Showing posts with label Sew Happy Geek QAL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sew Happy Geek QAL. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Quilt Finish: The Sea Glass Quilt Story



This past Saturday I finished the Sea Glass Quilt which gave me tremendous satisfaction.  It's hard to describe the meaning this quilt has to me as it has been with me since just before my father passed in February 2012 and the evolution of it's creation, where it's going and the name has helped me through the past fifteen months.

Let me explain...
Sea Glass : Front View 60" x  80"
I began this quilt in December 2011 with no real intention of whom it was for or where it was going.  I saw Jenna's blogpost about her Sew.Happy.Quilt Along, loved the idea and immediately purchased a line of fabrics I liked from The Intrepid Thread.  When the first block instruction came out in January of 2012, I suddenly had to pull from those fabrics I had purchased to start....oh my gosh, which ones should I choose?

I had fun with the first five blocks or so, learning how to pick fabrics and deciding where in the block they should go.  It was a true learning experience for me.  

The Pinwheel Block  - my favorite.  
In February of 2012, my father passed away and for obvious reasons I stalled out on the progress on this quilt. For about four months the first five blocks and fabric lie tucked away in my closet until I finally had the inspiration to pull them out and begin working toward finishing the blocks.  

Can you see the detail in the quilting?  My quilter did an amazing job. 

Three different quilting designs all over the quilt.  
While visiting a favorite cousin and family on the coast of Oregon in late May of 2012 it occurred to me where this quilt belonged  - with that favorite cousin whom was always a big fan of my father (and he of her too!).  While enjoying the Oregon seashore with her in the early mornings we would look for shells and sea glass....never found any but the name stuck in my head.  
Sea Glass : Back View    Can you spy the label? 
While working on the remaining seven blocks, sewing on the sashing  making the binding and making decisions about the quilting, I thought of both my father and my cousin.  The final step of hand sewing on the binding felt almost cathartic as I knew this quilt which had I had cried tears onto but had also enjoyed many memories, was soon to leave me and go to its new home.  
I always like the rolled up shot...
The Details: 
The Sea Glass Quilt
Began January 2012 
Finished April 2013
Anthology Fabrics - Morrocan Mirage,  Kona Celery & Snow Solids.  
Quilted by - Karen Kimmel (Her work is stunning!)  
Who it's for:  My favorite Portland, OR Cousin.  I love her dearly.  

I'm linking up with Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story today.

Ciao~
Susan 

Monday, January 7, 2013

January: A Lovely Year of Finishes

For 2013 I am participating in Melissa of Sew Bittersweet Designs & Shanna's of Fiber of All Sorts  "A Lovely Year of Finishes" to help motivate me to not only to finish projects but to start them.  I have few WIP's so linking up is more of a starting motivator.  

This month I will finish the Sea Glass quilt that I made last year with Jenna's Sew. Happy. Quilt. QAL.  The top is done, batting and backing are cut and I made a tiny little mini QST Pinwheel block (my favorite from the quilt top) for the label.
Sea Glass quilt top 66" x 52" 

QST Pinwheel label 6" x 6"

This quilt top has been hanging in my closet for a few months so I had to iron it before I laid it out on the carpet - once I did my younger son remarked, "Oh you just keep cranking out quilts, don't you?"  I smiled.

Off to make an Ad Hoc meal~
Susan

Monday, July 9, 2012

Sea Glass: A Quilt Top Finish

I've been done with these twelve blocks from Jenna's Sew Happy Quilt QAL since April and Sunday I figured they had sat long enough.  They were lonely sitting all stacked up upon each other. They needed to be holding hands and able to look at one another.  I pulled out the Kona Celery and started cutting. I knew I wanted a large border - why?  No idea but I like the look.  Added the Kona White after the Kona Celery due to great suggestions via Twitter confirmed that another border would possibly work.  

Sea Glass Quilt Top standing up

Sea Glass Quilt Top laying down
I love it.  Makes me happy.  I'm  calling  it Sea Glass.  Backing and binding fabric have been ordered and hopefully soon Sea Glass will be quilted up and finished.  

I'm linking up with Jenna of Sew Happy Geek with her Manic Monday Linky Party.  A big huge thank you to Jenna for hosting such a wonderful Quilt Along - I love what I have created and I learned so much!

Happy Monday Everyone,
Susan

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Fresh Greens

I need your help - I've got twelve blocks from the Sew Happy Geek QAL that I finished up a few months back that I want to sew together into a quilt.  I was out shopping yesterday and brought the blocks with me to see how they looked with various Kona colors in the quilt shop.  I choose to go in the green direction instead of blue as I think it balances out the blocks better. What do you think?  

I ventured out into the garden today to deep soak my tomatoes and do a bit of weeding/trimming and came away with a tiny little harvest: 
A lilac sweet bell pepper, two roma tomatoes and two tiny zucchini.  
The zucchini flowers on my plant are teasing me with their potential to be stuffed or fried.  I've never eaten or made stuffed zucchini flowers but I'm dying to try something new.

Happy Saturday everybody - be safe and have fun,
Susan

P.S. The title of today's post is courtesy of my 14 yr old.  He walked by as I was writing the post and I asked him what he thought I should title the post with...."fresh greens" he replied with a smile.  Love that boy.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

WIP Wednesday: Teacups

First up my Work In Progress: 

I finished up the two remaining blocks of the Sew Happy Quilt QAL on Sunday and although I already gave you a photograph of all of the blocks together, here is another one. Decided to get a bit creative and pin them to my north facing fence for a different look.  

My favorite block is the QST Pinwheel - the first on the left in the second row but my proudest accomplishment is the Foundation/Paper Pieced Quatra Star block (second on the left, second row) as I tried this new approach to piecing a block and it worked.  Jenna of Sew Happy Geek posted a very helpful video about the construction of the Foundation/Paper Pieced Quatra Star block on YouTube which I watched over and over again on my iPad while working on this block.  Probably took me two hours to make this block but it was worth it when I opened up the block after that last seam was sewn....and the points matched.  Success!

Still working on:
T-Shirt Quilt
March Modern Blocks Bee
Magazine bags for the boys

Now onto the Teacups: 

One of the hardest things about my father passing away is missing my mother all over again and as we work to get his house ready for sale I am having to take items that I've looked at my entire life and decide where they go.  Yesterday I brought the Teacups into my own home and for me it was bittersweet.


The Teacups were my grandmother's and they have been displayed in my parent's home for as long as I can remember.  Apparently my grandfather would purchase a teacup for my grandmother when he traveled away from home, delighting her upon his and the teacup's arrival.  The historian in me would love to know where he went but that's a search for another time.  I've loved these Teacups since I was a little girl and now they are mine.

Strange thing about life: when you are told practically all of your life that something will be yours someday...and you just put it out of your head because you know what it means when it becomes yours....and then it is yours....it's truly bittersweet.  

Someday soon I plan on having my girlfriends over for tea while using the Teacups and toasting my mother and my grandmother.

Ok linking up to Lee at Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday.

Enjoy your Wednesday,
Susan

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Work-In-Progress Wednesday: A Quilt Along

I am currently participating in Jenna's Sew.Happy.Quilt.Quilt Along and when I say participating I mean that I am actually keeping up!  She posted Block 10 yesterday in which I will get to by the weekend but for now here are Blocks 1-9:
Blocks 1-9: a bit crooked
Block 8:
Diamond Peek A Boo

Block 9: Like the design but not my fabric choices...may do this one over. What do you think?
Churn Dash Redux
A shot of all nine inspired by Debbie:
Two more items:
I'm picking up my School Yard quilt from a local quilter tonight.  Cannot wait to see it, sew the binding on and have a finish.  
I start mentoring today.  I'm nervous and at 6am already have a stomach ache but I know I will do fine once I'm there.  

I'm linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced today for the first time in ages! 
Enjoy your Wednesday,
Susan

Monday, January 16, 2012

Tiramisu Cake & QAL Blocks

If you follow me on Twitter you may have noticed that I've been talking about Tiramisu for the last week or so.  Well I confess that sometimes I have a thought about something and cannot get it out of my brain no matter what I do....so I gave in. Instead of the traditional dessert I decided to change things up a bit and make Tiramisu Cake from Dorrie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours.  Love this cookbook - she makes me a better baker.  If you want an excellent photographic tutorial and the recipe go here to smittenkitchen.com.   
Tiramisu Cake - Dorie Greenspan
Usually the weekends are so busy around here that the opportunity to sew is almost non-existent but yesterday was different - I started and got caught up with the blocks for the Sew Happy Geek Quilt Along that I am now participating in.  Yea!   

Friendship Star Block 12 x 12

Snowball Block 12 x 12

Woven Block 12 x 12

QST Pinwheel Block  12 x 12  (my favorite so far)
Jenna from Sew Happy Geek just posted a video on YouTube about hand quilting (go here) which after watching it (love your voice Jenna!) I got inspired to actually think about hand quilting this quilt when it is done.  This was my first introduction to hand quilting and after watching Jenna's excellent video, I think it is something I need to try - I love the look of hand quilting and the fabrics I'm working with in this quilt feel so nice that I want to elevate my final product.

I'm linking up with Jenna's Manic Monday Linky Party at Sew Happy Geek and Megan's {sew}Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations today - please visit to see what others are working on.

We finally had some rain here in Southern California last night and now that the clouds have moved on, the sun is shining....putting a smile on my face.  Hope you all are smiling too.
Susan