Call of the Wild :)

Unfortunately, I did not get much done yesterday after I posted saying that I was going to sandwich the bargello.   It was partly life getting in the way of quilting and partly - I am not looking forward to spending that much time on the floor basting a king size quilt!  The life getting in the way part actually had to do with the project though, really it did!! I went to the LQS near my house to get more pins, I did not want to run out. . . When I got there, GASP - NOT ONE number 2 pin in the entire store!! They know me well (I know you are surprised about that haha) and I asked the owner's son if maybe they had a couple packs hiding somewhere.  That man looked all over the store LOL They have another store down the road about 6 miles and I asked him to call and see if they had pins.  They sell more sewing machines in that store than anything else sewing related so I thought I might just get lucky.  EUREKA! They did.  Back in the car and down the road I went.  The woman that runs this shop is the sweetest woman in the world! I bought, from her, both my industrial machine and my Janome and my sewing cabinet and. . . well, you get the picture :) I have spent hours in the shop with her just visiting and showing her the quilts I have made.  I had not been in since Thanksgiving so I knew this was not going to be a get in and get out visit :) When I got there she told me she had put in her notice after 28 years and was finally retiring!! SO glad I was on a mission to get those pins! We talked for an hour and I will go back to show her the bargello once it is finished.  There are no accidents in life and those pins brought me back to that shop so I wouldn't lose touch with such a wonderful person! Oh, and check this out, she mentioned she would be retiring right after her birthday in March - WHAT?? I asked her what day her birthday was - SHUT UP!! Our birthdays are TWO days apart! :) There is a reason we get along - and I thought it was because we both have red hair!! LOL

On to a quilt I made for my husband.  I wanted this quilt to be special and snuggly and warm :) I bought all of the fabric for this quilt at Stitch N Frame.  If you have not checked this site out, head on over there! She is have a most fabulous sale until the end of the month.  TONS of fabrics for under $5 a yard - name brand quality fabric.  I don't get paid to say this - I just love this site. Shipping is fast and the customer service is awesome.  I have placed orders over the phone (I went for a week or two where my computer refused to let me place orders.... I think my husband might have had something to do with that but I am resourceful! LOL) and they couldn't be more helpful.  Back to the quilt.  I did not have a pattern for this, I just cut big squares, played with the arrangement until I found the one I liked and sewed it together :)  Here it is:

As I said, I wanted this quilt to be special for the hubbins.  We have always had Siberian Huskies and he has always been partial to wolves and loves the outdoors.  I had purchased the panels months ago waiting for some kind of inspiration.  Then I saw these fabrics with the various outdoorsy 'themes' and thought - I can make something from that!  The panels and his height dictated the size of the squares.  I put the pieces of fabric on my wall in various different arrangements until I found one that I thought was pleasing and started cutting.  The quilt finished at 72" x 84."  The quilt top went together quickly but once again, I found that cutting those huge blocks is not as easy as one would think! I muddled through it and the top ended up surprisingly square haha.  The backing is Minkee and the batting is wool.  I quilted around the wolves in the panels and decided to just leave them with minimal quilting.  I then did a meander with paw prints and leaves in the mix.  I was a little worried about the thickness of this quilt and the tension being an issue when I FMQ it but I have to say my Janome did an awesome job with no tension fiddling - added bonus! :)  As I said, this was a quick finish, it took about a week start to washed and wrapped around the hubbins and the pups :) I'm guessing if you look really close at these pictures you WILL see dog hair! LOL

Linking up with Fabric Tuesday over at Quilt Storyand Connie over at Freemotion by the River.  If you are visiting my blog for the first time, welcome!  Have a look around and if you feel so inclined leave a comment, I LOVE comments and answer them all by email :) If you haven't linked up with these fabulous parties, hop on over, link up and see what peeps are working on this week!

Until Next time, keep on quilting!