Pinktober Plus

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and here is my response. 

Pinktober!

This is the largest improv-pieced quilt, I have ever made. I don't think I will ever do it again because I could not see the whole composition at once, until after it was quilted. 

Made entirely of pink (peach, coral and some fuchsia) scraps combined with low volume/white fabrics, I have named her Rosy Pussytoes, after the pretty pink flowers.

Pink & Peach

Happy Halloween!

While the working title was F*** the Blues, which resembled my mood when I started rage sewing the scraps, the finished product is so beautiful that I have revised the monicker :-)

My cup runneth over...

What do you think?

Speaking of names, when I showed the work in progress to my mom, she called it a "pink tarpaulin"

Basting

Jennifer Fulton of Inquiring Quilter sent me the pattern for the "Ribbon of Hope" block, which I incorporated in the back.

Ribbon of Hope

Ready to Applique

Thank you, Jennifer!

I used Tuscany Cotton-Wool Blend batting by Hobbs. The backing is this cute multicolored dogs - a fabric I have been hoarding for a while :-)

Puppy Love

I used my Walking Foot to quilt squiggly lines in one direction only. The binding is a turquoise fabric from Moda. 

Work in Progress

Binding Completed

Rosy Pussytoes finished at 82" by 94". Before I asked Paul to model her, I added a temporary sleeve, where a curtain road could be inserted to prevent floppy corners.

Atop a Picnic Table

In my backyard

On my bed

Let's take a few close-ups.

There is a saying in Hindi which translates into - Large scrapings from a large pot. As a proverb, it means that even the small remnants, leftovers, or small acts of charity from a wealthy family or big business are more than enough to sustain a poor person.

Rosy & Mini

Translated into quiltspeak, there were enough scraps leftover from Rosy to make a Mini - a small baby quilt, perfect for a little girl.

Mini Pussytoes

Purple Butterflies Backing

Mini Pussytoes finished at 37" by 43".

Pretty in Pink

I used Polyester Batting (Hobbs) and the same/similar turquoise binding.

In my Backyard

I am going to bed with Rosy Pussytoes, and Mini Pussytoes is going to my mom for when she may need a suitable gift. 

See them both?

The festival of lights is around the corner and I am going to India for a visit. There is a baby boy, my newest nephew, who deserves a quilt all his own.

After some thought, I decided to use a jungle babies fabric panel to whip up a quick quilt in a weekend.

Bear Hugs Revisited

Happy Snake :-)

The border fabric came from Mari's scrap basket. The red, green and blue fabrics came from Paul's mom, that I inherited. The yellow is leftover from Meetu's quilt. Many blessings for the new baby!

Border of Birds

Cute Bubbleguppies Backing

For batting, I used the Tuscany Cotton-Wool leftovers (long strips frankenbatting)  from Rosy Pussytoes. The Binding is dark green, made from the leftover backing of Jeni's Colorado.

Happiness is a Hug

Quilts take up a lot of space. I will travel with two large suitcases that can be nested, outbound with two pieces of checked luggage, and inbound with just one, one neatly inside the other...a bit like this one blogpost that contains three quilts :-D

It is that time of the year - Get your shots (prevention/protection from flu etc.) and don't throw away your shot (make sure you vote).

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar.

Phagun

Welcome to my stop on the Sunflower Spice Blog Hop.

Phagun, 80" by 100"

When Jennifer Thomas of Curlicue Creations asked whether I would like to join the BlogHop, I did not say yes. I had to see the fabrics, first. 

OK, YES. 

These vibrant hues cover the entire spectrum of the rainbow. The design had to be simple so that the colors could truly shine.

Making Blocks

Ravishing Red

Design Wall

Adding Scrappy Borders

Ta Da - A Queen Size Quilt

Well, yes. I made a queen-size quilt, named Phagun. Phagun is made with two quilt blocks - the Shanvi block using warm colors and the Irish Chain block using cool colors. Both blocks finish at 10". 

Borders - Inner Skinny & Outer Scrappy

A skinny inner border and an outer 4" finished scrappy border complete the quilt. The background is Egg Shell and the binding is Fondant.

Egg Shell

Fondant

Close-up

The batting is Tuscany Cotton/Wool Blend generously provided by Hobbs.

Thank you, Hobbs

A queen size quilt is the perfect excuse to splurge on a wide backing. This multicolored layered lava lamps fabric was just perfect.

Wide Backing - Color Matching

I quilted using my walking foot, my favorite squiggly stitching, following the 2" grid. I am the queen of keeping it simple :-p

Quilting in process

Now, pushing a queen size quilt sandwich through a domestic machine is a challenge (ask my neck and shoulders), as is modeling it. The arm span of a tall Paul falls way short of 80".

Solution - I attached a quilt sleeve and inserted an adjustable curtain rod. The still shots became easy and the walking quilt video (check my Instagram) a breeze :-)

Crushing on You!

It was a beautiful sunny Spring day on the banks of the Potomac and I decided to get in front of the camera :-)

Basking in the warmth

Daydreaming

Perfect Spring!

For lunch, because a hardworking (handsome too) model deserves compensation, we went to a restaurant called Wild Himalayan Yak. It is a Nepalese restaurant with some Indo-Chinese dishes. Paul was interested in trying the yak meat. But that is not the point of this story. The napkins are.

Picture from the Restaurant Website

Unlike any other restaurant, they have the most beautiful napkins made from woven authentic Nepali fabrics. You get me, right. When others are looking upward at the monument/castle, us quilters will be admiring the tiles. 

Picture from the Restaurant Website

Me: These napkins are so beautiful.
Paul just nodded, amused.

Me: I could just swipe one.
Paul: Don't!!!
Me: Just one. No one will notice. They won't even miss it. Look it is already past its prime.
Paul: Such a bad girl!

Me (changing topic): How is the yak?

Paul: It tastes like bison. How are your momos?

Me: Awesome. Can we come here again?

Paul: Sure.

At this point, Paul excused himself to go to the restroom. He returned with a colorful napkin. My eyes were as large as the momos on my plate.

Me (shocked): Did you steal it for me?

Paul: No, silly. I asked the head waiter. 

Me (still in disbelief): And he just handed you one?

Paul: I asked nicely, saying that my wife is interested in fabric and crafting. They change them every so often and this one is at the end of its useful life.

I was still stupefied. 

Thank goodness for Paul. I am glad that he keeps me honest. But I am thrilled that he keeps me.

I came home and got to work.

Threadbare edges removed

Beautiful but will need some creative thinking

Later, I covered that hole with a strip of matching Green Solid fabric.

Stabilized with SF-101

Batting

Matching Zippers

I am thrilled with these two zippered pouches - made from a dinner napkin that would have most likely ended up in a landfill.

Happiness is a Quilt!

Paul: What is Phagun?
Me: Phagun is the twelfth and final month of the Hindu lunar calendar, corresponding roughly to February and March. It marks the transition from winter to spring and is widely celebrated as the month of  Holi, the vibrant festival of colors.

And that is exactly what Phagun Quilt is - a vibrant festival of colors.

The Sunflower Spice blog hop runs from today through June 10th.  Here's the list so you can visit all the blogs during the hop:

June 1:  Curlicue Creations 

June 2:  Freemotion by the River

June 3:  Lisa's Quilting Passion

June 5:  Textile Time Travels

June 6:  Lady Blue Quilt Studio

June 7:  Sew Preeti Quilts - You are here

June 8:  Quilted Delights

June 9:  Sew Cute and Quirky

June 10:  The Darling Dogwood

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar.