Toolbox Thursday

There are a lot of different tools I use, but the most important (and one of my favorites) is my extra long cutting mat. Several years ago I purchased this mat from Jo-ann Fabrics. It was the perfect width and length for placing along the back table of my quilting machine (you can see a glimpse of it in the upper right corner of the picture).  It is 35 inches wide and 70 inches long when placed edge-to-edge. Now, my machine table is only about 25 inches wide, so I actually have the mat placed top to bottom instead of side to side, so it ends up being 24 inches by 105 inches. It is great for trimming quilts once they've been quilted and are ready to be bound, or for just cutting binding strips, quilt backs, etc.

You'll notice I haven't said anything about the scissors, rotary cutter, or rulers that are also in the picture. Well, you'll just have to stay tuned for the next Toolbox Thursday to see which tool I decide to feature next! :)

Red White and Blue

I absolutely love this red, white, and blue quilt that I client brought me to quilt for her! She loves feathers, so I decided to do an all-over meandering feather design. It turned out really great.  I love the way the quilting stands out on the quilt back, too!

The top is a simply pieced block, sashed, and the all-over design looks great with it, too.

Here's a picture of the full quilt. Don't you just love the pieced outer border? I sure do! 

Ups and Downs Quilt

So, do you remember my post last week about the Bliss quilt? Well I did another quilt for Tammy at Karamat Designs earlier this year. She made this gorgeous quilt using Sarah Fielke's pattern Ups and Downs (you can purchase the pattern here in Sarah's online shop). Isn't it so cute?

In the colored ups and downs sections I quilted an all-over paisley design.  In the beige background I did a larger cross-hatch, with a more modern feel. Instead of keeping the lines straight I squiggled them.

The quilt turned out looking really cool when it was finished.  Here's a close up of some of the quilting.

Large Log Cabin

A few months ago I quilted this large version of a log cabin quilt for my local quilt shop, Gracie Lou's.

I chose to do an all-over floral echo pattern.  I started with randomly placed flowers and then echoed the design out to the edges of the quilt.

Here's a closer view of the echoed flowers.

Isn't it such a cute quilt? The pattern is in two sizes: baby and twin. Head on over to Gracie Lou's and you can get your own cute large log cabin quilt started!

Bliss Quilt

Last fall I did this quilt for one of my Twitter friends. Isn't it gorgeous?! I've had the pleasure of knowing Tammy of Karamat Designs for a while, but in October I got to meet her in person. It's always fun to meet your online friends in real life. :)

For this quilt I did small flowers in the 4-patches, and larger flowers in the 16-patches. In the sashing around the 4-patch blocks and the setting triangles I quilted a continuous loop.

In the inner border I quilted leaves and flowers, and in the outer border I quilted a large fern design.

Here's a better view of the quilting in the blocks from the back. It looks pretty cool.

And a view of the borders from the back.

Stars

A while ago I quilted this fun quilt for one of my clients. Can you believe that she bought this top at a yard sale? It amazes me that someone would sell this for only a few dollars.

In the background I quilted a tight filler, inspired by the McTavishing technique. This technique is great when you want to give the illusion of sky or water.

In the stars I just quilted in the ditch, and then did 1/4 inch quilting inside the blue border. (The blue fabric strip on the outside is the binding. I frequently have clients ask me to attach the binding for them and/or finish the binding by hand.)

Outfox the Fox

I know I'm a little late getting these posts up, but better late than never, right?

Last summer/fall I quilted two quilts for Lizzy House, an amazing fabric designer. She was releasing her fabric line, Outfoxed, along with some corresponding patterns.  I had so much fun quilting her quilts.

The first quilt I did was for her pattern, Outfox the Fox! You can purchase it here, in her online store.

In each of the puzzle pieces I quilted a different geometric design: horizontal, vertical, diagonal lines, and circles.

In the background I quilted concentric rectangles, 1/2 inch apart.

Here's a close-up shot of the background. Doesn't it look so cool?

I also quilted the Colorist for her. You can read more about that one here.