Some cook, I sew and write: creativity brings joy

We're coming up to Valentine's Day and I just finished the Valentine tabletopper quilt for someone who gives of her heart.  Can't say who because she has no idea it is coming!  So happy with how it looks and it will be even more personal after it's autographed by pertinent parties. Here's the back of it.  I think it looks really nice!!! I recently got the reminder that I canNOT pull the fabric at all when sewing because the stitches pull too tight and don't hold.  Not good especially if the quilt will ever need to be washed.  All those raw edges will fray and come out from underneath the binding.  I don't want to think about what would happen if it was in the middle of the quilt.  So if you start noticing skipped stitches: 1)  Change needles and make sure you have the right kind in the machine. 2)  Make sure the thread is properly threaded through the machine.  This should probably be number one. 3)  Use a lighter t...

I finally finished piecing my disappearing quilt blocks for my Christmas quilt today.  Yay! Here's a picture of the stack of finished blocks with the Christmas tree block and the green fabric on the bottom that I've chosen for sashing.  So far I've only bought one small piece of fabric to make this quilt.  Unfortunately, I don't have enough fabric to make the quilt back or batting, but 99% of the top will be from my stash! Now I have to make some big decisions like: How big of a quilt do I want to make?  Is it going to be a lap quilt, a blanket, or a bedspread?  Originally I had planned to make a queen size quilt because I have a queen size bed.  I'm not sure now though.  It might be nicer to have it to cuddle up in on the couch or reading a book. How am I going to lay it out?  I also noticed, while it was spread out on the floor, that these blocks will make a very scrappy, very busy quilt if I push all the pieces together.  I ...