Quilt Along Catch-Up, Part Deux

FINALLY! I just sat right down the other night and put together the last blocks for the quilt-a-long. I am very proud of my quilt blocks as this is the very first quilt I have ever made. Joel's grandmother is a quilt-making machine so I've never really felt the need to make a lot of these since we are already covered in beautiful blankets. But now I see why she does it. They are so much fun to make!

So, when I finally finish this quilt, it will be a special one since it was made by me. I'll probably try to hand embroider my name and the date for the back of the quilt so I can live in infamy and people can marvel for decades to come at how sloppy my seams are even with using a sewing machine.

Here are the blocks, starting from . Some of them may be repeats for you, but I am sure that I have at least shared the first two blocks. I have been way behind on this so it's really a recap.

Block 3


Block 4


Block 5


Block 6



Block 7


Block 8


Block 9


Block 10



Block 11



Block 12


And here they all are in my final layout:


Now I am on to more cutting and sewing as I try to finish the massive border!

On the path...

Quilt Along Catch-Up

Whew! I have a lot of catching up to do. Amanda has posted the block #11 already and I'm only up to number six. Above are numbers five and six together. I am running out of scraps of my original fabric so I'm going to have to break into the stash and find something else that works with these colors. This has been fun! Too bad I'm so far behind.

Walking along...

Quilt Block #4

TA-DA!

The Heavens Have Opened Up, and In My Lap Fell...

A new sewing machine!

Actually, it didn't just fall into my lap but it may very well seem like it since I've only been out a sewing machine for about a day and a half (Gasp!). My very first sewing machine - yahoo! Of course, I do feel bad that I'm giving back my Mom her broken one, but I guess I'll have to make her something nice on this machine.

Considering that I've only worked on a machine older than 10 years my whole life and ones that don't always work well (my finger still hurts from where Grandma's machine bit me the other day), this new one is a beaut. My sweet, darling hubby said that I should pick one out for Christmas, so that is what it did. Of course, that makes his shopping super easy and since he readily agreed to let me get this one, that tells me that he hasn't bought anything for me yet (I've already got all of his gifts - he picked them out already!). So, he's happy ... I'm happy.

Whew! Who knew that buying a sewing machine was like buying a computer? I had to buy a computer recently for work because I am a contract graphic designer, so my computer is my livelihood. That was easy compared to this. My head was reeling with all the options available out there and comparing all the notes took a while. But I was just so darn excited to get a new sewing machine, I didn't care. I finally found a good deal on a slightly-more-than-basic machine - no computer screen, no embroidery - that will do overly fine for me.

And what the heck is this? Drop-in bobbin loading? You more seasoned sewers will probably be chuckling when you read this, but I had no idea this kind of stuff was available. I probably should play more in the sewing machine department of my LFS (local fabric store).

This. Is. So. Cool.

That also means that I have finally completed my two quilt blocks in half the time. I also had time to run upstairs to put the passie back in the baby's mouth two times (she was down for the night but needs a "passie-pop" once in a while to settle back down) and talk with my mother on the cell phone while I made these puppies and was still finished in record time. Yahoo!

That also means that I had to add to my stash to finish these quilt blocks. This is all I had in the way of "stash" for cotton fabric:


This is what I bought to finish out the other quilt block (I hope I have enough). I am sure all of you out there would agree that it's not a bad thing to add to your stash, even if it's for a stash-busting project!

Here is quilt block #2. Not to shabby considering I didn't rip out the yucky seams from ye olde sewing contraption. I just went for it. Some squares didn't line up but it looks pretty good.

Here is quilt block #3. Triangles are hard! I ended up not cutting part of one triangle right and so the middle of this block isn't really right at all, but it still looks good if you stand a couple of paces back!

So, my drama was short lived but I appreciate the encouraging comments from everyone. I'm back on track and should be posting more frequently now that the holidays are coming up. Handmade gifts all around!

Back on the path...
Jenny

Anticipation...

That is a picture of me starting, hesitating really, on my very first quilt block. I am sure that for those of you that know me, you'll be surprised to learn that I have never done this before, especially if you've seen all of the wacky handbags that I've sewn in the past. Quilting has always intimidated me because I never could seem to get the blocks to line up or to get the stitches straight. Is it right? Is it not? Is it right? I think it's right. Maybe I measured wrong. Hold on ...

I decided to participate in the Quilt-A-Long that Amandajean is hosting on her blog. It looks like a lot of people have signed up to do the quilt-a-long and it will be so much fun to see everyone's progress. I love getting ideas from other crafters!

Woo-hoo! This meant that I would be able to use some leftover scraps of my favorite fabric. I've used it for a diaper tote and a changing pad and was wondering what else I could use it for without looking like a walking bolt of fabric. Yea!


Whoops ... that is what happens when you get too cocky. I had completed my first few pieces and then this happened: I stitched the piece the wrong way. Good thing I've invested in a few good seam rippers.


All fixed.


Hooray! My very first quilt block. That wasn't so bad. Some of the squares don't line up perfectly but who cares? This isn't too shabby in my opinion. Once the 12 weeks are up and I'm ready to put my quilt together, I hope that Amandajean is ready for a million questions about backs, binding, batting and the actual quilting. Or, I could just pay someone else to do it, but what fun would that be?

Heading down the path...