My finished projects 2015

I finished a few projects in 2015, and this is a collage with photos of most of them

I started and finished most of these in 2015, and that is a bit unusual for me who is the Queen of UFO's ;o) Guess it paid off to make smaller projects that was easy to finish. 

I look forward to be sewing, quilting and knitting a lot more than the last months again, and hope to finish some of my UFO's too. 

Wish you all a Happy and Creative New Year!

Hugs,

Laila

Been sewing again

I had so many projects I planned to make for Christmas, but only two handmade presents where finished. One of them is a table runner I made using the Haystack blocks I have been making as a leader & ender project for a while. The pattern for this block are from the Farm Girl Vintage book by Lori Holt. I quilted it with white Aurifil thread, just some simple cross hatching. My mom got this as a Christmas present, and I'm so glad she liked it :-) 

I have seen a lot of cute pin cushions both on Instagram and Pinterest, and yesterday I made one using my Modern minis scraps. The 1,5" scrappy squares makes the cutest little pieces to use for a small project like this :o)

The past days I have been playing with some new fabrics I couldn't resist buying... The new line by Lori Holt "Calico Days". There is a free pattern for a quilt designed by Lori using these fabrics called "Bloom Quilt", and I have been busy cutting the pieces and started to make some of the blocks. Just love how it looks so far, and since I'm out of background fabric, I will continue to cut the rest of the pieces and have them ready till it arrives. 
I am using the white with print from the "Modern Minis" line, since I like it a lot! 
I didn't have the pellon Lori uses for these flowers, so I am using my favorite technique needleturn appliquè. The templates designed by Lori Holt, Sew Simple Shapes, that is needed for making this quilt is perfect for needleturn too :o) 

Lori Holt will have a Sew Along for the "Bloom Quilt" in January, so if you are curious about it and plan to join just pop over to her blog and read about it :o)

Only two more days are left before we welcome a New Year. It's been a busy year, and also a few tough times for me. I hope the new year will be a great year with lots of creativity, less health issues and lots of positive happenings. I also hope to be able to be playing with my longarm quilting machine again soon. 

Wish you all a Happy New Year!

Hugs,
Laila

Playing with happy colors

I've spent a lot of time in my sewing room this weekend. Feeling a bit better every day now, except the lack of sleep isn't doing me any good. Since I try to be quiet so the rest of my family can sleep, I have been in my sewing room sewing with the Modern minis/30's fabrics a lot. 

Have you seen the gorgeous table runner Lori Holt made? It's called Great Granny Circled, and I just fell in love it! I had to make the blocks using the freezer paper technique, since I haven't got the pellon yet, and I also cut the 9patch blocks a little smaller to fit the backgrounds I have already cut. Using freezer paper requires a little bit of clean cutting when the blocks are sewn. 

I love how the blocks turned out, an hope to finish up a few more to make a table runner I will have on my dining room table :o) 

 I have figured out that ironing 4 layers of fabrics cutting them into most used strip sizes and cutting some squares in piles, makes the block building a lot faster. I also have leader & ender  pieces cut so I can build a few smaller blocks using these. I got this idea by both Bonnie Hunter and Lori Holt, and it's amazing how fast you can grow a pile of blocks ready to use for a project! Earlier I had the Haystack blocks as a leader & ender project, but these days I piece 1,5" squares together with 3 or 6 pieces for future projects. Pretty cute, right?

Iplan to be writing more blog posts from now on, since I like the blog better than Facebook and Instagram. I am also commenting and visiting the blogs I follow more often, and will continue to do so even if I can see what my quilty friends are up to on the other channels. I know several of my quilting friends feel the same, and I bet the new year might be a "better year for blogging" :o)

I wish you all a nice and creative Sunday, and a Happy New Week!

Hugs,
Laila

Little bit of sewing going on

I've tried to be patient waiting for some sewing time during the last weeks, and I have digged out a few UFO's and tried to focus on a few projects to play with the last days. I'm working so much slower than I am used to, and it's not so fun when I'm used to get a lot done... I am not focused enough to work on one thing, so I just have to continue to jump from project to project just to get the feeling of doing something useful :-)

I digged out a stitchery I started a couple of years ago from the UFO bin, and will try to finish it to make the table runner it's a part of. I love snowmen, and this is the cutest table runner!

A little while ago I got a package in the mail from my dear friend Kathy in Canada. She sent me some lovely quilty stuff, and a mini quilt kit was one of them. It's a mini quilt designed by Thimbleblossoms/Camille Roskelley and it's called "Norway". Isn't it just gorgeous?

I have trouble sleeping because of the medicine I'm on, so last night I figured I should get some sewing done instead of walking around like a zombie going crazy. I managed to finish the whole quilt during the night, and this is the result. Isn't it gorgeous?

I will quilt and bind it as soon as I can, and use it as a wall hanging. It measures 12,75", so it's perfect to put up on a wall :-)

I'm so glad to be feeling a little bit better even if it's taking way much longer than I thought, and I really hope to get back to my longarm quilting machine again soon too. 
I'm still behind with the Christmas stuff, but the kids and Hubby will help me out to get most of it done in time.
We'll make it simple but cozy, and no stress will be involved. I'm just looking forward to enjoy the Holidays with my family, and that's all that matters to me. I don't care that some of the Christmas decorations will stay in their bins, and that no cakes and cookies will be homemade. We'll buy candy and cookies at the store and enjoy our Christmas anyway :-) 

Happy sewing,
Laila

I love snowmen

When I was in hospital a while back, I was using Instagram and Facebook a lot to see what people I follow was working on. Lots of inspiration, and of course I found some gorgeous stuff I planned to sew and knit when I got better.
I found a super gorgeous block made by Meredit F (Fergusonstreetquilts on IG) wich was made from a turorial Lori Holt had on her Instagram a year ago.
Today I finally got to spend time in my sewing room, and it was so great to finally get to sew the first block. It's a snowman block using scraps, and I love how it turned out!

I will stitch the eyes, nose and hands with DMC thread. 
Plan to be making a few more blocks to make a larger quilt or table runner.

I've felt a bit better today than the past week, and hope the progress will continue to be like this, so I can be back to my normal routines and get some energy back. It's really no fun spending most of the day on the couch not being able to do much. Still having the fever come and go, and hot flashes all day long. Will go to have blood tests tomorrow, and in a week or so I will have the results of the liver biopsy. This certainly came unexpected and really scared me for a while, but thanks to good doctors they finally figured it out.

This evening I went for a little walk with Hubby, and it felt so good to be out in the cold air even if I couldn't walk longer than half an hour. Hope to be able to have our walks in the evenings during winter, and it will probably do us both good :-) I hope the snow will stay a while, and  not rain away. I really wish we'll have snow during the Christmas Holidays.

Wish you all a great new week, with lots of creative stuff going on this time of the year!
Hugs,
Laila

Sometimes "life happens"

On Thursday I was finally able to go home after two weeks in hospital. Never thought it was something serouisly wrong going on, even if I've been feeling sick and super tired for a few weeks. I just thought it was just a bug going on... Turned out to be an autoimmune illness, and the immune system was starting to attack my liver. I went to the ER when my eyes and skin turned yellow, and glad I did!
The doctors used some time to narrow it down and figure out what was wrong, and I could start treatment that made it slow down and I started feeling a little bit better.
I know it can take a lot of time to be back to normal, but will continue to take blood tests till they show normal values. Might take weeks, months or maybe longer... But at least I know what's been going on.
I'm still having fever come and go, and get super exhausted for no reason.

I have been thinking a lot about the plans I made for Christmas. Presents, baking, decorating, visiting family and friends.... I just realize I really need to narrow the list down to less than planned.
I have several unfinished presents in the making, but I guess if I can't finish them this year, I can finish them and have some beautiful homemade presents for next Christmas, right?

I've had a few experiences with "life happenings", so I guess I should have learned by now that there's a few things you can't control. But I also feel like I'v had my share of stuff going on for a while. I try to focus on the positive, but admit it is hard sometimes.
I'm glad my boys are helping me with stuff for Christmas, and we look forward to the Holidays.

I really missed my sewing room while I was away, and I really need some quilty therapy and Vitamin Q now. I have only been knitting a little bit when I've felt better, and that's ok too. I hope to be able to do a little bit of sewing soon, and maybe plan a couple of new projecst too.
I am behind on the FQFW1930's QAL and my Farm Girl Vintage quilt, but It's ment to be fun so I don't worry about it. I look forward to make new blocks, and in the meantime I enjoy watching the progress on the blocks the other ladies are making.

Wish you all a great and creative Sunday!
Hugs,
Laila

Blockmania and some other stuff

I have been working on the blocks for my Farmers Wife 1930s quilt since the QAL started in September. So far I have finished 9 of them, but there are still some more to make before I have finished all blocks revealed so far.

I have also been making a few more blocks for my Farm Girl Vintage quilt. I have finished 12 blocks, and a couple is in the making. Love how the blocks turned out so far :o)

 When I ordered my Modern minis fabric bundle there was a couple of panels with super cute prints and sayings on them. This weekend me and my SIL had a sew-together at my place, and while she worked on her project I started making a couple of projects using some of the squares from the Modern Minis panels. I finished one large bag I can use for my knitting projects/sewing projects when I'm "on the road". 

I also made a toiletry bag using the panel squares, and this might end up in the pile of Christmas presents ;o)

It's getting colder, and yesterday I finished attaching the loose threads on the Marius sweater I have made for one of the twins. He chose the colors for the sweater, and I hope it will make him stay warm during the season coming. 

I am almost finished with the sweater for the other twin also, but still a little "brainwork" is needed before it's done. Hope to finish it any day now. Just need a day or two "alone" with a clear head :-)

A little bit of quilting and sewing

This evening I went hiking with Hubby and my SIL. We almost live in the forest, and we try to go hiking as often as possible. Lately we've been occupied with more renovations at our place and haven't taken the time, so it was great to spend time in the lovely Autumn weather on the gorgeous trails almost right outside out front door. This season is just so great even if it is getting colder every day. So many lovely Autumn colors! 

A week ago I finished quilting a lovely quilt made by a lady in my local quilt guild. I have said "no" to quilt for others in such a long time, but since I missed quilting on my longarm and really needed some practicing I said "yes" to this one.  

I had lots of fun quilting this quilt, a design by Gail Pan and made by Hege.  Here are some close ups from the progress:

I'm so glad she liked what I did on her quilt, and I must admit I had fun too :o) 
It was great to be playing with the longarm again! I finished quilting just in time for the October quilt guild meeting.

My local quilt guild had the talented AnnAKa for a visit to talk about her life as a designer, and she makes the most gorgeous designs. She is the most known designer here in Norway, and I've attended several classes of her at Quiltegården, my local quilt shop. 

I've made some progress on the blocks for the Farmers Wife 1930's QAL. This is the tree first blocks for my quilt. I have made two more, but forgot to take a photo of them I will share pics in my next blog post.  

Happy sewing,
Laila

My new Autumn table runner

Yesterday evening I finished the table runner I've been working on for a few days.  

I made it using the Scrappy maple leaf block pattern from Lori Holt's book Farm

Girl Vintage, and added a simple sashing between and around the blocks.

The photo might be a little blurry, since I captured it with my Samsung tab (and not the best camera on that thing...) but you get the idea ;o)

I love how it turned out, these fabrics are just gorgeous! I will play with some other blocks and thinking about a table runner for winter.... I plan to make one with mittens, that will be a perfect table runner for winter :o)

 I've also finished the two first blocks for the Farmers wife 1930s quilt.

First block is #12 Becky

Second block is #16 Bonnie

I really hope to be able to finish up this sampler quilt during the Sew Along, and I think these fabric will look great in a sampler quilt like this :o)

Happy sewing,
Laila

Miniature blocks

Piecing a few more scrappy leaf blocks this morning, and of course one of my quilt inspectors supervised the progress. Poor Suzu tried to fit into my small scrap bin...  

The miniature leaf blocks are just so cute! And so fun to make! Perfect for bonus hst's and scrappy squares leftovers :o)

Only 7 blocks are finished so far, but I hope to make a few more to make a miniature wall hanging.

I'll need to finish more of the original 6" blocks to have more bonus blocks for the miniature blocks. 

Happy sewing,
Laila

A few new blocks

 I have been sewing a little bit today, and made a couple Scrappy maple leaf blocks from the Farm Girl Vintage book by Lori Holt. I got some leftover hst's so I cut them down to 1,5" and made a small leaf block that only measures 3,5". Perfect for a miniature quilt!

I love miniature quilts, and I have prepped six more blocks ready to be pieced together. Aren't they cute? I think I will make 9 or 12 blocks to make a wallhanging, a perfect autumn quilt :o)

Are you enjoying some sewing today? I hope to finish my blocks during the weekend, been knitting a bit too much lately and need to get back to my sewing room more often. The knitting is sometimes easier to do if I'm tired and don't bother to focus much. I guess that's just typical me :o)

Wish you a great and creative weekend!

Hugs,

Laila

A nice autumn day

It has been a nice sunny autumn day over here today, and the weather report says it's going to be the same weather a few days ahead. When enjoying my coffee out on the veranda I figured I should make an autumn quilt, so I made the "Scrappy Maple Leaf" block from Lori Holt's book "Farm Girl Vintage".

Love this scrappy block, and since I have a lot of precut squares waiting to be used up I will make a few in no time. Hopefully I'll be able to make a few blocks for a cute quilt during the next days. 

Autumn is my favorite season, mostly because of the beautiful colors before the leaves fall off the trees. It also means more time spent in the sewing room when the evenings are getting darker. 

Hugs,

Laila

Playing with fabrics this weekend

I have been playing with fabrics this weekend, and it feels so good to finally back in my sewing room again! My neck has been hurting a lot lately, but I've felt a bit better the last couple of days, so I ignored the pain and pieced on :o) Nothing is better than some fabric therapy, right?

I finished 24 Haystack blocks and will use them for a couple of new table runners like the one I made earlier this summer. You can see it here.

 Since I started ironing the seams open (which is a technique I use for smaller blocks)  I've used a little glue to make the blocks lay flat by adding it at every point they meet.

This is how my block looks like before adding the glue:

This is how it looks after adding a little dot of glue:

Earlier this summer I started on the "Button up" quilt designed by Cluck Cluck Sew. I finished piecing these blocks, but I never got to iron the last two seams on them.... Well, I ironed the seams and added a dot of glue to make them lay flat :o) 14 more blocks to add to the other pile I finished!

I have a few more pieces cut for these blocks too, so I will try to finish up a few more next week.

I'm going to use the same fabrics for my Farmers Wife 1930s quilt when the Sew Along starts. Can't wait to get started, I know it will be so much fun! Are you joining us? 

Wish you all a great new and creative week!

Hugs,

Laila

It's been a long time...

It's been a month since I made my previous blog post! That means it's a month since the last time I did play with my fabrics! Well... I hope to get my sewing mojo going this weekend! Today I did some small progress on the Haystack blocks I started a month ago. Hope to finish up a few more to make another table runner.

A little while ago I discovered the new book "The Farmer's Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt". On Instagram I discovered the Sew Along that is going to start in September so I figured I should join in and ordered the book. Can't wait to get it in my mailbox in a couple of days!

Are you joining the Sew Along too? If you want to read more about it you can check out Angie's blog Gnome Angel 

You can also join the facebook group to get updates and see what the other ladies are making and share photos of your blocks as we move along :o)

Wish you all a great and creative weekend :oD
Laila

Button up!

On Monday it was back to work for Hubby, and I have one more week off before I start on the "Work training program" again. I have admired Kviltstina's lovely button quilt for a while, and figured I should make my own. I bought the PDF pattern from Cluck Cluck Sew and started right away, using the new fabrics from Lori Holt "Modern minis". 

Love how it looks so far!

Today hasn't been a very productive day, but I made a few more blocks in different colors:

I hope to be able to finish up a few more blocks tonight so I can piece more of them together. 

Happy sewing,
Laila

Another finish!

I found a fun tutorial at Lori Holt's blog a couple of weeks ago, for a block called "Scrappy Crossroads". The size of it was just perfect to match my dining room table if I pieced three of them together in a row and turned them into a table runner. The finished size of one block is 16".

I finished the table runner top a few days ago, and started quilting it on my longarm using So Fine thread. I used a light blue, and it also blend in well on the scrappy fabrics as well as the open spaces between. I first made a blue binding, but it didn't go so well with the other fabrics as I thought, so I ripped it off and made a new one. I think the green looks so much better.

There is no secret that I love "McTavishing", the pattern I quilted in the light blue/green areas. I think it looks perfect and I am so happy I decided to quilt it like this. I used a circle ruler to make the curves in the area with the scraps. Love the texture of this quilting to be honest.

Here are some detail photos of the quilting:

I hope to enjoy some more sewing in the days ahead. Have a few new projects I want to make, and a few I plan to finish. Since we've been doing a lot of work in our house during the Summer holidays I haven't got time to do much sewing, but we are almost done with the hallway now. Hubby is going back to work tomorrow, and I have one more week before the "Job training program" starts again. 

Wish you all a Happy Sunday :oD
Laila

One more Scrappy Crossroads block

Today I finished block #2 of 3 for my new table runner. I think I will quilt this one on my longarm machine, and do some simple custom quilting on it. Have to finish the last block so i can load it up. Think each block measure 16". It's called "Scrappy Crossroads" and I found it at Lori Holt's blog.

I also did some cleaning up in my sewing corner today, and now I have the space to continue play with my happy scraps :-) My scrappy strips are still hanging on the longarm frame, but I will use up some of them before I store them in bins. Cutting a lot of strips makes it so much faster to sew something!

The rest of the sewing room still needs some organizing, since I have stacks of fabrics and stuff "everywhere" ;o)

While cleaning up I digged this little UFO out, my wallhanging from Brenda Riddle's pattern I bought when I attended her class at Quiltegården a while ago. I think my head was somewhere else when I attatched two of the rows, since the two blue blocks are not supposed to stand together. Need some time with my seam ripper and make it right, and attach the outer triangles. Then it's ready to be quilted. Love Brenda's fabric line Ambleside used in this quilt, and I will make some more projects with these fabrics :o)

Wish you all a great weekend, and happy sewing :o)

Hugs,

Laila

Still progress in my sewing room

It's been nice to spend some time in my sewing room the last week. 

I have been cutting a lot of fabrics and have enjoyed working with the repro's. 

I have a few more pieces for the new table runner I am working on, and I will need three large blocs to make it. One block is finished, and number two is in progress. Hope to finish it today. 

These are some of my precut pieces, and they are all so cute😊

Yesterday I had a lot of Happy mail. I got my fatquarter bundle of Lori Holt's new line, and also a nice parcel from Australia arrived!
I ordered some stuff from Helen Stubbings, and I have been excited to start this cute project:

New stitchery needles and the threads to make this also arrived with the pattern, so of corse I had to start one right away! Super fast when I didn't need to trace the pattern on to the fabric, since it comes with iron on transfers 😊

I have to admit I needen some "me time"these days, without explaining too much about that... Life happends, and sometimes everyone needs a little "time-out" to get the batteries charged.
We are having our Summer Holidays back here, and while Hubby is working on the house with stuff I can't help with and the kids are doing their stuff, I am sewing as much as I can when the weather is rainy and cold. 
We've been working a little in the garden too, but no fun when it rains...

I'm off to clean up a bit in my sewing room before dinner, so I can continue where I left 

Happy sewing!
Laila

Some more Farmgirl vintage fun

Yesterday I found a fun tutorial to make a cute pincushion at Lori Holt's blog Bee In My Bonnet. 

I have been making some Apron Springs blocks, and had a stack of bonus blocs to make this pincushion, so it was fast and fun to make. I have seen a lot of these pincushions made by others on Instagram and just love how they all turned out with lots of different fabric and color choices. I will for sure make a few more of these!

Yesterday I also pieced together some of the Haystack blocks I have been working on, and decided to make another small table runner. I used a purple air erasable pen to mark my quilting lines:

Basted it with some basting pins:

Quilted it with Aurifil 40 weight cotton thread:

Clean cut the whole piece and today I attached the binding on by machine and sew it down by hand:

TA DA! A brand new table runner for me :OD Love how it turned out!

I'm on to painting the dresser I will decorate with the table runner. I am painting it with a nice aqua, and these fabrics will look so great on it :oD

I really got my sewing mojo back thanks to making these small projects. I think I got a little bit tired of making only large quilts that I spent weeks and months to finish. I will enjoy some more of these smaller projects during the Summer Holidays, and just have fun making a few things with these happy colors. 

Happy sewing!
Laila