Summer is Winding Down

This summer flew by.  I knew it would because we had a lot of different things scheduled when it started.  That usually makes time go by (too) quickly. This week and last were filled with appointments for my 8th grader that are easier done during summer.  The dentist, the orthodontist and the optometrist.  When I took her for an eye exam (she usually only has the quickies that they do at school) and found out that she is near-sighted. She and I were both so surprised. He asked her if she has to squint a lot or if she had trouble reading the board at school.  She innocently says, “No squinting but I can’t read the exponents during math.” I looked at her and wondered why she didn’t ever mention this??  The doctor said that when this happens gradually the person just doesn’t really notice.  Now she is happily wearing glasses and keeps lowering them on her nose, looking ahead without them, then through the glasses.  Comparing the difference with awe.  So funny. 20140730_1481   In between all of that I got loads of time at the sewing machine.  Hurray!! Here are some of the things I worked on. First off was this little baby boy quilt.  Puppies and boys, perfect fit, right? I used a simple patchwork of charm squares for the center.  Borders of navy blue were added, as well as a stripped border made from the leftover charm squares. 20140805_1522This was inspired by a photo I saw on Pinterest. Very easy to do. I didn’t really do any math beforehand; rather I just built it as I went along. The fabric is called “Here Boy” by Abi Hall, designed for Moda. This line is adorable.  It features puppies, dog bones and bouncing balls.  The colors are bright and happy, blues, orange, reds, green and yellow. 20140805_1521 I backed it with a dark navy and white oversized polka dot.  For the first time, I didn’t use a pieced backing.  The dots are very sweet on their own. Finished it off with a crazy bright orange binding. I love the contrast. I bound it as I usually do by machine stitching to the front and hand stitching to the back.  I am wondering though, if I should machine stitch both sides.  Seems like a baby quilt is going to be laundered often.  Would it hold up better if I machine stitched the binding on both sides? Give me your thoughts on this please!

Also got some time to work on my RSC14 blocks.  I finished the red blocks that were scheduled for July. I love the cherry fabric scraps. They were from a bag of scraps that my neighbor gave to me. (What a fun bag to look through!)

20140805_1509 I also finished the bright greens that are the color for August. Looking through my strips, I didn’t have tons of bright green but was able to find enough to do these two blocks. 20140805_1508 So, I still have to catch up and finish March, April, May and June.  Here is what I’ve got so far. 20140805_1507  This weekend I am off with my sisters for our annual “sisters’ weekend”.  Cannot wait!! Hope you all are enjoying the tail end of summer.

Linking with Linky Tuesday @ Freemotion by the River, WIP Wednesday @ Freshly Pieced, Fabric Tuesday @ Quilt Story, and Let’s Bee Social @ Sew Fresh Quilts.  Also to Needle and Thread Thursday, Crazy Mom Quilts’ Finish It Up Friday, Can I Get a Whoop Whoop, and TGIFF which is at QuiltMatters today. Links to all of these are listed at the top of my page under the Link-Ups tab

23 thoughts on “Summer is Winding Down

  1. vickie prechter

    I love the snips, snails and puppy dog tails quilt. Perfect for a little boy!
    Tell Julia she looks fab in her new glasses! Have fun with your sistas!

    Reply
  2. Lorna McMahon

    I do luv me a baby quilt… and this one is simply adorable! The orange binding is like the icing on the cake. Super sweet and so boyish! Hope you are enjoying your sister time! PS. Your daughter is a beauty!

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      Thank you Lorna 🙂
      I love the orange binding too. So cheerful and bold.
      So looking forward to my time with my sisters. No kids or husbands allowed. Just the six of us. Yay!!!
      (thanks also for your sweet compliments on my lovely girl!)

      Reply
  3. Juanita

    I love the bright green blocks! Julia looks so much like Andrew in that picture. I never noticed it before-see you Friday!!!

    Reply
  4. Marsha Cooper

    Love the charm pack quilt.
    I see you are doing 16 patches for the scrappy challenge. I only started in June but I am doing all I can on my hexagons each month in the color.

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      Hi Marsha:
      I just started the scrappy challenge in June as well. That is why I am doing the patchwork blocks – I don’t know that I could catch up if I did anything too complicated! It is a fun project though! Thanks for stopping by.

      Take care,
      Bernie

      Reply
  5. Mari

    Cute baby quilt! I always machine stitch the bindings on baby quilts on the theory that that way the child won’t be able to rip the binding stitches out. Sometimes they also get washed a lot too, so that’s a little extra insurance. Enjoy your weekend–I’m jealous!

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      That is the way I was thinking. This quilt is bound but I am debating going over it with a zig zag stitch. Since it is sewn to the back with no lip, I can’t just sew in the ditch on the front (which is what I would normally do.). What do you think of that tho? The zig zag? Or should I just leave this one alone?

      Reply
  6. Soma

    A very cute baby quilt and your scrappy blocks are looking great together!! Have a wonderful time at the sisters’ weekend!!

    -Soma

    Reply
  7. a maiden hair fern

    I just stick with the hand sewn version. We have 2 matching boat quilts that we’ve had since our grown children were toddlers. They are now worn thin, and some batting is even showing through along the edges where the fabric has worn through, but where the binding was hand stitched down, there is no sign of it coming apart. Love the polkadot back and orange binding.

    Reply
    1. Bernie Post author

      Thanks so much for your opinion. I appreciate the input. Also really like the polka dots with the orange. So fun and bright!

      Reply
  8. Shauna

    I love the orange binding against the blue, very cool. I normally machine bind my quilts because I have dogs and everything in my house gets washed a lot. So far they’ve held up well.

    Reply

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