Shawls and Kitties

Here's the Forest Frozen Shawl so far. It's a tough pattern but I'm doing okay. The problem is if you drop a stitch, game over. Brioche Knitting is made of stitches with yarn overs. If you drop a stitch, it's very difficult to find exactly what you're looking for. I have tried going backwards one stitch at a time. For some reason, I just can't find my dropped stitch. With luck, I've found 2 dropped stitches but I was surprised each time! It's a bit messy and I'm too new at Brioche Knitting to fix my mistakes. The lifeline has really helped me out. I can rip out to a row where I know exactly where I am in the pattern. The pattern is comprised of a 16 row repeat. It's so easy to get lost! I do love this shawl so I'll continue to keep working on it.

I went to my local quilt shop where I've signed up for my free monthly fabric. This is what I got this month. I love the kitties hanging out with books. Two of my favorites in one fabric! I'm not sure what I'll make with it but I just had to have it!! Have a great weekend!

Quilting the Scrap Pineapple Quilt

I've been working a lot the last few days. I've been knitting my shawl and sewing down the binding on my baby quilt after working the day. But today I was off and I loaded the backing and the Scrap Pineapple quilt top.  The backing is 100" wide and the quilt is 90" square so it took a little while. I just pinned one end to the longarm. I'll do the rest tomorrow. That was enough for one day!

I've been looking through my pantograph designs and I think I've settled on this one. It's called Feathered Curls by Timeless Quilting Designs. I'll take a few more days to decide for sure. I only own about 10 pantographs so my choices are limited even though I like them all. I've never quilted this design before so I'll practice it a few times before I actually start quilting!

I Like Thursday #95

It's time for I Like Thursday. Please join LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color to read more fun and uplifting posts. As you can see in the picture, I'm starting to make a little more progress on my shawl. It's getting a little easier. I love seeing the pattern emerge. I'm taking this one slowly. I sort of have to or else I'll be ripping out rows!!

The baby quilt is finished and the binding has been sewn. I just have to hand sew the binding down. I love making these smaller projects. They're fast and gratifying!

These sandwiches are very popular in my area. The restaurant that used to make these just closed. I found this recipe and thought I'd share it. These sandwiches are so good! Try it and tell me what you think.

I just started to read this book a few days ago. It's based on a true story. So far, it's really good and keeps making me want to read more which is the sign of a great book! There are so many good books out there right now. Reading has always been one of my favorite pastimes.

That's my week! It was sort of on the quiet side again but that's fine with me! Have a wonderful weekend!

Accomplishments

 I finished a few things yesterday. I was in a mood to get things done and I was off. That doesn't always work out that way so I was happy to finish up a few items. I'm done with this month's Color My World BOM. I had to make more houses so now I have a total of 32. I also had to sew them into pairs once I settled on a my setup. 

This picture is before I sewed the pairs of houses together. I left them alone for awhile to see if I had too many of the same color grouped together. I moved a few around but I think I always came back to the same arrangement. I'm all done with this BOM until April. This month seemed to take me awhile.

I also finished machine quilting the baby quilt for my neighbor. I have the binding fabric ready to cut. This was a fun and quick project to work on. I hope she likes it! I'm not sure when her baby is due but I'll deliver it once the birth is announced. 

I just might start a new project! I probably shouldn't since I have 4 quilts to finish on the longarm but I just can't control myself! 

I Like Thursday #94

It's so warm out there! The snow is melting and I can actually see my lawn. Massachusetts is having a warm Spring day! Welcome to I Like Thursday where we try to post positive and uplifting topics. Please visit LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color to read more fun posts. 

I got a great deal on this fabric. I plan on using it for the backing of my Scrap Pineapple quilt. Since the quilt measures 90 X 90, I had to buy 8.5 yards of fabric. I found the deal at Hancock's of Paducah. They had the best price. 

I just started my newest Brioche knitting project. It's the Frozen Forest Shawl written by The Happy Knitter. It's difficult so I inserted a lifeline yesterday. It's just a line of yarn to hold my stitches so I don't have to start over again. My kids bought the yarn for me as a Christmas gift. 

I just finished this book and highly recommend it! I loved it from the minute I started it. I devoured it in 5 days! I think you'll like it too!

That's my week! I hope the weather stays nice but I have a feeling it's too early for real Spring weather. Have a wonderful weekend!!

My Go-To Baby Quilt

 

This is the pattern I always use when I have to make a baby quilt. It's quick and easy. You can make it any size you like depending on your own preference. 

I make a 9-patch. Actually, it's a rather 3 large 9-patches!

The 9-patch is cut into 4 equal squares. I cut down the middle both horizontally as well as vertically.

I add sashing and it's done!

I bought this for the backing. I just have to piece and wash the backing before I load it on the longarm. See, so quick! I'm hoping to have this quilt ready before my neighbor's daughter has her baby!

I Like Thursday #93

 

It's time for I Like Thursday. Please join me and other bloggers at Not Afraid of Color for more fun and inspiring posts. This is the courtyard at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. My daughter and her boyfriend went there last weekend. I went to school right near the museum and visited it a few times. This picture brought back many memories. The courtyard is full of color in the spring and summer. They plan on going back! It's such a great place to visit. 

One of our pharmacists is leaving us. We had a party for her this past weekend. The overnight pharmacist did the decorating. The day pharmacists brought in the food. It was a fun day to work! 

I finished quilting my friend's quilt last week. I always sew the binding on for her. She sews it down by hand.  She sews a little bit but has no idea how to sew on a binding. I think we make a good team!

I finished my socks yesterday! I just have to get them washed and they'll be all set to be worn! I feel like I finished a few projects in the last few days. It's always a great feeling! Have a nice weekend!

Dresden Plate Finished!

 

I finished my friend's antique Dresden Plate quilt this past weekend. Phew! It came out pretty good if I do say so myself! I wasn't sure if my feathers would look crooked since the plates are not lined up exactly straight. I think everything just sort of blends nicely and nothing looks completely out of whack. 

 When I first started to quilt it, I thought it would take me a long time to finish it. Once I really got going, I sort of developed a system. I would outline each one of the Dresden plates. Then I would make a line between them for the feathers that were on each side of the applique. The last thing I would do was extend quilting the borders and mark horizontal lines across the quilt between the rows. Once I got into a work pattern, it became so much faster! I knew what to do.

I would quilt the circle with curved crosshatching when outlining the plates. They are not marked so it was quick! The stippling was fun to add. I was able to cover a few of my feather mistakes so it came in handy! The only bad thing is my feathers improved as I worked my way down the quilt. I can tell where I started and ended just be looking at the shape of the feathers. I hope no one else notices! I had a great time working on this and felt I learned so much. I have 3 more quilt tops of my own to quilt. It looks like I'll be busy!