Mini Juniper

I'd love to say that I'm finished with all my holiday projects after completing this Mini Juniper quilt top, but truth be told I've got a long, long way to go! Even with this quilt top!

I do have the binding chosen, and the backing too, and that's a start.

I'm using a red fabric that goes with the sashing squares for the binding, and for the backing its going to be a Dear Santa text print that's been in my stash forever.

Maybe it wouldn't have been my choice for this mini if I didn't already have it, but at some point you've got to use the fabric you've got on something, right?

Speaking of using the fabric you've got, I'm pleased to say that all of this quilt top fabric was from my stash!

 Yes, you read that right.

Who says you have to use Christmas themed fabric in a Christmas quilt? 

I used a Road 15 fat eighth bundle that I've taken pieces from here and there for other things. 

  I was a bit concerned that when the right project of this bundle came along there wouldn't be enough of it left, but this worked out perfectly.

I did change the border in my Mini Juniper from the one in the pattern instructions.

Mine is scrappy, so I could use those fat eighths, and its much wider too.  Some of it may get trimmed off in the end, once I've definitely decided how I'm going to quilt it.

Right now I'm thinking some kind of straight line quilting in the sashing and in the border, and then maybe some big stitch hand quilting around the trees.

 I just started doing my first big stitch hand quilting, besides some practice, last night on my Sweetness Floret mini quilt top.  I love the way its going! I'll have to take some pictures and fill you in on that later.

By the way, this was one fun mini quilt to make!

If you are considering it, you should definitely give it a try at some point.  The angles and the trimming made it so much fun!  I gave a few tips for you, and for me, in my last post if you're interested.

 I still need to get to my extra trees.  Maybe for a festive table runner?

So, I may not be all ready for Christmas, but I am ready for the Minis and More Parade next week!

Christmas in August

Today I finished on my trees for the Mini Juniper quilt we're making for Minis and More.

It was so fun to work with angles again!

It's been awhile since I've done any cutting or sewing with angles, and although I admit I was a little hesitant at first, its turned out to be a blast!

 I'm so sad that I've made all nine trees, that I may have cut a few extra strips.

In fact, I'm enjoying this one so much I've actually cut enough extra strips that I can make nine more trees! It's truly addictive!

My first tree did not turn out as nice as my last one. 

Since I cut enough to make some extra trees, I'm saving the first one for another purpose, maybe a mug rug or even an ornament.

I learned a few things that helped me get more consistent, straight trees and more accurate space around the edges.

I'm writing these tips down for you, if you are interested in them, and for me so I can remember what I did when I go to make more trees later.

Tips for Mini Juniper

I found that trimming the pieced strips after I added the bottom dotted triangles really helped when the pieced strips were sewn together to form the tree.

Using my Fons and Porter 60 degree Triangle Ruler to trim the edges of the pieced tree made my tree much neater.  I lined up the center line on the ruler with the center line of the tree and trimmed the sides of the tree.

I also used the 60 degree Triangle Ruler to trim off the tree bottom to a quarter inch, after adding the background side pieces.  Again, lining up the center line of the ruler with the center line of the tree and making sure the line I was cutting was perpendicular to the center line of the tree.

Lastly, I used my Fit To Be Quarter Ruler to do the final trimming of the block.  I could quickly see where the quarter inch lines were on the ruler to ensure I had a quarter inch on the sides of my tree.

You could definitely use other rulers here, these are just what I had that worked best for me.

The first block was a little tricky, but now I don't want to stop making them!

But now I'm off to cut the sashing for this and put dinner in the oven.  Today was the first day of school here and surely the teenage boy is hungry!

Minis and More Parade on a Monday

It's time for the Minis and More Parade!

Sherri and I decided to do the Parade on Monday this year, if the first fell on the weekend.  The first happened to be on a weekend this month, and now its Monday, so here we go!

The pattern we used in this Parade was called Sweetness-A Trio Of Mini Quilts by Corey Yoder.

Its an amazing group of three mini quilt pattern all in one spot!

The Floret mini quilt pattern from Sweetness seemed to be a popular choice.

First up today is Mary from the blog NeedledMom.  She calls her mostly orange Floret mini quilt, 'Hot Summer Days'. Mary followed the color guidelines of a challenge she was involved in and did an awesome job of combining oranges, pinks, yellows, and even a bit of aqua too!  

Mindy used some Kansas Troubles fabrics she had to make the Floret design from the pattern into a tablerunner!  Putting the blocks on point gives them a totally different look.  It looks like Mindy will be ready for fall!

  

And if you saw the Parade last month, I'm sure you remember Hildy's wonderful bag she made with some of her Reunion scraps!  She incorporated last month's pattern, Summer Star Mini, with one of  this month's Sweetness patterns to make this really cute bag.

And here is another one of Hildy's!  She also made Gingersnap from the pattern trio!  The Kona solid Nautical background she used really makes her quilt pop, and she used some Scrumptious scraps too. Even in the binding!

This Floret mini was created by Nancy E. She is happy with the Kansas Troubles fabric she used to create her two block quilt. It looks wonderful!  Two blocks and a wider border is a fun change to this pattern. I may have to make another and put some blocks in this setting too.

Béa finished a cheerful Gingersnap mini with her Aurifil mini BOM leftovers.  Because her scraps were about the same size as the pattern, she used them as is and this changed the size of her finished quilt as a result. The orange and blue make a great combo!

And here's mine. I used Sherri and Chelsi's soon to be released fabric Bright Sun  and another 'coming to you soon line' Tucker Prairie by One Canoe Two.

I won both of these mini charm packs in a recent Moda giveaway and I was thrilled with how they look together in my Floret mini!

And of course, don't forget to see the other half of the Minis and More Parade today on Sherri's blog, A Quilting Life.

We hope you'll send in your picture for next month's parade on September 1st.

We'll be giving away Minis and More prizes this year!  They will be awarded quarterly.  Each project you've done in a quarter gives you one chance for the quarterly prize, so keep on sewing!



 The next pattern we'll be using is Mini Juniper by Fig Tree and Co. for the September Parade.  You'll be ready for the holidays!

Thanks for joining us!

Floret finished

I love, love, love this mini quilt!  Should I really say that about my own quilt?

I don't care if I should or not, I'm just going to say it anyway.  This has to be one of my favorites ever!

I'm not sure why exactly. It just sticks out as a fun one to me.

I especially love the fabrics! 

The Bright Sun and the Tucker Prairie fabrics play so nicely together, and unless you're new here you know how much I like using different lines of fabric mixed together in the same quilt.

This is an amazing pattern too.

It's one of three adorable mini quilts from the pattern Sweetness (A Trio of Mini Quilts) by Corey Yoder.

Simple, and yet there's lots to look at at the same time.  I loved that the cutting was quick and easy.

  That's my least favorite part of quilting, the cutting.  So I always appreciate when it can be done quickly!

I'm looking forward to starting another pattern from this Sweetness trio!

There are two other adorable mini quilts to choose from in the pattern.

Which one to choose is going to be the problem.


 Please join Sherri and I for the Minis and More Parade this Monday to see more quilts made with the Sweetness pattern.

Today is the first, usually the Parade day, but we decided to put the Parade on Monday this year if the first fell on a weekend.

That means you still have some time if you haven't sent your picture and link to us yet.

See you back here on Monday!