In an effort to continue to practice free motion quilting, I whipped up another quick strip quilt. When I made the brightly colored quilt a couple of weeks ago, it worked out wonderfully as a way to practice different quilt motifs on each stripe. The quilt is small enoughg to be a pleasure to work on. It has been a long while since I have worked on my quilting and to my surprise, my abilities really regressed. Like most things, practice is essential.
I chose to use this adorable Pandalicious fabric as the focal point in the middle and then build from there. The fabric was designed by Katarina Roccella for Art Gallery Fabric. It is sweet and whimsical making it perfect for a child’s quilt! Two of the other stripes are also from that same line. The Hidden Pandas are a lot of fun and then the black and white squares with circles is called Panda Patches. The solid Emerald green and the large green dots finish it off. The color combo is great and not the typical used for a baby quilt.
The quilt takes minutes to assemble which I did several days ago. Because I truly dislike basting quilts, I forced myself to get it done. Actually – I was able to do this while on hold waiting for customer service on the phone – multi-tasking at it’s best. (Thank goodness for speaker phones!) Now it is ready to be quilted!
Now these little pandas will have to sit and wait for me. Ray, Julia and I are taking some time off next week for family time! We are really looking forward to this after such a busy summer. Julia starts school in a couple of weeks so this is the perfect way to end the season!
I had some inquiries about the first strip quilt I made. I have kitted that quilt and written up the dimensions for anyone who is interested in practicing their FMQ. Alternatively, it is a wonderful kit to use when teaching someone to quilt or FMQ. If you are interested, click here to see the kit in the shop!
Finally, I spent yesterday doing some organizing in my shop. When I have a piece of fabric with a little defect, a crooked cut (oops!), or just the end of the bolt, I toss them in a basket. Then they sit there! I took the time to measure them and list them as remnants. If you are a bargain hunter, check them out by clicking here. There are lots of great pieces to be had!
Hope you are enjoying your long weekend if you are a US reader! Take care and I’ll be back in a week or so.
Enjoy your time together! That kit of fabrics is so cute! The peeking quilt holder makes me smile. It’s always good to have fun while working together!
Such a cute quilt!! One of my twin grandsons LOVES pandas (and green!), so I think I’m going to have to get some of these fabrics and make him a quilt of it! Great job. Thanks for sharing!
This is a great little quilt, Bernie! I hope you have a wonderful trip, too. Come back well rested and ready for an empty nest!
Those pandas are so cute! This is a sweet and wonderful gender neutral design 🙂
You can’t go wrong with pandas! Have a wonderful break and enjoy your quality family time x
An excellent way to hone your skills! It’s still important to practice a little first to get into the groove! Speaking of groove, Pandas are….groovy!
Cute quilt! A great size to practise on. Have a fun time away!
Thats a great quilt – have fun practicing your FMQ on it. Do enjoy your respite before Julia goes to school – I am sure you will!
Love this strip quilt. Those pandas are just too cute!!!!
I love the color and pattern combinations of this sweet little quilt. So funny that you were able to baste it while on hold!! It is amazing how quilting regresses when you get away from it. My stitches are always so uneven until I get back in the groove—and of course, the first part of the quilt I always do is the middle, which is the most visible. Oh well, the washing always comes through as a good cover. I wonder if newly retired spouses of quilters are surprised by how their quilt associate duties increase when they find themselves at home with their quilter. 🙂
When the fabric is so cute, our work becomes so much easy!!! Love it – so simple and so sweet.
I commend on you basting while on hold 🙂 Speaking of holding would your quilt model be more amenable if you you held the quilt and he took the pictures? Have a safe return home.
Your Quilt Helper looks about as enthusiastic as MY Quilt Helper!! Hah! Basting is my least favorite part, too. However, even better than speaker phone is wireless bluetooth earphones in the sewing room. I bought the kind that aren’t actually in your ear but loop around your ears and sit on your cheekbones. They work by sending sound vibrations through the bones of your face or some such weirdness. Anyway, I like them because the don’t block the noise around me so I can still hear my machines and most importantly, I can hear if my sewing machine starts to SOUND different, like needing oil or something is clanking or whatever. As long as I’m doing something fairly mindless and boring (like basting or chain piecing or stippling) I can multitask on the phone with the earphones on. The strip quilt is a great idea for practicing!