modern pinwheels

i got so excited when i came across this quilt pattern. i have always had a special place in my heart for pinwheel quilts but have never felt brave enough to take one on. with this i will get a little flavor of it plus the quilt is beautiful, simple and modern. the blocks were so much simpler than i had imagined in my head {i like to complicate things} and i am so in love with the fabric combination. the plaid was something i had in my stash and have absolutely no idea where i got it or who makes it. the orange is from riley blake's bloom and grow collection. it's orange primrose and it's one of my favorites. i haven't been able to find anymore of it but have found it in blue, which i equally adore.

this is the magazine that the pattern is found in. it's definitely beginner friendly and will give you a lot of practice in block piecing. i can't wait to get it all put together!

binding and baking

this morning i have been trying to squeeze some hand stitching into every spare minute i have. should you have peeked through my kitchen window this morning you would have seen me flipping pancakes and stitching on binding in hurried intervals. quite the spectacle i am sure.

while i give myself room for a little imperfection throughout my quilts, i think that the binding should look flawless. i have yet to achieve a flawless bind of course, but i get better each time. this is the best tutorial for binding that i have come across. it's from miss heather bailey and i can't imagine that there is an easier way of explaining it.

for this quilt i cut 2.5" strips and then pressed it in a centerfold. at first i started kicking myself that i hadn't just stuck to 3" strips which has been my favored size, but now that it's almost complete i am really happy with it. thank goodness because i have three more quilts to finish after this one and i don't like starting things off on a bad note.

pacifying the stitch itch

i love to quilt. being a mother to two small boys makes it hard to do. but i crave it sometimes. everything from finding the perfect fabric to seeing the nicely pressed seams once it is pieced to hand stitching that final few inches of binding down. the best part- pulling it out of the dryer fluffy, soft and puckered. definitely the best part.

i went a few months without a sewing machine and that was certainly rough. i had the stitch itch bad. but i am finally back in business and have been piecing children's quilts during every possible nap time.

now i am anxious to get to quilting them. i do my own machine stitching. i love the way it looks and it is just so expensive to have it done elsewhere. believe me though, i do think they turn out beautifully. maybe one day i will splurge. or perhaps if some ancient and obscure relative should pass on peacefully in the night and leave me their fortune i will finally invest in my own longarm. wouldn't that be lovely? and it would indeed require a small fortune.

what's your technique?