Saturday, June 11, 2016

Chopped blocks for baby

Chopped blocks! This is such an easy quilt to make. I needed a quick baby shower gift last weekend so I dug into my stash and charm packs (5" pre-cut squares) and came up with a eye-pleasing quilt for baby Natalie.






















Here's a close-up of the stitching design - simple loops.


















The back of the quilt -

Whatever quilt I'm working on, I make extra blocks. I have an overflowing drawer of "orphan" blocks. There are 3 extra blocks across the back of Natalie's quilt.

The square is the beginning of the design. It is cut in half and then cut in half again (or should I say "chopped"?) and 1/4 blocks are swapped with other 1/4 blocks and voila! Easy peasy lemon squeezee.






More happening on my website!

Saturday, May 28, 2016

Dodging the Diamonds

I recently received an order for Eileen's EIGHTH Harley Davidson quilt. I guess if you love the brand, love the shirts, love the quilts, why not? Because she had (has?) such an enormous collection that her dresser was overflowing, she turns to me to transform them. There are studs and "diamonds" on her shirts, so it is a bit of a challenge. I love a challenge, and I love these shirts!



You may not be able to see them in this picture but there is a lot of bling going on here! I so enjoyed  making this quilt. It is one unlike any others!



Here is a picture of the front of the quilt. There are so many really cool Harley Davidson shirts on here. Different sizes and shapes - the outer edges are 8"squares. But the real fun is on the back. It's so hard to get a decent picture of a black quilt, but here it is:


I took a handful of those smaller logos and lined them up across the back and I think it added a nice touch. Eileen's quilt is fun, washable, durable and holds a lot of warm memories!  yes. Pun intended.

For one of my own.

Graduation "season" at Wild Zipper is like a holiday. The pressure is on to get those quilts to the graduates in time for their special day. Now and then, a mom or dad will admit that the quilt is more for themselves than for the graduate. Of course! I remember making my daughter's quilt as she graduated from Beloit College in Beloit, Wisconsin. Four years of volleyball and softball were four of the most exciting years of my life (too)!


Even this mom got a little sentimental as I cut these shirts. Every one had been through the laundry so many times! I remembered her wearing them.  I just had to tell myself that this was preserving these precious memories. The alternative? Rags...Goodwill....or shirts hidden in a drawer for years.

Hers was a unique quilt, as it was a 2-sided machine quilted quilt. I've made only a dozen or so over my quilting career. Above is the volleyball side...and below, the softball side.



So, there you have it. 50 shirts, give or take, She loves her quilt, and so does baby Eleanor....

taking the road less traveled,






Sunday, February 14, 2016

Mr. Frog, revisited

I was recently invited to a birthday party honoring a four-year-old sweetie who is not only the granddaughter of one of my best friends, but the best friend of my granddaughter.  Addy had a big party, lots of people - a really fun reunion of family and friends.

One of the restrictions of the gift-giving was a $4.00 limit. $4.00! That's tough. I was determined to give her a wonderful gift for just that, or less (only to find out at the party that almost everyone broke that rule!).

Addy's mom and one of my daughters were inseparable as kids, so naturally, this kid is pretty special to me and my family. As many little tykes do, her mommy carried around a security blanket "Mr. Frog" and an accompanying "Mr. Frog" pillow.  While her mommy never really did let go of the blanket, I had possession of the Mr. Frog pillow in hopes that someday I could make something special. Mission Accomplished!

Mr. Frog is sitting right in the middle and the quilt evolved around him. The pile of 4-squares in my "use me!" pile was begging to be displayed around Mr. Frog, along with a few 8" sampler squares.  This is a super scrappy quilt - every piece is from my stash. Heck, I even pieced the batting pieces together.

I love to shop at thrift stores for great deals on shirts and scrubs. Picky as I may be, I can find some amazing deals on XL and XXL cotton shirts, which provide a LOT of fabric to feed my hungry stash. High-quality, beautiful fabrics can be found in the most unlikely places! Many of the colorful squares in the quilt are bits and pieces of colorful scrubs. Whodathunkit? Even the binding is a fun scrub fabric.


There in each corner is a bit of sunshine, a snowman, a Christmas tree, or a shimmering cloud. 

The quilting was done with a free style loops and hearts design which is simple and appropriate. All in a day's work.

Demi and Addy love each other as this picture shows! (photo credit to Mindy Young @mindyyoungphotography.com)







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