Winter Blooms

Finished quilting my "Winter Blooms" quilt yesterday. Only a few stitches that needed to be done, so can't tell you why I waited so long... 

Need to find the fabric for the binding now. Hope I'll be able to find the same one like in the smallest border. 
Here are some detail photos:

So happy I was able to take some photos in daylight today. When I don't use the flash on the camera, the quilting shows off better. I made a few mistakes here and there, but it's after all my second custom quilted quilt. Finished is better than perfect, right? 


Wondering what will be next project... Think I'll try to quilt the "Full House" pillow I finished the other day, then work on some of my UFO's. 
Need to chase the stomach bugs away first, so I'll get some energy to make some progress in my sewing room. 


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

No UFO's done yet...

...but I have been sewing these days... on a new secret quilt... for ME :o) 
I've enjoyed A LOT of needleturn applique (my favorite method), so now it's machine piecing all the way 'till it's finished! I can't wait to show you!!
Cannot show you yet (it wouldn't be a secret then, would it?)... but between the cutting the rest of the pieces for the secret quilt, I've got two house blocks done and a few more pieces for a few others. 
These blocks will be joined into rows for the "Full House" quilt, which is the first quilt in the "Another year of Schnibbles" sew-along. I'm using my japanese fabrics, and I hope this will be a nice quilt. I will make it a wallhanging and decorate my living room with it.

Are you joining the "Another year of Schnibbles" sew-along?


I hope to show some more progress soon :o)


Wish everyone a great new and creative week!


Hugs,
Laila

The "Secret Quilt" is called Cottage Charm :o)

Today is the day I'm allowed to show you the secret project I have been working on the last month or so!!!! 

Siw, owner of Quiltegården, asked me to make this quilt, and of course I couldn't resist saying "yes" :o) I started in the middle of December, and it was so exciting to see the quilt growing.

A lot of sewing on the machine, and appliquè by hand, it turned into this:

Then it had to take a trip to Merete, she was going to quilt it on her longarm quilting machine. She gave me a couple of sneak peeks along the way, and it looked gorgeous!

She turned it into this:

Awesome, right? She did such an amazing job, and you can see some more close up photo's over at Merete's blog :o)

The quilt is on display at Fr.Jørgensen's exhibition stand on the Gave & Interiørmessa (Spring Market) which opened early today and will be open during the weekend, so that's why we couldn't show you the quilt before ;o)

The quilt is promoting the new fabric line from RJR fabrics, and the pattern is a 6 month BOM with these fabrics. Quiltegården in Trondheim are going to have it in the shop, so give them a call, or an e-mail if you are interested :o) 

I couldn't resist using the extra pieces I had left from the first table runner I made a week ago. I turned it into a similar table runner, and I gave it to my mom yesterday. The only thing different from the first one, is the quilting. This is only my second finish this year, but hope to finish some more projects next month:o)

Happy sewing,
Laila

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year! Isn't it great to sort of reset, and start on scratch with all the plans and project that didn't happen last year? I've already made a lot of plans, and some of my New Year's resolutions includes getting some more of my UFO's and WISP's out their bins and boxes, and finish more projects than last year. I am going to update my list for every UFO/WISP so I can get an overview of them. I've got lists in several notebooks, and that is not working. So the list on my sidebar will be a long one one...

I am planning to finish a UFO/WISP for each new project I start with this year. Wanna join me on that? Maybe I'll make a blogbutton for this, if several of you wanna join me :o)

There will also be a sew-along on my blog soon. Cannot wait to give you the details, but I know you'll love it, so keep checking up on me ;o) It will be so fun!

During the Christmas Holidays I got to do some progress on the "Secret quilt" I'm working on. It's a gorgeous quilt, and I will give you a couple of sneek peeks when I've been working some more on it ;o)

I also started on a little chrochet project. It's going to be a small table runner for my cupboard when it's finished. Just loved the purple yarn I bought last week.


A while ago I left a comment on Mona's blog, and this is what I got from her in the mail just a couple of days before Christmas:

Thanks a lot, Mona! Love your gift!!!
I like the “Random Acts of Kindness” philosophy currently traveling around blogs under the title of “Pay it Forward.”

Pay it forward rules:

I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange, and who make the same pledge on their own blogs. I don’t know what that gift will be yet, but you will receive it within 365 days, that is my promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward.

When I was shopping for gifts before Christmas, I found this frame in a shop called "Black & White":

I just totally fell in love with it! I haven't got to print photo's of my three boys yet, but I will do so really soon. Ain't it gorgeous?

Wish you all a great week,
Hugs ♥
Laila

My new quilt and OPAM report

Time flies, and suddenly we have to welcome Autumn here. The leaves are changing colors and they've already started to fall from the trees. I like the Autumn because of the colors, and it's cozy to light lots of candles around me in the evenings. It's a bit cold and it's raining a lot, but that means I can spend more time in my sewing room from now on and not feeling guilty about staying inside more :o)

I've been sewing just a little bit, and I've got only one finish for August OPAM. But I finished my secret quilt, and I'm working on the quilting now :o)

I cannot make up my mind about the quilting, so I can make the cubes stand out as much as possible. but I am quilting in the ditch along the light areas now, and we'll see what I decide for the rest. I haven't used any pattern, so I just designed it myself using the 60 degree ruler.
The quilt is made from fabrics I've already got in my stash, so it feels great to do some stash busting :o) It also have a scrappy look, and I love that!
The quilt will be used to teach a class later this Autumn, and when the class is over the quilt will be delivered to it's new ower, my oldest son. Finally he will get his first quilt!!!

Remember the cupboard me and Hubby worked on earlier this Summer? We finished the painting a while ago, and he also changed the glasses in the doors, with some that looks a bit old and they remind me of quilt blocks ;o) Nice :o)

Guess I'll have to get back to the quilting again :o)

Wish you all a great and creative week,
Laila

Some sewing :o)

I've been hooked on the Schnibble-mania going around. These quilts are sooo fun to make, and they are fast to make too!
I bought the new fabric line called "Pure" at Fatquartershop to make one of these. The only thing is... they don't come in yards yet... But the main part of the quilt is done, and I've cut all the bits for the outer border, so now I just have to wait a while so I can get the light border fabric, backing and fabric for the binding. Really look forward to finish this!
No finishes for July Opam for me, but hopefully I will have some this month. Fingers crossed!


Earlier I told you about working on a secret project. Well here it is. This is a photo during the hand basting, that took more than 8 hours to do... But I got to start on the hand quilting late last night, and I made some progress today too :o)
It's a wallhanging from one of the Japaneese books I've got. I've been planning to make this for some years, and I finally made it!
Guess I'll be using some hours on the hand quilting, but this one is really going to have "the look" I want :o)

A photo before the basting:


I really like the Japaneese fabrics with their special, kind of dusty, color tones. After I learned a few tricks by Yoko Saito when I attended her class, I liked these projects even more.
When I was at Quiltegården a while ago, I bought one of Yoko Saito's books that has some really great projects. One of the projects are a little purse I want to make. Haven't got to finish it yet, but wanted to show you how it looks while I'm working on one of the two sides. I'm not following the pattern, and I made mine with blocks like the ones we learned at Yoko Saito's class. The blocks (I call them Happy blocks) are hand sewn, and I am working on the hand quilting. Almost there ;o) This will be such a cute purse :o) Will try to finish it during the week that comes.

Wish you a great new and creative week, with lots of sewing ;o)
Laila

Another secret project ;o)

I've been doing a lot of cutting for a new quilt lately. This is my secret project number two ;o) Last weekend I got to start piecing, and I'm so excited to see the quilt is 'growing' :o) I have no pattern to follow, so I just do whatever I think looks good! I will show you the whole quilt when it's finished, but a little sneakpeek:


I will be working on this quilt this weekend too, and I look forward to get to the part when I can attach the borders!!! I will have a challenge when I get to the quilting, since I haven't figured out that part yet. I've used mostly my Japaneese fabrics, and it will be a quilt for a boy. This quilt is perfect for scraps, and you know how I love srap quilts :o)

I finished the stitchery for the 'Precious things' bag I started working on a whie ago, and I got to attach the stitchery to the front of the bag too. I'll get back to it when I finish my secret project :o)


It's raining and it's cold here, even if it's almost Midsummer... too bad, but I will spend the weekend in my sewing room, so I don't let it bother me. But it would be great with some sun and warmer weather, so I hope this Summer will not go by with only weather like we're having these days!

I have a day off work today, so I'll get back to my sewing room to make some progress ;o)

Have a great weekend,
Laila