tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16636904504465381952024-03-12T21:39:42.888-04:00Measuring SuccessDiscovering my unique point of view in the quilting world. Learning that "done" is better than "perfect". Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-50367009076316735582017-04-30T06:50:00.001-04:002017-04-30T06:51:01.433-04:00Ombre Tesselation Wedding Quilt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Last summer I had the pleasure of making a wedding quilt for my husband's brother, Barry, and his wife, Savannah. I saw the pattern for Alison Glass's <a href="http://alisonglass.bigcartel.com/product/special-edition-ombre-tessellation-pattern-kit-pre-sale">Tessellation quilt</a> paired with the <a href="http://alisonglass.bigcartel.com/product/special-edition-ombre-tessellation-pattern-kit-pre-sale">ombre fabrics</a> from V and Co. and knew I had to make it. The end result is undeniably striking! I used a batik for the back and a shimmery silver for the binding. Enjoy the pictures!</span></div>
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Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-48230028491510864232016-10-25T18:28:00.000-04:002016-10-26T14:22:10.165-04:00Gray and Yellow Wedding Quilt<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My cousin Doug got married to his beautiful wife Brittany in June and of course, I made them a quilt! Their wedding colors were gray and yellow. At first I had a hard time finding a gray and yellow quilt that didn't read "baby quilt", but finally I found the perfect pattern. <a href="http://www.pieceandquilt.com/">Natalia Bonner</a> has a book called "<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Modern-One-Block-Quilts-Patchwork-Projects/dp/1607057239/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1477433768&sr=8-1&keywords=modern+one+block+quilts">Modern One-Block Quilts</a>" and there is a quilt inside called the "<a href="http://www.pieceandquilt.com/2013/11/a-maze-me-modern-one-block-quilt.html">A-Maze Me Quilt</a>". The sample in the book was gray and yellow, so I could perfectly picture what the final result would be!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My next decision was which size pattern to follow. I had a choice between a 66" x 66" (which looked too small) or a 99" x 99". I chose the bigger one, thinking it would look better on their bed. After assembling this quilt top (and sewing non-stop one night from 5:00PM to 2:30AM to finish it in time to drop off to be quilted!) I vowed never to make a quilt that big again! At least not for awhile. Haha. ;) In the end, they were VERY happy with how it turned out. I've included a video at the end that shows the moment I gave it to them. Recording videos of the recipients receiving their quilts is my new favorite thing to do, especially when I can't be with them in person. I love that I get to watch their reactions over and over. They make me smile every time I watch them. Without further ado, here are some pictures of the "A-Maze Me Quilt".</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The quilt was too big for my sister and I to hold up without help, so we laid it out on the floor instead.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The next few pictures give you an idea just how big the quilt was. I am 5'1"!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As promised, here is the video of Doug and Brittany receiving their quilt.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-56537824836126853492016-05-30T12:40:00.000-04:002016-05-30T12:55:57.827-04:00New York Beauty Quilt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I'm back with another finished quilt! My cousin Katie got married this past weekend in North Jersey and we had lots of family gathered to celebrate the wedding. I love seeing all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins in the same place at the same time! My parents even flew in from Texas and stayed with us for a week.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">When I asked Katie what colors she and John wanted in their quilt, she said that their wedding colors were going to be black, white, and gold, and that she also wanted "Tiffany blue" as an accent color. I started gathering fabrics before I really knew what I was going to do. Finally, I found the perfect pattern: New York Beauty blocks! Katie and John live in Brooklyn and they love living in the city. I thought these blocks perfectly captured the essence of the New York City skyline. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Here are some pictures of the quilt! If you're interested about my process and my thinking behind this quilt, then scroll down and read the rest! :) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I purchased the <a href="http://www.quiltworx.com/patterns/desert-sky/#!prettyPhoto">Desert Sky</a> quilt pattern from Quiltworx and at first I thought I had gotten in over my head. I had done plenty of paper piecing before, but the way those directions were written made it seem REALLY complicated and confusing. I actually avoided starting the quilt for awhile because I was so overwhelmed by the thought of approaching it the way the pattern was telling me to. In the end, I basically ignored the pattern and cut out the templates the way I knew they needed to be cut out. I was able to piece the spikes without any issues and then I used a new technique that I saw in a YouTube video to sew on the curved pieces. The tutorial called for a long pin woven into each end and then glue basting the curve in between with an Elmer's glue stick before sewing. (Here's a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUaTUzkNdrKn9f2YuxYzdLmw&v=77e39T8bK80">link</a>, in case you're interested.) In the end, I'm glad I ignored the pattern. I realize that the Quiltworx technique is taught that way for a reason, and I'm sure it's helpful for some of their more intricate patterns, but I thought it made this pattern way more complicated than it had to be.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I also came to a point where I realized that once the blocks were pieced, this quilt was going to be barely big enough to cover someone's lap. I had to figure out a way to make it bigger without distracting from the center design. In the end, I couldn't find a border design that I liked, so I just drew one myself! I sketched the spikes out on graph paper and then made photocopies at work. I had found a really cool gradient blue fabric, so I cut it into pieces and separated them into nine piles: Light1, Light2, Light3, Medium1, Medium2, etc. Once I pieced the sides of the borders, I had to figure out what to do about the corners. Just like before, I ended up just drawing my own corners on graph paper. At first I start peeling the paper off of all of the border pieces, but once I sewed one side together, I realized that without the paper to hold it stable, there was a lot of extra stretch in the seams and it was actually becoming too long to fit the side of the quilt. Luckily I hadn't gotten carried away and I was able to piece the rest of the border sides together with the paper still on. <br /><br />After a final, 12-hour(!) day of sewing, I finally had the top and the borders pieced together. I enlisted the help of my husband to peel the paper off the back of the blocks while he watched TV (he was watching "Psych", in case you were wondering). By the time I got it quilted, my parents were in town for the wedding, so I got my Mom to finish stitching the binding for me! I added their names onto the quilt label because it felt wrong not to acknowledge their contributions. ;)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Now I have another quilt to finish by June 11th (I'm halfway done piecing all of the blocks), and a quilt to start and finish by July 23rd. No time for personal projects! I'm on a deadline! Can't wait to share the next few quilts with you! :)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"><br />Also, let me know what you think about Quiltworx patterns. I've purchased a bigger one (I think it was the Amazon Star pattern?), and now I'm a little worried about diving into it if the directions are going to be just as confusing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia";">PS - Here's a video of Katie and John receiving the quilt. I wasn't able to give it to them at the wedding and I also wasn't able to attend the barbecue the next day, but this is almost better because I get to watch this video over and over again! I was smiling like an idiot the whole time I watched this. Haha. ;)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><br />Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-69115208555785873692016-04-10T13:45:00.003-04:002016-04-10T14:06:45.104-04:00"The Mysteries of Laura (Diamond)" Quilt<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I got to go to my cousin's wedding yesterday AND I got to give them a quilt! My cousin and his new wife are both fans of graphic design and Hannah even does freelance work with her awesome design skills. I wanted to find a quilt pattern that was very bold and geometric. I finally found a cool paper piecing pattern in one of my Fons and Porter magazines. The pattern was called "Emerald Ikat". Here's a picture:</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lK2xcaADiE0/Vwo85lnVzwI/AAAAAAAAA3M/DrEDD5_e6uI7oXH4pVUPh74cxAHiwbuLw/s1600/Emerald-Ikat-2_250_25476.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lK2xcaADiE0/Vwo85lnVzwI/AAAAAAAAA3M/DrEDD5_e6uI7oXH4pVUPh74cxAHiwbuLw/s400/Emerald-Ikat-2_250_25476.jpg" width="287" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I started buying solid color fabrics at a couple of different quilt stores and eventually started piecing the blocks together. (I also used leftover gray cotton chambray from the soccer/wrestling t-shirt quilt that I recently made.) While I pieced the blocks, I watched the entire first season of "The Mysteries of Laura" on Netflix. That show is so great!! The characters are funny, the plots are not always easy to figure out, and there were over 20 episodes which is always nice. The main character is Detective Laura Diamond and the actress is Debra Messing. I thought it was cool how the blocks began to form diamond shapes, not to mention, Debra Messing tends to wear lots of saturated jewel tones. So the name of this quilt just popped into my head and it was perfect! (I also started watching X-Files next and the gray fabric forms X's, but now I'm probably reading too far into it...) Haha. ;)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Here are some pictures that I got at the wedding site. Big thanks to my Dad for being my quilt holder this time around!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I found this really cool shot cotton that changes from green to red, depending on which way you look at it. I thought that would add a cool touch of dimension to an otherwise all-solids quilt.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I used a solid purple fabric for the back and I love how it shows off the quilting.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As usual, the wind was a factor in this photo shoot. Sorry, Dad! There was even some rain/snow mix coming down and I realized as I was editing these pictures that there's a smudge where a raindrop fell on the lens. Oh well! Nothing I can do about it now.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Here's a nice (slightly blurry) picture of me with my cousin Ben and his wife Hannah. Her dress was BEAUTIFUL!! I want to marry my husband all over again just so I have an excuse to wear that dress. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Hannah said, "This is the coolest quilt I've seen in a long time!". Mission accomplished. I'm so glad they liked it!</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gKgBFO_3Fpc/VwqOWJFL66I/AAAAAAAAA3k/Z-OpCYvTpoUYaoGZNopsQt5REyYMGDEJw/s1600/DSC_0676.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gKgBFO_3Fpc/VwqOWJFL66I/AAAAAAAAA3k/Z-OpCYvTpoUYaoGZNopsQt5REyYMGDEJw/s640/DSC_0676.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Happy marriage, Ben and Hannah! Can't wait to hang out with you and play some Splendor. :) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I've got three more wedding quilts to make in the next three months, so stay tuned for more updates! </span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-12817010657404080572016-03-23T12:51:00.000-04:002016-03-23T12:51:19.133-04:00Giving Is Better Than Receiving<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I recently closed down my Etsy shop. After 14 months, I had generated very little traffic and made zero sales, so I decided that I didn't want to bother keeping up with it anymore. Not to mention, if I sold the quilts that I had listed, I didn't really have a plan to replenish the shop with new stock. It's not like I have a lot of time on my hands to churn out sale quilts on the side. ;) (More on that later.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">After I closed my Etsy shop, I had two lap quilts and two baby quilts to play with. I thought about just using the lap quilts right away (after all, they had been folded in a bag in my sewing room for almost a year and deserved to be used!), but instead I decided that I wanted to give them away. I looked at the Cuzco Crossroads quilt and immediately knew who I wanted to give it to. Our pastor's wife works very hard in the children's ministry and for our church as a whole, not to mention she has her own three kids to take care of and worry about. I wanted to give her something that would let her know that her hard work doesn't go unnoticed or unappreciated. She had mentioned a few times in the past how much she liked my quilts, so it was extremely easy to make the decision to give it away. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I don't say all of this to brag or make myself look good. I just wanted to share the special moment that I had this weekend that reminded me about the importance of gift-giving, with no strings attached, and the reason why we quilters do what we do in the first place. There's no better feeling than giving someone a piece of your heart that you know they will use and cherish forever. (Wow, that sounded way sappier out loud than it did in my head... you get the idea!).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Right now my attention is focused on finishing four wedding quilts in four months. I can't wait to start sharing my progress here on the blog! I'd like to keep the quilts a surprise until the couple has seen them, so you'll have to wait until April 9th, May 28th, June 11th, and July 23rd to see what I've been working on. </span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-59383874221652034902016-02-25T08:25:00.000-05:002016-02-25T08:25:04.312-05:00Flight Suit Diaper Bag: Round 3 (With Some Minor, Frustrating Mistakes)<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I just finished my third flight suit diaper bag! This one is for my friend Stephanie. Her husband is in the same squadron as my husband and they just had their fourth kid, a boy named Griffin! (I say *just* had a kid, but he was born in September, so I feel a little guilty that I didn't finish this bag sooner. Oh well! They'll still get a lot of use out of it.)</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kv-I2VneESk/Vs79A3vlhZI/AAAAAAAAA1Q/yx2QOqpRF_c/s1600/IMG_0685.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kv-I2VneESk/Vs79A3vlhZI/AAAAAAAAA1Q/yx2QOqpRF_c/s640/IMG_0685.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">She wanted an adjustable, clip-on messenger bag strap, so I used the D-ring hardware from another bag and she can add the strap later when she finds the right one.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GKCU2WOmb7Q/Vs79A2UnijI/AAAAAAAAA1U/1-VaIzBssIw/s1600/IMG_0686.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GKCU2WOmb7Q/Vs79A2UnijI/AAAAAAAAA1U/1-VaIzBssIw/s640/IMG_0686.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">She also wanted a pocket with a flap so she could keep her keys or phone in the outside pocket for easy access. I used the same flap installation method as my Noodlehead Cargo Duffle and it turned out great!</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xeSTBv2duY0/Vs79A-f1p4I/AAAAAAAAA1M/31rVdMd8qpQ/s1600/IMG_0687.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xeSTBv2duY0/Vs79A-f1p4I/AAAAAAAAA1M/31rVdMd8qpQ/s640/IMG_0687.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The magnet clasp was really strong, so I hope that doesn't make it too difficult to open.</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--a5QmFwVFWs/Vs79C341d3I/AAAAAAAAA1Y/CjOQQbS_0d0/s1600/IMG_0689.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--a5QmFwVFWs/Vs79C341d3I/AAAAAAAAA1Y/CjOQQbS_0d0/s640/IMG_0689.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">There is a long pocket on the inside front of the bag for a changing pad.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The inside of the bag is lined with iron-on vinyl so it will be easy to wipe out if it gets wet.</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CAO2hYXbMUM/Vs79F7M7XDI/AAAAAAAAA1k/1JFdo6957vI/s1600/IMG_0692.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CAO2hYXbMUM/Vs79F7M7XDI/AAAAAAAAA1k/1JFdo6957vI/s640/IMG_0692.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here are some pictures of the changing pad. I used the velcro from the wrists of the uniform for the closure.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qwD4VtEQrRU/Vs79G_CVq-I/AAAAAAAAA1s/-2BsXUontag/s1600/IMG_0694.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qwD4VtEQrRU/Vs79G_CVq-I/AAAAAAAAA1s/-2BsXUontag/s640/IMG_0694.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If I'm being totally honest, there are some minor mistakes with this bag that I REALLY wish I could fix, but it was too late and I just have to live with them. It's just hard to deal with sometimes because you know your name is attached to this bag and you want it to look good.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The first mistake is here on the edge. When I was stitching the lining to the outside of the bag, I didn't catch the edge of the green fabric and you can see the black foam and the raw edge of the fabric. The topstitching should keep everything in place, but I'm frustrated that I didn't notice this until AFTER I had flipped everything right side out and stitched the lining closed. There's also a little folded over crease in the flap.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_7n3Q3S6wGo/Vs79LbLJ5pI/AAAAAAAAA18/1XyXA8KT_Uc/s1600/IMG_0698.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_7n3Q3S6wGo/Vs79LbLJ5pI/AAAAAAAAA18/1XyXA8KT_Uc/s640/IMG_0698.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The other issue is here where the topstitching kind of got away from me and went crooked. Granted, it's hard to wrestle the bag through the machine when there's so much bulk, but I didn't realize just how far off it got until the bag was done. And again, it was too late to go back and fix it. Those stitches are so close together, it would be nearly impossible to rip them out. </span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZMRzpAWhYK4/Vs79L7g_FGI/AAAAAAAAA2A/6jXd0m47cmI/s1600/IMG_0699.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZMRzpAWhYK4/Vs79L7g_FGI/AAAAAAAAA2A/6jXd0m47cmI/s640/IMG_0699.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I realize these are minor mistakes that most people wouldn't notice, but I knew how much Stephanie wanted this bag customized to her needs, and again, it has my name on it, so I really wanted it to look good. As long as it's functional, I guess that's all that matters. I just have to remind myself of what my Dad always says: "Perfect is the enemy of good enough."</span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-63932288637298244672016-01-30T12:55:00.000-05:002016-01-30T12:58:14.698-05:00"Be Home Made" Quilt Store Sample<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I recently got the opportunity to make a sample quilt for one of my favorite little quilt stores. <a href="http://behomemade.com/">Home Made</a> is a fabric and yarn shop in Swainton, NJ. Julie has excellent taste when it comes to choosing colors and styling her store. I couldn't wait to finish this project because I loved the fabric so much! Hopefully having this quilt top hanging up in her store will encourage more customers to buy the fabric and the pattern. :)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The fabric is <a href="http://behomemade.com/collections/fabric/products/cloud9-first-light-aubade-organic-fat-quarter-bundle">Cloud 9 First Light</a> and the pattern is <a href="http://store.atkinsondesigns.com/stores_app/browse_item_details_ws.asp?shopper_id=9867810647269867&store_id=913&page_id=23&item_id=1036">Urban Log Cabin</a> by Atkinson Designs. This is a GREAT beginner quilt pattern and the large blocks are very forgiving. I finished this quilt top in about six hours.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Here is a link to the fat quarter bundle that is for sale in Julie's shop:</span><br />
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<a href="http://behomemade.com/collections/fabric/products/cloud9-first-light-aubade-organic-fat-quarter-bundle"><img border="0" height="516" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VRytJf5wSVM/Vqz4Ojt2idI/AAAAAAAAAz4/RIAld9E98Jg/s640/cloud%2B9.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And here is a link to the pattern from Atkinson Design's website:</span><br />
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<a href="http://store.atkinsondesigns.com/stores_app/browse_item_details_ws.asp?shopper_id=9867810647269867&store_id=913&page_id=23&item_id=1036"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YB9l7UZH394/Vqz4kd_u4kI/AAAAAAAAA0A/gAXLY20TBx8/s640/urban_cabin-zm.jpg" width="414" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And here is my finished quilt top!</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uuQ_0Z5i8G4/Vqz4uPEx44I/AAAAAAAAA0M/OHCp1TEkZUU/s1600/IMG_0360.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uuQ_0Z5i8G4/Vqz4uPEx44I/AAAAAAAAA0M/OHCp1TEkZUU/s640/IMG_0360.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And in case you were wondering, the rug is from Target. ;)</span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-1635688331832229262015-12-14T20:06:00.000-05:002016-04-10T14:06:35.894-04:00Soccer/Wrestling T-Shirt Quilt<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I just finished stitching the binding on this t-shirt quilt and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out! My aunt's friend gave me a bunch of her son's t-shirts and said she trusted me with the layout and the design. I had 16 shirts/squares that I could work with, but I really didn't want to do a big 4 x 4 square layout because I just imagined the (college) kid laying on the couch with his feet sticking out of the bottom. I also didn't love the idea of a 3 x 5 layout because I didn't want it to feel too long and skinny. In the end I decided that I needed the length, so I added some plus blocks on the sides as a border to make it more proportional. I used scraps from the shirts for the plus blocks and I got really lucky when I found a gray cotton chambray in the clothing fabrics section of JoAnn's for the keystones and the background of the plus blocks. It matched everything perfectly and really pulled it all together. I pre-washed all of the fabrics so nothing would shrink out of proportion when they washed it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I love the quilting pattern that I found. I tried really hard to make sure the quilt stayed masculine in every way, so I think the squares really accent the shirts nicely.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-srDbSLKYgc8/Vm9l1p07TeI/AAAAAAAAAxk/Xwmc3h87K48/s1600/DSC_0636.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-srDbSLKYgc8/Vm9l1p07TeI/AAAAAAAAAxk/Xwmc3h87K48/s640/DSC_0636.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The plus blocks on the borders are made from leftover shirt scraps.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uDvsUAxvzCA/Vm9l1r34s2I/AAAAAAAAAxo/izCuBOK_JGM/s1600/DSC_0637.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uDvsUAxvzCA/Vm9l1r34s2I/AAAAAAAAAxo/izCuBOK_JGM/s640/DSC_0637.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-33MAvJSbAT8/Vm9l2ucDkCI/AAAAAAAAAx0/olKwxBs76vQ/s1600/DSC_0639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-33MAvJSbAT8/Vm9l2ucDkCI/AAAAAAAAAx0/olKwxBs76vQ/s640/DSC_0639.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Again, I was trying to keep things masculine, so I had a really hard time finding a backing fabric that wasn't too girly. (I don't think I've ever made a quilt for a guy before!) Luckily I found a really cool sweatshirt fleece that was super soft and not too thick. My longarm quilter actually quilted it without batting and it's just as thick and warm as any other quilt I've made.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Zw3i81mEIeo/Vm9lx3EOMaI/AAAAAAAAAxE/pMmSdku9kRY/s1600/DSC_0628.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Zw3i81mEIeo/Vm9lx3EOMaI/AAAAAAAAAxE/pMmSdku9kRY/s640/DSC_0628.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">There was one more shirt that got relegated to the back when I decided to use only 15 shirts on the front. It blends in perfectly! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">After initially agonizing over this quilt and how to make it "special", I'm really happy with how it turned out. T-shirt quilts are surprisingly quick and easy, considering the blocks are huge (I think mine were 14" finished). I wouldn't mind making a few more in the near future! I hope this quilt gets used and loved and brings back lots of great memories. :)</span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-75047284311480913082015-12-11T08:58:00.004-05:002015-12-14T20:07:16.280-05:00"Radiant Blues" Police Officer Wedding Quilt<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My cousin Chelsea is a police officer in Fort Worth, Texas. She got married on November 8th, so I got to head down to Texas and see my family for the first time in almost a year! I knew I wanted blue to be the main theme of the quilt, so when I found a Moda turnover full of rich blue, turquoise, and gray solids, I knew I had to use it! (A turnover is a layer cake cut in half on the diagonal.) I used two turnovers, so basically one whole layer cake.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The best part about taking the pictures for this quilt is that I gave my husband a break from being my quilt holder and had my brother-in-law do it instead. (Is it wrong of me to admit that I enjoyed seeing him suffer for the sake of my art?) Haha. :)</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A90VoHtKkGc/VmrSpo33VfI/AAAAAAAAAuw/t7maMwP-j8M/s1600/DSC_0151.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A90VoHtKkGc/VmrSpo33VfI/AAAAAAAAAuw/t7maMwP-j8M/s640/DSC_0151.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This is the face of suffering and frustration after I kept telling him, "Hold it up higher! I can still see your head, duck down! Now it's crooked, hold it up straight! Why are your arms shaking? This isn't that hard!" Poor Abe. :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In his defense, it was really windy. This is me attempting to help.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--oELq2wx5os/VmrSrkdIzXI/AAAAAAAAAvE/F7tAQsn_U6A/s1600/DSC_0156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--oELq2wx5os/VmrSrkdIzXI/AAAAAAAAAvE/F7tAQsn_U6A/s640/DSC_0156.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This picture perfectly sums up our photo shoot and makes me laugh every time I look at it. Abe is looking at my sister (his wife) wondering when this is going to be over, I'm trying to get the quilt to lay flat and look nice for the pictures, and Wes (my husband) is just leaning against the wall, smirking, because this is normally what I put him through and now he gets to enjoy it from a distance.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OBQFHrDQz4w/VmrSrnr4KFI/AAAAAAAAAvM/Lg72_sLmjMw/s1600/DSC_0161.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OBQFHrDQz4w/VmrSrnr4KFI/AAAAAAAAAvM/Lg72_sLmjMw/s640/DSC_0161.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Again, windy. I can't really complain about the weather though because the day of the wedding was 65 degrees and sunny. Perfect!</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fEbVb60akvo/VmrSuG9e5EI/AAAAAAAAAvg/pf_12QbP9rk/s1600/DSC_0165.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fEbVb60akvo/VmrSuG9e5EI/AAAAAAAAAvg/pf_12QbP9rk/s640/DSC_0165.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We took these pictures at the rehearsal luncheon, which was held at a retirement community. We spent a good deal of time in the courtyard taking pictures, and I can only imagine what the residents were thinking as they heard me calling out directions and laughing maniacally...</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Wezbi_8u63s/VmrSuY9qTdI/AAAAAAAAAvc/pLyHRdWKo9Y/s1600/DSC_0180.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Wezbi_8u63s/VmrSuY9qTdI/AAAAAAAAAvc/pLyHRdWKo9Y/s640/DSC_0180.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I found the backing fabric at JoAnn Fabrics, of all places. It matched the colors on the front perfectly!</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CsxrCcgpP1M/VmrSxQf4JYI/AAAAAAAAAvw/nTcMDmCq0wY/s1600/DSC_0185.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CsxrCcgpP1M/VmrSxQf4JYI/AAAAAAAAAvw/nTcMDmCq0wY/s640/DSC_0185.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I didn't realize until I was editing the pictures that this label is EXTRA crooked. Oh well. I love the binding though! I used the same gradient gray/black fabric that I used for my sister's </span><a href="http://measuringsuccessquilting.blogspot.com/2015/03/black-and-gray-x-plus-quilt.html" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Black and Gray X-Plus Quilt</a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4Ok0y7M9yDQ/VmrSxjle_1I/AAAAAAAAAv0/YRIfts_9u2Q/s1600/DSC_0194.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4Ok0y7M9yDQ/VmrSxjle_1I/AAAAAAAAAv0/YRIfts_9u2Q/s640/DSC_0194.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I was telling my sister to get a picture of one of the spots where the points matched perfectly. I used a glue basting method with these triangles and I think it really helped to keep the triangles from stretching out as I was sewing them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Ta-da! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My sister's photography skills (and camera) are much better than mine. Had to take advantage of it while we were together. :) </span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yJ2izI3E168/VmrSzm7w8PI/AAAAAAAAAwQ/tZ1F5eMjbXE/s1600/DSC_0202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yJ2izI3E168/VmrSzm7w8PI/AAAAAAAAAwQ/tZ1F5eMjbXE/s640/DSC_0202.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rtXYNbn_D0Y/VmrSzmv2n1I/AAAAAAAAAwM/Yr_GjW26_0w/s1600/DSC_0205.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rtXYNbn_D0Y/VmrSzmv2n1I/AAAAAAAAAwM/Yr_GjW26_0w/s640/DSC_0205.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I hope you enjoyed looking at this quilt as much as I enjoyed writing about it! I love the final product and how it just radiates light. I wish Chelsea and Jeffrey all the best and can't wait to head back to Texas to see everyone again! I'll leave you with a picture of my family (and yes, my dad is the king of the selfie stick) and my siblings!</span><br />
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Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-61371706730366110272015-10-23T20:10:00.001-04:002015-10-23T20:10:40.838-04:00Overexcited Blogger's Quilt Festival Entry #2<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">From my previous post: "<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 21.56px;">Oops! I got so excited about submitting some quilts for the online Blogger's Quilt Festival that I submitted them without reading the directions! My apologies to the organizers. Hopefully you're feeling generous enough to give me a chance to redeem myself." ;)</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 21.56px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.56px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #222222;">My second entry is my "365" Wedding Quilt for my OTHER sister who got married this past December. When I started thinking of what kind of pattern to use for her wedding quilt, I asked her how long she and her then-fiance will have been together on their wedding day. She told me they were getting married on their one year dating anniversary. After that, I couldn't get the number 365 out of my head and I knew I h</span>ad to find some way to incorporate it into a quilt. Luckily, I stumbled across the Bartow pattern on the Robert Kaufman website, designed by none other than </span></span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16.8px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Carolyn Friedlander. I just tweaked the dimensions a little bit to end up with the right number of strips and left a little space at the end where I could add a heart with their initials and the date. I love how this quilt turned out and I hope it inspires someone else to think of a unique way to add that perfect personal touch to a gift for someone special in their lives. :) </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IDoYqa2Bxn0/VirMJX1CiwI/AAAAAAAAAt8/fFAPh8IM18U/s1600/DSC_0385.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IDoYqa2Bxn0/VirMJX1CiwI/AAAAAAAAAt8/fFAPh8IM18U/s640/DSC_0385.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tJpdOegjQkk/VirMJZBNTOI/AAAAAAAAAt0/eNnwN9nWJ6M/s1600/DSC_0388.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tJpdOegjQkk/VirMJZBNTOI/AAAAAAAAAt0/eNnwN9nWJ6M/s640/DSC_0388.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ycXdYIRljdI/VirMJkL4xgI/AAAAAAAAAt4/m71A_WjQSos/s1600/DSC_0401.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ycXdYIRljdI/VirMJkL4xgI/AAAAAAAAAt4/m71A_WjQSos/s640/DSC_0401.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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<div align="center"><a href="http://amyscreativeside.com" title="AmysCreativeSide.com"><img src="http://amyscreativeside.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/IMG_9023-e1444409535374.png" alt="AmysCreativeSide.com" style="border:none;" /></a></div>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-87126460137097604092015-10-23T20:01:00.000-04:002015-10-23T20:01:05.316-04:00Overexcited Blogger's Quilt Festival Entry #1<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Oops! I got so excited about submitting some quilts for the online Blogger's Quilt Festival that I submitted them without reading the directions! My apologies to the organizers. Hopefully you're feeling generous enough to give me a chance to redeem myself. ;)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
</span> <span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My first entry is my Black and Gray X-Plus Quilt. I made this quilt for my youngest sister after she asked for a white, gray, and black quilt. I had to put a call out to my Instagram quilting friends to get all of the scraps I needed, but in the end, I love how this turned out. I feel like it has an iridescent, three-dimensional quality to it. Usually with scrappy quilts, you think of lots of different confetti-like colors, but I think this quilt uniquely fits into the Scrappy category because of its muted palette.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5ytFAikn_yw/VirJ7KQYscI/AAAAAAAAAtg/mLnTUTHQ-18/s1600/DSC_0411.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5ytFAikn_yw/VirJ7KQYscI/AAAAAAAAAtg/mLnTUTHQ-18/s640/DSC_0411.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H6j8DjbaiKo/VirJ7LGe3rI/AAAAAAAAAtY/vVgef-tqa9c/s1600/DSC_0417.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H6j8DjbaiKo/VirJ7LGe3rI/AAAAAAAAAtY/vVgef-tqa9c/s640/DSC_0417.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MDPqNZJtn0c/VirJ7fI3GKI/AAAAAAAAAtc/1bBMvFmekSI/s1600/DSC_0418.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MDPqNZJtn0c/VirJ7fI3GKI/AAAAAAAAAtc/1bBMvFmekSI/s640/DSC_0418.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
<div align="center"><a href="http://amyscreativeside.com" title="AmysCreativeSide.com"><img src="http://amyscreativeside.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/IMG_9023-e1444409535374.png" alt="AmysCreativeSide.com" style="border:none;" /></a></div>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-43917325823540816572015-10-06T18:45:00.000-04:002015-10-06T18:45:29.508-04:00Flight Suit Diaper Bag: Round Two!<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm back with another flight suit diaper bag! This one is for one of the wives in our squadron who is going to give birth any day now to a baby girl. This project is so fun and special because I get to use the dad's flight suit to make the bag. I hope she enjoys using it as much as I enjoyed making it! (If you'd like to read about the first flight suit diaper bag I made, click <a href="http://measuringsuccessquilting.blogspot.com/p/finished-projects-2014.html">here</a>.)</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ln4ucFpG_4M/VhRMozQJtqI/AAAAAAAAAr8/i8SiGrLzbTY/s1600/DSC_0567.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ln4ucFpG_4M/VhRMozQJtqI/AAAAAAAAAr8/i8SiGrLzbTY/s640/DSC_0567.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lvLW-Ujy4xc/VhRMo8WL3oI/AAAAAAAAAr0/Y9UTKnzNl2o/s1600/DSC_0568.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lvLW-Ujy4xc/VhRMo8WL3oI/AAAAAAAAAr0/Y9UTKnzNl2o/s640/DSC_0568.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RJ5LaU2uOJA/VhRMo6HJ_nI/AAAAAAAAAr4/vbl6Lqijfrg/s1600/DSC_0571.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RJ5LaU2uOJA/VhRMo6HJ_nI/AAAAAAAAAr4/vbl6Lqijfrg/s640/DSC_0571.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">All of the zippered pockets are still totally functional. There is no shortage of storage with this bag! This former leg pocket is now the back of the bag.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-953ubHqGFBs/VhRMppsBsdI/AAAAAAAAAsI/1_4czV-kqls/s1600/DSC_0576.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-953ubHqGFBs/VhRMppsBsdI/AAAAAAAAAsI/1_4czV-kqls/s640/DSC_0576.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here is a view of the flap. I found this adorable fabric at a great quilt shop in Watkins Glen when we went on vacation in August.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fnkJbI5ohaQ/VhRMp7Bv19I/AAAAAAAAAsQ/hapYGJ6tZVY/s1600/DSC_0580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fnkJbI5ohaQ/VhRMp7Bv19I/AAAAAAAAAsQ/hapYGJ6tZVY/s640/DSC_0580.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hX2bogx9bK0/VhRMqMZ-JAI/AAAAAAAAAsU/8EfGZm6v_ss/s1600/DSC_0581.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hX2bogx9bK0/VhRMqMZ-JAI/AAAAAAAAAsU/8EfGZm6v_ss/s640/DSC_0581.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This is the view of the inside front of the bag with the flap open.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ri1zF4-QfOA/VhRMqsYqUHI/AAAAAAAAAsk/7h6x3m_UlT8/s1600/DSC_0590.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ri1zF4-QfOA/VhRMqsYqUHI/AAAAAAAAAsk/7h6x3m_UlT8/s640/DSC_0590.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Here is a view of the inside pockets. If you look closely, you can see that I used an iron-on vinyl for the inside surface so it could easily be wiped down in case anything leaked inside.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n7urqaH-VFI/VhRMqRyTNBI/AAAAAAAAAss/v9jwMxBSJW8/s1600/DSC_0584.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n7urqaH-VFI/VhRMqRyTNBI/AAAAAAAAAss/v9jwMxBSJW8/s640/DSC_0584.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">These side pockets are great for water bottles or baby bottles.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vSfuWdkq-VM/VhRMq1stfmI/AAAAAAAAAso/VXKqgL2Jq20/s1600/DSC_0592.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vSfuWdkq-VM/VhRMq1stfmI/AAAAAAAAAso/VXKqgL2Jq20/s640/DSC_0592.jpg" width="425" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-obXTr4thgjI/VhRMrd6hUgI/AAAAAAAAAs4/nG1ayH4tXZk/s1600/DSC_0595.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-obXTr4thgjI/VhRMrd6hUgI/AAAAAAAAAs4/nG1ayH4tXZk/s640/DSC_0595.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Overall I didn't have any major problems putting this bag together. I realized after it was done that I had forgotten to add on one extra piece of velcro on the side so you could add an extra patch, but it was purely a cosmetic feature and the bag looks fine without it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Let me know if you've ever made anything out of a uniform or if you've seen a similar flight suit diaper bag out there! I'd love to see pictures. :)</span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-13746963788461075512015-09-23T09:22:00.000-04:002015-09-23T09:22:38.897-04:00Trying To Be Cool<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">I finished this quilt in mid-August,
so I don't know why I haven't posted about it until now! My husband's birthday
was August 19th and we took four days off of work to go on a road trip up to
Niagara Falls. On our way out, we stopped in Philadelphia and had our pictures
taken by Autumn<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Kern. I found
Autumn on Instagram and loved her style of photography. I thought it would be
fun to commemorate his birthday and our almost-two-year anniversary with some
pictures. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">As I started
to brainstorm the setting for our photos, I knew I wanted to include a quilt
somehow. This quilt began to formulate in my mind after I bought a fat quarter
bundle of </span><span style="background: white; color: #373131; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Kim
Andersson’s Tidal Lace collection for Windham Fabrics. </span></span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vQO8G8rvcAA/VgKjc_gOsaI/AAAAAAAAApU/NIp-vKScaK4/s1600/tidal%2Blace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vQO8G8rvcAA/VgKjc_gOsaI/AAAAAAAAApU/NIp-vKScaK4/s640/tidal%2Blace.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="background: white; color: #373131; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><i>How's that for some inspiration??</i></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="background: white; color: #373131; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #373131; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">I pulled some other
complimentary fabrics out of my stash and started searching for a pattern. I
wanted something with big blocks, both to accentuate the fabric and to speed up
the assembly process (I was working with a deadline after all). I finally
settled on the <a href="http://www.modabakeshop.com/2013/06/simply-style-stacked-squares-quilt.html">Stacked Squares pattern</a> from Moda and used <a href="http://myquiltinfatuation.blogspot.com/2014/08/stacked-squares-love.html">My Quilt Infatuation's cutting calculations</a> so I could use fat quarters instead of a
layer cake and jelly rolls.</span></span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="background: white; color: #373131;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif;">I call this quilt "Trying To Be Cool" because I felt like this color pallette was really mellow and bohemian and as I was picking out fabrics, I was sort of thinking, "Would a really cool and hip person like this?" If the answer was yes, it went into the quilt. Don't ask me to ex</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">plain the logic behind that one. Haha. :)</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Here is the final product!</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-46ExtUzuNMU/VgKkgTH7adI/AAAAAAAAApg/jFNKcO9tSZk/s1600/DSC_0552.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-46ExtUzuNMU/VgKkgTH7adI/AAAAAAAAApg/jFNKcO9tSZk/s640/DSC_0552.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1V3bviSoHJY/VgKkgZjwk-I/AAAAAAAAApk/6ohOgheEnVI/s1600/DSC_0555.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1V3bviSoHJY/VgKkgZjwk-I/AAAAAAAAApk/6ohOgheEnVI/s640/DSC_0555.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I pieced together some gray and blue-green fabrics for the backing. </span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aHT8mZjZEz4/VgKkgCQHhCI/AAAAAAAAApc/YDvG2uQsByg/s1600/DSC_0559.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aHT8mZjZEz4/VgKkgCQHhCI/AAAAAAAAApc/YDvG2uQsByg/s640/DSC_0559.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aDqb5hcnL_s/VgKkhKcvYcI/AAAAAAAAApo/p7Dm8TdacCE/s1600/DSC_0562.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aDqb5hcnL_s/VgKkhKcvYcI/AAAAAAAAApo/p7Dm8TdacCE/s640/DSC_0562.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Overall, I'm really happy with how this quilt turned out! It has become a regular "couch quilt</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">" in our house already and when it gets really cold this winter, the colors will remind me of summer. :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here are some pictures from our trip:</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YDwMRS4vVJE/VgKluG8E4KI/AAAAAAAAAqE/GTFnU7jzIVE/s1600/IMG_4573.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YDwMRS4vVJE/VgKluG8E4KI/AAAAAAAAAqE/GTFnU7jzIVE/s640/IMG_4573.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Watkins Glen State Park in New York state was BEAUTIFUL!! I liked it even better than Niagara Falls because you could walk around and through the waterfalls. They even had a great quilt shop in town called O'Susannah's Quilts and Gifts. I can't wait to go back!</span><br />
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<br />Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-15950839465614170892015-08-19T15:47:00.000-04:002015-08-19T15:47:19.738-04:00Wonky Rectangles Baby QuiltBack with another finished quilt (and I have ANOTHER quilt that I'll be posting about in the next few days)!<br />
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My cousin's wife recently had a baby and they waited until the baby was born to find out the gender (I love that idea!). Luckily the baby was a girl, because these colors definitely read more "girly" than I originally thought when I picked them out. Haha. :) But I had a lot of fun making this quilt and I can't wait to send it to the newest member of our extended family, Selah Grace Saville!<br />
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I love the way the big, random rectangles accent the patterns in the fabric so well.<br />
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The proportions turned out a little bit different than I was expecting, but it looks great even if you turn it vertically, so there's no right or wrong way to do it. :)<br />
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I visited a new (amazing) quilt store called Rock, Paper, Scissors in Montclair, NJ and that's where I found this perfect backing fabric. It's a cream color with peach/salmon accent lines. SO great!<br />
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I machine-stitched the binding instead of hand sewing it so it would be extra durable and hold up to lots of repeat washings.<br />
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Welcome to the world, Selah! Can't wait to meet you!<br />
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<br />Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-31418965292806299972015-07-14T17:07:00.000-04:002015-07-14T17:27:40.540-04:00Kerstin's Wedding QuiltHello, online quilting friends! I just got back from a fantastic weekend up in Wisconsin celebrating the wedding of my friends Kerstin and Kyle. Kerstin and I have been friends since 8th grade when we both lived in Hawaii. There is a group of four of us (shout-out to Morgan and Azaria!) who have miraculously stayed in touch this long. You know you have true friends when they've lived through your awkward years and still agree to be seen with you. ;) But in all seriousness, it so amazing to be able to pick up where we left off no matter how long it's been since we last saw each other. I feel refreshed and rejuvenated after our long weekend together.<br />
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Of course, I made Kerstin a wedding quilt as a gift. This is actually my first kind-of sort-of original drafted pattern. I sketched out the nine center stars and used a jelly roll and some extra fabric to assemble them. Once they were all together, I wanted to make the quilt bigger, so I decided to add some arrows like I had seen in a quilt made by Grace and Favour. (Here's the <a href="http://carla-graceandfavour.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-wedding-quilt.html">quilt</a>, and here's a <a href="http://carla-graceandfavour.blogspot.com/2014/05/arrows-how-to.html">tutorial</a> that she wrote out for the arrows.)<br />
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Wes is on a three-week deployment until the end of the month, but I had him hold up the quilt for me before he left. The binding wasn't handstitched yet, but I wanted documentation, dang it! ;) Luckily, Kerstin also sent me some pictures after I got back.<br />
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My willing and handsome participant.<br />
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This quilt finished up at a whopping 82" by 82". I think it beat my sister's wedding quilt by two inches on both sides!<br />
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Kyle and Kerstin with their quilt!<br />
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I am so happy for you guys and I'm already looking forward to the next time we hang out. :)</div>
Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-39148577184678470642015-05-29T05:48:00.001-04:002015-05-29T05:51:54.424-04:00Aviation Inspired Baby QuiltHello friends! Just wanted to drop in and share my latest finished project. :)<br />
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Some friends of ours are having a baby and they both happen to be pilots, so when I stumbled across this pattern called "In Formation" using "flying geese" blocks, I just knew it was the one I had to make. I used leftover fabric from my <a href="http://measuringsuccessquilting.blogspot.com/2014/12/wedding-quilt-for-my-sister.html">sister's wedding quilt</a> (recognize those colors?), and used some fat quarters to make a scrappy backing. I took some pictures in our beautiful, blooming, GREEN front yard. Enjoy!<br />
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This picture cracks me up because it looks like Wes could be naked underneath. Haha. ;)<br />
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Quilting detail. I like how it looks like swirling air and clouds.<br />
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Scrappy backing!</div>
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I love this fabric that gives step-by-step directions on how to make a paper airplane. How perfect is that?<br />
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And I've been dying to use this "mice in race cars" fabric ever since I bought it way back when, so a baby boy's quilt seemed like the perfect opportunity.<br />
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Our friends should be receiving this quilt any day now. I can't wait to hear what they think!Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-35845467257058423062015-05-01T19:44:00.003-04:002015-05-01T19:44:30.569-04:00Mini Swap Brain Freeze<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I'm having a bit of a quilter's "existential crisis" over here in regards to my Alison Glass mini quilt swap!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've always loved browsing quilt swap hashtags on Instagram because I love seeing the thought and creativity that go into each and every quilt. But it seems those hours of browsing have backfired because I am drawing a complete blank when it comes to ideas for this upcoming mini swap and I'm starting to feel the pressure. The quilts aren't due to be shipped until the first week of June, but I know that will sneak up on me if I'm not careful. I thought I had an idea of a pattern that I wanted to use, but I immediately started second-guessing it and didn't think it was complicated enough or special enough. I know I'm not supposed to try to be something or someone that I'm not, but it's hard not to because I want to make something truly special. Drafting original patterns has never been my strong point, and maybe it never will be, but I would love to be able to interpret my partner's inspiration and suggestions into something that she will like. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Do any of you have trouble homing in on a design? How do you translate inspiration (from pictures, other quilts, nature, etc.) into an actual quilt design? How do you find a good balance between your taste and your partner's tastes? Have you ever participated in a swap and wish you would have done something differently?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I would LOVE to have some input! :)</span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-70523345415851465992015-03-16T14:49:00.000-04:002015-03-16T14:50:38.328-04:00Black and Gray X-Plus Quilt<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I have another quilt finish to share with you all! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My youngest sister, Mandi, has a birthday coming up in April and she requested a black/gray/white quilt. As much as I love wearing black and gray, I didn't have a lot of it in my fabric stash, so I had to start shopping around for the most economic way to get scraps. One of my Instagram friends (@leilagt) was kind enough to send me scraps from her stash for an amazing price! I also knew I wanted to try the X-Plus quilt pattern (re-sized to 12" finished blocks), so here is the final product. Drum roll please...</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: center;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Wes and I went exploring around back roads today and I kept my eyes peeled for some good photo shoot locations. As soon as I caught a glimpse of this rundown brick and wood building, I made him do a u-turn in the middle of the road to go back and take advantage of it. :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I knew I wanted to add a pop of color, and this teal Doe fabric was so "me", I had to include it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I got the backing fabric from IKEA for $5 a yard (can't beat that!) and my longarm quilter actually recommended using the aquamarine colored thread and I am SO happy with the results!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I usually like my quilt gifts to be total surprises for the recipient, but A) my sister had a hand in picking out the fabric and she saw some of my finished blocks when she came out to visit in January, and B) I literally could not wait to post pictures of the finished product. :)<br /><br />I'm so happy I was able to finish this quilt on time. I recently started a job at Ace Hardware and I'm working 35-38 hours a week, so my quilting time has definitely become more rare and precious. But before you feel sorry for me, it's been great to have a reason to get out of the house AND my husband told me yesterday that my legs and abs have become more toned since I started working three weeks ago! (I guess standing and walking IS better than sitting around the house all day...) Haha. :) I hope everyone reading this is finding the time to enjoy their hobbies just like I am. Every time I finish a project, I am so excited to share it with my online quilting friends. :)<br /><br />PS - I'm going to my first Modern Quilt Guild meeting tomorrow night in Philadelphia. I'm going to bring this quilt and my Cuzco Crossroads quilt for show and tell. Wish me luck!</span><br />
<br />Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-14473967646250813692015-02-17T17:17:00.000-05:002015-02-18T10:00:13.009-05:00Cuzco Crossroads QuiltI have another quilt finish to share with you all! I'm calling this one the "Cuzco Crossroads Quilt" because the fabric line is Cuzco by Kate Spain and the pattern is called Crossroads from the Moda Bake Shop.<br />
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I love the striking geometric pattern and the contrast between the white and the vibrant colors.<br />
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The swirling clouds quilting pattern really blends the sharp corners and adds great depth to the quilt.<br />
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I auditioned a few different binding color options, but the gray really seemed to tie everything together without distracting from the colors in the quilt.<br />
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This quilt is now my third official Etsy listing! I had a lot of fun making this quilt, but the blocks were pretty time-consuming. Aside from cutting out all of my pieces in the beginning, it took me 45 minutes to an hour to piece each block. This was definitely a factor in my final price determination. I still have a hard time putting a price on my quilts, but I can only hope that the person who purchases them will truly appreciate the time, effort, and love that went into each and every one of them. Etsy sales or not, I'm going to keep making. I can't wait to share my newest projects with you! :)Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-84323602296157649112015-02-12T16:35:00.001-05:002015-02-12T16:36:42.822-05:00Goodbye Gracie<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Today is a sad day in the Womble household. We had to say goodbye to our beloved dog, Gracie. We only had her for a year and two weeks, but she was the best dog we could have ever asked for. We found out on Friday that she had chronic kidney damage and by today (Thursday), her condition had worsened beyond what they could fix. The vets did everything in their power to make her better, but we knew we couldn't let her suffer any longer. Our hearts are hurting, but we know she's at peace now and hopefully one day we'll see her in heaven (I mean, how can dogs NOT go to heaven, right?). It's already strangely quiet around the house, but I'll smile every time I think of her adorable face. We miss you so much already, Gracie. Thank you for sharing the last year of your life with us.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-10622509939806672472015-01-29T19:04:00.002-05:002015-01-29T19:04:42.536-05:00Boho Baby Quilts<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This week, I finished two baby quilts and today I was finally able to get some pictures of them. Now I can post them in my Etsy shop (and on the blog, of course!). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I used the Indian Summer fabric line from Art Gallery Fabrics (plus a few solids) and this was my first experience sewing equilateral triangles. Confession: this was originally one long, skinny, awkwardly proportioned quilt top AND I've had it completed for almost two years now! I pulled it out recently and knew I couldn't make it work as a regular sized quilt, so I chopped it in half and voila! Two awesome baby quilts!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I also wanted to "set the stage" and get some pictures of these quilts in an actual kid's room, so I asked my friend Michelle if I could come over and take some pictures of the quilts hanging over the edge of her daughter's crib. I love the way the longarm quilting adds so much texture and movement! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Let me know what you think of the final product! Have you ever made a quilt pattern using equilateral triangles before? (I would do it again in a heartbeat!)</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-87594999439356121382015-01-21T12:06:00.001-05:002015-01-21T12:06:29.395-05:00Scrappy Gray Table RunnerMy sister Mandi recently told me that she wanted a quilt with the colors gray, black, and white. I didn't have enough of those in my stash to make a whole quilt, so I asked around on Instagram for the best place to buy fabric scrap bags online. A generous Instagram friend offered to sell me some scraps from her stash, and I couldn't be happier with the variety and selection that she picked out! I decided to do my first "X Plus" quilt with these fabrics and so far, it's coming along nicely.<br />
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As I was trimming some of my pieces, I was ending up with lots of triangles. I couldn't let them go into my scrap bag when they were already so neat and tidy, so I sewed them together into half square triangles and decided to make a table runner for our dining room table. I pulled an awesome batik from my stash for the backing, and this was the final result!<br /><br />Our house has a sun room with a GIANT skylight, so I was able to get some good lighting AND stay warm. My dog, Gracie, managed to tolerate this particular photo session long enough for me to get some good ones. :)<br />
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<br />Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-74679498021924880882015-01-06T17:48:00.000-05:002015-01-29T19:13:47.956-05:00Bright Colors on a Winter DayIt's been lightly snowing all day here in New Jersey - perfect weather for sitting on the couch and finishing the binding on my latest quilt! I've been addicted to Blue Bloods lately, so I might as well be productive while I'm sitting in front of the TV all day. ;) This quilt was made from a fat quarter bundle that was given to me as a gift two years ago. I love the way the lime green and blue blend together so well.<br />
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This quilt top sat 75% finished for almost two years until I recently pulled it out and sewed the strips together. (EDIT: I just realized I didn't get an up-close detail shot, so I'll try to include one of those later.)<br />
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I had to get creative with the backing because I only had about two and a half yards to work with and I couldn't remember where I had purchased it so I couldn't get more. I still had some of that awesome IKEA text fabric left, so I added a strip of it and I really like how it breaks up all of the bright green.<br />
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I'm still working on my photography and editing skills, but this was the best I could do by myself with my new tripod. Fresh snow is always the nicest, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity to capture it in the background. :)<br />
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My next venture is a quilt using fabric and a pattern that I've had for awhile, but never started. I'm pretty sure I'm going to sell this quilt because I don't really have a particular recipient in mind and I think it would have mass appeal (Kate Spain "Cuzco" fabrics, geometric pattern, etc.). I'll probably open an Etsy shop to make the sale and I found a great article from Sew Mama Sew (<a href="http://www.sewmamasew.com/2014/01/placing-a-value-on-your-quilting/">here</a>) that breaks down the process of pricing your quilts. Lots of good information to learn and absorb. If any of you have any experience selling quilts, please let me know! I'd love to hear what worked and didn't work for someone else.<br /><br /><span style="color: purple;">UPDATE (29 Jan 2015) -- Here are some updated pictures of this quilt on the beach! This quilt is now listed for sale in my Etsy shop, <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/WombleQuilts">WombleQuilts</a>.</span><br />
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<br />Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-24930721795110269432014-12-21T23:00:00.000-05:002015-01-06T17:48:56.321-05:00Wedding Quilt For My SisterMy sister got married yesterday and I made her and her new husband a quilt as a wedding gift. Now that they've seen the quilt, I can finally post pictures online!<br />
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I started brainstorming ideas a few months ago. I was trying to get some inspiration and insight, so I texted my sister and asked her how long she and her fiancee will have been dating when they get married. She said 365 days. They were getting married on their one year dating anniversary! After that, the number 365 just stuck in my head and I wanted to find some way to portray that in a quilt. Lucky for me, I stumbled across the free quilt pattern "Bartow" (designed by Carolyn Friedlander) on the Robert Kaufman website. The pattern is basically a series of half-inch wide strips, so it was easy to make it as big as I needed to. I purchased a layer cake of Moda "Modern Neutrals" and got to work! The colors reminded me a lot of my sister's taste, but they were also colors I would pick myself, so that definitely helped me stay motivated. The final product is exactly how I pictured it in my head. The colors and the design and the quilting are all very modern and I feel like this quilt is the best representation (so far) of my quilting style. I took these pictures before I left New Jersey because I knew I would want to post pictures from Texas as soon as the quilt was gifted. I hope you like it as much as I do! :)<br />
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The last row had a gap at the end, so I knew I wanted to add some sort of heart to fill the blank space. I decided to embroider their initials (A+A for Allie and Abe) and the date. I used a thick stitch on my regular machine, and if you look closely, it is far from perfect, but it gets the job done. I added the heart after the quilt was already quilted, so you can see the applique outline on the back of the quilt. It actually looks kind of cool and worn-in, like the quilt has already been loved and used for a few years. :) <br />
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I explored a new quilt shop and found a great fabric for backing. The green matches perfectly and the polka dots are a little bit smudged and imperfectly spaced. <br />
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I went to Jo-Ann's and found a perfect binding that was gray with random small hearts. I am so happy with how this quilt turned out. :)<br />
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The professional photographer took a few photos of Allie and Abe wrapped up in the quilt on their wedding day, so as soon as I have access to those, I will post them too. This was a really fun one, but now my brain is already on to the next project! Stay tuned to see what else I have up my sleeve!Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1663690450446538195.post-55619914043671182592014-12-15T11:52:00.000-05:002015-01-06T17:49:15.694-05:00LOTS of Finished Projects to Show!Another title for this post should be: "Quilting Photography Is Not A One Person Job".<br />
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I've been on a roll finishing quilts lately, but my husband hasn't been home during the day to help me take pictures! Today was a cloudy day, but I decided I couldn't wait any longer. If anyone has any recommendations for a good quilt frame or hanging method, please let me know. I'm sure my husband would appreciate it. ;)<br />
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Here is a jelly roll quilt that I recently had quilted. The pattern is from a book called "Modern Basics II" by Amy Ellis. The fabric is Modern Roses by Moda. I used a pretty teal batik from my stash for the binding. The quilt top was pretty before I had it quilted, but the quilting really made the colors and the design pop in a way that I wasn't expecting. This has quickly become a regular couch/lounging quilt in our house.<br />
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This next quilt is actually the second quilt top I ever finished, after my college t-shirt quilt. I had it quilted while I still lived in Texas, but it sat in a box until I recently found it again. All it needed was the binding! This pattern is from Little Louise Designs (she can be found on Etsy) and it's called Danish Delights. I still love this color combination, even three years after I picked it. I don't use a lot of orange in my quilts, so this one is unique in that sense. This is another "me" quilt that I'm keeping for myself. :)<br />
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My grandma's quilt guild has a limit of 75 members, so I'm currently on the waiting list to become a member. I've really enjoyed the two meetings I've been able to go to as a guest. Show and tell is such a fun way to get inspiration and (let's be honest) to get compliments on the projects that we've finished. ;) Last year, my grandma won the blocks of the month for three months in a row, so she had a lot of nine patch blocks and wasn't sure what to do with them. She decided to use a disappearing nine patch pattern and I helped her figure out a good layout and provided the backing. I pieced a few of the rows, but she finished it and then gave it to me as a gift! I think she's just happy that we recently moved into a house only 10 minutes away from her house. It's a win-win situation for me because I get to go sew with her and her friends at least twice a week!<br />
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We also did a paper pieced Christmas tree at last month's guild workshop. I gave the tree to my Mom when she came out for Thanksgiving, so she's going to add the button ornaments herself.<br />
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I was also able to finish the top for my Schnitzel & Boo Mini Swap quilt. Now I have to figure out how I want to quilt it (my least favorite part). I just hope the quilting doesn't distract from the striking design.<br />
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Another fun little project was this "Grumpy Cat" paper pieced pattern from Sew What Sherlock. I made this as a Christmas gift for someone special, so I hope she likes it. :) I think I'm going to make it into a small wall hanging (it's only 12" by 12", so it's a little small to be a pillow).<br />
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There's one more quilt that I finished today, but I want it to be a surprise for the recipient, so I have to use all of my willpower to resist posting pictures. It's BEAUTIFUL and modern and I can't wait for you to see it!<br />
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Well, I think I'm officially caught up on updating my recent finishes. As you can see, I've been very productive lately! I think it helps having a good long arm quilter nearby and also knowing that show and tell is coming up. Apparently that's all the motivation I need. :)<br />
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Let me know what you've been working on lately and if you've finished making all of your Christmas gifts! I can't wait to see what other people have been working on.Jessiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04311991085860721970noreply@blogger.com0