Finds, Friends and Fabric

My weekend was eclectic. 

 Scratch that my LIFE is eclectic! 

 I did a lot of things this weekend that were not connected except that they were done by me. 

 I did some gardening and boy was it HOT. 

 I did some cleaning and laundry, not very exciting. I also did some shopping, cutting and sewing.

 I decided that I need a new shower curtain.

 I also decided it was time to cut into my precious FQ bundle of Bliss to make said shower curtain. 

I am using the pattern Happy Hour by Terry Atkinson 

 I saw this made up as a shower curtain on Terry's blog a LONG time ago and loved it! 

 So that's what I am going to do... eventually.

 Hey at least it is cut out!  

I have a few other things to get done and they have a deadline. 

 I figure I have 6 quilts to make in about 2-3 weeks!!!  

Two for Yolanda, 3 for MHC, one that I can't talk about, (yet) and *then* the shower curtain.  

I have to say that my friends are so good to me.   

Pauline sent away for a free pattern for me. 

 Cute right?

Thanks P!

Cori and I were talking about my making some quilts for MHC and their drive for kids quilts.  

You can read about what they are looking for here. 

 I like to donate to this group as they are in Michigan and I know the people running the charity.  They are in particular need of quilts for boys and young men.  

Desired size is 40"X 60", so not that large.  

Anyway, Cori and I were talking about this and she sent me off with a JR to use for one (or maybe 2) quilts for some of the younger boys.  

Thanks Cori (now go and check out her wonderful shop!!)

I think I am going to try this pattern by Amanda Jean. 

 I think I can adapt it for a jelly roll.  

What do you think of using white for the other part of the pattern?

I'm trying to use from my stash and I have loads of white.

 Interestingly enough Amanda Jean just blogged about sending blocks off to MHC for an upcoming sew-in on August 25th.  

You can read about that here.  

The link to the pattern for the blocks can be found here.

Whew that's a lot of information! 

 It would be great if you could join in! 

 I wracked my brain to see what I could come up with for older guys and thought,

 "you can never go wrong with sports teams". 

 So I am working on Michigan and Michigan State tumbler quilts.  

I have the U of M one done and ready to send to Liz. 

 I have 6 of the 11 rows done on Sparty's quilt.  

These tumbler tops went together in just over 3 hours and used 1 1/2 yards of 3 fabic.  

If you have a GO and want to help, you can whip one of these babies up in no time!!

Well maybe in 3 hours anyway.

I'm going to stop right here.  

I have more to share, but will save it for tomorrow. 

 I know I don't like  posts that go on and on and on, LOL. 

Have a wonderful day!!

~XOP~

Bee Vintage Blocks

I managed to get my June blocks finished for the Bee Vintage bee I'm in.
 I was happy to have those done and in the mail too!
 YEAH!!

Nikki wanted these churn dash blocks with the centers in a bright color and
 the vintage sheets with a white background.
 I used my Art Gallery solid for this one.
 I like how this came out.

Next was the one for Tammie.
 She wanted a pinwheel like this

Amazingly enough the center came out perfectly!
 So happy I didn't have to rip that out!

Of course I had help choosing the fabrics!!

They are never far from wherever I am.

 I also managed to score some great sheets this week at the Sally Ann. 

 This one was my favorite.

 I may actually use this one for the back of my Bee Vintage quilt.

 I got a flat and fitted sheet so I would have more than enough to use and maybe cut up too. 

  

 This one was just a pillowcase but I really liked it too. 

 

 I have a lot of irons in the fire right now (big shocker I know) so

 hopefully you will come back to visit and see some more!

 ~XOP~ 

Sliced Apples Borders and Finishing

We will be talking about the borders for your Sliced Apples quilt today.
 I gave you the cutting instructions in cutting directions post but will do so again here
JIC you forgot = )

I am assuming all fabric is unwashed and 1/4" seams are used throughout.

For your borders:

You should measure your center before you cut these.  I will give you the finished measurements of mine, but measure yours before you cut your white strips.

My center, all sewn, measured 40.5" X 52.5"

1st white border:

                             Cut 2 strips 2.5" X WOF (width of fabric) You will use this for the top and bottom
                             Cut 3 strips 2.5" X WOF ( sew all three together and press seams open)
                                                                          You will use these for the sides

From these you will cut using your measurements for the length of each strip.

I sewed the top and bottom borders first so I would not need to piece them.  My strips were

2.5" x 40.5"

I then added the side borders which were

2.5" x 56.5"

Pieced border:  Select 26 colored charm squares.  Cut them 2.5" x 4.5"

**TIP: If you are using directional fabric, cut some horizontally and some vertically.

You will need to sew 2 strips that use 14 of the 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles.  Sew them end to end, to make 2 long strips. Press seams in one direction.  I usually press so the open part of the seams face me as I sew them to the quilt top.   These will be sewn on to the sides of the quilt.

You will need to sew 2 strips that use 12 of the 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles.  Sew them end to end, to make two long strips. Press seams in one direction.  I usually press so the open part of the seams face me as I sew them to the quilt top.  These will be sewn to the top and bottom of the quilt.

Lay them out to make sure they fit your top.  Pin in place and attach to your quilt.  Sew side borders first then top and bottom.

I pressed mine to the colored fabric since I didn't want any color to show through on my white border.

2nd White Border:

Cut 7 strips 4.5" x WOF

From these you will cut using your measurements for the length of each strip.

     Sew two sets of 2 border strips.  Press seams open.  These will be for your sides.  Measure your top and cut to the appropriate length for your quilt.  My strips were 60.5" x 4.5"
**Your measurements may differ so make sure to measure before you cut!**

     Sew 3 strips together. Press seams open. These are for the top and bottom.  Measure your top and cut to the appropriate length for your quilt.  My strips were:  56.5" x 4.5"
 **Your measurements may differ so make sure to measure before you cut!**

Again you will sew the side borders first.

Your quilt should finish approximately 56.5" x 68.5"

 You should need no more than 4 yards of fabric for your backing, and less if you are making a horizontal back.  You might like to use your left over charms on the back too.

For binding, if you cut your unwashed fabric 2.5" wide by WOF, you would use exactly 1/2 yard.  I would get a smidge more to allow for straightening and certainly a little more if you plan on pre washing.

So there you have it. 

 I hope you have enjoyed our little QAL.  

I am considering doing a Christmas in July QAL if there is any interest.  

I already have a pattern chosen and permission to use it. 

 Anyone up for that?  

If there is enough interest I will do it so let me know what you think and I will go from there.

Please remember to add your photos of your progress and finished quilts to our Flickr group. 

 We LOVE seeing your finished quilts!!

~XOP~

Helping Out a Friend

Have you ever heard about a friend of a friend that had cancer that needed help?  

I think most of us have friends, relatives or friends of friends that have had cancer. 

 Recently a good friend of mine told me about someone battling cancer.  

She asked if I knew her. 

 I didn't actually know her, I knew of her.  

She is in many of the same Flickr groups I'm in.  

Maybe you know her too.  Yolanda.  

She is keeping everyone up to date on her cancer here if you are interested. 

 My friend told me that some friends of Yolanda's were helping her to finish up her WIPs.  

I wanted to help out too.  

I emailed Yolanda's friend and asked if there was something I could do to help out with the WIP's.  Liberty, bless her heart, sent me a tumbler quilt all cut out.  

I received the blocks in the mail a week or so ago and headed over to Cori's house last Thursday to lay the quilt out.  

It's always interesting to do that.  

Take someone's blocks and try to lay it out in a way that you think they will like.  

It's interesting to see someone else's fabric choices.  

Would you choose those fabrics?  

Would they put it together the way you did?  

Kind of a fun night.  

Cori and I had fun laying the quilt top out and rearranging it until we were happy with how it looked.  This is what we came up with.

We felt like it was pretty balanced overall.  

We picked it up, pinned the piles and then I took it home to sew.  

Here is a close up of the fabrics Yolanda sent me.

I was on a mission on Friday night and got the entire top sewn. 

 It took me about 4 hours total to do, so not too bad.  

Here is the completed top.  

Not the best pic but my short DD1 was holding it up. 

I am now waiting for the backing and the binding to arrive so I can send it off to Liz for quilting.  

We are going with this pattern, Surf's Up, by Anne Bright.

I think it will work well with this quilt. 

 The recipient is a 19 year old young man (Yolanda's nephew).  

If you are interested in helping (and they didn't ask me to get it quilted or bind it) please let me know.  I think watching her WIP's get finished is giving Yolanda great joy, and really, who doesn't need a little more joy in their life?  

Thank you, Jeannette, for hooking me up.  

Thank you Liberty for facilitating.

Thank you Yolanda for allowing me to help you and to bring a little joy into your life

 while you battle for yours.  

I look forward to receiving the next top!

Have a wonderful day!

~XOP~

North Carolina Shop Hop

I can't believe how far behind I am in still telling you about my trip!  

On Saturday I got to meet Freda and Sara and her son, Ayden.  

These are some seriously nice folks! 

Freda picked me up and we met Sara at Wish Upon a Quilt. 

 I have to say this is a fabulous shop!! 

I have decided that I really need to work on a quilt my DD1 drew and 

so I needed some specific batik fabrics for this.  

Not my usual "go to" fabrics so those were on my list of things to look for and look what I found!  These will be perfect for "Prismata"! 

 (More on him another time)

I did happen to buy just 2 additional fabrics at this shop and these are more my typical style.  Although I don't have a lot of Kaffe,

 I love this feather print and it will blend with some other grays I have on hand.

Next on the travel stop was Bernina World of Sewing.  

Also a very nice shop!

Where I happened to find these beauties. 

 Not that I needed any of them but...

Who can resist some Joel Dewberry and some Curious Nature? 

 Not me that's who!

Next in line was lunch at the Cheesecake Factory. 

 I had never eaten at one and was stunned to see how HUGE the lunch salads were! 

 STUNNED!!!  

I can't imagine a dinner salad.

The one on the left was Freda's and the one on the right was mine 

(Sara helped me finish mine!)

Sara and Ayden's lunch was

amazing too. 

Lettuce wraps and a pepperoni pizza with little tiny pepperonies on it!

Next stop was Elegant Stitches. 

I found some real treasures there like 4 1/4 yards of this OOP print!!!  

(On sale too, isn't that Swell?)

I also found some Laurie Wisburn and the cutest whip stitch piping! 

 Anyone know where this piping is available wholesale??

Then we went to the Whistle Stop.  

I didn't buy anything there but their shop was cute and this pillow was amazing.

Last stop was The Quilter's Nest. 

 I did a little damage here too.

This day was wonderful! 

 I met some new friends IRL which was awesome.

 Freda, thank you from the bottom of my heart for driving me around!!  

You were more than generous.  

Sara, thank you for the beautiful dish towel 

(that is actually too pretty to use and may be made into an apron.)

And Ayden, thank you for th entertainment!

 I wish we lived closer!!!

Aren't blogging friends just the BEST??!! 

 I have a lot more stuff to share, although not too much more from the trip, but quilt related. 

Enough of a tease for everyone?? 

 LOL

~XOP~

Blue Ridge Parkway, Linville Falls

The trip picks up with us leaving Asheville and heading down the Blue Ridge Parkway.
 This is a very scenic (and steep) drive. It runs for 469 miles (755 km), mostly along the famous Blue Ridge, a major mountain chain that is part of the Appalachian Mountains. (Wikipedia)
We took it from Asheville to the Linville Falls.
You can certainly see how the Blue Ridge got it's name as
whenever I took a photo the mountains look "blue"

 We drove in DD2's little Saturn and
 we were not too certain it was going to make it up the mountains!

Especially when the roads looked like this

We stopped at a scenic outlook and I took a video there to show you how beautiful it was.

 Next we headed to Linville Falls. It was so beautiful! It was also a mile hike uphill BOTH WAYS!!

(Not sure how that can be but...)

 You can see DD2 at the top of the climb. 

Then we got to the falls.
I have an amazing video but it won't load right now.
I will try again later.

 Then we hiked some more (uphill still) for some different falls.

 Then back in the car and more driving to Blowing Rock. I think this one is called Grandfather.

 Finally in Blowing Rock (we never did find the rock) but we did have lunch at this wonderful place. The sweet potato fries were amazing here!

Next up my amazing day shop hopping with blog friends so come on back!

 ~XOP~