Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah I'm Done

Zipper's all pieced, hurray.  I started this quilt in 2015.  I've been known to say "quilts take a long time, when you don't work on them".  I can now add, "or when they sit in a project box".

This is Lifetime Quilt Number 196

It finished has 66" x 78"

The pattern is Zipper by Camille Roskelly for Thimble Blossoms. (available here)

The fabric is an assortment of Little Black Dress, Little Black Dress 2 and Black Tie Affair by Basic Grey for Moda.

It has approximately 570 pieces.

Even though this project spanned several years, I enjoyed piecing it together.

The pattern has several interesting looks and is a great stash buster.

Are you working on selecting your Miss Rosie pattern and fabric for the sew along?  I'm going to spend a couple of weeks working on my Long Time Gone project and don't expect I'll be starting my Due South until the middle of March, but don't wait for me, get started whenever you like.

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Juniper Berry Finish

For the last week I've been playing with the fabric Juniper Berry by Basic Grey for Moda.  I've had this Christmas line of fabric for months but couldn't come up with a pattern that suited me, and I guess I basically never did find a pattern that suited me, instead I just started cutting diamonds using my Creative Grids Rhombus Template and throwing them up on my design wall until I came up with a pleasing arrangement.

This is Lifetime Quilt Number 191
I've named it "Yes Die Hard is a Christmas Movie".  It may seem like an odd name, unless you're a big Die Hard fan like our family, and yes, that is one of the Christmas movies that we watch every year, along with Elf, Christmas Vacation, Holiday Inn and The Family Man.  Anyway, Argyle is the name of the limo driver in the movie Die Hard.  And this is definitely a Christmas argyle pattern.
It finished at 76" x 91"
The fabric is Juniper Berry by Basic Grey for Moda
There are 288 diamonds.

This was my first experience working with diamond blocks.  I'm not sure why I was avoiding diamond blocks, they were very easy to cut and piece together.

To make piecing the rows easier I pieced together the like colored 4 patches first, then sewed those blocks together to make the rows, then sewed the rows together to finish the quilt top, easy peasy.

I could start putting together my Village house project but am thinking I may need to squeeze in one more Christmas project, it is the Christmas season for days yet!

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Persimmon Candy Box Finish

I finished my Persimmon Candy Box quilt right before Thanksgiving but this is the first chance I've had to blog about it.

This is Lifetime Quilt Number 189

It finished at 72" x 84"

The pattern is Candy Box by Lella Boutique

The print centers are Persimmon by Basic Grey for Moda

The white background fabric is Bella Solid 98

The beige background fabric is Essex Linen - Natural

It has approximately 1,050 pieces.

The blocks do have a partial seam when putting all the pieces together, but it's not a big deal and didn't cause me any issues, don't let that stop you from making this pattern. I enjoyed piecing every block.

Additionally, I got a few questions on my last blog post regarding the Essex Linen.  I cut the yardage into one yard pieces.  I washed those cuts in warm water and dried them in the dryer.  I then sprayed the pieces with starch until they were completely wet and let them air dry.  The fabric was easy to work with, did not fray, but does require some heaving pressing to avoid losing your points.  I would use it again.

I also pieced a few Village scrap houses, I'm getting close to the end of the year, and close to the total number of houses required.  I love it when a plan comes together.

I'm so happy it's December, I have two Christmas projects that I hope to finish this month, and even though I've already made 4 Christmas tops this year, I love Christmas quilts, and particularly love making them the month of December, generally while listening to Christmas music.

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