A new choice of fabrics

Spent a good while going through my stash which seems to be a lot bigger than I

first realized , choosing a distinct girlie theme with lots of pinks and pretty flowers as well as

Bambi and mice and teddy bears so here goes cut out 180 4 inch squares an ready to make a few more quilts.

When I first spend time pressing my fat 1/4s and cutting them out I always wonder if I've chosen a good selection or not well you can't really decide on the look until you have actually sewn a few blocks together just to get the feel of the design and see if you have the look you wanted.

Most important is a good stitch quality on your machine and I use a 1/4 inch piecing foot,

Always nest your seams for a good even joining of squares.

I normally start by making 16 patch blocks then lay them on the table or design wall to take a look.

Step back and also take a photo with your phone to get a feel for how your fabrics look when joined together.

So I think its looking good I really like the way its coming together so I can carry on making my 16 patch blocks and go from there.

A second I spy quilt made to sell.

After completing my grandsons quilt and bag I still had quite a bit of fabric left over and as they went together so well and I loved the colours so bright and cheerful I thought lets just make another one.
Similar but not exactly the same of course, This time I added another turq tiny spot and a different backing fabric with big spots.
Lots of people keep telling me " you should make these and sell them "
so here is my first one to list and sell you gotta start somewhere right ?

So I worked out the costings of the materials and batting etc. and listed it on Gumtree and also a Facebook local buy and sell group.
I intend to make a lot more before taking the plunge and opening a Esty site.
So that is my first quilt ready and waiting for a new owner.

Play Date Bag

I was thinking it would be a good idea to make a bag to put the quilt in and any other bits and bobs you need when taking baby out, ie nappies, change of clothes, toys and books.
So I decided to go ahead and make one using the left over fabrics I had.
I cut 32 4 inch squares and made them into 2 16 patch squares.
Then I  added a 2 1/2 inch border on the sides and bottom.
Then cut some batting and quilted the 2 panels.
Made 2 handle which I added batting to make them more chunky.
Cut lining to size of finished bag front and back and added a inside pocket.

Here it is ready and complete with the quilt inside ready for posting over to the UK and the next sleep over or play date this baby boy may be going on.

Blue baby boy ispy quilt

Well I decided it was time to make my newest grandchild a quilt as I can't have cuddles as he is in the UK and a quilt is the next best thing right ?
I began by going shopping of course and using some of my stash,
I decided blues and plenty of boy type prints and bright colors and mostly a blue and orange theme,
Cutting 130 4 inch squares and joining them in a random design to make a 10 by 13 squares quilt top.

Laying out my backing fabric and batting cut 4 inch bigger than the quilt top

I pinned the layers together and began straight line quilting with a walking foot stitch length 3 

sewing approx quarter inch onto the squares in a grid across the whole quilt top.

finally binding and here we have a quilt to keep a little baby boy warm and snug for many yrs to come. Plenty to look at and play ispy when he gets older with his big sister Jessica.