Christmas in July - Day 1

I've had a tough week and have so been looking forward to this four-day weekend!  It is July 1, the start of Christmas in July Quilt Along. 

Alice and Lynn have decided to join me in this month-long focus on quilting for Christmas.  They are listed over there to the right in my sidebar.   Check out what they are up to; you are sure to be inspired!  If you would like to join us, leave a comment here and I will add you to the list. 

I'm going to start off with something small and fast.  My LQS, Pennington Quilt Works, hosts an annual Holiday Open House where they showcase ten to twelve Christmas and winter-themed projects.  The women who work in the store select the projects, make up samples, then kit them up for sale.  It is always a source of ideas for me.  A couple of years ago (I think in 2009), I bought the kit for Misty Pine after seeing the sample in the store.

Misty Pine is a small wallhanging, perfect for one of those small spaces in a bathroom or hallway that is just crying out for decoration. 

For some reason, I did not even start the project in 2009 and by 2010, the kit had become buried in the quilt supply closet.  I found it last winter during a big clean-out and reorganization and put it with my priority PIGS*.  Its time has come!

These are the fabrics that came in the kit.  Time to get started.  Come back tomorrow to check my progress.

*PIGS - Projects In Grocery Sacks (though I keep mine in sweater bags from the dry cleaner), a term I user for supplies purchased with a specific use in mind, but not yet started. 

I Got Mail

I am winding up a consulting job this week and next week so not much of a quilting nature going on here.  I did receive a package in the mail today, though, from the Fat Quarter Shop.  It contained a few items I ordered in preparation for my Christmas projects. 

First, a few fabrics to augment some that I have in my stash.  These are mostly from Nancy Halvorsen's new Christmas line called Jingle All The Way.  The cream fabric will be the background and is from a line called Jolly Snowmen.

I bought the Jingle All The Way book too, even though I am not lacking in ideas for Christmas projects.

Last year, I made some kitchen towels using an applique design from Nancy Halvorsen's book Tidings.  They are a nice decorating touch for the kitchen and make good gifts too.

Star Blocks Finished

I finished the teeny tiny star blocks over the weekend - yahoo!  I made 18 blocks after I decided on a diagonal setting.  Each block finishes at 10" square.  That leaves me with a few leftover stars; they may appear on the quilt back.

I'm putting the blocks aside, along with the fabric for the sashing, setting triangles, backing, and binding, until August.  I have a fews odds and ends to do this week, like backs for tops that need to be quilted.  Our weekend plans won't leave time for sewing, then it will be time for Christmas in July!  I can resume work on this one in August.



Christmas in July Quilt Along

I'm dedicating the month of July to working on Christmas projects. 

Would you like to join me?   Not a lot of rules or structure - make anything you want to, as long as it has a winter or Christmas theme. If you want to join me, let me know via comment here or email message and I'll post a link to your blog on my sidebar so readers can check out your progress.

We'll officially start on July 1 but you can use the rest of June to get ready by deciding what you want to make and getting your supplies together. The new Christmas fabrics are just arriving in the quilt shops, so this is a great time to start.

Last year, I made Let It Snow, a wall hanging for my kitchen. 
 

And Christmas Day, a throw-size quilt made out of hoarded Robyn Pandolph prints.

This year, I'd like to tackle at least one of my PIGS (projects in grocery sacks, or in my case, dry cleaner bags).

I have several kits and patterns purchased in prior years with good intentions, but...

One is the banner on the cover of this book, Tidings, by Nancy Halvorsen.  She has a new Christmas booklet our this year that I'm already salivating over.

I will be working on my wool applique project while Miss Main Street tours college campuses (campi?).

And I have some ideas for another star motif design made out of my hoarded Maison de Noel fabrics, a 3 Sisters by Moda line from several years ago. 

In other words, I could work on Christmas projects for the rest of the year!  So I'm sure you can find at least one thing to make!

More Teeny Tiny Stars

All work and no quilting makes Cathy a dull blogger!

Lots going on here but little that is blog-worthy.  I did manage to make a few more teeny, tiny star blocks.  I laid a few of the finished blocks out on the sashing fabric (not cut yet) to see what it is starting to look like. 

For comparison, here are the pictures of the inspiration quilt.

And my version again.  I am still working on the blocks that use blues and caramels. 



Each sawtooth star finishes at 4" and the block is 10".



More Fat Quarter Quilts

Not much sewing going on here; too busy with other things.  That happens sometimes.  Last night, I took a few of my quilting books to bed with me, looking for more fat quarter ideas. 

Miss Rosie's Spice of Life Quilts, by Carrie Nelson, is full of designs that mostly use fat quarters.   

The book includes the pattern for Ginger Belle.  I made this pattern recently using fat quarters from the Rural Jardin line.  My version is due to be quilted in July.

This is Moose Tracks (red version) and 501 (pink and blue).  Definitely going on my list.  It does require three yards of focus fabric.

This might be my new favorite!  It is a variation on log cabin, called Raise the Roof.  I can see it in Fig Tree scraps, using the lights and the darker prints.

This is Elizabeth.  I saw it on several blogs last year, but can't remember where.  If I recall correctly, a couple of bloggers made it out of a combination of French General designs.  I think it might work for the Etchings line too.

I made Seaside Cottage in 2006, using a fat quarter bundle of the  3 Sisters Seaside Rose fabric line, plus some yardage for the sashing.  The block is square within a square within a square - I did not use a pattern, just figured it out myself, using a 5" charm square for the center.  Each block is about 10" square.

I was going for a blended look, which you can see in this block.  There is not a lot of contrast between the three fabrics in each block.  This is a throw size quilt that I keep in the bedroom for naps or as an extra cover when it is extra cold.   

I certainly don't need a quilt tonight; we're having another scorcher!

Fat Quarter Friendly Quilt Patterns

So now I'm on the lookout for the pefect projects for my bundles of Etchings and Butterscotch and Rose.

Here are a few ideas:

This pattern is called Razz-Ma-Tazz and is from Thimble Creek.    (By the way, the colored font is not just pretty; it represents links that will take you to the website where I bought the pattern - just in case you want to know more about it.) 

When I first saw the pattern, I thought it would be great for my stash of 30's repros. Now that I have the pattern, I'm thinking about it for my leftover turquoise fabrics, or Christmas prints, or Fig Tree prints. The background doesn't have to be white and the diagonal accent doesn't have to be red!

When I saw French Vintage on the Thimble Creek site, I thought it would be perfect for the Etchings fat quarters.  The original was made from Rouenneries, the yummy line from French General.

I'm thinking of this for the red and grey prints from Etchings, along with the light background prints.  I can save the blue fat quarters for another project.

This is Magical Mystery Tour from Abbey Lane Quilts.  It uses 20 fat quarters plus yardage for the sashing and borders.  I think it might work for the Fig Tree prints but am not completely sold on it yet.   

Any suggestions?