Skill Builder Sampler Quilt #2 - Colleen's Flower Quilt

The idea for this quilt started over two years ago.  There were a series of online conversations that made me wonder if I was doing all I could quilting wise.  There were so many things I wanted to make, but I was scared and intimidated to try them. Foundation paper piecing, applique, curves and working with templates scared me.  I figured I wasn't the only one out there with those feelings so I decided to start a quilt along where we would focus on one skill each month and make three blocks (easy, medium and challenging) with each skill.

I decided to call it the We Can Do It!  Skill Builder Sampler.  I love Rosie the Riveter and the feeling of "yeah, this is tough, but we can do it!"  And we did.  I learned that the hardest part of any block was overcoming the feelings of intimidation and being overwhelmed.  Not all of my blocks turned out perfect and I don't think I will ever like working with templates, but that is ok.  I tried it and in my book that is a success.

So for 12 months (with a two month break due to morning sickness!) we made 3 blocks a month.  You can take a look at all the great blocks and quilts the other women made in our flickr group.  I was originally going to put all 36 blocks into one queen sized quilt, but half way through I decided to make coordinating quilts for three of my girls.  Colleen loved all of the flower, rainbow and butterfly blocks so they all made it into her quilt.

This was such a learning experience!  I am entering this quilt in the Blogger's Quilt Festival in the Bed Quilt Category.  Head on over to nominate your favorite quilt!

Quilt Stats:

Size:  Approx. 64 x 92

Fabrics:  Kona White and mostly Holly Holderman

15 twelve inch blocks with 2 inch sashing

Custom quilted by me on a rented long arm machine

Skill Builder Sampler #1 - Baby Quilt

I am entering Kate's Skill Builder Sampler quilt in the ROYGBIV Category of the Blogger's Quilt Festival.  I picked my favorite blocks out of the We Can Do It! Skill Builder Sampler to make this baby sized quilt.  I was so proud of myself when I made the Circle of Geese Block!  I love the cheery rainbow colors.

Shouldn't every play area have a quilt on it?

Quilt Stats:

Size:  33 x 48 inches
6 twelve inch blocks with 3 inch sashing

Fabric:  Kona White and Mostly Holly Holderman

Finished Date:  February 2013

Head on over to the Blogger's Quilt Festival to see more wonderful quilts and don't forget to nominate your favorite!

This Week...

This week... I have worked on appliqueing the hexagons onto a linen background for my Pillow Talk Swap pillow.  Before appliqueing, I layered the linen, fusible fleece and backing and quilted them together in a grid pattern.  I added some hand stitching around a few of the hexagons last night in pink and yellow and plan on using one of the fabrics on the side as a backing.

This week... I learned that if your eight year old wakes you up in the middle of the night saying that she had a bloody nose you shouldn't blearily ask if it has stopped, (yes) and tell her to go back to bed, assuming that she only got blood on the worn old baby blanket she is holding.  Because the next day you will find yourself facing the prospect of scrubbing dried blood out of a new quilt and wondering how she only managed to bleed on the white fabric on the front of the quilt and miss all of the dark fabric on the back.  Thankfully it came out much better than I expected.

This week... I have realized how hard it is to get pictures of large quilts.  The sun, my husband-quilt-holder and non-bloodied quilts never seem to be in the same place at the same time!

This week... I learned that there is a Modern category in the Iowa State Fair!

183 Modern - a quilt using a new design or reinterpreted traditional design, including improvisational piecing, alternative block structures, or emphasis of negative space and asymmetry.

I worked with the Fabric and Threads superintendent this fall to get this category added.  If you live in Iowa and have made a Modern quilt would you please consider entering it?  Please?  I would hate to have asked for a new category and have no entries.

To enter a quilt in the Iowa State Fair:
Go to the Iowa State Fair 2013 Categories/Premium Books Page

1. Read the Fabric and Threads Booklet to see how many things you would like to enter.  Only one entry per category.
2. Fill out an online entry form.  You do not have to know for sure what you are going to enter at this time.  It will simply ask you how many entry tags you would like.  Each tag can be used for any of the Fabric and Threads categories. 
3. Drop off your item on July 27th.
4. Pick up your item on August 19th

I would love to see a bunch of modern styled quilts hanging at the fair!

To Boston With Love

Last week I was finishing up making a few flags for the To Boston With Love project when my girls came home from school.  They all started rummaging through the fabric scraps and insisting that they wanted to make one too.  I took a deep breath, prayed for patience and let them help - after all, it isn't often my 12 year old wants to sew.  After explaining that we were making them to help cheer people up - like a get well or thinking of you card, they decided on what to put on their flags.  Aleah drew and cut out stars for her flag, Emily pieced her rainbow and Colleen glued on her butterfly.

They are so cheery!  If this is what 6 of them look like, can you imagine hundreds hanging together in Boston?!?  The mailing deadline is the 21st of May so there is still time to make one if you want.

Linking up to Finish It Up Friday.
PS And don't worry, I retied the flags with a 1 inch spacing after taking the picture.  :)

This Week...

This week my Aunt Janie came to visit.  She insisted that she wanted to see my quilts, so I happily obliged.  Little did she know there would be so many.  Little did I know - and I didn't even end up showing her all of them!  I think they have been multiplying.  :)

Today I rented time on a long arm machine and quilted Julie's Skill Builder Sampler quilt.   Don't you love the colors she used?   It was fun to quilt it up for her!

Tomorrow I need to focus on the garden.  It is time to do some planting, weeding and mowing!  My reward for working hard in the garden?  A full day of sewing on Saturday with the DMS Modern Quilt Guild!!!  It doesn't get much better than that.  :)

Pillow Talk Swap 10

the fabric pull for my partner

For the last month things have felt a bit more calm around here.  Maybe because the baby is sleeping through the night now?   I started to feel kind of itchy and wanted to do some social sewing.  So I signed up for the Pillow Talk Swap.  This is my first time in the swap and man, is it fun!  We have all been assigned secret partners and people are posting pictures of fabric pulls and pattern ideas and asking for feed back.  There are so many great fabrics and ideas that I wish I was 10 peoples' partner!  ;)

My partner said she likes blues, greens and other pastel combos.  She also had some pictures of pillows with hexagons in her inspiration mosaic.  You know how I love English paper piecing!  So I ran with her hexagon inspiration photos.  So far I have appliqued 1 inch hexagons onto a variety of 1.5 inch hexagons.  The plan as of now is to space them about 1/2 inch apart and applique them onto a linen background.

I am loving how it looks and loving making it!