W.i.P. Wednesday

W.i.P. Wednesday rolls around pretty quick, doesn't it? While Hopscotch is at the quilter, it's all about some small projects for me - a nice breather, actually.

Completed projects
Zakka Style Sew-Along project #4: Sewing Kit {full post here} - This was a very fun little project, and I loved incorporating the blue shot cotton, as well as the variegated Aurifil.

Hollywood Boulevard table runner - {full post here}

DS Quilts Doll Quilt Swap project - A 17" scrappy DS Swoon one-block quilt. I went a little wacko with the thread and quilting decisions. A full post will be coming soon. I can't mail it for another week, so I'll enjoy it while it hangs out here at home.

Ongoing projects
Hopscotch - Now just waiting to get it back from the quilter.

Upcoming projects
* Quilt using my 4x5 blocks from rounds 1, 2, & 3
* Tutorial for pieced binding
* FAITH Circle Pouch Swap
* more Zakka - next up is a patchwork pencil case
* Solstice Stars quilt
* a quilt to coordinate with my Christmas tree skirt - On a Whim ??
* scrappy Metrolink
* Ohio Star blocks for FAITH circle's May quilt NEW
* Japanese x and + blocks Round 2 NEW
* QWERTY variation NEW
* Plus quilt for my sister-in-law - now waiting to see her palette NEW

Linking up with W.i.P. Wednesday.

Zakka Along Week 4 :: Sewing Kit

One of the fun things about participating in the Zakka Sew Along is seeing everyone's take on the projects. This week's project was a little travel sewing kit and coordinating pin cushion by Minori Design. Since I stamped on fabric during week three, I wanted to try something different this week. And then I remembered the little pack of Aurifil I'd won in Quilter in the Gap's 1st quarter Finish-A-Long linky. It was a variety pack, and that blue and black variegated on the right is a 12 wt cotton suitable for machine quilting on linen. Perfect.

So I cut into my Stone Quilter's Linen and FMF seeds, and partnered them with some royal blue shot cotton to add some contrast. I went for a fairly tailored look, adding some organic straight-line quilting on two edges of the front.

I used the variegated thread wherever stitching would show - inside and out, including trim on the pincushion. (Just fyi, I did change out my needle to a 90/14 quilting needle. Things felt a little tight as I threaded the machine, but I adjusted the tension a tad, and sewing went just fine.)

Though I had some leather thongs ready to go, mid-stream I decided to make some fabric ties. So I cut more strips the same width as the pocket binding (1"), which was a little fussy to work with, but gave a nice result. (I did see some discussion on the flickr page that some thought the 1" measurement was a typo. So you might check in there if you haven't started, though it worked for me as written.)

All in all, the sewing kit was very fun, and I love the simplistic look the stitching gives it.

Linking up with LRstitched, TNT Thursday, finish it up Friday, and {sew} Modern Monday.