Little Sheep Quilt

I got word that baby Nolan received his quilt (and that he loves it!), so I can finally show off the finished project:


The design is Elizabeth Hartman's Simple Modern Baby Quilt (available through her etsy shop, Oh, Fransson!). It is a simple and very effective pattern. The instructions call for some non-traditional techniques, and I enjoyed trying out her methodology. All the seams were pressed open, all the blocks were made a little larger and then cut down to size (which did really ensure uniform-sized blocks), the quilting is through just the top two layers allowing a stitch-free back (so as not to affect the super softness of the minkee), and I used a very different (for me) binding technique (which I doubt I'll be using again, but it was cool to try it out).


The pattern includes directions and templates for an applique bird, kitty, puppy, and giraffe. They are super cute, but didn't really fit my farm theme. So I went ahead and drew my own little sheep. This would be a great pattern for beginners as the blocks are simple and the instructions are incredibly detailed (and include lots of pictures!). I really recommend it for a simple and fun baby quilt project.


I really wasn't sure about how well the quilting technique would work, but it turned out well. The key is to make sure it is taut (but not stretched) before laying the quilted top layers on it, and then basting really well around the edges so it doesn't shift (which is actually kind of challenging). I washed it up and it seems to hold together flat pretty well... I didn't end up with a funky tent when it came out of my dryer, so I count that as a success. I wouldn't try this with anything larger than a baby quilt though. I don't think it would work as well.


I was a little surprised at how easily I was able to stitch the label on by hand, even on the minkee. If I had thought ahead better, I would have made the label and stitched it onto the back by machine before layering the quilt together. Ah, well. Next time I'll be smarter about it.


This quilt was a lot of fun to make. I hope it offers lots of snuggly goodness to little Nolan!

Trying to get back in the groove

Ugh. More sickness! I swear, I'm cursed. And this time, the boy has got it too. :( Sufficit to say, I've not been very productive on the quilty front. But with the guild meeting coming up on Thursday, I had to get my groove on.

Here is this month's block exchange block:


The fabric choices were left up to us. The instructions said that she preferred "a vintage look with reds, greens, browns, and beiges or off-whites." I had a lot of fun picking out fabrics for this block. I think they work together pretty well.

The only downside to this block is that I actually had to do some calculating. There were no cutting directions. The only instruction was that the four-patches and the half-square triangles should be 4.5" and then be put together to create an 8.5" block. Math with a head cold? Not my cup of tea, to be sure! But (despite the horribly askew picture) my block did end up the right size in the end.

Meanwhile, I also managed to get the binding on the "Little Sheep Quilt." It just needs a label and then will be ready to send off to the new baby! I haven't made the label yet, but the fact that the binding was done made me feel like I could go ahead and start on the next project:


These fabrics are going to be made into a "Stacked Coins Baby Quilt." (And oh, my gosh-- let me tell you, the Moda Bake Shop rocks! So many cool ideas there!) But instead of using a couple of charm packs, I went ahead and dug through my stash and created my own little stack o' 5" squares. I'll be using Kona cotton Snow for the sashing and borders.

Hopefully, I'll be able to start sewing on it soon. (The baby girl is due in a couple of weeks!)

Progress report

I've been busy lately! There are a number of different projects I'm currently working on, and I figured I might do a status round-up here. (I'm hoping this will help me focus a bit!)


Oh, Fransson! Quilt Along-- I've made some progress on this one. I've completed block sets A, B, and D, and have started work on set C (that mess above is what I've managed thus far on the C blocks). Hopefully, I'll be able to work on catching-up over the weekend.


Here you can see my A, B, and D block sets.


Grandma's Country Album-- It's been awhile since I've made any progress on this quilt. But I actually completed another block last night! I started it just before Valentine's Day (it just seemed appropriate). This isn't a great picture... it is a dark block, but the colors aren't that dark. I feel good about many of my points in this one (with much gratitute to the fabulous Carrie P. and her pointy-point tutorial!), but I really need to work on my circles. Circles are hard. I've been poking about, looking for techniques, and I'm thinking I need to try and get a set of the Karen Kay Buckley Perfect Circles. It sounds like those are pretty handy. I only have three blocks left to complete for this quilt, and one of them has a lot of little berries.


Autumn House-- I just got block 3 in the mail. Woot! I'm hoping to start prepping it next week. But it might have to wait a bit.

No new pictures for these, but they're in process as well:

Simple Modern Baby Quilt-- (aka, the little sheep quilt) I need to baste the layers and attach the binding.

Jane Stickle-- Last night I started working on block H-12.

Playtime-- The next block in the queue is the toy elephant. I'm hoping to get started on that this weekend.

Guild stuff-- Before the next meeting (on April 3rd), I have a block exchange block to complete, three pillowcases to make (for Conkerr Cancer), and a block lotto block or two.

Another Baby Quilt-- I've chosen a pattern and fabrics for this, but am not going to start on it until I finish the little sheep quilt. (Repeat to self: must finish at least one project before starting another...)

Baaa!

I've been plugging along on my Simple Modern Baby Quilt from Elizabeth Hartman of Oh, Fransson! After a trip to the quilt shop for more thread, I completed the quilting and also did a little applique.


The pattern includes applique designs for a giraffe, a kitten, a bird, and a dog. But none of those really fit the farm theme this quilt's got going on. So, I drew a little sheep. I used fleece for the head and legs, and a creamy minkee dot for the other parts. I was a little worried about appliqueing the minkee, so I did practice a bit before jumping into the "real" thing. Stitching it ended up being no problem at all. Then I finished it with a little bit of embroidery.

ETA: Happy Saint Patrick's Day! :)

Dagnabbit!

Sigh. Is there anything worse than running out of thread in the middle of quilting? Well, probably lots of things, really. But at the moment, I'm really wishing there was a 24-hour quilt shop around here.

Next up: baby quilt

Some friends of ours have a new baby. Time for a quilt!

I'm thinking about these fabrics:


Not the baby norm, I guess, but I really like how they're looking together. I may still change my mind.

The pattern? I'm planning on using Simple Modern Baby Quilts from Oh, Fransson.

Oh! And have you seen that Oh, Fransson is hosting a Quilt Along?


I'm so in.