Wow! I am still actually reading through all the wonderful comments left this past week in response to my Giveaway Post linked at Sew Mama Sew. Many people left recommendations for books, enough to keep me busy in the next year (or two, haha!). Several titles received more than one kudos and those will top my to-do's, (sounds like Girl on a Train is a must-read!). It is wonderful to have this list to refer to when I am ordering books at the library - thank you all!
I found several new-to-me blogs linking from comments as well, one of my favorite parts of the bi-annual Giveaway Day!
And an exciting new QAL for 2016 called, "Play with Me" that will be hosted by Alida at a new site she is setting up. I think the idea is genius: The blocks are all Game Boards!
You may know Alida from her current blog Tweety Loves Quilting. Alida posted a giveaway winner today, as well as good information about No-Reply Bloggers that may interest you! I was delighted to read that Heather won her giveaway! Heather made a mini for me last year for the Sister Swap. She is a follower here, and one (of many) whose comments I read, and secretly hope will win my drawing:)
There can only be one winner though! My husband, Ty is the Randomizer, and the number selected this morning is "32".
"June DI'm
going to participate in the Stash Bee in 2016, looking forward to
learning new things and making new friends. Thanks for the chance!"
Congratulations June!
This lovely package will be sent to you once I receive a mailing address!
June has also won a downloadable pattern for this sweet PiNS cushion, courtesy of a new pattern design shop on Etsy, Sugar-Free Quilts!
Welcome to Day Nine of the Jaftex 85th Anniversary Blog Hop!
We are celebrating in style today,
Fusion-Illusion Style that is!
A bundle for you, and a bundle for me!
This bundle is courtesy of Blank Quilting!
Working with these fabrics was such a treat!
I began by pulling a wintertime palette from my bundle..
As I selected the colors, flowering Christmas Cactus came to mind. (I seem to be on a non-stop Christmas fling this year!!) The pattern I went with is a duplicate of my Summer Gathering quilt...
And here it is!
"Winter in Bloom", 58" Square
Machine pieced with 900 squares and more than 200 Half-Square Triangles.
20 HST's were sewn from each color used..
My favorite marking tool for this method..
Silvery text background fabric: 'Crystal Palace' by Studioe!
I LOVE these fabrics!
Cross-hatch quilting on the background..
Quilter's Dream Wool Batting gives a fluffy texture.
'Stacked Back' - pieced with leftover Illusion fabrics..
Machine-bound with 'Season's Elegance' by Studioe
..and a custom label for the finishing touch!
Thank you so much for visiting!
This project has been one of my greatest blogging pleasures - I hope you have enjoyed the stop!
To enter the drawing for the FQ Bundle of Fusion Illusion:
Please leave a comment on this post prior to September 30th, at midnight - Vegas time!
I live in Southern Nevada, where most summer days are over 100 degrees in temperature, and many of those reach over 110 degrees... However, I am blogging all month from inland Alaska, (Copper River Valley)! The wintertime temps here average 0 degrees, and dip down in the -40's on a fairly regular basis!
My questions is: If you had to choose, in which of these locations would you choose to reside?
Follow the hop all month for more inspiration and prizes at all the stops!
You can also enter more fabulous prizes from Jaftex!
Packages are awarded by Aurifil, Schmetz Needles, and the Grand Prize includes a sewing machine from Janome!:
My all-time favorite Christmas album is A Charlie Brown Christmas by Vince Guaraldi Trio, the original soundtrack of the TV Special.
I listened to it quite a few times over the past few weeks!
Etch A Sketch art work by Alli Katz - check out more of her various artistic creations at lookhowhappyiam.com.
This was my way of truly embracing the challenge when I received some happy mail - a large bundle of Christmas fabric! This is a bit understated, but I have to tell you I was so excited to find out I was selected by Henry Glass as the May Challenger for Desire to Inspire! What a surprise when I received Shelly Comiskey's Kringle Krossing fabrics! I hope you will take a moment to check out my interview for the Desire to Inspire Challenge at Henry Glass ! Oh, and leave a comment so they know you love the program -- because it is awesome! If you want to participate in their challenge you will find info there too!
I don't know how many designs I drew out and tinkered with before I made my final decision for the main quilt! I wanted to showcase and use all Shelly's fabric. The only fabric I added from my own stash is the solid black and the dark green. And the backing of course, but we will get to that..
Kringle Krossing 65" x 75"
The plan for this quilt originally was to frame the main panel, shown below.
Once it was on the design wall however, I got the idea to make a postage stamp border for the panel. Great, except it would not fit with the blocks the size they already were. My next 'big' idea was to make the entire back of the quilt a big postcard, with the panel stamp in the corner, etc..
In the end, I pulled it. I really wanted to have a go at FMQ'ing that big beard, and a huge floor pillow would be a perfect mate for this quilt! I played with drunkard's patches to make the stamp border - a lot of trial and error to get the right size and I did get a plan set. Hopefully I took good notes, because it became pretty clear: No time-no time-no time!
Disappointed that the panel would not be a part of my submission, I made the decision anyway - I want that floor pillow!
That aside, I re-focused and got busy:-)
The backing is Tidings of Great Joy Quilting Treasures - an awesome eBay score (6yards $30 shipped).
Machine stitched binding. Did I mention no time?
Once the quilt was finished and photographed, I had a few days left to play without any pressure. I used scraps to surround my favorite print in the line, the sweet reindeer, using Jacquelynne Steve's recent quilted potholder tutorial. Mine is more of a trivet though, since I left out the strap that I had made for a hanger. oops..
I still had one print that I had not used in the quilt, and I fussy cut Santa there, 'Makin his list'.
Playing with the block, I thought of the Chalk Cloth fabric I have never gotten around to using. I looked online and found a lot of rolled up portable chalkboards. I guess you could say this is improv project; I cut the cloth the same width as the block, added borders, some ric-rac, straps and a hanger so it can be displayed on the wall.
30" long - 16" wide
What a fun way to make a wish list! Or the holiday menu, or a nice note to Santa with the cookies...
I put a patch of the chalk cloth on the back as well, thinking how cute when it is rolled up.
I know this is getting long, but I will mention one thing I found out about chalk cloth. It really wants to roll up the other direction. See the wavy bumps in the full view? If it is stored as a roll, it really needs a strong tube for support to keep from creasing. If purchased online, it is likely to become creased in shipment. Creases are pretty permanent and from what I read online, ironing is not recommended. I tried it anyway of course. I even spritzed water on and ironed from the back. It helps a lot, but in the end, I cut in a way that avoided the big creases.
Try as I might, I was not able to use all the beautiful fabric provided for this challenge! I look forward to finishing the big floor pillow and I will share that here, but it is likely to be December since I tend to push deadlines when I can:-)
For someone who is not real big on holiday hoopla, I sure have been doing a lot of it lately!
Ty just rolls his eyes, and I laugh and tell him to be staunch - there is more to come!
Now, are you ready for the little giveaway?
This is a one yard bundle. Fat eights are cut from six prints from Shelly Comiskey's Kringle Krossing, + one 1/8 of the black backing fabric, and 1/8 of Happy Town (lime green) by Jacquelynne Steve's.
Enter by leaving a comment on this post before Sunday, June 7th at midnight PST. Followers may leave a second comment for another entry, please tell me how you follow! Winner will be drawn at random,(and re-drawn, and re-drawn until a winner is drawn that is not a no-reply blogger with no email address!),
I try to respond to all comments, but please forgive me if I fall behind for the giveaway! This will be posted with Friday Finish linkups & I have a busy weekend ahead! I love hearing from reader's! I try to visit each blog in return, and often end up following as well:-)
Thank you for reading, and remember, there are only 205 days left til Christmas!
Whew! Funny how exhausting Sew Mama Sew's Giveaway Week is!
This delicious scrap bundle enticed some excitement! Reading through the comments, it seems the vibe felt a bit more fired up than past giveaways! Many readers shared tidbits I found very interesting: about fabric, Mother's Day, Vegas, my blog(!), and Ty's Barn Blocks! I regret not replying to each but I must say how much of these comments meant to me! Seriously, I had a couple squish moments. Because blogging is a decision, kind of a decision to share. And it eats at our most valuable commodity, our time. our precious. Blogging once or twice a week is a rewarding way to journal progress, track goals, share info, and meet quilter's!
And the winner is...
Congratulations to
auntie sash !! Looks like a scavenger quilt project may be on your bucket list! Sash was one of many who spied the hula
girls. Many of you saw Rosie the Riveter, the ducks from Red Letter Day (be still my heart!), & the Henna's. The houses were popular - especially the red and white, but on their left are those pink and purple houses (Kokka) - one of my all time favorites - it has made its way into a lot of my projects! Some other surprises are included that were harder to recognize as well, like the retro girls I used when I made BFF Jewelry Rolls.
So, this has been my favorite giveaway yet and I have already started setting fabrics aside for next time.
Hmm, perhaps I will use some in Lia's next fabric scrap swap - that was pretty fun too!
Thank you ALL for the scrap-loving comments, seems there is a lot of fussy cutting going on!
And many commented about trips to Vegas (surprise, surprise a few were married here too!). I wanted to say, I had not been to a quilt shop while visiting here, prior to moving here I mean. The Strip is one of those rare places that can manage to take COTTON off one's brain for awhile. Fabric shopping involves driving away from the Strip. Some praise their patient husbands, but for those who wish to break away in pursuit of fabric, (and skip the car rental altogether!), a quilt shop tour is available! I thought it was a sweet idea, but we did lose one LSC last year (Boulder City).
I wanted so much to buy that sweet little brick and mortar, sigh ....
Congratulations Sash, I hope you enjoy!
Coming Soon: This week I'll be turning to readers for HELP!
I will post pics of my new, almost-flimsy, I ran out of fabric to complete it! I'm looking for some bits of yucky-white-on-white calico-type-probably-joanns-inthe90's-neutrals. What, you threw it all out a decade ago? No joke, I need to snap a few photos of the design wall before it gets dark, and I will post Tuesday or Wednesday with exactly what I am hoping to find...
perhaps it is at the bottom of your scrap bin ;-)
Project Quilting 2015 wraps up this week with Challenge # Six:
This cute little button arrived with the package I won in Challenge Five, a cute charm pack kit from Village Creek!
My Charm Square finish is a quilted cozy for my KitchenAid mixer. It stands 17" high x 15" deep and 11" wide. Here is the side view.
Can you see the little Tupperware bowls?
The 'front' view:
(Yes, my kitchen counters are pink)
After looking a bit online, I determined to just make a big rectangular quilt, then worry about shaping it later. I measured my mixer, then pieced two panels approx. 19.5" x 21". These were joined to make one rectangle, 21" x 38" before making the sandwich.
For the patchwork, I began by breaking into a short stack pack (25pcs) of Just My Type, then I snagged a lot of Road 15 from another stash-pack, as well as some additional faves here and there. Initially, I pieced wonky rows that came out 4" to 4.5" wide. I ended up cutting those in half lengthwise though - scrappier is just better...
My project is intended for my own kitchen and I was drawn to some vintage ticking. I cut 5" squares, thinking this fabric would alternate between the scrappiness, however they didn't fit the image and I ended up piecing the stripes, wrong side out, near the bottom of each row to help separate my pieced 'border'. Bit odd, but I love it!
Here are those cute Tupperwares on the other side. This fabric was from Mary Engelbreit..
I kept the quilting fairly wonky too.
Final construction was much easier than anticipated. Online, the cozies I found had front panels, piping and all other frivolities. As it turned out, I like the looks of the simpler approach and just finished it like the bottom of a shopping bag. Since I had not planned for this method, I feared my panel may not be large enough so I blocked / preshrank it before making final assembly. Once dry, it measured 19.5 x 36". Whew, barely big enough! Only 15 minutes to sew the ends together, box the corners and zigzag those inside seams. Fits like a glove and no need to line it since I used this pretty fabric from my stash ;-)
Had I made the panel a bit bigger, I would have probably rolled a fat hem at the bottom, but the length came out perfectly so I added a machine-binding.
Project Quilting Challenge is a hoot, and I look forward to participating again next year! I want to shout out, "Thank You" to Kim Lapacek, and her helpers, for hosting! Voting for this last challenge starts today at her site, Persimmon Dreams.
For my quilty-blogger-friends, and fellow 'competitors' (haha), thank you for reading! It has been awhile since I last shared, so I have a GIVEAWAY today! A charm pack of 25, 5" squares from the 'What's my Type" line. To enter, please comment this week, by March 29th at midnight, PST. If a topic helps, let me know what you made the last time you used your mixer, or whether you had to wash the mixer before you used it! I love to use mine for kneading pizza dough, and for cinnamon rolls - YUM!
It is Giveaway Day over at SewMamaSew! Giveaway is closed and winners will be announced shortly! OMGosh, I am so happy with all the traffic and nice comments left this week. I started the week intent to reply to each and every one and was not able to keep up! I have truly enjoyed each and every one, thank you so much for visiting!
Thank you so much for visiting! I enjoy blogging as a hobby and write posts once or twice a week. I love sharing current projects and swapping advice with other quilters and artisans. Lately time has limited my projects to a few blocks and quiltalongs I find irresistible. I just finished the final Aurifil Block for 2014, 'Not Afraid of Flying' by Designer of the Month, Carrie Nelson.
Find Carrie's interview with Pat Sloan, and block pattern here.
Each month, participants who link their block to the Aurifil Flickr Group are eligible to win a large pack of Aurifil Thread. That is all the incentive I needed and I did not miss a month! My blocks are pictured in an album at my Flickr site. Hopefully I will be able to design a setting soon!
Business has picked up lately in my Etsy shop, Red Letter Fabrics! I'll be posting some recently acquired fabrics over the next couple weeks that I am pretty excited about. I try to post a good mix of modern fabrics as well as unique vintage fabrics, novelty prints, and many popular OOP Cottons. Currently, blogger's receive a 10% discount with the code BLOGGERDISCOUNT.
I have put together winning bundles for two lucky reader's!
The first winner will receive a remnant bundle of five prints from the Figgy Pudding line by BasicGray for Moda. These are approx. 16" x 21" each.
The first quilt I sold was made with this line!
Finished in 2012, I named it Figgy Swirl. I had a lot of this fabric and cut into it without any plans. I began by fussy cutting the border fabric for the center hexagons and played with the 60 degree triangles from there. After the six big hexies were complete, I played with setting ideas and the diamonds just evolved. I have never patterned a quilt, but I love this setting and I wish I had more of a pattern than the tissue paper templates I used at the time (!).
Perhaps I will do this design again in the future..
Yep, Figgy and I had a good thing going on,
I miss him more than I thought I would. sigh.
The next lucky winner will receive a bundle with more out-of-print fabrics.
This bundle includes 1/2 yard each of Button Dots and Sewing Stuff by Loralie Harris.
If you are willing to leave me a comment prior to midnight on Friday, December 12th, and you have an email address to reply with, you are eligible! The drawing will be held by my husband, The Randomizer, and winners notified by email on Saturday the 13th.
One more big share for you!
Just look at this lovely floral clip I received as a Thank You from an Etsy customer!
I am still quite stunned and genuinely impressed with the quality of work she does.
Her new Etsy Shop just opened this week, FlapperFancies.
This is heirloom work folks, and it is stunning! Only the finest materials are used and the use of antique lace is prevalent in her work. In fact, her favorite charge is using the client's own ribbon or lace to create lasting keepsakes. Hairpieces, pins, hats and custom trims seem to be her focus, and she is offering free shipping with the coupon code 'grandopening'.
The clip slides out of it's own velvet pocket for versatility. Genius!
I know that there is no time to waste online during Giveaway Week!
I appreciate this opportunity to share with reader's and to explore blogs that are new to me as well!
Anticipating the Superbowl as it approached last week was pretty exciting! Ty and I even made a visit to the Sportsbook to place a small bet. (I mean when it Rome, right?) Although it was great fun to watch our hometown win, I get homesick pretty easily, and yesterday was bittersweet for me, much like a holiday.
All week I thought about Game -Day-Sunday...
Somehow, in my mind, I connected my BFF giveaway up with Superbowl Sunday.
Following the game, I went to the computer to draw a winner, and AGHH(!), I was supposed to draw a winner on Friday!
Sorry for the delay, and without further ado, the winner is:
I must admit, I did not draw a name from a bowl the way I usually do. It was following the big game, and I wasn't up for it!. Instead, I asked Ty to pick a number between 1 & 13. He had #1 out of his mouth in less than a second, and then he added, " #1 never wins!"
Congrats to Betsy, I will send an email now!
Thank you ALL so much for the great comments!
I had fun reading about quilty, (and not-so-quilty!) friends!
Mini-charms are such a great way to sample a new line! I picked this up on impulse when I noticed several prints in it that will go well with my 2.5" charm collections.
When I got them home for an even closer look, I found Mixed bag to be a really cheerful color-way that blends well with much of my stash.
I was inspired to use the blue and greens for a couple jewelry rolls I have been intending to make.
One is for myself! It is the one with the button closure because I forgot to sew the straps into the binding. All is well though, that button is from my grandmother's sewing box and I found pleasure attaching it!
For the 1st jewelry roll, I fussy cut a sewer-girl like myself from a very retro piece I've been hoarding. I added seven charms from the Mixed Bag mini-charm packet. I love the Comment print! :
The next one is for my BFF! I added six from prints from Mixed Bag to this one. And quite a bit of Amy Butler to help the modern prints mix well with the retro/vintage prints. Dragonflies for Terri as well, & some books & a heart:-)
Terri and I have been friends 25 years, since we were 13!
Lucky me, she befriended me on my first day as a new student in her school.
I've learned a lot about friendship (and relationships in general!) from Terri. She practices unconditional love, faith, forgiveness, compassion, empathy.
Terri doesn't sew, but I still like her a lot.
We make each other laugh and we make each other cry in all the ways good friends should:-)
For the most part, I followed the tutorial at Haberdashery Fun. Since I wanted to make quilted rolls, I did not use interfacing, and I kept square corners. I did not have the same length zippers, so I used short ones for mine, and longer ones for Terri's. I haven't used that plastic stuff much, and I did not want to sew it on the topside of the zippers, so I topstitched along the outside edge of the zipper to attach the plastic, then I flipped it over and stitched along the edge of the plastic to stabilize it...
I rushed to finish these in time to link up with TGIFF, held at Quilty Habit this week, and with Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.
Of course, I had to pick up a couple more mini-charms of Mixed Bag next time I was out!
One is a replacement, with it's original intent, and one to share with a lucky reader!
A name will be drawn for this sneaky little giveaway January 31st, 2014 at 5PM PST.
A fun token gift in appreciation of the great opportunity we have to connect as quilter's, online, to celebrate finishes, and to SHARE!
And simply because I enjoy giving and receiving fabric,
Please leave a comment to enter, if you like you can answer me this:
Oh Glorious Happy Giveaway Day in Quilting Blogland! Sooo many of the blogs I follow are offering generous giveaways today, I am having a hard time staying focused on the computer this morning! Tempestuous offers of fabrics are dangling about, and handmade's as well keep me jumping from one site to the next.
I began surfing, and leaving comments, and my excitement grew at the opportunity to WIN! Then I remembered the joy of GIVING & I decided I must head on over to Sew Mama Sew and CRASH THIS PARTY!
If you are new to my blog, welcome and thank you for the visit! I use this space to post about progress on projects once or twice a week. I blog to share with family and friends, and because I love meeting other quilter's online, especially funny quilter's (funny funny I mean, although funny odd is OK too). I enjoy being a part of the online community of quilting that has allowed quilter's to collaborate internationally. My part may be small, but I somehow feel we are contributing to history, a sort of New Age of quilting. I also find blogging helps me to accomplish more quilting!
My giveaway today is a kit I put together made of fabrics from my stash. I made these kits for my new Etsy Fabric Shop. I haven't finished quilting mine to show you, but here is a pieced square with the exact fabrics included...
The kit includes pre-cut fabric and a pattern to complete two Carpenter's Wheel blocks. I also did a tutorial for this block here.
Here is a photo of the first pillow kits I made, these with all vintage fabrics and finished quilting.
Anyone (with contact info) is eligible to win by commenting on this post prior to 5PM PST Friday, December 13th!
