This year I have opted to make quite a few gifts. Here are pictures of a few. The top picture is of a lap quilt/pillow set. Someone had sent me the center panels and pink fabric years ago (along with a pattern). I then purchased the required amount of rose print fabric to finish out the fabric requirements. Put the quilt together and then didn't like it. So it sat. Destined to become an eternal UFO....until this year when a last minute gift was needed. Turns out, the perfect backing fabric had materialized during the time this top sat dormant. It quilted up beautifully....and the extra panel was made into a matching pillow. Almost hated to part with it, but I know the recipient will adore the set.....so off to its new home it goes.
The second lap quilt/pillow set was a gift to a dear friend....who opened it early and simply adores it. :>) This, too, has a story behind it. While it wasn't a languishing UFO, it was a project that was destined to become one. I had signed up for a Block of the Month at a local shop thinking I was going to be learning how to digitize blocks.....which I did. What I wasn't aware of was that I also signed up to make a "machine only" version of the same quilt. I was okay with this until I started putting the "machine only" version together. That's when I realized that I really wasn't all that crazy about the pattern and really didn't want to make two of it. By this time I had already stitched out a few of the blocks that I had digitized and had no desire to digitize or stitch out anymore. Wasn't real crazy about the idea of simply setting the blocks aside either. The only solution was to think of another project that I could use the blocks in.
Since the blocks were done using 1930's reproduction fabric, I decided to use set them together in to a mini sampler of sorts using pieced blocks that were authentic to this time period......hence the pieced blocks. A little time in EQ6....and I have a mini sampler. It did take a bit to put it together. My math left a bit to be desired. :>) But once I figured out what I did wrong (and it was such a simple mistake) the quilt went together beautifully.. The pillows were done using overlapping back pieces (a first for me) and binding on the edges (another first for me). I was tickled with the way everything turned out......and so happy that it was well received. :>)
The final picture is of a framed, quilted embroidery that I did for my father for Christmas. I was stumped as to what to give him this year. He's retired, loves to fish, and has a tendency to buy whatever it is he needs or wants when it comes to his fishing. Really hard to buy gifts for. So I decided to do a fishing embroidery for him. The embroidery is surrounded by a quilted border.....then finished up with a narrow green border. The piece was stitched-in-the-ditch around the embroidery and the narrow green border. The middle fish border was quilted using a cross-hatch. This is basically like a mini quilt with no binding. It was then framed. Turns out, this is my father's favorite gift. Guess I won't be short of ideas for next year. :>)Wishing everyone and their families a very happy holiday season. May it be filled with lots of love, laughter, and joy!
