Big Finish!!

Two weeks ago, I decided to finish up my grands' Jolly Little Christmas sampler quilts and hand them off to their mother this weekend to save on mailing.  The quilts are their BIG present from Grandma this year but I wanted them to be able to enjoy the quilts throughout December!!

By keeping the quilting simple and staying focused I was able to have the quilting finished in a week!?!  I used long vertical wavy lines with snowflakes inserted randomly.

Lori Kennedy's Snowflake tutorial was the inspiration -- check it out HERE. 

To have them ready in spite of being on the road for six days, I cut the bindings and packed the trimmed quilts and my machine in the car. 

As good luck would have it, the hotel on my free evening had a desk that was perfect to get the job done and enjoy another episode of Vera (my current English crime favorite). 

I returned home yesterday afternoon and after putting away the stack of quilts from my lecture for the National Road Quilt Guild in St. Clairsville, Ohio -- I was ready to wash and dry the newly finished quilts so they are ready to wrap and hand off this weekend! 

I always wash quilts before giving them away.  My go to settings are lots of cold water on gentle cycle with an extra rinse.

I have used Quilt Soap for over 30 years and it always does the job well!  It's gentle, pure, and rinses out completely.  It's also very concentrated, so a little goes a long way.

Thankfully, I noticed this little bleed mark when I was binding the quilts.

That meant, add ColorCatcher sheets.  The box says two but I put in three just in case.

Then I had to find something to do so I could hear the washing machine when it finished -- it doesn't do to leave wet quilts laying in the machine when you are trying to control bleeding.

Glad I did that!!

Look what's down there at the bottom of the machine!?! 

Pink!!

I ran each quilt through another rinse just to be sure all the renegade red was out. 

Fifteen minutes in the dryer on low and then I hung them outside to take advantage of today's breeze to finish the job!

My grandson's version has a male cardinal and the moose.  I used green for the cornerstones and the binding.

The backing is so cute and so perfect for this kid who loves to be outdoors.

He doesn't have a red pickup yet (he's only 9) but I wouldn't be surprised if there's one in his future. 

My granddaughter's quilt has a female cardinal and the reindeer block.  I used red for the cornerstones and the binding. 

The backing is a beautiful print of pine boughs from Hoffman Fabrics that I have been hoarding for years! 

I signed both quilts, dated them, and quilted the kids names into them.

I used Quilter's Dream Machine Blend batting and a silvery gray Isacord rayon thread left over from my machine embroidery days.  

You can find the patterns for these blocks and a few more over at Sew Fresh Quilts!

So two BIG presents done and two finishes from my fourth quarter 2017 Finish A Long list!!

What's next?!?

If you follow @52quilters on Instagram, I'm next week's host!!

Lots of y-seam fun stuff planned!!

Enjoy the weekend!

Mary