New Babyquilt with Park Life and Spring Walk

These past few months I seem to only have made it to the sewing machine when I needed to fix something - broken hems, seams, button holes - or when someone in my immediate family needed something like a bag. 

Well, since I am now a proud aunt, I dusted off the sewing machine and got to make a new quilt. Baby quilts are so rewarding: you can try that pattern that you always wanted to try but without commiting to a whole big quilt (because I still have so many of those waiting...) and it is always for someone who might not be able express his gratitude (if you don't count spitting up on it - when you think about it, that actually sound like a compliment) but they look so adorable on a quilt! 

This one is made from two FQ bundles: Park Life and Spring Walk ( both Cloud 9). I originally planned on making the back with the double gauze fabric from Birch (that's the green border you see on the backing) but they didn't have enough and I got to use more of my FQ this way. I also added a few fabrics along the way because I needed a color wheel (quilter's linen and some Heather Ross fabric).

Since this one has a very lofty batting, quilting it wasn't very easy and as you can see, it warps  a bit on the edges (it looks worse on the pictures and I think that after washing it, this should disappear).

It was very well received and I can see more quilts for the baby - judging by the rate I was sewing in the past years this will likely take a few years.

What have you been up to?

Johanna

 

Another perfect swap pillow and

So, you might have heard of the Swap°pen group on flickr. It is a group solely for people in Europe who speak German - since all other groups are english-based and mostly in the US, this is a wonderful exception. The ladies there also make gorgeous pillows which is the main reason I am participating :)
Here are the pillows I made in the other two "pillow rounds":

Swap #5 is over and has proven a somewhat challenging round for me. Not only did my partner - who I was making the pillow for - drop out 2 weeks before the deadline, but I was also moving at the same time, dealing with a ton of deadlines at work, a faulty internet connection at home (so no internet at all), the need to install everything at home (I let that one go pretty quickly, light and heat are obviously important but getting a bed can easily wait for two months while I sleep on a mattress) and the need to find another room mate asap because apartments in Munich are almost impossible to finance on your own (unless you are a millionaire - then you probably bought an apartment here anyway). Oh, and making christmas presents (see last post of my parents' quilt).

 So, the swap was a constant inner rant of "OMG, I am totally going to be late" and "I should have never signed up for this" and "What was I thinking, moving and signing up for this at the same time before christmas". I did manage to make it at the very last minute (and there were even packages delivered after mine) but I pulled some allnighters to get it done and I love my sleep. Thankfully, everything worked out while sewing, I didn't run out of fabrics and I didn't make any major sewing mistakes.

in progress

 And voilà, Miriam's pillow was made, packed and delivered and has been living with her ever since. I leaned heavily on her mosaic for inspiration and guidance (the mosaic has links to the originals).

I also managed to get - yet again - the most beautiful pillow in the swap. This one was made by Andrea of Quiltmanufaktur and it is living in wonderful company now with its three siblings from the other two swaps.

I don't know if I will be participating in the next round yet. It will be another pillow round but based on the X Factor Swap so that should make things easier. I guess we will see :)

Radiant orchid quilt challenge entry

Good morning!

Apparently I only post four times a year anymore :)  I keep thinking and hoping that will change but I guess it won't in the foreseeable future.
Well,  you are here for the pictures, so without ado:

 

 This one is huge, 2,3m x 1,9m (about 90" x 75") and it is made with Heather Bailey's Lottie Da. 

And thank you to my dear quilt holder, I know it is a very heavy quilt and telling you to hold it higher was not nice of me :) 

I originally only selected the orchidy fabrics but soon found that I prefered more balance and took the other colors in as well. It is more purple in real life, the pictures don't show them too well.

  

The pattern on the front is Camille Roskelley's Lucky, the star on the back after a tutorial found at Better of Thread. Two quilts in one, it seems like I just can't do "normal" quilts anymore.

I accidently made the star on the back too big so the front had to get another border. 

The quilting was made with a template because my sewing machine is determined to not let me fmq and I wanted something other then straight line stitching.

I am quite happy with how it turned out and am hoping that in time it will find a new owner because two quilts in my sleeping room is more than enough :)

What's your limit of quilts? Do you have one?

I am linking up to the radiant orchid challenge over at Play Crafts.

 
 Have a good day!

Greetings from Munich
Johanna

Dani's Quilt

Hello everybody,

a few weeks ago I got an email from a reader saying that she had used my tutorial for the diamond quilt to make her daughter a quilt. I took one look at the pictures and just had to ask her if she was okay with me posting them here.

Dani is such a talented quilter and sewer and put together the most amazing color combination. The quilt is just perfect for spring (which is what we seem to be having right now) and I am sure that Dani's daughter will forever love her first quilt! I know I would!
If you love the quilt (and her model!) as much as I do please tell Dani so in the comments; she doesn't have a flickr account or blog but I am hoping that we will get to see more from her in the future :)

I hope you are all having a great day!

Johanna

Eek!

Oh, yes, that's me! And I can't express how much that means to me!
This quilt was made on several of the days when I was thinking about which direction my life should take. And I love that it not only makes a room brighter but also my heart feel much lighter when I see it.

Ja, das bin ich! Und ich kann nicht in Worte fassen, wieviel mir das bedeutet! Der Quilt ist in einigen von den Tagen entstanden, in denen ich über mein Leben nach gedacht habe und in welche Richtung es gehen soll. Studieren kann man ja auch nicht ewig ;)

Ich mag den Quilt, er ist fröhlich und optimistisch und er heitert einen einfach auf, wenn man in das Zimmer kommt. Die Farben sind toll (Henna Garden Print von Sandi Henderson) und die Vorlage von dem Quilt ist von John (in Fat Quarterly 2): recht einfach und doch perfekt für größere Muster, die man nicht einfach in kleine Teile schneiden möchte.
The pattern is from John and available in Fat Quarterly 2 which came out last year. I used the henna garden prints from Sandi Henderson.
Do you remember my struggles with free motion quilting? I am proud to say that I mastered (for my standards of fmq at least!) one pattern. I still have a long way to go but now I enjoy the process :)
And I have you to thank! Everyone who reads and/or leaves a comment inspires me to keep going and to try something new. Thank you!

Erinnert Ihr Euch noch an meine Probleme mit Free Motion Quilting? Ich war stolz wie Bolle als ich das erste Mal einen Kreisel mit der Nähmaschine sticken konnte, ohne dass der Faden riss oder an der Unterseite Schleifen aufgetaucht sind. Und das hier ist das einzige Muster, das ich bis jetzt einigermaßen beherrsche, aber ich fange an, das Quilten zu lieben und freue mich auf das Üben :)
Am meisten habe ich Euch das zu verdanken. Jeder, der hier mitliest und/oder einen Kommentar geschrieben hat, hat mich motiviert, weiter zu üben und mich zu verbessern.
Dankeschön!


Have a great day!
Einen wunderbaren Tag Euch allen!
Johanna

Never say never...

Four years ago when I made my second quilt and got really upset because it took so long and those squares were never perfectly straight (cutting with my old not very sharp scissors...) I vowed to myself to never ever make a quilt again.
I didn't know that three years later I would purchase a cutting mat and a rotary cutter and get obsessed with making quilts...
So, last year when I was still making and selling handbags in my free time (I still do but the time for that is a bit more limited now :) ) I was thinking that never in a million years would I ever consider sewing a potholder. I mean, they are available at Ikea for 1€ why would I bother making one?
Do you see where I am going with this?


I saw this one and fell in love.
And now that I sewed together my project for the tutorial for the Quilted Fish I am free to use the rest of the fabric. Ah, potholder where have you been all my life! I might have spend more time in the kitchen and I might even be a better cook. But then again, I would probably just have a collection of potholders and spend all my time in front of the computer looking to grow my obsession :)
Tell me, have you ever thought that you would never ever do something only to find yourself doing that exact thing?

Vor recht genau vier Jahren habe ich an meiner zweiten Patchworkdecke gesessen. Es sollte ein Geburtstagsgeschenk werden, umso schlimmer, dass irgendwie kein Quadrat davon richtig gerade sein wollte. Meine unscharfe alte Stoffschere habe ich dann auch bald gegen eine neue ausgestauscht...
Jedenfalls habe ich mir in den mühsamen Stunden geschworen, nie wieder einen Quilt zu machen :)
Hätte ich damals gewusst, dass ich drei Jahre später dem Quiltwahn verfallen würde, hätte ich mich wohl schon vorrückt erklärt.
Letztes Jahr jedenfalls hätten mich keine zehn Pferde dazu bekommen, einen Topflappen zu nähen. Es gab zwar ganz nette bei Flickr, aber mal ehrlich: Ikea verkauft die für 1€, warum sollte ich Zeit und Anstrengung in etwas investieren, das ich dann sowieso nicht benutze?
Worauf ich hinaus will?

Ich habe diesen hier gesehen und wollte sofort auch einen machen!
Aus sofort sind zwar ein paar Monate geworden, aber die Topflappen haben schließlich das Licht der Welt erblickt :)
Aus meinen Sweet Divinity Resten, von denen ich nach Beendigung meines Projektes für the Quilted Fish einige habe :)
Ist Euch das auch schon passiert, dass Ihr felsenfest davon überzeugt wart, dass Ihr etwas nie machen wolltet, Euch aber Wochen oder Monate später genau dabei ertappt habt?


Einen schönen Start in die neue Woche!
Hope you have a great start into the new week!
Johanna

Sunshine, rain, Sherbet Pips, and some Sugar and Spice!

Apparently I am not good at keeping up with my own goals. I know I said I wanted to blog more only to disappear for the next ten days. And I know that's not a good thing! And I can't really blame it on anything :) I guess that's life!

And just because they arrived about a month ago and I haven't shown them yet: some FQ from Spoonflower. I can see a pretty little quilt with some sunshine and rain (but look, it's a happy cloud!)


Möp! Und wieder einmal fast zwei Wochen seit meinem letzten Eintrag. Obwohl ich mich doch vorher noch extra öffentlich zu einem neuen Blogger-Style bekannt habe. Vermutlich ist das so wie mit allen guten Vorsätzen und rein gar nichts ändert sich :)


Jedenfalls hier noch ein paar Bilder von ein paar Stückchen Stoff, die vor Wochen angekommen sind und noch nicht auf den Blog durften. Vermutlich wird es ein kleiner Quilt mit "Sonnenschein und Regen" (aber fröhlicher Regen!)

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On another note, you guys should go check out Julie's giveaway. She is giving away two charm packs of Sherbet Pips! And I really want to win them because my Sherbet Pips are all cut up and sewn into blocks and there are not enough of them to make them into a big quilt.
First I thought I would be fine with some grey sashing to make it into a baby quilt. But now I really want to keep it (so it has to be a normal quilt, a baby quilt would be just big enough to cover my toes) and there is just not enough fabric in a charm pack!

So Julie, if you read this, your Sherbet Pips are very welcome here and if I would be so completely lucky to actually win, I am sure your Pips would have a great party with my Pips :)


Ganz kurz nur, bitte hier das kleine Gewinnspielchen von Julie besuchen. Julie hat für einen von uns (ich habe mich ganz frech auch in die Reihe der Schaulustigen gedrängelt) zwei Charm Packs mit Sherbet Pips.

Und wer ein bißchen hier mitgelesen hat, der weiß, dass ich davon eines in Australien erstanden habe. Das liegt jetzt hier auseinander geschnipselt und wieder zu Blöcken zusammen gesetzt rum und wartet darauf, dass mir einfällt, was ich damit anstelle.
Ein Babydeckchen mit grauem Sashing zwischen den Blocks war ja mein erster Gedanke, aber eigentlich will ich die Pips behalten und so ein Miniding reicht gerade einmal für warme Zehen.

Irgendwelche Vorschläge? Kissen? Wandbehänge? Für Topflappen sind sie ja viel zu schade!


And last but not least, I have visited Amanda's blog today and she already decorated it with some sugar and spice :)
Love the new layout! (And the new line. I want a piece of everything! Especially the argyle designs, how fun is that?! Did I mention that my living room is made of red and all shades of aqua/turquoise? Wouldn't it be perfect?)
And yes, that is a screenshot of her blog. Go visit, it's really pretty over there!


Uund natürlich war ich heute mal wieder auf Amandas Blog unterwegs und habe gesehen, dass sie schon in ihrer neuen Linie, Sugar and Spice, dekoriert hat.
*Seufz* ich liebe diese Farben. Habe ich schon mal gesagt, dass mein Wohnzimmer in rot und türkis/aqua/wie auch immer man dazu sagen will dekoriert ist? Wobei es momentan eher mit Papierblättern für die Uni dekoriert ist *tsts* :)

Eine schöne Restwoche!

I hope to talk to soon!

Johanna

Yeah!

Now this is pure happiness.






I got it here and this little envelope only took a week to get from Australia to Europe. Guess it knew I was waiting for it :)