Portales Mini: Small Wall Hanging Finish

I'm back with another finished quilt from the book Southwest Modern by Kristi Schroeder. This is my fifth quilt from the book: Rustic, Marfa Lights, Dunes and Cielo were the other four. I think this is probably going to be my last though - a few of the other quilts in the book are paper-pieced and I'm not a huge fan.

Portales Mini was a very quick finish and exactly what I needed. But it was also my first try at half-rectangle triangles which was kind of fun!

I used fat quarters in Kona Celestial, Kona Bahama Blue along with two Carolyn Friedlander prints in white and dark grey. The binding is Kona Celestial.

The quilting is pretty simple - straight lines with the walking foot with matching thread.

The details:

• Pattern: Portales Mini from the book Southwest Modern by Kristi Schroeder
• Size: 13" x 28" 
• Fabrics: Kona Celestial, Kona Bahama Blue, Carolyn Friedlander prints in white and dark grey 
• Thread: Pieced with Aurifil #2600 (light grey) in 50 wt, quilted with Aurifil #2780 (dark blue) in 50 wt,  #2600 in 50 wt, #2845 (light green) in 40 wt and #2630 (dark grey) in 40 wt.

Handmade Gifts

I didn't make many gifts this year - I was a little short on time unfortunately, but I did manage to get small things done.

First was a secret Santa gift for the office exchange. The person I was matched with really likes pink, candles and tea. So I decided to buy her a scented candle, a tea cup and I made a pink one-hour basket to put them in!

I used fat quarters I had in my stash and some By Annie's Soft & Stable to give the basket some structure and make sure it wouldn't collapse with the cup and the candle.

Next, I decided to make the ladies in my family coin purses just like the one I made for my sister a few weeks ago. I made 5 in total.

And that was it! That's all I was able to get done this year. I'm a little disappointed, but everything above was well received so I guess there's that.

A New Grey Seamwork Clarke

A few weeks ago, I wrote about a new Elliot Tee I had made with a grey jersey I purchased from Fabric.com which unfortunately is no longer available. Well, when I finished cutting that Elliot Tee, I noticed my Seamwork Clarke pattern still on my cutting table (I made my first Clarke back in November). I had more than enough of that grey jersey so I decided to cut myself a new Clarke!

This new version was a definite success! The fabric is much more fluid than my last one so I don't have that tent look. But the fit is just as good as the first one.

I don't really have much to say about this pattern that I haven't said in my other post. It's quick, it's easy and I love that the neckline and armholes are finished with  facings. If the fabric you choose is a little on the thinner side, you can lengthen the facings and have a lined tank top. I was actually thinking how nice this would be with a lace overlay and a beautiful satin on the bottom.

So many possibilities!

The details:

• Pattern: Clarke by Seamwork
• Size: 14 - no modifications
• Fabrics: Grey jersey from Fabric.com (no longer available) in polyester (95%) and lycra (5%)

2019 FAL - Q4 Finishes

We have reached the end of Quarter 4 of the 2019 Finish-A-Long!!  Of course, this means it is now time to link up those finishes from the list you linked up in October. We hope that you have been able to complete a lot of the UFOs from your list and have had an overall successful year.

The 2019 FAL is hosted by a great community of bloggers. This year our hosts are:

• Marci - Marci Girl Designs - USA Louisiana
• Sandra - Sew of Course - Ireland
• Leanne - She Can Quilt - Canada
• Ella - Throw a Wench in the Works - USA Georgia
• Karen - Capitola Quilter - USA California
• Lynne - Tinking Along - USA Maryland
• Izzy - Dizzy Quilts - Canada
• Sarah G - Sarah Goer Quilts - USA California
• Sarah Z - Cedar Fork Stitches - USA Montana
• Julie - That’s Sew Julie - USA Iowa
• Sharla - Thistle Thicket Studio - USA Kansas
• Nicole - Handwrought Quilts - Canada

Each finish you link up will be in the draw for great prizes, so let's give a huge thank you to our fantastic sponsors:

Winner's Choice of 1 Large 12 Spool Collection

$80 Gift Certificate

$50 Gift Certificate

$25 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

1 Six Month Subscription

2 PDF Patterns

$30 Fabric Voucher

The 2019 Quarter 4 link for your finishes is now open below on my blog and on each of the hosting blogs - you only need to link on one blog for your finish to appear on all host blogs.

Link-up "Rules":

Add one link for each finish.  If you want to link a round up post of all your finishes, use that link to enter one of your finishes and then link the rest of your finishes separately.  Please, only one link per finish, as your link is an entry into the randomly drawn prize draws. 

Please ensure that the photo (Instagram or Flickr) or blog post you link up contains a link or reference back to your original list so that we can verify your entry (make sure it is from the right quarter, too). On Instagram the best way to do that is to tag your photos with #2019FALQ4yourname (where yourname is unique to you), this makes it easier for us to match your finishes with your list, which also should have this tag.

Please become part of the FAL community.  Check out the links of others and leave a comment. We all need encouragement so let's applaud each other.  The 2019 FAL Facebook page is HERE and you can follow us on Instagram @finishalong.

Our hosts will also link up their finishes to share in the community but they are not eligible for any of the prizes.

The Q4 Finishes link will stay open from now thru 11 pm, EST, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - as we are global, you might want to check your time zone to determine your last possible time to link. You can also see how much time is left below the linked up images on the right.  It is best to link up your finishes early and if you have a last minute one, add that one later so you don't miss out.  The prizes will be awarded as soon as we can verify all the entries and do the drawings.  We will post the winners on each host's blog.

2019 Q4 Finishes Link Up:

An InLinkz Link-up

Cielo Quilt Finish

The week between Christmas and New Year's Day is probably my favourite time of the year. I'm on vacation and after the crazy busy week leading up to the Holidays, it's amazing to be able to just relax with no commitments or deadlines.

The quilt finish I'm sharing today is another one from the book Southwest Modern by Kristi Schroeder. This is now my fourth finish from the book, so I'd definitely call this book purchase a success. (Here are links to the other quilt I've made from the book - Rustic, Marfa Lights and Dunes.)

This one is Cielo.

I'm not usually a big fan of browns, but man oh man, do I love this quilt! I used four different shades of beige/brown - Kona Espresso, Mocha, Taupe and Sand. I finished the top of this quilt a few weeks ago, and I had it all basted but then because of the huge contrast between each fabric, I was stuck on how to quilt it.

I ordered matching thread (Aurifil #1130 - dark brown, #2340 - taupe, #2314 - dark beige and #2000 - sand) and decided to go with a mix of free-motion motifs and straight lines with the walking foot.

The darkest and lightest areas got FMQ flowers and the middle sections got dot to dot quilting designs. I can't tell you what a pain it was to turn that quilt about a gazillion times while quilting those small sections! In the end though, I really do like the results, so all worth it.

The backing is a really cute flannel with funny little woodland creatures - the colours are almost a perfect match.

The binding are leftover strips from the fabrics I used on the quilt top. And can we look at the almost perfectly matched binding?!

The details:

• Pattern: Cielo from the book Southwest Modern by Kristi Schroeder
• Size: 64.5" x 70.5"
• Fabrics: Kona Espresso, Mocha, Taupe and Sand 
• Thread: Pieced and quilted with Aurifil in 50 wt

A New Zipper Pouch for a Friend

As some of you know, I'm step-mom to three amazing children. When their dad and I got together, he had been separated from his children's mom for a long time. I'm a firm believer that for blended families to be successful, all parents must be able to get along so the kids' mom and I became friends. She's a really great person and she's basically part of the family.

I know that she's always liked the stuff I make for the kids and for the grand-kids, so when her birthday came around this last November, I decided to make her a zipper pouch.

She's Irish so of course, I had to go with green. All of the fabrics are from my stash and I even had a green zipper. How great is that?!

I used this tutorial from the Missouri Star Quilt Company. I love that you can use this tutorial to make pretty much any size pouch - and it goes together really quickly.

I used the same fabric as the exterior for the lining and added zipper tabs for a nice clean finish.

The bottom has a flat bottom so it stays upright, making it really easy to find what you're looking for.

I love that this design doesn't use any interfacing - the side panels are made thicker and more structured by stitching the fabric onto squares of batting. And who doesn't have small squares of quilt batting lying around their sewing room?

I'm happy to report that my friend was extremely pleased with her new pouch!

Star Bright Christmas Quilt Finish

For some strange reason, the small Christmas quilt I made a few years ago and which we have always used as a tree skirt was not in our Christmas box when I took it upstairs this year. So we decorated the tree at the beginning of December, but I had to put a small "Christmasy" quilt under it this year. Until now!

I took a few days off after a work trip to Denver this month and decided to make another quilt for the tree. I really wanted to use a pattern and fabric I already had so went searching in my stash and found a charm pack and some glittery fat quarters which would fit perfectly!

The charms are "Cherry Christmas" from Aneela Hoey (from years ago!) and I don't even remember what the glittery fabric is. The binding is a red and white chevron print I've also had in my stash for years.

I decided to go really simple with the quilting - some radiating straight lines with the walking foot.

The backing fabric is a leftover piece I had from making my York Pinafore a while ago. It doesn't really go with the colours of the quilt, but it was the perfect size and I was determined to use up what I had on hand.

I'm pretty happy with my new tree "skirt" and it looks awesome!

The details:

• Pattern: The Star Bright Quilt by Katie Blakesley
• Size: 31.5" x 36"
• Fabrics: Cherry Christmas by Aneela Hoey and glittery fat quarters (no clue what they are) 
• Thread: Pieced and quilted with Aurifil #2600 (light grey) in 50 wt