Quilting ADD

So grad school is hard.

Not only have I not blogged since NOVEMBER, I haven't even stepped into my sewing room since the first week of January.

Until tonight! Thank goodness for snow, right? Lol, not really. My class was cancelled today, and I managed to take an exam NOT at the last minute, so I rewarded myself.

I actually have two finished tops to show you (one was the Kate Spain one from the last post), but those will have to wait until daytime when I can take pictures.

But here is what my design wall has looked like for the last two months-ish - full on quilting ADD. I can't even count the WIPS I've got going on, and part of the problem is that I just don't care enough about any one project enough to get any real work done on it. Isn't that sad?

Well, only 15 months until I'm finished with school, so maybe I'll finish one between now and then?

How I Quilt - Centering Triangles

I've made a good bit of progress on my Sunnyside quilt - as a matter of fact, it's finished! I finished it last week sometime (or maybe even the week before??) but as I've been working day shift lately, it's dark when I get up to go to work and it's dark when I come home, so alas, no pictures yet. Soon, though!

One of the steps of this quilt involve ending a column of piecing with a triangle, which becomes the corner of the block. (Here is a reference for the finished block, in case you've forgotten. Which I wouldn't blame you for...)

There are lots of different ways to make sure your triangles end up centered, but here is how I do it:

Fold it in half lengthwise and finger press...

Line up the point of the triangle with the press line...

Chain piece the crap out of that ish...

Hey look! You're done! So pretty and symmetrical! Makes it so much easier to square up these blocks!

Hopefully I'll have a change to photograph this quilt over the weekend. Maybe I'll baste it too?? Let's not get ahead of ourselves...

I finished something!

I actually have a finish for Finish-it-up Friday! I really have a couple things to show you, but this one is actually done AND photographed!

I made a pillow top out of mini charms aaaaaaages ago, and it sat on my design wall forever while I contemplated how to quilt it. Like ages.

I found this picture of it's early stages on my Flickr. Taken in MARCH. Don't judge...

So it sat, and sat, and sat... and then divine inspiration came in the form of a blog post from Christina at A Few Scraps. She actually has a book out that is ah-may-zing, so you should get it. And she has no idea that I even exist, much less rave about her book, so you can trust my honesty!

So I saw that post, liked the design, and just sat at my machine and went to town. I didn't draw it out beforehand (maybe I should have!) but I think it turned out ok anyway. I have to say, when inspiration strikes, I don't have any patience!

I even managed to quilt it and make it into a Real Pillow on the same day! I know, right??

Doesn't she look so pretty next to her friend? Charlotte approves, though I don't have photographic proof.

I even started a little something else the other day, that I'm super stoked about. I've just hit a snag until more background fabric comes in the mail!

Socktober!

Here's a little knitting update for you, in honor of the end of Socktober! (a little late...)

I finished these purple lovelies, and as soon as they were done I put them on and now they're waiting to go in the wash. So you've have to forgive me for using an old photo...

The dye lots were also REALLY off. The labels said they were the same, but the blues are VERY different!

I also started these! I've been referring to them (it?) as the green monsters. I'm doing a seed stitch rib pattern, and I actually tried starting two at a time, but it stressed me out, and since this is supposed to be FUN, I pulled one off and I'm just working on one at a time. I'm totally ok with that. Maybe I'm just not meant to be a two-at-a-timer!

I'm also making really good progress (so far!) on my Color Affection. I'm a few repeats into the second contrast color, but I have to tell you, I've literally fallen asleep while knitting this TWICE. Hundreds of plain knit stitches at once is apparently like Ambien to me. I'm super stoked about getting this done this season, but I'm glad I started another pair of socks, to break up the monotony!

Officewarming!

I made a quick gift for a good friend the other day. She recently started a new fancy job, and has an office with a really great view and everything - so I made her a little something as an "officewarming" gift.

I used a mini charm pack of Horizon by Kate Spain and revisited my mini Rock Candy Quilt by Jaybird Quilts. It didn't take long at all to put this together, I feel like the longest part was deciding on how to lay out the pieces!

I first looked at a random-ish layout...

Then I used the more saturated fabrics for the inner bit and radiated out....

Then I did the opposite of that...

And we have a winner!

And here is the finished product!

I quilted it with straight lines overlapping in the center with Aurifil 3840, a really pretty variegated purple. I machine stitched the binding and it was done!

Build Me Up Buttercup

I have a finish! Whaaaat!!

Yeah, I know, I can't believe it either! I actually finished this quilt last week (maybe the week before? I just finished midterms, my brain is broken...) and I took some pictures of it right away, before I lost the light and/or the top got wrinkled.

I started this quilt intending it to be a nap-sized couch quilt (~60" square) but after it got to that size, I decided I liked it too much and wanted to make it bed-sized. It's a little small for my queen sized bed, but I have a few inches of overhang on each side so it's passable.

You can see where I planned out additional blocks after I finished the quilt top the first time... I also cut the fabric to preserve the directionality, which is a really nice effect with these beautiful prints!

This was a fun one. Super fast, instant gratification blocks. I've already started on the back, so once I figure out how I want to quilt it I'll finish the back, baste it, and get going!


Stats:
Build Me Up Buttercup
72"x84"
Fabric used is Meadow by Leah Duncan
Pieced with Aurifil 2600
On my Bernina 750 QE

Quilting ADD...

So apparently I can't finish one thing before starting another... I've had a plan for my FQ stack of Sunnyside for aaaaages... I just haven't had a chance to work on it! But since working on my Meadow quilt (which is finished - more on that later this week!) I've gotten a fire lit under me for piecing. So I decided to make a "sample" block... which turned into 6, which turned into cutting out the whole quilt. And I've even gotten the backing already! (I am SO BAD about making tops and then procrastinating on the backs forever!)

So here is what I have so far - I'm using Tula Pink's Treasure Hunt pattern, which she released for Acacia.

I'm still working on this pretty steadily, so I'm sure I'll have some more to share soon!