So what do you think?

Yep, the top is done and waiting for backing. Though I haven't gotten an email saying the backing has shipped so I might just have to go do some shopping to get a different backing fabric so I can get this thing quilted and finished! I am planning to make another Harry Potter quilt so when the backing does come I will just use it for that.


I ended up with a black tonal for a border. I had enough of the fabric to cut 4" strips to go around so that is what it got!


Yesterday I also did another coat of mud on the drywall so it is looking better though still not great - definitely not one of my favorite jobs. 


Other jobs for yesterday included folding the 3 loads of laundry that have been languishing in the laundry room while I sewed, going to my neighbors to cut numbers on her Cricut to put a new date on the quilt show sandwich boards so they can get put out today or tomorrow, and doing a little cuddling with an adorable little baby boy. The little guy is almost 3 months old and was not impressed with my skills - he wanted Mommy! When his daddy came home he said that it is the same way for him so I shouldn't feel too bad! I didn't because we did have a little while when he was happy!


Oh, and I also had a little time to get started with cutting the pieces for the girl baby quilt. I would love to have the cutting done today so it is ready to take to the quilt retreat but my first job is to get the sign amendments done so they can be laminated so they last for 2 weeks in our lovely wet February/March weather!

Blocks Around

I was on a roll today! I headed to the sewing room to work on the Harry Potter quilt but glanced over at the quilting machine and saw the last comfort quilt waiting to be quilted and decided that was the first order of business. Got the quilting done and set it aside to take to the quilt retreat to get the binding on (unless I get to it before I leave).

Then after a phone call from my son, I decided I had better get started on taping and texturing the drywall in the bathroom or it will never get done. We really want that project done before the beginning of April when our second daughter comes home for a few months to work on her tiny house. So I did the first coat. Not sure I did a great job but it is what it is. I am sure it will all turn out okay.

After I got those two jobs done I laid out the blocks around the quilt and started to add the frames around them. I had taken a picture of where the blocks went around the quilt and planned for the red, green, yellow and blue frames to repeat around the quilt. When I laid them out again according to my picture I realized I had picked up some incorrectly and the colors weren't in the right order. I resigned myself to them being in the wrong order and then suddenly realized I could just rearrange them so the colors were right - the order of the blocks wasn't that important. So funny how we get hung up on something like that and almost end up being disappointed in the finished product. Once I got over that, I got the blocks all attached to the center of the quilt by about 5 this evening and had it hanging up to admire!

After a quick trip to the grocery store I made breakfast for dinner and then took the quilt down to audition an option for borders. A narrow border of black and then a wider border of the castle fabric. What do you think?

Not sure I like this, it is kind of drab. I am kind of wondering if I would have enough of the backing fabric to use it as a border and if that would look nice. I guess I will just have to wait and see!

Done with the blocks

Yesterday evening was craft night next door. I was so tired from getting the center of the quilt done but just can't miss craft night. I brought the quilt center and all the blocks so I could put it on the design wall. I was so happy to discover that I only needed 6 blocks to finish the border!

It is coming together! So today, I sat down and made those 6 blocks. 

Somehow, even after all these blocks I still manage to mess up at least once per block!


So the goal tomorrow is to get the blocks added to the center and maybe get the top totally finished! In the event that doesn't actually happen there is still Friday! I ordered backing fabric today so I hope it comes on Saturday at the latest so I can get this thing finished.

This Just In!

Here is the center panel of the Harry Potter quilt! I worked hard on it all day and just finished the grass area. Pretty happy with the results though when I make the next one I will make some changes. Now I need to make a few more blocks for around the edges. If I am counting right I should need 5 more blocks so that is my goal for tomorrow! Then maybe Thursday I can get the blocks around the edge and add a border and I am done with the top!

Quickie!

Just wanted to take a moment to post the last two blocks I've made for the quilt. I am working on some blocks that will be incorporated in the sky over the castle. The first is Baby Norbert and the second is a golden snitch flying over Harry's initials.

I managed to get Norbert done on Sunday after making all the roofs for the castle and towers. Yesterday, however, was full of obstacles to productivity! I only got the one block done and started one more. I need to finish that one and make one more and I should be able to get the sky and castle connected and maybe even move onto the grounds. Hopefully, I will have more tomorrow!

Leather all the way

Today over at Quiltville, Bonnie Hunter is talking about hand quilting and thimbles. If you don't follow her blog you might want to check it out. She travels all over the country speaking to quilt guilds, doing trunk shows and doing quilt workshops. She is also the author of several quilting books. She has asked her readers to share their preferences for thimbles on their blogs and then link up so that is what I am doing.

I have tried several different thimbles over the years for hand quilting and other hand sewing. I just don't like the feel of metal thimbles or at least I haven't found one that I like. Many years ago I tried the thin leather thimbles with a little disk of metal at the finger tip and liked them well enough but they wear out rather quickly. As I was browsing around a fabric store one day I found a leather thimble that was heavier and sold by Dritz. I found I really liked it and used it for several projects.

Then I went through about 5 years of not having time to quilt much of anything so I kind of forgot about thimbles. When I got back into quilting and wanted to do some hand quilting I could no longer find those thimbles. Luckily, the internet had arrived and I did some searching online and found Finger's Friend! I ordered one and was so happy to find that they were just like the one I got from Dritz. I got busy quilting but because I am left-handed, my ring finger kept hitting the velcro and got sore and also caused the velcro to start coming away from the leather. I emailed  the folks at Finger's Friend asking if they could sew the velcro to the leather and also asked if they could make a left-handed one. They now sew the velcro on and make a left-handed thimble (not sure if it was because of me but glad they made the changes!).


I love this thimble because it adjusts to my finger (I don't know about you but some days my fingers are thinner than others). They do wear out over time (I actually wear holes through the metal inside the thimble) but I use the worn ones for sewing bindings and other hand- sewing and use newer ones for hand quilting.


These pictures show a new one in the package, a slightly used one for hand quilting and the well-used one for other hand sewing.

When I was at my sister's recently, I brought some bindings for hand-sewing but forgot my thimble. I tried using one of my sister's metal thimbles but it just wasn't comfortable so I had to limit my hand sewing to one binding per day. 

One funny thimble story: My little poodle, Lucy, loves leather. So much so that we can't get her rawhide toys because she gets downright nasty if you get too close. She can smell my leather thimbles a mile away and used to keep an eye on me when I was using one and if I got up to answer the phone or get a snack or whatever and didn't put the thimble where she couldn't get it, she would be up in a flash and steal it! When I went back to my hand work I would look for my thimble and then have to go find the dog. Usually, she would take them into the bedroom and hide them under a pillow for later but sometimes she would have them all soggy from chewing on them. She only ruined one so it couldn't be used. If she had stolen one I would ask her where it was and she would sheepishly lead me to the hiding place. She also likes the little leather sheaths for my Gingher embroidery scissors and one time took one with the scissors in it! The funny thing is we found the sheath but I still haven't found the scissors! Miss Lucy turned 12 a few days ago and she still sniffs my finger when I am using the thimble but isn't as likely to try to steal it! She looks so innocent here, doesn't she?

WooHoo!

My castle fabric arrived today! As soon as my husband brought it in I got busy prewashing so I could get started on Hogwarts! While it was in the washer and dryer I got 3 more blocks done.

They go much faster when they don't have so many parts! When these were done I pressed the new fabric and got started. First up was finishing the 4 house crests. Got those done fairly quickly though not without some minor mistakes. Then came the Hogwarts crest. And then I started building me a castle!

Here is what we have so far. There are a few other small pieces made up but they didn't make it in this shot. I picked out my roof fabric but discovered I didn't have enough for what I have planned so either I need to go shopping or use two different fabrics. I am leaning toward the two different fabrics because I really want to try to use up more of the fabric I have on hand. I also picked out my grass and sky fabrics from my stash. I think next I will make a few blocks using the sky fabric, you know, the Flying Ford Anglia, a Dragon and maybe Hedwig and then I can look at getting the sky added to the castle. When the sky and castle are put together I will move on to the grass and then the lake. When that is all done I can add the other blocks around the outside and make some borders.