Do You Have a Favorite?

Do you have a favorite fabric line?  Mine is Katie Jump Rope by Denyse Schmidt.  I now have to say I fell head over heels for Daysail by Bonnie and Camille.  I have been collecting it for a while and have planes to use it in a few projects later in the year.  This is what i have so far.  

Yes, you read that right, so far! I am always on the look out for scraps or sales!

                                                                                            

Hmm,

 looks like I need some navy!

                        

Working with my Favorite Fabrics

I have been doing some handwork. I am making hexies with my favorite fabrics of all time.

Yes, all time!

And I am old!!

Katie Jump Rope by Denyse Schmidt

and

Kerchief Girls by Kei

I am thinking a nice big throw pillow for the bed to match my quilt.

(I just have to keep on showing it, sorry. It is on the bed and being used and loved!)

Happy Sewing!

A Year to Finish~~ Katie

My blog like most of our blogs is a chronicle of our lives. Family, Graduations, Weddings, showers, new babies, grandbabies, fun, vacations, projects, fabrics, sewing, and of course Quilting.

This one is about an adventure I went on, all alone, by myself, and with delightful results.

It is very picture heavy, but when I make my Blog Book for 2013 it will be in print!

Last summer I came to an epiphany of sorts...

This is what I said..

I think many of us go through this process.

We love a fabric.

We buy a ton of the fabric.

We try to buy the whole line.

We pet the fabric.

We fold and refold the fabric.

We put it in color groups.

We them put it into groups according to the prints.

We stash it...

We save it...

We hoard it...

Just waiting for the right project, the right quilt, the right pattern.

Time ticks by and we have now had the fabric for years and it just sits and stares at us.

***************************

At that point I decided NO MORE!

I was going to use that fabric I loved. I knew I would fall in love with another line and what good did it do sitting on my shelf.

So out came
Denyse Schmidt's
Katie Jump Rope!

As this was going to be an adventure I knew I wanted a King Size Quilt for our bed, BUT, I was going to make this quilt all by hand.  I love handwork. So I started by cutting it all into squares.

I then started the piecing.

Two by Two

Became four by four

Became eight by eight

Became a sixteen patch block

They were then pieced into the flimsy.

Still all by hand.

The backing, I asked many of you if you thought flannel was a good idea for a backing. Thank you to everyone who responded!

But alas, I was chicken, I did not use it, not on Katie. I thought this was not a time to experiment. So I went with a cotton backing. I am thrilled with my choice, and will for sure try flannel on my next quilt!

There is one part of quilting I do not like

Basting!

So Katie was sent to my long-arm friend, where she basted her for me. She even used hot pink thread so I could see the thread when it needed to be removed.

 Now let the fun begin!

The hand quilting.

I did this is simple rows, both horizontal and vertical.

Added my binding....

and...

Katie was done!

We then went on a phot shoot, after all she had been cooped up for a whole year.
This lady needed some fresh air!

May I present

Katie!

She looks so tiny here!

But she is 108 inches by 120 inches.

She is now home, washed and on our bed. What a treat to sleep under!

Now if I could just stop hoarding holding on to this fabric!

Have a wonderful weekend, do something you love!

Ours is filled with family and fun!

I did not take your advice, so sorry!

Last February I asked your advice about flannel backing for my 

Katie Jump Rope Quilt.

Thank you all for such wonderful advice.  You can read about it 

HERE

as the advice will help others too.

But alas

Janie was too worried to take your advice!

After all this was my favorite fabric and a king size quilt.

I chickened out!!

I went with my Riley Blake Medium Check Yellow Gingham for the backing and Quilter's Dream Thin Batting.

I brought the quilt to a friend who has a long arm business and asked her to baste it for me.

She was so kind, not only did she baste it but she used hot pink thread so I could see it!!

I am now in the process of hand quilting. I hope to have it done by the end of the summer.

Here she is so far with her hot pink basting thread. It is so nice to quilt without pins!

Happy Sewing!

Katie Progress

I did it!!

I cut my Katie Jump Rope fabrics!!

To be honest it was not hard! I think the reason it was not too hard was because I only cut about 15-24 squares from each fabric!

I do not know about you but I tend to cut too much and then have left over squares,

I decided to be very careful with my Katie.

Here is the super fun part...

I am doing it all by hand!

The piecing

The quilting

well not the binding!

I have already started and it is such a joy to work with these fabrics.

This is my cut pile.

What I started with...

What I still have.....

Hope to show you some more progress soon.

Happy Quilting!

This is it, NO more waiting!

I think many of us go through this process.

We love a fabric.

We buy a ton of the fabric.

We try to buy the whole line.

We pet the fabric.

We fold and refold the fabric.

We put it in color groups.

We them put it into groups according to the prints.

We stash it...

We save it...

We hoard it...

Just waiting for the right project, the right quilt, the right pattern.

Time ticks by and we have now had the fabric for years and it just sits and stares at us.

NO MORE,

NOT ME

I am going to start to use that fabric!

I know I will fall in love with something else.

so....

yes, I am going to

CUT

yes

CUT

my beloved

Hold your breath, here it comes!

My Katie Jump Rope!!

I have spent years waiting for the right pattern when it was here all the time!

5 inch squares!!

Large enough to enjoy the print. Scrappy, fun and yes, easy.

This is going to be king size and hand quilted so easy was the way to go!

So for now here are my treasured fabrics!

BROWN

Brown is my least fabric color, but not in Katie!

BLUE

I have a lot of blue!

ORANGE

Onr of my new favorite colors.

GREEN

I could use some green!

YELLOW

Oh, how I wish I had more yellow.

This is all I have, insert sad face here. )0:

Why do I always fall in love with a fabric when it is out of print?  Why, Oh, Why?!

By next week I hope to show you what I have cut. (helppppp)

I think I can, I think I can.

Oh Jane, just do it!

This however, this will not be cut!! It will be with me for a long, long, time!!
Kei Kerchief Girls
(again missed the boat when this first came out)

P.S.  If anyone knows where I can get more yellow Katie,would you please let me know?
Thanks!

Happy Sewing!