December 2022

 Last post of the year! We had a wonderful, if late, Christmas celebration. DH and I were both ill with that dreadful head/chest cold and felt it better to postpone until Dec 30. It was a wise decision. It was great to see the kids and grands and exchange gifts.

I've been using my old, faithful serger. I used it so much it had to go into the shop not only for a tuneup but repair on the upper looper post. I found an addition use for a child's car seat. It is great to transport my serger.

Do you save your empty spools? I don't know why I do, but it is satisfying to look at how many are used up. I can now throw them away.

And another Project Linus blanket is ready to go. We have a bit of snow and it was difficult to get a good picture of it. But here you go.

August 2022

 The knitting/crocheting for Project Linus continues. 

 

This blanket was knit using 2 skeins of Lionbrand  Cupcake in the colorway Diagon Alley. I really like how this turned out using the variegated baby yarn.

 

This blanket was crocheted using a one pounder of baby blue yarn that I purchase from a thrift store. I used a stitch that I found in a stitch dictionary.

I finished this quilt. Finally! It is a vintage kit quilt that included everything except the batting and backing. This is the second kit like this that I've completed and I hesitate to say that I won't be doing another. The blue dye that is used on these for the cutting lines and quilting lines does not totally come out. But, all-in-all I am pleased with the results. It is hand appliqued and machine quilted.

 

June 2022

I made another crocheted Project Linus blanket: this one is a corner to corner. I love this pattern when the yarn is limited. I have found that weighing the yarn allows me to use it all - half for the increase side and half for the decrease side.

And here's another Project Linus blanket. I found this pattern on Ravelry. It is called the Blanket Stitch afghan. The pattern can be found here.

 

I also finished this blanket for Project Linus. It is a simple single crochet and used up the left-over yarn from the previous afghan plus two skeins of that sparkly magenta .

I've been on a roll! Final blanket for the month of June for Project Linus is one using half-double crochet. It used up all the sparkly blue yarn and a lot of white left-overs.

I need some new dishcloths so I'm taking a break and knitting up some using the dribs and drabs of cotton yarn that is on hand.

I also made a shabby chic diaper bag. I added some antique buttons and a brocade napkin. The inside has two zippered pockets that can accommodate a package or two of baby wipes.

It's been a productive month!

May 2022

 I have some sewing! Well, after a fashion. I had these pieces of fleece; so I did a rolled hem using my serger and Voila! six blankets for Project Linus. The smallest is about 42x54 and the largest is about 54x68.

I have another Project Linus finish -- a premie blanket. This measures quite small at 24"x28". I used one cake of Lion Brand's Cupcake yarn in Robin Egg colorway.

The husband and I don't like to travel on holiday weekends so we did a Memorial Day camp at Carter Lake (in Colorado) for the last several days. It's wonderful to get away and just listen to the hummingbirds. The first day rain forced us indoors. The second day was glorious if a bit windy. 

April 2022

 What can I say about this month other that it has been very very windy. And super dry. This is the driest April in over 100 years. Last Friday there were 15 reported wildfires. I wish people would be fire aware and stop doing stupid things during fire alerts. Okay, rant over.

I've been quilting but there is nothing to show yet. 

OTOH, I do have two shawl/wraps to share. They both use a 100% wool yarn that was given to me and I'm delighted to say that ALL of that yarn is used up. 

This shawl is call the Best Loved Garter Stitch Shawl. It is a super easy triangular shawl. I used the aforementioned wool yarn held together with a lace mohair yarn. This is just so warm and cozy!

This is the November Wrap and is a rectangular shawl. I is knit from side to side in stockinette stitch and the ribbed ruffle is knitted on. It, too, is warm.

April 2018

It's been a busy month here at Chez Quilter. There's a new grandbaby! So of course I am making quilts and knitting blankets and sewing onsies! Babies are so fun to make things for.

This whole month has also been spent knitting this donation blanket. It's an Ombre blanket that goes from orange to black and then back to orange. It looks a bit like tiger stripes, doesn't it? It's an odd size: 36" x 70". Maybe it will fit a cot?

March 2018

I spent the whole month working on this afghan. It is another for Project Linus, but for a teenager. I figured teens needed blankies too.

There was a basting marathon this last week. I basted 4 quilts for Project Linus and a wall hanging for my sister-in-law. Also, and this is a biggie, I basted a quilt for my bed. A large 108x108" one. I feel good about the progress this month. Maybe next month I can show completed quilts.

Spring has finally arrived around here: the hyacinths in the front yard have poked their heads above ground.

Mojo?

I seem to have lost my blogging mojo. A lot has been happening but I don't feel like writing about it. I am still knitting and crocheting for Project Linus. Here are the latest 2:

 This lovely soft lilac baby afghan is knitted in my favorite Ravelry pattern called the Sunny Blanket.

And this soft green afghan is crocheted in my go-to Ripple pattern.

I've been quilting too:

 This is made from spare parts left over from two other quilts. It is a sashed double 4-patch.

Here's the back. I didn't have enough of the batik so I pieced a large box. This is a gift for someone and I don't want this person to know, so I'm not mentioning names.

More baby blanket

This is a knitted baby blanket

A crocheted baby blanket. This is crocheted from one corner diagonally to another.
It is a great way to use up small amounts of yarn.

Another corner-to-corner crocheted baby blanket.

Blanketeer

I've been crocheting and knitting blankets for Project Linus.

This blanket is knit using Caron yarn and size 8 needles.

This is a simple crocheted blanket using scrap yarn. It is crocheted from corner to corner.

There was some yarn left over from the previous blanket so I created a large crocheted granny square.

I added lavender strands going in one direction and purple strands going in the other direction to create a plaid.

I was given a bag of fabric. Does that happen to you? So I dug out my serger and serged the edges for fast and simple blankets.

For a Veteran

I recently finished this little lapghan using up some left over acrylic yarn. It measures 32" square. I just kept crocheting until I used up the yarn.

I don't do a lot of crochet because of bad hands and wrists. When I do crochet, however, I just do it in little bits of time chunks. This small lapghan took me forever, it seemed.

It is perfect for a wheelchair bound veteran. I hope he enjoys it.

And another afghan finish!

Here is another finish of the Project Linus blankets.

This one is a larger blanket that will suitable for a boy-child, don't you think? This ripple pattern is my go-to crochet afghan pattern. If I can't figure out what to make, I make one of these.

Here's is what is on the needles today. It is another Project Linus blanket. I had two skeins of this off-white so I just expanded a dishcloth pattern. This blanket will be 32" square and is a good size for swaddling a baby.

What's on your needles? I'm linking to Judy L at Patchwork Times.

OTN January 2, 2015

I really DO have a finish already this year! I finished up this crocheted afghan on New Year's Day. Do you remember that big ole sack of acrylic yarn I picked up at the thrift store? I am making a very noticeable dent in it! In fact, there are only two afghans left to make. If you follow the link in the last post you will see how many I have already made. All but two of the crocheted/knitted blankets will be donated to Project Linus.

Here is yesterday's finish.

Of course, I started a new project immediately. I just can't sit around with idle hands and I want to get all these blankets completed and washed and then donated.

This batch of yarn made me really think about what to make since it is a brown and not very child-like. There is 5 skeins, which is really unusual coming from the thrift store. It seems very masculine to me, so I started a chevron afghan with it.

This is my go-to crochet pattern for afghans. I have lost count how many of these I've made. Am I in a rut?
There are several ways to make these, but I prefer the single crochet over the double crochet.

I am going to link up with JudyL's On The Needles today.

Two Baby Quilts

I have two completed projects as there is nothing on the design wall today.

Since the Handi Quilter Sweet Sixteen entered Casa del Quilter there has been a lot of quilting going on; a lot. The simplest form of practice is to take two lengths of fabric and sandwich them together and then quilt. Don't you agree? Here are two examples of just such a practice.

The first baby quilt up is flannel on one side and 100% cotton on the other. Quilted in an all over free motion and Mettler Quilting 40/3 thread. 100% medium loft poly batting.

Next up is another baby quilt with flannel on one side and 100% cotton on the other. It, too, is quilted in an all over free motion and Mettler Quilting 40/3 thread. 100% medium loft poly batting.

I am not only using up largish hunks of fabric but also chunks of batting, preprinted labels and various spools of thread. The blue fabric I used in my sweatshirt jacket was a perfect match and worked for the binding.

If you want to see more design walls, please visit Judy's blog at Patchwork Times.

Donation Quilts

This is a donation quilt that I finally finished! All those black and white checks made my eyes twitch. The pattern is from Mary Quilts called Quick Strippie. It really is a quick quilt to make. This was the first time I used this tutorial for machine binding with a flat fell foot for my sewing machine. Let's just say, that I need practice. Quilted with a wishbone pattern on my HQS16 using Signature thread.

This was a panel that I used for a simple allover clam shell quilting design. I used a half circle ruler to do the clam shell and found out that my HQS16 was sitting about 1/4" higher than the surrounding table. This made for some jerky curves. I have since fixed the problem by removing the rubber feet on the machine and installing some silicone bumpers to bring it to the right height. I used a Guterman size 40 quilting thread which was probably a mistake because it overpowers the sweet design on the panel.But done is done and the quilting practice is worth it because even though the curves aren't smooth, the stitches themselves are fairly consistent.

Both of these quilts are donation quilts and will go to deserving homes.

Update: The blue panel uses a poly batting. That is why it is so puffy looking.

 Here you can see more design walls.

Quilt #3

I've been hiding in the sewing room for the last several days. I turned off the television and turned on the music in the sewing room which made me uber productive. Wanna see?

This is the Harley Davidson bandana quilt. It started with the brand new, but vintage, bandana in the center. After adding some corners to square it up - plus the applique - I just started adding borders. Six borders! This quilt is approximately 62" square and is backed with more of that butterfly fabric. I can't believe how well the butterfly fabric goes with the floral band of the bandana. It IS square, I just had a problem pinning it to the wall.

Thread: Signature 40wt
Quilting: Free motion roses.

Once that was off and folded up I go started on a flannel quilt. This one is for my sister who requested a warm but lightweight quilt. After mulling it over in my mind, I decided to use up some flannel scraps and make a fairly simple quilt top.

 

The squares finish at 7". Can you believe the assortment of flannel? I couldn't either. I am going to tie this because of previous experiences with flannel. No batting but a Minkee backing. This one is going together quickly.

Anything on your design wall?

Quilt #2

This is the second quilt I have quilted on my Handi Quilter Sweet 16. Busy front, especially that black and white checkerboard fabric, but it was just so perfect for all the cars, don't you think?

Busy back but busy-ness is a good thing when it comes to learning machine quilting.I have to learn how to make my corners sharper when it comes to doing geometric shapes.

Top and bobbin thread: 40wt Signature