Scrappy 9 quilt top

My scrappy nine patch is done and I love it!! A close up of the quilt top...

Some of my favorite blocks...

MUST STOP MAKING QUILT TOPS AND START COMPLETING PROJECTS!!!!

Block making sweatshop

I have been a block making fool this weekend. First up is a block I made for Barbara in my AQB1 group. She has 9 patches from her LQG swap and wanted different blocks to finish up her quilt. This block started out to be one thing but ended up to be something totally different when I was done. I had intended to make a Japanese knot block called Kurume but didn't have enough of the orange fabric for the strips I needed. Six months ago, I would have totally panicked and had a small meltdown. My confidence in quilting has grown and now when things like that happen, I'm okay just winging it. This block is 12.5". The block is suppose to be facing the other way but blogger loaded it up like this and I think I like it better. The next two blocks are 6.5" but this collage makes the pinwheel block look huge. The two blocks are the exact same size. The string x block is the smallest string block I've made to date.

Stephanie is working on finishing her PTQB blocks. She's doing an ABC themed quilt for her daughter. Since 26 blocks is such an odd number for a quilt layout without leaving one or two blocks out, we decided to add 2 more blocks so that she could lay 4 across and 7 down. Somehow, I got suckered into making the two extra blocks. I kid, I kid, I volunteered. She sent me two panels and some scraps and here's the result of first block:

And the second...

See that strip of pears on the left? That almost didn't make it into the block. It was "accidentally "going to fall into MY scrap pile. I love those little pears!

I also made some more nine patches and I think I'm all caught up. I made more scrappy nine patches too but no picture. I've already got it in quilt top form and I'm almost done. I know, another quilt top... I need to stop making them and start finishing some of them.

My niece and I have come to a compromise on her camouflage quilt. Here it is:

It was the only way I could make it work since she also wanted leopard and Nascar fabric included. Yes, my friends, my sister has raised a redneck. Apparently, I do "do ugly". The things you do for those you love. Never in a million years did I think I would EVER utter these words: "Yes, can I have a half yard of the mossy oak camouflage please?". Yikes!

More leftovers

I'm a big fan of leftovers when it comes to food. I think sometimes it just tastes better the next day. It looks like I'm a big fan of leftovers when it comes to quilting too. My newest quilt top is another happy accident. I was cleaning off my cutting table to work on nine patches when I found some scraps. For my Circles Quilt, I worked with 1/4 yard cuts of Flights of Fancy. I needed 7.5" squares for the circle quilt so it left me with a bunch of random pieces that were too small to use for nine patches. I was going to throw it in my scrap bin but friends, my scrap bin overfloweth. So I just started randomly piecing blocks. When I was done I had 16 blocks of all different sizes so I made them all uniform by adding white borders and finished each block at 12". I assembled my 12" blocks together but I felt like it needed something more. It was just too white. I added 1.5" strips of Kona in Bahama Blue and 5" borders in black and voila, I had another quilt top. This one measures 59" square and I love it! It also gave me an idea of what to do for my Circle quilt too so now I am one happy chica!

So now I'm off to get a shower and get ready for a night of great food and a few drinks with some friends. I hope ya'll have a great weekend!

Boxed in

Thanks for all the feedback on the Circle quilt. I think I'll be spending some quality time with my seam ripper this weekend. In the mean time, lets move on to some happier crafty projects. Stephanie asked me the other day if I had any ideas for a quilt to make with her HB Pop Garden jelly roll. I remembered seeing a quilt I really liked a while back so I tweaked it a little. I cut 2.5" strips out of my Amy Butler stash and some Kona white and made two blocks . I took pictures with measurements and sent it off to her and I really was going to stop there because I really don't need another quilt top.

I couldn't stop at two so I made a few more. 28 more to be exact. Oops.
This one's a teensy bit closer to be made into a quilt top. No, I don't have backing for it but I do have the binding made....

Edited- For those who you who wanted block measurement details:

*for the block with the floral border-

floral: (1) 2.5"x4"

(2) 2.5"x8"

(2) 2.5"x10.5"

white: (2) 2.5"x4"

(2) 2.5"x6.5"

*for the block with the white border-

floral: (2) 2.5"x4"

(2) 2.5"x6.5"

white: (1) 2.5"x4"

(2) 2.5"x8"

(2) 2.5"x10.5"

Your finished block will be 10.5"x12". I made 30 blocks for a finished size of approximately 58"x60.5". This is a very easy, beginner friendly project. The blocks are fast and easy to piece together. I made mine in the span of two nights with some blog reading in between :0). If you make a quilt with these measurements, I'd love to see it. Enjoy!

Circle quilt top done?

I've finished assembling my circle quilt top and I'm not sure I like it. I love each individual block but I'm not crazy about them together. It's just so busy! I have seen other circle quilts with multiple pattern fabrics and loved it. Maybe Flights of Fancy is just too much for something like this. I could always sash in black and this way each block would stand out ( and ya'll know I love me some sashing!). My niece loves this quilt but she also wants me to make her a quilt with different types of camouflage fabric * so I'm not too sure I can trust her opinion. We have different tastes in just about everything. Hmmm, what do ya'll think? Leave it alone or add sashing?



Did ya'll know there's different TYPES of camouflage? Seriously. I keep telling her I don't do ugly but she's not listening.

Mendocino Madness

I've decided to name this quilt Mendocino Madness or maybe Mad for Mendocino. Either way, I'm CRAZY about this quilt!! Sixteen beautiful blocks by eleven talented ladies from AQB1 ! I'd like to say that I planned the little pinwheels in the corner but I miscalculated the measurements for the border and came up short. Four pinwheels later and all was well in Mushyhed's world. This quilt top measures 74"x74".

Here are the credits for this beautiful creation:
1st row: Barbara, Barbara, Sara, Barbara
2nd row: Kelsey, Tasha, Sarah Ch, Vanessa
3rd row: Barbara, Kvinta (Ann) , Tasha, Jessica
4th row: Dallas, Karen, Sarah Ch, Sarah C

Many, many thanks to the eleven wonderful and talented ladies who help me make this beautiful quilt!!

Great mail day

Did ya'll hear that loud squeal at about 5:30p.m. today? That would be me. Look what I got in the mail today... I got it via my newest addiction, the Flickr swap group. It's a good thing fabric can be washed because I'm certain I drooled on it ( oh please, you know you would have too!). I also received my block from Dallas from AQB1:

She even sent me a piece of Belgium chocolate but it didn't make it to the photo op...My quilt top for AQB1 is about 90% done so I'll finish it tonight and post it. That is if I can tear myself away from Flickr...

I also received my blocks from Anina's 9 patch swap. Yippee!

I wish all mail days were like today's.

Another bee block and a new project

For Stephanie's block in PTQB, she wanted a spiderweb block. It's been a while since I made one, I had to look at the tutorial to refresh my memory. I love this block. It's so easy to put together and uses all sizes of scraps. Stephanie sent the linen for the kite and a bunch of pre-cut strips so it really took no time to put together. It's a good thing my friend Mali has most of my scraps right now , otherwise I'm sure I'd be starting a new project. Speaking of new projects, this is what I'm working on now:

Let's just say that I'm not scared of curved piecing anymore :0)

Rachael's AQB block

June is Rachael's month for AQB2. She sent us all cute strips of fabric from Paula Prass' Flights of Fancy line. I've been mulling over her block for quite awhile. She also sent really cute ric rac and I really wanted to use it. When I was browsing through Flickr the other day, I saw this. It was made by my AQB1 buddy, Tascha. I love Tascha's butterfly block and wanted to re-create for Rachael. Here's Rachael's block: I probably should have used a solid for the background so that the butterfly would pop more but I really wanted to use the pink cobble stone. I wasn't able to use her ric rac as it was too thick but I used some of mine. I really like the way this block turned out and I hope Rachael does too. Only one more quilting bee block to go and I will have all my June blocks completed.

Munki Munki Kitties

When I won the cute buttercup bag from Michelle's giveaway, she also included a piece of Munki Munki kitty fabric. The scrap piece was hot pink and had the cutest kitties on it ( and I'm not even a cat lover!). I knew I wanted to frame each cat but the piece of fabric I had only had six cats and I knew six blocks wouldn't make a very big quilt. When I saw AmandaJean's Happy Go Lucky quilt, I had what Oprah calls my Aha moment. That AmandaJean is such an inspiration! I hope she doesn't mind my blatant copying of her quilt. Here's a close up of the six blocks ( you should click to enlarge the pics, those cats are so darn cute)-- And here's the quilt:

The piece of white muslin I had determined the size of this quilt which is 48"x68". I had intended to use Kona white but didn't have a big enough piece. The muslin is really light weight and I think this will be the perfect summer quilt. Sigh...

Ginger Blossoms and leftovers

Very little got done around the house yesterday. No phone calls or emails were returned, no blog reading, no Facebooking, no Flickr stalking. Instead, I spent most of the day finishing up my quilt top for Dana's Old Red Barn Co. quilt along and it's finally done. I love this quilt top. I originally intended to use the Urban Chiks line by Swell but I had mostly fat quarters and there would be more waste than I wanted. So I raided my stash and came up with this: It's mostly Ginger Blossom and Farmer's Market by Sandi Henderson. I threw in a little Amy Butler and some cute dots from a line called Iota by Robert Kaufman. I can't believe I had all that in my stash and never played with it. This quilt top measures 72"x84".


I had left overs from each strip and made a modified coin quilt. I added a little Kona white around each of the coin strips and then sashed with Bahama Blue also by Kona. I think the blue really make the strips pop. I like this "leftovers" quilt just as much as the other one. This coin quilt top measures 43"x55".
Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some catching up to do...

Sunset at the beach

To the delight of fellow beach goers at sunset today, my dog Max exhibited his most excellent boogie boarding skills. Max came to our rescue group very overweight. His owners were elderly and surrendered him due to illness. His previous life was pretty sedentary, no walks and lots of food. He must have thought he arrived in hell when he came to my house. I put him on a diet and we took daily walks. Max does not enjoy these walks. When it got warmer, I started taking him to the beach and letting him swim in. He does not enjoy swimming. Max does not enjoy any form of exercise. When I first put him on the boogie board, he didn't really like it until he realized he could ride the waves in and not have to swim in. He now loves the boogie board. To say that Max was the most photographed dog/person at the beach today would be an understatement. There were so many people taking his picture today, you would have thought it was Paris Hilton out there boogie boarding and not a fat, overweight dachshund.

I took a few videos today but most were grainy. This is the best one. For your viewing pleasure:

Rainy Saturday

What's a beach girl to do on a rainy Saturday afternoon? Go to T.J. Maxx and look for Munki Munki pjs. I didn't find the coveted camper or gnomes but I did find these: The material is 100% cotton but very sheer, almost like a voile. It should make for a very soft quilt. $14.99 each and the best part.... I still have $13.00 left on the gift card!

Michelle has got me hooked on this Flickr swap group. I've got pink HR VW vans coming my way. Yippee!!

9 Patch Update and another swap

I'm finally caught up on my 9 patches. Here's a few: and a few more here...

And then I had a hare brain idea to make even more scrappy ones...

I was thinking... In July, I will have 32 nine patches from Anina's swap. I think that's also the same time AmandaJean's nine patch quilt along will end and I'll have a bazillion 9 patches from that. I can't exactly make a quilt with 11 scrappy 9 patches so I'll have to make more. Hmmm... just how many nine patches does one girl need. I guess we will find out soon.

Speaking of swaps, I've joined another. Are ya'll sensing I may have a little problem with self control? Actually, this is a small swap. It's a place mat swap and I only have to make one. My partner is Autumn and I already love her. She seems like so much fun. Go visit her blog. She may be MIA for a while because she's getting ready to go to Kauai. Lucky duck. Sigh... I wonder if I'll fit in her suitcase. I won't eat much and I'd be happy to just sleep on the beach.

Speaking of blogs, my friend Jen just enter the blogging world. She recently caught the quilting bug and has been quilting whenever she gets a chance. So go to a peek and welcome her to this madness!

Catching up on Bee Blocks

For Jessica in AQB1 For Michelle in PTQB

For Adrienne in Snip Sew Send. She wanted a 6.5"x12" mini Hop, Skip and Jump block (ala Denise Schmidt).

I still owe Rachael a block for AQB2. The fabric she sent is Flights of Fancy by Paula Prass which I love. She also sent very cute ric rac which I want to include in my block so I'm still thinking about her block. Any suggestions?

Another Sneak Peek

This one's my quilt top for my AQB1 bee. How can one girl get this lucky to have two amazing group of ladies make the most awesome blocks for me? I've said it before, I'm a lucky, lucky girl. Sigh....I could stare at this quilt top all day. Just waiting on a couple of blocks and this baby will be done. And THIS is the reason I love living near the beach. Nothing makes me happier than a pretty sunset.

Look what I got in the mail today!

My bloggy friend Michelle sent me a present just because she loves me. Okay, I may have won a giveaway. Look at how cute the bag is! I love it! Thank you so much Michelle. Now ya'll go to Michelle's blog and tell her how cute this bag is! Go on! I know! I know! My shorts need ironing. It's been a long day and quit looking at my ugly knees.

Edited to add: I just opened up the purse to put my things in and she even stuck a piece of pink Munki Munki fabric in it. Eeeek!! I love my imaginary friend!

Cuteness

My friend Alyson is a busy girl. She's got three active little girls( 7 and under) to tend to, a ginormous Great Dane and a ginormous house to take care of. On top of all that, she freelances as a graphic designer. I get tired just thinking about her days. When I found out she got a kitten to add to all that, I thought she had lost her mind. Then she sent me pictures... Bruno could eat that little kitten but he seems very taken with her. He even sits by her when she eats and waits for her to be done so he can lick the plate. So flippin cute!!! He's found himself a new buddy.

The kitten's name is Yoko. They think it's a she. They haven't taken her to the vet yet to confirm. I say if it turns out to be a he, Alyson should just name him Ono.

Embarrassed

I've been putting off my May block for PTQB because I haven't ever made a Drunkards Path block before and it scared me. I HATE being late. I usually get my blocks out before the middle of the month but I kept dragging my feet with this block. Stephanie emailed me today to see if I had done it. She completed hers today and wanted to let me know it wasn't hard. She told me she was thinking of making a whole quilt with those blocks. My first thought was "That girl's crazy!". I decided to go for it tonight and it was so easy! I'm embarrassed at how long it took me to even try to attempt it. The block took less than a half an hour. It probably would have taken less time but lets just say I was going really slow on this block.

Here it is... Allison sent out fabrics from the Hello Betty line which I really like.
I think I may join my crazy friend Stephanie and make a whole quilt with this block.


By the way, remember my beautiful sampler quilt top from Jane's Rainbow block swap? She's organized another swap and this time it's Halloween themed. She's had great response for it and has opened up a fourth section so go take a look. You know you wanna join...