A few months ago I bought my first (and only) quilting die for my Big Shot Sizzix die cutter. Sizzix is getting into the quilting die game now which is quite handy since I already had the cutting machine. The half square triangle seemed a good place to start because exact size really matters. It made quick work of the cutting pieces for this mini quilt.

I am always inspired by the colorful quilts made by Rita of Red Pepper Quilts so I just picked some random bright colors from my fabric stash. Initially I just had a white border, but when I was auditioning fabrics for the back, I realized the additional turquoise border would really frame out the quilt nicely.

To offset the brights on the front, I chose Kona Ash and White for the back. The binding is a wonderful Tula Nest print.

I quilted this one free motion and it measures 26″ x 30″. I’ve put it up in the shop, but if it doesn’t sell it may find it’s way on my wall in my sewing room.

ETA: I forgot to mention I now have a Facebook page for Fresh Lemons Quilts. Come on over and join if you are a Facebook user. It will keep you updated on new blog entries, shop sales, and just all around fun things I find to share!

I finished my mom’s French Botanical Quilt last week and decided to take it with me on a little field trip this past weekend. We went to northwestern Michigan where my husbands family has a home. It is absolutely beautiful up there.

It was a weekend of golfing…

apple eating…

local dining…

and just taking in the amazing fall colors.

It was my longest trip away from my kids (2 nights), which I guess is kind of sad when you think about it considering my daughter is 4! And although I was in desperate need of a mommy break, I was really itching to get home to them by Sunday and felt a lot of relief when we pulled into the driveway. We are lucky to have the grandparents only a couple of miles away to watch them.

But back to the quilt! As I mentioned before, this decorative quilt is for my mom’s birthday. The focal point in the center of each square is a french botanical print from Japan. My mom is a quilter and has a lot of quilts. I wanted to make her something that was my style – to make it a more personal gift from me. And also I wanted to make her something that she wouldn’t necessarily just make herself. I chose several prints from my stash that coordinated, but were not part of a single collection. I think that makes the quilt more unique.

The back is Kona Snow with a strip of the french botanical print framed by prints used in the front. The binding is Kona Espresso or Chocolate…I wish I marked these when I bought them! It measures about 38″ square and is quilted free motion.

The quilt will be off to my mom later today along with a few other goodies. I hope you like it mom!

I finished the Hope Valley quilt today! Knocking another UFO off my list and it sure feels good. For some reason this quilt just didn’t look right when I was photographing it out in the natural light. Maybe it’s the quilting…

I started this quilt a *long* time ago. It is heavily inspired by Ashley’s Hope Valley quilt series. I originally was throwing around the idea of making this a king sized quilt for our master bedroom. Until I found out my husband didn’t really like the colors. {gasp} So…it sat while I decided what to do. Eventually I felt that he needs to like whatever decor we have going on in the bedroom, so I decided to make this a smaller quilt to hang in my sewing room.

I love this style of block. It is my first quilt of it’s kind, but I can tell you it won’t be my last. I sashed the blocks in Kona Ash which I think adds just the right border.

I quilted it free motion. I’m still trying to decide if that was a mistake. I am kind of thinking that the design of the blocks is kind of lost in the quilting. Hopefully not.

This one is a 44″ square. A certain someone really wanted to get in the photo shoot. But I’m pretty sure everyone loves baby feet.

I am in love with this quilt. It reminds me of a bowl of citrus, which I love. I have been wanting to make a quilt with oranges and yellows ever since I saw this beauty – Sunshine Squares by Susan Weinroth. It is such a happy quilt. I decided to add in pink and actually follow a plan for once. {Normally I tend to cut first and think later.}

After coming up with the piece sizes on paper, I tested each block out and verified my dimensions before cutting everything. It’s a good thing I did, because I had a few mistakes with my math. After a couple corrections, I was actually able to cut everything out and sew these in bulk. Wow, what a difference that makes! I was done with my squares a lot faster than usual.

I used a variety of fabrics from my stash to create a scrappy look. The usual suspects – Denyse Schmidt, Amy Butler, Anna Maria Horner, Lizzy House, Heather Ross to name a few.

I’ve always loved the look of those patchwork backings, so I used several coordinating prints on the back. I just randomly laid them out and sewed them together.

The binding is one of my all time favorites prints, Amy Butler’s Pink Coriander. It is out of print and I had almost used all of mine up. I was pretty bummed out about it, when Megan over at Lucy & Norman sent me a hot tip about some at a little shop in the Pacific Northwest. I called and had them send me everything they had. Oh the shame! Now I’m set for a while.

The final size is about 51″ x 60″. I quilted it free motion with Quilters Dream Request Loft batting. I was debating whether or not to keep this one. For now, it’s available in the shop.

And as promised! The quilt pattern is available for free here. I hope you enjoy it!