Aloha y’all. It’s October and that means one thing, and one thing only. Halloween. If I still lived on the mainland, I’d probably be sewing pumpkins right now, but I’m in Hawaii so…
The pineapp-o-lantern is a beginner project – nothing more than squares, half-square triangles and a couple of quarter-square triangles. Grab a stack of 2.5″ squares and get started. š
Quilting inspiration comes from many places: a photograph, a shape, a memory even. For me, it almost always begins with color. One of the reasons I love fabric so much is all the scrumptious eye candy. Itās like a painting you can cuddle.
In this series, weāre going to discuss awesome color combinations, and weāre going to begin with one of my all-time favorites: red and brown.
All the Feelsā¦Color always sparks some emotion. Blue is calming, yellow, uplifting. Red on itās own can be angry or passionate, but pair it with brown and it becomes cozy, warm, (sometimes) rustic. And who doesnāt love being warm and cozy? Thatās why itās the perfect combination for a quilt.
Here’s what I’m currently doing with red and brown.
This is basically a fence-rail block with a pinwheel in the middle. Itās a UFO from several years back. Maybe, probably, hopefully ā no, dammit ā I WILL finish it one day. I think this would have been just fine without the orange, but I ran out of my reds and browns so being the innovator that I amā¦ haha.
How do you feel about red and brown? Have you ever used it in a quilt? Iād love to see it.
Thanks, yāall, for stopping by.
This little lap quilt is another treasure from my Alaska days. The girls and I spent a wonderful year there while my soldier did an unaccompanied tour in Korea. Between hubby being gone and the bitter cold winter, I had lots of time on my hands, most of which I spent quilting and sewing.
My 5 favorite things about this quilt are:
At about 57ā³ square, this quilt is the perfect size for the beach, or curling up on the couch. I think it would make a great baby quilt too. I might have to make a few more. š
Mahalo, yāall, for stopping by.
Chaos Theory is coming along nicely, except for one thing. Itās too big to lay out on my queen-sized bed. In fact, thereās not a space in my house big enough to lay out the entire quilt. When finished, it will measure a whopping 96ā³ square. I donāt know what Iām going to do. For now, Iāll just keep sewing.
I have completed seven of the 16 sections. Only 1,296 small squares left to sew ā sooooo ā I better leave you and get back to work.
My other New Yearās Resolution, besides the one involving my scrap tub, was to finish something old and something new every month. Itās a contract I made with myself after realizing my UFOs had gotten out of control and that I was going to die one day with a zillion unfinished projects if I didnāt do something about it soon.
My first instinct was to say I couldnāt start any new projects until I finished all the old ones, but a wise friend suggested I alternate one UFO with one new project to stave off boredom. Itās a system thatās worked marvelously. Thanks, Kelly.
Earth Song is my Something New for March. It was inspired by a quilt I saw on Pinterest by Adrianne Ove of Little Bluebell. Itās a bossy little quilt. It insisted on that hippy name. (Not that Iām denigrating hippies. Far from it. I have quite a few hippy tendencies. My two daughters are named after trees and Iāll tie-dye anything that gets in my way.) However, Iām not that great at naming my quilts, so I let this one have itās way.
Thereās a small scrap element to this project. The yellow center squares came from my famous tub. The yellow used in the sashing was a fresh purchase. š¦ š Everything else came from my stash, which is great because I need to use that up too. Yay, me.
Now, when I say āfinish,ā I mean I finished the quilt top. Itās not quilted yet. Iāve been saving for a long-arm quilting machine, so for the moment, Iām stacking my quilt tops on a shelf and waiting patiently. Hopefully next year will be my year to really finish all my projects. Having said that, I welcome any and all advice on which long-arm machine I should purchase.
I wouldnāt hesitate to recommend this to beginner quilters. Itās not only easy, but it comes together quickly. More advanced quilters can take it up a notch by using a pinwheel as the center block (A) or incorporating a more complex sashing.
I hope you like it. Thanks, y’all, for stopping by.