Window Panes

48" x 58.5"

This quilt is made from the left overs of a quilt I have not finished yet.  For some reason I finished this quilt first.  The other one is a plus quilt made from the above fabrics plus a few more, but I don't even have the top done to show you yet!  I had 5 inch squares of the black floral print and didn't want to put them in my scrap bin so I found a pattern to use them.  

There were 2 small strips left to give the back some interest.  I quilted it with a swirly panto.  I have been having a problem with my thread lately.  When I get to the end of the bobbin, I get small knots on the bottom of the quilt.  I thought I had it figured out by winding my bobbin slowly, but it showed up again on this quilt.  Anybody have a solution to my problem?

I got to spend the week in my sewing room thanks to my kids giving me the week off!  They took turns teaching the little kids and doing homework.  I spent 4 full days cutting, sewing, and quilting.

These are some of the prints I dug out of the closet to cut up for quilts. These all came from an estate sale and were super cheap!  I was able to pick patterns and cut fabric for 10 quilts this week!  I also quilted 2 fleece blankets that were taking up a bunch of room in the closet.  My closet is looking so much better!  (and emptier)   

Next on my list besides the plus quilt is the last scrap bin to cut up.  Then I can finally work on some other projects besides sewing that have been waiting for me!  Hope you all get time to do a little spring cleaning in your sewing rooms too!

Pink and Brown Posies

Here is a cute almost spring time quilt for this week.  I wanted to use up the brown floral print because it was in my closet.  It turned out a little darker than I like, but I had already pulled the fabrics before I picked the pattern...I really need to stop doing that! 

It is a one block quilt pattern.  Sorry I forgot to get a picture of the block.  It is 8 x 8.  You can see the block in the corner - it goes from orange to green on the top and green to yellow on the bottom. Then you just rotate it for the next one. 

The back reminds me of skittles for some reason.  I think it is the colors of the rainbow!  :)  Have a happy week!

Rainbow Brick

I was going through my scrap bins to cut and organize when I found a bunch of the black flowered print.  There were at least 25 pieces leftover from a quilt a did a couple years ago.  Seemed to me that I could put them in a quilt.  So I calculated the largest piece I could cut from my scraps which was a 7.5 by 4 inch brick.  Not too much you can do with that size!  Here's what I came up with.

42 x  52.5

I wish I had taken a picture of the first couple layouts. They were terrible!  I tried with a black V and random colors around it. Then I tried just random placement.  Agh!  It didn't look good until I started putting some order to it.  But now I am pleased with the rainbow look it has and that black floral print is not in my scrap boxes.  

I tried to finish off some of the colored prints from the front so I wouldn't have to put them back in my stash.  My bins are full and I need to get some of it used up!  I really am trying not to buy anymore, but when something is on sale (a really good sale) how can I resist! But full bins are full bins and I like to keep things put away.  Hope you all have a great week of sunshine and sewing!

Black vs Yellow

I finished up the last 2 I-Spy Scrappy Quilts the other day.  I decided it would be fun to see which binding we like better  - black or yellow.

Here they are side by side.  I think I like the black better on this type of quilt because it gives the quilt a dark finished edge.

Although on the back, I like the yellow because it blends in perfectly.  Which one do you like?

I used glue to hold the binding in place on both of these quilts.  I did the black first then the yellow.  I think I finally got the hang of it.  I was placing the glue down the strip further so the process was going much faster.  And I got the edge lined up better this time.

You can almost see all of my helpers in this last photo!  These are my youngest 4 and they love to hold up quilts that are almost as tall as they are.  And then there is Emma who just keeps peeking behind the quilt to see what everyone is doing!

You all have a great week!  (Yep, I live in Oklahoma!)

Have You Ever Glued a Binding?

I saw this new way to add a binding to a quilt that used NO pins!  What really?  No getting poked?  Aren't we supposed to get jabbed when we sew?  Well, not anymore!  

I have a friend coming over who just got a sewing machine and I remembered that she hates to pin the binding on.  So I thought I would try this method out just for her.  You can see the directions here.

All you need is some Elmer's Washable School Glue and your iron.  Sew your binding to the front just like normal.  Press it and flip your quilt over.  Run some glue down the binding, fold it over, and give it a good press. (no steam please)  

I did it the same way as if I was pinning, but glued and flipped instead of flipped and pinned.  I held the iron on the fabric for a couple seconds until it would stay down.

It is a little stiffer because of the glue and that makes stitching in the ditch easy. And I didn't have to pull any pins when I sewed.  ( I don't pull pins anyway though.  I have lot's of pin pullers running around my house and one of them is always happy to help me!)  After washing, the binding felt just the same as if I had used pins. The glue washed out.  

Overall, it seemed to take a little bit longer.  But it was my first time, I think I will get faster.  Good method for not using pins.  None to poke you or drop on the floor!  I think it's worth another try on a bigger quilt.