The Best Giraffe Quilt: Ever

My "quilty crime partner" Michelle over @ From Bolt to Beauty, decided to participate in a choose your own adventure quit for ME!  Yes, check out her posts here and here on how she "built" this beauty.

Can I just mention, that I LOVE it!  

Really, what's not to love? It has a giraffe in the middle in Basic Grey fabric! The fabric Michelle choose for the center was the perfect choice for a giraffe. The flowers do a great job mimicking spots. Then all those Basic Grey squares perfectly round out the center.

Michelle looked long and hard for the perfect giraffe pattern and this was one definitely a win! It has a mature feel, which most do not. Out of the million giraffe things I own, this is my first giraffe quilt :) 

I love this one so much, it went into my off-limits to others quilt collection.  This one is ALL mine! 

Sunday Stash: Fall Fabrics

Autumn colors have never drawn me in, but I couldn't resist the pumpkins :) Plus, it brings out my peach obsession in these fabrics. 

I did do a little 9 yard splurge this month. Morgan Kelly did a string of projects involving Les Fleurs and metallic dots that had me inspired. Modern metallics. Not your Benjamin Franklin circa 1990 fall leaf metallics. My world has expanded ... 

Still unsure, 2 yards of the stuff landed in my cart. Why waste shipping ... fill up the cart! 

Metallics!!!!!!

and Basic Grey Grunge in Sugar Cookie

These fabrics are even more charming in person. To break the ice I picked two lightly printed metallic fabrics. They are beautiful, but I now I want something a little more densely printed. Guess I'll have to make another order :) 

Even with this order coming in I have still managed to net -123 yards this year to date. Doing the math, 1 pound is 3 yards, I have sewn approximately 40 pounds of fabric. Now if I only had the same dedication to the gym! 

Sugar Blocks 2016: Finished

Wowzers! This is to date the biggest quilt I have ever made.  Poor Mike didn't even know where to start when holding it up! His extendable arms were out of service.

The project started as the 2016 Sugar Block of the Month Club. Then after a few months of blocks I didn't love it turned into "all my favorite blocks club". Makes perfect sense this has become my favorite quilt!

Earlier Posts: 

Sugar Blocks = Favorite Blocks, July Sugar Blocks, Sugar Block Club: May + June , Sugar Block of the Month Update, February Sugar Block, Sugar Block of the Month 

The color combinations in this quilt makes my heart flutter. I love the aqua, magenta, peach, mustard combination with some chambray. Swoon. 

When finishing this quilt on retreat, I went to a local quilt shop (Thimbleberries on Cape Cod). There I found more of the Kate Spain fabric I used in the quilt for the border. I had been looking with no luck, so that was my lucky day! Not being a border person, I love what it adds to this particular quilt. May need to rethink borders ... 

For the backing, I used the other sheet from my "Today is a Good Day for a Good Day" Quote quilt. They actually match in colors, binding and backing. Oh, and awesomeness! Love this pair.

To find out more about using a sheet for the backing click here. 

It's economical and worked great both times :) 

If only I could snuggle under them both at the same time without looking like a crazy quilt lady! 

Never Say Never

Last year I mass produced Lola Pouches for Christmas presents and swore them off for a lifetime. 

Never say never.  I just made two more. 

Having spent a good long year with a small and large one I made myself, they are very practical. I use the large one for toiletries when traveling and the small one is in my purse to organize my pencils and pens. 

Don't you LOVE that pug fabric on the inside. The other is made from the line Bad Hair Day. It's for one of my dearest friends, who is a hairdresser. I still need to trim and tiddy up the zipper. 

If you are looking for a good, practical holiday gift this is it! The pattern is easy even if you are a zipper novice! Etsy has some great bulk deals on fancy zippers to make mass producing more economical.