Can you tell it was a windy spring around here?

The inspiration for the pattern came from Barbara Brackman’s Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns.  The four large blocks in the center are #713 basket of chips.  When I mentioned the blocks name to the spouse he immediately pointed out that Cj’s favorite potato chips are orange, green, and yellow.

Boom, we had a color palette!

Those blocks were so full of triangles that I continued the idea with different triangles in the borders and added a sawtooth block to each corner with a row of teeth around the edge.

Here’s the back.  It’s a mix of coordinating prints.

Again, the wind.

This will be going into my shop once, I complete a little shop redo sometime this summer.

I agreed and shortly after that we pulled the fabrics we needed.  I took care of the rotary cutting and she took care of the stitching.

Last June she finished the quilt top.

Then like most of us, she was distracted by something else, likely swimming lessons, then the start of school, then tumbling classes, and the next thing you know it’s 2013 and her quilt top still didn’t have a quilt back.  She chose a great blue print from a local designer and now it’s done.

From sketch to reality…

her first finished quilt.

I used a layer of Insul-Bright along with a layer of warm & white for the batting so I could use this as a trivet on the dining table.

It was so satisfying to make this complete project in one day.  I know I’ll be making more minis in the future.

And just a bit of housekeeping…

Google reader is shutting down on July 1 so I thought I would suggest bloglovin’ as a replacement.  It looks great, is easy to use, and has an app so you can catch up on your favorite blogs where ever you are.

This is an adaptation of my maternal grandmother’s recipe.  She made it with standard rice, but it is cooked like a risotto so I usually use arborio rice for mine.

risotto rice pudding

1 cup uncooked arborio rice

milk

1/2 cup sugar

1 Tablespoon vanilla

Place rice in large heavy bottomed saucepan and cover with 2″ of milk (2% works best)

Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring regularly to keep it from scorching on the bottom.  Keep adding milk as necessary to keep the mixture loose and easy to stir.  After simmering for 30 minutes, taste to be sure the rice is cooked.  Once the rice is cooked, add the sugar and vanilla.

I sometimes serve it with gingersnap cookies for dessert.  You can add 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon when you add the vanilla, if you like a little spice.  If you are a raisin fan, you can also add 1/4 cup of raisins.

Schools are closed and the spouse is working from home so it’s a full house. In between knocking down icicles and sledding I caught a few shots of the quilt I finished last night.

It’s been a year in the making. It’s made from the Half Square Triangle Block of the Month that Jeni shared on her blog last year.

Most of the fabrics I used are from Moda’s etchings line by 3 sisters.

There is also good selection from Bunny Hill’s Putting on the Ritz along with some bits from my stash including some French General and some repro prints. It’s bound with a cursive print from etchings.

The back is a mix of grey prints.

Thankfully the wind didn’t blow the quilt away, but it tried.

A twin size bear paw made at my brother’s request to be given as a Christmas gift.

The only direction I was given was to use fabrics that a little old lady would like.  I chose mostly reproduction prints from various Windham collections.  I love repro prints for their intricate patterns and details.  I like making quilts that can be appreciated from a distance, and then with a closer look you get a chance to admire the more delicate aspects of the print.  Most of all, I love mixing all those intricate prints together.

The back is a large star inspired by one of Jeni’s tutorials.  I based the size of my star on the smallest piece of fabric I was using, so it’s smaller than the tutorial, but I think it has impact and is a great surprise for a quilt back.

I’m in the middle of three quilt tops now, so with any luck I will be back soon with my first finish of 2013.

So I have my little corner of the cottage to set up my ironing board next to my machine and stitch.  Sometimes when Cj is bored, because he’s used up all of his computer time, he comes and sits across from me and asks things like…

“Hey Mom, how’s Pearl doing?”

“What are you making today?”

“Who is it for?”

“What’s for supper?”

“When are you going to make my quilt?”

Almost two years ago now, he sat down with me at the computer to pick out fabric for bed quilt.  He loves helicopters and cameras so this echino line was the perfect place to start.  He asked for school busses too and I had to add the frames because he has a sneaky habit of watching his reflection in people’s glasses.

A year ago, I pieced the top. It’s made up of 30 wonky improve court house step blocks and framed with grey sashing.  But then I was distracted by life and even with the occasional reminder of “when are you going to make my quilt?”, it sat in a pile.

Finally this October I got my act together and here it is.

I love it and even more important, he loves it!

It is quilted with grey lines 1 inch apart through the print blocks on the vertical and with accents of orange quilting on the horizontals.

The back is pieces with a mix of solids and some bits of left over echino.

He is thrilled to finally have his very own handmade by Mom quilt on his bed.  I’m left with feelings of satisfaction until the question “what’s for supper?” pops up again.

I use these little bags for all sorts of things.  They are great for travel, keeping dresser drawers organized, but most often I use them as gift bags.  The only thing better than a wrapped present is when the wrapping is part of the present too.  They are quick and easy to make, especially when you assembly line the process to make multiple bags.

These bags use two different fabrics, one for the main panel and one for the accent band.

For the main panels cut a rectangle that is 9 1/2″ by 14″.  Cut that in half for two pieces that are 9 1/2″ by 7″.

For the accent band, start with a 9 1/2″ by 6″ rectangle and cut in half to get two 9 1/2″ by 3″ strips.

Attach the accent strips right sides together to the main panel with a 1/4″ seam.  I serged the raw edges, but it’s not necessary.  They could be zig-zagged, pinked, or left raw.  After stitching, press the seam allowance towards the main panel.

With right sides together, stitch the two pieced panels together, keeping in mind how you will insert the drawstring.  You could stitch it and then pick the stitches out for the ribbon.  I usually leave an opening in my stitched seam.  Using a 1/4″ seam allowance, I stitch 2″ down, back stitch to reinforce, leave a 1/2″ space before I continue the seam around the rest of the bag.

To finish the top, fold over and press, 1/4″ of the accent strip to the wrong side

Fold over the accent strip again to cover the accent seam.  Be sure to cover the seam completely because the stitching will go on the main panel side of the seam.

To create the channel for the drawstring, stitch 1/4″ below the seam where the accent band and main panel meet.  Top stitch 3/4″ from the top of the accent band.

Press.  Cut a length of ribbon 24″-36″.  Using a safety pin, run ribbon through channel and knot the ends of the ribbon so they don’t fray.

Fill bags with brownies and you have a great gift to share with your friends.

This tunic (I call it my rice pudding shirt) is Simplicity 2447 and is made with Ironwood Aneta from Lotta Jansdotter.

Here is my etchings Tova.

I knit this tea leaves cardigan with Manos del Uruguay extra fine merino.

I love my liberty Tova.  I simply hemmed the cuffs instead of banding them and added two inches to the length.

This one is the long sleeved shirt with Chinese collar from Simple Modern Sewing.

This skirt is made from Jay McCarroll’s new Center City line.  I used Simplicity 2215.

Now I’m off to pack and clean and check off all my lists so I’m all ready to head to Salt Lake tomorrow.