It's beginning to look a bit like Christmas...

Well another week has blown right by me...I blame not posting on life and laziness... there was plenty of both in last week. Anyway I did do a little sewing and I actually remembered to take pictures, so maybe there is some hope for me. Now we aren't going to talk about the large stockpile of UFO's I have lurking in my sewing room, instead we are going to focus on a bit of Christmas just in time for the upcoming holiday.

I've been wanting to do this pattern - Diamond Dash from Missouri Star - since it was published back in October. You can watch the video here. It takes a layer cake and 1 1/2 yds fabric for the "diamonds" and the sashing. Here's what I have laid out on my design wall.

The color in this picture isn't great... the close-ups below are truer to reality. The fabric is Tole Christmas by Gina Martin and you can see it here. I'm using an olive green Grunge fabric for the diamonds and the sashing.

There are some lovely prints in this collection...

I think I will use the red print with the white poinsettia for my outer border. In fact, I ordered some this morning from my favorite shop, Fabric Shack.

I have to sew the rows together but the individual units sewed up quickly. I used my Folded Corner Clipper to do the snowball corners. I like using this tool as I have the trimming done before I sew the corner on. Once it is sewn all I have to do is press it in place and it is done. Easy peasy.

I'll be linking up with Freshly Pieced WIP Wednesday and Patchwork Times Design Wall Monday...a day or two late and hopefully not a dollar short.

So are you prepped and ready for tomorrow? We are celebrating the holiday at my older son's home, a mere two blocks from my house. That makes it convenient as I'm bringing (by request) a prime rib roast, my stuffing and pasta salad. There will also be turkey and trimmings supplied by my dear daughter-in-law's father and grandmother. It should be quite the feast. Gobble till you wobble...LOL!

happy stitching-
carol fun

Tick tock?? No, Tiki Tok...

tick tock, tick tock, tick tock...time marches on and I am late again this week. Maybe I should change my name to Alice...or was that the Mad Hatter that dithered about being late??? Anyway, I did get some sewing time in this week and played again with my blocks using the Tiki Tok collection from Jenn Ski...you can see it here.

As I was sewing the blocks into rows I liked it but I didn't LOVE it... it needed something...a border!! A bright chartreuse-y yellow in your face border! Now that is better!

This is my own pattern if you can call it that. I took a layer cake of Tiki Tok and cut it in half - 5" X 10" pieces. In opposite corners I added a 2.5" connector corner using my Prairie Sky Quilting Folded Corner Clipper which you can see here. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this little tool. You do all the cutting before you sew so after you've done the seam all you have to do is press the block and it is done.

Here is a close up of the fabrics... I love the 50's Mid Century Retro vibe of this collection and those birds are just too cute!

Well I'm too late to link up with Freshly Pieced WIP Wednesday but the link for Patchwork Times Design Wall Monday is still open so I'll link up there. Hope you are having a good week!

happy stitching-
carol fun

I'm blaming this on the rain...

We need the rain...my lawn needs the rain, my flowers need the rain...but it makes me sleepy and a bit grumpy and leads me to making impulsive decisions to start a new quilt when I have lots and lots and lots of UFO I should attend to. Oh well, it is cheerful and  it brightens up my design wall...

The pattern is a free one from Moda Bake Shop called Four Squared and you can see it here. The fabric line is Dottie. The pattern takes a jelly roll and a charm pack and I scored both of them on Missouri Star as Deals of the Day so I'm considering this a bargain project. The tone on tone white has been in my stash for a very long time and is properly aged and ready for sewing.

When I unrolled the jelly roll the first thing I noticed was there was NO YELLOW....oh my goodness, shocking!!! a travesty!!! I instantly remedied this by grabbing a couple of yellow polka dot fabrics from my stash. Whoa...crisis averted, breathing returned to normal. And then as I began to sew strips together for the 16 patch blocks I spied a stack of assorted polka dot fabrics that cried out to be included in this quilt...and who am I to deny their request? By including my polka dot fabrics I've eliminated the black and brown strips in the jelly roll. I want to keep this quilt all happy happy happy!! (Again I'm blaming this on the gray rainy day that desperately needed an antidote and not the crazy voices in my head... did I say that outloud? oops!)

Did you notice that a polka dot chicken snuck in? She is a bossy little hen... a bit like me...LOL!

And to go along with that quilt I have a finished top.  This one was really a quick sew...

This is from the cover of  Quick to Stitch Precuts magazine and is called Summer Harvest, The fabric line is Malka Dubrawsky's From Outside In. It finished about 62" wide and 67" long. Not sure how I'm going to have it quilted but I might display it on my living room wall.

Here's an arty shot...

I think this pattern would look great in batiks or those gradated solids that are popular or in lots of leafy greens starting light at the top and getting darker at the bottom...kinda Jack and the Beanstalk!

Again this week I'm linking up to Freshly Pieced WIP Wednesday and Patchwork Times Design Wall Monday... yes I am chronically late for the Monday gig.

Hope your week is going well... forecast here is for  rain like every day this week. Its gonna get soggy  and gray around here... I may need another infusion of happy colorful fabrics...the perfect medicine for the grumps.

happy stitching-
carol fun

Why I shouldn't sew when I'm hungry...

Have you seen this magazine?

It is called Quick-to-Stitch Precuts and I bought it earlier this summer at Kroger's but you can still get it here on Amazon. I was totally smitten with the quilt on the cover by Lori J. Miller and it just so happened that I already had the layer cake she used in my stash. It is called From Outside In by Malka Dubrawsky. I don't know if you can find a layer cake of this one anymore...when I Googled it I could only find charm packs and FQ bundles.

Anyway it is rare that I make a pattern using exactly the same fabric show in the picture but I'm making an exception for this quilt. I am using a different background fabric...she used a linen and I substituted a Moda Grunge...I LOVE Grunge! I started sewing  these 10" blocks together a little before dinner time and whipped up a dozen...

Hmmm...whipped...dozen... made me think of food...my stomach was growling! As I was sewing this block I saw cookies... I can't decide if they are oatmeal raisin or chocolate chip...oh now I know which kind they are oatmeal cookies with butterscotch chips! Need to make some of these this weekend.

Oh I see cinnamon rolls...I wonder if there is still a Cinnabon in the mall?

Mmmmm... donuts... I hear Homer Simpson talking... I really should eat something... I think I'm starting to hallucinate...LOL!

What to eat? What to eat? Breadsticks??? Italian food is always good.

Okay... gotta stop sewing and go get something to eat...when I looked at this block I see those little burgers they steam at White Castle... they have holes in them... you can see them here... I can't eat them...LOVE them but they do a number on my lower digestive tract that we aren't going to talk about.

Sooooo... I turned off the machine and told my son to get his shoes on and we went out to dinner...had Chinese food...I wonder if I'll see wontons in any of the other prints?

And this is why I shouldn't sew when I'm hungry!

I'm linking up with Freshly Pieced and Patchwork Times...lots to see on both of those blogs.

Hope you have a tasty dinner.

happy stitching-
carol fun

The quilt pattern I can't get enough of...

I assume most of you know of  Jeni Baker from In Color Order and her Giant Vintage Star pattern...and if you haven't you can see her tutorial here. I can NOT get enough of this pattern!!!! I am now working on my my 4th version of this Giant Vintage Star.

The first version I did it in fabrics from the Happy Zombie... they reminded me of sheets my Mom had in the 70's.

The second time I made it out of plaid flannels for my brother.

The third time I used lots of Anna Marie Horner fabrics and I'm calling this one my Boho Gypsy Vintage Star... it is currently out with my long arm quilter Terry Finnerty and I can't wait to get it on my bed for Fall.

And almost immediately after taking that one to Terry I started my fourth Giant Vintage Star... in Halloween fabrics!

This one will also be big enough to cover my double bed when it is finished. I'm using 16 different Halloween fabrics for the star. Here's a look at some of them.

And adding in some other fabrics in the borders.  I love the one with the witches underwear and I don't have much of it left. That kinda tone on tone pattern with the jack-o-lanterns is the background fabric I'm using.

Terry has a great Halloween panto that will look wonderful on this quilt.  I know it is hard to get a feel for the scale of these quilts so here is my first one which is currently on my  double bed.

It is such a fun quilt to make. If you haven't made one before I have a few hints I included in a post  I did a little while ago and you can read them here. And when this one is done I have plans for a Christmas version too... red, green, aqua and pink... it is going to be so much fun... and yes I am a little crazy... okay a LOT crazy... but it isn't the kind of crazy that my son can have me committed for ....yet... at least that is what he tells me...LOL!!!

I'm linking up with WIP Wednesday Freshly Pieced and with Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times (yeah I'm late again).

happy stitching-
carol fun

It is coming together...

The weather here in southwestern Ohio has been wonderful this week...no humidity...high temperatures in the mid 70's... the mornings have been crisp, almost Fall-ish...and in the evening I've been sleeping with windows open...divine! And the weather has put me in the mood to make a Fall-ish quilt. Now I thought about starting something new, because I new project is ALWAYS fun... but then I remembered this Giant Vintage Star top that I had begun back in March... you can see Jeni Baker's tutorial for this quilt here and my suggestions for making one of these here.

Soooooo, here is the center... ( I know, I know too many "here's" here but read on please!)

And how it looks now... on my design floor...

Somehow that golden background fabric puts me in a Fall-ish Boho Gypsy groove... oh this covers a LOT of things I love...LOL!  The fabrics are from a couple of collections by Anna Maria Horner... Folk Song, Pretty Potent, Honor Roll. I love how they all go together. Now the center is a bit wrinkly as Big Dude was laying on it, and  the borders aren't sewn to the center yet but it is coming along nicely.

I had to do some finagaling to stretch the fabric far enough for 4 borders, so I did some improv piecing, and I think it adds a nice touch to this quilt.

Luckily the fabric I had the most of is the print I love the best... those giant chartreuse echinacea!! I worked a piece of it into each of the borders and none of them are upside down... makes the OCD in me happy happy happy!

This is going to look fabulous in my bedroom with the blue walls and the gold and white buffalo check drapes!

Hope to get it all finished and off to Terry to be quilted before the weekend... just in time for the temperatures to turn hot again...oh well when Fall does arrive to stay I will be ready!

I'm linking up with Freshly Pieced and Patchwork Times Design Wall Monday... I know I'm late for Monday... but better late than never... right???

happy stitching-
carol fun

Its a Tiki Tok day...

See I told you those double posts days were a total fluke...back to my regular irregular posting...LOL! So, have you seen this new collection by Jenn Ski? It is called Tiki Tok and I am in love..

It has a real retro 1950's vibe and the color are very different... a chartreuse green, a slate blue gray, a coral pink I haven't seen in ages and mustard yellow...oooooohhhh...aaaaaahhhh! I picked up a layer cake and some of the tone on tone black in the collection yesterday at Fabric Shack...you can see the collection here.

I raced home to play with it. I wanted to do something simple so I didn't hack up these prints too much...those birds make me smile from ear to ear. This was my first idea... 5" X 10" rectangles with connector corners placed side by side.

Not bad but what if I sashed them... that would make the quilt bigger without a lot of extra work.

Oh I like this better and now I'm thinking of adding cornerstones as I prefer to sew tops with cornerstones so the rows don't get wonky.

And speaking of connector corners have you used this? The Folded Corner Clipper... you can find it here on Amazon. This is the first time I've used it and I like it a lot. It is making quick work of adding these corners.

Oh these birds...how I LOVE these birds...they come on this mustard yellow background and the coral pink and the kiwi green and the slate blue grey...I will use them ALL in this quilt!

And this line drawing is very cool...I'm thinking this may be my choice for cornerstones.

And this print...it is a cross between a Joan Miro painting and an Alexander Calder mobile... very surreal...and I swear my Mom had some curtains with a print like this in the early 60's! LOL

Anyway this is going to be a fun little project...I envision it as a lap size quilt... if I add cornerstones I may add a border too...maybe one of those bird prints...that would make me happy happy happy!!! I see another trip to Fabric Shack in the very near future...such fun!

Edited to add this... much better...much much better...took much black...definitely have to go to Fabric Shack...now!

I'm linking up with Freshly Pieced again this Wednesday.

happy stitching-
carol fun

Cue the banjoes...

I've got dueling projects on my design wall this week. First up I've made several more blocks for my Novelty Charming Stars quilt.

I got the inspirattion for this quilt from one done over at Sophie Junction which you can see here. Along with the gray one and the yellow one I had already sewn I added a bright blue one...

...with the Beatles and bees and flying pigs (Cincinnati is known for its Flying Pigs) and Barcelona and a little green man and 2 monkeys riding a bike (you don't see that every day) and dragons and sewing stuff.

And I made a light blue/aqua block...

...with Thomas the Tank Engine (a favorite of my boys) and scissors and a pig ballerina (after chickens my favorite animal is a pig) and bananas and sunglasses and  a pickle wearing a sombrero  standing next to a slice of pizza (who thinks up this stuff)  and kids on a school bus and a mermaid.

And I did a pink block...

...with a very large very happy bee and candy and peanuts and high heels and purses and hearts and a prince and peace signs and cupcakes... this block got real girlie on me as I didn't have a lot of novelties on pink backgrounds and you aren't going to find a lot of dump trucks on a pink background...just saying.

And I did an orange block...

...with googly eyes and spotty dog and hula girls and frogs wearing witches hats and more strange eyeballs and green peppers and sweet little girls and gators wearing glasses (that one is a recent acquisition that I couldn't pass up...LOL!)

So I'm happy with these blocks and plan to make several more. I think this may get up to be a 12 block quilt. I know I can make a block in purple, green and red and I have a ton of novelties with black background so there may be several of those... stay tuned!

And on the other side of the design wall I'm still working on my Bar Code quilt (you can find the instructions for it here.)

I'm very happy with how these blocks are going together with a mix of low volume prints and brights and black and white prints.

I got balls of yarns and chickens in the yellows and chicken tracks and chicken wire and chickens and mustaches and little pink bikes in the low volume strips. I'm not sure that other quilters'  low volume prints are as noisy as mine...LOL!

And I got black cats and bats and birds and green peppers in this block... a nice variety, dontcha think?

So the dueling quilt tops are humming along nicely. My plan for the Bar Code quilt is to make 35 blocks and the Novelty Charming Stars...well, I'm not sure about it yet. I'm seriously considering just making blocks at the moment and saving this for my yet to be conceived grandchildren...now I'm not pushing the newlyweds in any way... they're in charge of that project...I just like being prepared.

I'll be linking up with Freshly Pieced and with Patchwork Times.

happy stitching-
carol fun