THE SOLIDS HAVE LANDED

Check out the P2 page for a picture of the Moda Bella Solids that I bought for the quilt along!  They are gorgeous, and while I've never worked with solids before, I can't wait!  Woo-hoo!

If you visit my blog, I would also really appreciate it if you click the Follow button on the sidebar.  It feels a little lonely here right now.  Thanks!

COASTER MADNESS -- 50th POST AND GIVEAWAY!

Holy crap!  It's my 50th post!  And I'm having my first giveaway!  So read to the bottom to find out how you can win a cute set of coasters!

Some friends from work, who are engaged to be married, bought a house together earlier this year.  Their house warming is this evening, and last night, I put together a set of coasters for them.

I've made about four or five sets of these coasters since I got Regina Bernina.  Needless to say, they are stinking easy to put together and look pretty darn cute when they're done.  The pattern is the Sidecar Coasters from Connecting Threads.  Very cute.

I have no idea how they've decorated their house, so I went for something that was sort of mod but still has some old-fashioned flair.  Their house is in an older part of Boise, so I didn't want something too modern.  Forgive the fuzzy pictures.  My camera had an encounter with a bottle of coffee creamer a while back.  Don't think it's recovered.

I like these because you just cut stacks -- almost a Stack-and-Whack -- and then simply shuffle pieces and put them back together.  My favorite fabric is the gray with the big yellow dots.  It's the backing because it's the biggest print.  Love it!

And yesterday, I received a present in the mail!  From Allison at Cluck.Cluck.Sew!  My layer cake of Swiss Chocolate.  Yay me!  I'm going to make all kinds of fun stuff with it!  Woo-hoo!

  

For the giveaway, I'll give you a few chances to win a set of six quilted coasters:

1. Leave a comment telling me your favorite fabric collection.
2. Become a follower of the blog and leave another comment letting me know.
3. Follow me on Twitter @hattjam1008 and leave yet another comment letting me know.
4. Like Mad Hatter Quilts on Facebook and leave a comment letting me know.

I'll close the giveaway in five days, Feb. 16, and pick a winner by random number generator!  Thanks!

NAP TIME IN CENTRAL PARK

One of my dear college friends is having a baby boy in May.  Eli has been wanted for years, and we're all so very excited for his arrival.  His mother LOVES green and she's decorating his room with grass painted on the walls, frogs, turtles, etc.  Sounds like a perfect match for Kate Spain's Central Park!

I'm a HUGE Kate Spain fan.  I love her collections.  I'm so excited to play with this one.  Last summer, I made the cutest baby blankie and squishy block for a friend.  I'm going to make an even bigger blankie and a squeaker, squishier block for Eli!  Excitement!  Can I just say that I love the Moda Bake Shop?!

FIRST CRAFT RETREAT!

So, for the first time in my life, I'm headed for a craft retreat!  My dear friend Elena is celebrating her birthday by hosting an all-day crafting bonanza at our friend Robin's great big house.  I work till five, and the crafting/movie watching begins at six.  And because I'm riding with Elena, I had to give her all my stuff last night, including the new sewing machine, which I have now christened Regina Bernina.  Because pretty much anything that costs over $1000 needs a name.  Anyway, I have to say I was a little sad to let Regina go with Elena.  It was kinda like letting a kid leave on his first over-nighter.  'Course, I don't have kids, but . . .

I can't wait to get crafting!  I'm hoping that Robin has a table that's taller than mine, and I can get a TON of cutting done.  That's the part that kills me -- I'm 5'10", and I cut on a really small wooden table.  Can you say, "backache?"  And while I can't afford a new table, I need to get a new cutting mat.  Mine's getting a little brittle.  Hee, hee!  I have honeybun strips to sew into bargello tubes; I have to create a stitch sampler for my machine class (that's project numero uno).  I have fat quarters to cut for this pattern: http://www.modabakeshop.com/2009/10/vintage-ribbons-table-runner.html.  I have charm squares to quarter for tiny baby blocks.  Lots to do!  We're spending the night tonight, then crafting all day tomorrow!  I'm quite excited.  I will post pictures when I come back!

HAVING NICE TOOLS MAKES A DIFFERENCE

Now that I have Regina Bernina, my new 350 PE, I have been sewing like a demon!  It used to be such a fight to sew, but now it's fun to sew again!  I haven't had this much fun since I learned to sew when I was 11!  I've sewed nearly every night since I got the sewing machine.  I've made three sets of coasters, a candle mat, started a table runner, and started three shopping bags.  I'm really excited to sew each time I sit down at the machine.  What a great feeling!

SMELLS LIKE NEW SEWING MACHINE!

So, I finally got a new sewing machine.  I've been balking at sewing for a long time because I was getting very frustrated with my 35-year-old machine.  Can you imagine?  I have been saving up for a new Bernina, a B 350 PE to be precise.  I don't need all that fancy stuff -- yet.  But I wanted a 1/4"-inch foot and some quilting capabilities.  I now have them!

STACKED COINS LAP QUILT

This past weekend, I finally started the stacked coins lap quilt for my youngest sister.  She and her husband, who is back in the country for her graduation, leave for Sydney, Australia, on August 23.  Needless to say, I haven't much time to finish.

However, I did decide to attempt speed piecing, a technique I've seen frequently, but was always scared to try -- I just didn't think I could pull it off.  I pulled it off!

Isn't that a lovely string of coin pairs?  I was so very proud of myself!  I finished all five columns of coins in about three hours.  If I hadn't breaked here and there to talk to my mom or have something to eat, I probably could have done it even faster.

Here's how the columns progressed:

ConnectingThreads.com collections usually only have 20 fabrics in them, so there are repeats in each strip set.  My very orderly brain has a real problem with being random when it comes to design.  Speech, notsomuch, but that's a different blog altogether.  Anyway, I just can't be random, so I decided to make it very rainbow-ish.  And kinda bargello.

Can you tell what my design wall was on Sunday?  Oh yes, it is a closet door.  I have yet to find the perfect wall for my large piece of flannel.  I think it might be on the wall next to this door.  Permanently.

A pattern is emerging!  Of course, it'll be broken up nicely by the sashing, which is also already cut.  That was a pain!  And I brain farted and started cutting the sashing up for the backing instead.  Oops!  Thankfully, I figured out my mistake before it was too late.  Whew!

I love it!  I think it's looks great.  I can't wait to get the sashing done.  I have to square up the strip sets first, but before I do all that, I have to bake a cake for work, cook some ground beef before it goes bad, and go all the way to Pocatello, ID, which is four hours away, for my sister's graduation!  Sheesh!

At least all the coin sets are put together!  And the sashing is cut!  Hooray!

MORE DETAILS ON THE LAP QUILT

I'm still using my cellphone to take pictures, but I set up the fabrics in a nice bright spot and I've edited them to look a little more lovely and bright than they usually come out.

Here are the charms that will become the coins.  A ConnectingThreads.com charm pack only has 20-ish charms, so I bought four.  They're only about two dollars a piece, so it's not bad.

My sister LOVES pink, and this collection, called Antoinette, is very pink.  It's darling, in fact.  I picked pink fabrics for the sashing and binding because Mary will love that.  Here's a shot of the sashing fabric.  It's a pale pink on white design.

So lovely!  I do my bindings on the bias, and I love using stripes for the binding fabric.  It just comes out fun and funky.  So here's the binding fabric.  It's a medium pink background with darker pink printing.  Very cute.

That will make some fun binding strips, won't it?!  And for the back, I decided to use the focal fabric from the collection.  It's background is white, which is kind of a bummer.  It'll probably get dirty fast if Mary uses it for a lap quilt on the plane.  But the pattern is so pretty, I couldn't not use it!

I'd say these came out pretty good for cellphone pictures!  As for the pattern, it's a Stacked Coins Baby Quilt from Moda Bake Shop.  Mary's only about five-foot-four, so I'm not worried.  And then she can either hang it up or use for when she has kids!

THE FABRIC IS HERE!

My fabrics for the coin lap quilt are here!  Yay!

It's not the greatest of pictures, but it works.  Those cute little pinwheels will now be put aside for this little lap quilt.  I only have a month to complete it -- I seriously doubt I'll need the entire month, but when you're working with a machine that only had one speed, it's really hard to piece something quickly and accurately.  It has to be slowly and accurately.  I think it's time for a new machine.  Maybe in January!

LOOK WHAT I GOT THIS MORNING!

Block number two of the Mystery BOM!  Yay!

Of course, I haven't even begun block number one.  Oh well!  Gonna work on it tomorrow.  Out to dinner tonight with the family!

CHARMING STACKS OF FABRIC

I didn't get as much sewing done this weekend as I'd hoped.  I ended up helping my mother clean out the house I grew up in.  I cleaned my own house.  I babysat my sisters Doberman.  I was a little busy.  But last night, I finally sat down and sorted out the two charm packs of Moda's Blessings that I bought.  Mom bought me a honey bun of the same fabric, so I was able to use both charm packs for the placemats.

I'm going to do reversible disappearing nine patch chargers, rather than your typical placemat.  Mom's table is oval, so large placemats really wouldn't work very well.  And she likes funky things, so there you go!

NO, THANK YOU!

I received this:

in the mail today!  Hooray!  It's my catch-up for the Fat Quarter Shop's Designer Mystery Block-of-the-Month club!  I joined a little late.  Anyway, I really liked the little envelope my invoice came in.  Very polite and professional and kinda cute!  It looks like a present and says, "Thank you!"  And I say, "No, thank you," for such a fun first block.  After I get my house clean this weekend, I know what I'll be doing!

FAT QUARTER SHOP ROCKS

So, you know I follow the Moda Bake Shop. I also poke around at the Fat Quarter Shop quite a bit, and I've been eying one of their Block of the Month Clubs for a while. I decided yesterday that I would join it, since it's actually pretty affordable. Only $10 a month for a block pattern and all the fabric to make it. It'll take a year to complete, but it's using one of my favorite new Moda lines: 12 Days of Christmas by Kate Spain. I love her designs! Here's a sneak peek, and if you click on the picture, it will take you to the info page:


You can order a finishing kit and a backing kit (kinda wish they came together). That's the expensive part. But it creates a rather large quilt! Yay! I'll keep you updated!

BUNGLE IN THE JUNGLE

I had a baby shower to go to today, and the theme was "jungle." The parents, M and T, decided not to find out what the sex is. Therefore, green, yellow, and brown were the colors of the day. My god-daughter and her mom helped me pick out fabrics last night. We found eight REALLY cute fat quarters. I used a pattern I saw on the Moda Bake Shop -- Ribbon Blanket and Block. Very cute. The pattern called for using Minkee, which I've never sewed before. It wasn't fun -- lots of fuzzy stuff all over my sewing room. But the color was fun -- the Minkee we found is a cheetah pattern with a green background.

The front of the blankie has two each of the eight prints. The block has my six favorite. I picked out nine ribbons. I tried to vary them enough around the blankie.

I enjoyed making this little set. I don't have any ribbon other than this stuff, but I definitely want to make more of these. Too cute!

QUILT DUDES

Okay, so I follow the Moda Bake Shop rather religiously, and one of the regular contributors is a gentleman -- yes, I wrote "gentleman" -- named John. He blogs under the name Quilt Dad, and he also has a friend named Ryan who is a quilter as well. They are both married fathers, and I have to say, I love seeing guys who are into this art. It is a very technical art, something that I think appeals to men, especially ones with engineering backgrounds and the like. There is a retired engineer who sells his quilts on Etsy, and they are some of the most unique pieces of fabric artistry I've ever seen. He does mosaic quilts from single pieces of fabric. They are breathtaking. Thanks, guys, for sharing your art with us girls!

John's blog: http://www.quiltdad.com
Ryan's blog: http://www.ryanwalshquilts.com

Enjoy!

MY PREROGATIVE, RIGHT?

So, I'm exercising my prerogative to change my mind, and I'm going to do a different pattern for my biggest Christmas presents. It's an adorable little tablerunner. I think it would look really cute on an entry table, but just a nice on the dining table. It is, of course, my receivers' prerogatives to place it where they please.

SO EXCITED!

After nearly a year (I'm a terrible sister), the tree skirts are being finished! A friend I met on the bus has a newer sewing machine with a longer arm that can automatically quilt. She's going to stipple the tree skirts for me so they're actually nice! Now I just have to figure out how the hell to trim them in the round! EeekkK!!!!

WEDGIES -- IN A GOOD WAY

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Now playing: 8½ Souvenirs - Minor Swing
via FoxyTunes
If there is such a thing. Anyway, I got a few questions about the tree skirts -- like how did I make the strips in the wedge shape. Answer: I cheated.

I used a wedge-shaped ruler I purchased at my local Craft Warehouse (my favorite craft store, by the way, which my family has dubbed "Crap Warehouse" even though it doesn't really sell crap). It's a 10-degree wedge ruler. And the ruler comes with a pattern. I tweaked my pattern, however, to use more of the fabric, since I cut my large strips without buying the ruler first (didn't have the extra $$ at the time). So I flipped the ruler over and did opposing strips.

I actually find I like that better. It's a little more intriguing to look at (or if you're my coworker Stretch, trippy). I really like it a lot, and I plan to make many more. I just have to remember to buy double-sided tape. Having tape really makes all the difference -- tape down that wedgie, or you're screwed!

TREE SKIRTS

I am so sorry that I haven't posted for two months! I was distracted by NaNoWriMo for November, and then I've been sewing, sewing, sewing, but without the time to post. So here are four pictures of the tree skirts I made for my sisters for Christmas. Enjoy!

The above two pictures are of Mary's tree skirt. She owns a very retro-decorated house, and she really loves Christmas. She's quite sentimental, like I am.

And these two are of Ginna's tree skirt. She has an old house, but it's pretty modernly-painted and decorated, and she's not as sentimental as Mary and I, so I picked something not so Christmasy. She loves it!

THE DISASTER THAT WAS HARVEST FESTIVAL

So it totally sucked to be honest. The weather would have been perfectly crisp but for the fact that it was so windy chairs were falling down and we were shaking all day.

I got up at 7:30 Saturday morning to help my mom. I was ABSOLUTELY frozen by the end of the day. We only sold about six hats and gave away a couple of order forms. There just weren't enough people -- they took a look out their windows Saturday morning and said, "Screw this!" It was miserable!

I didn't get anything sewn for the event. I used Malu's bargello that I gave her for her birthday last year. That was all I had. By the time I thought of making stuff, it was too late. Maybe for the Arts and Crafts fair this year. Who knows? Oy.

At least nobody missed anything. However, the parade did break the five-minute mark this year! It was cute. One of the guys drove his tractor backwards, which was pretty funny. When I asked my mother why he did that, she goes, "Because it's Ray." That pretty much summed it up. Oh well!