Upcoming Fabric Favorites

Hello everyone, are you having a nice week?

I certainly am.  The last few weeks have been action packed at The Quilted Mitten, and I have some really fun projects in the works (more to follow soon).

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you some of my upcoming favorite fabric collections.  These are ones that motivate me just by looking at the prints.

The first one is "Florence" by Denyse Schmidt.

I don't know if this collection is named after a person, or a city, but I'm hoping its the city.  Italy has always been one of my favorite places (I've visited twice), and Florence in particular was an inspiring place.  The medalion print espeically reminds me of artwork and architectural details found there.  The colors in this collection are fresh and modern, and would also work well in my home.

My other favorite is Acacia by Tula Pink:

Tula Pink has always been one of my favorite fabric designers.  This collection comes in three colorways, and although I love ALL of them, the blue and green will mesh well with the other quilts in my home (blue and green are my favorite colors).

I am anxiously awaiting both of these collections, and I can't wait to get started on projects with them.

What about you?  Do you have favorite collections coming out soon?

Cristina
The Quilted Mitten

Beach Glass

How is it that this:

Can turn into this?

I have been saving my blue and green scrap strips for OVER A YEAR to make this quilt.  (keep in mind this is not a large quilt, and blue and green are my favorite colors).  This is a pattern found in Kim Brackett's Scrap Basket Sensations, and it's pretty much the reason I bought the book.  All the quilts in that book are great, but this one made me jump up and say "This quilt right here...I need it in my life".

I always cut leftovers from sewing projects into pre-cut sizes since they work so well with a lot of commercial patterns that are out right now.  i have been ferreting away the blue and green 2.5" strips in hopes to make this quilt, and once I realized I had enough, I jumped in feet first. 

This quilt is a TON of fun to make.  No stressful piecing, and a lot of it can be mindlessly chain pieced while you watch your favorite Disney movies (ahem...).  It's a great way to use scraps, and for me it was a great reminder of all the things I've worked on in order to have this assortment of scraps.

We have a beautiful hillside garden next to the building, and I TRIED to take some scenic pictures of this quilt, but it was too windy.  Apparently mother nature doesn't appreciate that I needed pretty blog pictures.  Psh.  Whatever Mother Nature!  This is the best shot I could get outside.  Aren't the Irises pretty?

I named this quilt "Beach Glass" for a few reasons.  One:  There is a lot of it on the beaches here, and the colors in this quilt match the many shades of glass I often find.  Two:  Beach glass has a life cycle very similar to the fabrics in this quilt.  Once they had a purpose, then they were thrown away, only to come back as a newly found treasure.

Tomorrow I am headed to Sleeping Bear Dunes with my family, and I am really looking forward to it.  Hopefully the weather holds out. :/

Have a great weekend everyone!


Cristina
The Quilted Mitten

"Neptune Swoon": Progress Update!

Well folks, I did it.  The top is pieced.  Neptune Swoon is now a flimsy!!!

I am super proud of it!  The blocks took a lot of time, but once they were done the top came together very quickly.  I suppose that's the blessing of large blocks!!!

The sun was extra bright for pictures, so sorry if they're a little shadowy.  This morning was super foggy, and that would've been great if I'd had the time to snap some photos before heading to work!

 It almost feels like summer today.  The sun is shining, and there is a slight breeze coming off lake Michigan.  They finally filled the pool here at my condo, and I am looking forward to having pool/dinner parties in the coming months. 

The background fabric I used on this quilt looks like cracking paint.  I thought it was perfect because it reminded me of the dock posts here in the harbor.  See what I mean?!

Anyway I need to get outside while I can enjoy this great weather!  I hope everyone is having a great week!  Happy "Hump Day"

Cristina
The Quilted Mitten

WIP List Madness!!!



My Sewing Corner!  This is where all the madness happens!!!







































Projects that are being pieced:

Civil War Sampler (still needs it's last border)

Classic Strippy Quilt

Kaffe Fassett Postcard Quilt

Scrappy Friendship Braid

Giant Granny Panties


Tops awaiting quilting:

Gabe and Renee's Wedding Quilt

Garden Party Shadowbox

1974 Quilt

Meadowsweet 2 Quilt

Amy Butler Picnic Quilt

Happy Hour Quilts (x2) (Hanging in the store)

Patches and Pinwheels (scrappy)

Stack and Whack (Parrots)

Vintage Floral Quilt

Make it You! Log Cabin

Batik Scrap Quilt

Deer Valley Girls Best Friend

Sparkle Quilt-Along

Christmas Wall Hanging

Charlevoix

DS Quilts: Pick-a-Nick Basket

Scrappy Trip Around the World

Neptune Swoon



Projects that I have not started (but have the fabric):

Parisville quilt (still not sure what pattern)

Solid flying geese

Bella Medallion Quilt

Grinchmas Quilt


Total Projects: 27


You may have noticed that my "Neptune Swoon" is now waiting to be quilted.  Pictures will be up soon, I've been waiting for a sunny day to take it outside!

I am also contemplating a new project using up some of my scraps.  I love making quilts that use what I have on hand. 

I feel like I am making progress, and yet this list never seems to get shorter.  What to do!

I hope everyone has a happy tuesday!

Cristina
The Quilted Mitten

A Lesson in Persistence

Remember this quilt?  It's finally a top!

I got this quilt "webbed" (see here for explanation) right before I packed up and moved to Charlevoix.  It got shoved in a closet, and I didn't get back to it until a few weeks ago.  Thankfully it wasn't a lot of work to get this top finished!

Next it will need quilting, and I think I will quilt this one myself on my home machine.  I am thinking that I will just echo the seam lines with my walking foot.  I have A LOT of tops that need to be sent to a long-arm quilter, so when I find one that I can do myself I get excited.

It was made with fabric from the first DS Quilts collection for JoAnn's.  I normally don't like to quilt with fabric from JoAnn's, but I LOVE Denise Schmidt, and the greige good was a better quality so I went for it.  Since this line came out DS Quilts has released quite a few collections, and they've all been beautiful.

This week I have been enjoying the *slightly* warmer temperatures (it's still under 70 degrees, ick), and I finally finished planting my flowers (photos to hopefully come soon).  I don't have a lot of outdoor space, but some small planters really made a difference.  I had some help from my mom this week rescuing the few flowers that I had planted too early (they suffered frost conditions a few times and looked horrible).  Now it almost feels like Spring! haha.

I am still making headway on my "Neptune Swoon" and I have a sewing date on Saturday with my friend Emily that should help me make quick work of the top!  Can't wait!

I hope everyone is having a great week!

Cristina
The Quilted Mitten

Beware of Fainting Fits, Beware of Swoons

I have been IN LOVE with the "Swoon" quilt by Thimbleblossoms for a LOOOONG time.  Last year (or was it 2011? eek!) the Swoon-a-long swept the blogosphere, and I desperately wanted to be a part of it.  However, life (big life) happened, and I had to focus my energies elsewhere. 

Since moving to paradise my life has taken on a refreshed, stress-killing momentum and I've used that to my advantage.  I have been hoarding some "Neptune" by Tula Pink for a while, and I thought this would be the perfect quilt for it!  I had this great neutral in my stash that looks like weathered paint (think dock posts), and it blended beautifully as a background!

True to what others have said online, each block takes about 2 hours to complete.  I have a tendency to steer away from quilts like this simply due to my lack of patience (I'm a lazy quilter), but with this one I'm trying to stop and enjoy the process.  I am already in love with this quilt, and I feel like it is the perfect quilt for living near the water.

As I write this I am sitting in front of my window, staring at the sun shining on the lake.  I am feeling truly blessed today.  I hope everyone has a great weekend!!!

Cristina

A Little Late to the Game

So, I'm sure a lot of you have heard of the "Scrappy-Trip-Along".  I fell in love with Bonnie Hunter's version of this pattern a long time ago, so when it went viral I could hardly resist!  With my move, and new job I was a little late getting started, but once started I couldn't stop!

These blocks are SO MUCH FUN!!!  You can put some of the most random fabrics together, and collectively the result it beautiful!  I used up a ton of scrap 2 1/2" strips in this process, but I have enough to make 10 more of these quilts!  I tried to put the darkest fabric in the center of the block, but that was the only fabric placement that was planned.

This past weekend we had BEAUTIFUL sunny weather!  I could hardly wait to get outside and get fresh air!  After a 3.5 run on Monday, I was blessed to see a Bald Eagle flying circles around the harbor. :)  I about jumped out of my skin with excitement.  Today has been cold and rainy, but having a sunny weekend was a great cure-all for a long winter indoors.

My Favorite Block!

I have really been settling in to Northern Michigan, and I am LOVING IT!  This past weekend was a riot, and non-stop!  There is a lot of local culture, as well as tons of ways to explore nature.  I think I may have found my forever-home; I don't think I'll ever want to leave.

Also, don't forget that my new pattern "When In Rome" is now available on Craftsy!  Find it HERE.

Have a lovely week!

-Cristina