A looong time ago, my little quilt group and I had a fat quarter exchange.  Each month we had a theme and each month everyone was suppose to bring one fat quarter that fit that theme.  We would put everyone's name that was participating into a basket and draw a winner.  After you won a set of fat quarters your name wouldn't go into the draw but you would still continue to contribute a fat quarter each month until everyone had won a set.  I won the fall fat quarters and decided to use my Square Root quilt pattern to make a fall table runner. 

I had it quilted a long time ago and finally got it bound last week.

The 16 Square Root blocks in this runner are all different and the back is made with leftover strips I had from the fat quarters.  I used up every last inch of those fabrics.

I am donating this runner to the Dollhouse Festival, as well (see this post).  

If you're in the area in late September you should check it out.  They have a really fun boutique and silent auction.  I got a lot of fun things there last year like my thread cabinet, gift cards, hair bows, magnets, plus a bunch of other things.  And, it all goes to a great cause (proceeds go to the Children's Justice Center in Provo, Utah)!  It's open to the public on September 28th & 29th and is on the top floor of the Provo City Library. 

Have a wonderful Monday!

~ Amber

P.S. You can get the Square Root quilt pattern HERE.

Quilts in The Shop

I'm feeling a little sick as I write this.

But I just wanted to let you know that I've listed four quilts in my shop that my darling SIL has made and wants to sell.  I love her style.  She does great work.  Here's one that I almost didn't list because I want it for myself.

(Like I'm secretly hoping it won't sell.  Because I really, really want it).

I feel like there is a little, teeny- tiny piece of me in these quilts and I'm sad to see them go.  We traded fabric for some of them (ie. the Crayola Zig Zag quilt  which you can read about HERE), I remember her working on each one of them, we talked and shared much excitement about them, I coveted and wished I had her sense of style on all of them.

So please, if you want to check them out (and maybe purchase one), please promise me you'll take real good care of them.  They were made with love.

~Amber

Farmer's Wife Depression

I'm still here and still plugging away at my Farmer's Wife blocks.

I counted today and I'm about one-third of the way finished

(insert a very weak woo-hoo right here).

Here are my newest blocks:

#25 Cups and Saucers

# 15 Buzzards Roost

#31 Evening Star

#35 Flower Basket

#11 Broken Dishes

The problem is, I get a handful of them done.  I lay them all out thinking, "Wow!  I'm cruising right along!  I should be done in no time!  Look at all these blocks!"  And then I count them.  And realize I still have about a trillion more to go. 

Stay positive.  Stay positive.  [Somebody help me please.]  Stay positive.

Slowly but surely, right?

I guess you learn a lot about yourself when making a quilt of this magnitude.

First, I am not the most patient person in the world

(yeah, I probably already knew that). 

Second, I do not unpick

(ok, once in a great while do I unpick.  Only if it's completely necessary.) 

Third, I will not make a block over again (even if I don't care for it).

Fourth, I'm indecisive. 

(Maybe I shouldn't have done red and white???)

Fifth, I am a finisher!  Woo-hoo!

(I will make all 111 blocks!)

And even though I get a little discouraged when I realize how much more I have to go on this quilt, I do enjoy making the blocks.  They're cute and some are challenging.  So just ignore my little whining session today.  I just had to vent and probably just need to go work on something else for a while (I have about 5 other projects I'm working on right now).  

I know this little pile will continue to grow and grow (and grow).

Even if it kills me.

Which, today, I think it might.

Gettin' My Grannies On

I started this little runner back in March.  I've had it done for a while now and wanted to take some pics before it goes off to it's new home.

I'm donating it (along with a few other things) to a boutique that is raising money for the Children's Justice Center in Provo, Utah next month.

I decided to do some big stitch quilting around each block in black perle cotton.  I don't do much hand quilting but enjoyed doing it on this very small project.  I like what it adds to this simple design.

I have a couple of hot pads that I need to finish to go along with it.  I think I'll use Lori's tutorial to finish those.  Perfect timing - since she just posted a Great Granny Pot Holder's tutorial yesterday!  Hers are so cute!!!

Don't you just love granny squares?  They're so fun to make.

Have you joined the GREAT GRANNY ALONG that Lori and Jodi are hosting?  I just drool over their Granny Squares quilts (you should click on over and check them out).  Maybe one day I'll take the time to make one of my own... cause I'm totally coveting right now.

Just To Be Safe

After my last post I decided I did need some new fabrics to freshen up my red and white collection for my Farmer's Wife quilt.

So here's what I came home with after hitting up one of the local quilt shops that day:

I've found that the dark reds really add some nice contrast to my quilt and help to break things up a bit (and, in the right shade, are a little hard to come by so I was really happy to have found those!)  The medium colored tone-on-tone reds will create a restful place for the eye to land.  The gingham, well the gingham, was just too cute to pass by (but may be a little hard to work with.  I've found that I like the smaller prints best for all the tiny pieces used in the FWQ blocks.  Plus, there's a lot of contrast in that one.  But it's sure dang cute so I will definitely try to make a place for it :)  I like the small red and white floral print because of it's small scale and not too much contrast (it's a 30's print so I also like that it's not super cutesy).  And finally, the two light background fabrics will add a nice contrast to all the reds I'm using.  One, a stripe which will hopefully add a playful element and the large scale floral will bring in some nice movement. 

I don't normally prewash all of my fabric but I've been trying to with this quilt  (just to be safe - since reds usually tend to bleed more than other colors).

When I'm concerened about bleeding I throw in some Shout Color Catchers into the wash (again, just to be safe).  I've got a couple of boxes of them by my washing machine and throw in two or three to catch any extra dye floating around.  Works every time :)

Here, you can see all the dye they soaked up when they were used with my new red and white fabrics.  That's quite a bit, eh?  Glad that didn't go back onto some of my lighter fabrics! 

You can find Shout Color Catchers by the dryer sheets at your local grocery store.  (I'm not getting paid for this recommendation.  I just really like them :)

Anyways, I got a few more FW blocks done this weekend.  Still have 900 more to go but I'll show some pictures soon of my progress.  It's coming right along!

Happy quilting!

~ Amber

FWQ

I got two more of these little guys done.

And then I spent two days hunting around for my Farmer's Wife template CD.

That was fun.

Luckily I found it.  In between my computer tower and desk.

I swear I checked there like ten times.

As you can see organization is not my strong suit.

Well, I'm happy with my two new blocks. 

Numbers 98 (Waterwheel) and 62 (Old Windmill).

I'm starting to see that this two-color color scheme is a little bit tricky.

It's all about contrast for me.  I don't know if I'm just sick of my fabrics or if I need more variation in my reds but picking out my fabric for each block can sometimes take just as much time as it takes me to make the darn thing.

Anyways.  I really am having fun making these little 6" blocks.  Our Farmer's Wife club is meeting this Saturday and I need to have two more blocks made by Saturday (#15 and #35) so I definitely will be sitting down to sew again sometime today.  Sooo glad I found my CD.  That will help.

Happy quilting!

~ Amber

Every Which Way

The minute I saw the new fabric line from Riley Blake called Seaside I knew I wanted to remake my Every Which Way pattern in it.  They're are some really cute florals in it but I decided to stick with the plaids, stripes and other geometric designs so that it would suit my "all boy" pattern perfectly.

Of course, I do like things scrappy so I threw in a few other fabrics from a few other lines (just to mix things up). 

I'm loving the dark blue background this time.

And the striped binding.  These fat stripes make me happy.  And the colors are so summery.

  

I had so much fun remaking this quilt.  These big arrows are so easy to put together.  I got it done in no time! 

If you're interested in purchasing a kit you can call

Just Sew @ 801-492-7929

or if you just want the pattern you can get HERE in my Etsy shop.

Dreaming...

For the last few years my husband and I have gone back and forth about moving.  And, for the last few years we have had a giant hole in one of our leather couches.  When we decided about six months ago that we would probably be staying in this house for many years to come, I told my husband that it was "time".  Time, to buck up and get new couches. 

Shortly thereafter he put a rubber mallet through the wall above my fireplace.

I guess to a guy,

new couches = a new wall-mount flat screen TV,

which to a girl, means new stone and a new mantle in which she can hang Christmas stockings from (which is all I've ever wanted in life).

So, for the last few months my husband has been trying to "make all my dreams come true" by replacing our old fireplace surround,

which looked like this: 

With a new stone surround and mantle that look like this:

[55" flat-screen TV coming soon]

Didn't he do a good job?  Did it all by himself, yes he did.  I couldn't be prouder.  And my favorite part (other than the fact that this Christmas I finally get to display my cute stockings on my cute topiary stocking holders downstairs in the family room where they should be) is that the front of the mantle is on hinges so it opens up to hold all of our TV components and such.  Clever, eh?

So here comes the fun part, right?  Those new couches I've been dreaming of!  Well, trying to figure out a practical and stylish and affordable and comfortable seating situation for our little family of five (Molly, our black lab puppy, is now a big consideration in this decision) is not as easy as it seems.

I've been doing lots of research and lots of looking and quite frankly ~ it's not happening for me.  I wanted to bang this purchase out.  I mean, I'm a busy girl.  I've got stuff to do.  I don't have time to spend a year looking for the perfect sofa.  And it's hard to please everyone and meet all of our criteria.  I'm getting tired of all the "looking" and am starting to wonder if I'll ever find the perfect couches for us...

So I thought that while I continue to dream about my "someday" family room space that I would share with you some of my favorite finds from some of my favorite local stores. 

I LOVE the lines of this sectional.  Traditional with clean, minimal lines.  I love the color and the fabric and the price but not really practical for my family.  If it was slip covered then maybe... 

(And it can't be ordered in any other fabrics in case you're wondering.)

Same deal with this sofa...

I love, love, love this sectional with the antiqued white feet and the ticking striped fabric but it's way out of my price range and again, probably not very family friendly.

(Sorry, I had to sneak this picture in there because I'm loving these glass bottles right now and want every one of them).

I love this chair.  Love the fabric.  Love the price.  But, the husband thinks it will be uncomfortable and too small for his 6' 3" body.

Um, can you say CUTE?!?  I LOVE this blue chevron upholstered chair.  It makes me happy and I really think I need it.  But the husband is hoping for a reclining chair instead.

 And last but not least, this grey-ish blue display cabinet.  So cute, right???

As you can see, my want list may have expanded to include a few other things besides just new couches but I'm just trying to make our house a home :)

I've decided that I want what I can't have.  I love the light, lineny look but I know it's not practical.  I'm also trying to figure out a way to make 5 people happy (well, four plus a dog) but it's just not happening.   

I think it's time to adjust my "vision" for this space.

Do you have any advice?

How do you make your wants coincide with the needs of your family and budget?  Where do you compromise?  OR do you???