Log Cabin Wallhanging

A few years ago I made this wall hanging for my sewing room. I was going to teach myself to hand quilt. Well, after five years, I knew that I wasn't going to do that. I've started to do machine quilting on small projects, and I like the idea of faster completion. And my eyes just don't like to do hand stitching anymore. Binding quilts is enough for me.

I blogged about it here.

I made the usual quilt sandwich with some basting spray.

Machine quilted it and bound it.

And hung it in my sewing room. 

Tote Bag

I found this tote bag pattern on Fort Worth Fabric Studio's blog. I hadn't ever made a bag with lining before, but I knew I was up to the challenge.

 I found some fabric (really like the larger design) and then had to work with interfacing and fusible fleece. Since I've become more of a quilter over the years, this was new too. Just had to follow the instructions....very easy.

 Added some box corners.

 Made the lining the same as the outside and then sewed them together. I'm missing some pictures of a few of the steps. By the dates on the pictures, I'm guessing I got sidetracked by another project so no wonder I forgot to get pics.

 The lining was pushed inside the bag and topstitched around the top edge to hold it in place. 

I made a couple of tweaks to the pattern. I made the handles a couple inches longer and also added a pocket on the inside. 

You can never have too many bags, and I love this one!

Bike Ride Sights

I've been on several rides in the past month. A few things I've seen.... 

I got caught in the rain on this one.

The Clive Greenbelt is closed right past the interstate so I had to turn around and go back.

But not before getting a shot of the river under the bridge.

This was my first venture down to Gray's Lake.

And since then I've ridden down there three more times. Always lots of people enjoying the lake and park.

 

Saw two deer on another ride right up close to the trail. I also saw two cardinals and an indigo bunting on this ride, but they fly away too quick to get a picture.

And I think the best thing yet...a field of lilies. And this is only about half of them.

 

 Ranking high up there with the field of lilies is the open country view back home.  

And last but not least, the ice cream truck at Water Works Park.

 

West Bend Biking

I was home last weekend and took my bike with me. 

My first ride was a short trip thru town and then out around the section. Those few miles were definitely harder than what I've been doing on the trails. No wind protection and the legs really get a workout. You can see forever out there though.

My second trip was also out around the section. I went further east on one leg and then when I got back to town I went north. Got about eight miles in.

Coasters

I watch Fons and Porter's Love of Quilting every week. I've even got Mom watching it every so often. I'd seen the epiosde where they made these coasters. And then a few days later Mom asked if I'd seen the show as she'd like a set of them.

Start with four pieces of 5"coordinating fabrics.  Fold them in half diagonally wrong sides together and press. The 5th one is the back.

Lay two triangles on the backing piece.

Put the 3rd piece (the blue one) over half of one piece from the step above and under half the other piece.

Then put the 4th piece (the cream one) under and over opposite from the 3rd piece.

You should end up with half of each triangle showing.

Pin or clip the pieces together and sew around the edges. I didn't get a picture of the next step. Open up the coaster in the hole in the center where the four fabrics meet and turn it inside out. This hides the seams.

Topstitch around the edges, and you're finished. The coaster in this picture is the same one as the one above that but because I turned it inside out, the fabrics are opposite.

Walnut Creek Trail

Today's ride took me on the Walnut Creek Trail and eventually to the Bill Riley Trail. It's in the opposite direction of yesterday's ride from the parking lot.

 It was the hottest day of the year so far so I headed out earlier than yesterday and took extra water. 

 This trail was fairly flat but a bit more in the sun than yesterday's ride. Still a good ride though. This was a busier trail too. I asked another biker if it was fairly flat before going too far. And he said it was so I kept going.

 I rode down to Water Works Park and came to this bridge. I still can't believe I rode that far. Of course, the flat terrain helped...and the beautiful scenery. And it seems so much further when you're driving thru town to get to it.

 I especially liked the sign on it.

 This was on the other side of the wooden bridge.  It was getting hotter by the minute so I turned around here. 

 This is 63rd and Grand on my way back north. Hard to believe that a few weeks ago it was under water...the trail and the road.

The long concrete beam by these pillars was almost under water just yesterday.

Another good ride even though it was so hot. I was afraid I had sweated off my sunscreen and would have a horrible burn but it held up. Almost 15 miles today.  

Clive Greenbelt Trail

Usually I ride my bike on a trail a few blocks from my house. Today I decided to venture out to see some new sights. I loaded my bike in the car (not an easy task) and headed to the Clive Greenbelt Trail. 

We got some rain overnight so parts of the trail were still wet and a bit sloppy. It seemed to have quite a bit of mud in places also, but since I hadn't been on the trail before I don't know if that's typical or not. It could also be left over from the 3-5" rains we got a week or so ago when many metro trails were closed. 

I knew that I would eventually come to 100th Street, but beyond that I wasn't sure where it would take me. So I kept going and came out by the Clive Aquatic Center (above) on 114th. And this is where I decided I better turnaround and head back.

Walnut Creek was full and moving swiftly.

This part of the trail at 86th Street was completely under water when I went thru the first time, but by the time I got back it had started to recede. I sure ended up with a muddy bike and clothes this time.

Once I got back to my car, I took the Walnut Creek Trail that headed the other direction just to see where it would take me. I came to 63rd Street and this sign. I will definitely be trying some of these out in the future.

The Clive Greenbelt was a great trail for my venture away from home. It wasn't too hilly and there were lots of trees to help block the wind. I got a little over 10 miles in.

Clematis

I think my clematis is my most favorite of the flowers in my yard.

It takes just a little work to make sure it climbs the trellis.

Last year it got too heavy at the top of the trellis and tipped over. So this year I strung some twine from the trellis to the overhang of the garage. Just perfect for it to keep climbing.

Beautiful!

Chevron Baby Boy Quilts

Bold colors aren't my usual palette.

But I had a fun time picking these fabrics out for two baby quilts for either boys or girls. I only knew there were going to be two! I struggled with waiting until after they were born to find the perfect fabric, but finally because of the time two quilts would take, I went with brights and would then make the backing gender specific.

I cut them into strips.

I found a simple pattern for a chevron design...much easier than using half-square triangles. I sewed a white strip with a colored strip and then cut them into squares.

It's all in the layout.

Sew the blocks together diagonally and then sew the rows together.

First one down (above), one to go (below).

Square it up.

Made the quilt sandwich with boy-themed fabric (at this point the twins had arrived) and then started machine quilting along the seams.

I got these Clover Wonder Clips for Christmas. They are perfect for binding instead of using pins because of the fabric thickness.

Love how they turned out!