The first one is a woven quilt:

And the second one, a miniature apple core quilt:

I think the apple core is my absolute favorite.  I just love it!

For the woven quilt, I made tubes of fabric, pressed them flat, then wove them together.  It was very simple and easy – until I stitched it into a pillow.  Ha.  Sewing through that many layers of fabric required moving up to a size 18 needle!  And let me tell you, that pillow cover is HEAVY.

The apple core quilt was a great project to work on while watching football with my husband.  I starched the seam allowances, glue-basted them as applique shapes, then top-stitched.  A very easy and forgiving process.  And much easier to sew through!

I added zippers to make them washable.

I love how they turned out, and am happy to report that my mother-in-law loves them too!

Some days I just snuggled with my youngest boy and watched reruns of I Love Lucy, or America’s Funniest Videos, or that improv show Drew Carey did for a while, can’t remember the name.  (Colin Mochrie and Ryan Stiles are just hysterical, aren’t they?)  Sometimes you just have to shut down for 22 minutes and let someone make you laugh so hard you snort milk out your nose.  It gives you the energy to put one foot in front of the other and keep going.

Over the summer, I did finish this quilt:

It’s a “Ten-Minute Block” quilt made with a Moda “Lily & Will” layer cake and a few scraps from my stash.  I originally donated the unquilted top to Passage Quilts, a program at a local hospital that gives a quilt to every terminal patient.   After the patient passes on, the quilt is given to the family.

One of my friends quilted it, then it needed a binding.

Well, as it so happens, I LOVE to hand-sew on bindings, and this gave me a chance to reflect as I worked on a quilt that would – hopefully – keep someone else warm and cozy during their journey from this world to the next.

After the binding was finished, I washed the quilt, and boy was THAT a treat!  It came out so soft and sweetly puckered.  Aren’t soft, puckered quilts the absolute best?

Love those sweet chocolate bunnies.

The quilt is on its way to keep its new owner warm and comfortable.

I’ll be back soon with more pictures of What I Did On My Summer Vacation – and a tutorial!

I started it last May. Designed the top on EQ7 – my first design! Well, maybe it’s not an “original” block or design, but I did it myself! Finished the top and put it on the frame in August. I started quilting it, then stopped while mom was going through her final days with cancer. Went through a dry spell when I just couldn’t quilt at all after she passed. Thanks to Peggi’s encouragement I finally got rolling again in March.

I’m calling it my “survival quilt”. If it weren’t for this quilt, I probably would still be waiting to get my mojo back again. I can see, even if it’s only subtle, the difference in the second half of the quilting – the “before” and “after” effects when mom passed. The fairly smooth quilting before, the shaky, hesitant and uneven-ness of it all. But to look at it as a whole, the quilting looks pretty good!

Obviously, the label was attached to the wrong side! I firmly believe my mom did that. She was always a little “off”!!

This quilt will be going to my sister-in-law, Dorene, who was with us every step of the way during mom’s bout with cancer. She helped keep us all together, cooked, cleaned, stayed with mom and sat with us during her final hours. I know she’ll appreciate the mistakes and imperfections I’ve made, and will cherish it.

She’s getting a very , very special quilt.

Wow, that quilt is SO pretty!!  I’m glad you were able to finish it.   I didn’t know there was a right and a wrong side for quilt labels – I just stick mine where ever.  Oh well.

I hope Dorene enjoys it!

I definitely want some borders on this quilt.  Plain borders will be better – anything pieced would just be entirely too busy.  This quilt was almost too busy for me anyway.  I had a moment of self-doubt where I thought there were too many colors and prints in it.  But I asked myself what else would I do with all those jelly roll strips, and just kept going.  It got a lot better after I added the sashing!

I love those rich reds, but I keep finding myself drawn to the pinks.

The sashing strips are EXACTLY the color of toasted marshmallows.

I think this block is my favorite.  I love that cream fabric with the tiny pink flowers.  So sweet.  I have all boys, so stuff like this is very rare in my house!  I’m seriously thinking about making a different quilt using only the pink fabrics.  How much you wanna bet it doesn’t grow legs and walk off?

I love it. You know me, I’m not much of a flowery person, but that quilt could convert me! Reds and pinks are my favorites. Those red sashing squares really set the whole thing off. And those whale weights are adorable! Taking pictures of your quilt outside makes a huge difference, doesn’t it? The colors are so much more vibrant when they’re not under those indoor lights. Can’t wait to see the finished border!

It was a graduation quilt for my nephew, Phillip. What a cute fella, eh?! My dear SIL, Cheryl, asked me to make it for his graduation. What an honor, since I don’t get to see them often – they live about six hours from us.

Anyway, every single thing about this quilt went perfectly. Just perfect. The knit shirts played nicely with the interfacing and cotton sashing and didn’t stretch. Ole’ Bessie didn’t skip a stitch while I was quilting:

The gold piped border was a great accent (his school colors were purple and gold).  Every corner on the binding was a right-angle. The label came out a little light, but it still works for me! I should have used a darker color for the words. Lesson learned!

I didn’t have to rip out one seam on this quilt. It is as close to perfect as I’ll ever get.  The sun, moon and stars all aligned while I was making it. Don’t know that this will ever happen again, but I loved the feeling while it was happening. Phillip has my best work to date. The best thing? I know he appreciated it!

Have you ever had a moment when everything came together for a quilt you were making?
Wow – that quilt is wonderful! You have a wonderful eye for balance with all those logos!I have to say no, I don’t think I’ve ever had a quilt where nothing has gone wrong! I have learned the hard way the value of measuring twice and cutting once. I have learned the hard way the value of a true quarter-inch seam. It must be such a great sense of accomplishment to make a quilt that just comes together like that! – Peggi

The picture isn’t that great – in case you can’t tell, those are soft, fuzzy chenille strips that make up the lion’s mane, the zebra’s stripes, the belly on the monkey, around the elephant’s ears….   it was a lot of fun to make.  The front of the quilt is flannel, and the back is a minkee-like fabric, super-soft to the touch.

I made it a few years ago for a woman I see on a professional basis.  Actually, I made it for her newborn baby girl, who is now a toddler.  I’ve never met the child and probably never will, but every once in a while I get updates through her mom, whom I still see on a professional basis.  Yesterday her mom told me this little girl loves this quilt so much that she HAS to sleep with it every night.  She loves the softness of the flannel and minkee.  Mom has to be very sneaky about washing it.  When she gets tucked into bed, the child picks a specific color of the binding to have next to her face.  As I was listening to her mom talk about how this child loves and is comforted by this quilt, tears welled up in my eyes.  There is NOTHING in this world that feels as good as knowing something you made brings such pleasure to another human being.
The fact that several years later she is so attached to your quilt really says something, doesn’t it? What a wonderful feeling. It’s such a happy quilt too! Don’t be surprised if in another year or two it comes back to you with a plea to be repaired because it’s been loved so much ~ Cindi

This has to be one of my all-time favorite quilts.  I love the colors, and it was pretty simple and easy to put together.  No curved piecing!

If anyone is interested in how to make it, drop me a line or post a comment.  I’d be happy to share construction details or post a tutorial!

This is a quilt I made for a Girl’s Club Christmas gift exchange.  I guess it’s actually 3 colors, but two of them are different shades of pink. I love the inside border on this quilt.  It was my own little design. Wanted something other than a plain border.  This quilt was my first foray into on-point quilting. I had a heck of a time putting it together – I kept wanting to line them straight instead of on-point!!
Wow!  I LOVE this quilt!  Lots and lots of itty bitty pieces, and I love the colors!  It’s feminine without being icky-sweet.  I’m amazed at the stuff you make and give away for Girl’s Club – makes me wish I was a member!   – Peggi

Made by request from my 8-year old son, Preston.  It was probably one of the easiest quilts I’ve made, despite the fact that I had to finesse some of the seams to get them to match up.
For something that’s easy it looks so complicated! I love kaleidescope quilts. They create such great secondary patterns with the circles. Someday I’ll get brave and make one myself! ~ Cindi

Dad's Quilt

This quilt was made right after my dad passed away unexpectedly. It was my therapy, and now hangs proudly on my mom’s wall. I entered it in the first American Quilter’s Society online quilt contest and won first place! It was my first entry in any quilting contest or show. I’ve made several other quilts from the Quilted Photo program, which was incredibly easy to use.

I love that quilt! You did a fabulous job on it!   Another one to add to my To-Do list…..

Peggi

That’s right! I forgot you’ve got one to make too – about time to get on it!
What’s really cool is if you put this picture up on your computer screen and walk to the other side of the room, it looks just like a picture! – Peggi