Bloggers Block of the Month for February

I enjoyed making this month's block very much. I've never made this particular star block before.

I would love to make lots of scrappy blocks just like it!



All six blocks so far:



I am beginning to see what this Winter/Christmas Quilt will look like.

Jacob's Dream

I decided to name this Jacob's Ladder quilt "Jacob's Dream" as Dee suggested in the comments of my post asking for ideas last week. Thanks for all the suggestions. I liked them all.

I love taking pictures of my finished quilts, so I took a bunch! I don't finish a quilt that often, so when I do, I like to make the most of it!

I enjoyed how the picture of "Razzle Dazzle" turned out taken in front of the cotton field last fall, so I did the same with Jacob's Dream.



With the red barn in the background:



Love the blue skies:



On a chair on the kitchen in the sunshine:



I like how it looks on this $7.00 yard sale chair. At first I had planned to paint it bright yellow and use it in the Zinnia Garden this summer as a whimsical touch. But I like it too much like it is.















On a Bed:





On a bench:



On the old sewing machine:





Thanks for indulging me with all the pictures!

So glad to label this post under "Completed Quilts".

The unseen details of the Jacob's Ladder Quilt

I tried sewing the binding on the Jacob's Ladder quilt completely on the machine and am very pleased with it. I used THIS TUTORIAL at Prudent Baby. The reason I like it is that you don't see the seams on the front of the quilt and the binding on the back turns out very neat. It was such a time saver! I will definitely be using this method often in the future. I think all baby quilts should have this kind of binding because of the all the washing and drying a baby quilt gets. A machine sewn binding is bound to hold up better.

Front:




Back:



I pieced the backing on this quilt. I love it, especially because I didn't have to purchase any fabric to make this quilt. I used what I had and did some stash busting too.



I will be posting the pictures of the finished quilt on Monday. Yay for a finish of a bed size quilt in February!

Machine Quilting The Final Corner...

I always love to reach the last corner of a quilt that I am machine quilting. So here it is.

The last block...


Getting closer:



Even closer:



The last few stitches:



Done!






Tonight, the binding. I'm pondering whether or not to try sewing on the binding completely by machine. I don't think machine sewn bindings look as nice, but they are quicker and in my opinion more durable. My son will probably be rough on this quilt, so a machine sewn binding just might be the best option.

Happy Tuesday!

Debbie J.

Friday Night Sew In Results

When doing Friday Night Sew In, I really like to actually complete a project so that I have something to show for my time. This means I either need to be close to completing a large project or simply make a small project. I'm only half way through the machine quilting of the Jacob's Ladder Quilt and there was no way I could have finished it last night.

So, I decided to make this for my friend who furnished the fabric and requested a clothespin bag.



I thought the rick rack was a cute touch, but..... the rick rack is crooked...



Much better!



I'll put rick rack on the next one and make sure its straight!

Couldn't Wait for Friday Night!

Last night I reached the half way point of machine quilting my Jacob's Ladder quilt. I needed a break so I switched from the quilting foot to a quarter inch piecing foot and made the current Blogger's Block of the Month. This one was different than any other quilt block I have made or ever seen. It was fun to make and turned out very cute.

The blogger who designed this month's block is Quilt Dad.




The block is made from eight 1 1/2 inch wide strips.



The next BOM will be available on February 25th.

WIP Wednesday

Its WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced.

Here's the only thing I have been working on! Quilting the Jacob's Ladder Quilt has been very enjoyable. Even though the same quilting pattern is being used all over the quilt each block takes on a different look after being quilted.

LOVE IT!!!!!

Its big, but the quilting batting I used is thin and its not hard to handle at all.



I've been trying to come up with the name I will give this quilt. We recently sang the song "We are climbing Jacob's Ladder" at church, so I was paying extra attention to the lyrics looking for ideas to name this quilt. Yes, even in church I am thinking about quilting.... sorry Lord....

This quilt is for my much loved son, Jacob. One idea I have for the name is "Soldiers of the Cross". I'm planning on re-reading the story of Jacob's ladder in the Bible for further inspiration. So, not sure what the name will be yet. Any ideas?

Here's the Bible story:

Jacob left Beersheba, and went toward Haran. He came to the place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the Lord stood above it [or "beside him"] and said, "I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your descendants; and your descendants shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and by you and your descendants shall all the families of the earth bless themselves. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done that of which I have spoken to you." Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place; and I did not know it." And he was afraid, and said, "This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."

Wow, lots of inspiration for the name in there!



Hope your Wednesday is a good one.

Friday Night Sew In

Its time for Friday night sewing for February, which is this coming Friday, the 17th.

My plan is to make my Bloggers Block of the Month block. Its almost time for the next block to come out, so I need to get to work on it!

A Winter Weekend in the Sewing Room

Thinking Spring with another clothespin bag:



A nap mat cover and matching pillow for a friend's little boy to use at day care.



Got the sewing machine set up for free motion quilting and quilted a few blocks before I officially hit the wall last night:



I hope you accomplished some winter weekend sewing at your house!

Quilt Widower

You've heard of a golf widow or a football widow? My hubby jokingly calls himself a quilt widower.

After a day at work he cooked our supper....



while I was doing this:





The support of my hubby helps me to get more quilting done!

WIP Wednesday

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

1. Jacob's Ladder Quilt. I finished all the blocks and got them sewn together into rows for a finished top/flimsie. This week I am working on the pieced back so that I can get this quilt pin basted and then start the FMQing. I'm trying really hard to use what I have on hand and so the backing will be pieced from 4 different pieces of fabric that coordinate with the quilt. All four of the fabrics are used in the front of the quilt also.









2. The baby boy stacked coins quilt. Its ready to quilt, but no progress this week. The machine and my time were both concentrated on finishing the Jacob's Ladder quilt top. After I pin baste the Jacob's Ladder quilt, I will quilt both of them.



3. Cheddar Bow Ties Leaders and Enders project:I have 60-some done and have gone through a small fraction of the zillion scraps I have in search of pieces big enough to use for this. Just love playing with my scraps! Each one has a story and takes me down memory lane. The criteria for a scrap to be used for a cheddar bow tie is that it has to be 2 inches wide and I need 6 1/2 inches in length. It doesn't have to be all in one piece. I sit down while watching tv with Hubbie with a ruler and end up with a pile to be used. For each block I need two 2 inch squares and two 1 1/4 inch squares.

I still haven't decided how big this quilt will be but since the blocks are only 3 inches (finished), I don't think it will be too big.



4. Hand quilting the Baptist fans on the Grandma quilt: No progress :o(

I have my eye on SEVERAL new projects, but I must finish at least the first 2 quilts on this list before I allow any more projects to start!