Sally Said Sew

Have you ever made a quilt where a seam ripper was required, not because of mistakes made, but actually needed to complete the quilt? I recently did. Late last month, I visited Be Lazy Quilting  in Three Forks, MT. This is a wonderful little quilt shop. There was a quilt hanging on the wall that caught my eye - I think it was the colors. Teals and browns, very earthy feeling. The pattern is called Sierra Snow  by Villa Rosa Designs. It is one of those small pattern cards you find normally near the cash register. Sierra Snow Shop Sample Quilt I have never made a bargello style quilt but have wanted to do one. I read the instructions on the back of the pattern card and it seemed pretty straight forward. "Let's do this!", I told myself. I am also a huge fan of Moda's Grunge fabric line. I love, love, love Grunge. There are so many colors and it is a versatile fabric. I decided then and there that I wanted to do my quilt out of Grunge. Luckily, the shop had a dec...

Today I was able to work on a couple more blocks for Moda' Block Heads 3. I was waiting on some green fat quarters to arrive and they are here. Time to get sewing! I was able to complete blocks 2 and 3.  I got out my Bloc-Loc  rulers and went to town. I have come to appreciate the better quality of blocks I get when using them. They are very easy to use. To see videos of the rulers in action, go here . Today I used my 2.5" square and 1.5" x 3" flying geese rulers. Flying Geese block ready to trim My HST ready to cut in half HST ready to trim After trimming Need a smaller size than 2.5"? No problem! Trim two sides and then align to size need. Trim the remaining two sides and you're done! Re-aligned for smaller block size Here are the two completed blocks. Look at all the half square triangles (HSTs) and flying geese I needed. This is why I used my Bloc-Loc rulers. Block 2 - Sunshine Star by Sherri McConnel / Block Size 8...

I am a Block Head, but it's not the "doh, you idiot!" type of blockhead. I am officially a Moda Block Head. Here's the backstory on how this came to be. I went to a quilting retreat back in late February before things got wild and crazy with stay at home orders. One of the ladies there finished up her Moda Block Heads 2 quilt. It is a sew-a-long where new blocks are released every week. It runs for about a year. I loved what she did. Laurel's Quilt - My Inspiration Then Laurel mentioned Moda was doing another round of Block Heads. I checked out the information on the Moda website here . Before the retreat was over, I decided to become a Block Head. It took a while to figure out what fabrics to use. I had taken an old Moda "A Stitch in Color" jelly roll and and charm pack with me to the retreat thinking I might do something with it. I liked the bright colors and thought it might work well for Block Heads 3. I purchased some Moda Grunge in m...

My fabric fast lasted all of FOUR days. FOUR!! I was doing so good up until I left on a business trip and found myself sitting in the airport looking at Facebook when beautiful fabrics started showing up in my feed. "Don't do it," I told myself. And then there was Lulu. I have a few pieces of yardage and a charm pack of Moda's Lulu by Chez Moi stashed away for a quilt project. I love the brightness of this collection. It was one of those cases when you walked into the quilt store you had an immediate liking of the fabrics. I found a couple of yards on sale of two Lulu prints on sale. How can you resist these? I can use these in the quilt I will be making. It's not a UFO, yet. I would like to start on this quilt sometime this year. I still am making an effort to watch my buying but it is hard!

In addition to the bags and wallets I made for Christmas, I also managed to get a few quilts done in the last two months. My mother pieced and did the binding on this quilt for my Aunt Sally. I did the quilting on it for her. It was all free-hand work. Around the Block My mother also did the piecing and binding on this quilt for my Aunt Wendy. I used a pantograph pattern for the quilting. Bewitched My mother and I also teamed up to complete a quilt for my sister, Carrie. The pattern is Radio Way by Jaybird Quilts and the printed fabrics were a jelly roll from a designer named MoMo and her "It's a Hoot" line produced by Moda fabrics. I especially love the backing on this quilt. I was inspired by Jan over at Janice Elaine Sews . She always does something special on her quilt backs and I had enough left over strips of fabric to bring a touch of the quilt front to the back. I used a pantograph pattern for the quilt design. Quilt Front Quilt Back Cl...

I wanted to leave a little thank you gift for my soon to be ex-landlord since I am having to move from the condo. It was just a winter rental.  Here is what I made for her. The pattern is called Churnover by Pieced Tree Patterns. Fabrics are mostly by Moda.

Hot off the sewing machine is my latest project - the Barbados bag by Pink Sand Beach Designs . My local quilt shop in Twisp had some great western themed fabric that I chose to use. This pattern, while it turned out a nice product, was a PITA to follow. Sorry PSBD, but it needs some work.  I had several instances where I pinned the seam to simulate sewing before doing the actual stitching because the directions did not make sense or seem to match the accompanying photos. I do like the bag however. It has an outside zip pocket, another front pocket behind it, two pockets on the back, and two pockets inside the fully lined interior. It is a nice size, too. The finished size is 10" wide by 10-1/2" tall. I still need to finish the zipper pulls. Think I'll hit up a craft shop back in MN for something decorative. Otherwise the fall back idea is to take a piece of leather lacing and make zipper pulls out it . Front of Purse Back of purse with two pockets Inter...

I have spent almost the last six months working out of state, far away from home, in wintery Minnesota. My living quarters have been an extended stay suite in a hotel. Over the past months, I have gotten to know the staff quite well at the hotel. As a gesture of thanks, I made up some pot holders to give to them. Just a small token of appreciation for all they have done for me, like helping me when I was too sick to fly home or leaving me little notes upon my arrival, or the Easter basket waiting for me when I arrived the evening of Easter Sunday. The ladies have become my family-away-from-home. I found two great patterns online - one a round pot holder and the other a square version that I modified to make larger. These are self binding so no need to make binding and sew it on. I am pleased with how they turned out. I really like the fabric from Moda's Keep it Sassy collection by Olive Sandwiches . The blue fabric is not from this line and I forgot to keep a selvedge with th...

I know...it's been a while since I've posted anything here. I've been busy working out of town plus the things I have been working on were Christmas presents and I didn't want anyone to get a sneak peek! One of the things I made as gifts this year were pillow cases. They are quick, easy and fun to make. Plus you can do a few extra for the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge . Just for Me - Main Fabric is Scaredy Cats by Timeless Treasures Bright & Bold - These went to my niece and her boyfriend to go with a quilt my sister made Go Camping - Main Fabric from the "Are We There Yet" collection by Maywood Studio For my sister and her husband - Fabrics from the Fresh Fallen Snow Flannel Collection by Maywood Studio For my nephew to go with a black & white quilt my mom made for him. These are the ones I made for the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge. Flannel Fabric from JoAnn Fabrics from JoAnn Fabrics from Moda - Cuff Fabr...