Coaster - Basic Quilting

1/27/09
Originally uploaded by jmilikow
So I finished my first super basic quilting project. Well, not project even LOL. I made a coaster. Maybe doesn't seem so exciting, but I had to use a walking foot, which I'd never heard of until I started reading about quilting. The pattern is from "Last Minute Patchwork & Quilted Gifts" (which is a beautiful book - it was a gift from my sister for my birthday). The fabric is "Ingredients" by Lecien. I did the stitches that go around and around in concentric squares. They're not perfect, but they're fairly close to it. I'm going to make six as a housewarming present for my cousin - I think I'll get more used the the quilting guide on the walking foot as I do more. It's really cute and I'm very happy with it.

Knitting Needle Case

I just finished sewing this knitting needle case. I LOVE it. It's a gift for my SIL.

The pattern is here. The fabric is Free Spirit by Heather Bailey. It's not my favorite fabric, but I was trying to find something my SIL would like, not just my favorite. In the end, it's probably not ideal for either, but I'm pretty happy with it. I can't wait to pick out fabric to make one for me now!

The only modification I made to the pattern was to come in 1.75" instead of 2" on the right when making the lines because it seemed like (correctly IME from the finished product) there otherwise wouldn't be enough space on the left. I tested a little and see that the top row is really for 14" needles - smaller needles can fall down into the pocket. I don't use any 14", so for mine, I'll stitch a bottom to the rows about 8" down for the first row and a little less for the second row - I'll have to see what length my DPNs are and I'll make the bottom for the second row about an inch less than them. The bottom row is fine for me - it's for circular needles and notions. It also needs to be 1.5" wider for it to come out perfectly. My left column is only .75" and right column is 1". So I'll make that adjustment too. My ribbon is 100% linen and is 1 yard long.