Memorial Day and Pet Project Show #21

Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for the 
men and women who have died in service. It is 
a day to pause, and remember freedom is not 
free. My heart goes out to all who are 
remembering family and friends today.

 This wall hanging was made from the same 

pattern I've been using from Jen Kingwell's

book, Quilt Lovely. I'm sure I've seen a heart

modified this way before, but not where.

The piecing is fairly tedious when the strips

are cut only 1" wide. Not all my strips 

were spot on so I made sure to square up

all the blocks before joining them.

I made sure to match the lowest horizontal

strip on the upper quadrants. At least it

gives the 'illusion' that it matches even if

the rest of the strips are a little off.

I had a batting scrap to use, and made my

backing twice as large so I had something to 

hold on to. There's nothing harder than trying

to FMQ an itty bitty piece. I started to FMQ in

the white area, and it didn't look right. I 

ripped out about 12" of stitching. Then I

started over, and just outlined the hearts

with Aurifil 50#. It was enough as the

blocks were already busy enough.

I attached my binding to the back, and 

then realized I hadn't trimmed the edges

quite enough. Would you believe that when 

I trimmed the edge I cut the corner off 

my binding? 

It doesn't pay to hurry, and, Yes, you 

can section binding, but it's not fun!

This binding warranted hand sewing, and 

I looked forward to a little t.v. time with

my daughter. One episode of "The Gilmore

Girls," and I was done.

I thought you would like to see the fabrics

close up. I think it's so interesting how blocks

look close up while we're picking out fabrics

and sewing vs. the whole finished effect.

Linking up with~
Show and Tell Tuesday
Monday Makers
Show and Tell with Bambi
Oh, Scrap!
Cooking Up Quilts
Hug-a-Bit Quilts
Sew She Can

Sew Many Ways

Woohoo, Doxie Girls!
It's Saturday, and time for the weekly 

Pink Doxies 

Pet Project Show. 

Add your link here every Saturday. 

Rules

Do we have to have rules? 

No worries! It's EASY.

1. Use the blue 'Add Your Link' button (below)
to upload a picture of something you've created 
in the past week. Any kind of handiwork--
share it now! It can be a work in progress, 
finally finished, or even your fab new fabric. 
Whatever it is that inspired you to create this 
week, we'd like to see it here. 

2. Please link to a specific post, and not just your
blog address. It makes it easy for anyone following 

your link to find the project.

3. Provide a backlink to Pink Doxies with a link in
your post, or pick up our Pet Project Show
button in the sidebar. Copy the code, then 
create a Pet Show widget with 'Add by HTML' 
on your Layout page.

-OR-

1. You can link up to your Instagram. 
Click on the Instagram icon at the bottom 
of the link up screen. The URL of your Instagram 
feed will be your link. 
Please hashtag #pinkdoxiespetproject

Either way you link up, remember it's a party
here, so schmooze with the crowd! Visit others 
who've linked up. Leave a comment so they 
know what you like about their work. 

Don't miss a post! 

Follow me on Bloglovin' or by email. 

The Linky Party starts now, and runs until
Monday, May 25th at midnight. 

Spread the word, and tell all your stitchy friends.

*The first Saturday party of each month will
feature several of the Doxies' and my
favorite link ups. 
By linking up, you are giving permission for me
to post your picture with a link back to your 

blog or Instagram account. 

An InLinkz Link-up

One Lovely Blog Award at Pink Doxies

I was nominated for the "One Lovely Blog Award" 

this past week by a blogger friend. Within a 

few days, several more nominated Pink Doxies.

I think the Universe was telling me, "Do It!"
I read whatever I could, but there seem to be
no firm origins to find, yet I'm sure it's out 
there. There were 2 buttons in Blogland about
it. I think the pink is my favorite, but both
are the same thing.

So, here I am with my own post for the

"One Lovely Blog Award."

Sincere gratitude to~

Iris at Crazydutchbirdquilts

Kaja at Sew Slowly

Sandra at Musing of a Menopausa Melon

Marly at Marly's Quilts

There are few rules, per se, except these 3:

*Thank the person (or persons) who gave 
you the nomination.

*List 7 things about yourself people might
not know.

*Nominate other blogs you feel are Lovely!
Some have put a number on it, but Iris at
crazydutchbirdquilts has said she's confirmed
the wording as 'other'. I'm going with her 
definition as it was holding up my posting.

         

   Thank you to each of the wonderful bloggers

above who nominated Pink Doxies. I encourage 
you to visit them. They are all quilting bloggers

whom I follow and admire.

7 Things You Might Not Know About Me

  1. I am careful about being gluten-free, but will

ocassionally cheat and have a beer. I pay for it

the next morning in the way I feel.

2. I had never even read another blog before 

I decided to write one. I am spontaneous!

3. I worry about my projects looking 'too cute'.

4. I read widely. I had the luxury of 

homeschooling my children for 17 years, and 

read to keep up with their reading. We covered 

literature from the Greeks to present today, and 

are all still readers. I have no one favorite 

author, but am always excited to get a new 

Tarquin Hall mystery. Greek Myth is a favorite.

Also, by the way, I am officially retiring 

this year. Woohoo!

5. I am a creature of habit as is my family.

We eat at the same Mexican restaurant at 

least once a week, and we all have our same

thing almost every time. I see it as a decision

I don't have to make.

6. I am allergic to cats, guinea pigs, rabbits,

horses...but not Doxies, thank Heaven!

7. I really, really hate getting stuck by a pin!

That wasn't so hard. Now to nominate several

blogs for One Lovely Blog Award. Please excuse
me for not naming so many as it seems to be
permeating Blogland. That's GOOD! It's wonderful
to highlight the good things we share, and 
this is a lovely way to pass the light.

Bambi at Bambisyr med sin Quiltglädje

VeggieMummy from Tales from the Riverbank

Melissa from A Small Sample Study 
(of works in progress)

Linda at Art in Search
Teje at Nerospost

Be well this Friday, and be sure to visit Pink Doxies
Pet Project Show tomorrow to link up your
goodies from the week. I have something 
patriotic in progress for Memorial Day
to show you. 

'Til then--

Come on, Doxie girls.
Gotta go sew today!

Modern Heart Zip Bag

I thought my little orphan block would be 

helped by framing.There were some darker strips 

that I’d decided were a bit too dark, but that 

was after I’d sewn it together.  I think the deep 

purple helped the colors pop, and the low 

volume background recede.  

To give it a little edgier look, I offset the border. 

This gave me both a solid color, and larger space 

to add some SLQ as an accent, and I had fun. 

It’s just a little pattern of crossing lines that 

ensures the sandwich is secure.

The backing was a diagonal print to start with,

and I marked every 1/2" with a chalk pencil.

I chose not to quilt every line, though, and 

picked a few here and there to keep it random. 

I used Aurifil #2309, my go-to 

off-white quilting thread in 50 wt.

I used a little contrasting fabric on each end of my 

zipper to get a good fit. I always use nylon zippers 

with bags! Metal zippers look very cool and hip, 

but those teeth can destroy your manicure in 

a heartbeat when you’re trying to get in and 

out of a bag--not that I have a mani, you know.

I chose to sew down the zipper on the inside

instead of finishing all the edges. Just the 

tiniest bit showed out from underneath.

The backing is a diagonal print from the ‘Elementary’ 

line from ‘Moda’. I like how it helps the bag 

from looking ‘too cute’.

I sewed front and back pieces wrong sides together 

in a scant ¼" seam. Then I added a Anna Marie 

Horner floral binding. It created contrast on the 

back, and picked up the heart fabrics in the front.

Tah-dah!

I wonder what I should do with it now?

I'm thankful for the rains this spring,

and our beautiful show of blooms.

The azaleas are in full bloom now,

and I'm awaiting my pink poppies.

Come on, Doxie girls.

Let's go outside and enjoy the sunshine

until the mosquitoes eat us up!

Linking up with~
Crazy Mom Quilts
Fort Worth Studio
Quilt Shop Gal
Confessions of a Fabric Addicit
TGIFF
WIP Be Gone LAFF
Quilting Jet Girl
My Quilt Infatuation
Freshly Pieced
Sew Fresh Quilts

Quilt Story

Second Entry for 2015 Blogger's Quilt Festival-"Zombies, Zombies, Zombies!"

We took advantage of a quick break in the

rainstorms, and snapped a few new pictures

to show off "Zombies, Zombies, Zombies!" 

Another post telling the whole backstory can

be found HERE.

This quilt was made for my son, who happens

to hate zombies, so it's a little tongue-in-cheek.

Regardless, he liked his quilt I made last fall.

This marks my second entry into the

2015 Blogger's Quilt Festival at 

Amy's Creative Side. This is a smaller

quilt than "Chicago, 2007", which is entered in 

the large quilt category. Measuring in at "52x61", 

this will be entered in the "Home Machine Quilted" category.

Zombies is one of the first quilts I had the

chance to quilt on my Janome. I had moved

up from a 7" throat space to a whopping 11"!

I went a little crazy with the graffiti style

quilting, and the grey Aurifil thread popped 

on my black Kona backing.

The fabrics were a hoot to work with, and I

loved the fussy cutting possibilities. 

I chose a black and white hatched fabric

for the binding shown above.

I think one of the best things about doing so

much freestyle is you develop a rhythm as 

you move the quilt. 

I pieced the back with the intent for it to

look like little legs on the sides.

Since this was one of the first quilts I made

in my early blogging days last fall, it's new to

most of you. So...

"Ta Dah!"

Time to get back in the archives and put

some labels on old posts, I think. There are

some goodies hiding in there yet, if you

care to check them out.

Like this.

And, yes, Mishsa and his pasture mates are doing 

well, and loving their new barn. We'll do an

update on them soon.

If you're new to Pink Doxies, the

Pet Project Show runs Saturday-

Monday every week, and is your

opportunity to link up whatever

lovely thing you're working on.

We'd love to see you there!

Come on, Doxie girls.

Let's go to Amy's Creative Side,

and check out all the quilts today.

Linking up with~
Late Night Quilter
Please go read her 
Tuesday Tips and Tutorial today! 
You'll love it.
Blossom Heart Quilts
Freemotion by the River
Monday Makers
Show and Tell with Bambi
Cooking Up Quilts

Custom iPad Sleeve & Pet Project Show #20

I have had the fabric for this iPad sleeve

since January. My mother-in-law requested

something simple yet fairly well padded

to carry while travelling. The project

sat on the back burner while other things

took its place. I had it on my list of 

2015 Finishes for On the Windy Side Q2, 

and I've checked it off.

This is for a bird lover, and the fabrics

seemed suited. I especially love the Acacia

print from Tula Pink used as the 

background fabric. A fantasy print, she's

mixed hummingbirds with what looks

like anemones.

Please Note

The closure is with 3M One. I strongly

warn against using any kind of magnetic

closure with electronics! They don't mix.

I did just a tad of FMQ on this with some

pebbling, and spiraling flames.

It doesn't show much at all on the outside,

but was a chance for me to practice. The

batting is my very dense 'Kevlar' batting,

and though I wouldn't guarentee it, I

think it will hold up fairly well to a drop.

I did a bit of outline FMQ on the front of the

economy block, or square within a square,

and some pebbling in the corners.

Less quilting means more loft.

So, 'Ta Dah!', and another finish down.

Don't forget to visit 
Blogger's Quilt Festival-Spring 2015
Eye candy for quilt lovers everywhere!
I'm entered in the large quilt category.

Now show us what you did this week?

*******
Woohoo, Doxie Girls!
It's Saturday, and time for the weekly 

Pink Doxies 

Pet Project Show. 

Add your link here every Saturday. 

Rules

Do we have to have rules? 

No worries! It's EASY.

1. Use the blue 'Add Your Link' button (below)
to upload a picture of something you've created 
in the past week. Any kind of handiwork--
share it now! It can be a work in progress, 
finally finished, or even your fab new fabric. 
Whatever it is that inspired you to create this 
week, we'd like to see it here. 

2. Please link to a specific post, and not just your
blog address. It makes it easy for anyone following 

your link to find the project.

3. Provide a backlink to Pink Doxies with a link in
your post, or pick up our Pet Project Show
button in the sidebar. Copy the code, then 
create a Pet Show widget with 'Add by HTML' 
on your Layout page.

-OR-

1. You can link up to your Instagram. 
Click on the Instagram icon at the bottom 
of the link up screen. The URL of your Instagram 
feed will be your link. 
Please hashtag #pinkdoxiespetproject

Either way you link up, remember it's a party
here, so schmooze with the crowd! Visit others 
who've linked up. Leave a comment so they 
know what you like about their work. 

Don't miss a post! 

Follow me on Bloglovin' or by email. 

The Linky Party starts now, and runs until
Monday, May 18th at midnight. 

Spread the word, and tell all your stitchy friends.

*The first Saturday party of each month will
feature several of the Doxies' and my
favorite link ups. 
By linking up, you are giving permission for me
to post your picture with a link back to your 

blog or Instagram account. 

An InLinkz Link-up

Linking Up with~
Q2 On the Windy Side
Free Motion Mavericks