Nine Patch UFO = A Quilt Kit

Back in 2014 I had grand plans for a simple nine patch quilt.  For some reason the plan changed. 

Six months later I used some of them to make my Patriotic Picnic quilt.

Then a year after that I started another quilt to use up what I thought was the last of the nine patches.

In January of this year while sorting through the UFO's I found more of the nine patches.  This week a plan has been made to finally use the last of them.  It'll be a simple small quilt using the fabric scraps from the nine patches.  The large floral print will used for the backing.

Sadly, I was three pieces short of making the quilt.  No problem, that's why we have fabric stashes!  I pulled several fabrics to audition.  Only one made the cut.

In my opinion a floral print would have been better since all the other fabrics are florals but in the end the color of this print looked better than any of the other prints I pulled.

Before storing this project away as a quilt kit it was added to the design wall.  It took a bit of shuffling fabrics and patchwork until I was happy with the layout.  Then they were carefully removed from the wall in order from left to right. 

This quilt is small, 58 x 58.  So, it will probably be the next quicky quilt to be finished.  By the way the inspiration for this quilt was Cranberry Chain by Laundry Basket Quilts.  

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Testing a new thread~ MicroQuilter

Good Monday Morning quilting friends!  Are you enjoying the beautiful spring weather?  I know here in Podunk spring is in full swing and we're very busy in our gardens.  Taking care of the veggie gardens and the flower gardens is pretty much a full time job.  It leaves little time for sewing but I'm squeezing in a few minutes here and there.  A couple of weeks ago I order the new Superior Threads 100 wt MicroQuilter thread.   I couldn't wait to try it out, so I dug through my quilt tops to find the perfect quilt for my new thread.  This thread is fabulous,  beautiful backtracking!  Just look at the bump back feather tops, you can't see any thread build up.

 That red border is also quilted with the white thread, it barely shows.  Melts in like butter.

No need to change thread color so I'll be quilting the entire quilt with the white.

The quilt is one that I made while taking care of momma last year.  

These nine patches originally were going to be a totally different quilt.  You can see it here.

Then I had an epiphany and made the quilt below using some of the nine patches.  That's when the idea for the rest of leftovers came to be.  You can see it here.

~ Lea Anne ~

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Flimsy Friday

Yeehaw!  Another quilt top complete!  Sure it would look nicer with some applique but I'm on a roll.  All the white space can be filled with custom quilting. And you never know I may eventually go back and add some applique.  For now she's folded and in the needs to be quilted pile.  The quilt pattern is my own, designed for the specific task of using up the leftover nine patches from another quilt idea.  She finishes at 73.50 square, a nice size for the back of the couch.

With such a gorgeous spring day I had to take an outside picture.  Oh how I wanted to  throw a quilt on the ground  and soak in the sun while taking a nap.  

The last picture is what happens when you think your faster than your sewing machine.  I'm one of those quilters that doesn't like to run over pins.  Instead I pull them out at the last second, right before the needle comes down, never slowing down.  It seems my cat like reflexes are only in my mind.

~ Lea Anne ~

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Slow and steady ~ Sugar and Spice Quilt

Good Morning quilty Buds!  Spring has sprung in Podunk.  Everything is greening up and the flowers are starting to bloom.  It won't be long before we start harvesting our first crops of the year from our backyard gardens.  So the rush is on in the Studio to get as much done as I possibly can before that happens.  The past week I've worked on two different projects.  My daytime project is the Sugar and Spice quilt pattern.  You can read more about here on an early post.

The 240 yo-yo's are a great way to pass the time while I care for my mom everyday.  My goal was to make at least 20 yo-yo's a day.  Well time doesn't always allow me to meet my goal. 

To speed things up as much as possible I'm using a self threading needle.  It's much easier on my old eyes.  To thread it you just hold the thread taunt and pop it down into the eye.  If you look closely at this needle you'll see that it has to eyes.  The goal is to get the thread into the bottom eye.   This works great for most threads.  I also use this needle for burying my thread tales when quilting on the longarm.  A technique most longarmers don't use anymore.  They more often than not will tack stitch at the starts and stops.  I've tried it and don't like it, burying looks better and makes me feel more comfortable about how long that thread will stay in hidden.

  

In the evenings I've been working on another red white and blue quilt to use up those 48 nine patches.  You can read more about it here.  

Everything in the Studio is coming along at a much slower pace than  I like and to be honest it frustrates me at times.  But during this time of year I just can't help taking walks around the property to enjoy the glorious things that mother nature is doing.  There's so much beauty and inspiration.  So I encourage to take a few minutes everyday to get outside and enjoy the beauty(even if your on the other side of the world where it's cold and snowy).  

Thanks for stopping by my little spot in Podunk. 

Warm hugs and many blessings

~Lea Anne~

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L' Amour quilt

Yesterday was clean the Studio day and finishing up the Peppermint Posie Quilt top.  It's now a top and stored away for quilting later in the year.  Okay I don't know about you but when my hands start fondling fabrics the quilty wheels start turning.  After hours of fabric straightening and fondling a plan was set in motion at around midnight.

I wish I could remember where and when this cute little charm pack came into my possession.  

Charm packs are a great way to see all the fabrics in a line without committing to a large quantity.  They're also a great for a design challenge.

So let me back up a little in this story.  As I cleaned yesterday I was also having an email conversation with Barbara over at Wonttobequilter.  She's working on a scrappy nine patch...SWOON!  I love scrappy and nine patches.  Here's a few quilts I've made using nine patches and scrap 2.5 squares.  

I'm sure if I dug deeper into the picture files I could find more because the nine patch is a go-to block I've made several times.   Anyway....here's a sneaky peaky at my Barbara inspired nine patches from a charm pack.  The nine patches will be set on point with some applique in the body and border of the quilt.  Of course I had to pull some yardage from the stash(shown in the first picture of this post).  A tip for working with charm packs and making nine patches....Reduce the seam allowance, instead of a scant I'm using a super scant so they can be squared up later.

I'm linking up with these great bloggers today!

Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday

and 

Sew Fresh Quilts for Let's be Social

~ Lea Anne

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