I'm Still Quilting

 I keep running out of time to write up this post. The 'Folksy Tree & Baskets' quilt top is finally finished! All the applique done and dusted.*sigh

Getting the birds stitched down

I am so thrilled about the birds on this quilt! They look very fat and happy.

And a finished quilt top!

It just feels like they make this very brown and blue quilt come alive.

So happy with the scrapped together
background fabric look

When all the birds, berries and leaves on the tree were attached, then I realized that the baskets needed just a little bit extra. 

And the very subtle addition of blue leaves

But not TOO much, if you know what I mean. The blue leaves were the easy, peasy way to add in the little bit of color that properly ties the baskets back in with the rest of the quilt--instead of them just being a glaringly bright, creamy white distraction. 

Crossing my fingers this quilt will look
extra cozy whenever the hand quilting happens!

Or whatever. I just know that I like it ever so much better now! Sometimes these little details sort of sneak up on us, but they are actually just as important as some of the other more obvious ones.

Glad that I saved these basket cut-outs so they
could enjoy a quilt of their own

Still super happy about the lone basket lying on its side at the top right of the quilt. Why don't I do that sort of thing more often? It seems to add a wonderful dash of character to the quilt....

Loving these colors too

Overall, this quilt ended up being really folksy and fun looking, while still holding it's own as the depository of many oldish and long-languishing fabrics. It's really quite satisfying to finish up these sorts of quilt tops! Just don't think they'd feel nearly as interesting to me in all brand new fabrics. Although, I suppose it's not totally out of the question!

A very basic quilt top

I also managed to sew together a very fast and easy 'boys' quilt top. It's deliberately done very mishmash, scrappy and utilitarian style. I'm imagining it hand quilted in a naïve, organic style that will hopefully hold to the unpretentiousness of the blended fabrics. Still need to put together a baby girls quilt and maybe one more baby boys quilt. None of them are going to be very fussy though. This is going to be the year of the more minimal looking baby quilts. And I mean that. ha!

Starting to get to the point where I can cut it up!

On my wall this past week is the log cabin look piece that is potentially going to be cut up into a largish looking basket. The handle will be cut out of a blue/green fabric in whichever of these fabrics has enough leftover! The birds jumped onto the wall after I cut them out of the backside of the Folksy Tree and Baskets quilt. The wings were a quick addition just to see if they were worth holding onto for use in yet another quilt some day. I'd say yes, these are definitely keepers!

Playing with the color layout on the border

And another project which also managed to get some traction, is the Joy Basket quilt. All of sudden after always, always envisioning multiple rows of border surrounds, I dove right into a scrappy hst border.

How about if I put all extra hsts on the bottom?

I think it was because I finally realized that the border make-up wasn't all that important to me after all. What I really wanted was lots of color and zest. So I impulsively started cutting out free-style improv. hsts in various paired fabrics. It is taking quite a bit of time to sew these together, but I think I'm up for the challenge! After some darker quilts, this is absolutely making me remember why I adore color in quilts.....

January Applique Prep

Lots of applique projects in the works around here. Oh we are sooo surprised! I've spent quite a bit of time here lately trying to get some of the prep work done. Always a good plan to have the hand work ready for the quieter times.

More words and tulips on quilts!

Above are the outer borders for Peace Always. Not really what I had in mind when starting the project, but I'm sure this will work fine. It's another one of those bright quilts that I'm just not always sure how to react to. Each of the three flower borders actually has three yellow tulips on it, the middle tulip being a smidge smaller. I will probably have to audition it one more time before doing any stitching because something is still nagging at me. 

I often work upstairs in the evening and the lighting is terrible in the area where I have access to the floor. Plus, the carpet is an ugly blue-gray. It sometimes becomes necessary to do one last audition downstairs on a different surface {and during daylight hours}, before I'm satisfied everything looks the way it should. 

Below is the Joy Basket quilt. Just need the letters stitched down. They've been waiting for quite awhile now! One good thing about this quilt taking it's sweet time is now I'm much more fixed on what kind of surround needs to be next. Have been dithering back and forth between piecing or applique or both and eventually I've managed to settle on some sort of improv. piecing. Yay! Love making it up as I go along.

Three letters won't take long to stitch

Another project in the works is the Folksy Tree and Baskets quilt. This is where I left it last August. Sometime between then and December, I added the primitive looking pink tree. I based it off of a tree in our backyard that has been cut down, but the stump continues to send out new scrawny branches every year until it blocks my kitchen window. Been looking forward to the fun part, but hadn't been able to find enough time with the design floor. 

Had to change out the green leaves

This past week I finally found time all kinds of time and thankfully it went fairly well. Thought I had it all the way I wanted {picture above} and then hit a major road block. I played late, late into the evening and ultimately decided it was the olive colored leaves that were not quite right. Ughh! Really didn't know what to do because the blue leaves by themselves just came off as boring. Played and rearranged with several different greens for the leaves, and then actually went to my old fashioned color wheel for help. Uh huh. Totally feeling desperate! 

Anyway, that's when I decided that a very dark emerald green could be an interesting option. I searched and luckily, found a fabric that, kid you not, has been in my stash for at least 25 years! Wowsers! So thrilling to finally find a use for it! Anyway, by using that specific fabric, I was able to salvage the olive green/blue print fabric at least. Very quickly after, the quilt decisively let me know that it had the right vibe and please, oh please, just leave me alone!

The final applique selection and placement
for Folksy Tree & Baskets quilt

Also went ahead and prepped several of these 'dove' blocks. Going to put them with this largish sun applique if I ever get it finished up. You would not believe the number of bird motifs that I have drawn trying to find the perfect one. Love the antique quilts for inspiration, but some of those birds just look like flying dinosaurs! So I've been pushing this to the back of the list. Always interesting when my motivation gets balky and stubborn. Maybe now that I have the birds figured out, I'll finally be ready to do the stitching on the sun?

Bird blocks for Doves in Flight quilt

Also went ahead and jumped into the border prep for Old Fashioned Wildflowers. I thought to do piecing in the border, but then kept thinking about a sort of scalloped look instead. Drew up this simple swag type border {with separate pieces} and thought, Yes! This is exactly what I want! 

Will probably add in the small terracotta colored circles where the scallops join up. Am absolutely delighted with finding a use for the dark, drab olive green background fabrics! They have been in the stash totes for years and years, never finding a good home no matter how hard I have tried. And believe me, I. HAVE. TRIED. 

Whatever possessed me to buy so many fatquarters of these drab greens? But this will be a very sweet use for some of them {Still have more to use up!}. There's just something so very pleasing about these greens and blues together. Sort of feel like I've inadvertently stumbled onto something very precious for this quilt....

Border prep for Old Fashioned Wildflowers

My husband finally got the quilt hanger up in the quilt room. My daughter bought an oversized one for my birthday last fall, knowing that I wanted to hang larger quilts in the guest bedroom. I keep thinking we need to repaint this very pink and orange sherbet room {thanks to my oldest daughter}, but who has time to paint? 

This is one of three quilts I hope to hang here, rotating them out throughout the year. It's also the room set up for me to do my yoga, so I'm looking forward to enjoying these quilts from day to day. Who knows, I might make a quilt especially for the wall of this bedroom some day! In the meantime, it will be much easier to say no to giving these particular quilts away. I have very persuasive children.*wink

Quilt decor

And here's Ellie with her brand new 'big girl' quilt from grandma! She was super happy with it and wanted to carry it herself even though it's pretty big for such a little gal. Love that the grandkids enjoy getting quilts from me. Takes me back to good times when my siblings and I were fighting over my grandmas quilts whenever we went to visit! 

Brand new quilt for the granddaughter!

So yeah. Lots of work to do with all of that applique in the lineup. I'm wanting to finish at least one more of the quilt tops, maybe two before starting in on the next Bramble Blooms quilt. 'Cuz of course it will have applique too! Three of these projects will be complete quilt tops when the applique gets done so that's exciting too. Excellent motivation to get stitching, right? 

A New Basket Quilt

If life wasn't busy enough, I took 10 days and went to my daughters in Oklahoma. She had almost all of the days planned and then of course, there's a granddaughter there! Um., yeah. Quilting took the back seat in a hurry!

All the baskets are done

I took two applique projects with me and managed to work only one of them. This is the new 'Folksy Trees and Baskets' quilt that was started from cut-outs from a previous quilt. You know me and my proclivity to start brand new quilts from the cut-outs and leftovers from previous quilts. Just can't seem to help myself! 

Good times!

Anyway, I'm back home now. Bags are unpacked and I'm catching up on laundry etc. etc.. I wanted to get one more applique project wrapped up before diving full speed into BB2 but we'll see. I'm definitely running out of time on my self imposed deadline!