December Goal Accomplished

Ending the year with another "Finish" feels good.  It feels even better knowing I have kept a promise to my nephew, Josh.  He asked me a little over a year ago to make a wall-hanging based on the 1980's video game, The Legend of Zelda.  Last month it was all basted and ready to go.  




















I made it my "Lovely Year of Finishes" goal for December to complete the quilting and to get the binding on it.  So I set to work -- quilting!

Here are some close-ups of the quilting from the back --

I set to work again -- binding!

This is one of the quilts that actually looks just as good from the back as it does from the front.  It almost looks like a second quilt.

So, now that it's finished I need to figure out when to get to St. Louis to give it to Josh.  I think it should be sooner rather than later.  He seems pretty happy with the photos, but I bet he's ready to see the real thing and hang it in his home.

I am linking up to Fiber of All Sorts for their December Finishes Party.  I was Goal #20 at the beginning of the month.

December Goal for "A Lovely Year of Finishes"

This is my last opportunity this year to set a goal with "A Lovely Year of Finishes."   In August I started working on a Legend of Zelda wall-hanging for my nephew and talked about it here.

Recently I got the backing put together, using up a lot of odds and ends of whites in my stash.  It's interesting how different they all are.  I've decided that from now on I'm going to buy one brand of white --- and buy it by the bolt!

Then I found some black batting in my sewing room and got the quilt top basted.

I've been having fun quilting it this week.  Instead of doing an all-over stipple I've been playing a little bit with the designs.

When I finished quilting the "Potion" bottle something about it bothered me.  The more I looked at it the more I realized I would have to rip out some of the quilting.   The problem was I had quilted in the black area where I was supposed to be able to see through the bottle.  That would never do!  It looks much better now.

So, my goal for this month is to finish the quilting and put the binding on the Legend of Zelda Quilt.  That will not only be a finish, it will also be getting a UFO checked off the list!

I am linking up with Fiber of All Sorts for their December Goal Setting Party.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my Quilty friends.  I wanted to post a picture of a fall quilt I've made, but I've never made one!  This is the closest I could come to that -- part of a table runner I made in 2002.  The photo is a little fuzzy, and since I no longer have it, I can't take a new one.  Anyway, you get the idea.  Have a Blessed Day, everyone!!

Finally - QRC Quilt is Finished

In January I started on a QRC quilt and told about it in this post.  Then, in February I finished quilting it and told about it in this post.  I really can't remember when I got around to binding it, but I'm thinking it was sometime around August.  A couple of weeks ago, f i n a l l y, I put the sleeve on it.  It is finished.  Whew!  That was one dragged out project!

Now, at long last, I can reveal the secret - what it says and who it is for.  There are several cell phone apps available for reading QRC codes.  I use ScanLife. 

That's right.  It's for Hubby to hang in his office.   And that is just what he has done.  He took it to work with him yesterday.

This was a fun little quilt to make.  So grateful that he appreciates it.

A Zelda Project Update

Just because I haven't blogged doesn't mean I haven't been getting things done.  In September I made four more blocks for Josh's Zelda quilt.  

The Heart...

the Bow...

the Stopwatch...

and the Sword.

Then, I had other projects to work on so it sat and waited.  Again.  For a long time.  This week was RETREAT, though, so it was time to get some serious sewing done!


I made the Map Piece...

the Key...

the Fairy...

...and the Triforce.  Oops!  I forgot to take a picture of that one.  

Laid out on the floor it was really looking good, and I was getting excited about finishing.

Since each block was a different size, putting them together was a challenge.  I divided the blocks into columns then added borders until all the blocks in each column were the same width.  Next, I added sashing to make each column the same length. Finally, I added sashing between the columns and added the borders.  

Now on to making the backing and quilting it.  I may just finish it this year!

(I'm kind of looking forward to making something with a pattern after this so there isn't so much of that Dreaded Math involved!)

A Zelda Project

I started a really fun project today - a wall-hanging for my nephew Josh's game room.   He had seen some quilts done by Eric the Quilter and wondered if I could do something similar.    I know a lot about quilting, but I don't know much about The Legend of Zelda, so I needed a little help from Google.  I found my inspiration.

I sketched out some blocks and decided on a layout.

Then I started sewing.  I have 4 of the blocks finished - the Sword.....

.....the Bomb.....

.....the Rupee.....

.....and the Mana Potion.

(I did have to ask Josh what these things were, except for the bomb.  I was pretty sure I recognized that.)

So far, so good, on this new project.  I'm thinking it will go pretty fast. 

It's been way too long since I made a quilt for him.  That was his "Going Away to College" quilt in 2004.  

That one was a little more traditional, for sure!

I think this new quilt will get just as good a smile from Josh, though.