Patriotic Minis and More Parade, June 2019

Hello Everyone! Today is Minis and More Parade day and our theme for May was anything Patriotic. The parade is hosted each month by Sherri and Michele so be sure to check out the parade of minis on their blogs.

I chose Mini Fireworks by Camille Roskelley of Thimble Blossoms. Very appropriate for a patriotic quilt. Just like the Swoon block, there are a lot of little pieces in each block. Each block is approximately 8″ finished. I say approximately, because my unfinished blocks were between 8 5/8″and 8 3/4″. I trimmed them very carefully so I wouldn’t cut the corners off the outside points.

The “fireworks” fabrics are all Bonnie and Camille except the navy in the lower right corner. That fabric is from the Creekside collection by Sherri and Chelsi. All are Moda fabrics. The solid navy is a Betsy Chutchian fabric for Moda and the red is a Riley Blake Designs basic. The white is from the Midsummer Meadow collection by Connecting Threads. The binding is also a Bonnie and Camille.

I decided to play up the fireworks theme in the quilting. I used Quilter’s Dream Select batting and Aurifil 50 wt thread for the quilting and piecing. I stitched in the ditch around all the red and navy fabric, then quilted in the white background. I quilted radiating lines from the center in the inside background squares and then did McTavishing quilting in the outside background and border.

I used a red, blue and white Aurifil variegated thread in the center of each block and in the corners. I wanted to make it look like a firework display, so I drew the motif freehand using a Sewline pencil with green lead.

I quilted the motif using my free motion foot. I’m very pleased with the results. What I did have a hard time with was the green pencil on the white fabric.

To quilt the radiating lines, I marked dots at the seam where I wanted to quilt too. I didn’t use a ruler foot because the pieces were so small. Because I used the green lead on the solid blocks, I went ahead and used it in the white blocks, too.

The problem was, I had a hard time getting the green lead out. The picture above was taken after I erased the pencil and also tried to get it out with water. I like to use the green lead on the darker fabrics, but next time, I won’t use it on a lighter color. You do have to look closely to see that the green marks are still there and I hope that over time, they will fade. There is still a green line in the very center that I need to try to erase, too.

I really had fun making this little quilt and I will enjoy displaying it through July. I also had fun trying to take pictures with my geraniums.

Just one more thing before I go…

I received my Sew Sampler Box from Fat Quarter Shop last week and am very happy with the contents this month. The fabric is Orchard by April Rosenthal. I may use the coupon that comes with the box to order some of the yardage in this line. The fabrics are really cute with summer fruits and berries.

This is quilt show week so I’ll be visiting my quilts in the show one day and going to the Preview Party Wednesday night where they announce the award winners. I’m looking forward to that. I finished my nephews quilt and will ship that tomorrow. After he receives it, I’ll be able to share the final quilt with you. The rest of this week will be working on the Halloween collection for Jacquelynne Steves The Art of Home Club. It looks like the weather has broken here and instead of mid 90’s, it should be back to more normal temperatures in the mid 80’s.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the parade with Sherri and Michele.