WIP Week Wrap Up

{WIP= Work In Progress}

Wow! The week flew past, yet somehow I was able to finish a few things. I sure hope you were able to as well. 

First, I worked on a class sample. Our first class is February 25th and it is a beginner quilt class on making a Disappearing Nine Patch; although, any skill level could join. I have set up three different sizes: a queen layer cake friendly version, a charm pack friendly throw size, and a charm pack friendly crib/toddler version. 

This is such a fun, versatile pattern. I used a Moda Grunge layer cake and grey complementary fabric to whip up this sample. I actually really like it and cannot wait for it to be my new couch quilt. I am using Ellen Medlock’s fabric line to make the throw quilt size. It will be an excellent quilt for the spring with all the bright colors. I just started this one, though, so it is not making the leap to the finished quilt pile just yet.

In addition to the Disappearing Nine Patch quilts, Millie was a go getter. This weekend we quilted about 10 quilts. It was such a great weekend spent getting to see different quilts and how the quilting pattern changed the quilt for the better. Everyone has such a unique style that I just love.

We still have a few spots open for the Disappearing Nine Patch Class and Thursday is Open Sew Night at Quilter’s Hideaway! Last week we stayed sewing until after 9pm.

See you at the machine,

•Care

Santa & Sew Parties

Do you have any fun Christmas or holiday traditions? I thought I would share a few of the fun things we did this weekend and a little about how WIP Week wrapped up. 



Over the weekend we had our good friends come over and we went to see Santa, ate dinner together, and even made it to see Christmas lights. There is a place in town that decorates with thousands of Christmas lights, and it is a common tradition to go walk through the lights some time in December. Of course, we picked a pretty cold night. A and I quickly learned it was warmer if we piggy-backed than if we walked alone. 









Having a best friend who doesn’t live in the same town is rough. Recently we have both been so busy that this was our first visit in quite a while. Thankfully, we have planned a longer get together around the New Year with movies, fort-building, and popcorn. I’m looking forward to it. 



After they left to head home, I scurried off to the sewing room desperate to finish up a couple projects. I knew my Saturday was booked, so my only chance to get things knocked off the list was late Friday night. Thankfully, I got quite a bit done burning the midnight oil, and I was able to wake up early and finish it the rest of the way on Saturday morning.





Earlier in the week an SOS had been issued. A friend needed to get a t-shirt quilt done fairly quickly and a group had pulled together to help. I told you I might show up and help you finish projects during WIP Week. You never know, you might be next!



Anyways, Saturday I knew would be filled with her t-shirt quilt and it was. We were able to cut, sew, and quilt it all in one day. I even heard that the binding was sewn on and it had been through the wash before the weekend ended. That is a pretty successful sewing party. 





It was too funny. Two were sewing frantically, two were pressing, and one was handing pieces out to sew and cutting away at the sashing, borders, blocks, and binding. Things were crazy. We kept the quilt laid out on the dining room table, but there were times where pieces were at each station and nothing was on the table. Sewing started around noon and by 5pm we were loading it on Millie. A simple meandering pattern was chosen and Millie got to work. 







Be careful when you issue an SOS, things will start flying and projects will get finished. 





After quilting and attaching the binding, they left to start sewing down the binding, and I got to work on another quilt. I was determined to quilt the quilt I had finished that morning. I couldn’t decide on a pattern, but Mom said I should go with Meandering Feathers to help smooth out the geometric pattern in the quilt. I wasn’t sure at first, but I have been loving Meandering Feathers, so I went with it. The quilt turned out perfect. I really like this one and might have to remake one for myself. 

I’m a huge fan of half square triangles and all the things you can do with them. I think they have been appearing in every quilt I have sewn this year with few exceptions. Do you ever get caught up on one specific pattern or block?

Although last week was WIP Week, I think this will be another week of finishing up a few Christmas projects before I drag out anything new. There will be plenty of quilting, sewing, and rambling in the near future. Stick around.

See you at the machine,

•Care

Final WIP Week Of 2016!

Oh my goodness, it is DECEMBER! It is also the first full week of a new month, and you know what that means. It is WIP WEEK!

For those of you new to the blog, the first full week of each month is work-in-progress week also known as WIP Week. It is one week where you try your hardest to not start anything new, and instead drag out a project sitting in your unfinished pile and get to work. It is one week where we hope to mark something off the to-do list. One week. That’s all it is. 

If you are anything like me (someone tell me I’m not alone) you have a closet or box or cubie or hidey-hole full of projects you haven’t finished. Some are one seam away from being finished or one page in a scrapbook or one something away from finishing anything while other projects might take several WIP Weeks to finish up. Set this week aside and avoid starting new things. It doesn’t have to have to be a sewing project. Just something in your life you want marked off the never ending to-do list. 

Working with a group to finish projects is much more enjoyable than dragging through it alone. Share your pictures, tag us, use the hashtag #QHWIPWeek, let us know what you are up to; who knows, I might even show up to help ;).

Not only is this WIP Week, it is the last WIP Week of the year! Have you been avoiding a calendar like I have? This week is the last week to finish up those WIP’s and start new in 2017, or at least finish up your Christmas projects in time to get them under the tree. 

Now, let’s get to work. I will be working away on this little one.  Well, hopefully these two… I’m also hoping to get a couple quilts quilted and on their way.

Here we go!

See you at the machine,

•Care
 

Sewing Saturday

Saturday was all about getting things done with the help of Millie.

I had several projects that needed finished up and Sunday will be a busy day (Its my husband’s birthday!) so that left Saturday.

I started with a beautiful, scrappy quilt made by a sweet lady.

 

Up next was a table runner I made this week. I used double batting and I could not be happier with the outcome. It took forever to finish due to the dense and detailed pattern but the snowflakes were the perfect addition. The cream fabric has a very light snowflake pattern on it that worked well together with the quilting. All it needs is a tiny red binding then to be rolled up and packaged.

 

Next up is a baby quilt I made earlier this year. I used the magic ruler and showed how to make each block on previous posts. I finally had the chance to quilt it. I wasn’t sure how to quilt it at first, but we had played with this ribbon quilting previously and I really liked it. The decision was made and now it is all quilted.  Another quilt ready for binding.

 

 

While Millie was handling her business and quilting away I sat next to her and worked on more planes. Three more finished, three left to go. Hopefully they will fly away this week and I can get that quilt wrapped up soon.

By the time I finished the baby quilt it was late and I needed to pack up and head out. A pretty successful Saturday in my sewing world.

 

We are nearing towards Christmas and this is the first full week of December. You know what that means? It’s WIP WEEK! Find a project that needs worked on or finished and let’s get them completed together.

 

 

 

Share what you are working on and feel free to tag us in pictures. It’s the last push to get things finished up in time for Christmas. Let’s do this!

 

See you at the machine,

•Care

Quilter’s Hideaway Has Furniture!

Hi there everyone! It is raining outside and we are supposed to be decorating our house for Christmas, but instead I am sitting here with a half-assembled tree thinking about how wonderful this past weekend was and writing this blog. I sure hope no one realizes I’m slacking ;).

 

Did you have a fantastic Thanksgiving? We had everyone at our house for a late lunch/early dinner that was yummy. There was more food than we could finish, lots of laughter, and the kitchen was clean by the end of the day. I couldn’t ask for anything more. I love how both of our families (my husband’s and mine) get along so well.  It makes holidays easier and life greater.

After dinner we went out to a few shops to see what the big sales were. We didn’t purchase much at all, but we saw quite a few baskets piled high.

 

 

Friday morning I went to one store and spent over an hour in line. After that, I decided I was finished with Black Fridayshopping, and we headed to IKEA with an empty trailer.

 

We spent about an hour walking through the store seeking out different items and options. Then, we found a spot to sit and regroup. We wrote down what we needed to look for in the self service area.  We realized a few of our items were not in the self service area, and there were a couple things we wanted to look at again.

 

With our list organized and our plan set we marched through the showcase floor once more and found a lady named Rachel to help with our items that were not in the self-service area. She turned out to be an amazing help and organized our entire list for us based on aisles and checked inventory. This is when we realized a few things were out of stock. She walked with us to find other options and once again helped us to get a plan in place. She was fantastic!

 

This time, with our list in hand we scooted down to the first floor-the self service area. If you have never been to IKEA, almost all of their items come in flat packs. When you arrive at the store you walk around the second floor to see different rooms assembled with their furniture. Each item has a tag with an aisle number and bin number. You write down the information and when you finish you head down to the first floor and pull all of the furniture yourself. There are few exceptions where the staff will have items pulled for you to pick up after checking out (Rachel did this for us).

 

 

So with our LONG list, we found the elevator and headed downstairs. My parents laughed when I told them we would each need a cart, but it turns out we needed a total of 5 carts. It was crazy, but so fun and exciting.

 

We stuck to plan until we got to the chair aisle and my dad decided to mix it up. A last minute decision meant we had three different chairs on our cart. We also couldn’t find three of our originally planned chairs but it worked out for the best and we found an even better chair (in my opinion).

 

Loaded down and struggling to push the carts we headed to check out.

 

 

 

**I just got caught!! A certain someone just walked in and realized my tree is still only half assembled.**

 

After checking out, we waited on the last two carts with 11 more boxes then we headed for the elevator.

 

My dad decided we could fit everything into the elevator at once so it became a game and we won! We loaded the trailer and headed home.

 

When we arrived back in Bartlesville my husband and his family met us to help unload and start building. It was pretty late but we couldn’t wait.

 

Saturday morning I finished quilting another quilt just in time to head to the shop and finish assembling all of our IKEA items.

The shop is coming together and we cannot wait. It won’t be long before our doors will be open.

Remember, if you want to be the first with a calendar of classes, come see us at Gifts Marketplace on December 6th at Tri County Technology (Bartlesville, OK).

 

 

See you at the machine (but first I must finish this tree),

 

•Care

Flying Away On Fabric

Does life seem like it is flying away without you? I sure feel that way some days. 

I’ve been working on a new quilt and pattern that has me flying with the fabric. It is an airplane block that I have been messing with different sizing, trying to come up with the “perfect” size of each section in the block. I have a certain little one in mind for an airplane quilt, so hopefully I am able to finish this up quickly. 

For now, I have been practicing and playing with scrap fabric. I never really understood the desire for mini quilts, but I am beginning to jump on board. Some of these trial blocks are just too cute to adios. I’m thinking they might get quilted up and turn into minis. I’m sure I can find a few homes for them.

What have you been working on?
Ever since we unboxed Millie, I have been dying to get my hands on her at every available moment. Keep in mind, Millie is at my parent’s house which is a little under an hour away from where I live. That doesn’t stop me. I spent most of last weekend standing behind her, and I even went up last night to get in a couple hours of playtime. 

This weekend, my mom and I are taking a two day quilt path class. Quilt Path is the computer system that APQS offers for their longarm machines. I expect to walk away with my mind blown. Hopefully I will be able to pick up the pieces and learn everything I can. Gosh I just cannot wait.

I will be sure to share different tricks and tips we learn. Sharing this journey from cutting the tape on the box to learning how to use Millie is something I plan to do.  I am planning on posting the good, the bad, and the ugly and dragging you along with me. Strap on that seatbelt, things could get crazy around here.
For now I will dream of flying away to a land of no clocks, no commitments, happy sewing machines, and full bobbins. Care to join me?

See you at the machine,

•Care

Millie Hums

We went on vacation this last week and I completely checked out on technology. It was wonderful, but I am happy to be back!

I missed WIP Week for this month, but I did spend some time working on an unfinished project. I hope you did too! See my last post for more about my WIP Project. It was an English Paper Pieced quilt designed by Mickey Depre (Her patterns are fabulous!).

We flew back home late Friday night and yesterday (Saturday) I spent on a date with Millie. If you remember, we had a few boxes delivered the week before I left town. Those boxes turned into an amazing, APQS longarm machine. I AM IN LOVE! Sorry My Love, you might have a little competition.

Back to Millie- Her full name has turned into Millennium Falcon thanks to one of my awesome Brother-in-Law’s suggestions. For short, we will still call her Millie. The week before we left I was able to get her all assembled, we plugged her in, saw lights turn on, then I had to leave and drive back to my house. This was so tough! It was just before midnight when we saw her lights turn on, so we were not able to actually hear her hum.

The week was crazy and I wasn’t able to get back to her before leaving town. Thankfully, I had a great distraction-Disney World. Though I would be lying if I said I didn’t think about sewing with her every day.

Back to yesterday. Yesterday I finally got to not only turn her on and hear her hum!

At first, I loaded on a couple fat quarters to check tension and play with settings on QuiltPath, the computer program she is able to work with and we have conveniently named “Millie’s Brain”. Here is what we came up with.

After this was finished, I decided to work with a larger area and loaded a little over a yard top and a backing then played more. This time I didn’t have a plan and just wanted to try different things.

I wasn’t looking up tutorials or spending too much time fighting through settings because I am taking a two-day class next weekend. This was just a time to get my hands dirty.

The first row I was hoping to alternate a teddy bear and crosshatching. Everything went well for the teddy bear, then it moved to do the crosshatching, but instead of making a jump, it sewed the transition line. “It is just a test piece,” I reminded myself, though I was already looking for a seam ripper to mend this mistake. On the next jump from crosshatch to teddy bear I thought I could trick it and stop her right after finishing the crosshatch then move it to the start of teddy bear and search for closest stitch. In theory it sounded like a fabulous idea, but in action it just didn’t work. I moved along to a new row.

Another issue I came across was that sometimes after starting a block, setting the safe areas and where the block should sew, Millie would move through the pattern, but wasn’t stitching. I was able to jump in the middle of it and get her to start stitching again, but I couldn’t figure out how to back up and get her to fix what she missed.   I’m hoping to clear this up with a YouTube video or in class next weekend.

I’m very happy with how everything is going so far even with this learning curve. I’m glad I was able to start playing and come across these issues ahead of time.

After coming across a few issues I decided to take a stab at freehand quilting. I turned QuiltPath off and unlatched her from the belts to give me full control. Once ready, my mind went blank and I had no idea what to quilt. I started with a simple “hello!” and I forgot halfway through how to write cursive- brain fart!

Next up I played with writing “Quilter’s Hideaway.” Remember that surprise I hinted at a few posts back? Here is another part of it. I’m going to let you slowly put pieces together as I share hints and clues.

With that, I moved on to some meandering, straight lines, and a box. I also tried pebbles in a smaller box, but my goodness, this will need some work.

I hope you enjoy this journey with Millie. I cannot wait to continue learning and sharing along the way.  I already realize I will need to come up with a better option for getting pictures of the quilting.  Often it was hard to get the stitches to show up.

 

See you at the machine,

•Care

Traveling With My Needle & Thread

Hand sewing is happening.
We were up and at the airport by 4:00am this morning, but we are heading to our favorite place on earth-Disney World. 

Last year I started an English Paper Piecing (EPP) project. My Momma-In-Law gave me a pattern for the first row of a row quilt using EPP, and I dove in. It was a learning curve but not too difficult to figure out (you could definitely figure it out!). 

I was doing a decent job of staying on top of things with the first row and even the second row. However I quickly fell behind. Then, our rental lease ended, we frantically searched for our first home to purchase and we moved. I’m still trying to find everything again and really dig back in to my slower projects. 

This week happens to be WIP Week, and a travel week so I dug this quilt out and have started it again. 

The pattern is by Mickey Depre and I could not recommend her work more. If you are a fan of English Paper Piecing, she is a fabulous resource. She also has many other patterns outside of the English Paper Piecing world and all are spectacular!! Be sure to hop over to her page on Instagram (mdquilts), Facebook (MDQuilts) or her site. You won’t be disappointed! 

A fun little back story- After I started working on my first block I wanted to find the designer on Facebook (nothing is official until it is Facebook official-or something like that). When I began my search her last name was awfully familiar, and when I found her page, MDQuilts, I instantly realized I roomed with her daughter in college! Small world! Mickey is in Chicago, the college was in Arkansas, and I’m from Oklahoma. I love how things work. 

Enough of the jabber, here are some of the blocks I have finished. 

Everything always works out perfectly. As I dug for my EPP box last night, I hopped over to MDQUILTS and was greeted with a super exciting live video that Mickey has just released a Basic Hand Piecing Acrylic Template Set! You can read more about it or even purchase it here. 
That’s all for now friends. It is time to lay my phone down and pick my needle up. 

See you at the machine (or maybe the comfy chair with a needle and thread?) 

•Care 

Supernova Sunset

Any chance you were wondering what I was sewing while sitting outside on the porch in Kentucky?

Well lucky you, read on to find out. 

We were learning how to make a Bargello quilt. A certain little sister said something along the lines of “you can make it in one weekend” and we were sold. Of course, this would require possibly reading the size of the quilt before deciding you could make it in one weekend. As it turns out, the quilt I started is a king size quilt (Actually a king size, not just something that feels ginormous. I promise, it is.). Obviously it was not finished in one weekend. It is far from finished. 

 
When I started pulling my fabric for this quilt I chose to use colors from Oklahoma sunsets and sunrises. I’ve always been enamored by the bright, brilliant colors that appear morning and night so I am mixing them into a quilt. 

 Once I had my fabric, I cut 2.5” strips of each. 

 

After all the strips were cut I lined them up using a drying rack and started piecing together my panel or strata. By midnight on Friday all my panels were ready to press. 

That is until I decided I didn’t like the way I had sewn on my three yellows. Another date with my handy-dandy seam ripper and I was back on track. Pressing happened and then I started the long, tedious process of cutting different widths to follow along the pattern grid. 

Once you have various strips cut, you take the rows at different points and reattach them or use different rows to create the pattern shown on the template. 

 A few strips in, I realized something was off with the bottom half pattern template. I have decided to focus only on the top half and then repeat the top half again since they are mirror image patterns (or should be). These things happen and it is still a wonderful pattern. I cannot wait to see the finished product. 

 

This was when I finally noticed my quilt was in fact going to be a king size quilt (notice the painters tape holding up rows outside of the design board I was using). I had a brief freak out moment and I thought I was going to stop or at least shorten my quilt, but I had made it this far, I might as well keep plowing through. 

When the weekend came to an end, I had all of my top half strips cut apart and resewn. Now, I just need to sew these strips together-that sounds easy enough. 

I am hoping I can finish this quilt soon and that it does not become one of my infinite number of my work in progress projects. 

Wish me luck, or better yet, want to come sew? 

See you at the machine,

•Care

**If you like this quilt, the pattern is called SUPERNOVA and is available in Eileen Wright’s book Twist and Turn Bargello Quilts available here.**

WIP Week-Breaking Up With My Seam Ripper

{WIP = Work In Progress} 

Good morning world! 

We are nearing the end of WIP Week. I always struggle with wanting to start new projects during the week I’m working on unfinished quilts, but this is a week to finish, or at least work on what has already been started. No new projects, although I’m sure I can come up with a few exceptions. 

How are your projects coming along? 
I managed to finish the middle part of my purple and teal, nameless quilt. I only had a few more dates with my seam ripper, too. Things are looking up. I may get to break up with him soon, but we will probably be back together by my next quilt. It’s a roller coaster relationship.  

Now onto the borders, but those may have to wait a while. 

See you at the machine, 

•Care