Merry Christmas! (a finished quilt!)

Priorities around here...

Presents = about half-way wrapped.
BUT the quilt is done.  

This quilt started over 2 years ago, with the help of some wonderful ladies in a little Christmas Bee we did... (Thank you Kelly, Cherie, Amy, Rene, Natalia, and Karrie!)  

The wheels are the "Cartwheels" pattern from Tula Pink, and the trees are whatever the creative ladies came up with!

I have more presents to wrap, family to visit, cousins to play with, and a house to tidy, but I wanted to share this before Christmas was gone!

Blessings to you this Holiday season, and as the New Year comes!

♥

WIP Wednesday - O Christmas Tree

Finally getting this bee quilt taken care of!

Daddy took the little man to town today in an attempt to Christmas shop for Mommy (which is reason #432 I'm glad we had Scarlet, because let's just say shopping is not his forté, and I can't wait to send her along to "help.") ;)  

While Scarlet slept, Mommy quilted.

And when I spread the quilt out to check my progress (which I'm working on the binding now!), Scarlet practiced her favorite yoga move.

No lie.  You tell her, "Scarlet, do your downward dog," and she gets to work. :)

Her brother was not going to be outdone by his little sister. ♥

Oh how I love these two.

Wanna see their faces?

I've been listening to a lot of Christmas music to try to lift my spirits, because like so many of you, my heart is still heavy.  

But a merry Christmas week.  And Happy Holidays.  And now a line from my favorite Christmas carol...

"Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother... and in His name, all oppression shall cease..."

Linking to Lee's.

I think I can...I think I can...

10 days left...
The quilt top for Steiger's new big boy bed is complete and ready to be basted, quilted, and bound.

He picked out most of the fabrics, and I'm happy to say this quilt was an all stash quilt. :)

I pulled out my Christmas Bee quilt from last year... debating whether I want to try to finish it, but I think I will... (try that is)

I've decided that because she is too young to know any different, and this is the only Christmas where she will actually be inexpensive, Scarlet's quilt will probably wait... as it still needs borders and the rest.

Scarlet has become my little sewing buddy, as she has learned how to sleep in her swing. ♥ (Steiger never would)

I miss her when she sleeps (and have been known to wake her up at times), so this is nice, because I can still see her. 

Off to play with Steiger while Scarlet is still napping!

Merry early Christmas!

The Christmas quilt top

Add another one to my pile of to be backed/basted!



This is my Christmas Bee quilt top...and I LOVE it... and I want to always ask my Bee friends to make big blocks because sewing them together is so quick and easy!

THOUGH -- I can't decide if the top is really finished or not.  Should I add a patchwork border?  The husband thinks not, and that would be less work; however, I kind of think I *should.*

We'll see.

The backing is a pain, I must admit.  I have scraps + a couple random yards, and this is a pretty big quilt.  So I'm working on it.

Yesterday, the hubs and I went out to celebrate our anniversary (sans child), and we went to try out some sewing machines.  I tried the babylock Espire (which has been upgraded to the Symphony now), and it was really nice.  But I still think I'll go with the Juki.  But I need to hurry if I'm going to get all my tops done by Christmas!  Yipes!

(Christmas Bee friends -- when I get this finished, I'll post all about how wonderful each of your blocks are...because they are...and I ♥ them)

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I am entering this is SewCalGal's Christmas quilt show... I just wish it was all the way finished! :)

Bee blocks over the weekend

First --

Some wonky stars for Karrie and our "Putting the Bee in Christmas" group.

These were my first wonky stars... and they went quite well. :)

Since I made my bee members work so hard last month, I decided to make her next one extra special.

I also got a couple of my Dresdens done for the Quilting Divas group.  

Jessica wanted aqua, purple, and green

and Kelly wanted pink, green, and grey on Kona Coal

I used the 22.5 degree ruler for these, instead of the 18 degree (16 blades vs. 20), and I like this chubbier version so much better.  I really don't want to send these away.... maybe I'll make a scrappy Dresden quilt one day.  

August's Bee blocks

I had a Bee block making Spree this weekend...

Here's what I got done:

I made Month Three of the Designer Mystery Block of the Month... (I promised to do better this year -- #76)



I'm making the original set, in 12 Days, and I'm adding in another in Fruitcake.  I was hoping to get the Santa Hats (Month 2) done today, but Steiger has been a bit of a pickle... so we'll see what happens.

These were a little late (for Putting the Bee in Christmas group), but I got Rene's 12 Days Stars done also.

For the Fresh and Funky Bee, Karen wanted citrus colors, and white in squares, rectangles, or half-square triangles.  I used this Friendship Scrap Block, but had to improvise a little, because I didn't have enough of the orange or the white... so I had to cut in to the yellow, which meant I didn't have enough to give the yellow its own HST... I hope she likes it.  I love those orange flowers.

Mary asked for Drunk Love blocks for her month in Bee Splendid.

These are actually the first Drunk Love blocks I have made (though I have done some wonky-ish log cabins before)... she sent scraps, and said we could add from our stash.

I added the Modern Meadow to this one.

And pretty much everything except the solid yellow to this one.  I just really wanted to do yellow and gray...and didn't realize until afterward that nearly all the fabrics were from my own stash!  (The outer ring is Kona Coal)

Occasionally, little bits of Steiger get in pictures when I'm taking them... (like here, here, and here)... so I decided to just let him in...he's pretty cute after all. :)

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In other really exciting news -- 

It's my turn as "Queen Bee" in our "Putting the Bee in Christmas" group.

The first few blocks have shown up in the pool.  I'm in love.

A cartwheel by Kelly.

And a tree by Karrie.

And another cartwheel by Cherie.



And a couple more trees were added late last night...

This one by Amy (the HST Queen)



And Rene with hexies (I adore the "star" on top)

You know, I'm not going to have much to do with actually making the quilt blocks on this one -- but I'm so excited for it.  It's going to be the greatest Christmas quilt ever, I'm pretty sure. :)

All right -- back to four-patch pieces for me!

this is why I do Christmas in July

Last week, I had a completely gratuitous mommy post... this one is a completely gratuitous fabric post... with a Christmas-y twist (this will be my Christmas Bee fabric).


Just enjoy.







The glorious greens





The really pRetty reds





The wonderful whites







All in a circle









(Fabric collections represented are Michael Miller Christmas 2009 and 2010, Sheri Berry Christmas 2009 and 2010, Riley Blake's Colorful Christmas, Alexander Henry 2009 Christmas, Robert Kaufman Glitzmas and Sparkle All the Way, and Free Spirit's Hallmark Ornaments)


The only trouble is that I still can't exactly decide what to do with all these glorious fabrics yet. 


At present, I'm torn between:


- Dresdens...

 like these from Sherri

or these from Material Obsession

or these from this Barbara Bradenburg pattern

Or these Dresden like "Cartwheels" from Tula Pink

Or this "chubby star" 

(that's what I call it -- I don't know its real name)

Like in Material Obsession

And in Camille's Red Velvet pattern

Do y'all think these would look good together?  

They're both kind of "chubby" looking -- I am kind of thinking of making my theme "chubby and fussy and round."  (This could be a bit of my baby fever leaking out).

Anybody have pics of other quilt blocks/designs that make you think "chubby?"

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I also finished Natalia's present block for our "Putting the Bee in Christmas" group.





And here it is with the first star I did.





Natalia wanted to make a "sampler" quilt... she made one particular request (mine was "presents"), and one "whatever" request.  Her quilt is going to be so incredible!  Check out some of the other blocks she'll be getting from some ridiculously creative women that I wish I could meet in real life (meet me at market one day ladies???)


From Karrie





From Rene





From Kelly






From Cherie





From Amy





There are more on the group page... go see them... I can't wait to see how Natalia puts them all together...


(Though Steiger might not let me send all of the blocks...he liked this one...)





He likes all my Christmas fabric actually (either that or it angers him somehow... or he's just emulating Mommy...I really do think he likes it). ;)