Finish: A Little Ragged

Well last week, in record time, I whipped up a pink & green version of the ragged squares quilt.  I used the free tutorial from Crazy Mom Quilts.  This went together so quickly.  I had bought a lot of the Denyse Schmidt pink fabrics in fear they would sell out and I'd learn that my sister in-law was having a girl.  I was really hoping to make a quilt using those fabrics and this little panel:

In the end, they were having a boy (big shocker...there hasn't been a girl born in the family for years).  Also, my husband said his brother was not a fan of the idea of pink elephants.  I will hoard this last panel for a future grandchild, I guess.  In the meantime, I was left with a whole lot of pink girly fabric and nary a girl in sight. 

Speaking of being ragged...my sweet little baby was pushed down and then jumped on at tee-ball and broke his clavicle.  Craziness.  We are going to an orthopedic surgeon today to see what needs to be done.  If you can spare a prayer for his comfort and recovery, it'd be greatly appreciated.  He's in a lot of pain.  I took all of these indoor shots inside so I could take a photo of the quilt before we go give it to its owner next week.  The lighting was not ideal but I had more important things to attend to (like making sure the little man had his every need met!).

This is a lotta pink, a lotta red, a fair amount of green, and a splash of aqua.  I have a ton of this fabric left, so you could see something like this again. 

I love the little gnomes.  I had a little fat quarter with these guys on it and I fussy cut them out.

This quilt will live with my nephew's girlfriend.  I was going to make her a houndstooth quilt so I included some of this fun green Houndstooth instead.  My sister informed me after the quilt was made that her room is pink and green.  WIN!

I used some leftover backing from my Eli's Wheel's quilt (the aqua floral) and of course the blue gnomes, so I added the punctuation blue tickets on green to help tie the blue in a little more. 

I think I like the backing even more.  It is the giant gingham from Denyse Schmidt for Joann.  The floral is from Ruby.  The binding is more DS for Joann.

The Denyse Schmidt fabrics ended up being about $5 a yard with Joann coupons---love that!  The girl is not named Riza, but that is what my boys call her.  She's a really sweet girl and we really like her.

All rolled up and ready to make the loooong trip home for the holidays...are you???

Tutorial: Acorn Pincushions

First off, let me sayI'd never heard of acorn pincusions until this year's IQF.  They were EVERYWHERE.  I did a little research and this is a Victorian throwback.  All of the ones we saw used felted wool, but We decided stuffing yo yos would be just as fun.  Here's how we did it.

 Find some big ol' acorns.  Some places actually sell these for $1 each or so.  If you don't know where to find these, my advice is to hunt for squirrels that look like they are on 'roids (but do not make them angry!).

 Proper footwear recommended...

 You will now want to find a circular object to use for tracing your fabric circles.  Find a circle whose radius (distance from center to outside edge) is at least as big as your acorn...a little bigger is even better.

 Trace and cut out your circles.

 Run a basting stitch around the edge and then stuff tight with a polyfil or cluster-stuff.  My 7 year old and my best friend helped me with these.

 Lock those stitches into place just like you would when finishing a hand binding.  Hot glue or use a generous amount of school glue to place the yoyo into the acorn cap.  Let dry completely. 

 Marvel at your new acorn pincusions...not at my crappy photography.

 If you make these, I'd love to see a picture. 

2011 IQF recap...

I went to IQF twice this year.

I am sorry to disappoint... I have a total of 1 picture...and that was of my friends. To be honest, look through my posts of 2010 IQF and you will see the same things that impressed me this go round. Unfortunately 2 of my favorite booths were not there this year.

I bought 5/8yd of fabric...and it was covered in superheroes. The only other thing I bought were notions...marking pens, bobbin tubes, thread, and rotary blades. I'm boring, I guess.

So much was the same from last year. I couldn't bring myself to schmooze with the quiltolebrities I saw...Alex Anderson, Ricky Tims, Pokey Bolton, and Eleanor Burns. I am not one of those people who will go out of their way to strike up a convo or make myself noticed...schmoozing and networking is against my nature. I really like doing tutorials and hearing comments from y'all. I dislike how clique-ish it sometimes feels in the quilt blog community and how much schmoozing and networking come into play in one's success. Let me also say this month has been rough and it definitely played a part in my sour outlook. I was in a car accident (we are ok) with a crazy person who is not cooperating though the police labeled it all her fault. Also, our dog has been diagnosed with terminal bladder cancer. So there ya go...I did a horrible job documenting the IQF experience, but really I could not have done it justice right now. I did enjoy the people I went with, so that's a blessing.

Soooooo as you can tell I'm a bit restless and frazzled and I want to spend the next few weeks catching up on mindless reading, making quilts without thinking about new patterns or ideas, and doing a couple of Christmas gifts. I will keep y'all posted on any projects I do.

PS: I saw Sandy Klop's friend Kaye again and told her about my fun surprise email. She said that Sandy contacting me voluntarily would really hurt her restraining order case. LOL or Yikes? I am going with LOL, I guess???

to trim or not to trim...HSTs

Love 'em or loathe 'em, Half Square Triangles are everywhere.   There are tons of ways to make them, and everybody has an opinion on the best way to do so.  Some people make their squares 7/8" bigger than the finished HST needs to be and do not trim.  I'm a trimmer, though.  It is a pain in the behind, but I've never had a problem with my HSTs not matching up even if they were used in a design with squares or something besides other HSTs.  Did you know that by using the "non trimming" method you are actually creating HSTs that are 1/32" off from your desired size?  Yup, the reason we use the +7/8" rule is not because it is mathematically perfect, but because it is the closest notch on the quilting ruler.  That might not be a big deal if you are making a quilt of ALL half square triangles, but if you are incorporating them into a larger design, that mistake can add up quickly, especially on a very large quilt.

So...
trimming on not trimming, what's your take?

Shout Out Saturday #1: Hello from Tops to Treasures

 I don't know about you, but I'm hungry for some new blogs to read.  My BFF Amie and I were talking the other night about how we are wanting new inspiration but keep seeing the same 10 or 15 blogs on everyone's  blogroll.  It's time for us to branch out and find new blogs to love, and we thought you might feel the same way.  This is the first post in what I hope will become a semi regular series called "Shout Out Saturday."  If you have a great suggestion for a blog you don't already see in *my* blogroll, email me with your idea and I will check it out.  Our first guest is Cindy from Tops to Treasures.  I follow her blog and I thought you might be interested in hearing about one of her areas of expertise...she is a long arm quilter!

________________________________

Hello, my name is Cindy. We haven't met. Mary thought we should, so I am here to introduce myself.

Um...those are my feet...cute picture isn't it. Meet Montague and Capulet, my favorite slippers.
Where to start....I am obviously a blogger, with a silly sense of humor. I can't remember a time when I didn't enjoy writing. I suppose before I learned how it wasn't on my list of favorite things to do, but I've slept since then.

To me writing is a conversation...a letter to whom ever picks up the page. I adore letters. There is nothing as precious as a hand written epistle chuck full of thoughts and events and stories, folded up and tucked in an envelope received by post. I can't remember the last time I received one.
Writing is also about forming letters on a page. I am fascinated by the flow of ink from my pen and the gentle loops and curls as words form on a page. It is magical. Unfortunately, like my memories of my favorite past times as a preschooler, my eye sight has succumbed to the years. However, I get the same thrill from quilting.

I am a quilter....that is to say I quilt. The "-er" makes me nervous. I joyfully accept the "-er" in sister, daughter, mother, etc. God gave me those. The "-er" in quilter seems more ominous, like it should set a standard. I'm not sure I meet the qualifications for it. I'm less sure that I want to.
I've met plenty of "-ers" that have put me off. I'm sure you have too. They tend to be full of rules and free advice. I think I can honestly say that I admire their work. It is beautiful. I do feel a little sorry for their beautiful quilts....big money winners that travel around the country to be gawked at but never snuggled under. There is something sad about that. My best friend, Kelli, would look at me and say, "They taste like they don't got a dog," and we would both laugh and thank the writer of "Because of Winn-Dixie."

I make quilts. I make them for friends and family, for people I love or who seem to need loving on. I make little quilts to swap with my on-line friends. Mini's are quickly becoming my favorite format. They are quick, require little financial commitment, and I can try anything. They are a good way to try out new technique.

I am also a long arm quilter. I own and operate Tops to Treasures...that is also the name of my blog, and my Flickr account. Over the past five and half years I've quilted over 600 quilts....quilts made by people like me and you, quilts intended to be gifts and comforters. I haven't quilted a single show quilt. I think I'm okay with that.

Now, so this post isn't just about me, here a few things to know about long arm quilters.
1) They don't know everything. Really, most of them are just like us. They may have an idea about how to quilt your top, it might be a good one too, but your ideas are just as good. Don't feel obligated to accept their word as "it."
2) If they are worth their salt they wont ask to be paid until they have delivered the work you asked for. They will give you a receipt outlining the work to be done, the costs, and time frame upon receipt of your project.
3) They can't always drop everything and quilt your quilt NOW. You might have to wait a little while. My turn around time is about three weeks.

4) Your quilt top does NOT have to be perfectly wrinkle free. When you iron a quilt the point isn't wrinkles. You don't need to iron it like it is getting ready for prom. Pressing a quilt is meant to coerce the various fabrics into playing nice with each other. You're turning coal into diamonds, not dust. When your top is mounted the table will stretch ordinary wrinkles out. Neatly folding a quilt top and backing material is okay.
5) The long arm quilter really does need the extra backing fabric they asked for. They have to have something to hold onto. Most long armers ask for 3 to 5 inches all the way around. If your top is 10x10, they would want the back to be around 18x18.

6) Flappy bits, like flanges and rick-rack can be a challenge. They move. Be sure to let the quilter know if you have incorporated any of these design elements into your project.
7) Long arm quilters like things to be square. Squares make life easier. They will love you forever if you make sure that your project has right angled corners and sides that are straight.
I'd love to share more of my quirky world with you. Stop by my blog any time!

how to fix a warped olfa mat!

Last night I went to preview night for the International Quilt Festival. One of the first people I sought out was Charlie, the olfa guy. His prices are the best in the festival and he is a fountain of rotary cutting knowledge. Last time I went to festival, he taught me how to hydrate and clean my olfa mats. This year I asked him about those pesky heat warped mats I think almost all of us have.  I bought one at a yard sale for 25 cents that was badly warped just hoping and praying I could find a use for it.  Well, Charlie told me THERE IS HOPE!

What you need:
a warm day
a warped mat
concrete
piece of clean, flat plywood as big as your mat or bigger
piece of heavy glass as big as your mat or bigger.

Lay your flat playwood on the concrete.  Put the warped olfa mat on top.  Cover with the glass.  Leave outside in the heat all day.  When night falls or the next day comes while it is still cooler, remove your mat and it will be left with a mat that is "reset" to flat. 

Charlie says there is an 85 percent success rate...and that the other 15 percent don't follow directions.

Another tip: use a gum eraser to remove fibers that are stuck in your mat.

Let me know if you have success with this method!

Skinny 4-patch {scrap quilt in progress}

I am not a fan of working with scraps but I'm not a fan of throwing away cute fabric either. I have started trying to use some scraps in ongoing projects so that I can collect more fabrics and it looks more like a scrap quilt and less like a quilt I just made unfortunate fabric choices on.

Too few fabrics in a scrap quilt can end up looking like you just don't know how to match.

The sashing finished at 3/4" and the 4 patch pieces all start at 2"x4".  I am wanting to finish this quilt before I get bored with it, but that means it will probably be a 32"ish by 32"ish quilt.  I have a lady at church who has a grandbaby coming and I'm sure they'd like it, but I always feel slightly bad about giving such a small quilt rather than one a toddler could sleep under.  I don't want to add borders...I just don't think it fits and I'm not a border girl.  What size baby quilts do you like to give (or receive)?