Friday, October 28, 2016

Four Patch Lattice - A Finished Quilt!

It's a beautiful Friday here in Southern Indiana.  It's chilly and our giant maple has covered the yard in leaves.  I just love it.  <3

I'm so excited to show you my finished 4-patch Lattice quilt today!


This was such a fun one to put together..so much scrappy goodness. <3



I straight line quilted parallel with the lattice, adding a second line on each side of every other black line.  I don't do straight lines often, so it was fun to do something a little different.


I used a natural Kona for the backing.  I considered putting a border on it, but I just really liked the idea of just framing it in the black binding.

Details

Size: 58" x 68"
Fabric: Handmade by Bonnie & Camille, Kona Black
Backing: Kona Natural

I'll be bringing this one with me to the Wesley Chapel UMC Craft Bazaar next week, along with several other quilts.


Thank you so much for stopping by!  I'd love to connect with you in the comments.  Have an awesome day!

~Summer

I've linked up with Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?

I'd love to connect with you on Bloglovin'FacebookInstagram, and Pinterest!

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Lattice 4-Patch - A Work in Progress

Good morning!

Today, I'm sharing a fun quilt that I've just *almost* finished.  I'm hand stitching the binding down now, so I should have finished pictures for you by Friday. <3

For this project, I used Handmade by Bonnie & Camille (can you tell I'm a big fan of Bonnie & Camille yet?) and this pattern tutorial by Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Co.

I'll admit that I did need to take a little more piecing time.  Sewing on the bias can be a little tricky, but it's so worth it with this pattern!


Laying it out was a little tricky...I wanted the super scrappy look, but I didn't wants spots like that white/red block with the green block that have the same print.


Here's what I ended up with for the top!


I love the size of this one.  It's roughly 58" x 68".  This is my daughter's twin bed.  It could be great for a kid without being too big.


I decided to do straight line quilting, so I broke out some painter's tape to mark parallel lines on every other black line.  This gave me even spacing without marking the quilt.  I also quilted along the sides of all other black lines and then I ditch stitched across the centers of all the diamonds.

I'll should have the finished project to show you on Friday!  Have you tried this pattern before?  Do you love Bonnie & Camille?  Let me know in the comments!

In the meantime, have a blessed day!

~Summer <3

I'd love to connect with you on Bloglovin'FacebookInstagram, and Pinterest!

Today I'm linking up with Silly Mama Quilts, Needle & Thread Network,


Sew Fresh Quilts

Monday, October 24, 2016

Framed Squares in April Showers - A Finished Quilt!

Happy Monday to you!  I'm excited to share another finished quilt!  This one has been a favorite for me.  The fabric is just so pretty that it was pleasure at every step.


I used a single layer cake of April Showers by Bonnie & Camille.  The inspiration was this quilt I made with a jelly roll and charm pack of Luna Notte by 3 Sisters.  I've always loved that quilt...it's cherished in our home, but I was wanting to do a brighter, more modern version of the pattern.  I didn't have any coordinating jelly roll/charm pack combos, so I thought I'd have to wait.  However, when I finished unpacking my sewing room (we've moved twice in the last year!), I found this gorgeous fabric and knew I had to use it for this.



I went back and forth on how I was going to quilt it.  I thought about straight lines, accentuating the squares.  I thought about diagonals and cross-hatching.  I considered going super fancy on it and feathering the frames of each square, but I felt like, in the end, this needed to be a quilt made for love and comfort.  So...I decided on a simple, but small and close meander to get that awesome texture that doesn't take away from the design.



I used a natural Kona for backing and found this adorable navy with white butterflies for binding.

Finished, it measures 51" x 60".


I will be taking this quilt to the craft bazaar next week before it goes into the shop.  If you're interested in purchasing this quilt or another (even one in progress) or requesting a custom order, please email me at summerleequilts@gmail.com.

Thank you so much for stopping by!  Don't forget to leave a comment below to say hello!

I'd love to connect with you on Bloglovin', Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!

Thursday, October 20, 2016

Finished T-Shirt Quilt

Hello!  I'm excited to FINALLY be able to show you this one.  I technically finished it last month, but I couldn't share it until it had been given to it's owner.  See, my friend wanted to surprise her son with it at a special school night, and we didn't want to risk him catching sight of it on social media.

So, here it is...Ryan's Quilt!


I created the center block, border, and corner stones to reflect Ryan's school colors.

This is the first T-shirt quilt that I've free-motion quilted, but I like the texture it brought to it.  I will likely free-motion more of them from now on.


There is something special about getting to do memory and T-shirt quilts.  They are so personal and unique.  I was honored to be able to complete this for them. <3


Thank you so much for stopping by!  Don't forget to leave a comment to say hello!

I've linked up with Finish It Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts!

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

EEK! Halloween Topper/Wall Hanging Tutorial

Hello and welcome back! Are you like me and wait until the last minute to decorate for holidays? I do it for almost everything, with the exception of Christmas, because there are more people involved (and begging) for the tree to go up.



Well, for Halloween this year, I wanted to get a little jump on things (a little less than 2 weeks away isn't too bad, right?), so I made up this wall hanging.  It would be adorable on an end table too.  It wasn't a long project, so I thought I'd show you exactly how I made it. :)

This all came directly from my stash.  I just used leftover, uneven pieces from other projects, so I'll give you the cut pieces needed, instead of yardage required.

What You'll Need:

Black (EEK!):

(4) 1.5" x 4.5"
(4) 1.5" x 3.5"
(2) 1.5" x 2
(1) 1.5" x 6
(1) 1.5" x 3
(1) 1.5" x 1.5"

Yellow (background):

(1) 5.5" x 5.5"
(5) 1.5" x 4.5"
(2) 1.5 x 2"
(4) 1" x 3.5"
(1) 1.5" x 1"
(2) 1.5" x 18.5"

Border:

(112) 1.5" x 1.5" of various fabrics.  The more fabrics...the scrappier it will be.  I suggest reading through the directions on the border before you start cutting.  :)

Backing:

Approximately, 25" x 13".  You might want larger or smaller, depending on how much wiggle room you like for your quilting.  I pieced together scraps leftover from the front.

Binding:

A fat quarter will do it with some to spare.

Batting:

25" x 13" - I used Warm & Natural batting...it's low loft and easy to work with.

Letters:

Let's start with making the center letters.  For the E, you'll need:

Yellow: (1) 1.5" x 4.5"; (2) 1" x 3.5"; (1) 1.5" x 2"

Black: (1) 1.5" x 4.5"; (2) 1.5" x 3.5"; (1) 1.5" x 2"


I like to lay the block out beside me, so I can see where everything goes...this keeps me (well, makes it less likely anyway) from mixing up the strips.


Next, sew the 4.5" strips together, the top black and yellow 3.5" strips, the 1.5" x 2" strips (along the 1.5" side), and the bottom yellow and black 3.5" strips.  Then press open.  It should look like this now:


Sew the horizontal strips together next, and press open.


Finally, sew the vertical strips to the side, and press open to complete your first E!


Repeat for the second E.

I used a short tutorial found here to make my K.  It's a little fiddly, but this way makes a larger section, then we cut it down to be exactly what we need.  Here's how it's done:


Take the yellow 5.5" square and cut it along both diagonals.


Then take the black 1.5" x 6" strip, 2 black 1.5" x 4.5" strips, 1 yellow 1.5" x 4.5" strip, and 3 of your newly cut yellow triangles.  Lay the block out like this:



Sew the diagonal 1.5" x 4.5" black strip to the first triangle like so, and press open:



Sew the 6" strip to the long edge and press open.



Sew the last 2 triangles onto the black strips and press open.



Next, fold the piece in half, from top to bottom, and crease it, so you have a center line.  Then measure 2.25" and trim on either side of the line, so that it is 4.5" long.  This should give you a nice .25" on the outside of the "limbs" of the K, so that once you piece it to the next strip...you'll have pretty points on your K.



Sew the vertical black 4.5" strip to the left side.



Finally, Sew on the yellow 4.5" strip and press open.

On to the exclamation point!  For this one, you'll need 2 yellow 1.5" x 4.5" strips, 1 black 1.5" x 3" strip, 1 black 1.5" square, and the yellow 1.5" x 1" piece.  Lay the block out like this:



Sew the column that makes the exclamation point, then sew the yellow strips on either side.









Your letters are done!  Now sew them in a row and press open!


Attach one 18.5" strip to the top...and one to the bottom, then press open, and your center is done!



Border:

To make the border, you'll need a total of 28 scrappy 4-patches that measure 2.5" square.  To do this, you can individually cut 112 1.5" squares and stitch them up.  Since I was using only 4 fabrics for my 4-patches, I cut 1.5" strips from the width of each fabric piece I had.


I stitched the black and orange together, then the purple and green.


I lined them up on my cutting board, like in the above picture, then I trimmed them up even, and cut 1.5" sections.  I ended up with a stack like this:


Next, pair up your strips.  I suggest turning them so that your seams are facing opposite directions. I pressed mine to the purple and black.


Then I just stitched them together in a line and pressed them all open.


For the next part, I suggest laying out your center and playing with your border.  You'll need 3 4-patches on each side, and 11 across the top and 11 on bottom.


Once you have them where you want them, sew together the 3 middle blocks on each side.


Then the top and bottom rows.


Attach the sides to the center first:


Then the top and bottom...I used pins for the first and last 4-patches on each row, so that my corners all matched nicely.


That's it for the top!

Finish:

Next up is basting and quilting however you desire.  I stitched in the ditch around the letters in black, then free-motioned bats around the outside.  I think it would look just as cute with an all-over stipple or even cross-hatched lines.


Now, I knew I wanted to hang mine on the door, so I took 2 leftover 5" squares of the orange polka dot, pressed them in half, diagonally.  I pinned them onto the top back corners BEFORE binding.  I'll be able to just pop a dowel rod in there to hang.  If you want a table topper, just skip this step.


Bind it and you're finished!  I did all machine binding on this one, but you can do whatever method is your favorite.

Finished project measures 22.5" x 10.5".


If you make this or something similar, I would LOVE to see it!  Have an awesome day.  <3

I'm linked up with Friday Fabric Frenzy