Half Square Triangle Quilt for Maya

My oldest granddaughter was visiting last summer. I took her to the fabric store and let her pick out some fabric for a quilt. We talked about color, pattern, scale, design etc. Maya has a great eye (like her Mom) and knew exactly what she wanted. She picked out some beautiful fabric--no flowers just clean lines. Maya's quilt was designed with half-square triangles--lots of them! I was able to practice my skills with a seam ripper. I made plenty of mistakes (it looked so simple). Greg was kind enough to draw me a pattern that made sense to me.

I purchased a ruler years ago--it has odd markings and really made no sense to me. I did a little google research and discovered the odd ruler I had was used to square up half-square triangles. What a gem, this ruler helped me make perfect half-square triangles. The quilt was a success. I put some beautiful soft minky on the back and finished it with a scrappy binding. Thanks Maya for letting me develop my quilting skills.

Maya's happy place is in my scrapbook room. It is paradise for a creative pre-teen. Maya will spend hours in this room making signs, lists, notes and anything with glitter. She also likes to organize all my supplies--now that is helpful!

Prairie Flower Quilt for Mom

My mom loves flowers her yard is a blast of color each summer. I saw a pattern for a Prairie Flower Quilt, it had Mom's name on it! I had to run with it. The pattern comes from Missouri Star Quilt Co. MSQC has lots of fun video segments that demo different quilts. I watched this demo several times until I felt confident enough to start cutting and sewing. It was a fun quilt to make, the blocks were big--over 13 inches. I used Miss Kate, a fabric line by Bonnie Camille for Moda. This is a fun fabric line with lots of color--just like Mom's flower garden.

I wanted to do a scrappy back, I got carried away and it turned out very scrappy. It is fun. It was quilted at The Quiltmakers on a long-arm quilting machine. She did the quilt freehand--it is beautiful with many fun details.
Happy Mothers Day to the best Mom ever!

First Crush Quilt

This Stacked Coin quilt was created after I looked at several dozen similar quilts on Pinterest. I am not at all opposed to purchasing quilt patterns--I have dozens! Sometimes you just can't find the perfect pattern so you create one. That is the hard way for me because I am not a math whiz. You use plenty of math to figure out a quilt pattern. Luckily I have a sweet hubby that draws bridges for a living and does math all day. He is quite helpful in the pattern drafting department. I am happy with the finished quilt.

I would have loved a better photo and I will get one. I really just didn't want to go outside in a blizzard for the perfect photo op. This quilt is made with First Crush by Moda. The back is way scrappy. It is a great feeling to use up bits and pieces of fabric--I love how it turned out.
This quilt will live in my front room, it is all about hearts and love, I'm good with that!

Harrisons's Quilt

Harrison came to visit this summer. We went on a little field trip to the fabric store. Harrison chose
the fabric and pattern, he has excellent taste. Making this bold chevron pattern was just fun. It has a soft minky back and a fun striped binding. It was made with a lot of love.

Martha's Quilt

Martha Ann patiently waited for this bright quilt. The colors were fun and happy. It is a happy quilt for a fun, happy gal. We love Martha Ann.

Mother's Day Quilt

Just a quick quilting post today. I decided my sweet Mother-In-Law needed a quilt for Mother's Day. I picked some happy colors and went to work. I love how a quilt evolves. I started with a pattern in mind but quickly realized that to get the most out of my fabric choices I needed to adjust. A two inch squared just didn't do justice to the fun prints I wanted to showcase. So, I added some larger pieces and was very happy with the results.
Happy Mother's Day Geneel--this quilt was stitched with love!

It's a Quilt--for Henry.

This fun quilt was perfect for 7 year old Henry. He is full of spunk and a joy to be around. We love Henry! I stated a quilt for him before he was born--7 years later I finished the quilt. It was sweet but not the right quilt for a seven year old!
Hopefully this suits him a little better.

Happy Birthday Maren

I just finished the cutest quilt for granddaughter Maren. Last summer I took Maren to visit a friend of mine. She lives in a beautiful home and is an excellent decorator. Maren walked in the living room and whispered 'Nana, I love these colors'! The front room was decorated boldly in yellow and gray.
And just like that a quilt was born! I started with just yellow and gray--striking yes but I wanted the quilt to have a pre-teen feel so I added a few floral prints and a bit of red and pink.
This is a happy quilt. Maren is bright and energetic; she loves to chat, read and bake cookies. I also like to chat, read and bake cookies. I love to spend time with Maren--she is a delight!
This quilt was so fun to make. I learned the importance of a perfect 1/4 inch seam. Being just a few threads off adds up quickly. I have a few blocks that didn't quite make it into the quilt. They are reminders of what happens when one gets just a little off track. Small mistakes add up in quilting as they do in life.
The pattern for this quilt is in Growing Up Modern by Allison Harris. It is not a difficult quilt but it did take time, probably because I am just learning. Actually this is a great pattern to learn basic quilting skills--rotary cutting, straight stitch sewing and pressing. Happy Birthday Maren!

It's a Quilt!

Seven years ago we were excited to welcome a new grandson to our family. I happily went to the fabric store, purchased some darling fabric, a simple pattern and set out to make a quilt for our new little bundle.
I guess life got in the way. Our grandson Henry was born--the quilt was not finished. If I could quickly finish it/start it I could still give it to him. Some how years passed.
Now Henry is a handsome seven year old. I am happy to say I have finally finished the quilt. It is darling but not quite right for a seven year old boy.
Luckily it matches my front room--so it will still be used to comfort little ones. I imagine it will be perfect to throw on the floor for a little one to play on. It will be used to make a fort for watching a movie or to cover a sleeping grandchild. I'm sure it will still get plenty of use.
Don't worry about Henry--I have a quilt at the quilters right now. It is perfect for a seven year old.

Here is Henry--last summer on a hike to Stewart Falls.

Henry at age 4--what a handsome young man!

 

 

With a pieced back and a Scrappy Binding this is one cute quilt!

It's a Quilt!

Sweet Lydia turned 8 a few months ago. She has patiently waited for me to finish this quilt. I purchased a yard of cute dog fabric years ago--thinking I would make a boy quilt with it. Lydia saw the fabric and fell in love with it (she is a dog lover), she wanted her quilt to include this fabric.
The challenge began--how do I turn a small amount of doggie fabric into a quilt for a cute 8 year old gal. Thanks to the help of my friends at The Quiltmakers this is what I came up with. I'm happy with it and I think Miss Lydia will love it!
Several years ago after a back surgery my sweet friend Linda stopped by. She gave me a beautiful quilt, I have loved it every day. It says 'comfort' every time I snuggle up in it. This quilt provided the inspiration for Lydia's quilt.
Finished quilt is 40x60 inches. Fabric and long arm quilting from The Quiltmakers. Soft minky fabric is on the back and I love the striped bias binding. I had to refer to the binding tutorial on The Old Red Barn Co. This step by step tutorial helped me achieve beautiful mitered corners.  Oh it is good to finish a project!

 

Lydia in Savanna Georgia about 2110??

Lydia is on the right--quite grown up! At Uncle Packers Wedding in Utah, 2014

Road Trip Quilt

I spent many years making clothes for my children (ages ago) but find myself a very beginning quilter. Using a rotary cutter and sewing a precise 1/4 inch seam takes practice. The Road Trip Quilt is a perfect place to begin. This scrappy quilt is full of fun prints, bright primary colors and a cuddly minky back. I think 3 year old Gregory will love it!
There is a great tutorial for the  Road Trip Quilt  on the blog,  Cluck, Cluck Sew. Detailed photos tell the story with great instructions. So easy a very beginner can follow along and be successful! I know.

  I'm sure Gregory is really very excited!

I was a bit scared of the binding but my local quilt shoppe was happy to cut strips of striped  fabric on the bias. I love the results! I found a tutorial on  binding a quilt on the Old Red Barn Co. Blog. The step by step photos walked me through the entire binding process. I learned to sew strips on the diagonal making a continuous binding. I also made a beautiful mitered corner (I was quite proud of it). I turned the binding and hand stitched it. One can learn so much on the Internet!
My quilt isn't perfect but it will be loved no less. I am afraid the quilting bug has bit--I have about 3 more quilts in progress and am learning much on a Block of the Month Club, this is a stretch for sure!
Hopefully you will see a few more quilts in the coming months. Quilting--it's a great thing.
So friends, if you have the desire. check out my Pinterest Quilt Board--lots of beginner ideas.