An Epic Tiny House Paper Pieced Project

Posted on January 19, 2024 by nwquiltedcat

Hi everyone!

Last year, I participated in a weekly tiny house sew along designed by Quilt Art Designs. These are 6-inch blocks with very small foundation paper pieced sections with a total of 36 houses. This project was designed as a scrap buster, but my scrap bin is still overflowing!!

I kept up with the weekly sew a long and you can find all of my individual houses posted to my Instagram account @nwquiltedcat or by searching on the hashtag #meowvilletinyhouses.

For my houses, I decided that I wanted to incorporate little cats into each house. I fussy cut various cat faces and cat bodies and pieced them into each block.

I put these blocks to the side for a few months to ponder how I might finish this project, and I recently put them up on my design wall. These are all of the tiny houses pieced together in rows, but the rows are not yet sewn together.

I decided to call my little village, Meowville! I used paper pieced letters designed by Sam Hunter in her book, Quilt Talk.

Meowville banner for my tiny house village!

I’m leaning towards adding an inner solid border around the tiny houses, and then adding a wider outer border with the Meowville banner, some paw prints, and maybe a paper pieced cat or two. Stay tuned!

Happy sewing,

-Jen

A Traveling Quilt Takes an Adventure!

Posted on July 15, 2020 by nwquiltedcat

Hi everyone,

Last week would have been the 45th anniversary of the Sisters Outdoor Quilt show. I had planned to take classes the week before with my sister, but the classes are postponed until 2021. We decided to have a mini retreat together for some sewing and hiking.

We had fun sewing on small projects in our hotel room, visiting local quilt shops while maintaining social distancing protocols and wearing masks, and hiking in the great outdoors.

I took my Adventure themed traveling quilt with me. I made the center foundation paper pieced block from a pattern called “Camping” by Quilt Art Designs, but without the road and camper van. I also paper pieced the word “Adventure.” My quilt then traveled for about a year around the United States, where 5 different quilters added sections. In return, I added sections to the other quilters’ traveling quilts, all with different themes ranging from Harry Potter to books to gnomes.

Here’s a look at my center block, with and without the word, Adventure:

“Camping” center block

“Camping” center block with “Adventure”

Each quilter was free to add her own ideas to the quilt, keeping with my theme of travel and adventure.

Marianne added an inner border of foundation paper pieced mountains
Katie added the next border of foundation paper pieced arrows, a squirrel, a campfire, a fish, and a lantern
Kitty added churn dash blocks (one of my favorite blocks) to the top and bottom
Gigi added a mountain range in the day to the top and a mountain range in the night to the bottom
Jenn added the final left and right borders of trees

I received the quilt back this spring, and then decided to custom quilt it using ruler work and free-motion.

Quilting close-up

More quilting

Here is a look at the finished quilting with my dog quilt inspector:

Completed quilting on Adventure quilt with Pepper “helping”

My sister then helped me to photograph this quilt while in central Oregon last week. It was quite windy so it was difficult to hold the quilt still and get a good picture.

We took these pictures at Balancing Rocks, which are volcanic tuffs.

Adventure quilt at Balancing Rocks with Mt. Jefferson in the background

Adventure quilt near a volcanic tuff

I really enjoyed my first experience as part of a traveling quilt/round robin group. I even got to meet one of the quilters in person in July 2019 at the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, where she brought me the next quilt in line for my additions. I hope to participate in another one in the future.

Happy quilting!

Jen

Forest and Lake Finished Art Quilt!

Posted on April 10, 2016 by nwquiltedcat

Hi everyone!

After just over a year, I finished the binding on this epic foundation paper pieced quilt this week! This quilt combines the Forest art quilt and the Lake art quilt together by Quilt Art Designs.

For binding, I selected a fabric called Tick Tock Stripe in Mint from Tula Pink’s new line, Chipper. The blues, greens, red, and brown stripes accent the colors in my art quilt pretty well.

I did heavy custom quilting using my HandiQuilter 16 and a combination of Aurifil and Superior threads. The quilting alone took about 8 hours. I lost track of the time it took for the paper piecing!

The backing is also by Tula Pink from her Free Fall 108-inch wide collection in Sky.

Let’s take a look at the completed quilt! Thanks to my husband and son who are such wonderful photography assistants! We took these pictures today in slightly overcast weather in the Columbia River Gorge and Multnomah Falls.

Forest Lake Art Quilt Completed!

I love this finished quilt! It is the most ambitious paper-piecing project that I have done thus far. Thanks so much to Janeen from Quilt Art Designs for her beautifully detailed patterns. Thanks to everyone who encouraged me throughout the past year as I worked on this quilt, section by section.

Catch me on Instagram @nwquiltedcat for other photos and more frequent updates on my quilting hobby!

Enjoy!

~Jennifer

Forest and Lake Art Quilt Flimsy Finished!

Posted on February 10, 2016 by nwquiltedcat

Happy Wednesday, everyone!

For the past year, I’ve been steadily working on what I call an epic paper piecing project! It’s comprised of 2 art quilt-a-long projects designed by Janeen of Quilt Art Designs. The top section is the forest QAL and the bottom section is the lake QAL. Each section is broken down into 12-week chunks.

Here’s a look at the completed flimsy:

Forest and Lake QAL together!

When I do foundation paper-piecing, I tend to keep the papers on for as long as possible for added stability. If the paper makes a seam too bulky, I will remove part of it. Otherwise, I wait until the project is completed, and then remove all the paper at once.

Here’s what the back of the quilt top looks like:

Paper backing on Forest and Lake QAL

Now, that’s a bunch of paper to remove!! I did make one mistake on the forest portion so I had to make an adjustment not on the pattern, but I think it still turned out fine.

I’m not sure how to quilt this project. I’m going to take my take and do a bunch of custom quilting, I think. Once finished, I hope to display it in a couple of local quilt shows.

Enjoy!

~Jennifer

Brutus Quilt, First Finish of 2016

Posted on January 8, 2016 by nwquiltedcat

Happy New Year, everyone!

My quilty goal this year is to finish more projects before starting new ones! Sound familiar?

In a bittersweet first finish for the year, I completed the quilting and binding on my Brutus memory quilt this week.

I posted earlier that Janeen of Quilt Art Designs drafted this wonderful foundation paper-pieced pattern for me of my dog, Brutus, who passed away in September 2015 after fighting cancer.

The pattern is based off a photo that I took of Brutus with us on the Broken Top hike in central Oregon in August 2015.

Brutus hikes the Broken Top trail with the Three Sisters in the background

I pieced the quilt using Aurifil 50 weight threads in light tan and black. The blue background is Moda Grunge, the solids are all Kona cotton, and the blacks and grays are from various fabric manufacturers pulled from my stash.

I did a free-motion swirly quilting all over his fur, switching from black thread to a variegated brown thread when needed. For the blue background, I did straight-line quilting using Rainbow thread by Superior. It has a subtle shimmer that you can see in person, but the pictures do not show it well.

For the binding, I went with a black and white print from Cotton & Steel. I like how it vaguely resembles an old film strip yet brings the focus to Brutus.

Brutus Memory Quilt 1

Brutus Memory Quilt 2

I love how this quilt turned out! I think it is my favorite quilt that I have made, and I plan to hang it in our house this weekend. I miss Brutus fiercely and still feel his sweet doggie presence.

Sincere thanks to Janeen for the pattern. Please check out her Craftsy store and her wonderful selection of foundation paper-piecing patterns!

Happy quilting,

~Jennifer

Dog Memory Quilt

Posted on November 14, 2015 by nwquiltedcat

In my last post, I talked about losing our best dog friend, Brutus. I reached out to the wonderful Janeen of Quilt Art Designs to design a foundation paper-pieced memory quilt of Brutus.

I’ve finished the quilt flimsy, and it looks just like him!!

Brutus Memory Quilt Flimsy

At this time, I think I will leave the quilt without borders to keep the focus on Brutus. I’m going to quilt it next week at my sister’s house since she has a lovely new HQ Avante.

If you get a chance, pop on over to Janeen’s Craftsy store and check out her wonderful foundation paper-pieced patterns!

Remember to hug your furry friends today!

Happy Quilting,
Jennifer

Losing a Dog Friend

Posted on October 21, 2015 by nwquiltedcat

Hi quilty friends,

It’s been a rough month for my family since we lost our best buddy, Brutus, to cancer. We had 12 wonderful years with him, filled with many hiking and camping adventures. I miss him, and I feel the loss of his special spirit in the house every day. We do have a 7-month old puppy who is helping to keep our doggy adventures on-going.

Here’s a little collage of Brutus:

Brutus

To remember him, I’m making a special quilt designed by Janeen of Quilt Art Designs. If you get a chance, pop on over to her Craftsy store and check out her wonderful foundation paper-pieced patterns! I’m also making her Forest and Lake QAL, which I hope to finish by year’s end.

I started selecting fabrics and making one of the eyes this week:

Detail of dog eye; foundation paper-pieced

Here’s what that eye section looks like, side-by-side with the foundation:

Dog eye, foundation

This is going to be a fabulous art quilt, and I really want to finish it over the next month. I need to choose a nice background fabric and several mauve tones for the tongue. Otherwise, I’m pulling all the other fabrics from my stash since they are mostly blacks and tans.

Have you hugged your pet today?
~Jennifer

Forest QAL, Weeks 7 and 8 plus Giveaway Winner!

Posted on April 27, 2015 by nwquiltedcat

Hi everyone,

I hope that you had a great weekend! I had a little time in my sewing room to catch up on week 8 of the Forest QAL by Janeen of Quilt Art Designs. I call this an epic paper-piecing journey because it is a 12-week QAL with lots of pieces! If you are an intermediate paper-piecer, you can do this pattern! Plus, Janeen just announced on her blog that she will be adding a lake portion that is an optional add-on to attach under the forest portion. The lake portion will start this July!

Here’s my progress so far. I set a 24.5-inch by 6.5-inch ruler next to the flimsy for scale.

Forest QAL, weeks 1-8

I just love all those cute bird and forest critters. Did you notice the little mouse?

And, now for the Quiltmaker 100 Blocks, Volume 11 Giveaway! I used a random number generator to pick . . .

Pauline!

Congrats! I will send you an email with the details.

Enjoy!
~Jennifer

Forest QAL, Weeks 5 and 6

Posted on April 15, 2015 by nwquiltedcat

Hello, everyone!

I caught up on the Forest QAL this weekend by completing weeks 5 and 6. This QAL pattern is by Quilt Art Designs and you can buy the pattern from her and do the project at your own pace.

This project is entirely paper-pieced and there are some really tiny pieces. In week 6, we made a little frog with pieces almost too small to measure. I had fun challenging myself to make the frog, and I’m pleased with how he turned out, nestled in the lower portion of a tree.

Here’s a look at my project so far. I haven’t stitched weeks 5 and 6 to the weeks 1-4 piece yet.

Forest QAL, Weeks 1-6

The finished quilt will be 38-inches by 52-inches so a pretty good sized, landscape-oriented art quilt! Just look at all of those cute birds and animals!!

Linking up with Sew Fresh Quilts for Let’s Bee Social. Check out her cute pigs and corn cobs!

Happy quilting!
~Jennifer

Forest QAL, Weeks 1 & 2

Posted on March 15, 2015 by nwquiltedcat

Hi everyone!

Hope you’re having a good weekend, and working in a little bit of sewing time. We’re having a windy and rainy Sunday afternoon in Oregon so it’s the perfect weather to sit in and sew.

I’ve joined a new quilt-along by Quilt Art Designs called the Forest QAL. This is a 12-week QAL, and I worked on weeks 1 and 2 this weekend. It costs $1 per week for the pattern, and there is still time to catch up if you want to join. This is a paper-pieced pattern, and I’d recommend that you have some paper-piecing experience since some of the pieces are small.

For week 1, we pieced together some trees and sky:

Week 1, Forest QAL

I’m using a combination of modern print fabrics and solids for my quilt. My goal is to work entirely from my stash for this project.

For week 2, we pieced together more trees plus a little red bird and a chameleon, both hiding in the trees. Look how tiny some of the pieces are in the chameleon’s face!!