going to be a shop sample at Threads That Bind. 

Now that I've finished this project I can focus on getting my project done for the Island Batik Ambassador blog hop.  Mine isn't due to be shared until next week, but here is the schedule for this week - I can't wait to see what great quilts will be featured!


Monday, February 17

Gail Sheppard

Janet Yamamoto



Tuesday, February 18

Carolina Asmussen

Michelle Roberts



Wednesday, February 19

Gail Renna

Jennifer Fulton



Thursday, February 20

Sally Manke

Megan Best

Have a wonderful Monday!

Cowboy Baby Quilt

What can you do when you sweet husband makes a special request for you to make a baby quilt for a coworker?  This person works on a horse ranch and his wife is going to be having a baby boy soon.  I remembered seeing a couple yards of a cute cowboy print in my stash, so I said "yes!" because I knew I had fabric in my stash and a plan!

All it takes to make this little quilt is thirty-six 5 inch charm squares, some 2 inch strips of a contrasting fabric for the inner border, and a fun print for the outer border to pull it all together.  This is my Baby Nines pattern - you can do it scrappy like this one, or use three coordinating fabrics for the center.

I knew I wanted to pick up the red in the cowboy print and use that for an inner border.  I dug through my stash of 5 inch squares and pulled out green, brown, blue and gold fabrics that I liked.  I added four red ones for a touch of pizazz and was ready to sew it all together.

After I got the top done, I layered it with a blue backing from my closet, then quilted it in loops (like rope!) with gold thread.  I bound it in the same blue I used for the backing, and voila!  One baby quilt in a hurry.  Baby's due by the end of the month, so I am ready with a perfect gift, and a very happy hubby.  Plus I got to use a good chunk of fabric out of my overflowing stash - wins all around for everyone!

Speaking of winning - week 2 of the Log Cabin blog hop starts on Monday and there is a new giveaway for you to enter!  This time you can win a stack and strip package of Kismet by Tamarinis!  Here is my favorite from the collection - so hard to choose just one!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Make sure you keep up with the wonderful projects by the Island Batik Ambassadors, lots more giveaways and great projects to drool over!  I'm still working on mine, but it's not until the last week, so I'll be ready - I hope!  At least I won't have to make any more baby quilts in a hurry :)  If you missed any from last week, read Island Batik's week one recap post.  I can't wait to see the quilts coming up this week!

Linking up with Cynthia Brunz for Oh, Scrap

Flirtation, A Hopelessly Romantic Quilt (and Pattern!)

Happy Valentine's Day!  I thought this would be the perfect day to share my latest finish with you.  If you love pink and green, plus soft florals you are going to love this quilt!

This is Flirtation!  I designed this pattern to feature the lovely Hopelessly Romantic fabrics by Northcott.  Unfortunately for me, the fabric sold before I could get my quilt made, so this project ended up being set aside in favor of other more pressing designs.  I chose this to finish as part of my participation in PHD in 2020 hosted by Quilting by Gail.  My plan on tackling the 12 UFOs is also participating in the APQ UFO challenge and this is the number drawn for the month.  It was the perfect month to work on this pretty, romantic quilt!

Not only did I finish the quilt, but I also have the pattern completed.  

I thought that Valentine's day was the perfect time to feature my newest additions to the Etsy shop!

First, the quilt.  I used the lovely pink and green Hopelessly Romantic Line by Northcott.  Northcott fabrics are famous for their lovely silky texture, and these don't disappoint.  This quilt feels as soft and lovely as it looks!  I quilted it with hearts and loops using Aurifil 50 wt thread.  The binding is a wonderful stripe, and is stitched by machine on the front and back for a great looking and durable finish.  80/20 cotton blend batting by pellon gives it a great feel, and will be even better after it's washed and dried.  I love an easy care quilt!

At 50 x 50, it's a great lap size as well as perfect to display over the foot of a bed, or as a throw on a sofa or chair.      

Click here to see the listing on Etsy

The Pattern

Flirtation is a great pattern for a confident beginner.  It includes lots of half square triangles, but they are all the same color, so that makes it easier.  The rest of the pattern is quite simple and relies on the position of color for the great effect.  Only 9 blocks to make, so it goes fast, and I include basic directions for cutting borders using directional fabric.  I will probably be making more of these quilts when I find the right fabric!

I hope you have a lovely Valentine's day, I plan on spending some fun time with friends in the morning at our regular monthly Bunco party, then a nice dinner out with my husband.  Remember to let those special people in your life know that you love them!

Linking up with:

PHD in 2020 mid-month report

UFO Busting

February block for 2020 Color Challenge

I didn't have to go to work this morning, so I took the opportunity to do some cleaning up in my sewing room, plus I made the February block for Patterns by Jen's 2020 Color Challenge. 

Isn't this pretty?  I am loving doing my blocks with a black background!  I did a lot of tidying up in my Island Batik scraps while finding just the right light aqua for my block.  This block had a lot of triangles in it.  When you are making triangles out of squares by sewing on both sides of a drawn line, I like to leave them all stitched together, you can really zoom through sewing the second line this way!

The great thing about using this method is that your triangles are all perfectly sized after you trim them up, so they sew together perfectly!  I loved how all the points matched in my finished block!

If you want to join in, go visit Jen's post.  You'll find all the information you need there.  So fun! 

And don't forget to check out the posts for the Log Cabin Blog Hop today featuring the Bloomer collection.  They are absolutely wonderful!

Joanne Hart

Jennifer Thomas

Island Batik Log Cabin Blog Hop

This week starts the Log Cabin blog hop featuring all the latest lines from Island Batik!  You are going to love seeing what all the ambassadors are creating with these beautiful fabrics - all based on the Log Cabin Block.  I've seen a sneak peek of some of them and they really are terrific!

There's also a giveaway - this week the winner will get a set of precuts from the Ancient Etchings line designed by Jackie Kunkel of Canton Village Quiltworks.  You can enter by getting to the end of my post where you'll find the Rafflecopter widget!  My best tip for making a log cabin block?  Pay attention to what you are doing so you don't have to break out the seam ripper!

Check the Island Batik Blog regularly so you do not miss a thing! The full list of Ambassadors’ names, collections they will be using in their projects, and their post dates are as follows:



Monday, February 10

Leah Malasky

Sharon Riley



Tuesday, February 11

Joanne Hart

Jennifer Thomas



Wednesday, February 12

Mania Hatziioannidi

Emily Leachman



Thursday, February 13

Carla Henton

Suzy Webster

Friday, February 14th

Blog Hop Round Up Week 1



Monday, February 17

Gail Sheppard

Janet Yamamoto



Tuesday, February 18

Carolina Asmussen

Michelle Roberts



Wednesday, February 19

Gail Renna

Jennifer Fulton



Thursday, February 20

Sally Manke

Megan Best

Friday, February 21

Blog Hop Round Up Week 2



Monday, February 24

Denise Looney

Alison Vermilya



Tuesday, February 25

Connie Kauffman

Sandra Walker



Wednesday, February 26

Pamela Boatright  My project is coming along nicely and I'm excited to share it!

Maryellen McAuliffe

Jennifer Strauser



Thursday, February 27

Vasudha Govindan

Carol Moellers

Friday, February 28

Blog Hop Round Up Week 3

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Project Quilting 11-3, Heart Journal Cover

I think I was a little ahead of my time because I made a heart project for the previous challenge!  Thus I was a little stumped at what to make for this one.  I spent most of the week thinking, and really had no idea.  Maybe a little tote bag?  Or a zipper pouch?  Today I had the whole day to sew, but forgot all about the challenge!  I made some blocks for the Island Batik challenge this month. (The big blog hop starts on Monday, but my post isn't until the end of the month so I'm on track to have mine finished in plenty of time.)  Then I worked on my OMG for the month, and actually finished the top!  About that time I remembered the Project Quilting challenge - oops.

I thumbed through the leftover fabrics, thinking they would be really nice for a small project, but I didn't know what to make.  I didn't really want to make another mug rug, but almost started one anyway when it occurred to me that my fabric would be perfect for a quilted journal cover!  Once I had a plan, the rest came quite easily.

I appliqued a little heart on it, and it fits right in!

This is a quilt as you go project, with a little bit of free motion to accent the bird and roses as well as hold down the heart applique.

The back is strip pieced with more scraps form my quilt.

The inside front has a pocket for your pens.

Bright pink binding and a ribbon bookmark finish it off with style!  Made here in my home on the beautiful Oregon Coast in Coos Bay, and it fits a standard Composition notebook - about 7 3/4 x 10 1/2 inches.

Linking up with Kim of Persimmon Dreams for Project Quilting 11.3 -  Put a Heart on It

One Monthly Goal for February

As usual, there is much to do this month, but that's ok, I like to be busy!  The project I am designating for my One Monthly Goal is going to be my UFO challenge for the month - a beautiful pink and green quilt that I am naming Flirtation.  It features these lovely fabrics,  and will be written up into a pattern as well (well actually I've already written the pattern, just needs proofing and testing which should be finished by month's end as well).  My goal is to have this pieced and quilted by the end of February.

I'm actually pretty excited about getting this done, I've been shuffling these fabrics around in my sewing room for far too long.  I'm thinking it really won't take that long to get this into the finished column, it's not a big quilt, and the colors are just so lovely.

I'm hoping to get the top finished this week, so am working on it in small spurts as I find a few free moments.  I've just about got the the cutting out done, so I should be sewing blocks by the weekend.  I'll just keep everything out in a small basket on my sewing table and make sure I make time to work on it for a bit every day.

Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal February Link-up.

Of course I have a ton more goals for the month, but for me it's really fun to set a goal that isn't something that "has" to be done, but it is something I want to get finished!  All those other projects on my list will get done by their deadlines, and this one will be a bonus and something fun for me to see done.

Here's to more "fun" sewing!