LAMQG Anniversary Scrap Swap- Letter Pillow!

 
Last month, I participated in my Quilt Guild's (LAMQG) 2nd Anniversary swap. Rules: bring in a sandwich bag of your own fabric scraps, swap w/ another member and create something for them and vice versa.

I got Jules, who was in the process of creating a quilt for her daughter Talia's first big girl bed - she is 3. She gave me a bag of awesome orange, pink and brown fabric scraps, and asked for something to help decorate Talia's room. So, I went with a pillow and created this:

T is for Talia

I got the idea for the patchwork letter from Elizabeth Hartman's blog, Oh Fransson! http://www.ohfransson.com/oh_fransson/2011/10/finished-billboard-quilt.html - It was fun, and very spontaneous to create. For the back I made a window pane effect which was reflective of the picture Jules gave me of the quilt she was making.

Here are some close ups of the swirly quilting on the front, as well as the fun little flowers that accent the T.

I hope Talia and Jules enjoy the pillow for years to come! Once I take some pictures, I will post them of the awesome tote bag Cynthia made me with my scraps!

H&B's Wedding - Chuppah Quilt in Action!

Hayley and Brad's wedding was this past Sunday and here are a few pictures of the Chuppah Quilt in beautiful Coronado, San Diego - Enjoy!

A great feeling to see my creation being used in such a wonderful way!

Sealing the deal under the Chuppah!

The Display for the Guests

Best wishes for a Lifetime of Love and Warmth together, H & B!

Hayley and Brad's Chuppah Quilt!

Such a labor of love! I was introduced to Hayley, the bride, by her older sister, Allison - a UCLA Aephi sorority sister. Hayley and Brad wanted to include their close friends and family in their ceremony and the idea of a "Chuppah Quilt" was the perfect way. They chose 36 participants and each friend, family member or couple created a 10" by 10" inch original quilt square, which I then put together into this finished Chuppah Quilt. Their wedding is coming up in 2 weeks from today (8/21) and I can't wait to see the images of it looking down on this wonderful couple as they get married. I will post pictures of it in action once I get them.

The finished quilt actually includes 42 squares - a few extras were added last minute from Hayley's grandparents and nieces and nephew. I added 2 additional squares to round it out.

The backside is a "Tree of Life" with 2 lovebirds, framed by an improvisational Log Cabin design.

Close ups of a few squares - many people used quotes, marriage advice, pictures, and Jewish symbols to express their best wishes to the couple. It was so great getting each and every one in the mail and seeing the creativity and love their friends have for them.

One of the original squares I added.

Close up of the Tree

Lovebirds - Hayley and Brad :)

I used an all over "stipple" free motion quilting technique to bring everything together. The colors and fabrics were inspired by a shopping trip with Hayley and complement her bridesmaids dresses which are in more lavender, grey, and maroon tones. I also think they evoke nature and the Tree of Life theme with grassy greens and vibrant pinks.

The big day - fast approaching!

I delivered the quilt to Hayley this past week, and she truly seemed to love it. It will also be on display during the cocktail hour of their reception for all of their guests to see. This was such a rewarding project and experience. I hope to get the chance to do more Chuppah Quilts in the future! More pictures to come from the actual wedding... Mazel Tov to Hayley and Brad!

Family Tree Pillow for Baby Emily

I have a special quilt project on the horizon that I will be starting in the next week or so. It is a commissioned quilt for a college friend/sorority sister's sister, Hayley and her upcoming wedding to Brad. The quilt will act as their Chuppah (wedding canopy), and will be comprised of squares made by close family and friends on the front. And for the back, I wanted to include a Family Tree/Tree of Life design. So I found this awesome design on www. redpepperquilts.com and decided to try it out to practice w/ fabric scraps I already had. I then turned the "practice tree" into a pillow front for Baby Emily, as a gift for her baptism which was today.

E is for Emily

This is my first ever appliqued project and I think it came out nicely! I used Heat n Bond fusible web and stitched the design using my free motion foot, basically doing raw edge applique. It was a lot easier than anticipated!

Many of the scraps were from the original quilt I made for Emily when she was born, so I hope she enjoys them both for years to come!

LAMQG Home Goods Swap - My loot!

I was one lucky duck to have Hollie of http://undercovercrafter.blogspot.com/ be assigned me for the LAMQG Home Goods swap! Look what she made me.....this amazing table runner!

I absolutely LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. She used a beautiful khaki linen and incorporated bright and modern fabrics from Amy Butler's Soul Blossom's line and Anna Marie Horner's Innocent Crush. Hence she has named it the "The Soul Crushing Table Runner"!

Here it is on my dining room table. I think it is a great accent for our apartment, don't you?
The back side is equally as cool, with some big blocks of more bright fabrics.

Here are some pictures on Hollie's blog that show the back as well:
http://undercovercrafter.blogspot.com/2011/05/soul-crushing-no-more.html

Thank you so much Hollie! I can't wait to have some dinner guests soon to show it off. See you at the next meeting!

PS - Jessica wasn't at the last meeting to get her pillow (it was her birthday) so I'll be gifting it in early June.

My first pillow! For the LAMQG Home Goods Swap

Relaxing on our bed.

Front

At March's LA Modern Quilt Guild meeting, I decided to partake in a "Home Goods Swap". Another guild member would create a home goods item (pillow, place mats, table runner, etc) for me and I would get assigned a different member to create something for.

My member, Jessica, was pretty open on what she wanted made for her- and she mentioned liking grey backgrounds, and modern prints. I used some prints from Ty Pennington's line, Anna Marie Horner's Innocent Crush, and a mix of other fabrics I had from Sew Modern.

Back

I quilted the front with simple straight lines for a linear effect. The back is a simple envelope enclosure in a bright eclectic print. What do you think? I will be giving it to Jessica this Monday Night and will let you know what I receive! I hope she likes it~

front/back view

Quilt # 11 - Finis! for my parents, Janet and Alan

I really love the colors and modern fabrics used in this quilt for my parents. They had requested "Blues and Browns" - but I gravitated towards Blues and Greys - with a splash of yellow. It turned out to have a hint of UCLA Bruin colors, so apropos!



I attempted a more intricate "straight-line" quilting technique following the cross pattern on the backside.... I think it makes for a great textural effect.

Close up of the quilting

We took the quilt out originally on a windy March day for pictures...

Use in good health, Mom and Dad! xoxo Missy