Anchors Away Progress

Last year while the snow was blowing outside my window I started Tula Pinks Anchors Aweigh quilt. I made a post on it and actually started a second post on my progress.  I spent a weekend marathon sewing and completed rows 1, 2,3,4,5,6 and 8.  One and eight are a bit of a cheat cause you do both in one go, so it doesn't really count.  I do like the look of this quilt despite that fact I did not use the dogwood color that the designer recommended in the pattern.

My plan, and you know how it is with best laid plans, is to have the top done before the middle of July 2014 and have it professionally quilted. My long arm quilter Arlene is going to HATE me cause I want really heavy quilting on this thing.  But its going to look great in our spare room.

And as best laid plans go, I did not get this done to take home in July.  In fact it became WIP # 2 for 2015.  The top is done, threads snipped and ready to take home for quilting. I can't wait to see what kind of quilting goes on it.  No way I am giving this baby away.  If I have a wall big enough I want to see about hanging it for decor purposes.

Sadly I did not have enough left overs to make the back and there is very little left of this collection for sale on line. It will be interesting when it comes time to bind the quilt what material I can scrounge out of the leftovers! And wouldn't you know it, I never took at picture of the top. Oh dear, I'm slipping after not blogging for a month.

Modern Star

I keep a little book of blocks that I want to try and make and when I am looking for something to new try with some scrap of fabric, I will turn to these. One of the most recent ones that I put into the book and thought I got to try this one, was the Modern Star.

I first saw it when I was looking in my favorite 4 X5 bee blocks on Flickr. If you are looking for some neat blocks to try out then this is a good source. Anyways Laineybug Designs put out this tutorial for this star block.  It is detailed and takes a bit of planning prior to getting started but its pretty easy and well worth the extra work at the end when you have to make it all fit around a central square.


So what did I come up with?  My first one was made using scraps from a scrap bag I got from Hawthorne Threads. I love what they send me. I used the dark green from Tula Pink Nightshade line as the starting of point.

I liked this so much I thought I would make a few more. Now I have a nice little pile of three blocks waiting to be sewn up on the sewing machine. And since I needed a block for a block challenge, I decided to use it for that too! Here is what that one looks like. 

Depending on how you place your fabric they all can look so different.

Anchors Away

Tula Pink on her blog published a bunch of free patterns and one in particular captured my eye.  Actually it captured the husbands eye, who was looking over my shoulder at the computer screen. He said, " that quilt will look good on the spare room bed."  And he is right.

Later that afternoon we saw some of the fabric line at the local quilt store and I took it at as my sign to do this quilt. The colors when I laid the cuts I got to the color of the bedroom wall worked wonderfully. The octopus pattern really captures the color we have on the walls in that room, so much so I might have to make a few pillows for the bed. I think this boudoir pillow by Venus de Hilo will be perfect.

I had hoped to start this and have the top done over Christmas holidays, but alas I had to order more fabric so I won't be able to get to it until the new year.  Make that late February I think as I wait on more fabric to come.