Quilt As Desired (sigh)

Those three little words.  After pages and pages (or pixels and pixels) of directions for making a quilt top, including charts, diagrams, photos, and color illustrations, when you come to the end, this is what it says:  Quilt as desired.

Sigh.

What if I did quilt as I REALLY desire?  I could wave a magic wand, say a few spells, and the quilting stitches would just appear, beautifully covering the quilt and enhancing the piecing.

Or maybe I could take my quilt to a hollow tree, where elves would happily quilt it by hand at twelve stitches to the inch.  No, no, I'd say, don't get up, I'll make the cookies, you keep quilting.

Here in the real world, I just figure out something, lame or not, that I can do on my home machine so that my quilts get finished.

Here's finish #1 for this week--a small baby quilt.  I quilted this one in the ditch, and then finished up with serpentine lines making a 2 in. grid overall.

It's kind of hard to find the block here.  I've made this pattern several times.  I call it Evelyn's Quilt, and you can find a tutorial for it by clicking the link.  (It's super easy.)

The back is this cute diaper pin fabric.

Next is this hexagon quilt.  Sometimes there is a reason something has been hanging in the closet a long time, waiting to be quilted.  This one wasn't perfectly pieced (understatement!).

The pieces were cut on my Accuquilt cutter.  The centers are hexagons, and the six pieces that go around the centers are half-hexagons.  It was fun to make, but I need more practice with these shapes.

If anybody tells you bad piecing will definitely quilt out, see if they want to buy a bridge in Brooklyn.

This quilt is for a baby boy.  I know because the backing fabric says "baby boy" all through it.

I'm calling this next quilt More Bugs.  There are 8 different bug prints in this little quilt.  This one also was hanging in the closet for a reason.

The quilt pictured above is one I made from this same pattern a couple of years ago.  It doesn't look like the same pattern, does it?  The placement of the busy bug print makes it blend into the rest of the quilt, instead of the clear contrast I had in the bigger quilt.  So I wasn't super enthused about this little top.

I tried to set off the bug print pieces with outline quilting, and cross-hatched the rest of the squares, but it still looks like a mishmash.

The back is a cute dot print.  I think dots are my all time favorite print.

All of these are D-O-N-E done, and will be going to Quilts for Kids when I can find a big enough box.  I hope they will brighten up a child's hospital stay, and be enjoyed as they recover at home.  If you'd like to find out about the great work of Quilts for Kids, click HERE.

I got one more quilt done this week, but I'm keeping it.

This is my Women's March quilt.  You can read about the piecing on an earlier post HERE.

I do seem to use the serpentine stitch a lot.  It kind of reminds me of a waving flag or a beating heart.

The back is a heart print, Valentine's Day fabric on sale for 60% off.

So this is a good start, even though these are all small quilts.  My closet is still full of quilt tops, but I'm starting to plan how to finish some of them and gathering up backing fabrics.  Piecing is still my first love, and is calling me, but I'm resisting.

Except for quilt alongs and mystery quilts.

Our guild is doing this mystery, designed by one of our members.
And then there's the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  And  Pat Sloan's Children's Library Mystery.
More piecing means (eventually) more quilting!

Maybe I'll go out back and find a stick for a magic wand.
Expecto Quiltoramus!

I'm linking up with two great ladies, Myra from Busy Hands Quilts  and Amanda Jean from Crazy Mom Quilts.  Going to these linky parties is like an amazing quilt show every week.

As the World Turns

I seem to be stuck on a soap opera theme lately.
Here's what's happening in my world.

I made this baby quilt top at the retreat our quilt group had last October, and finally got around to quilting it.  Above you can see how I'm marking it for the diagonal lines--I'm using a yardstick and a pencil.  Yep, old school again.

Here's how the quilting turned out.  I also did quilt in the ditch through the obvious seam lines.

The back is a soft print of happy animals and palm trees.  Palm trees sound wonderful this time of year, with snow on the ground and a sharp nip in the air.

This quilt should be warm and cozy for a little one who needs it.  I hung it on my grandson's pack and play for the photo, but he won't be keeping it, he has so many quilts already.

WARNING:
Treadlestitches is not a political blog, it's a quilt blog.  But it's written by me, and I do have political opinions, which I express from time to time in quilts.  I'm about to do so now.  If this is not your cup of tea, that's okay.  Everyone has a right to his/her own opinion, and a right to read whatever they like.  I don't want to insult anyone or hurt anyone's feelings.

Okay, here we go.

Here's a small top I just finished:

It's a protest quilt, to celebrate the Women's March of Jan. 21st.  My husband and I attended the march in Madison, Wisconsin, along with thousands of other protesters, and I made this quilt as a remembrance.

I've had a hard time getting a good photo today, this one was taken after dark.

The top and bottom rows are my interpretation of the pink hats many people wore, which I shall call "kitty" hats, which stand for women's right to equality. 

Rows 2 and 4 are hearts, some with two shades of red, some with red and blue.  They represent love for America, and for each other.

The middle row is my interpretation of the gay pride flag, and represents equal rights for all.

Each of the blocks finishes at 6 in. square.  I hope to get the quilting done this week.

I don't think I can adequately describe the feelings of joy and togetherness I experienced at the march.  It is just so good to know you're not alone.

This was a celebration of our values:  equality, inclusion, and kindness to each other.  I was proud to stand up for these values, and I am sure I will be doing so again soon.

Have a wonderful week!  I'm linking up with Myra at Busy Hands Quilts
and Amanda Jean at Crazy Mom Quilts.