Sometimes you just have to unplug....

Sometimes you just have to unplug for a while.  I haven't been doing any blog posts, visiting Facebook or maintaining my Etsy Shop for a while.

But, I am slowly becoming more motivated to "plug back in".  With the new year of 2015 looming on the horizon, I feel the need to do some new things.  I like new beginnings and making new goals.

I haven't done any quilting lately, either, but I have been in the sewing room the last few days and am really regaining my motivation to create!

These projects aren't exactly quilts, but they do contain some quilt batting, so do they qualify as projects to show on a quilting blog?  I hope so!

I am making key fobs for Christmas gifts, but this one is for sale in my Etsy Shop.

Kate Spain Fabric (thanks Auntie M!)

These are Christmas stockings for my five grandsons.  I made the two on the right end recently for the two newest little guys.

They are hung by age.  The oldest is 7, the next one is almost 2, the next one is 18 months, the next one is 5 months and the last one is 4 months.

I hope to be posting more regularly now, so I hope you'll keep reading!

The Papa Jack Quilt

I finished the Papa Jack Quilt for my hubby, just in time for cooler weather.  Its twin size and is perfect for him to use as a throw while in his recliner.

Isn't he cute?!!

He loves it because the colors are masculine and I like it because the colors are fall like.

This quilt was made with fat quarters cut into nine inch squares.  Its a very easy quilt to make and its also easy to choose colors when using fat quarters. 

Early morning quilting.....

After one of the busiest summers ever, I'm finally trying to get back into the sewing room.  Here's a quilt I've been machine quilting.  My plan is to quilt at for least 30 minutes a day on it.   Since I'm a morning person, this means quilting before going to work.

After all, its Fall!  Time for some cozy fall activities like quilting.

A Little Summer Quilting

Here are two more quilts that I am working on this summer.

This one is a throw size quilt for my hubby.  He chose the fabrics last fall.  I love them because they are in fall colors and also similar to Civil War fabrics.

All of the blocks were cut from fat quarters.  This quilt top is waiting to be pin basted and then quilted.

This one is another Christmas quilt which I am making in the Scrappy Trips Around the World pattern found HERE on the Quiltville website.

These blocks are a lot of fun to make.  I like them because some of the work can be done while watching tv.   The part I am talking about involves taking out stitches!

Then when you lay the blocks out, they form a design.

Stacks of strips ready to be sewn into blocks.

I'm doing a good job on using up some of my Christmas fabrics, but there are lots more in that bin!

Finish it up Friday.... Christmas Sewing

I don't know what got into me, but the recent Fourth of July holiday at my house was spent sewing for Christmas.

I will be making lots of new Christmas stockings for new members of the family this year.  Got one done!

The beige fabric is corduroy.

I finished the binding on this Christmas quilt just a few minutes ago and ran outside on this dreary early morning to get a few pictures on the clothesline.

Reaching the final corner when free motion machine quilting is always a cause for a small celebration!

The Crepe Myrtles are blooming! 

Have a great weekend!  I've got more Christmas sewing on the agenda, as well as pin basting my hubby's throw size quilt.

Its a Christmas Quilt!

I can't believe half of 2014 is already over! Lately, the only quilts I've made have been for the grandbabies, and the Lavender Kisses Wedding Quilt.  We've also been quite busy attending a wedding shower, a baby shower and a wedding.

This weekend I had two whole days to pursue whatever I wished!!!  So what did I do?  I finished up the Log Cabin Christmas quilt top I started a few months ago and was working on as a leaders and enders project.

My inspiration for this quilt came from Sewn From Grace HERE.

I arranged the log cabin blocks in the field and furrows design.

I chose as many fabrics that had small Christmas designs and also fabrics that were red or green, but did not necessarily have a Christmas print on them.  There are lots of stripes, dots and plaids.

I stayed away from too many novelty type fabrics.  BUT, I will be making some quilts from those fabrics too eventually.

It was too windy to hang the flimsey quilt top on the clothesline, so I laid it on the grass and used the clothes pins as weights to hold it down a bit.  I had to carefully check to be sure there weren't any fire ant hills nearby.  They are everywhere in our yard this year!

I was also able to get this quilt pin basted and ready for machine quilting.  I'm trying to decide how to quilt it.  I want to do swirls, but meandering sure is faster!

This quilt is a throw size or sofa quilt size.  It will be used mostly for a cozy farmhouse decoration during the holidays, but can be used to keep warm with too.  I can't remember the exact measurements, but its 50 something by 60 something.  :o)

I also worked on a throw size quilt for my hubby in fall colored fabrics that are very masculine and also have some what of a Civil War reproduction feel.  He chose the fabrics way last fall and I am finally able to work on it.  Pictures of it will come later.

Finish it up Friday - Jake's Quilt

Here's the finished baby quilt for our fifth grandson, Jake, due in late August.  Its very boyish and I love how the colors play together very much!  Monsters, Inc. fabric, with coordinating colors of dark blue, lime green, beige and aqua blue, with white sashing, make for a very cute boy's quilt.

I machine quilted swirls in the inner white border, which work well with the theme.

Its a very easy and quick quilt.  Just choose your main theme fabric and 4 more coordinating fabrics.  I used the plaid for the backing, also.

Here are a couple of pictures of the work in progress on the quilt.

Pin Basting.

Some of the meander quilting.

Blue Skies From Now On.....

Grandson #4's quilt is done!

OUT=TAKE!

The back is blue skies and white puffy clouds.

Wip Wednesday - Sail Boats

Here is my current Work In Progress, a sailboat quilt for Grandson Number 4.  His Mama is going to use a nautical theme in his room.

I remembered that I had done a sailboat block before, more than 15 years ago, in a couple of sampler quilts.  The pattern came from the book, Lap Quilting with Georgia Bonesteel.  I still love that book, first published in 1982.

So I found my book and then figured out the rotary cutting sizes that would make the same block, instead of using the cardboard pattern pieces that I used "in the old days" before rotary cutting.

Ms. Bonesteel's beautiful version of this quilt.

My version of the quilt will have a white background.  I haven't decided on the border and binding yet.  As for the name for this quilt.... I can't get the name, "Blue Skies From Now On" out of mind.  The backing is going to be blue skies with clouds fabric. 

I plan to quilt swirls underneath the boats to give the look of ocean waves.

This post is linked to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.