Monthly Archives

April 2014

work in progress

granny squares.

Granny Squares by Kim Soper/Leland Ave Studios

April do. Good Stitches.

April’s do. Good Stitches block was a cute granny square on a small-scale printed white background. I used Botanique to make my squares, and I think they are just the happiest little guys ever!

April do. Good Stitches.

 

This was the first time I “nested” my seams together rather than pressing the seams open. I got the hang of it by the second block, but my first block is not 100% as accurate as the second. I hope that’s okay!

April do. Good Stitches.

 

I had fun seeing these blocks come together easily. Now I’m working on another easy-peasy project to give away for a fundraiser at my son’s preschool. A bright-colored half-square triangle quilt that ‘s perfect for a summer night! More to share soon!

 

finishes

lattice love complete!

Lattice Love by Kim Soper/Leland Ave Studios

Lattice Love - Complete!

My lattice love baby quilt (the one I shared here) is complete and already gifted away! I finished just in the nick of time, which is why the only photos I have were taken on a windy, stormy day! But we lucked out, because the day of the baby shower (the next day) was absolutely beautiful!

Lattice Love - Complete!

The tutorial from Bonjour Quilts was really easy to follow. While I’m not one to use a pattern, it certainly was easy to understand, and the graphic effect of the pattern has such great impact! I knew it would be great for the geometric nursery being planned for our nephew’s arrival.

Lattice Love - Complete!

Despite how clear and easy the instructions were, constructing this quilt had it’s ups and downs for me. I had a more difficult time than I expected trying to line all of those seams up! (Doesn’t that seem to be a theme in my quilting — I expect it to be simple, and I end up frustrated and challenged!). But even where the lattice lines aren’t perfect up close, it gives the illusion of a straight lattice when you stand back and look at the quilt as a whole. Somewhere along the way, I realized the cause of my struggle — the white Kona fabric was stretching. And even with straight pressing (careful not to iron), I found that precisely-cut pieces were no longer their original size once sewn and pressed. But still, in the end, the distortion was minimal. It was glaring to me, since I was on top of the quilt trying to perfect the seams. But to my sister-in-law and anyone else looking at the quilt, it really was not noticeable.

Lattice Love - Complete!

And this is the back! I had so much fun piecing it! I love improv piecing! No rules, nothing is right or wrong, just going on gut and instinct. So. Much. Fun! I added the elephants because my sister-in-law is in love with them, and the fabric had all of the colors of the nursery (which are echoed in the pattern on the front).

I am so happy to have completed this quilt by the deadline, in spite of the holiday, school vacation, and a few other hiccups along the way! And I can’t wait to meet that little baby boy who is going to call the quilt his own, in just a couple of weeks!

Hope you had a beautiful week! Now I’m off to make some granny-square blocks for do. Good Stitches! What are you working on this week?

 

 

work in progress

lattice love progress.

Lattice Love by Kim Soper/Leland Ave Studios

Love Lattice Quilt Top

I am making progress on the Lattice Love baby quilt I am working on for my soon-to-be-born nephew (which I wrote a bit about here). The top is complete! Hooray! Now I have one week and one day until the shower to get the back made, and get the whole quilt basted, quilted, binding on, label made/attached and everything all wrapped up with a bow! Nothing like a deadline to getcha movin’!

Wish me luck!

work in progress

sometimes the dining room is just a dining room.

embroidery by kim soper/leland ave studios

Anna Maria Horner embroidery

This week, my dining room had to actually be a dining room. Which means it could not be a studio. Which means my fabrics are back in the closet along with the iron and the ironing board. The cutting mat is hiding underneath the couch in the living room. And my sewing machine is tucked way into the back of the utility closet in the upstairs hallway. Not a setup conducive to just “pulling things out” for a few mins. So, it is weeks like these, that I am reduced to merely opening my dining room cabinet and staring at my fabrics and admiring their loveliness.  I also have a side project, one that has been in the works for close to a year now, that is my go-to for studio-free weeks. I’m quite sure I will need at least another year to finish it. But it’s cute enough to encourage me to keep plugging away — as slow as the going may be for me — one. stitch. at a time.

This is my first embroidery project, so at the time I started it, I had no idea what a giant I was taking on. It’s Anna Maria Horner’s “Loves Me Bouquet” from her Needleworks Notebook. (Not only did I go for broke with this first project, but I enlarged the pattern so the finished size will be even larger than the one in her book).  Come to think of it, I may finish it two years from now. . . not one! Anywho, it doesn’t matter when it gets done, because I love the book, I love the project, and my husband even had it signed for me before he gave it to me as a mother’s day gift, which makes it extra special!

Personalized by Anna Maria Horner

I don’t know about you, but I seriously crush on Anna Maria Horner’s talent and her adorable family! I mean, she’s such an inspiration, am I right??!?