Wave (or Lava Lamp) Quilt Finished!

I am so happy to have finished this quilt!  It is also my last PhD Challenge quilt, so there's that to be stoked about as well.

I pieced this last year using Elizabeth Hartman's New Wave quilt pattern, but I've always thought it looked like lava lamps to me.  That's the direction I went with, both in quilting it and hanging it up to photograph. Tilt your head left or right, and it looks like the waves it was intended to be.

But with the lava lamp thought in mind, I pondered doing something bubbly or swirly with the quilting.  Mind you, I'm still a novice with free-motion quilting, but I thought if I could maybe do a meander with a loop now and then (on right in green, below), it might look something like the blobs that percolate in a lava lamp.

Except that didn't really work when I practiced it.  The meander with loop contained within the shape reminded me too much of a pinball machine.  I dunno, maybe I have an overactive imagination.

So I kept doodling and soon enough the idea of a spiraling loop was hatched.  It seemed to work on paper.  I drew it from the top down (as in a spiral), and I thought it'd be relatively easy to quilt the same way, top to bottom.

Not so much.

The vertical, clockwise motion didn't go so well on my practice quilting pad.  It was herky-jerky and just didn't feel right.  Then I turned the quilt sideways and made the same loops working from left to right, like handwriting.  That felt more natural and proceeded more smoothly.  

Working from the center of the quilt, I "wrote" the loopies, moving to the right along each row between the white "waves."  When I got half the quilt done, I turned the whole works around and did the same thing, working center to outer edge.

But before I did any of the spiral-loopy quilting, I ditch-stitched the white waves. That took a couple hours in itself but was worth it to anchor things in place for the rest of the quilting.

As I've mentioned before, the fabric is a mix of vintage and contemporary.  I like mixing it up. 

Different generations sitting at the same table; everyone gets along, even though grandma's got on a crazy print shirt.  

So, waves or lava lamps, what do you see?  Any clever ideas for a name for this quilt?  How about, "Grandma Invented the Lava Lamp"?  Too long?

Inching Forward in the Queue

I seem to have quite a few projects all at the same stage—needing backing, basting, quilting and binding.  It's not really surprising that I work this way, doing multiple things at a time or alternately, then arriving at a similar point with all of them, yet nothing entirely finished.  

I've fallen in love with this thread, Mettler Metrosene, for piecing.

This is a spool from my mom's thread stash.  Must buy more!

One could look at it from the perspective, I suppose, of something along the lines of chain-piecing.  Chain-finishing?  Whether it's making good use of my time by nudging everything toward the same end, or frittering my energy away, I don't know.  It's how I roll.

I bought some fabric for the backing of the Sudoku quilt.  All prewashed now and waiting for me.

The last PhD project to be completed is this New Wave quilt that I pieced last year.  As in, a whole year ago (where does the time go?).  I lacked the skills to free-motion quilt it decently then, but thanks to a bit of learning and practicing, I'm there now.  So I got that goin' for me, which is nice.*

I had picked up a vintage muslin sheet at a thrift store several months ago, still in its original package, which looked to be about as old as I am.  I'm using that for the backing.  It wasn't quite wide enough though (it was a twin fitted sheet), so I'm having to piece it.  Like the quilt top, I'm using both vintage and contemporary fabric for the strip I'm adding in, and I like how it's coming together. 

The muslin sheet has been great to work with—soft, yet it presses and sews like a dream, as if there were a bit of starch to it, even after prewashing.  I hope it quilts just as smoothly.  I won't hesitate to snap up more of these if I see them in the thrifts.

Also in the to-be-quilted queue are the black and white quilt and the H2H quilt.

Ideally, I would crank these out systematically, one right after another.  I am hopeful that will happen, but...

The other thing that's clamoring for my attention now is my neglected flower beds and other containers that are usually planted by now. We've had a long, cool spring but it looks like things are finally turning around this week.  So, do I sew in my basement or work outside?  Hm, let's see...

*Bill Murray as Carl Spackler in Caddyshack.

Garden Jewels

I managed to get over myself and get this wall hanging done this week. 

And do you hear that?  That is one tremendous sigh of relief coming from me for having finally finished this.

I have felt a little blocked with this project, mainly because I wasn't sure exactly how to approach quilting the cross stitched sections.  Even as I was ditch quilting the frames around the cross stitching, I still wasn't sure, so I proceeded to do the general meandering and quilt everything else but.  

Finally, after some practice on a separate piece, I decided to outline quilt around the veggies and then do a smaller stipple in the outer white spaces.

Well...my machine had its own plans.  It had issues with the type of thread I had switched to on the Aida cloth, and tension troubles, and generally started acting schizophrenic about halfway around the outlining on each block. 

Frustrating.

Finally, by stitching v-e-r-y slowly so as to circumvent the machine spazzing out on me, I was able to get the outline quilting done.  Then I did what any sane person would, at that point.  I switched back to my old Singer and a walking foot and straight-line quilted diagonal lines to anchor each block a bit more.

I do like the way it turned out, and I think my sister is going to be tickled pink with it.  She gave me the dresses (the center floral/veggie print and the blue fabric) to repurpose, as well as the piece of fabric that I used for the back.  The cross stitched pieces were thrifted.  They were in dingy frames, 99 cents apiece, and I bought the lot of them, removed the frames and soaked the stitchery clean. They were so excellently done, they deserved to have a new life.

Sis has a spot on her kitchen wall reserved for this piece, and it's going to look nice hanging there. 

 

(Back)

I'm calling this one "Garden Jewels."  The inspiration was right there in front of me!

Another PhD Challenge project completed—one more to go!  

I'm linking to Sarah's Can I Get a Whoop-Whoop?  Come join the fun!

Sunday Sundry - Vol. 33

Happy Mother's Day!

Oh mama, did I get a lot done yesterday, and much of it before noon.  Norm was working, the house was quiet, and I just kept moving...floors vacuumed and mopped, surfaces dusted, laundry folded and put away, etc.  I even baked a gluten free carrot cake from scratch.

I also finished the borders on the black and white quilt top.

The backing fabric arrived on Friday, this black and white paisley.  I think it will do nicely.

Also got the veggie cross stitch wall hanging basted. 

I know, right?  Wonder of wonders.  I hope you were sitting down for that one.

It was quite the productive day, I'm telling you.  I know some of you do all that and much more every single day, and all I can say is, God bless you!  Also, where do you get your energy?

Today I am going to kick back a bit.  After a trip to the cemetery to plant some flowers, I am going to a program this afternoon where my father is a guest speaker for the local Bird Festival going on this weekend.  Later on, my daughter is going to drop by for a visit, which I'm looking forward to.

I hope you all have a wonderful day! 

Fifteen Minutes

"Busier than a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest..."

That expression has always made me giggle.*  When it applies to me, though, not so much.

Working three jobs with but a rough framework of a schedule sounds like a flexibility lover's dream, and for the most part, it is.  When one or two jobs are status quo or slack, the other often picks up.  When all three get a little busier at the same time, however, it becomes more of a logistical conundrum.  Sit down to do one thing and another brushfire pops up.

And so it goes.

Flowers from a thoughtful employer on my five-year work anniversary this week.

That's why Kate's idea of carving out 15 minutes of sewing room time per day appealed to me.  Fifteen minutes seems manageable even under the busiest of circumstances, and allows me to keep moving forward, even if in baby steps.

I've been trying to do that since last Monday, and I fully intended to report on my progress through the linky on Kate's blog on Tuesday.  But since blogging about anything takes me longer than 15 minutes, the post didn't happen...until now.

Monday 3/14 - Create and post tutorial for St. Patrick's Day mug rug.

Tuesday 3/15 - Trim fabric for a friend's planned Sudoku quilt and get ready to mail.

Wednesday 3/16 - Look through fabric stash for Paper Piece Quilt Along fabrics (nothing suitable found...put "shop for fabric" on to-do list).

Thursday 3/17 - Pull and cut fabric for Just One Star block.

Friday 3/18 - Make Just One Star block.

Saturday 3/19 - Fabric shop for PPQA fabric and fruit & veggie prints for Mom Wald's quilt project.

Sunday 3/20 - Prewash fabric and cut blocks from fruit & veggie prints.

So there you have it.  Nothing mind blowing, but action I'm happy about nonetheless.  I plan to keep it up.  Whether I get around to posting about it every week, I can't say for sure.  So far this week, I'm only one for seven; two if you count the post office run to mail some fabric and a quilt block. 

Next on the agenda is to get another PhD (Project Half Done) finished.  I intended to quilt the cross stitch veggie wall hanging for my sister in time for her birthday.  That didn't happen.  Today is her birthday.  Happy Birthday, Nita!  I promise to get it done before anyone plants a garden around here.

That may be a while.  Winter came back for a visit this week.  

There is a frozen sap-sicle on the river birch in the front yard.  We had the tree trimmed last fall, and when it was warmer last week, the sap fell like raindrops from where a branch had been lopped.

Speaking of things on hold, like springtime in Wisconsin, Sunday Sundry will be doing likewise for a while.  Since I'm having to work more on weekends, I'd like to spend the free hours I do have away from the computer and in the sewing room instead (or the thrift shops, or with family).  When the wave of work passes and things have smoothed out again, Sunday Sundry will be back.

Did I ever show you this crocheted apron I found at the thrift store a couple months ago?  

I love the rickrack and ribbon waistband.

It reminds me there's green grass under the white stuff outside, new green underneath the pile of paperwork, lovely things waiting to pop and grow.  

All that from an apron.  Who knew?

*I thought about cleaning up the language, but it just doesn't have the same effect.  Thanks for reading, if you made it this far without taking offense.  Now go kick some ass!

Two for the Show

Back to working on quilts this week, I got a couple things accomplished.  First, I finished the binding on the Christmas whirlygig quilt, so it is officially done!  

I took advantage of the bright sunshine and a fresh snowfall for these pics.  

The quilt really does lie flat; it's just over a snowbank and part of a buried hedge.

The back:

Closeup of the quilting, by Angie at Five Little Monkeys.  Love it!

One more crossed off the PhD (Projects Half Done) list!

Next, I put together a black and white (and a wee bit of red) quilt top.  

I talked about my fondness for black and white quilts and gave a hint of this one in the previous post.  

This top went together fast, after I got done fussing with the layout.  The pattern is Perfect Ten by Swirly Girls Design, which calls for 10 fat quarters.  I had nine, plus some great scraps from Jenny, so I mixed those in too, including the one black/white/red piece.  It was too perfect not to! 

This quilt may be a little busy, but I really like it.  It still needs a border, and I have no idea what I'm going to do there yet.  Suggestions? 

I'm linking to Sarah's Can I Get A Whoop-Whoop Friday linky party.  Be sure to visit—she's having an awesome giveaway!

Just a Little Something

I have only the tiniest bit of sewing to show for this week, but I guess it's something.  It does move me a little further along the line toward finishing one of my PhD (Project Half Done) Challenges as well, so that's something too.

I don't know...I was just kind of motivationally challenged this week.  I could name any number of possible reasons—lack of sunlight, hibernation mode kicking in big time, something involving a cycle and not the kind with wheels, etc.  

But never mind all that, we're here to focus on the action.

I finished adding the ornaments to the backing of the whirlygig Christmas quilt.  Christmas is only 331 days away, you know!

They had to be fussy cut and fused in place.  Then I stitched around each one, while watching American Idol on Wednesday.

I was originally going to strew them on randomly, but that didn't look right, so I grouped them above and below the center panel in the middle (it's folded in the pic below, so you can't see the whole panel).  They seemed to need anchoring around something.  I don't know; it may have been a hormonally-motivated decision.  It is what it is.

Now the backing is really done.  In fact, by the time you read this, it will be taking a little vacation south courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service.  Wish I were going along too!

You see, I won a $50 machine quilting gift certificate last week on Such a Sew and Sew.  Yay!  Thanks to Elizabeth's generous giveaway, this quilt is on its way to Angie at 5 Little Monkeys Quilting to be machine quilted.  I am so excited to be sending it to her!  We've chatted by email, and she's got a wonderful idea for the quilting on it.

Since Angie's doing the PhD Challenge too, I think we can both count it as a finish when it's done, don't you?  :)

So there you have it.  It's no big whoop, but I'm still going to link to Sarah's Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?  You should check it out too! 

PhD Challenge Finish No. 2 - Climbing Lanterns

My original title for this post was Donde Esta La After Party, which is the title to a catchy song (hear it below).  However, I reconsidered in favor of consistency in naming my PhD Challenge finishes...and being less cryptic.

I am ready to find that after party though, because the Climbing Lanterns quilt is...dun-dun-dun...DONE!  

I know you will join me in praising the heavens above, mainly because after today we can move on to other quilt-in-progress pictures.  I've probably about worn you out with this one.  After this post, I will have for sure.

As you can see, I did an overall meander to quilt it.  It seemed like the thing to do, with the various appliqued parts (some flat, some fluffy) to maneuver around.  

Where the corners got tight, the meander got smaller.  It made sense to me at the time, and I went with it.  I used Isacord thread, as it's what I had available and had nixed my first idea of a variegated thread.  The Isacord is fine, silky, and has a sheen to it, which worked for this wall hanging.  I don't think I'd use it on a bed quilt though.  When I had to unpick a few stitches in a couple areas, it shredded pretty easily.

Here are some more close-ups.  I was a great ball of insecurity when I started quilting this, but now that it's behind me, I am pretty happy with the result.  

(Center of Back)

 Is it just me, or do you ever feel "meh" about the quilting at first, but 24-48 hours later, you're like, "day-um, that looks all right."  Because that has been my experience.

Norm was holding it up for me here, but standing in the basement sewing room with low ceilings under a fluorescent light was not very conducive to a good photo.  Whaddaya gonna do when it's dark and approaching negative digits outside?  Anyway, you get the idea of how it might look hanging on a wall.

So there it is, almost a year later, finished...after falling in love with the Lantern Bloom fabric line...finding a free pattern online...then grousing about how the branches on the original pattern resembled a craggy apple tree instead of something Chinese lanterns would actually grow on...enlisting my daughter to draw what we thought was a better version of the stems...getting only so far before abandoning the project in favor of other things...losing it behind the futon for awhile (the WIP, not my wits)...signing up for a challenge to inspire me to finish it...feeling the fear and quilting it anyway. 

A long road that ends in a happy place!

Thanks for joining me in a virtual celebration of the journey.  Now, donde esta la after party?