Black and White Quilt - Q4 Finish

This quilt was made from a free pattern on Craftsy -- "Illusions" by Jennifer Jones.  It was made from 2 Jelly Rolls -- one black and one Modern Background Paper by Zen Chic.  I really love this line of fabric (along with much of the world, I really like text prints.  The newspaper, the cursive printing, the physics drawings.  I love them all.)

A few months ago I found out my best friend is moving to Texas.  I knew I'd better send her with a quilt -- one she can curl up with in the 100 degree weather there in Houston.  haha.  It may just be looked at, not curled up in.  She hates the heat as much as I do.  Anyway, my friend is very classy and I thought this 2 color quilt would look nice in her clean, modern home.  

I struggled to know what backing to put on it.  I thought I'd easily find a great print for the back, but nothing was looking good to me.  So I went with solids - a pretty coral and some gray.  

Speaking of gray -- that is my friend's last name, Gray.  And I'm feeling quite gray about her going...she is a long time friend and even though several weeks go between us seeing each other, just knowing she is out of reach makes me sad.  Thank goodness for unlimited long distance.  Remember the days when making a long distance call was a big deal -- keeping it short and calling after 10:00 PM when the rates were lower?  No longer.  Now we spend a pretty penny for our cell phone service -- but we do get unlimited long distance.  :)

Something I learned:

1.  Although the construction of this quilt looked quite simple, sewing the blocks together gave me trouble.  The original quilt did not have sashing between the blocks.  But when I tried to sew the blocks together the corners kept getting sucked into the machine, even when sewing a little scrap just before.  It was so aggravating.  I decided to try a skinny sashing so that I could just lay the blocks on a long sashing strip, sew them, and then cut the blocks apart.  I think it looks okay and I didn't give up out of frustration. 

I also finished another quilt for a charity drive.  They specifically said they needed boys quilts.  A while back I started this one along with Crazy Mom Quilts' Scrap Basket Quilt Along.  I never finished.....until now!  It is all made from scraps.  I do love a blue/green color combo for boys.

I am linking up to Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story.
I am also linking up to NTT at My Quilt Infatuation.

Butterfly Quilt - Finish Q4

Well, I have finished one of my 4th Quarter goals....I am close on one more, picking it up from the quilter's tomorrow.  Then I get to bind it.  I'm anxious to see it.

But here is the one I have finished....I've had this top for a while but I wasn't very motivated to finish it since I didn't have anyone to give it too (family of boys, you know).  When writing my goals I decided to put it on the list to force myself to practice some Free Motion Quilting.   Then my BOM group announced a quilt drive for foster children.  That gave me a great reason to finish it up.

The pattern is from Fabulously Fast Quilts by Amy Smart.  I purchased a scrap bag of Salt Air by Cosmo Cricket which happened to be mostly strips so it worked really well and came together quickly. 

Things I learned:

• Better basting helps!  I have had a really hard time not getting puckers on larger quilts.  I thought I was basting okay, but apparently not.  This time I both spray basted and pinned.  Perhaps that seems overkill, but at least it worked!
• Use the right foot!  I had tried to use a generic FMQ foot but found that things did not go very smoothly.  I bought the one specifically for my Janome machine and it is so much better.  
• I have not had a lot of success in Free Motion Quilting.  I've done some smaller projects that were okay.  It felt so good to finish this medium sized quilt....it's proof I'm getting better.  Hooray.

Also, here is a little quilt that I made for a neighbor who had a baby.  I enjoyed using some orange in this one. I hope they like it too.  I know it's not the typical blue quilt for a baby boy, but sometimes it's nice to have something different.  :) 

I am linking up to Crazy Mom Quilts Finish it up Friday.

Finish-Along Goals Q4

It's time again for goals for this quarter.  Last quarter I completed 4 projects from my list of 7.  Not too bad, I think.  Maybe I should find someone who encourages some goal-making for home organization....of course, I probably wouldn't be quite so motivated to work on those goals.  :) 

1.  First of all is a quilt that I plan on making for my parent's cabin -- if I can finish it by Christmas it will be impressive.  If not, it will be a Mother's Day/Father's Day gift.  :)   

2.  A paper-pieced quilt for another sibling.  I only have a few more blocks.  Sadly, I ran out of gray background fabric (I am making it smaller than the original pattern....I underestimated the amount of fabric I would need!)  I have not been able to find the same gray since, and of course I don't know what the color number or name is.....oh bother.

3.  Started a quilt recently for a friend...hope to be done by December!

4.  Just need to add a border, prepare backing, and quilt this Shot Cotton quilt.  I am thinking I'll try Cotton Lawn or Voile for the back...sure wish I could find it in Local Stores!  

5.  I recently pulled out my "flimsies" (that is a completed quilt top, not quilted.)  I have several.  Many are quilt tops that I made and was disappointed in....it makes me sad to pull them out and see all the time that went into those, only to be dissatisfied.  I've decided to pull this one out and quilt it -- it is a smaller quilt, a good one to practice from free motion quilting on my own machine.

6.  Hot Pads for Christmas.  No picture here, but I plan on making 4 or 5 hot pads to give away for Christmas.  I have the pattern and will be making them scrappy.

I am linking up to the 2015 Finish-Along at On the Windy Side.

September Update

September is a big birthday month for us.  First, Tanner turned 5!  He was born on our wedding anniversary, so until he's a little older I don't think we'll be celebrating that much on the big day.  ;)  Tanner had his first friend birthday party this year.  We had a great group of kids -- I think 9?  The theme was Soccer and everything went well.  Here is a shot of them playing Cat and Mouse, a game they play at soccer practice.  You can see his good soccer friends in this picture -- they are identical twins, always dressed the same.  

We played pin the ball on the goal.  Dad took a turn too.

And here he is with our family presents.  His wish list -- all things soccer, a piggy bank, and Legos.  

Happy birthday to our bright, happy, kinda fiesty 5-year-old! 

Another day in September -- was in Labor Day?  We took the kids on a "hike" at a nearby park.  It was a beautiful view, and despite the complaints we heard all the way there, the kids walked away happy as can be.  

This fall we have had some great rain storms.  Not totally common here in Utah.  Luckily we are pretty high up and have not experienced flooding problems like some in other parts of the state.  One evening there was a beautiful rainbow.  My camera is not fancy, so I was pleased this picture came out at all.  

We also had Sisters Weekend in September.  This has been a tradition for many years -- since before I was married, actually.  Each year we try and find a weekend where we can all get together.  This year we went to Midway, Utah and stayed at a beautiful cabin.  We talked, ate, relaxed, watched movies, and did a little family history tour of the area where my Grandma Crook was born and raised.  

  

We also celebrated Brian's birthday this month.  He always has some good help opening his presents.  Also, my parents happen to be driving through town on their way to California, so they came for dinner.  It seemed like a little more of a celebration with them here.

My baking that day was kind of a disaster.  I made one Angel Food cake that overflowed all over the oven.  It stunk up the house pretty bad.  I made another Angel Food cake that did not overflow and it looked great, until I put the frosting on.  I often don't frost Angel Food cake but decided I would be a little fancier this time -- well the frosting was too heavy for the cake and totally smashed it down.  Good thing I don't have a picky husband.  I do have a picky child though -- you know how Angel Food cake is a little tart?  Well when Tanner tasted the cake he said it was "bitter."  After everyone ate dessert, Brian said to the kids "Let's all tell Mom thanks for the yummy dinner and dessert!"  Tanner loudly responded "Thanks for the bitter cake, Mom!"  :)

We also celebrated September birthdays with Brian's family.  Here is a fun shot of them blowing out the candles -- I didn't think about all that loose powdered sugar that I sprinkled on top of the cake.  It made a bit of a mess.  

Happy birthday to my kind, patient, and hard-working husband!

Soccer, soccer, soccer

This year we hesitantly entered the world of Competition Soccer.  Andrew really loves the game, but Brian and I just keep wishing it was like "when we were young."  It used to be that everyone just played recreation ball, then tried out for school ball in Jr. High.  Well now there are so many kids in competition ball that by the time Andrew hit 4th grade, there were only a handful of teams in Recreation ball -- and that was with 3rd/4th grade combined.  So we decided to try out competition ball.  The verdict is still out on whether this will continue...

Here is my good-looking soccer player in his uniform.    

And below - a fun action shot....Andrew is on the right, looking like he's about to head the ball.

Eric opted to sit out the soccer season.  He is obsessed with basketball right now and anxiously awaiting the season.  

But Tanner is in his first season of soccer!  He has a great coach and a couple buddies on the team.  It is a hoot to watch the boys -- they are surprisingly good for only being 4 and 5 years old.  Tanner asks almost every day if he has soccer.  He loves it!

August Update

In August we went up into the mountains for a family reunion with my extended Frankman family.  Many of my cousins and their families slept in cabins, but I prefer my own bed and since it was only 1 hour away, we opted to go up early on Saturday.  Most of the time was spent eating and talking family history.  We did do some paddle-boating on the lake.  There were canoes too, which looked much faster and more fun.  But Brian and I have tried a canoe and had a difficult time steering.  Since we would have our kids with us, we went the safe route.  Truthfully, it was tiring and a little boring.  :)  We will have to be more brave next time and try out the canoes.

Brian, Tanner and Eric played some Horseshoes.  

And here is a fun picture of my cousin's son in traditional Mongolian clothing.  He recently returned from serving an LDS mission there in Mongolia.  He sang for us in their native language.  My cousins brought a map and marked where all the children/grandchildren/great grandchildren had served missions.  We had pretty much covered the globe.  It was really neat to see that.  Grandma and Grandpa Frankman would be proud!

Another exciting, but less fun, experience in August was Tanner's stay in the hospital.  Isn't this photo sad.  ):  I kind of feel like a mean mom for having taken the picture at all.  

Tanner has asthma, which is usually not too bad.  He has had a few bad attacks brought on by the common cold.  Well, he got a cold, his breathing was not good, but I kept thinking he was getting better.  By the time I took him in to the doctor, his attack was too far gone and his little body was just too tired.  After doing breathing treatments in the doctors office, rather than his oxygen level going up, it went down.  By the time we left his oxygen was in the low 80's and they insisted we take an ambulance to the hospital so he could be on oxygen.  Tanner was so scared he didn't appreciate the experience at all.  (I didn't really, either, but I had hoped that he might think it was kind of cool.)  When he heard we had to go to the hospital he tearfully said "But I don't want to die."  It was so sad.  Just typing it makes me teary-eyed.

We got a little smile out of him once his brothers came to visit.  (And just a side note, when I took Tanner to the doctor I had left the older boys home.  I ended up calling a friend who took the boys to the park, fed them lunch, and kept them safe until Brian could get home.  I am so grateful for kind people!)  And Tanner had an even bigger smile one his cousins, Max and Zoe, came to visit.  Their visit was what really helped him perk up that day!

Below you see Tanner a day or two later -- no more oxygen.  Yay!  In order to leave the hospital he had to maintain a good oxygen level while sleeping.  On the third night he finally made it through with his oxygen mostly in the 90's.  Hooray.

Primary Children's hospital did a great job making the hospital experience as fun as possible.  They had an Xbox in the room, movies, toys, and very nice nurses and doctors.  They also had a playroom -- Tanner wasn't able to go until the last day when they were confident he didn't need oxygen so much.  He had a great time shooting hoops and moving around.  He certainly looks like a healthy boy here in this picture, huh?

One of the difficult things about this hospital stay was that school started that same week.  We went into the hospital on Monday and the older boys started school on Wednesday.  I was stressed about them being anxious because I wasn't home, but they did great.  Tanner had actually started school the week before -- so he went 2 days, then missed 5.  

Table Toppers

Sometimes it is so nice to whip up a quick project!  I bought this cute Boo Crew fabric last year after halloween.  Love it.  I made 2 of these Web Table Toppers.  The pattern is one I picked up in a local quilt Shop Hop, but I have seen it around online too.  I tried making it a couple years ago and my fabric selection was off and my seems did not match up at all.  Making it this time, I see I have improved!    

 

Then there is this table runner...it is quite long so I had a hard time getting the whole thing in the camera frame.  It is made of several "school" fabrics -- paper clips, lined note paper, puzzle pieces.  I made it for my sister-in-law who is a school teacher.  We finished it just before the family birthday party -- wrapped it up nicely -- and then left it on our kitchen counter.  So now it will be weeks late.  Bummer.

 

Fish Mountains Quilt - Finish Q3

Another finish for the Finish Along!  This quilt is for my brother -- it was inspired by his love of fishing and the outdoors.  The fabric is a Riley Blake fabric called "Trail Mix."   The pattern is on the Moda Bake Shop, called "S'more Mountains."  You may notice that the picture isn't taken in the usual spot on my back fence.  I wasn't home when I gave him this quilt, and realized I hadn't taken a picture.  Luckily we at least had a cell phone camera.  And how handy that there was a very pointy mountain down the road, there especially to match the quilt.  ;)

Can you see those fish in the pictures below?  I spotted this fabric online and figured I'd better use it for Dave's quilt.  Dave has loved fish ever since I can remember.  My dad is a fly fisherman and Dave has followed in his footsteps.  He also had multiple tanks of fish as a teenager.  I think he only has one or two now -- he is taking care of other things (4 children) instead of fish.  

You can't tell from these pictures, but the mountains are actually made of corduroy.  I love corduroy.  I ran out of the dark brown corduroy and so I threw in a few tan corduroy mountains.  I like the variety.

I had someone else quilt this one -- she suggested a woodgrain pattern.  It looks great...better in person. 

Things I learned:

1.  Love the corduroy, but the intersection points are a little bulky.  My quilter said it wasn't a problem, but I was worried.  Next time I use corduroy I'll want to remember that and pick a pattern with less bulky intersections.

2.  Bias Wonkiness -- the pattern warns about this, and has you create extra large blocks and then trim down.  It was a good thing because all that cutting on the bias did cause some distortion.  

I am linking up to the 2015 Finish-Along at On the Windy Side

and Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story.

Falling Persimmon Charms - Finish Q3

Another Finish for the Finish Along.  This is another quilt using the "Falling Charms" pattern by Missouri Star Quilt Co.  The fabric line is called Persimmon by Basic Gray.  And the back is a beautiful panel and yardage from Kate and Birdie's Autumn Woods line.  If you can believe it, I only paid $1.00 a yard for this fabric!  I should have bought the entire bolt!

Points I pondered while finishing this quilt:

1.  I had the backing yardage on hand, and was happy with how it looked with the front.  But after it had been quilted, I saw that the quilter used navy thread to match the front, and off-white thread to match the back.  You can see a lot of dots of navy on the back where the thread from the front pulled through.  I read once that it is very difficult to get the tension exactly right and so I don't blame the quilter.  I just need to remember not to use such a contrasting backing.  I already did it once on something I quilted myself.  Hopefully I don't make the same mistake 3 times!

2.  I machine bound this quilt.  I have tried this method before, and failed miserable.  And I didn't set out to machine bind -- but I accidentally sewed the first side (raw edge) of the binding to the back instead of the front.  Argh!  This meant I would have had to hand-bind to the front, and I wasn't sure if the stitching would be too obvious.  So I decided to try and machine bind.  I glue basted the binding onto the front, and went for it.  The glue basting helped, and if I ever machine bind again, I'll use that method.  But I still had a hard time keeping the binding straight and my stitch straight.  I also didn't have orange thread, so I used tan....it doesn't look horrible but you can definitely see it.  I enjoy hand binding and will continue with that method.

And in closing, say "Hello" to my very smiley preschooler.  It was his first day of school this week.  An hour before this picture he was quite worried about going to a new preschool.  While watching lunch we happen to watch Daniel Tiger on PBS -- he was going to school too.  Tanner perked up, sang Daniel Tiger's song..."First get dressed, eat breakfast, brush teeth, put on shoes and go to school!"  He went off as happy as can be.  :)  When I picked him up and asked how it was, he said "At first it was kinda weird.  But then it was fun."

I am linking up to Quilt Story's Fabric Tuesday and Quilt Infatuation's NTT.
I am also linking up to 2015 Finish-Along at On the Windy Side.