Ann's Magic Carpet Quilt + TWO NEW PROJECTS for Rebecca!

First Things First: Ann's Mesmerizing Magic Carpet Quilt

Oh my gosh, you guys -- check out the quiltaliciousness of this fabulous Magic Carpet Quilt that I completed last week for my client Ann!  Ann pieced the top using Paula Nadelstern's Duets and Poured Color fabrics from Benartex.  She followed a FREE Benartex pattern called Magic Carpet that was designed by Stephanie Sheridan specifically to promote the fabric collections, available from Benartex here.  

Modern Eccentric E2E in Variegated 40 wt YLI Cotton Thread

I quilted Ann's Magic Carpet quilt using Ann Shackelford's Modern Eccentrics E2E quilting design and I just love how it turned out -- great texture with a wonderful illusion of motion.  I feel like I really could step onto this "magic carpet" and go sailing off into the night sky.

Ann made this quilt as a wedding gift.  I think the pattern does a great job of showcasing the distinctive Paula Nadelstern fabric prints.

60 x 82 Magic Carpet Quilt with Modern Eccentric E2E Quilting

We used Hobbs 80/20 batting in Black for this one and I was THRILLED when Ann agreed to let me quilt her Magic Carpet with a very showy 40 weight machine quilting cotton thread from YLI called Great Barrier Reef.  It's like this thread was MADE for this quilt, because it has all of the right colors in exactly the right shades to match (and disappear into) those bold and busy print fabrics, yet the thread makes a dramatic impact in the nearly solid black of the border fabric.

40 wt Machine Quilting Cotton from YLI in Great Barrier Reef

The quilting design and thread were chosen in tandom.  When I'm using heavier weight threads, variegated threads, or high contrast quilting thread, I try to avoid designs that have a lot of backtracking and double stitched lines in the design.  Modern Eccentric has ZERO backtracking, so it was a great pairing for this thread on this quilt.

Bold, Variegated, High Contrast Threads Work Best with Simple Quilting Designs

I would not have been using this thread if I was stitching a feather design with lots of backtracking.  I love how this quilt turned out, and now that it has safely arrived back home to her in Minnesota, Ann is pleased with the quilt, too.  I am sure the newly married couple will love it!  Thanks for choosing me to quilt this for you, Ann!

My NewFO: Deco Bed Quilt for Lo & Behold Stitchery's QAL

102" x 102" Deco Bed Quilt in My Chosen Colors for October 18th QAL

Next I'll show you my newest squirrels, white rabbits, or whatever you want to call them.  They are quilts I have no business starting before finishing other quilts, but I've started them anyway!  You might recognize this as a "big sister" quilt to the Deco Baby quilt I shared here recently, pieced by my client Liz.  I loved her quilt so much that I knew I wanted to make one of my own someday, and then when I saw that pattern designer Lo & Behold Stitchery is kicking off a Deco Quilt-Along for this pattern on October 18th I knew that someday was gonna be TODAY.  The QAL is actually for making the throw sized quilt pictured below, but I have a Queen sized bed in my home that doesn't have a quilt on it yet, so I'm making my Deco quilt in the largest Bed size.

Deco QAL Begins October 18th!

You can find out about joining this quilt along and purchase a pattern of your own here, from pattern designer Lo & Behold Stitchery.  That's not an affiliate link, by the way -- I'm not a sponsor or pattern tester or anything like that.  I just love the pattern and I want to tempt as many of you as possible to follow me down QAL rabbit hole because if MY plans for completing other projects get derailed by shiny objects, so should yours.

My Kona Solid Color Picks for My Deco Bed Quilt

I picked my color palette using my Kona Solids color swatches and EQ8 software, which usually works well for me but my fingers are crossed anyway.  None of the brick-and-mortar quilt shops near me carry a really comprehensive array of solid fabrics, and to me the difference between EXACTLY the right color and ALMOST the right color is as dramatic as the difference between a lightning BOLT and a lightning BUG.  I hope I like these colors together in person as much as I like them together on my computer screen!  Oh, and I inflated my yardage requirements above what the pattern said I would need and above and beyond what EQ said I needed.  I'm using a lot more colors in my version (twelve, I think, verses 5 or so in the pattern's multicolor variation) and I tend to make more cutting errors than you'd think, even after all these years.  I'd rather err on the side of Leftover Stash Fabric than Last Minute Fabric Shortage Panic!

My Other NewFO Project: Lazy Day Quilt for Alex

Here's my other new project, which is farther along than the Deco quilt.  My oldest nephew graduated from college this past June, so I sent him a card with a nice check in it, like you do when you're the aunt.  Except that I sent it to the frat house where he no longer resided, and he never got it, blah blah...  Anyway, the card with the check was still lost and not cashed a few months later, so I was just going to do a Zelle or PayPal instant transfer to send Alex his graduation money and was asking him which of these services he preferred.  I was surprised and delighted when he asked me to make him a QUILT instead of sending him cash!  He has a job and an apartment in Chicago now and told me that it's colder there than it was in California (snort!)...  Apparently he had nothing but a sheet on his bed in the apartment and was sleeping in multiple layers of sweatpants and jackets, and this was in late summer.  He lived in Chicago before he went off to California for college; this shouldn't be a surprise to him.  😂. As we ladies like to say in the South, "Oh, bless your heart!"  But seriously, we DO want to bless his heart because he wanted a quilt more than cash, so now he has achieved Favored Nephew Status with Aunt Rebecca.  💓

Y'all know my track record for completing gift quilts on time is shaky, and I've got a full queue of client quilts carefully mapped out on my calendar with pockets of time carved out and reserved here and there for working on my own projects, which is crucial for avoiding burnout.  So I needed a quilt that would look modern and "adult" like what my nephew asked for, but something I could piece rapidly and then push over the top with a really cool graphic edge-to-edge quilting design.  I chose the "Lazy Day Quilt" pattern from the book Quilts! Quilts! Quilts! 3rd Ed. (affiliate link) because I liked the look of it for a young man's apartment, but I could also see that the large 8" x 9" blocks would be really fast to piece with no pinning, no seams to match up, and no fiddling to get anything to fit.  Pedal to the medal piecing on this one, baby!  Because it is amazing how long it actually takes to piece a large bed quilt, even when it's a simple pattern like this one.

Lazy Day Quilt from the book Quilts! Quilts! Quilts!, 3rd Ed.

My fabrics and colors are even really similar to the quilt photo in the book, another rarity for me.  Usually I like to find a complicated pattern, alter it to make it even MORE complicated, and then spend hours and hours playing with color options before settling on my final palette, but this quilt looked pretty close to what I had in mind already.  I just wanted to tone the colors and textures down a bit to ensure the finished quilt didn't look too juvenile.  I grabbed a couple of Moda Grunge jelly rolls and fat quarter packs that I spied near the register at my local Bernina dealer as a starting point (I mean, I grabbed them and then PAID for them -- didn't grab them and RUN!):

Moda Grunge Precuts as a Starting Point for Alex's Quilt

Side note: Don't you love how the swirly pattern on my velvet chair fabric in the background is so similar to the rolled up swirl of jelly roll strips?  It reminds me of some of my favorite quilting designs, too.  Okay, so the dark blue fabric on the bottom of that pile got fired from the quilt, and I picked up some more Grunge fabric in oranges, blacks and grays to balance out and add to the colors in the precut assortments.  And I doubt I'll use those two FQs that are really pink, not because I won't use pink in a man's quilt, but because I don't like the pinkish fabrics with the other colors.

Blocks in Progress: 90 Completed of 132 Required

I'm stacking the blocks in groups of ten so they are easy to count and keep track of how many I've made so far.  It's not like I can put them up on my design wall right now, since the '80s Retro Building Blocks sampler blocks have been camped out in progress for so long that it's like they are holding my design wall hostage.  Too many pots on the stove!

No New Progress for the Sampler Quilt UFO, But It's Hogging My Design Wall

Let's just state the obvious for the record -- no sewing or quilting was accomplished on ANY of my projects while I was writing this blog post...  

I know the calendar says that today (Wednesday the 13th) is not the right day for the One Monthly Goal post or for the Tuesday To-Do linkys, but better late than never, right?  This week I want to finish making the blocks for Alex's quilt, then set them aside to work on a vintage quilt repair for one client and long arm quilting for another client -- both of these projects have wonderful stories that I am looking forward to sharing with you the next time I step away from the sewing machines long enough to write a blog post!  And of course, for my One Monthly Goal, I'm wanting to jump into the cutting and piecing of my Deco quilt and keep up with the quilt along schedule so that doesn't turn into yet another Unfinished Object (UFO) lurking around the studio!

I know it might sound like I have too much on my plate from time to time, but having so many different projects to work on is awesome for fueling my creativity and keeping the boredom at bay.  I don't know why I am so lucky, but I seem to attract the BEST clients who just keep bringing me the most gorgeous quilts that I love helping them bring to life through the quilting!  

PSST!!  I'd Love to Quilt for YOU!

By the way, if you or any of your quilty friends has a quilt top or two that needs quilting, I'd be delighted to quilt for you!  I won't be accepting any more custom quilts in 2021, but I do have a couple spots still available for edge-to-edge quilting for holiday gifting.  Click here to find out how to book your quilt with me.

I'll be linking up today's post with my favorite linky parties throughout the week:

SUNDAY

Frédérique at Quilting Patchwork Appliqué

Oh Scrap! at Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework

MONDAY

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts  

Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt

BOMs Away at What a Hoot Quilts

TUESDAY

To-Do Tuesday at Texas Quilt Gal

WEDNESDAY

Midweek Makers at Quilt Fabrication

Wednesday Wait Loss at The Inquiring Quilter

THURSDAY

Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation  

FRIDAY

Whoop Whoop Fridays at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Peacock Party at Wendy’s Quilts and More

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Off the Wall Friday at Nina Marie Sayre

 TGIFF Thank Goodness It’s Finished Friday, rotates, schedule found here: TGIF Friday

Drop Everything And Make It (DREAMI), last Saturday of the month, at Mmm Quilts