WIP: Scrappy geese (and then some)

So, it's been awhile since I have shared anything here.

I'm back with a doozy, though!

About seven weeks ago, I posted this pile of fabric on instagram:

The stack happened by accident. I was rearranging my yellow fabrics, and then, well... If you have a fabric stash (or any other medium), you know what I mean.

I started by pairing fabrics and making flying geese in a variety of sizes, and then just started piecing things together. I'm using the HSTs made off the geese corners, as well as strips and scraps.

And of course, I had to add a few bear paws.

Olias and Fiztgerald (and Bella, too, although no photo here) helped, as cats do.

This project is really coming together now, although I didn't have a specific size planned when I started.

It won't be long now!

FO: Wonky Bee Traveling Quilt

I love every square inch of this quilt. And I love the wonky bee girls (Nicke, Sara, Melissa, Jessica and Amanda) that helped stitch it.

The patchwork is eclectic and improvisational. The colors are bold and happy.

THe quilting is dense and in yellow thread.

I'm not sure how I could love this more.

You can read more about this quilt here and here.

FO: Echo Postage Stamps

Thanks for all of your well-wishes! I really cannot wait to share wedding pictures with you, and I hope to be doing just that next week (fingers crossed!).

I managed to finish one item from my recent list! Truth be told, the Friday before the wedding, I was quilting this! Not all day, mind you, but I snuck in a couple of hours to work on it. The Sunday after we got back from our honeymoon, I finished quilting and started the binding.

A few days later, I have a little finished mini!

It feels good to cross an item off the list, and this mini makes me so happy. Echo is definitely one of my favorite recent lines, and I can't wait for the follow-up, Bella!

In addition to Echo squares, I used a few small scraps of other lovely prints and solids. There's a little Modern Meadow, some Suzuko Koseki buttons (!), Essex linen, Kona Slate, and a few others. I bordered with a burgundy Kona (not sure of the exact color, but I can check if anyone is curious).

I might love the back just as much as the front! If I do, I'm sure it's due to those lovely Anthology yellow flowers. I love that print! I used some leftover odds and ends to complete the back.

This is quilted in yellow again with random lines, and I bound with another Anthology print, from Bryant Park.

It feels so good to be sewing after a short break! I'm off to a retreat with my guildmates this weekend; I'm sure we'll have fun!

Have a great weekend, my friends!

Catch-all

Hey hey!
Thanks for all your kind words on the shawl that Rachel and Rue knit. Every time I see it hanging with my wedding dress, I get excited!

The wedding is just around the corner, and I've been crossing things off the list pretty steadily. I also opted to eliminate a few tasks I'd set for myself. I knew trying to get everything done would make me crazy, and I'd really like to avoid that.

Forty napkins are completely finished. The rest of them are made, but need to be washed and have labels sewn on.

I managed to finish my April Wonky Bee blocks this weekend, for Jessica. She's working on a quilt-as-you-go log cabin quilt, and sent along scraps to use. I added a few pieces, and really enjoyed making these.
A log cabin is always happy-making.

I also finished my first charity quilt. The Houston MQG has chosen the Star of Hope as our 2012 charity.
Through fabric donations, we've set a goal of 100 quilts for the year.

I supplemented the fabric I was given with solids and the DS print on the back. I really think it turned out great, and I was happy I was able to finish in time for our first donation date.

So, I've also been working on two non-obligatory projects.

Gray Plum, a new knitting project, from Veera Valimaki's Summer Plum. I'm knitting this KnitPicks Palette and I love it so far! I plan to take this for honeymoon knitting. Veera is also the designer of Stripe Study.

My other fun WIP is a project with one of my favorite lines, Echo.

About a month ago, I had this:

After this weekend, I have a mini quilt top:

. I assembled the back, too, and I love it as much as the front!

I'm awful about measuring quilts, but I'm going to try to remember to do that from now on. I used several other scraps to supplement/compliment the Echo. This one probably won't get done until after the wedding, but it's been a nice distraction!

I also obviously won't be sharing a finished Swoon anytime soon (hey, that rhymed!).

I expect to post pretty sporadically over the next couple of weeks, but I look forward to sharing wedding photos with you very soon!

FO: Nicke's Curvy Echo

It seems strange that I only met Nicke last year. We've become such good pals, and it feels like I've known her longer. I say "known", but we have not yet met in person. I think that will happen this year, though!

We recently agreed to do a swap, and she received her package last week.

Like most of the sewing and quilting community, Nicke fell hard for Lotta Jansdotter's line, Echo. I've fallen hard for this fabric, too. There's no question of that! I've already purchased some for myself to make a fun new project! Oh, but back to Nicke's pillow! This was not my first time sewing curves, as evidenced by my lingering Single Girl (I desperately want to finish that this year!).

For Nicke's pillow, I used some templates my grandmother shared with me from her stash. It was an old package, with two sizes of Drunkard's Path templates, and also, a clamshell template, which I am still investigating.

This was a perfect excuse to do more curvy sewing, which is fun and impressive!

My favorite part of this pillow is the yellow stitching. My mom gave me a fun box of assorted Guttermann thread for Christmas (too bad, but it's no longer on sale!), and this happy yellow was crying out to be used. The pillow is envelope-style, and I backed it with some It's a Hoot Chocolate brown dot fabric from the stash.

I knew Nicke would be thrilled, because I didn't want to give this pillow away, which is always an indication of a good gift! I will share what Nicke sends me in return when the time comes!

Oh, p.s., if you are intimidated by curvy sewing, you should check out Rachel's new class!

I hope you all have a fun weekend!