Little Quilts and Sandwiches

Today was my day for little quilts it seems. First, I finished all the satin stitching for the Quilted Snowlady block I'm currently working on. Even the snowlady has her arms raised in celebration! I still need to finish the little running stitch on the left side and outline her jacket, but then her little quilt top will be finished.

Next, I got to work making quilt sandwiches. One of my goals for the month is to quilt and bind the three little wall hangings and table runners in my quilts-to-be-quilted pile. With that in mind, I sandwiched the Shine On wall hanging.

I already have some ideas about how I'm going to quilt this one. 

Also, the We're On A Roll wall hanging. This one, I'm not so sure about. I'll start by top-stitching the appliques. I left that part for when I quilted it since I wanted to rolls to be a part of the quilting. Then I'm not sure what I'll do. Still, puzzling it out. This one is up first, so I'll have to figure it out quickly.

Finally, the Outback Sunset table runner. This is a very long runner at 82 inches. It took me the longest to sandwich because I sewed two pieces of fabric together for the back, and then realized it wasn't long enough. So I took that apart and sewed a strip of the black and orange polka dot in the middle. I'm using that other orange and red polka dot for the rest of the length.

When I sandwich these smaller quilts, I always use 505 and spray baste. I knew the can I was working on was almost empty, and I ordered some more last week. Right in the middle of spraying the last part of this for sandwiching, I ran out. Of course! Doesn't it always work out like that? No problem, I figured, because I knew the delivery of the new can(s) was supposed to arrive today. Crossing my fingers, I checked the front porch. No dice. 

So then I went upstairs in search of a half-used and abandoned can of hairspray. I know some folks use Aquanet hairspray for this same purpose, and it seemed as good a time as any to give it a try. Now, I don't use Aquanet, but I figure hairspray is hairspray, right? So I finished spraying it with my own brand, and I had no sooner finished with it than there came a knock at the door and my new can(s) of 505 were delivered. Hallelujah! So...no idea if hairspray will get the job done. I resprayed it with 505 and called it good.

Also included in the delivery was this new yardage I ordered to use as the back for the Hello Moon quilt.

The setting instructions for Hello Moon have yet to be posted, and I've about given up thinking they ever will be. That's okay because I have my own ideas about how to finish it off. Whatever I decide, I thought this fabric would be perfect for the back.

Finally, I've learned that Sher, my partner in the March Doll Quilt Swap, has her quilt now, so I can show you the whole thing. I call this quilt "Réimsí Glas", which is Gaelic for "Fields of Green". It is 15 x 15 inches and fusible applique.

It was inspired by a quilt in the book Sew Celtic, by Nikki Foley. It reminds me of the view I had from the airplane as we flew into Dublin in June of 2012.

The sheep are made from very small ovals of white fabric, and then I used a black marker to draw in their black heads, ears, and legs.

The back is made from some scraps I had leftover from an Irish chain doll quilt I made for a friend's granddaughter.

So that's all I have for you today. The rain has stopped for a day or two, and so I'm hoping Mike and I can get out for a walk tomorrow. I hope you have a lovely weekend planned for yourself as well.