Serenity and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, y'all!  I am happy to report that my latest quilt was finished, and shipped to its new home yesterday, but not before I got a couple of quick photos.

I'm calling this quilt Serenity, with the hope that it brings its recipients just that.  I had just enough leftover fabric to use on the backing, and I used the darkest greige for the binding.  I love the shade of the binding fabric, and I really wish I had gotten a closeup of it for you before shipping it off.  It is the perfect blend of gray and taupe, and it frames the softer colors so well.

I know that the recipients of this quilt are dealing with a lot right now, having lost everything in the flood, but I hope this quilt brings a little ray of sunshine to them, and much needed Serenity.

So, let's check out a few of my favorites from last week's party, shall we?  Tracy at From One Twenty Seven linked up these three pretties!

Michelle at From Bolt to Beauty linked up this sweet baby quilt finish.

and just look at this cute tote by Celine at Esprit Patch!  Love the selvages!  I keep saying that one day I'm going to make a bag.

Alright then.  Let's party, friends!

1.  You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)

Sewing Comfort

In its earliest days, quilting was an art form born of necessity.  Today though, I would venture to say that there are very few quilters that make quilts from salvaged fabric, for the primary purpose of warmth.  There is no doubt that quilting takes me on a never-ending journey of creativity that is rewarding and fulfilling.  I find such joy in seeing my vision take shape right before my eyes.  Though the primary purpose and methods of quilting have changed over time, one thing remains steadfast.  Quilts can be a great expression of love, whether given in celebration, or to bring comfort to those who are hurting.

This quilt is going to friends of my cousin who lost everything in the recent Louisiana floods.  The wife had a stroke a few years ago, and is wheelchair bound, and they had over five feet of water in their home.  When my cousin told me their story, and asked for a quilt to bring them a smile, I put everything else on hold to get it done.

My cousin specifically wanted soft, soothing colors with a spa-like feel, but with small pops of sunshine yellow.  She also mentioned that she loved my Sunny Skies quilt, which was made with my Purse Strings block tutorial.

This quilt will be finished before the day is out, and I am planning to ship it out tomorrow morning.    I wish I could wrap a quilt around every single person I know that is experiencing loss and hurt in my hometown right now, but I know that's impossible.  I just hope that this quilt can offer some measure of comfort for this particular family.

Starfire Release and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  I have been working for the past few days checking math, perfecting tables and illustrations, and making sure my Starfire quilt pattern is all ready to go, and I am so happy to announce that it is now available in my Craftsy and Etsy shops!

As I mentioned before, I have wanted to make a quilt with fire colors for quite some time, and I really had fun working on this one.  The way the colors twist around the stars has the wheels turning in my brain, and I'm imagining all sorts of great color combos (you know that blue, green, and aqua are at the top of that list)!

Last week's party rocked, as usual!  Cynthia at Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework linked up this stunner.  Oh my, I love all of that color!

This quilt, inspired by Polish Pottery, is by Carol Quilts Sometimes, and it's a real beauty!

and I can't wait to see more of the progress on this one from Karen at Quilts...etc.

Okay, y'all!  Time to party!

1.  You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)

Starfire Finished and Winners!

My Starfire quilt has been finished for awhile, but we have been getting just enough rain each day to keep everything a little bit damp.  Today we were finally granted a reprieve, just long enough for things to (mostly) dry out and afford a quick photo op.

It was really energizing to work on a quilt with a color palette so outside of my norm, and I put a serious dent in my warm color stash to boot.  Sometimes, I feel like I get stuck in a quilting rut, using similar colors and fabrics too often, and when I start worrying that all of my quilts are starting to look to similar, a project like this gives a nice jolt to my creativity.

I'm making a concerted effort to sew my stash more lately, so I tried to fit as many different prints as I could into this one.  I just used up the leftovers on the back.

Since purple is used very little in the quilt, I wanted to really pull that color out.  So, I opted to bind with one of the purple prints.  It helps that I already had it in my stash!

This pattern is almost finished, and I'm hoping to release it at next week's NTT, so be on the lookout!  

Okay, I owe you a couple of winners from the wonderful August giveaways!  

First up, the winner of the sweet Gigi Blooms zipper pouch (filled with goodies!) sponsored by Fort Worth Fabric Studio is comment number 105, Rosa!

and the winner of the Merry Moda Mix fat quarter bundle, provided by Fat Quarter Shop is comment number 110, Annette Ellis!

Congratulations to both of you, ladies!  I'll be contacting you soon via email to get information from you so that you can get your goodies!

Needle and Thread Thursday...A Little Late!

Oh my goodness, I can't believe that NTT sneaked up on me this week.  In case you aren't aware, I am a Baton Rouge native, and over the weekend they received historic amounts of rainfall- over 30 inches of rain fell in about three days, causing massive flooding.  Communication was sporadic for days, and the photographs of the devastation bring tears to my eyes.  My heart is hurting for my beloved hometown.

My parents' home is not even located in a flood zone, yet they still received several inches of water in their house.  My husband left this morning to help my parents with tearing out sheetrock, flooring, and general cleanup (since school has already started for my wild thing, I had to stay behind).  Needless to say, with all of this going on, the week has gotten away from me a little bit.

I have actually finished my Starfire quilt, but have not had the chance to photograph it yet, as it has been rainy here too.  so, we'll just kick off NTT with last week's features.  This stunner is by Michelle at From Bolt to Beauty-

Lori at Crossquilt shared this bright, happy finished Quilt for Pulse-

and check out this fun Crosscut quilt by Kris at Sew Sunshine.  Love it!

Okay friends!  Time to party.  I can't wait to see what's going on in your sewing space this week.  I could use a little quilt therapy right about now.

1.  You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)

Starfire and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday!  There has been LOTS going on around here lately, and not all of it is quilting related- my wild thing started middle school on Monday, and I cannot believe it.  There is no doubt about it; in parenthood, sometimes the days are long, but the years fly by in the blink of an eye!

On the quilting front, I have been working like mad and actually have a couple of finishes to share today.  The first is a brand new quilt top in a fiery color palette.  I've always wanted to make a quilt in these colors, and I can't believe it took this long.  I really love it!

The way the reds and oranges twist around the stars is lots of fun, and in my mind, I can already see this pattern in several great color ways.  I'm calling this one Starfire, and I plan to release the pattern for it as soon as I can find the time!

I did finish up one pattern this week though.  I'm happy to let you know that Lavalier is now available in my Craftsy and Etsy shops.  If you're looking for a pattern to show off some bold prints with an Art Deco flair, check it out!

I hope you've all had a fun and productive week of creativity as well.  Before we link up though, check out some of my faves from last week's party.  This modern beauty is from Deb at New Creative State

Chelsea at Patch the Giraffe showed off her awesome Starlight quilt.

and this quilt by Dawn at First Light Designs is so soothing in all of those shades of blue!

Time to show what you've got!  Let's party, y'all!

1.  You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)

Lavalier and NTT

Thank you all for your wonderful name suggestions for this pattern.  When I initially designed this quilt, I thought it looked sort of like antique brooches from the Art Deco era, so when a reader mentioned the name Lavalier, I grabbed hold of it, and I couldn't get it out of my mind.  A lavalier is a kind of necklace with a large pendant that was very popular during that time as well, so it's perfect!

Naming quilts is a tricky thing sometimes.  Though I could definitely see jewels, retro TV's, cheval mirrors, and decorative keyholes in this design, I couldn't come up with a pretty name I liked to fit any of those themes.  I truly appreciate all of the creative ideas offered, and a special thanks to Kathy, who suggested the name Lavalier.

I really had a blast choosing fabrics for this quilt.  Slowly but surely, over the past few months, I have amassed another hefty Amy Butler hoard (AB fabric is my kryptonite), and there are fabrics from eight different Amy Butler collections in this quilt- Belle, Daisy Chain, Soul Blossoms, Love, Cameo, Alchemy, Lark, and Hapi (plus some others). I love how the vibrant colors and prints in her collections are all harmonious with each other.

I pieced the backing with leftovers, and also made a scrappy binding, which means that I only have a couple of these prints left in my stash, and just a little of them.  I'm okay with that though.  Using up my stash just means that I can add more to it without guilt!

I am working on the pattern for this one, but it's the last week of summer vacation, and we always make sure summer goes out with a bang, with plenty of fun family activities during this final week before school starts.  So, pattern work is happening around lots of other things.  I already designed the pattern cover though!

Before we get to this week's link up, check out some of my favorites from our last NTT, like this Constant Flux quilt from Kitty at Night Quilter-

or this awesomeness by Michelle at From Bolt to Beauty.  By the way Michelle, I feel you on the lack of summer sewing productivity.  My son is 12 years old now, so it's not as much of an issue, but I remember the days when he was much younger and sewing time was hard to come by.

and I love this cool quilt top by Luna Lovequilts -

Okay, y'all!  Let's link up!

1.  You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)