SNOWY STARS

Every year I think about making a quilt for each month of the year, or certainly for each season of the year.  Well, it has not happened yet.

This year is no different.  However, I was asked to make a special quilt for a very talented photographer in Austin, TX.  (Check out http://kerrygrayphotography.com/ to see her awesome work.)  The quilt that resulted makes me think I would like to make another one for me.  It makes me think of Winter Star-Snowflakes.

She needed a quilt that was crisp and bright and would be a good backdrop for her winter scene photography.

She chose her color palette of cyan, azure, and lemon yellow with a pure white background.  All of these fabrics are from Kona.

The pattern for the stars came from Vintage Quilt Revival written by Katie Blakesley, Lee Heinrich, and Faith Jones.  This pattern was designed by Lee Heinrich.       

After I completed these blocks, I decided to go back and re-work the center and I reversed the positions of the yellow and white in the center pinwheel.

I like this much better.
It has now been quilted with an overall pattern using stars and swirls.  Thanks to Pat Pike who did a wonderful job with the longarm.

Kerry chose a toile for the backing.

Using such a drastically different fabric on the back and keeping in mind the possibility of using the reverse side for backdrops made me consider doing a two-color binding.

I cut the toile at 1 3/4 inches and the white at 3/4 inches which resulted in a 2" wide binding.  Next time I will alter these measurements because I would have liked the white to be a little wider and the toile a bit more narrow.

I joined the two together and then pressed in half and applied the binding to my quilt in the usual manner attaching the white binding to the top and folding the toile to the back.

I like the way the binding matches to each side.

I definitely will be using this more often!


                                     -sandi

VINTAGE QUILT REVIVAL

It all started when a few of my small group were having a mini retreat in one of our homes and one of the girls pulled out this quilting book.  

We discovered that it would take twenty blocks to make the sampler.  Our plan turned into making two blocks each month and have all blocks completed by October and then set together and quilted by Christmas.




So I decided to make mine in solids, Kona Solids in particular.  I pulled out bunches of fabric from my stash and set it aside to "shop" from each month.  I did not have to add any fabrics except the background that I chose.  I did not have enough Kona Snow so I ordered a bolt.  No, this project did not need a bolt, but I use this all the time. Now I have plenty to work with.



So each month I made a practice block out of prints to demonstrate the technique.

At the same time I was making my own blocks out of the solids.

My blocks were finished by October and today I finished putting my top together.  My choice was to set them on point.  Then I added setting triangles and that made it large enough for my bed.

I will take it to my long arm quilter and have it quilted and then add my binding and do the happy dance!!!  I think it will be ready for Christmas.

By the way, those extra "practice" blocks will show up in another blog to let you know how they were used.

                        -sandi

JUNE AND JULY WORK

It has been so long since I have posted anything on my blog so today I am going to do a quick recap of things I am working on and/or have finished.

Straight line quilting on a piece called "Spring Gardening".

Hand piecing hexies for my upcoming class I am teaching at QuiltWeek Chattanooga in September.

Finished the quilting on the "Leftovers Table Runner".

Quilt As You Go Valance for my breakfast room.

Lots of straight-line quilting on little projects for my Trunk Show/ Lecture coming up in September.

Finally finished this queen-sized bed quilt in Improv and Quilt As You Go techniques.


                                               -sandi

MARCH WORK

My first finish for March was this little wristlet pouch.  It was fun to make.  I am making several of these with variations.

I tried adding tabs to my zipper pull for this one.  I think it should have been quilted.  

I also made this little pillow.  I simply made the little pillow cover with no zipper or opening to stuff left over bits of batting into.  It turned our really cute.  

More blocks from Vintage Quilt Revival.  


Our first National Quilting Day celebration called STITCH IN THE MALL took place on March 21st.  We had so much fun with quilters coming from all around the region to sew, chat, and sign up for great prizes including a donation for an opportunity to win a beautiful lap quilt to benefit THE NEXT DOOR, a non-profit organization whose mission to help women in crisis.

Quilters signing up for door prizes.

Clothesline Quilt Show

 Quilters demonstrating projects and techniques.

 More quilts on display.

Meeting new folks.

The winner of the Opportunity quilt was Melissa Dumas.

I had a fantastic committee of women who worked with me for this event.

From left to right:  Carol Hooper, Suzan Dodd, Pam McCallie, Sandi Suggs, Linda Meck, and Sandy Rathjen.

Now I will get back to sewing and preparing for the April Retreat.  Until next month . . .

-sandi

FEBRUARY RECAP

This month has been very busy and I have finished a lot of WIPs.  The first thing I finished was a piece that I originally called Farmer's Market, but I have renamed it "Which Way Is Up?" because of the change in the setting pattern.

I still have not quilted it.  There are about eight projects in a stack to be quilted.

Another project that I have been working on about 3 years is this Hexagon Table Topper.

I hand pieced all of the hexagons, but decided to machine quilt it because it will be laundered often.

Channel quilting was very easy to do.

Another hexie project that I finished was this little wall hanging made from a tea towel.

I put the hanging sleeve on the front of this project.

I have not done this before but it was a great way to finish the project so I am giving it a try.

My Art Quilt Guild has been watching YouTube videos on various techniques.  In January we had three to choose from and the one I chose was Jane Davies video on Fusion Fabric.  I made a small sketch piece using tissue, fabric, ribbon and embellishments to make my Fusion Fabric.

Another February project was a sketch piece for Modern Quilt Guild.  Using Half-square triangles and Quarter-Square triangles to make an original piece.  I chose Kona Ash Grey and Supreme Cottons Paloma Grey.  I then threw in some Kona Azure.

I showed you a pile of leftover "strings" of fabric a couple months ago  that I started knitting.

The knitting piece is finished.  I will block it and then decide how to use it.  I have a couple ideas.  Maybe next month will see the finished project.

Another ongoing BOM project from Vintage Quilt Revival book includes a few more blocks I made this month.

Some of these work better than others.  May have to do something about those two blocks with the bright yellow and green.

And, of course, we had our first really deep snow for southeast Tennessee.  About 8 inches for us on our porch and LilBit's first trip into snow.

-sandi

2015 MODERN SAMPLER: FEBRUARY

I am still working on my Modern Sampler.  My small group is using Vintage Quilt Revival written by Katie Clark Blakesley, Lee Heinrich, and Faith Jones.

The two blocks for February are Dakota Star

and     Classic Rolling Squares Block

These join with the blocks from January:

Double Z Block:

Classic Riviera Block

Altogether they look like this:

Wow!  That yellow block is loud!!!  Will have to see how well that plays with the others in the final layout!

Until next month when two more will be completed. . .

                                     -sandi

2015 MODERN SAMPLER: JANUARY

I have started the blocks for my 2015 Modern Sampler using the book written by Katie Clark Blakesley, Lee Heinrich, and Faith Jones called Vintage Quilt Revival.

My small group of friends and I will be doing this as our BOM this year.  Our plan is to complete two blocks each month and have twenty blocks by October so we can put it together and have it quilted by Christmas, 2015.

Keeping to this plan will force me to complete a project and not create another UFO.

My first two blocks for January:

My fabric choices are Kona Color Solids and Kona Snow.
I am using solids to challenge myself.  I think working with solids forces me to really think about the value and hue intensity of each color.

                                          -sandi