Cutting into the Precious

Precious fabrics. I know I'm not the only quilter that has them.  Fabrics that are so prized that they are purchased and stashed away, just waiting for the perfect project.  We ogle at their beauty and experience apprehension at the thought of cutting into them, sometimes for months or longer.  Well friends, in the life of every cherished hoard there comes a time to end the cycle of fabric petting and turn those beauties into something even more gorgeous.

This, my friends, is my treasured Anna Maria Horner collection. True Colors, Mod Corsage, Fibs and Fables, Folk Song, and Loominous are all represented in their entirety, with a few prints from Honor Roll and LouLouThi thrown in for good measure.  125 different prints, totaling almost 35 yards of fabric (yikes!).  Several months ago, I started collecting fabrics for a king sized quilt for my bed, and you could say that I got a little carried away.  Quilty confession- when I photographed my stash a few weeks ago, these fabrics weren't included in my cabinet.  I wasn't actually trying to hide them, but because I was collecting them for a specific project, they were already squirreled away in a special place.

Anyway, I'm finally ready for these precious fabrics to be pressed and cut, and sewn into something awesome!

Stealth Sewing and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday!  I'm excited to share that I'll have a block featured in Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks magazine (Volume 16), and I've been working on the quilt this week.  Of course, that means that I can't reveal it just yet, so for now, you'll just have to settle for a shot of the back.  That floral fabric is from the Joie de Vivre line by Bari J, and it is even more gorgeous in person.

 The magazine will be out this fall, and I can't wait to post lots of photos then.  So, let's get right to the highlights from last week's party.  Tisha at Quilt Therapy shared this cute and simple postage stamp quilt.

Jan at The Colorful Fabriholic shared this fun, flying geese masterpiece!

and check out the cool color play in this quilt by Sew Preeti Quilts.

Woohoo!  Y'all are just amazing.  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!  :)

Leftovers and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  Usually, I am meticulous about figuring out exactly how many prints and pieces I need to cut for a project before I even begin, but after finishing my Poolside quilt, I realized that a rare miscalculation left me with quite a few extra squares.  Since they were all uniform sizes, rather than add them to my scrap jars, I decided to sew them up and make a little preemie quilt.

My guild donates these to a local hospital each year, so I always have that in the back of my mind.  I like to donate a few quilts each year, and using up leftovers for them makes it a win-win.  This little quilt measures just 36 inches square, with the larger squares in the photo finishing at three inches and the smaller ones at just an inch and a half.  It won't take me long to finish this one up- and just in time to join my other two preemie quilts for our guild donation day this Friday.

Last week's party was amazing, with lots of fun inspiration.  Check out this cute pumpkin table runner by Lisa Marie.  This puts me in the mood for fall!

This sampler quilt by Tanya Quilts in CO is so cheerful!

and this fun quilt is by Something Rosemade-

I love the eye-candy, and I can't wait to see what's going on in your space this week.  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!  :)

Poolside

When I took a photo of my stash a couple of weeks ago, I noticed that my cabinet was very heavy on teals, aquas, and grays.  When I'm out shopping for fabric, I am drawn to those colors and tend to purchase them more often as stash builders (obviously), even as I show discipline with fabrics in other hues.  Of course I know this about myself, but actually seeing the evidence in a picture really made me realize that I should stop stashing those colors for awhile, and put some of those yummy fabrics to good use.  I haven't done a two-color quilt in a little while, and thought a classic Bowtie pattern would be a perfect way to tame those sections of my stash.

Before I go any further, let me apologize for not making a post during the process of this quilt.  I think it's important to do that, since we all know that quilts don't just magically appear out of thin air, but we've had some rainy days lately, and the indoor photos I took didn't capture it well at all.  This one did go together rather quickly as well.

Because I love aqua and gray, I had some larger cuts of most of the fabrics in this quilt, and I used up all of the leftovers on the back.

The quilting is done in Aurifil 50 wt. #5006 (Light Turquoise), and it adds another layer of sweetness to this one.  And I decided to bind it in one of the darkest teal prints.

The colors in this quilt remind me of a backyard oasis, with glistening water surrounded by stone, so I've decided to name it Poolside.  I'm loving the way the modern prints set off the traditional Bowtie block, and I especially love that I used up 10 aquas and 10 grays from my cabinet.

Lolly, Lolly and NTT

Lolly, Lolly, Lolly Get Your Adverbs Here!  Any other Schoolhouse Rock fans out there?  I watched them as a kid, and fell in love with them again as an adult when I showed them to my students, and when my son watched them.  Even though I named this quilt Lolly, Lolly because it looks like sweet lollipops all lined up, when I say the name aloud, what secretly goes through my brain is one of my favorite songs from the collection.

On the back of this fun quilt, I used all of the leftovers, plus some yardage of the hot pink polkadot that I had in my stash as well, making this a zero purchase quilt.

A nice relaxed stipple and a pretty purple crosshatch binding, and this quilt is all ready for the silent auction coming up at my son's school.  I think the colors seem pretty perfect for a tween girl.  This quilt measures 60" square, and I hope it goes to a good home!

Last week's party knocked my socks off!  Take a look at this Storm at Sea quilt by Jayne at Twiggy and Opal, and be sure to go to her original post to see more pics of the quilting!

This amazing mini is by Jess at Quilty Habit-

Ali at Arabesque Scissors shared this barn quilt-inspired mini-

I love the beautiful low volume background in this plus quilt by The Lilac Cat-

and just look at how the ombre fabrics in this quilt by Sarah at Quilt Moderne make it look like it is shimmering!

Okay friends!  Let's 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!  :)

Stash Sewing and NTT

As often as possible, I try to pull fabric for an entire quilt from my stash, and make it without purchasing any extra fabric.  The discipline in this practice was born of necessity a few years ago, as quitting my teaching career to be a full-time quilter and pattern designer meant that finances immediately got a little tighter.  That being said, I have really grown to love the challenge of stretching my stash.

As I'm sure you've guessed, this bright and happy quilt is entirely from my cabinet, including the Kona Ash background, which I scored as three separate remnants (major luck)!  I'm really not a pink person, so I don't use it very often, but it can be sweet every now and then.

You know, many people are surprised when they see my fabric stash, thinking that surely a full-time quilter has mountains and mountains of fabric.  Though I try to keep a decent variety of colors, my stash is very modest in comparison to many, and I like it that way.  Because the fabrics in my cabinet turn over pretty quickly, I hardly ever come across a print that I've had for so long that I no longer care for it.

Shopping my stash becomes more difficult as the selection dwindles, but that's part of the fun of the challenge!  Don't get me wrong, of course I love buying fabric too, but when I feel like I've sewn an entire quilt from "free" fabric, I really feel like I've accomplished something.

What about you?  Do you like to keep a huge stash and shop from it exclusively?  Do you prefer to purchase fabrics specific for every single quilt, or do you use a combination of approaches when you're starting a new quilt?

Okay y'all!  Let's check out last week's party highlights.  This beauty by Savor Every Stitch is just fabulous, and my oh my, just look at that quilting!  ps- There are more close-ups on her post!

Barb at Mountain Quiltworks shared this fun sampler quilt-

Take a look at this awesomely round mini by Kittens and Threads.  I can't resist a rainbow, friends!

I love this Postcard From Sweden quilt by Anja Quilts.

Michelle at From Bolt to Beauty linked up this pretty reminder that we are on the downhill slide of another year, and Christmas will be here before we know it!

and finally, Kitty at Night Quilter shared this colorful bit of EPP awesomeness.

Yes, you counted correctly.  I did actually link up six features this week, rather than the usual three.  Double the features = double the fun!  I simply could not help myself.  There were just too many fantastic projects, and I couldn't narrow it down any further.  I'm super excited to see the fantastic projects that you bring this week!  Party on!

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!  :)