Ahhhh….. what a great Sunday. Never got in the car once. That is the best sort of day. After a little bit of housekeeping in the morning, I spent the majority of the afternoon in my sewing room. Life is good.
I finished the sixth row for my Classic Stitches BOM quilt (hosted by Mari over at Academic Quilter). The color for RSC15 in June is light blue. Mari wisely chose the water wheel block (what is better for light blue?) The block was very simple once I got the pieces cut. The previous five rows that I made consist of 6″ blocks. This month I made 7 1/2″ blocks. Kind of fun to see the difference in size. I need to vary the sizes a bit. Maybe I will make a row of tiny blocks next month and some oversized blocks in a later month. Here is my row for June.
Somehow this row is a bit longer than 60″ so I may have a challenge on my hands when I stitch the rows together. But that won’t be for months, so why worry about it now?? It was too hot out to really hang all of the other rows, but here it is with two others.
This is going to be such a fun quilt to finish up. Looking forward to seeing what color and block are on tap for July.
Last week I spent most of the week in Sacramento with my daughter. While she was in class I did what any other self-respecting quilter would do and hit up a few quilt shops. Actually of the three stores I went to, only one was a true quilt shop. The other was a huge sewing machine store that sells fabric along with machines and long arms. The third was Hobby Lobby, only because I had never been to one before. Visiting these three businesses confirmed the fact that this obsession has turned me into a fabric snob of the worst sort.
Hobby Lobby was exactly what I expected. Low end fabric and so many novelty prints. I suppose this is the right place for moms that are sewing clothes for their littles. The fabric is of a lower quality and I wouldn’t put it into a quilt but for an outfit that will be outgrown by summer’s end, it is probably just fine. Didn’t buy a single thing there.
The sewing machine shop, Meisner’s, had a smaller selection but the fabrics were good quality. They had a 40-60% off section which sucked me right in. I found the backing that I will use for the 1940’s vintage double nine patch quilt that I am just starting. It was a steal which is nice because I needed 4 1/2 yards.
I had the most fun at a little shop called Quilter’s Corner. I had been here once before during a Shop Hop. Their selection is fairly extensive so I had fun looking through the shop.
I found a piece of Kaffe Fassett that I wanted to go along with a jelly roll that has been sitting on my shelf for a while. I have an idea for a quilt but that is on the back burner for a bit while I get the double nine patch going. It is going to be so pretty tho! Love Fassett’s shot cottons and these colors are wonderful.
Also from Quilter’s Corner, are these two pieces. The print is from American Jane’s newest line. Several months ago (maybe last fall?) Sandy Klop, the designer of American Jane fabrics came to speak at a guild meeting. It was interesting to listen to her and even more fun to look at the quilts she brought to show us. After the meeting, I purchased a set of 1/2 yard cuts and started a quilt with them. It is maybe 1/3 of the way complete. Looking at it coming together, I thought it lacked yellow so I was happy to find these pieces.
The nice thing about the American Jane line is that pieces from different collections work so well together. These will fit right in. Again though, this needs to wait a bit. I want to get going on the vintage blues quilt and if I pull any of these other projects out I will only distract myself.
Hope everyone had a great Sunday. I am so glad I found time to sew today because tomorrow we are headed back to Sacramento. When my daughter had her birthday in May we didn’t have time to celebrate it with her friends. She invited three girls and I am taking them to a water park tomorrow. For them, it will be a day of bikinis and squealing which she is really looking forward to. I plan to find a bit of shade and bring a good book to pass the time while they do their thing.
Linking to Molli Sparkles’ Sunday Stash and Monday Makers over at Hug-a-Bit Quilts.
Love how your row quilt is coming together. Looks like such a fun quilt to make.
Thanks Linda. This is the first row quilt I have done. I was actually just thinking about whether I would sew the rows directly together or put some sort of sashing betweem the rows. Thoughts??? I need to look at some other quilts and see what looks best.
Take care,
B.
I am glad you found sewing time today as well! Save travels back to Sacramento!
Thank you Yvonne. I certainly hope this is my last trip to Sac for a while. I am getting a bit tired of that drive!
Enjoy your week,
Bernie
I have not been to a Hobby Lobby either but now I am in now hurry.
That fabric you found kaffe fasset is perfect!
I love your rows. That quilt will e beautiful!
Thank you Deb. I was definitely unimpressed by Hobby Lobby. Plus they had Christmas product out already which totally turns me off in June!! Crazy.
I do love that a Kaffe Fasset fabric and it is tough restraining from starting the project. But I do better when I don’t have too many things going at once. So, hoping I can hold out for bit and make some progress on current projects.
Take care.
B.
Love the blues! Looking forward to it not being too hot so you can hang and photo all the row. 😉 I’m kind of liking the non-sashed look, but maybe that will change.
I totally agree about the best day is just staying home. Your fabric scores are so pretty! I purchased fabric at Hobby Lobby when my daughter wanted a quilt – I didn’t know any better. 😉 After that, I took a class and got my first taste of good fabric at the store where the class was. I still haven’t made that quilt, and now the fabrics are 5 years old and they have no body and have faded! Still, I go there if I need a quick piece of backing fabric (they have some white at 60-inch width) or a can of spray basting. But good fabric just has a different feel to it. Yes I am a fabric snob too, and darned proud of it. Lol!
So is it just a day trip to Sacramento?
To my fellow fabric snob, you can never go back. Mainly because these quilts we make take so much time. Why put in the time with fabric that is going to wear quickly. Plus the less expensive fabrics feel too stiff. Not right for quilting, you know?
Yes, it was just a day trip. The girls had a great time so it was a good thing. I am not a water slide kind of mom so I read my book and felt like an old lady – watching all these kids and wondering at what age my daughter would start wandering around in a bikini that only covers 25% of her bum. Hopefully never. 😉
Hope you are enjoying a bit of sewing this week. My afternoon will be in the sewing room with the AC on – supposed to be over 100 degrees for the next few days. Ugh.
Hi Bernie
Love the strip quilt – I worked on a series for my friends in my quilt bee last year. We all did something different. I went to Sugar Pine Quilt Shop in Grass Valley near Nevada City in April. I was traveling with my daughter who stayed there for 6 weeks working for a non-profit. Being from Nova Scotia Canada and across NA, what better way to look at the country than through the eyes of a new quilt store. I too am a fabric snob – no Joannes or Fabricland cotton in my quilts. And worst of all I work next door to a quilt store – when I get fed up I up my ante of fat quarters.
I hope you enjoyed your trip to our little quilt shop. I feel lucky to have such a nice shop in our small town. I think I would in big trouble if I worked next door to that shop!! I certainly wouldn’t be making a whole lot of money! Glad you got to enjoy a trip out here! Which non profit was your daughter working for?
So glad you stopped by to visit!
Take care,
Bernie
Great buys on fabric! I love the vintage-y looking blue backing. It looks suspiciously like some of my fabric stash, which has become vintage simply by being in my stash for so long. I can relate to the fabric snobbery. But I really do like giving business to my small local quilt stores. I don’t mind paying more for quality fabric. I must say, though, that I just renewed interest in my local big box fabric store this week when I discovered that they now have more “premium” fabrics in more modern patterns than I can find in some of the more traditional little stores. I still make the rounds and spread the love (of buying). I hope you had fun at the water park. Sitting in the shade with a book sounds just right to me.
This row quilt is such a nice project…love the latest blocks and the colors / fabric used for it. And that floral fabric buy at the end..so pretty!
Thank you Deb. This month’s color is red, of which I have plenty of scrap. Should make for a fun row. Many of the colors I have used so far are sort of muted. This month will change that!
I am glad to hear that your mom is doing better. I am sure it has been a fairly stressful week for you.
Take care,
B.