Carey Family

Scott and Sue Family

Two Christmas quilt finishes

by Leave a Comment

I finished two quilts on the same day. That is some kind of record. And I feel awesome about that. 🙂

Just in time for Christmas decorating, I got this quilt done.

front

 

The pattern is from the Moda Bakeshop and is called “Jungle Path baby quilt” by Jessica Kelly. I used the Doodlebug Designs by Riley Blake fabric line called “Christmas Candy” for the quilt. Scott gave me this fabric for my birthday two and a half years ago, so it’s been on my list for awhile to get done. I finished it a week before Christmas this year, so that was great. I pieced the back and hand-quilted it.

back IMG_1188

 

The finish was a jeans quilt for Mark. Due to circumstances, his original quilt was donated to the Festival of Trees Boutique and sold for lots of money for Primary Children’s Medical Center, our favorite charity. So I promised him a new one and got it done in time for Christmas this year. It is pieced in a diagonal row design from old jeans belonging to the four of us. The black jeans run down the center and pattern alternates randomly between light, medium, and dark jean squares. The backing was actually chosen by Mark and is a happy tropical pattern. I tied it with tan yarn using the awesome quilt stands made for me by my father-in-law after he watched me struggle tieing another quilt using folding chairs as stands. Real quilt stands make a big difference!

It was difficult to get a full photo because Scott’s arms didn’t stretch far enough and he wasn’t tall enough. Maybe I need a special clothesline only for taking photos of quilts……..

frontback

Barn quilt tops are done in 2014

by 3 Comments

With a sprint to the end, we both finished our quilt tops for the Barn project last week. So the entire thing got done in 2014! We are so proud of ourselves. The twelve blocks were sewn together in four rows of three blocks with the barns and silos alternating. Each block has a strip of sashing around it and there is an extra row of sashing around the outside so that each block has two strips of sashing on each side. The sashings alternate so that each block corner has a woven look. The four outside corners have small squares to finish it off. We dug through our stashes quite deeply to get sashing and I made some small purchases to finish us up so that all the sashing pieces are unique. That was a bit of a scramble! But we love the scrappy look to the finished project. We plan to sew backings and get them quilted sometime next year, then display them in the Alpine Days Quilt Show next August.

Team ShaRee

2014-12-20 18.45.11Team Sue

Barn quilt top

 

Our reflections on this project include:

  • it was really fun to work on it together for support and mutual cheerleading
  • we learned a lot about our machines during the project and as I acquired a new machine in the middle of it, that was also a learning curve for me
  • we learned many new skills as we tried new blocks and techniques
  • we shared tips and tricks with each other, thus increasing both our skill sets
  • we just got better and better at piecing as we went along

We are now committed to sewing together and are busy planning projects for 2015. If you are on Pinterest, I have a board dedicated to this barn project.

Newbery Challenge 2014 wrap-up

by Leave a Comment

I decided to join this challenge to jumpstart my perpetual challenge of reading all the winners.  My goal was the L’Engle level: 15-29 points, and although I thought I would just make the lower threshold, I actually hit the top of the first level.

Each book you read is worth points. You get:

3 points for a Newbery Medal Winner
2 points for a Newbery Honor Book
1 point for a Caldecott Medal Winner

[Read more…] about Newbery Challenge 2014 wrap-up