Three Quilts for Carrie: Roam, Stars Hollow + I Spy Shadow Boxes

Today for Finished On Friday I'm sharing three beautiful quilts that I long arm quilted for my client Carrie.  First up is Roam, a BOM (Block of the Month) medallion quilt kit designed by Tara Faughnan.  I wasn't able to locate any Roam kits that I could link to, but you can still purchase the Roam pattern (with or without the accompanying video tutorials) on the designer's web site here.  The back page of the pattern lists all the fabrics used in the BOM kit for this quilt in case you wanted to make one just like it, but I think this quilt would look wonderful in any number of different fabric combinations.  In print fabrics, it would look like a completely different quilt.

Carrie's 82 x 82 Roam Quilt with Diagonal Plaid Bias Cut E2E

I quilted Carrie's Roam with Diagonal Plaid Bias Cut E2E, a simple geometric pattern that emphasizes the strong diagonal elements in the patchwork.  I used King Tut 40 wt cotton thread in Lapis Lazuli and Hobbs 80/20 Cotton/Poly Black batting (this post contains affiliate links).

Detail of Diagonal Plaid Bias E2E in King Tut Lapis Lazuli Variegated Thread

Why the black batting?  Long arm machines use larger needles than domestic sewing machines, and with the thicker 40 wt thread I was using here I needed a size 110/18 needle to get that gorgeous stitch quality in all stitching directions.  Bigger needles leave bigger holes, and with a dark thread and predominantly dark fabrics in the quilt top, those needle holes are less conspicuous when the batting isn't peeking out bright white around every stitch.  Of course needle holes close up when the quilt is washed, but not every quilt does get washed, at least not right away.

Second reason for black batting in a quilt like this is that it prevents dark stray threads from showing through the lighter fabrics in the quilt top.  The Windham Artisan Cottons fabrics in the Roam quilt are gorgeous but they are also prone to fraying.  As neat as Carrie was with her quilt top, there were still stray threads all over the place no matter how many I tried to neaten away.  In that photo above, if I'd used a regular white or off white batting, we would be seeing some stray navy threads showing through the Orchid and Yellow/Copper fabrics.  Navy thread against black batting disappears, but navy thread against white batting will show through a light colored quilt top fabric.

TGIFF: Lazy Day College Graduation Quilt Finish + Two Christmas Finishes for Clients

 Hello, there, quilt lovers!  Happy FRIDAY!  Do y'all realize that Christmas Eve is only two weeks away?!  Hanukkah is over and done with for 2021, and Kwanzaa, Ōmisoka and New Year's Eve celebrations (and the resolutions of the new year) are sneaking up on us quickly.  This will be my last time hosting TGIFF (Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday) in 2021!  I'm looking forward to seeing what all of you have finished recently, whether it's a completely finished quilt or garment, a finished quilt top, or just a finished block.  ALL finishes count!  The link up is all the way at the bottom of today's blog post, because first I have a special finish of my own to share with you.

Alex's College Graduation Quilt

90 x 93 Lazy Day Quilt from Quilts! Quilts! Quilts! book, 3rd ed. (affiliate link)

This is my nephew Alex's college graduation quilt.  He graduated this past June, and I tried to give him cash, but he asked for a quilt instead.  💓💓💓.   

Simple Piecing, Double Batting, & Modern Curves Extended Width E2E

Of course, I wasn't able to attend his graduation in person thanks to Plague Protocol...

Big Alex Graduates from UC San Diego, June of 2021

I didn't want this to be another of my seven-year quilts, so I found this easy pattern in the book Quilts! Quilts! Quilts! by Diana McClun and Laura Nownes, 3rd ed.  (By the way, the 2nd edition of this book taught me to make my very first quilt -- I noticed the newer 3rd edition when browsing at Barnes & Noble and bought it because all of the projects have been updated to appeal to modern as well as traditional quilters, and the new projects looked like they would be great for quick gifts).

November OMMG, Lightning Round: One Million Monthly Goals for Rebecca

 Hello, friends -- I've missed you!  Happy November!  

The longer it's been since writing a blog post, the more I have to share, the longer it would take to write about everything I'm working on, and the less time to get anything finished.  I have a folder on my computer desktop where I keep photos of things I want to post about and if it was a REAL folder, it would be splitting at the seams and pictures would be falling off the desk and onto the floor.  I've been working on so many different quilts for clients lately that I'm dying to share with you, but since it's a brandy-new month I've decided to keep it personal and just share my own projects and plans with you today.  I'll be linking up today's post with One Monthly Goal (as if) and To-Do On Tuesday linky parties in addition to my other favorite parties. 

Deco Quilt-Along: Behind Schedule Already

The Deco Quilt QAL hosted by pattern designer Brittany Lloyd of Lo & Behold Stitchery is running from October 18th through November 29th, and I was hoping to keep up with the QAL schedule to prevent this project from turning into yet another languishing UFO (UnFinished Object) hanging around my studio.  I had a delay with the fabrics I'd ordered online, then when they got here I didn't love some of the colors with the Anna Maria Horner backing print I'd fallen in love with while waiting for the solid quilt top fabrics to show up.  But I finally made it out to a bricks-and-mortar quilt shop about 40 minutes away from me a few days ago, and now I'm happy with my "fabric pull."  (Side note: Pulling Fabric (out of quilt shops) is MUCH MORE FUN than Puling Teeth (out of your face).

My Deco Bed Quilt Fabrics, Revised to Coordinate with Anna Maria Horner Backing Print

Obviously I could have saved myself a lot of aggravation and time if I'd chosen the backing print FIRST and THEN pulled solid fabrics to match colors in the print.  I'll still be using these fabrics more or less as shown below in my original color plan, with that inky dark Kona Solids Indigo as my background fabric.  I love bright colors with dark background fabrics!  

Deco Bed Quilt Will Finish at 102" x 102"

According to the Quilt Along schedule, I was supposed to be Planning the first week, then Cutting and Organizing ALL the fabric for the whole quilt last week, and this coming week is supposed to be making all of the Block One blocks (those are the ones that are like log cabin blocks -- in my version, they will have large dark or medium blue squares and logs of Indigo alternating with either purple or green).  In order to get back on schedule somewhat, and because of my track record in the past when cutting EVERYTHING out first, I think I'm going to just cut and piece as I go along.  

Amish Baby 54-40 Or Fight is Sashed and Ready For Borders

Sashed and Ready for Borders...  Maybe

As you can see, I managed to get the blocks sashed and assembled for my Amish Baby 54-40 Or Fight quilt top this week.  I love the design, and I'm mostly happy with the accuracy of my piecing: 

...However, I made the mistake of cutting all of my sashing strips to EXACTLY 12.5", which is what every block SHOULD have measured upon completion, and then easing the sashing to fit those blocks that finished slightly skimpier.  My blocks were all within 1/8" to 1/16" of the 12.5" ideal, but that little bit of easing coupled with the finagling I did to get all of my teal points so sharp and perfect, created just the slightest ripple along the outer edge of my sashing.  So now I have to clear off my big work table, take the quilt top down off the design wall, and do some measurements to determine whether I need to take any of the sashing apart and restitch it, or if I can correct for the ripple and steam iron everything flat again after I add the borders.  I do know enough to measure the length and width through the CENTER of the quilt top for the borders.  Maybe I can just straighten the outer edges, square the corners, add the borders and it will be fine? 

Next decision: Batting, backing fabric, and binding.  I've heard of black quilt batting made especially for black or dark colored quilts like this one, but never used them before.  Supposedly they help the dark colors maintain their saturated appearance over the life of the quilt, without white batting fibers working their way through the quilt top.  Looking online, I found two possibilities: Hobbs Heirloom 80/20 Cotton Polyester batting, which is supposed to be just like their regular 80/20 Premium batting except that it is black, or Quilter's Dream Midnight Dreams Black 100% Polyester "Select Loft" batting.  Midnight Dreams is supposed to be just like the Select Loft Quilter's Dream poly batting. 

Now, in the past, I've used Minky cuddle fleece for backing fabric and prepackaged wide sating binding on my baby quilts, and the parents and babies-toddlers-preschoolers have literally loved those quilts to death.  Clearly it's a winning combination.  For past quilts, I've just used a thin 100% cotton batting since the Minky fleece adds an additional layer of bulk and warmth, and I want the finished quilt to be drapable and very snuggly.  But I don't see anywhere that I can buy a thin 100% cotton batting in black, and I'm not as opposed to some poly content since Minky cuddle fleece is also a polyester fabric, as is the satin binding.  I did prewash and preshrink all of the fabrics in this quilt top to avoid the problem of a finished quilt where the top fabrics shrink and the batting and backing fabrics do not.  However, I want to use the thinnest, least bulky black batting that I can find.  If any of you have any direct experience with Hobbs 80/20 versus Quilter's Dream Poly Select Loft, please let me know in the comments which you would recommend for this project and why.  I don't think my LQS stocks black battings, so I may just have to order some of each online and experiment with samples in person.

I'm linking up with Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts and Whoop Whoop Friday at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.  Happy Stitching!