Wrapping up summer

I can't believe it's the end of August already. Like most people, I've been busy wrapping up the end of summer and preparing for the changes of the season ahead. My summer isn't quite over yet though. Peter and I are jetting off to Bali in a few days for a vacation/post-bar trip. Yahoo! Soon after we get back we're moving to a new apartment. And you thought my blogging over the past two weeks has been sparse! So it's been little crafting over here - just packing and preparing. I finally forced myself to pack my fabric (four boxes worth) so I can stop kidding myself that I have time to sew. I'm looking forward to opening up those boxes in a few weeks in a new place in a new room dedicated to sewing alone.

The tea towels and coasters above are a little gift I whipped up in some few spare moments.

Log cabin pillow

Remember my patchwork obsession from a few weeks ago? I finally satiated it, for the time being that is. This is my first log cabin using scraps from my brick path quilt. This project was very fast and easy and so satisfying!

For all of you that are waiting on a tutorial for the cat bed, I'm going to try to have it up in the next week. Thanks for all of your patience!

Stacked coins quilt

It's finished! I think it turned out beautiful. I'm quite surprised at how quickly this all came together.

My quilt is slightly larger than the stacked coins quilt in Last Minute Patchwork. I added an additional row of "stacked coins" and added some length so the total size is about 60 inches by 71 inches.

I completely winged the back with leftover fabric from the front. I'm finding that making a quilt back is just as exciting as making the quilt top. I love throwing the fabrics together and making up the design as I go along. It also gives my math skills a review lesson. Peter said the back looked very organic. I like that description. (Do you see his flip flops at the bottom of the quilt?)

This quilt is a much belated wedding present for a good friend who got married last June. I'm hoping she'll love it so much she forgets how late it is.

Quilted

I've made a lot of progress on the Stacked Coins quilt. I originally marked four inch diagonal rows but only stitched every other one. I thought I might go back and stitch the remaining rows, but I like the look of the wider diamonds. Plus, it's less work!

Transformation

Before:


After:


Isn't it amazing what some pretty paper and glue will do? Here's hoping a relaxing weekend in the North Carolina mountains will have the same effect on me. Have a great weekend!