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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A Tisket a Tasket . . . . . .

Look who's making baskets!!

I've been wanting to make a basket quilt for ages, and when Sinta and Sherri picked Picnic for the November Schnibbles sew along, I really got basket fever. There are so many adorable basket patterns to choose from, big baskets, little baskets, with handles, no handles...I figured out real fast that I could spend the rest of my sewing days making nothing but basket quilts.

The Picnic Schibble did not work out for me, but when Sherri blogged about this basket quilt, my search was over.....

The pattern is called Laundry Baskets and is by Fig Tree.

I'm using a mix of Fig Tree fabrics for my baskets, this is the first time I've used Fig Tree Fabrics.

It's not my normal palette, pastels and florals, but the fabric just says "summer " to me and I'm in the mood for summer.

The pattern calls for scrappy background fabric but instead I chose a pale yellow solid from the Fig Tree Fresh Cottons family. The color is the exact color of the vanilla ice cream my grandmother used to cook on the stove then crank in the hand crank ice cream maker, and it makes me hungry and crave ice cream to work with it.

I don't like laundry, it's probably my least favorite household chore, I think because it's something that's never done. I may get caught up on the laundry, everything washed, folded and put away, but since I'm wearing clothes, I immediately have more laundry.....

So with that in mind, I've decided that I don't want to call my lovely basket quilt, "Laundry Baskets".......I think the baskets look more like ice cream sundaes...made with neapolitan, mint chocolate chip, coffee, and peach ice cream. So right now, this quilt doesn't have a name.

I'm planning to make this quilt large enough to use on our bed during the summer months. Having so much light fabric, on a quilt that we'll be sitting on, sleeping under, and Cooper will likely pounce on, makes me a little nervous.

So I decided to add scrappy corners, to make the blocks bigger, use more of that lovely Fig Tree Fabric, and cut down on the amount of exposed light material. The block went from 8 1/2 inches to 12.

I don't really like how they look connected, so I'm thinking of using some of that vanilla ice cream fabric for sashing.

So that's where I am right now, I'm thinking I'll also add a scrappy border of some sort....I need around 12 inches of something to hang over the sides of the bed.

I'm really enjoying this project, even if it makes me constantly crave ice cream, and for some reason, I'm feeling no fabric drama, or should I say I'm not creating any fabric drama. I'm just going with the flow and loving every minute I can squeeze out of my busy day to spend in my sewing room.

Thanks so much for stopping by to see what I'm up to......

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