A Reversible Quilt and NTT

Happy NTT, y'all!  If you're a regular reader, it's no secret that I love to piece my quilt backings with leftovers from the front. What happens though, when the fabric hoard is so out of control that there are is more fabric left over than I actually used in the quilt top?  Make the quilt completely reversible, of course!

Most of the time, when I piece a quilt backing, I don't worry too much about print and color placement, but for a truly reversible quilt, I took my time to make sure that everything was balanced nicely.  I had to work with the sizes I had leftover, which dictated the design, but I love the fact that the three narrow strips will be centered on the bed.

If you assumed that this backing (which measures 116" square) used up the remainder of the AMH, you were mistaken.  Shockingly, I still have enough fabric left for a scrappy binding for this one, plus a nice sized throw quilt for my sofa, and probably even enough for the backing of that quilt to have some scrappy interest.  The lesson here- 35 yards of fabric is a ton!

As big as this backing is, it isn't the biggest thing I've been working on this week!

My publisher sent my book pages for review, and when I opened them, I'm pretty sure my squeals of delight could be heard for miles around.  It is surreal to see my creative work take shape in book form, and I can't wait until I can start revealing little snippets about the concept, title, and of course, the quilts.

I hope your week has been as fun as mine!  Before we party, let's take a look at some of my favorite projects from last week.  Sew Preeti Quilts linked up her Esmeralda quilt tutorial.  Just gorgeous!

Check out these fun, scrappy pineapples by Angel on flickr.

Something Rosemade linked up this beautiful quilt top, and I'm Smitten with it too!

Jess at Quilty Habit is a free-motion maven with this whole cloth clamshell quilt.  Look at all of the amazing details!

and finally, I love this pretty, curvy quilt called Teal Fizz by Lori at Crossquilt!  I had the pleasure of seeing this finished top in person at my guild meeting last Sunday and it is fantastic!

Okay, my friends!  It's time to show what you've been working on 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!  :)

I Lost My Mind For a Minute (and NTT)

Happy NTT, y'all!  This is the edition where I show you everything I possibly can, without actually revealing the quilt that I made from the scrappy rainbow improv blocks I showed last week.  The quilt is for publication, so even though that fact is a big personal hooray, being secretive still stinks.  So, we'll just have to make do with a few peeks.

You all know that ordinarily, I use all of my leftovers on the backs of my quilts.  Well, when I'm quilting from my scrap jars, sometimes I'm at a loss.  Rainbow stripes to the rescue!  I love making a rainbow stripe backing for a scrappy quilt.  It pulls in all of the colors, so I feel like it matches without competing with the front, and best of all, it is a perfect stash buster.  These kinds of backings are great for using up fabrics that are more difficult to blend, like that goldenrod fabric (third from the top).  It's been sitting in my stash for awhile because it's too yellow to pair with oranges, and too orange to be considered a yellow.  It adds tons of depth to a rainbow though!

I also want to point out the quilting on this, because it is by far the element of the quilt of which I am most proud (read: the part that almost drove me insane).  Look at how tight the quilting is on the backing (the yellow shows the density really well), and now check out the close up.

Seriously.  Remember when I said once that you would never see me do matchstick quilting?  I must have taken leave of my senses, because this is almost as tightly quilted as matchsticks.  All. over. the. entire. quilt (54"x64").  I used an ENTIRE spool of Aurifil 50 wt. thread!  That's almost twelve hours of free-motion quilting, folks; which I know some of you do regularly, but it's entirely new territory for me.

The quarter is there for scale, but it's difficult to really tell how small this quilting is.  The space in the photo is only about 5 inches wide.   By the way, the background is Kona Shale, and I like the subtle contrast of the white thread.  I love the result, but I don't know that I'll ever quilt something this densely again.  Never say never though!

The binding is super scrappy, containing 27 different fabrics in varying lengths.  You can't really tell in the rolled quilt photo, but the binding is arranged in a rainbow as well (of course).  It's not a close-up, but you can see that on the full backing shot above.  I love how this quilt turned out, and though it will be awhile, I can't wait for you to see it!

Last week's party had some major eye candy, so let's check out the highlights!  This fun, traveling bee quilt is by Alison at Little Bunny Quilts.

The Lilac Cat shared this lovely Log Cabin Hybrid mini.  I love the layout of colorful and low volume fabrics in this one.  At only twelve inches square, it packs quite a punch!

and Jen's Crafts and Quilts Scrapbook linked up this sweet little Apple Patch baby quilt.

So, how about it?  I know that something you're working on is making you do a happy dance right now.  Let's link those projects 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!  :)

Candy Dish, and the Case For a Pieced Backing

Today, Janet from Simply Pieced hosted a sew-in at her house for our local MQG (happy International Quilting Day, y'all!), and I took the opportunity to finish up my kaleidoscope quilt, along with a new quilt top (but I'll save that for another post).  It was so much fun to spend the whole day chatting with friends who understand my love of all things quilty and have hours of uninterrupted sewing time.  Sewing, lunch out, and more sewing was a perfect way to spend the day as Spring Break comes to a close.

I just LOVE the way this quilt turned out.  It's so bright and cheerful, and just makes me smile!  I kind of worried that adding the border would break up the kaleidoscope illusion, but I really like it, and the Kona Corn Yellow binding frames all of the colors without drawing your eye away from the center of the quilt.

I decided to call this quilt Candy Dish.  It just reminds me of vibrantly colored candies in a beautifully cut glass bowl.

Of course, I pieced the backing from all of the scraps, and I think it compliments the definite pattern in the front of the quilt.  Anyone who follows my blog regularly knows that I love a good pieced quilt backing (both planned and improv).  I used to be a little intimidated by them, but once I tried it, I've never looked back.  They take a little bit longer to put together, but there are some definite advantages-

1.  It's a wonderful surprise.  In Louisiana, we have a French word, "lagniappe" (pronounced lan-yap), which means "a little something extra."  I like to think of a pieced backing is just a little bit of lagniappe for the recipient.

2.  It keeps your sewing fun.  The cool thing about a pieced backing is that there is no right or wrong!  You can use the fabric you have, and sew it together however you want.  This carefree way of sewing is really fun, and the end result is fresh and modern.

3.  Fabric variety rules!  I just love quilts with tons of fabric variety, but without pieced backings, my scrap baskets would be overflowing all the time!  Using every bit of the scraps in the backing allows me to have more variety in the front, and it keeps me from having to buy several yards of a single backing fabric, win-win!  I do have to confess that if I really love a fabric, I will save a few small pieces for my scrap baskets.  That way, when I do make a true scrap quilt, it is full of fabrics I love!

4.  Fabric SHOPPING rules even more!  So here's the thing- I used 16 different fabrics in this quilt.  Since those fabrics are completely gone, that means that I don't have to feel guilty the next time I'm at my favorite fabric shop and I see some yummy fabrics that I just can't pass up.  (hmmm...I just used 16 fabrics in my last quilt.  Oh yeah, I have room for these!)

If you've never done a pieced backing, I hope you'll give it a try.  Let me know if you do!

The Other Side of the Quilt

It's no secret that I absolutely love making the backs of my quilts special by piecing, so when I heard about the link party that Katie from Swim, Bike, Quilt has going on called "The Other Side of the Quilt," of course, I decided I'm totally in.

I piece almost all of my quilt backs these days, so it was hard to select just a few to highlight as my favorites.  Feeling Groovy is probably my most favorite quilt back of all time.  The front is an X-Plus, and I just decided to have fun with the back with improv.  I managed to use every bit of my precious Carnaby Street fabric on this one.

Sewing in an improv style on the back is one of my favorite ways to use scraps.  My very first experience with improv came with this quilt, called Sunning by the Pool.  For me, it's a lot of fun to have a break from the "rules" that come along with sewing a particular pattern.  Once the top is done and all that's left are scraps, it's great to throw caution to the wind and just sew!

Recently, I was able to sew scraps and make what I consider to be a completely reversible quilt on Summer Storm.  On this quilt, I may actually like the back better than the bento box front!

A Dash of Luck also has improv piecing, but has just an offset strip of scraps, which I've also loved doing lately.  My husband jokes that this kind of backing is becoming my "signature backing."  I think this is one of my favorites because I could just eat that Happy Go Lucky fabric up, and I love the fabrics with that happy orange Denyse Schmidt print.

The last one I'll share is not improv pieced at all.  Instead, on Happy Dance, I made extra blocks for a stripe across the back, and I just love the way the colors pop against the black and white polkadots.

Quilt backs are a way for me to unwind a little bit and loosen up my sewing.  Especially after a particularly fussy pattern on the front, piecing the backing can really be relaxing, and I just love the look of surprise when the recipient sees the other side of the quilt!

Springtime Blooms...in the Summer

The Beast is finished!  Although now that it's done, I should probably start referring to it by its given name- Springtime Blooms.  I finished the binding this afternoon, and I hate that I'm a little late to the Friday Finish parties (hangs head in shame)- but better late than never!

Thanks so much to everyone who gave name suggestions.  The name Springtime Blooms is kind of a mash-up of lots of the ideas that were given, and since the fabric is called Spring Magic by April Cornell, I decided to throw part of that in there too for good measure.

To keep the quilting from adding to the busy pattern, I decided to quilt with a simple meandering, but I did use soft pink thread and I just love it!  I think it looks so sweet with the little pink dots in the backing fabric.

The backing fabric is Marguerite by Riley Blake in Yellow Scallops.  There is a little shop near me that makes applique t-shirts, bunting, and other fabricy gifts.  They aren't a quilt shop, but they do have a small (but awesomely cute) selection of fabric.  They also happen to be right next door to my nail salon, so I always pop over there when I get a pedicure.  And boy, am I glad I did last week!  I found this fabric on clearance for $3.00 a yard and it just went perfectly with it.  Score!!  I promptly bought the rest of the bolt.

I picked a dreamy shade of aqua for the binding, with the hope that it would bring out that color in the quilt even more.  The pink, yellow, and apple green are so "in your face" that I wanted to bring the aqua out a little bit.  I wanted the binding choice to be a little less expected, and I think it worked.

I had a couple of personal quilty victories on this one, which is good after the initial seam matching annoyance.  First of all, I managed to quilt this gigantic thing on my regular home machine (even though it was slow going) without a single pucker on the backing- not even a tiny one!  That's a first for a big quilt for me, and enough to make me jump up and down, y'all.  Seriously.  Jumping up and down.

Secondly, I managed to use every single scrap of this fabric in this quilt.  It began as a 40 FQ bundle, and even though the quilt finishes at 80 x 100 inches (a generous queen size), I still had plenty to piece into the backing.  So nothing goes back into stash (or even scrap).  YAY!!

All in all, I still don't prefer making bed-sized quilts.  I much prefer quilts that are the perfect snuggle size- about 60 x 60.  But, at least I know that I can make one this big and still have it come out looking decent.

Next week, amongst first week of school stuff, I'm getting down to business on the other two memory quilts made from my grandfather's shirts.  If you missed those at the beginning of the summer, you can check out Western Kaleidoscope and Bricks and Mortar to see what I'm talking about.  After all of this girly sewing, I have to get back into the manly quilt groove.

Feeling Groovy!

Well, my groovy Carnaby Street X Plus quilt is finished!!  I actually dreamed about it last night and woke up at 7:00am so I could work on it and get it finished today.  We're heading to visit family on Wednesday, so I have a million things I should be doing, but quilting is way more fun than laundry and packing, right?

I chose my good old standby for quilting in a light gray thread, and I'm happy that it helps to disguise my unfortunate mismatched plus seams a little bit.  I used the same teal tonal chevron for the binding that I used as a border in the back, and I like how the chevrons point toward the quilt.  That is totally a happy accident!

I placed my label a little too close to the edge on this one...whoops!

I can't decide which side of this quilt I like better!  The back is so much fun with all of the improv piecing, but I think that the front has almost a 3D effect with the Carnaby Street jumping out against the gray background.

This is my second Carnaby Street quilt and I am not sick of the fabric at all.  You can see my first one HERE.  The colors in this quilt just make me happy (and kind of makes me want to watch Austin Powers)!  I love the fun, groovy vibe.  Which side do you like best?

Polkadots and Posies

I just finished putting the binding on my HST quilt, and now that it's finished, I do like it better.  I think it will make a sweet quilt for a little girl.

It took awhile for me to get into the groove of quilting this one.  My thread broke a few times before i realized that it was wrapped around my sewing machine handle, and then there was this-

I've broken needles on safety pins before, but I have never had this happen.  I immediately freaked out, worried that I had messed up my machine, then remembered that Hydeeann from Splish Splash Stash had this happen a few days ago, and her machine was fine-which was reassuring.  I'll never make the mistake of thinking I can sew that close to a pin again!

After much annoyance, I managed to finish the stippling on the quilt (I really must try another kind of FMQ, but I just love it!).  I kept the stippling fairly wide so that the quilt would stay soft and drapey.

With the polkadot backing and binding, as well as some polkadots in the April Cornell fabric, I've decided to call this one Polkadots and Posies.  I almost called it Pocket Full of Posies, but with my previous Ring Around the Rosy quilt, I thought that would be high on the cheese factor.  This label is one of the neatest ones I've done (writing on fabric neatly is harder than it sounds).  If you're wondering how I make and attach my labels- without hand stitching and without the stitches showing on the front, you can find a tutorial HERE as part of the Beginner QAL.  It's really easy!

I managed to use every single scrap of this fabric by also piecing the backing, so it is 100% gone!  It always makes me happy when I don't have leftovers (those multiply when you're not looking, you know).  I went with asymmetry on the backing, and I'm happy I did!  It's much more interesting!

Well, I still have a huge (40 FQ) bundle of April Cornell's Spring Magic that I need to use (again, very pretty fabric, but not exactly my style lately).  I tried to find a single picture of all the fabrics, but the best I could find after so long is a link to the Moda brochure HERE.  Once I use that, that will be the end of my shabby chic fabrics!

ps- don't forget, tomorrow is Needle and Thread Thursday!  I hope you'll link up!

Beginner QAL- Basting Your Quilt

First off, let's all take a look at our finished quilt tops and pat ourselves on the back- yay!  Piecing the quilt top is by far my most favorite part of the quilting process.  I just think it's so fantastic to watch little bits of fabric become transformed into an idea that was in my head.

I have to tell you though, basting is my absolute least favorite part.  I don't tell you that to discourage you or to sway your opinion of this part.  Rather, I am telling you so that if you happen to get frustrated and have the overwhelming desire to yell curse words and pull out your hair during this part, I want you to know that you are not alone.

Okay y'all, I know this week's post title says "basting your quilt," but this week really includes three short tasks- piecing the backing, basting the quilt, and labeling your quilt- in that order.  I have LOTS of pictures, and I'll walk you through each step!

Piecing the Backing

Note- this is not the only way to piece a quilt backing (you can piece a backing in as many ways as you can piece a quilt top), but I am going to show you how to piece your backing with as few seams as possible, and still keep your backing interesting.  Janet from Simply Pieced used all of her extra fabric and some white to create a cool, strippy backing for her brick quilt.  Check out this awesomeness HERE.  Don't worry though, Janet's not a beginner, and we'll keep it much simpler.

*Always keep in mind that the more seams you have, the more difficulty you could have getting your backing to lay smoothly.

First, take your leftover bricks and half bricks and lay them out randomly in rows.  We're going to actually make these rows wider than our quilt top, so use your leftovers to lay out two rows that are the equivalent length of seven full bricks (whereas our quilt top is six full bricks wide).  Feel free to get creative here and include lots of those half pieces!  Sew the bricks into rows, and sew the two rows together, just like we did in our top.

**These two rows will go across the back of our quilt and just add a little bit of interest.  If you would rather just have a single fabric backing, you can leave this step out.

If your backing fabric is extremely wrinkly, give it a quick press.  Take your backing fabric and fold it in half lengthwise, so that it is 1.25 yards long (instead of the full 3.5).  Slide your scissors into the fold that you just made, and cut the fabric in half.  This is an easy way to avoid handling that much fabric on your cutting mat, and it gives you two equal pieces.

Sew the first half of the backing fabric to the top of the brick rows (right sides together).  There will be extra fabric, but we'll cut it off later.  Then sew the other half to the bottom of the brick rows (right sides together).  Be careful when you sew your backing together that you keep your seam as even as possible, or else the backing won't lay flat and you'll have puckers in the back.

If you opted not to include bricks, just sew the two halves of the backing fabric together and you have your backing!

Finally, press the seams of your backing, and trim off the excess backing fabric to even it up with the brick rows.  Voila!  A quilt backing!

Now, you've probably noticed that the backing is a good bit longer than the quilt.  That's okay!  Too much is always better than too little, and that fabric can be used for other projects.  Plus, it really won't be very much at all once we get finished.


Next Step...Basting!

Lay your backing out on the floor, or somewhere it can be taped down with the right side down.  Begin by finding the center of your brick rows and marking them with a long piece of painter's tape on each side.  We will use these tape marks to make sure that the center of our top is aligned with the center of our backing.

Begin taping down the edges and smoothing out wrinkles so that the backing is taut (but not stretched).  I'm not going to lie to you- this is the tough part.  Try not to pull too hard, or you'll stretch your fabric out and actually add wrinkles to your backing.  Keep smoothing and taping until your backing lays as flat as you can get it.

*After this point, try not to step on, or move the backing in any way.

Then lay out your batting and smooth it out over the backing.  Finally, lay out your quilt top, matching the center of the quilt with center of the backing (use the tape guides that we made earlier).  Smooth the quilt top out from the center, making sure that you keep your center aligned with the tape on both sides, and making sure you don't have any wrinkles.

Cut away any excess batting, leaving about an inch all the way around your quilt.  I save this batting to make little quilt sandwiches to practice my free motion quilting skills.  It would also be perfect for pillows or doll quilts.

Now we're ready to pin!  Start by placing a pin in the very center brick, with the safety pin laying in the direction of the brick.  Add a pin to the center of EACH brick, working from the center and smoothing as needed.

We're placing our pins in a way that we won't have to move them at all until we're finished quilting.  There is nothing worse than having to move a pin while quilting, and that causing a wrinkle in your backing.  I'm showing you a picture here of what NOT to do, because I just started pinning without any real thought as to where my quilting lines would be, and I ended up having to move a lot of pins while quilting.  That worked out okay for me, but as a beginner, I don't want you to have to do that.  :)

See the pins all willy-nilly?   Save yourself some trouble and don't do that.

The very last step is to cut away excess backing, leaving about 1-1.5 inches all the way around your quilt.

Congratulations!  You've managed to baste your first quilt.  Aren't you so glad you've been able to crawl around on the floor for the last half hour!  (seriously, the most tedious part is now over!)


Labeling Your Quilt

Why should you label your quilt?  Because you are creating a work of art and a piece of history, and you should be proud of it!  So, we're going to make a really simple, but really cute label that doesn't involve the computer, other special tools, or hand stitching- 'cause y'all know that I hate hand stitching!

I love the personal touch that handwritten labels give to a quilt, and with this method, you can create a label that matches your quilt perfectly!

Start with a piece of plain white fabric- really, any light color will do.  Use a permanent fabric pen to write whatever you want on your label.

At the very least, it should have your name and the date.  I've also included the name of my quilt on my label.  Don't worry about centering it too much, but don't write right beside the edge either.

Use your ruler to trim away excess fabric, leaving half an inch all the way around your words.  See...all centered!

Then choose four of your fabrics from your excess and sew to the edges, trimming off any extra length.  Press your label with starch, and use your rotary cutter and ruler to trim the border to the same width all around.

Turn your quilt over and find the bottom left corner (as you are looking at the back).  Remove a few of the pins from that corner, about 3 or 4 should do it.

Affix your label to the backing in that corner with pins.  Separate the three layers and zig-zag stitch the label all the way around to the backing ONLY.  Be extra careful not to catch any of your batting or quilt top in this process.


Sew only to the backing fabric!

an adorable and quick label!

Turn your quilt back over, smooth it out, and replace the pins.  Now and forever more, anyone who looks at your marvelous quilt will know who made it, and when!

I don't attach the label to the backing before basting because some of the backing gets cut away, and I want to be sure my placement is perfect.

I always attach the label before quilting for two reasons.  One is because I don't want my label stitches showing on the front of the quilt (and I don't want to hand stitch).  Secondly, I want to quilt through my label so that it can't easily be removed.

Whew!  we accomplished a lot.  Next week... quilting!  Hooray!