First Quarter Finish-Along "Serendipity" Quilt Finished

I started this quilt over a year ago and had pretty much given up on it until one of the women in my quilt group encouraged me to finish it.  It was the first item on my 2016 Finish-Along list for this quarter. And was the only thing I finished.

I took the best of my blocks and put them together.  This pattern yields a bunch of leftover half-square triangles that have two fabrics making up one half of the HST's. I sewed many of them together to make the border, then cut it off 1/4 inch past the end of the small triangle to get the alternating square/HST pattern, then took the leftover block components to make a piano-key border. The quilting is my first attempt at doing something other than stitching in the ditch.  I used a walking foot for all of it.  (So

Serendipity Lattice Quilt Top Finished

After much anguish over its numerous imperfections, I took the encouragement of one of my quilting class cohorts and finished this "Serendipity" lattice quilt top.  The inner border was made from the half-square triangles I cut off of the snowballed corners of the batik blocks, cut off 1/4 inch above the small triangles.  I took this opportunity to learn how to do mitered borders, even though the corners turned out to have a lot of little pieces in them.  I would rather try out and learn something new than have perfect quilts.  I am pleased with the quilt overall.  The Spring Mode II batiks and Whisper Prints background turned out the way I envisioned they would--a big plus, since This was only my second class project.

Here are closeups of the fabrics and the borders.  The mitered corners weren't sewed yet and the whole thing hadn't been pressed.

It's nice to be done with the top and ready to sandwich and quilt it.  I plan to bind it with a scrappy border of the colored batiks.

2016 First Quarter FAL progress - Serendipity

We had a quilting day at church this week, so I made progress on two of my Finish-a-Long projects. I completed the top of the Serendipity quilt.

Serendipity Quilt top. 

I also worked on my bordered squares quilt, unseeing the blocks, squaring them, and putting them back together. I've got a ways to go with this.

Bordered Squares squaring up in progress

It's supposed to be extremely cold tomorrow--sub-zero F temps, so I hope to make more progress.  Caring for my mother-in-law slowed me down this week.  She is always a higher priority than quilting. 

2016 First Quarter Finish-Along Projects

My first quarter 2016 Finish Along projects (edited to add photos):

1.  Serendipity

1.  "Serendipity" lattice quilt using Robert Kaufman Whisper Prints charms and Artisan Batiks Spring Mod II jelly roll strips.  This was the spring 2015 class project at church quilting.  All the blocks are done and two rows of 5 sewn together.  Two more rows to go, plus backing, quilting, and binding.  Deadline is 1/16/16 for the church quilt show.

2. Bordered Squares

2.  "Bordered Squares" quilt using Benartex Burlap and Lace charms and Robert Kaufman Whisper Prints jelly roll strips.  I started this in January 2015.  All of the 64 blocks are complete.  I need to finish squaring them and sew them together, plus borders, backing, quilting, and binding.

3. Red Log Cabin

3. "Log Cabin" using yardage in red/maroon and yellow/gold started December 2014 for one of my twin nieces. Pattern is all sevens.  Quilt top is complete.  I need to back, quilt, and bind it.

4. Blue/Green Log Cabin

4.  "Log Cabin using yardage in greens and blues started December 2014 for the other twin niece.  Pattern is barn raising.  Quilt top is complete.  I need to back. Quilt, and bind it.

5. Disappearing Pinwheel

6. Unequal Nine-Patch

5.  "Disappearing Pinwheel" friendship star layout using yardage in black, white, and gray with turquoise piping.  This was the fall 2014 church class project and was my first quilt.  Quilt top is complete.  I need to back, quilt, and bind it.

6.  Unequal nine-patch quilt.  I don't know the name of the block pattern.  I used Flight Patterns by Tamera Kate for Michael Miller layer cake and yellow dragonfly yardage from Joann.  It is our Spring 2016 class project.  I started it in November 2015.  All of the blocks are completed.  I need to do the sashing, borders, backing, quilting, and binding.

I got the pictures loaded, though I'm not happy with their placement. Live and learn.