Sew Sunshine

Well this week for  Project Quilting 13.5  the theme is Rhythm and Repetition. I dug into my pattern/ruler pile and came up with "Mountain Hiking" by Kate Henderson out of the book Scrappy and Happy Quilts. It uses Perfect rectangle rulers but I had EZ Tri Tool by Darlene Zimmerman made by simplicity and they were same size for the three smaller triangles. I had to make a template for the biggest.  This quilt measures approx. 72.5" x 80.5" I had to decide if I could do this large size in a week. I used all scrap or a variety of older low volume pieces for the background. I emptied out a bag of these red violet lovelies ( one of my favorite colors the last few years) that I had been saving for something. So the cutting took a little bit of time because of the scrappy pieces I had to deal with. Still I was able to make the top relatively quickly.  did have trouble with my large template size triangles because the top tip was so wide it never gave me a point. I decided

I am not sure what to call this finish. I have been emptying baggies of projects or ideas of projects that I have kept together. This week I found a bag with 2 animal blocks framed up partially with the animal print fabrics. They were left over from a kids quilt I made years....ago. I decide this would be easy to just frame up some more of the animals in the panel and ...USE...IT....UP! ha So I don't know if this is a UFO or a WIP but it is now something! Between the front and the back I used up all but a strip of zebra and cheetah fabrics. I can put that in the scrap bag for another day.  I had four animals left from the panel and was able to make them into little backpacks. One of my local quilt guild is making backpacks for little ones to use for medical purposes.  The packs are lined and just need the cording yet.  So another bag gone and done. Next up...new project quilting challenge coming out tomorrow.  linking up with  Put your foot down and  Wed weight loss  with Inquiring

My bag eliminating continues. If you have been following me this year I have not been cleaning and organizing per say but I have been keeping things neatly together over the years. What I am finding out is that I have tons of fabrics filed away in bags waiting for whatever it is to be finished. I keep the relevant coordinates together or shades or whatever. This does have its advantages as I can pull it up and not have to rematch etc. However, it also has its pitfalls. I just commented to another blogger that I loved her blue quilt and wondered why I didn't have much blue fabric. Well, the answer = I have bunches of it packed away with projects! sigh.... Slowly I am pulling up these project bags and deciding to continue or let go of all the fabrics held hostage!  This bag was a bag of string cutoffs of AGF. I love their feel and texture and started a improv crib quilt with them. Then got busy and moved on.  While I did not empty the bag of strings I did finish up with this gray kon

51 x 51 approx. This weeks challenge from  Project Quilting 13.4  is Mining for Diamonds.  You can click on link to take you to see all the interpretations. Mine came from my stash and a need to empty out some bags of chunks of fabrics I have stashed and also my sister gave me a bag of her cut offs of batting.  I have wanted to do another QAYG (quilt as you go) project. I love them. Here are a couple from my past go at them:  Under the rug and  Scrappy strings This time I decided to see if there were any other methods to use. I pulled out the fabrics I had stashed and saw that I could use the coordinates pretty easily.  With the bigger pieces I thought I could do more. I found a tutorial and free pattern with some videos  by Monica Poole . This to me looked pretty simple and accurate so I decided to give it a go.  I liked that I was able to use my big bias tape maker which was sitting in a drawer.  (one of my goals this year is to use rulers, patterns etc that I own) This pattern is no

Yay for me...another WIP bites the dust! This is the plaidish quilt tutorial by Erica @  Kitchen Table Quilting Such a fun quilt to do and mindless sewing of scraps except for light and dark.  64" x 84" approx scraps, serpentine quilting I was not sure I could quilt it myself so I tried to keep it simple. I used the serpentine stitch on my machine and with the help of the stitch in the ditch walking foot followed the lines. I did really good checking the back for tucks etc until the end of the rows. So of course I have a few at the end of the rows..ha Luckily the back is pretty busy and most you can't see only feel. sigh..... It is crinkly now because of that stitching and I hope when I wash it it will be even more! started in 2019 and made top 2020 and finished 2022...whew Linking up with Cynthia @  Oh Scrap   NTT with Kelly @ My quilt infatuation Midweek makers @ HERE   Jennifer @ Wed. Weight loss

17" x 17.5" paint on fabric hand and machine quilted This small art piece I created in the textile artist group on fb. The idea was to try all sorts of mark making tools, cut it up and stitch it back together. Since quilting is my thing I cut apart and stitched back together with hand work and machine work.  "Barbed wire and the beauty beneath" is an ode to the pasture land my husband and I have been trying to clean up. Beneath all the grass and dead trees were huge rolls of barbed wire and fencing wire. Lots of rocks and old fence posts and numerous other things.  I randomly painted on an old sheet. Cut it up and fitted it back together where some marks overlapped.  I added bits of magenta paint and found in my paint drawer a piece of sheet that my quilt bee group and I played with shaving cream and paint. It went with my layout so I used it.  I randomly hand stitch bits and then layered my pieces on a piece of organdy. I used a black batting to keep it from lookin

This weeks  Project Quilting  over at Persimon dreams blog is 13.3 = Kitchen Influence 45"x 45" Quick Curve ruler pattern called Chic Picnic My challenge piece came about because I want to work through my scraps, by patterns and my rulers this year.  I didn't look far to find that I had Sew Kind of Wonderfuls Quick Curve ruler pattern called Chic Picnic and decided that was 'kitchen influenced'.  In the week between challenges I was working on cleaning up some baggies of scraps.  I have piles of bags and cases of scraps. I started on the black and white etc scraps cutting them up into usable bits before the challenge started. When the challenge came out I decided to see what partial FQ's and what not I had that could be cut up into scrappy goodness. I happened to find a shoe box in the corner that had just what I needed. I added some blenders and made it work.  All the remaining bits of those FQ's I used on the back and binding. All scrappy goodness AND I

47" x 54" Little creatures from Cori Dantini line of fabric  I have learned that I do not really do well by organizing my sewing area. I clean up a bit and don't let it get too out of control as I go. This works best because in organizing in the past I lose things? Am I the only one? I put all things nice and neat somewhere but that is not where my mind saw it last so I have trouble finding it again to actually use.  This year I want to use the patterns and rulers I have and of course my fabric stash. So on organizing...a waste of time for me because I am messy but not THAT messy. ha  One way I try to stay neat is to put projects together with fabric pattern and so on in a baggie. What I realized though is that I usually have all fabrics tied up then with the project just in case I may need them. So I plan to do some bag busting this year too.  One bag was this cute Cori Dantini creatures bag. Full of tons of matching and coordinating line of fabrics. My directions as to

Let the Sun Shine - P.Q. 13.2  challenge theme = silhouette 16.5" x 16. 5" applique my original design My challenge piece for this weeks Project Quilting theme from  Persimon Dreams blog . The theme is silhouette this week. I knew I would keep this project small if I wanted to do applique. I decided on the fused applique and then stitched it all down with invisible thread. The invisible thread turned out to work really well but it was so hard to see when working on it.  Linking up with Persimon dreams so go check out all the entries  HERE I also wanted to do a pattern or something from my library. I remembered I had one of  Sotak Handmade  little bag patterns. I dug in my stash for some light canvas fabrics and voila... This little bag went together easy and is so cute! Perfect for a little grab and go project! I plan to make more of these for sure and I have tons of fabric..haha I love big prints even in small bags.  Also linking with NTT @  My quilt infatuation and Wendy @