She's a Winner!

Over the weekend I entered a few quilts in a show that was sponsored by a guild 45 miles from me.

When I attended the show I was thrilled to find this ribbon on A La Mode (Lifetime Quilt # 66)

Every now and then I'll run across a blog where folks wonder if their quilts are good enough for a show, or if they should enter their quilts in a show. And this is what I think about that, while I was excited to see that blue ribbon on my quilt, I also enjoyed seeing my other quilts in the show and talking to folks about them. Plus, I really enjoy seeing what other quilters in my neck of the woods are making. I would have been happy with my experience even if I didn't win a ribbon. If you've never entered your quilts in a local show, I think you'll be surprised by the sense of satisfaction you'll feel just by seeing your quilt hanging in the event hall with other quilts.

And if you're worried because a few points are missing or or a seam or two don't match, relax, there are too many things to look at for anyone to notice that type of thing on one quilt, you're the only one who notices those things on your quilt!

I've never been associated with the planning or running of a quilt show, but it looks like a lot of work. If a group is going to take the time and effort to sponsor a show, I think it's nice to recognize that time and effort by entering some quilts. The ribbon was just icing on the cake!

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A Tisket a Tasket . . . . . .

One of the many things I love about having a blog is going back and revisiting my posts for my different projects. I pretty much always go back and reread my posts when my top comes back from the quilter, it's usually good for a laugh, I've usually worked myself into a frenzy over something during the project that I've completely forgotten once it's done. I didn't go back and reread my posts for this project, I remember this quilt like I finished it yesterday.

A la Mode (click here for more details regarding this quilt)

This was my 2010 summer project, my first (but not my last) quilt using Fig Tree fabric (mostly Folklorique) and my first basket quilt. I still remember how much I enjoyed making each basket block, adding the corner triangles, adding the sashing, coming up with that outer border, all fond memories. I also remember all the while I was working on this project I was picturing that quilt on my bed the next summer.

And here it is, the next summer and that quilt is on my bed!

Since it's a king size quilt, and one that I planned to use, my quilter and I thought an overall pattern would be a good choice. The quilting pattern is some sort of leafy/feather design, hard to describe but nice to look at.

For the back of the quilt I found this fabric on sale for $5 a yard, a nice Fig Tree fabric that had the same background color as the background fabric on the front of the quilt. So now the quilt even looks pretty when it's turned down at bedtime.

I loved this basket quilt so much that I've spent the last 12 months searching for another basket quilt pattern that I would like at least as much if not more than A la Mode. Here are a few of my favorites:

The pattern is MoJo by Carrie Nelson for Miss Rosie's Quilt Co and this quilt is Nicole's Ridiculously Cute Basket Quilt made with Simple Abundance, I love it.

This is Door Country Cherry Baskets by Lisa Bongean & Carole Charles. It's in their Summer Gatherings book. Those little baskets finish at 6 1/4 inches and there are 99 of them!!

This book has three really cute basket patterns, it's by Need'l Love. (their website has great pictures of these quilts)

I was introduced to this magazine when I was in Utah, Quilts Japan.

I don't understand a word written in this magazine but I don't care, the quilts are amazing. The March 2011 issue was loaded with basket quilts, here are my favorites,

little baskets surrounding bigger baskets, very clever.

And the little baskets in the border are randomly turned different directions, I like that too.

There are several things going on in this quilt, big basket, little baskets, varying background colors, baskets in the borders. It's one of those quilts that you need to really look at for awhile to take it all in.

Another little basket quilt, I love the happy colors and the shamrocks thrown in for fun.

Here's one with all types of baskets.

Inside those round blocks are little baskets, I'm ok with the green but for some reason I think it would look even better in red!

I'm not even sure if the patterns are included in the magazine, and even if they were, I don't speak the language, so the quilts in the Quilts Japan magazine may just be wishful thinking on my part.

I sure hope I can squeeze in a basket quilt project for 2011. Can you have too many basket quilts . . . . I don't think so!

Let me know if you have a favorite basket pattern or a basket quilt you think I need to add to my list!

I hope you have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by! It's going to be another scorcher here this weekend, a perfect weekend for staying in and sewing.

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A Quilter's Tale . . .

Once upon a time, there was a quilter who wanted to make a basket quilt. This quilter loved so many basket quilt patterns that she just couldn't pick one, but every year, at the top of her Quilt To Do list was "1. Basket Quilt".

Finally, in the summer of 2010, after seeing this basket quilt, made by Sherri, at A Quilting Life, the quilter thought she had found her basket pattern,

Laundry Baskets from Fresh Vintage 14 by Fig Tree.

The quilter ordered some Fig Tree fabric and started making baskets.

but this quilter has a problem with "leaving well enough alone", and the next think you knew, these laundry baskets had setting triangles,

and looked more like ice cream sundaes.

If that wasn't enough of a change, the quilter then decided to add

sashing and cornerstones to the setting triangles on the basket blocks. Now most quilters would have been happy to slap a few borders around those adorable baskets and call it done, most quilters, but not this quilter.

Instead of going with a few rows of border fabric she dreamed of something better, and saw this quilt,

American Pie by Carrie Nelson for Miss Rosie's Quilt Company. She saw that quilt and thought it would make a wonderful border...

Happy with her choice the quilter set out making lattice blocks.

As one month turned into two, the quilter did not worry about the time and effort this basket quilt was taking, she just dreamed of how it would look when it was done.....

and if the quilt would have looked like this, the quilter would have had a wonderful summer and this story would be over, unfortunately for the quilter, her wonderful basket quilt didn't look like this,

it looked like this! It had a 2 1/4 inch gap between the baskets and the lattice!! Oh no, what's a quilter to do. Well after blogging about it, and trying every possible combination that was suggested, the quilter decided to cut her losses, and quit!! A summer's work down the drain, no basket quilt, no finished project for her lifetime quilt list.

Every now and then the quilter would lament on her blog of her disappointment of not finishing the lovely basket quilt. And fellow quilters would try to cheer her up, leave words of encouragement, and keep offering suggestions.

And then, after whining about this unfinished project in her Year in Review post, the quilter decided to just slap some borders around the baskets and make another quilt out of the lattice blocks. That wouldn't be so bad, to start making one quilt and end up with two quilts!

Then a friend sent a new suggestion, which led to a different idea, which led to this.

Finally, can you believe it, A la Mode is done! Don't you just love a story with a happy ending!

This is Lifetime Quilt # 65, it finished at 109" x 109", and has approximately 2,397 pieces.

I could not be happier with that inner border, I don't even think it's noticeable, your eyes just pass right over it on the way to the lattice border. And as good as this quilt looks in this picture, it looks even better in person.

Thanks to everyone for your words of encouragement and suggestions, you just wouldn't let me give up on myself or this quilt!

Over the last 24 hours, the power's gone on and off at least a dozen times, my driveway is covered with a 1/2 inch of ice and 6 inches of snow, but when I look at this quilt I can't help but think,

"it's a beautiful day"!!

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I'm Back, Again . . And so are these!!

Greetings!! Who knew, that when I last blogged about A la Mode, it would be two weeks before I got back to my computer!! Not me....but I'm back, again,

and so are these

The coconut m&m's are back at my store, for a limited time only. Be on the lookout for them in your store, they are by far my favorite m&m and they don't hang around long.

The lack of blogging is due to one week spent with my folks and one week spent with my daughter.

Last week I met my baby girl for a week of fun in Las Vegas.

One week each year we meet for a Mother/Daughter vacation. It's one of my favorite weeks of the year. We laugh, relax, and get caught up on on the happenings in our lives.

This year we struggled with our destination, but finally decided on Las Vegas. It was a good choice.

We ate at some fabulous restaurants, (when did Vegas switch from $4.99 all you can eat buffets to gourmet dining?)

Saw some great shows.

Shopped.

and laughed all week long. (until we got the airport, then I cried). The week just flew by. I won't see my baby girl again until Thanksgiving.

I had the best time and am already counting the days until our trip next year.

While I was busy with family, you were busy trying to help me finish up A la Mode.

Thanks so much for all your help! I received 40 comments!!

Give yourselves a pat on the back, you're a clever group! Here's where I'm at right now.

Someone suggested that I finish the lattice border before making up my mind about the containment border, because having the entire border surrounding the baskets will change how it all looks.

I could not agree more, so first up, I'm finishing the top row.

While I haven't for sure decided on my plan of attack, I have decided against a few of the options I threw out there:

I'm NOT going to separate the basket blocks and add something. Someone suggested adding the lattice border in between , which I loved, but they would have to be smaller in size and I think two different sizes of lattice blocks would be too busy.

I'm not going with any of the fabric that I initially auditioned. The brown was a very popular choice, most popular in fact, but I thought it was too big of a contrast and a distraction.

And finally, I'm not going with a narrower lattice block to fit. I would need to cut 3/4 an inch off the inner side, and I think that would give it a wonky, unfinished look.

Here's what I AM considering:

Using a containment border that's a tone on tone, light pink (thanks Sinta!), or custard or peach (thanks Carrie!).

Using a containment border that's all the colors listed above, set between blocks of my background fabric.

Not only was Jane clever enough to come up with this idea, she was able to photoshop my picture to illustrate her suggestion! You know me and my mind's eye, in this case, a picture was worth a thousand words! It's just a matter of finding the perfect tonal values of fabric.

If none of the suggestions above make me happy,

then I plan to remove the current sashing, and add new sashing that is the proper width to "push" the baskets into the lattice border. If I had had the foresight to pick this border when I started this project, this is what this project would have looked like, so I'm not going to throw this idea away just because it's labor intensive.

So stay tuned, it's like my very own summer soap opera....except this is going to have a happy ending!! I guarantee it!!

Tomorrow is my one year anniversary for my blog! Stop back by, I have some giveaways and posts planned for each day the rest of the week.

Now I'm off to see what you've been doing these past two weeks!!

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A La Mode . . . . . .

Did you know "A La Mode" means, "in the current fashion or style"? I thought it meant "three scoops of ice cream on my pie, please". I guess putting ice cream on pie is fashionable.

Pie is my favorite food, pizza pie, chicken pot pie, coconut cream pie, cherry pie, apple pie....I've yet to meet a pie I didn't like! More on this topic later.....

So here's the latest picture of my laundry basket project..... I'm using an assortment of Fig Tree fabrics and Joanna's pattern Laundry Baskets.

I've got the sashing around all the blocks.

I went with two colors on the cornerstones, because, well, I didn't want them scrappy and one color seemed too vanilla, two seemed to be juuuuuuuuust right.

I like how the sashing gives this top the feeling that it's all about the baskets and not about the setting triangles. Adding the sashing wasn't a decision I agonized over, like I tend to do on most of my decisions, I think because my last project, Madeline's Good Fortune, also used corner setting triangles, and I didn't go with sashing on it.

I think I was just ready for a change.

So I put this top on my bed, and it's a perfect fit, those baskets just go to the edge of the mattress. Now, just to add some borders to hang down the sides and I'm done....sounds easy, but you know me. I'm mainly working with Fig Tree fat quarters on this one, I have some yardage, but nothing bigger than a 1/2 yard, so the outer border needs to be scrappy....but what goes with sundaes, ice cream sundaes.....

Pie, of course!

This is American Pie by Carrie Nelson of Miss Rosie's Quilt Company . Currently, on Carrie's blog, she's standing right in front of this pattern!!

You can buy this pattern, on its own.

But it's also included in this book, so why buy one pattern when for a few dollars more, you can have 14 of her marvelous patterns!!

The blocks in Carrie's pattern finish at 4 inches. I'm wanting a 12 inch border, so I'm making my blocks to finish at 3 inches, giving me four rows of lattice blocks instead of 3.

So this is how it's looking right now.

I think it works on several levels. What appealed to me about this pattern was the lattice look, which is really what I was looking for, to go with the flower baskets. But since we've decided my baskets have more of an ice cream sundae feel to them, and Carrie thought this design looked like the lattice top of a pie, I thought it was the perfect marriage.

See that 3 inch space of carpet peeking through the two designs.....that space is reserved for a border of some sort, that I'm sure will come to me sometime, but is necessary for the outer blocks to completely surround the inner blocks, it's a math thing.....

The pattern in the book makes a 72 X 80 quilt from 360 lattice squares, I need over 500 to surround my sundaes. It will be like making another quilt....so there goes my goal of having this project AND State Fair done by the end of June.

I'm usually pretty committed to my deadlines, and even get grumpy when I start getting close to my deadline and am not done. Which is pretty silly, since I'm the one making the deadline! But for some reason, I'm just loving this fabric, loving the lattice blocks and am happy about the prospect of working on this border for as long as it may take, very unThelma like....maybe I'm growing (oh, I am growing, this quilt continues to make me hungry!) or maybe it's just because it's summer, and I'm in the mood to relax.

So I've decided A La Mode is the perfect name for this quilt, because it is so fashionable, and because pie and ice cream make the perfect summer treat.

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