Sliced Apples in Pink and Brown

It’s complete!  I finished hand sewing the binding to the back last night and popped it in the washer and dryer this morning before taking this photo.

I ended up using a yard of brown fabric that has little speckles of color.  The binding is Hope Valley by Denyse Schmidt.

And, amazingly, my walking foot started working again about a week ago and I used this sweet little posy decorative stitch to quilt along the diagonals.

I used a polyester batting that I don’t think I’ll ever use again.  A quilter gave me two {yes 2!!!} 30 yard rolls of this batting.  She is a local long-armer and didn’t like it.  I knew it would be a long time before I got through a roll, so I donated one to a local quilting charity and kept the other.  I’ve only used this batting a handful of times, but I always end up with a snag somewhere on the back.  I don’t ever have that problem with Warm and White.  I’m sure plenty of quilters use this kind with no problems, but it’s not for me.  I have a new motto…if I don’t love it, I’m getting rid of it, so this batting is going!

Sliced Apples Progress

I finished piecing the HST portion of the baby quilt I am making.  My friend is due in July, so I am on schedule for getting it done!

All the seams went together reasonably well, and I didn’t sew any rows on upside down {for once}!

I tried to include lots of fun fabrics, but mostly use up some scraps.

It has a small border sewn on now and is ready to be basted.

Bees and Bluegill

Just finished up my Stash Bee blocks for Sara for June.

Her idea is so original—the blocks will be used to make a wedding quilt (she is getting married) that guests can sign at the reception.  What a wonderful idea!!!

Over the past few days we have spent quite a bit of time outdoors.  The weather has been a little cooler than normal in summertime, so we’ve been out fishing and crabbing.

I’ve also been trying to do some sewing at night, but it’s difficult now that the kids stay up later on their summertime schedule and seem to still get up just as early.  I joined the sliced apples QAL and have all my blocks ready to join together.  This is the color scheme I picked.

I’m doing pink and brown.  A friend is expecting a baby (the gender is a surprise) so I want to have two quilts on hand ready to gift.

Swap Goodies

I participated in a swap sponsored by Pink Stitches.  My partner has received her package, and although I’m pretty sure she doesn’t read my blog, I wanted to wait to share a photo of everything I sent.

The apron and key fob turned out great (brown & pink and black & white are her two favorite color combos), but I’m a little skeptical of the mug rug.  First of all, I guess it’s smaller than most.  It only measures about 4 x 6 inches.  I have never seen another mug rug in person before, so I thought they were pretty small, like a coaster for a mug.  It was a challenge getting the binding on.  I had to cut off the first faux binding that I attempted, so it probably would have measured about 5 x 8 if the first try had been successful.  I bit the bullet and put on traditional binding the second time.  It still is cute.

I think I will make more mug rugs in the future.  They are fast and fun to make. 

The pins came from Michael's. Many quilters have mentioned them on the Farmer's Wife Sampler Yahoo group.  I thought I'd give them a try and bought an extra box for my partner.  I do like them, but I like regular pins too.  I might not be an experienced enough piecer to make an accurate comparison.  They sure do get easily lost in my carpet though, because the glass pin heads are so small and translucent.  I've never used the no-melt pins with the cute, bright flowers on top.  They will be next on my list:)

Apron

I joined a swap last month.  I can't remember when the "due date" is for this one, but I have my items ready for the mail.  One project I made is a half apron I just winged.
I have seen some really great aprons on Etsy that I tried to incorporate into this one.  I like a couple of different fabrics, ties that go all the way around so it can be tied in the front, and a look that says it is well constructed and durable.  Here’s what I came up with:

My partner likes pink and brown, so I chose a pink floral for the front of the apron, brown pockets, and a brighter pink waistband and tie.

And I backed it with some nice dark denim that I bought when I first learned how to sew in the hopes that I would sew myself a nice pair of jeans.  I am not making that up.  It is time to use that denim for something else:)
Here are a few photos of me modeling it and taking photos at the same time!

 
I hope she likes it!

Another Top Done!

I am on a mission…next week Warm and White batting goes on sale at Joanns for 1/2 price and I’ve got my stackable 20% off coupon already printed and in my purse.  My mission:  to get as many quilt tops—and backs—finished as I can between now and next Monday so I can go buy batting to finish them up.  Batting takes up a lot of space and I don’t like storing it around.  My kids like to rip through it, make caves in it, jump all over it, too, so it’s really not safe to keep in the house.  With a sale like this, I want to be ready to optimize my money.
I think this is Love U (actually, maybe it’s Love Is in the Air) by Deb Strain.  I like the whimsical-ness and boldness/contrast of the colors in the prints.  This quilt top is made from the first ever charm pack I bought.  It was almost complete, and now it is!

I went into Joanns yesterday and found some cute polka dots. 

I go pretty much every Monday morning looking for those dang DS Quilt prints.  My store here has had the same 5 prints since May:(  Anyway, in my efforts to find more Picnics and Fairgrounds, I got some $4.99 polka dots straight from a fresh bolt.  I wasn’t sure about the navy blue at first, but now I wish I had gotten a little bit more so I could have enough to use as binding, too.  Guess I’ll get a little more next Monday!
Here’s a photo of the jams we have made this summer…it doesn’t include all of the different variations (strawberry-pineapple, strawberry-rhubarb, black raspberry blueberry, and triple berry), but it has all the basics:  blackberry, spiced tomato, peach, strawberry, and blueberry.

My friend Robyn, my cousin Summer, and I canned over 100 jars of peach jam on Saturday:
We used Trossbach peaches which are famous in southern Maryland for being the best.  My house smelled great, until I made fajitas for dinner last night.  Now it smells like a Mexican restaurant:)