Buttons and Butterflies

Friday, August 26, 2016

Pink Rodeo Rider {Quilt}

Back in January, I made some baby quilts with Rodeo Rider fabric by Riley Blake fabrics.

For no real good reason other than I wanted an excuse to play with the rodeo fabrics!

I convinced myself that I could give them as gifts or sell them to some Texan friends.

I really loved the colors, and if anyone knows me well, my favorite thing to do when we lived in Houston was to go to the Rodeo!

I love the gorgeous Shannon Fabrics, Rosette minky backing. It wasn't a perfect match to the front pink, but it was leftover stash and I just love it for baby quilts.

And the paisley binding again. I still have some of this leftover and am tempted to make myself another Rodeo quilt for myself to have up in the studio!!

I gave the Baby Rodeo Star to a friend in June.

And wouldn't you know it? Just as I was going to post this one for sale, I got a request for a baby quilt commission from another friend. I was happy to make her a new one, but she loved the girl version I had already made and asked that I monogram it.

I love how the simple monogram made it shine!

Quilt Stats:

Measures: 36" square

Pattern: Blooming Bliss by Fat Quarter Shop

Fabric: Rodeo Rider by Riley Blake

Thread: Omni Thread Natural White by Superior Threads

Quilted: Freemotion meandering on HQ Avante

Ironically, Button ended up needing a blanket to take to school for "rest time" this year, so the boy Rodeo Rider quilt found an owner too! He wouldn't take his precious "Buddy" blanket because it had to be left there, so he asked me if I had one or if I could make one. I forgot to take a picture of the embroidered quilt label I made before he took it in. Next time it comes home for a wash, I will do so!!

Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Checkmate {Quilt}

Introducing, the Checkmate Quilt by Fat Quarter Shop!

How beautiful is the flannel version by Fat Quarter Shop?

And how different are mine?!?!?!?!

I chose Riley Blake's Lost & Found Halloween line.
I liked that it had some darker colors and the lighter/low volume selections.

Just like the pattern, I split (3) Riley Blake 10" stackers into light and dark:

(note: Riley Blake's layer cakes have 21 prints,
the original pattern calls for 24 dark and 24 light layer cakes.)

I cut my Lost & Found Halloween Black Spider Web yardage for borders and prepped the Lost & Found Halloween Black Stripe yardage for binding.

I started laying out my darker blocks....and quickly had a change of mind.

I wanted two quilts. Twin quilts for the two chairs in my family room.

To make that happen, I then had to change course and change the layout. Instead of a 6x8 rectangle layout? I chose a 5x5 square layout. It meant I had to cut some more borders and binding out from the yardage.

The pattern came together very quickly and I had two quilt tops!

Next came the backing. I ADORED the Halloween Cream Newsprint for backing.
Because of my decision to make two, I had to quickly come up with a pieced backing plan.

Confession: My edges are wavy because my binding is pinned to the back...I was running out of photo daylight! Binding is officially complete now!

And if anyone knows me by now? I avoid pieced backings at all cost. They were probably the most time consuming part of the entire quilt. Scraps from some remaining yardage and layer cakes mixed in with a black and white ticking and solid black from my stash.

Excuse the missing binding......I promise, they both are finished now!!!

After I loaded each up on Ole Betsy Longarm, I knew I had to keep the quilting pretty tame since the fabrics were so busy, but I wasn't really feeling like I wanted to do a pantograph pattern. I chose Superior Threads Omni Medium Gray for the quilting since the backing was cream and black and the front fabrics seemed to hide it well.

For the border, I did a squiggly line that just didn't show up in the photos. But I'm okay with it. I know the texture will arrive after they are both washed.

Because of that, I wanted to do some fun things in the bigger blocks.

Spider webs.

Pumpkins.

Bats.

For the low volume four patch squares, I simply did a curved square quilting.

The binding didn't pop out as much as I had pictured it against the spider web,
but I still loved them together.

I'm just super excited to have to matching Halloween quilts and Button agrees. He was determined to be in the photoshoot this time!

Layer Cake Checkmate Quilt Kit

I think that the original in the blue is fantastic for a masculine quilt, but the pattern is versatile enough to handle the fun novelty fabrics. Especially the holiday ones!

Quilt Stats:
Measure: 61" x 61"

Pattern: Checkmate by Fat Quartershop

Fabrics: Riley Blake Lost & Found Halloween

Batting: Warm & Natural

Thread: Superior Threads Omni Medium Gray

Quilted on: Handiquilter Avante 18"

Check out all the other quilter's versions that joined in the fun!

Peta from She Quilts a Lot

Melanie from Mostly Crafty

Connie from Freemotion by the River

Melissa from Happy Quilting

Heidi from Buttons & Butterflies

Amanda from Jedi Craft Girl

Tina from Emily Ann's Kloset

Sherri M. from A Quilting Life

Andy from A Bright Corner

Anorina from Samelia's Mum

Sherri F. from This & That Patterns

Brooke from Silly Mama Quilts

Saturday, July 30, 2016

Baby Rodeo Star {Quilt}

If you have been following me for awhile, you probably have noticed that I've been on a serious mission to sew my stash only. But every once in awhile, I get asked to use a new line and I can't resist saying no when sites like Fat Quarter Shop ask me to use fabric to make one of their patterns.

Sometimes, the patterns don't use up all the fabric and it just gets tossed on my shelf.

But this year? I've been trying to use leftovers to make something.
Another quilt, a pillow cover. You name it.
But my ultimate goal to use it right away if I can so it doesn't clutter up my shelves.

Enter in, my Baby Star quilt. I had some leftover fabric from the two Rodeo Rider quilts.

A giant star occurred to me. I also found a great tutorial from Amy Smart at Diary of a Quilter if you need one!

If I had my choice I would have it bright, but sometimes the not so bright scraps are all you have to work with.It came together very quickly and I quilted it the same time as the other two.
Since the fabrics weren't very bright, I chose some leftover pale pink minky dot for the back.

For baby quilts, I like to keep the quilting simple. I just adore the paisley binding.

Quilt Stats:
Measures: 36" square
Pattern: Adapted from Baby Star by Amy Smart at Diary of A Quilter
Fabrics: Rodeo Rider by Riley Blake, Brown and Pink Dots by Riley Blake, Pink dot cuddle by Shannon Fabrics
Thread: Omnithread White Natural by Superior Threads
Quilted: Freemotion on HQ Avante

The best part is that I had put this away for a few months, maybe hoping to sell it.
But then a special occasion came up and I was able to gift to a friend that was headed from Texas (ahhhh rodeo country!!!!) to the West Coast to see her first grand baby, a girl.

The only regret I have is that I didn't find the time to embroider her name on it.

Monday, July 18, 2016

Rainbow Remix {Quilt}

This quilt is headed to the Orlando Modern Quilt Guild this week for their #Quilts for Pulse drive.

Excuse the legs...it was impossible to take pics in the wind...they had to stand behind it to keep it sorta flat!!!

I really can't say much more about the Orlando tragedy than has already been said.
All I can really say is that, for me, it touched me deeply and I was so thankful I could do something, even if it was just a small thing.

ABOUT THE QUILT ITSELF:

I signed up for Rebecca Bryan's from Bryan House Quilts Rainbow Remix class at Quiltcon 2016 in Pasadena, California.
I was really striving to find a class or two that was going to bring more to my quilting table. I enjoyed Quiltcon 2015, but I was disappointed that I didn't come away with "More".

I chose her class because it was about improv. I need all the help I can get with improv.
And it was rainbows. What's really not to like about rainbows?

I waited last minute to pack (seriously. What else is new?) and was grateful that I had this rainbow layer cake stack from a swap I had been in several years ago. I just added some stray fabrics from my stash to have the required amount of fabrics.

I learned A LOT. About myself. My struggles with the perfect shade. My struggles with improv.

I was also thrilled that I was actually going to come home with finished blocks!! I had not ever returned from a class with something so close to a finish.

Not to mention that I left four hours early to pack and catch my flight home!

I was also eager to finish it when I got home. I wanted to remember her thoughts on the layout process.

The only thing that bothered me was the size.
I knew I didn't want a small wall hanging and it was an awkward size.

Instead of making more color blocks, I started making black blocks for a border.
I was definitely pleased with the effect!

The Backing.
I was not happy with it. It felt too "Rainbow Brite" to me and juvenile.
But now that it is going to Quilts for Pulse? I think it is so fitting.

I also regretted my quilting choice about halfway through.
I chose a variegated rainbow thread and did giant free motion flowers.

Hindsight, I would have done a more linear quilting pattern with a gray thread.

It's very rare that I capture this guy smiling. He was cracking up because the wind was strongly blowing the quilt when we were taking pictures near our house at what is commonly called "The View" here in town.

Quilt label added and packed up, ready to be shipped ASAP!

Saturday, July 9, 2016

Summer Aria I and II {Quilts}

They are finished!!

It is time to share all the quilts from the Little Ruby Quilt Along by Fat Quarter Shop.
I love them so much!

Summer Aria I

Summer Aria II

I call them my fraternal twin quilts.

Same fabric. Same pattern. Same, yet so different!

Other than the way the blocks are cut, the only difference is their backings.

And bindings.

The butterflies. The gorgeous Kate Spain butterflies!!!!

I had a completely different quilt plan, making flowers in the hexagon blocks, but then I came across the Glasswings pantograph by Urban Elementz.

Hard to photograph...but....perfection!

I also made sure I maximized all the extras.

An orphan block became a Trivet/potholder!

When I was cutting double strips, I eeked out at least one block from each double strip and had enough mismatched blocks to make a Baby Aria Quilt. Stay tuned for the finish!

The remaining jelly roll strips, along with some solid strips I cut, were relegated to a new quilt, the 6th grade quilt, from Me & My Sisters Designs, Precut Primer Book. Can't wait to start piecing it!