Yo Yo Wall Hanging

We had some cabinet work done recently and there was a blank wall where a cupboard used to be. Plan A was to hang a framed piece of art in the space and I may still do that. In the meantime, I have a slab of stitched together yo-yos in the spot. They add a nice touch of color. 

Previous yo-yo project, in neutrals.

Posy Pillow

A nice vendor on Etsy sent me a mini charm pack along with the fabric I had ordered. The line is called Posy and the 42 squares were just the right number for a English paper piecing project. I drew my own two inch hexagons, cut them into kite shapes and stitched together a candy colored star. It may be a little too sweet, made worse by the pink hand stitching, the white polka dot backing and the peppermint striped binding. The back is pink, too. Or maybe I should say...too pink.

It is 16" square. I need to get the right size pillow form.

A pink zipper is hidden under the flap.

Comma Circles Mini Quilt

 At 24 inches square, this quilt was just too big to be a pillow. I made it into a mini quilt so it can be used as a wall hanging. I couldn't commit to how it should be oriented, so didn't attach any hanging strips or corners on the back. Also, I don't know where to hang it so it will likely just reside in a drawer for awhile.

It is quilted by machine, around the circles and "in the ditch" around the drunkard's path blocks. The binding is scrappy, from several of the black Comma fabrics.

White Comma fabrics for the back

Honeycomb Pillow

Here is an update on a December project. The original plan was to make a small zipper pouch but it grew larger and became a pillow.

The patchwork is English paper pieced, then machine appliqued onto a mitered border. It is machine quilted with a zipper hidden under a placket on the back.

Zipper tutorial

Triangle Quilt - Eleven Pictures

Bought the fabric in May 2012
Mostly Kaffe Fassett shot cottons

Triangles cut
Initial layout

Pairs sewn together
July 2012

Top complete
August 2012

Unfolded and admired
Refolded
October 2012

Backing complete
Pin basted
December 2012

Quilting
Early February 2013

Finished!
I like the blues and greens
And the reds...

Striped binding

Large quilt photos are tough...
Thank goodness for "enhance" on iPhoto

Voila!
10 months later, it's done.

The original inspiration for my triangle quilt came from Mary Dugan at Molly Flanders blog. Here is her Flickr picture; she said her quilt was inspired by an Anthropologie design which is referred to here. They all turn out a little different; Mary's is so playful and I love the red polka dots on the two borders. The original quilt is also lovely but isosceles triangles are more difficult to work with so, after a trial, I went with the equilateral version.

The finished size is 68" x 80". The quilting is a three stitch zig zag that crosses every seam. It's fine but doesn't really add much to the design like excellent quilting would. I don't love the backing, either, so I didn't take any shots of it. It's just as well - eleven pictures is plenty!

March Bee Blocks

Two more blocks are ready to mail out for the Cheer circle quilting bee. We were asked to use blues and greens with a light background color. The blocks are called Funky Wrench Nuts and Bolts and the tutorial is here.

Mitered Square Pillow

Side A

I've been saving my leftover sock yarn for years and occasionally use it for sock repair or as a supplement to color work hats. Recently, between projects and low on supplies of inspiring yarn in my stash drawer, I looked around online for some inspiration to use some of the leftover balls on a different sort of project. I really liked this one but didn't really get along with the circular knitting. I also didn't want to have to buy background yarn which really makes that pattern work. I was trying to use up yarn, not buy more...

So, eventually, I settled on a mitered square. I read a few different tutorials, knit up a couple of samples and, combining techniques, I settled on a method I liked best. I decided to knit all the squares first, without joining them as I went, for a couple of reasons. Some people can visualize a finished project very well and can plan ahead or they are happy with random but I knew that I would want to shuffle the colors around in a grid once I had completed all of the blocks. I also wanted small, small knitting in my hands, not a growing body of work. So I opted for the strategy of knitting all the blocks, then crocheting them together.

I did think about making my blocks into an afghan but after 25 or 30, a pillow seemed like a better option. My friend, Barbara, just got a beautiful new rug in her pretty new house and the colors of the rug and the pillow were meant to be together. 

I think it might need a bit more of an edge so we'll give it some time and see what Barbara wants. 

Side B

Comma Circles

24" x 24"
A large pillow? A mini-quilt?
The center for a medallion quilt?
Dunno yet...

Inspired by this pillow on Flickr

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