Elvira Quarantine Quilt

I stumbled across the Elvira Quarantine Along by GE Designs last weekend. I didn't need another quilt project, but I decided to join in. I've had this collection of fat quarters since 2013 and never settled on a project. This project makes great use of larger scale prints, so I it was the perfect candidate. I bought this bundle from the Fat Quarter Shop during a sale in July 2013. I also had a couple of one-yard coordinating prints and about a half yard in my collection.

These blocks are really easy to cut and piece. I used most of the bundle for the front. I used my Jaybird Super Sidekick Ruler to create the 60 degree diagonal cuts for the blocks.

I pieced the backing because I had a coordinating panel and needed to use it somehow. This post is split up with the next part appearing in a couple days. Have you started any new projects recently? I hear several designers have started quilt alongs. I might join in another one now that this one is nearly finished.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Jaybird Super Sidekick Ruler
Creative Grids 6.5" x 24.5" Rectangle
Fiskars Rotary Cutter
Fiskars Self Healing Rotary Cutting Mat
BLACK+DECKER Classic Steam Iron
Grabbit Magnetic Pin Cushion
Fiskars 8-inch scissors
Juki TL-2010Q
Cheryl Ann's Quilting Design Wall - 72" White

Cranky Socks

I was in the mood to crank out some socks. This is a shot of the cast-on bonnet loaded up and starting with the waste yarn. 

This is another fun hand dyed from Into the Whirled that I picked up at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival last year. 

The colorway (on the right) is "Radioactive" and I couldn't leave it there because I love purple and green together. 

Here is the turned toe with the waste yarn started for the cast-off. 

The stripes on this yarn are just delightful! I still have to finish the Kitchener on one sock, but they are almost ready for my feet.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Fiskars 7 Inch Softgrip Student Scissors (snipping yarn)
5 Pieces 5 Different Size Bent Latch Hook Crochet Needle Hook (picking up dropped stitches)
Cable Clamp PRO Cable Management 4 Pack (used in place of weight buckle)
Brightech Lightview Pro Flex - Hands Free, Magnifying Glass Desk Lamp for Close Work (lens removed)
Zibra PB100LZR Grip-n-Glide 1-Inch Round Trim Paint Brush (to clean lint/dust from machine)
24 Pack Metal Rectangular Empty Hinged Tins (hold extra machine needles)
addi Express Hook (picking up dropped stitches, hanging setup bonnet, finishing missed stitches)
Do4U Drinking Home Office Table Desk Side Huge Clip (I use it to hold the ball/cake of yarn while I crank but it could hold your drink, too)
BLACK+DECKER WM225-A Portable Project Center and Vise (this is my machine stand, slightly modified for a larger work surface)
RuMe Bags Baggie All (Aspen) (to hold my hand-finishing supplies: yarn needle, needle threader, scissors, Kitchener directions, stitch markers, etc)

Call Me Badge Holder

Last week I shared my first Call Me badge holder. Saturday I grabbed some fabrics to make a couple more. This time, I used this fun tentacle print from Spoonflower. 

Darling Husband wanted something bright and difficult to miss. I think this hit the mark. 

This one is a little wider than the first one I made and I'm super pleased with how it turned out. 

Now he will be ready the next time we get to attend a convention. 

I made myself a slightly larger one, too. I love the happy crab and jellyfish!

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Creative Grids 6.5" x 24.5" Rectangle
Fiskars Rotary Cutter
Fiskars Self Healing Rotary Cutting Mat
BLACK+DECKER Classic Steam Iron
Grabbit Magnetic Pin Cushion
Fiskars 8-inch scissors
Juki TL-2010Q
Creative Grids 12.5" Square Quilting Ruler
Pellon Flex Foam
Craft Clips

Crochet Crazy

Aunt Betty dropped off a bunch of Mandala yarn a few weeks back and I've been trying to use it up. I almost always have at least one crochet project going at a time. I wanted to use this easy 2-row repeat design called "domes" to make another triangle shawl. This stitch is from Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways. A great stitch dictionary if you are into crochet stitch dictionaries and designing your own crochet projects.  

I wasn't getting the texture I wanted by doing one row in the the back loop only so I switched to crocheting around the post. 

This is exactly what I was looking for! I love how each row stands out. Perfect!

Now that I've added a few more rows, I'm considering ripping back so I can make sure all the rows match. Since this is my television time project, it won't hurt my feelings to rip it back and make the beginning rows match. I'm working from two Mandala cakes, switching every two rows to make the contrasting stripes. This time I'm using two of the same colorway but starting at different points in the color repeat. I really like how it's turning out.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)
Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways
Lion Brand Mandala is available on Amazon, though you might be able to find it cheaper locally.

Charity Quilting

As the world becomes a surreal place, I have been quilting less. This isn't a problem, just a shift in focus. This is the stack of quilts waiting for another Annapolis Quilts for Kids meeting. The March meeting was canceled. I might try to quilt a couple more this weekend as I still have supplies and finished tops. Hang in there, folks!

If you want to contribute but don't have the time or skills, you can support the national Quilts for Kids by shopping through Amazon Smile. I don't earn anything from this link. This link lets your purchases support Quilts for Kids through Amazon. I don't add affiliate links to my charity quit posts on purpose. I donate my time, my machine, my thread, and my skill to the cause. 

Call Me Badge Holder

Last year when we went to Relaxicon they handed out these badge holders with registration. I liked the idea of a badge holder that holds more than your badge, but this one really didn't hold all the things I want to carry, or not conveniently, in one place. If I had to pick one reason I didn't like it is the cord. Sure, it is adjustable, but once you put your cell phone inside that cord will cut into your neck more than you would think. 

I found a great pattern called Call Me from By Annie that I though would do the trick. Picked up some mesh and fold-over elastic locally and went digging in my collection of fabrics. Call Me is a free pattern and they even have a free video add on to walk you through the steps to create your own. Their free patterns are excellent skill-builders. 

I grabbed this fun octo-print I ordered from Spoonflower ages ago along with some coordinating fabric for the binding. 

I was worried I wouldn't have enough foam for the project, yet here is my roll of the stuff. More than enough. I used Pellon Flex Foam because that's what I have on-hand. 

I quilted some wavy lines on my quilted panel and got cutting. 

After the prep work, assembly was quick. I often surprise myself with how well bias binding turns out. 

I'm super pleased with how this came out. There is the pocket for the badge, a zipper pocket to hold your room key or credit card, and the mesh pocket on the back to hold your phone. I don't know that it is my final answer on what I want in a badge holder but it sure is close. I'll think about any changes I want and make another before the next Relaxicon.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Creative Grids 6.5" x 24.5" Rectangle
Fiskars Rotary Cutter
Fiskars Self Healing Rotary Cutting Mat
BLACK+DECKER Classic Steam Iron
Grabbit Magnetic Pin Cushion
Fiskars 8-inch scissors
Juki TL-2010Q
Creative Grids 12.5" Square Quilting Ruler
Pellon Flex Foam
Craft Clips

Crochet Madness

I've been working up some swatches using my copy of Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways to make things. This was my swatch for a cowl. 

A friend gave me this cake of Caron Chunky and it seemed perfect for a chunky cowl. Aft I swatched, I cast on the right number of stitches and got hooking! This project took only a couple days to work up. Super quick with bulky yarn.

On Sunday morning I was almost done. 

It's kind of lumpy, but I like it anyway. Now I just need to find it a home. I might use this stitch again to make something else. I'll have to play with it some more.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)
Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways
Caron Chunky Cake

Charity Quilting

I love scrappy quilts. 

Aren't these little quilts great!

If you want to contribute but don't have the time or skills, you can support the national Quilts for Kids by shopping through Amazon Smile. I don't earn anything from this link. This link lets your purchases support Quilts for Kids through Amazon. I don't add affiliate links to my charity quit posts on purpose. I donate my time, my machine, my thread, and my skill to the cause. 

Here is the EpochConverter for 2020.  

2020 Charity Quilt Count: 23

Cranky Socks

Last Saturday I wasn't in the mood for quilting. I was in the mood to crank some socks. I grabbed some Knit Picks Felici and Stroll and got cranking.

I didn't get far before I found this knot. There may have been some choice words at that point. I cut the yarn, switched back to scrap yarn, and started another hung hem. This is often what I do when I make a mistake. I just skip past it. I can wind that yarn back up later. I wanted to make socks!

There was a small miscalculation when I went to make the second sock, so the stripes don't quite line up. I'm not going to start over for that. I'll wear mismatched socks.

After the stripes did me in, I switched to this fun hand dyed from Into the Whirled that I picked up at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival (most likely 2018). The colorway is "Captain Tight Pants" and I couldn't leave it there with a name like that.

These cranked up perfectly. I love how fun these are. I have a pair made with "Wibbly Wobbly, Timey Wimey" that I wear all the time.

I keep meaning to share some of the tools I use with my circular sock machine. I've included most of them below.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Fiskars 7 Inch Softgrip Student Scissors (snipping yarn)
5 Pieces 5 Different Size Bent Latch Hook Crochet Needle Hook (picking up dropped stitches)
Cable Clamp PRO Cable Management 4 Pack (used in place of weight buckle)
Brightech Lightview Pro Flex - Hands Free, Magnifying Glass Desk Lamp for Close Work (lens removed)
Zibra PB100LZR Grip-n-Glide 1-Inch Round Trim Paint Brush (to clean lint/dust from machine)
24 Pack Metal Rectangular Empty Hinged Tins (hold extra machine needles)
addi Express Hook (picking up dropped stitches, hanging setup bonnet, finishing missed stitches)
Do4U Drinking Home Office Table Desk Side Huge Clip (I use it to hold the ball/cake of yarn while I crank but it could hold your drink, too)
BLACK+DECKER WM225-A Portable Project Center and Vise (this is my machine stand, slightly modified for a larger work surface)
RuMe Bags Baggie All (Aspen) (to hold my hand-finishing supplies: yarn needle, needle threader, scissors, Kitchener directions, stitch markers, etc)

Crochet Every Way

I wanted to make another shawl using a new design and some Caron Cakes yarn.

I grabbed my copy of Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways, some yarn, and got swatching. I have way more stitch dictionaries than I probably need but I had to add this one to my collection. It does something most stitch dictionaries don't do: it tells you how to shape the stitches it tries to teach you. I really like this book because it does exactly that. It teaches you how to work the stitch designs flat, with shaping along the edge of the work, and in the middle of the work. 

I still ended up working three swatches to get what I wanted, but when I got there it was perfect. This was the start of the shawl.

I kept working through this simple two row design.

The rows stack up quite nicely.

Two Caron Cakes later I had a nice shawl. Maybe I should write this up as a pattern. I'll have to think about it. If you want to design your own work, this stitch dictionary is a good resource.

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Crochet hooks: Clover Crochet Hook Set (10 hooks)
Crochet Every Way Stitch Dictionary: 125 Essential Stitches to Crochet in Three Ways

Charity Quilting

I love scrappy quilts!

Aren't these little quilts great!

If you want to contribute but don't have the time or skills, you can support the national Quilts for Kids by shopping through Amazon Smile. I don't earn anything from this link. This link lets your purchases support Quilts for Kids through Amazon. I don't add affiliate links to my charity quit posts on purpose. I donate my time, my machine, my thread, and my skill to the cause. 

Here is the EpochConverter for 2020.  

2020 Charity Quilt Count: 21

Fabric Acquisition 2020

As part of my own quilter accountability I've been keeping track of how much fabric I buy during the year. Last year I did a pretty good job and totaled 24 yards.

My first purchase of the year was to buy backing for both of these finished quilt tops. Quilt backing is one thing I almost don't count. I wouldn't be able to finish quilts without it so I consider it a necessary cost. Handy tip: when you finish the quilt top, measure it and write down the measurements. Then, calculate how much backing fabric you need, along with special supplies such as thread or batting, and pin that note to your finished top. This makes it so much easier when you get to the quilt shop. 

The first quilt shop I went to had a limited amount of wide backing fabrics to choose from. I really liked this print, but it had more teal and green than I really wanted.

I ended up going to another quilt shop and found this black that is more suitable. 

I also ended up with this gray floral for the Star Storm quilt top I finished in December. It isn't perfect but it will work. Remember, finished is better than perfect.

One 2.75 yard and two 2.5 yard cuts of wide backing fabric. 

I also picked up some Dream Poly white for the Star Storm quilt. I don't want an off-white batting showing through. 

At the second shop I grabbed a pair of 24" double-pull purse zippers to make some totes. 

The shop where I purchased the black backing seriously challenged my calm with the way they cut the backing. The person at the cutting counter cut both selvages and then ripped until they got to the middle and figured out those rips didn't match up. It's like they had never before cut wide backing. Maybe it was. This is a 4" difference. They cut generously, so I got my 2.5 yards. It's just frustrating.

Fabric purchased in 2020: 7.75 yards
Fabric purchased in 2019: 24 yards

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Creative Grids 6.5" x 24.5" Rectangle
Fiskars Rotary Cutter
Fiskars Self Healing Rotary Cutting Mat
BLACK+DECKER Classic Steam Iron
Grabbit Magnetic Pin Cushion
Fiskars 8-inch scissors
Juki TL-2010Q
Cheryl Ann's Quilting Design Wall - 72" White