Monday, April 10, 2017

Juggling act...

Did you know I can juggle? Not things like balls or chainsaws, but quilt projects... I can juggle quilt projects!  Now doesn't the verb juggle sound waaaay more purposeful... more conscientious... more responsible...than OMG I just saw another shiny pattern I just have to try ... RIGHT NOW!!!!

The true fact is that my crafty ADD has me running in several circles...at the same time... too bad it doesn't seem to burn off any calories...LOL!  So what am I working on right now, well first...



I have two rows of the big tulips sewn together.. 3 more to go...here's a close-up of the border fabric...


a nice sunny yellow... need to get this one done and off to the long arm quilter if I have any hope at all of getting it on my bed while there are still tulips in bloom.


And then I was distracted by this project...the quilt pattern is called Arcade and it was on the cover of the Winter 2016 edition of the magazine Quilts and More. The designer is Sherri McConnell and her blog is A Quilting Life. When I saw this pattern I thought it would be a great match for the layer cakes of the Basic Grey collection Saturday Morning that I had already purchased.  You can see the collection here.  So far I have 6 of the big units complete but I've run out of sashing fabric...


Sorry for the wonky angle but my design wall is still full of tulips, so I'm using the living room floor.
The pattern makes a 66" square quilt using one layer cake... I want it big enough for my bed so I'm using 2 layer cakes and a border. I like the shabby chic feel of this fabric.  Those hourglass blocks are going together nicely... no bias edges on the outside...yeah!!!


This unit is BIG... over 18"... so it should make up quickly...

And the since there are already 2 balls quilts in the air I thought I'd add a third one! Have you seen this new book...

My friend Robin posted about it on IG and well I was intrigued. I'm very impressed as there are several quilts in this book I'd like to do. Some take just 2 charm packs, others need 3 or 4 which is layer cake territory and I have lots of them in my stash.

This is my first choice from the book... the pattern is called Lunch Box...  and these are my fabric picks...


Now I completely forgot that I had this layer cake... it is by Momo...and I LOVE Momo, but it isn't more 70's avocado/harvest gold/chocolate brown colorway I'm most familiar with...this one is very bright and Spring-y...perfect for right now...as the temp is 70 and I have the windows open and there is lovely breeze... oh back to the quilting (see how easy it is for the ADD to pop up?)  Anyway there is a quilt along for this book on Instagram which you can follow here...

I couldn't wait to sew up a couple of blocks of this pattern... the blocks start like this...


little Puss in the Corner blocks... and then you slash them and slash some background fabric and sew the pieces together and  they look like this...

and here is one all sewn together...


I love the scrappiness of this pattern and the Spring-y colors and the yummy-ness of that lime green Grunge. I picked it up at a new to me shop in town called Home Grown, Home Sewn... you can see their website here. I was very impressed with this shop... it is small but packed full of colorful fabric and notions and patterns and samples... the whole place has such a happy vibe... I'll be visiting again soon as it is only about 15 minutes from my house. I saw several fabrics I'd like to have some yardage of.

And pairing this brand new Grunge fabric with this well aged Just Wing It! layer cake has been interesting. Like I said I had totally forgot I even owned this fabric... I know it is older collection as the price marked on it was $32 and I'm pretty sure I paid less than that ... I believe  this was marked down at a sale at Fabric Shack a couple of years ago. Also,  I know this is "vintage" as when I went to cut it up the squares were actually more than 10"... I had to trim it down and it trimmed off the pinked edges to get it to 10"... that doesn't happen anymore. Now they are barely 10" including the pinked edges.

So three projects (we aren't even going to think about the other two year long QAL's I'm working on) are all in different corners of my sewing space... that still leaves one corner open...LOL... I think I'll stop here right now. I've been very energetic and productive on the quilting front these last couple of weeks... the cross stitch and the knitting have fallen by the way side but I'm sure they will return. I don't feel guilty bouncing from project to project anymore. Everything will get done in due time... at least I think it will...LOL!!!

 I'm linking up with Patchwork Times and Love Laugh Quilt and then I'm off too juggle and sew!!!

happy stitching-
carol fun

11 comments:

  1. I had to run and get me a slobber rag, that tulip is to die for.

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  2. Yep--you are juggling--but what 3 pretty quilt projects they are--
    have fun--
    enjoy the moments, di

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  3. You crack me up!! I can SO relate. I really love that last project; might have to try it.

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  4. Your quilts always make me smile!

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  5. Squirrels running wild! But they sure are fun to watch!!

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  6. Tulips! Great big tulips, love them.

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  7. I suffer with Quilters ADD, too. Although, referring to yourself as a juggler sounds like more fun! And we do have fun. Your Tulip quilt is gorgeous! The yellow border is going to finish it perfectly. Your other two projects are great, too. It's amazing what quilters come up with in designs. The last block....wow!

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  8. Oh MY. I think there are quite a few of us "JUGGLERS" out here with you. I have at least 3 things in the sewing room going at the same time in addition to a knitting project or two. I think your tulips quilt is wonderful and the other two projects are fun too. I don't have any layer cakes and very few charm packs laying around, but if I had more time, I would make my own from my hugh stash and tackle one of those big block ones you referenced. Have a great sewing week.

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  9. love your flowers quilt. looks like spring

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  10. You never cease to amaze me. How you accomplish all these quilts is just beyond my imagination. The tulips are wonderful and I love the border. We need some of your Spring. I'm sitting here in a sweatshirt and I feel cold and I'm not sick!!!

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  11. I also juggle my craft projects...some I drop for months before picking them back up. Still loving those tulips!!

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