Let's Get Aquainted - Wonky Cross Baby Quilt

Hello and welcome to my stop on the Let's Get Aquainted Blog Hop organised by Beth of Plum and June.

About me

I'm Sarah and I'm a 38 year old scot now living in Cambridgeshire in the UK where I work part-time as a forensic scientist.   I'm married to the lovely J who puts up with being asked countless questions about quilt layouts and colour choices without looking completely bored!  Between us we wrangle the wee chap (4) and the little lady (2).

I was lucky enough to be taught to sew by my mum, a very talented seamstress and for years cross-stitch was one of my major hobbies, although after the wee chap arrived it kind of fell by the wayside

The little lady is one of the reasons I started quilting.  18 months ago, around the time she turned one I was going through a bit of a low patch.  She is lovely but was a poor sleeper from day one and by day 365 things hadn't improved much!  I was very busy at work, had two very active kids and felt like I was losing myself a bit (I've always been a pretty positive person but prolonged sleep deprivation is a killer!).

So I was looking for a hobby that was flexible and could be fitted around the kids and would be relatively quick (compared with cross stitch) so I bought a copy of Issue 2 of Making magazine in the hope that something would spark my interest.  As luck would have it they had a feature on quilting - it was soooo different from the brown and pink log cabin that I'd made in my secondary school years. 

I bought some fabric and made the quilt pattern featured within a fortnight and although it wasn't perfect I was thrilled by how much like a 'real' quilt it was!  That was it - it has helped my stress levels and given me an outlet that I never imagined.

Okay, that was a bit of an outpouring!  Here are a few of the things I've made in the last 18 months:

Questions 

How long have you been quilting?  18 months

Favourite quilting tips: an accurate 1/4 in seam really will make life easier (as I learned the hard way!).  I also love a quote I read somewhere - 'Better finished than perfect'.  I'm not suggesting that we should be slapdash as I strive to improve with every project but I think that a slightly imperfect quilt that can be used and loved is better than one that is never finished in the hopes of reaching perfection.  Also I'm nowhere near perfect so why should I expect my quilts to be any different!

Favourite blogging tips: try not to compare your blog with other people's blogs (tricky sometimes) and remember it is meant to be fun not a chore!

Favourite fabric: Summersville - I bought a complete fat quarter bundle and am seriously considering buying several metres of my favourites.

Favourite craft book: Practical Guide to Patchwork by Elizabeth Hartman and Fat Quarterly Shape Workshop for Quilters.

Favourite book: how can you choose just one!  I love to read - fantasy, crime, biography and popular science are my favourite genres and Terry Pratchett is probably my favourite author.

Favourite children's book:  The BFG by Roald Dahl.  We have just started reading 'chapter books' (as opposed to picture books) with the wee chap at bedtime and he loved The Magic Finger so looking forward to reading him The BFG.

Favourite quilting tool:  rotary cutter & mat

Favourite music to sew to:  I usually listen to audiobooks or BBC Radio 4 (news & documentaries)

Binding - by machine or by hand:  Definitely by machine.  I don't have the patience to hand sew binding, I'd rather use that time to sew something new.

Right I think we have got to know each other a little bit so on to the main event..........

Tutorial - Wonky cross baby quilt

I made this wonky cross baby quilt for some dear friends of ours who are expecting their first baby any moment.  They are having a little boy and their nursery is yellow and orange - I wanted something that would work with that and Monsterz by Cloud9 was perfect and incredibly cute without being too babyish.

I think these ones having a picnic of socks are my favourites:

I used Elizabeth Hartman's tutorial from Sew Mama Sew - here.  I don't intend to repeat the tutorial verbatim but I thought I'd add some hints and tips that might make your life easier if you decide to make a little quilt like mine.

Fabric requirements:
My quilt is 4x4 blocks and finishes at 32" by 32".

Blocks: 4 x fat quarters and 3/4 yard of contrasting fabric for the crosses (the blocks could also be made with layer cake pieces - choose 16 pieces for the main blocks and 8 pieces for the contrast strips)
Backing: 1 yard
Batting:  I like to have a couple of inches all round so 36" by 36" was how I cut mine.
Binding:  1/3 yard (I had just enough left over from my backing and fat quarters to bind the quilt but that may be because I bought a metre of backing which is slightly more than a yard).

Method
All seams are scant 1/4".


Fat quarters: Cut 16 x 8.5" square blocks (four from each fat quarter)
Contrast fabric: Cut 32 x strips 10" long and varying from 1.5" to 2.5" wide - I cut equal numbers of each width so that the arms of each cross would be the same width.


Cut each 8.5" square across the middle at an angle and then sew a contrast strip into the cut. Press.
Turn through 90 degrees and make another angled cut across the middle

Sew a second contrast strip into the cut aligning the two halves of the first contrast strip as best you can. Press.

After making a few blocks I decided I liked the thinner crosses so I cut some contrast strips down to 1.25".  This does not leave much excess for trimming (see above - it is a 9.5" square ruler) and so if you like the look of narrower crosses I would recommend cutting your original blocks to 9" square (you should still be able to get 4 blocks from each fat quarter).

Trim the block to 8.5" square - once again make sure you leave enough fabric on either side of the arms of the crosses so that you don't lose the cross tips when the blocks are sewn together (as long as you have 1/2" of fabric you will be fine).

This is a block with 1.25" strips - 1.5" or greater gives more leeway for trimming

Once you have finished your blocks sew together into four rows and then join the rows.

Baste, quilt and bind!

I use 505 basting spray which I adore, it is quick and I get far fewer puckers than basting with pins.  I have never had any problems with it gumming up the needle or staining the fabric (and that includes one quilt that sat for 4 months between basting and quilting).  I know it isn't for everyone but I urge you to give it a try!

I quilted it using a free motion loop design, as I can't stipple without crossing my lines.  FMQ is still a work in progress for me.  This is the third quilt I've done and I am improving but I still have uneven patches.  But I love the look and once washed most hiccups aren't noticeable.  


So here it is

The back is the Adventurez panel print, which runs from selvage to selvage.  So as not to loose the cute design at either edge I removed a strip from the centre:

And since the baby this is for has yet to arrive I've asked Lottie to stand in as a quilt model :-)

Thanks for stopping by and I hope that you enjoyed your visit and found the tutorial/tips at least vaguely coherent!

Please also stop by and see Debbie at A Quilter's Table as she has a fantastic card & notebook holder for you today.

Next up will be Jennifer of Sewlandia and Nicole of Mama Love Quilts on Tuesday 19th June and if you haven't already seen the lovely projects that Kelly of Jeliquilts and Yzo of Chez Roo posted this week you should drop by and see them too!

Sarah

Stop press: the recipient of this quilt arrived safely on Thursday evening. He is gorgeous and both he and mum are doing well :-)

Hello, hello

Well they say that life is what happens while you are making plans.  I had great plans to get lots of sewing done over the Jubilee weekend but life, or in this instance a delightful stomach bug, is what happened.

Both J and I had it - thankfully not at the same time, so at least the other one could look after the kids.  But it did drastically reduce the amount of sewing I was able to do.  Then came half-term and then we were away visiting J's mum & sister for the weekend.

Then came me starting to panic about not finishing my Let's Get Acquainted blog hop project in time!  But luckily I got it finished up last night, so now I just have to write up my tutorial (which will probably take me longer than the sewing did!).  Here is a sneak peak:

Be sure to stop back on Thursday, but in the mean time you could pop over to see Kelly at Jeliquilts and Yzo at Chez Roo.  All the other stops can be found at Plum and June.

In other news,,,,

Today I got home to a lovely parcel - one of my Sew, Mama, Sew give away wins.

A bundle of beautiful Kaffe Fassett fabric (the prize also included a pattern) from Karen of Sew Well Maide.  These are my first Kaffe Fassett fabrics and the colours are glorious.

And I've won another giveaway! Trust me I am not normally this lucky (maybe I should buy a lottery ticket).  I have won a $50 store credit for The Vintage Honey Shop courtesy of Rachel at P.S. I Quilt so welcome to anyone who is visiting from her fabulous blog.

Right well I'm off to try and sort out a tutorial!
See you soon
Sarah

Sometimes I think I'd forget my head....

..if it wasn't attached.

I've just realised that I forgot to mention in my previous post that I won two Sew Mamma Sew Givaway Day giveaways!

This is a big oversight on my part as I never win anything and was doing a little dance on saturday when the emails arrived.

So thank you very much to Sew Lovins and Sew Well Maide for your amazing generosity.  I've got a lovely pattern and two bundles of yummy fabric winging their way from opposite corners of the globe.

It was such fun - I'll definitely be offering a giveaway when the next Giveaway Day rolls around later this year.
Sarah

A little sewing and a lot of fabric!

Sun, sun glorious sun!  Finally after weeks of damp drought the sun appeared with a vengeance.

This has meant not much sewing but plenty of sitting around in the garden, topping up the kids' sun cream and entreating them to drink some more water.

However I did manage to get a little sewing done last night and as a result I have finished the top of my second quilt for Siblings Together

The pattern is Super Zig by Monica Solorio-Snow of Happy Zombie.  It is a free pattern available here.
The fabrics are klona tan and the prints are all from Natural Effects by Michele D'Amore and were donated by Katy of I'm a ginger monkey.

Apart from a couple of hiccups when I sewed pieces together upside down it came together really fast.  I've still got quite a lot of the prints left so I'm planning a bit of an improv back - I've never attempted that before so hopefully it will turn out OK.

I've also had a couple of fabric deliveries over the last few days

little lady came to investigate 

A jelly roll of Salt Air by Cosmo Cricket for Moda.

And most exciting

A complete fat quarter bundle of Summersville by Lucie Summers for Moda.  I bought it from The Stock Room on Etsy and it was a fantastic price, even allowing for the postage.  And it didn't get stopped by customs which made it even better value.  The service was great - posted really fast with excellent communication.
I think these are my favourite prints

But it changes every time I look at them!

If you have been thinking about getting some Summersville then do it!  The prints are so gorgeous and the colours are beautiful.  I can think of so many projects they would be perfect for.

Anyway I'm off to have a glass of wine in the garden!
See you soon
Sarah

Let's Get Acquainted Blog Hop

Well I've been trying to find the time to write this post for over a week but life kept getting in the way - the Wee Chap came down with a vomiting bug (much, much laundry) and then on the day he went back to school the Little Lady ran into the corner of an open car door and split her head open (much, much blood) requiring a trip to A&E to glue her back together.

But enough about all that!  Beth of Plum and June had the wonderful idea of a blog hop for newer bloggers and was kind enough to ask me to take part.  You can read all about it here.

My date is 14th June and that is perfect as my project is a baby quilt for some good friends of ours and that is their due date, so for once I know I'll have a baby quilt ready in time!

Here is some of the fabric I'll be using

Monsterz by Cloud9

I hope you will check out all the participants, starting tomorrow with

Kelsey of Kelsey Sews
Erin of Billy Button Designs

See you soon
Sarah

Bloggers' Quilt Festival Spring 2012

This is a very exciting post for me!

Ever since I got into quilting 18 months ago I've been a massive fan of quilting blogs and last spring I noticed posts popping up about the Bloggers' Quilt festival run by the wonderful Amy of Amy's Creative side.  I became a follower and looked forward to the Autumn Festival, with good reason - so many wonderful inspiring quilts.

So when I started this blog at the beginning of 2012 one of the things I was really looking forward to was taking part in these fantastic online quilt shows.

But I've spent the last couple of days pondering which quilt to enter - part of me wants to feature my 'best' quilt so far but at the same time many of the stories I've most enjoyed from past festivals have been those with a story.

So in the end I've decided to show you the Monkey quilt.

This quilt was made last year for my 4 year old son.  I made my first ever quilt for my 2yr old daughter and then I had made several quilts that I gave as baby gifts and was in the process of making another baby quilt when he asked if that was 'his' quilt.

I hadn't even thought about making him a quilt! Queue a dose of mother's guilt and a scramble to find some fabric he would really like.

I settled on Lollipop by Sandy Gervais for Moda as he is a massive fan of monkeys - his favourite softie is a monkey (called Monkey - we are not good at thinking up names in this house, we also have Blue Bear, Red Ted and Big Dog).  I bought some bundles in the cream, brown, turquoise and yellow colours on ebay and the seller was kind enough to send me the panel for free.

But these were not standard fat quarters but rather scraps (albeit big ones) that she was selling off.  So then I had a bit of a dilemma - up to that point I'd always used patterns and pre-cuts so I'd not had to figure out fabric quantities of how to put them together.

So after a bit of surfing I came across Oh Fransson's Mod Sampler pattern which I reckoned I could make work if I used the block designs and substituted the panel in the centre.  I then spent the next couple of evenings working out which fabrics I had sufficient of to make which blocks.  I added half square triangle blocks as I wanted to try them out and then I got cutting.

Amazingly for my first attempt at 'quilt maths' it all came together pretty well.  There was a slight hiccup - you can probably see that the panel is chopped off at top and bottom, unnecessarily as it turned out, as I'd got mixed up with seam  allowances.  So then I had to increase the sashing width at the top and bottom.

But none of that mattered to the Wee Chap who has loved this quilt from the moment it was finished.  It is the most used quilt I've made and he asks to be wrapped up in it whenever he is cold, tired or sad. And that to me is the best thing about quilting!

If you are here from the festival I hope you will stay and look around and if not then head over there and browse the 400+ fantastic quilts.

Sarah

Wednesday again!

Hello!

Seems like an age since I posted - I was away at a conference so I missed WIP last week and Fresh Sewing Day and Small blog meet.  Very inconvenient of my job to get in the way of my sewing and blogging!

Anyway despite my trip, the horrendous weather (which means the kids are stir crazy) and a small snotty little lady who wanted lots of cuddles over the weekend I have managed to get a good bit of sewing done

Finished

Siblings together quilt

Really pleased with how it turned out - it is bright and cheerful and hopefully will bring a bit of comfort to its recipient.

I backed it with Klona Corn Yellow and bound it in the same with a few last scraps of Modern workshop thrown in.  It is quilted with a simple diagonal running through the centre of the blocks

Fabric - Modern Workshop by Oliver+S, klona white and corn yellow.
Pattern - adapted from Small plates by Elizabeth Hartman

Baby wonky stars quilt

The owls are my favourite!

Well technically not entirely finished as still needs to be bound but binding strip is made and will be attached tonight as I'm off sewing with my friends A & J.

I'll definitely be making more wonky stars - love them.  Quilted with an all over loop pattern and my FMQ is definitely improving, I still have the odd stutter but this was much smoother than my last attempt.

Fabrics - Urban Zoologie by Ann Kelle and Klona pink and pomegranate
Pattern - wonky star tutorial here

In progress

Siblings together quilt 2 - Print fabric is cut and solid is on order so hopefully get sewing soon
Paper pieced bag commission - paper pieced block completed

No progress

Twiggy lattice quilt - really must start quilting this!
Alice mixtape - have decided on fabric for backing so need to order
Modern workshop bed quilt - going to take it tonight so hopefully progress to report next week

There are probably others as well but can't think of them this week.

Other news

• As you might have noticed I've been messing around with my header using a tutorial by Clover Lane. It isn't perfect but not back for a first try so expect to see more changes in the future.

• Emma of the fabulous Emma's Fabric Studio has posted about my Building Block Baby quilt on her blog!  Eeek!

• The lovely Beth of Plum and June has invited my to be part of her Let's Get Acquainted bloghop.   Designed for newer blogs it looks like a great way to get to know each other a bit better.

Well this must be my longest post ever so well done if you made it to the end!  I'll try to post a bit more regularly instead of occasional deluges.

Linking up with 

Bye for now
Sarah