Buck up Buttercup

I finished my buttercup dresden quilt last night.  I am so happy with this baby.  

I really struggled with what background color to choose.  It took me weeks to commit.  I can say now that I am beyond pleased with the Kona Stone I picked.  I think its very beautiful!   

 I think this quilt is just so dainty.  Especially compared to some of the bright fabrics I usually lean towards.  

I still have several dresdens left so I think I will make a wall hanging   It will be very pretty in my living-room come spring!  

By the way, the title of this post is one of my favorite sayings ever!  Considering I had a root canal today its a saying that has been running through my head a lot lately!

Big and Bright

A finish!

I started this quilt last May or June.  We were waiting to close on our house, and my husband was gone for six weeks.... I was tense and I needed a distraction!  This project was perfect.  The blocks were simple and colorful and it just made me happy to be making this quilt.  Then we moved and it was put aside....

 The pattern was a free pattern that CluckCluckSew posted. I just love it.  It's busy. No solid white to speak of.   That is definitely not my normal route.

 I used the Treasures and Tidbits fat quarters I had bought to make a different pattern.  I'm not sure why I didn't end up doing the Off the Rail, but I'm happy with these fabrics in this pattern, for sure!

I think this quilt will make a very nice picnic quilt.  Don't you?  We didn't have a picnic quilt... that seemed like a real shame.  Now I am very much looking forward to taking this big and bright quilt to the park and having lunch by the river.....next spring of course.

 Until spring I'm sure this quilt will see a lot of snuggling and fort use.  

I hand closed the binding on this one.  I'm not sure why since I do like machine closed bindings now.  As far as my deadline goes I would have had this baby done days ago.... but I still love the hand sewing of a quilt binding.   I think I always will. 

While It Lasts

I'm not sure why I am so motivated to bang this stuff out... but I'm going to take advantage of my burst of productivity.

** FINISHED**Wonky Nine Patch-

• Find binding
• Make binding strip
• Attach binding 
• Close bindingUpdated 12/5

Ruby Bow Ties-

• Find backing
• Piece backing
• Pin baste
• Quilt updated 11/29
• Find binding
• Make binding stripupdated12/4
• Attach binding updated 12/4
• Close binding

BooYA!  The monster was at Preschool while I got these puppies basted.

** FINISHED**Dresdens-

• Find backing
• Piece backing
• Pin baste
• Quilt
• Find binding
• Make binding strip
• Attach binding
• Close binding updated 12/2

**FINISHED*Big and Bright-

• Quilt
• Find binding
• Make binding strip
• Attach binding
• Close binding updated 11/30

The other two projects will be on the back burner until I get the Ruby ready to hand close the binding.  I'm pretty happy with the state of things right now! Even if I might end up with a huge stack of quilts needing to be hand stitched closed.... I can handle that!  

A Big Push

So, I set that big deadline for myself.  Six quilts by the end of 2012.  Yesterday I made a big push on these projects.  

My To Do List

Big and Bright- 

• Quilt
• Find Binding
• Make binding strip
• Attach binding
• Close binding

Wonky Nine Patch-

• Find binding
• Make binding strip
• Attach binding
• Close binding

Ruby Bowties-

• Find backing
• Piece backing
• Baste
• Quilt
• find binding
• make binding strip
• attach binding
• close binding

Dresdens-

• Find backing
• Piece backing
• Baste
• Quilt
• Find binding
• Make binding strip
• attach binding
• close binding

 HST Christmas Gift-

• Make the rest of the top
• add border
• find backing
• piece backing
• baste
• quilt
• find binding
• make binding strip
• attach binding
• close binding

Doll Quilt Christmas Gift-

• Think of pattern
• cut the top
• piece the top
• baste
• quilt
• making binding strip
• attach binding
• close binding. 

reclaimed pins... my favorite 

I got 6 tasks crossed off!  I'm going to do this!  

DEADLINES

I have been sewing I swear!  I just haven't blogged in a couple weeks. I've made a couple doll quilts, a stocking, a tote bag, an apron..... but its been a little boring.  

Its okay though.  I have decided to issue myself a December Deadline.  I want to get these projects finished in the next 36 days!  I am going to get myself in the zone and bang it out!

Here is my list... they aren't in order of importance....   

1st 

the big and bright quilt.  I need to finish quilting it, and bind this baby!

 2nd

my wonky 9 patch- just needs a binding

 3rd

I need to make a doll quilt for my niece... Before Christmas, with time enough to ship.

 4th

this is 1/4 of the quilt top for my neighbors... I need to make the other 3 parts, assemble, baste, quilt, bind... before Christmas.

 5th

my Ruby Bowties... I need to pick a backing, baste, quilt, and bind it.

 6th

My dresdens.... I need to get a backing, baste, quilt, and bind.

Six quilts... 36 days. I can do this... some are mostly done... I just need to average 6 days per project or better.....I can do this! 

Little Things

 I've been finishing things.  They just aren't quilts.  A cute tote bag

 Some simple table runners

Those mini quilts I shared recently.  

Progress feels good.  Now if I could just finish a quilt....

Plates and Pioneers

 These very sweet dresden plates have finally moved to the next step.  It took me a long time to budget  my allowance so I could finally buy my background fabric. 

 I'm pretty sure this Kona is called Stone.  Besides pacing my allowance spending, I also put it off for so long because I wasn't sure what color I wanted.  I was really worried about washing out these pretty Buttercup fabrics with my background.  Stone seems to be very nice.  I'm glad I decided on it. 

 This past weekend I was treated to a fun adventure.  Last Monday while reading the Pioneer Woman's blog(which I do a lot!) I saw she would be in Minneapolis doing a book signing.  As it worked out my friend Kristen (who is also a PW fan) and I had no problem talking our husbands into watching our boys for the weekend while we drove across the prairie to the Mall of America.

 We waited in line for HOURS to secure our spot in the front of the line....Although there were a couple of ladies in front of us because we were in the Starbucks waking up. 

  

Getting away was a nice treat.  Eating out and staying in hotels without a little monster is way more fun. Driving across the prairie makes me happy.  Spotting antelope, and dodging fox amazes me, my life is so different here than in the other places I have lived.    

I also discovered that when I talk for a length of time I give myself a headache.  During the 9 hour drive to Minneapolis, Kristen and I chatted, and I literally had a headache and my jaw hurt.  I told my husband about this, and he laughed his rear off....  He said something about how I give him a headache on road trips too.... hmmft.

Well, its good to be home anyway.   I have dresdens to do, and Christmas sewing to get going on!