Pouch for Me

I love the pattern for Open Wide bags from Noodlehead.  I have made several, but I need one for an upcoming trip. A make-up bag.

Here it is, loaded up.

It goes with my larger one, but not completely matching. I cut a few squares from the jelly roll that I won at the Kaffe Fasset lecture.

I'm off to Omaha to meet a long lost cousin with a stop in Lincoln, NE at the International Quilt Study and Museum,and a visit to my Dad's home town in Kansas. 

Linking this Finish with Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday.

New Mom-to-be

Erica is my dental hygienist and due with her 2nd child in November.  A boy!

She loved the quilt . . 

It's so satisfying to gift quilts. Hugs that will last!

Kaffe Fasset

Last week a quilt store, Gossypium, in Issaquah, WA, hosted a lecture by Kaffe Fasset.  I was happy to be in the audience, and I won a door prize!  Hurray on both counts.

It was great to see the men, Kaffe Fasset and Brandon Mably, who design so many of my favorite quilting cottons.

I went by myself, but met lovely people!  Yes, those are airplanes in the background; the lecture was at The Museum of Flight.

I've used the 2.5" roll that I won for a few of the + X blocks.  (I'm at 100!)

Happy sewing . . .

Plus X Blocks

I'm having a lot of fun making these blocks.  Each one is like choosing a combination for a quilt color scheme.

They measure 7", so it will take a bunch to make a decent sized quilt.  I'm thinking I need 100, but that would be only 65" square, so maybe I'll go for 120.

It will be fun to see the riot of color when I get enough to make a decent sized quilt.

Most of these are assembled from scraps, pre-cut squares (cut by me from scraps) and a little cut from stash.  When one gets going, it's amazing how many fabrics and how many quilts are represented here.

Please pardon the un-pressed blocks!  My iron gave out, and the new one is coming. . .

Here are a few steps of the process:

I'm cutting the pieces as I go . . . 

The + is made of three pieces:  5" x 2" and 2 - 2" squares

Completing the + shape are 4 - 2" squares. I'm keeping them all the same fabric.

The X part of the block is 4 3.5" squares. I'm using similar colors, but different fabrics in the 4 squares.  In the one above, there are 4  different reds in the X.  The background of the X part of the block is also cut 2" squares - 8 of them. I'm keeping these all the same as well.

To assemble, you can read the tutorial on Badskirt:

badskirt.blogspot.com/2011/04/japanese-x-and-scrappy-quilt-tutorial.html

86 blocks are finished; 14 (or more) to go!

Baby's Square in a Square

What is more fun than the quick satisfaction of completion one gets from making a baby quilt.  My dental hygienist was sprouting a growing shape when she cleaned my teeth the last time, so I had another excuse for a relatively quick project.

She is having a boy, so I tried to include a few boyish squares. 

Teddy driving. . . .

Cherries . . .

Fox, deer, farm animals, and a bike . . .

Backing is a very soft gingham, binding is grey stripes.

Batting is washable wool.  

This one is very soft and cozy.

Measures 34" x 39" after washing.

Linking this finish with CrazyMomQuilts.