I was able to get the cross border and the final Lucky Penny round finished yesterday.
And even better, I plan to baste it today at our HMQG sew-in.
The cross blocks were so much fun to make. I'd like to give these another go someday.
I'll also be basting this one today.
Next up, some bee blocks and a look ahead to future projects.
As usual, overpacking occurred, at least in terms of projects. I brought a laundry basket, which was essentially full of fabric and notions.
My goal was to focus on May bee blocks and my improv quilt top.
I also brought, but barely touched, a pajama set for Oliver. Oh, well. They'll get made someday.
But the positives! Yes, let's talk about what got done.
First up, I happily crossed off my do.Good Stitches May blocks, for Deb. These are patchwork wheel blocks, using Don't call me Betsy's tutorial. I always enjoy digging through the scrap bin, and I made sure to pack lots of fun fabrics for these blocks.
Next month is my first month to plan a do.Good Stitches quilt. I hope I can come with something just as fun!
One block got finished for Bee a Modern Swapper. Nilya asked for 2.5" unfinished postage stamps. I also managed to cut out the squares for my second block. That should be finished in the next few days.
It felt good to finish so many pieced blocks, and as a treat, I started assembling my improv quilt top Saturday night.
And I finished! There was a little bit of small piecing left, and then I just worked on assembling.
It feels so good to make serious progress on a large project like this. I've been mainly making minis, doing wedding stuff, and making bee blocks, so this was quite an accomplishment.
Want proof?
Just look at my face!
P.S. Thanks to my friend Safieh for the two quilt pictures!
For round two of the Wonky Bee, I chose Polaroid blocks. You've probably seen these floating around the blogosphere, and as far as I can tell, this was the first block, by Little Miss Shabby. Then, a tutorial was posted over here.
I asked the wonky girls for blocks with various gray backgrounds, wonky or not, as many photos as they'd like per block.
Blocks shown from Sara, Melissa and Jessica.
I've received blocks from all but one member (and it's okay; I wasn't in a rush for them!). I haven't photographed Nicke's blocks yet, but you can see them here.
Funnily enough, Rachel chose this same block for do. Good Stitches last month. Honestly, that's great, because they aren't difficult to make, and each one is different. I know I won't get tired of them before my quilt is done! I've only made one block for myself so far, and haven't photographed it.
Here are the blocks I made for Rachel.
I hope to make more Polaroid blocks soon! You should try them, too!
P.S. The HMQG retreat this weekend was so much fun!! It's already been decided that our guild will have an annual retreat. Over the weekend, I finished several bee blocks, and also, I have a quilt top!
It's this one, all done! Now, I just need to figure out what to back it with, and I'll get started on the quilting! And take a picture of the top, of course!
P.P.S. Still no wedding pictures, but sooooon!
I managed to finish one item from my recent list! Truth be told, the Friday before the wedding, I was quilting this! Not all day, mind you, but I snuck in a couple of hours to work on it. The Sunday after we got back from our honeymoon, I finished quilting and started the binding.
A few days later, I have a little finished mini!
It feels good to cross an item off the list, and this mini makes me so happy. Echo is definitely one of my favorite recent lines, and I can't wait for the follow-up, Bella!
In addition to Echo squares, I used a few small scraps of other lovely prints and solids. There's a little Modern Meadow, some Suzuko Koseki buttons (!), Essex linen, Kona Slate, and a few others. I bordered with a burgundy Kona (not sure of the exact color, but I can check if anyone is curious).
I might love the back just as much as the front! If I do, I'm sure it's due to those lovely Anthology yellow flowers. I love that print! I used some leftover odds and ends to complete the back.
This is quilted in yellow again with random lines, and I bound with another Anthology print, from Bryant Park.
It feels so good to be sewing after a short break! I'm off to a retreat with my guildmates this weekend; I'm sure we'll have fun!
Have a great weekend, my friends!
The wedding is just around the corner, and I've been crossing things off the list pretty steadily. I also opted to eliminate a few tasks I'd set for myself. I knew trying to get everything done would make me crazy, and I'd really like to avoid that.
Forty napkins are completely finished. The rest of them are made, but need to be washed and have labels sewn on.
I managed to finish my April Wonky Bee blocks this weekend, for Jessica. She's working on a quilt-as-you-go log cabin quilt, and sent along scraps to use. I added a few pieces, and really enjoyed making these.
A log cabin is always happy-making.
I also finished my first charity quilt. The Houston MQG has chosen the Star of Hope as our 2012 charity.
Through fabric donations, we've set a goal of 100 quilts for the year.
I supplemented the fabric I was given with solids and the DS print on the back. I really think it turned out great, and I was happy I was able to finish in time for our first donation date.
So, I've also been working on two non-obligatory projects.
Gray Plum, a new knitting project, from Veera Valimaki's Summer Plum. I'm knitting this KnitPicks Palette and I love it so far! I plan to take this for honeymoon knitting. Veera is also the designer of Stripe Study.
My other fun WIP is a project with one of my favorite lines, Echo.
About a month ago, I had this:
After this weekend, I have a mini quilt top:
. I assembled the back, too, and I love it as much as the front!
I'm awful about measuring quilts, but I'm going to try to remember to do that from now on. I used several other scraps to supplement/compliment the Echo. This one probably won't get done until after the wedding, but it's been a nice distraction!
I also obviously won't be sharing a finished Swoon anytime soon (hey, that rhymed!).
I expect to post pretty sporadically over the next couple of weeks, but I look forward to sharing wedding photos with you very soon!
I wanted to share with you the surprise gifts I received at last week's guild meeting.
Surprise doesn't even begin to describe it! I've only been a member for a few months, and I was touched by the generosity and thought that these ladies put into gifts for our wedding.
You know I love to cook, right?
The girls made things that we can use in the kitchen!
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| From HMQG March 2012 |
Chi made me this reversible apron (also, my face is another confirmation of silliness).
Here's the other side. I can't pick a favorite!
Amy made me these napkins and dishtowels, and also included some yellow bowls and mugs!
Pam made me this table runner; she included Insul-Brite, so it's a functional trivet!
Mona made me these adorable potholders, one granny square and one argyle.
I love the back of this one; she thought my wedding colors sounded like a weather forecast. It's so fun!
And finally, Robin drew my scraps in our guild swap.
In January, members brought in a bag of scraps to swap with another member (blindly). We then had two months to sew up the scraps into an item for that member.
Robin made me this dishtowel and potholder. I love them!
I drew Beth's scraps, and I made her this tote bag.
I must admit, Beth's scraps didn't really grab me, but I added the scribble print and the blue solid. I really like this bag now!
I've got some bee blocks and improv to share soon!
First off, wedding invitations are in the mail! I ordered these from Ruby Press on etsy. Her shop is closed for updates right now, but I highly recommend her shop. Ruby was responsive and helpful during the proof process, and worked with us to get the invitations just right.
In other wedding news, I (and now my mom is helping!) am making napkins for each guest. This is the first batch. I'm really happy with how they're turning out, and I'm excited to be using some stashed fabrics.
I also finished two of my March bee blocks. These blocks are my first for the Bee a Modern Swapper group. We used a Freshly Pieced tutorial for Mosaic Blocks. This color combination is definitely popular right now. My group for do.Good Stitches is using a similar palette this month.
The Houston Modern Quilt Guild is making charity quilts this month using (mostly) fabric donations. I finished quilting this over the weekend, and just need to apply binding. We expect to finish at least twenty quilts before April.
Sometime around Christmas, Rachel and I were chatting about dishcloths, and she was shocked when I said I'd never knitted a dishcloth. I guess I skipped that step when I was learning to knit. So I ought some Knit Picks Dishie, and got down to business.
I'm using the tried and true Mason-Dixon Ballband pattern. Just a few rows here and there, mostly at night when I'm winding down, but I'll have a finished washcloth soon!
I made this scrappy HST mini quilt for her gift, and included a S'mores chocolate bar and a charm pack of fabric.
I used a no-bind method to quilt this mini.
In a nutshell, you assemble the top, then quilt a few foundation lines through just the top and the batting, to secure it.
Then, you assemble (right sides together) the top/batting and back.
Leaving a gap to turn inside out, then flip right sides out, top stitch the perimeter to close the gap.
Then, quilt away! That's the last step! No binding!
A close up of the yellow stitching.
I got to use some fun fabrics in this piece. The HSTs are from my triangles on a roll trial run, and I used a small piece from my Pezzy Prints jelly roll (a prize from Brenda's blog!).
I'm also excited to share that I now have a complete FQ set of Anna Maria's Good Folks fabrics! I love this line, and have tracked down all of the prints, bit by bit. The last several fat quarters are a result of a swap with Leslie. I cannot thank her enough!
Later this week, I plan on sharing a little wedding chatter with you. We're at the two month mark!
I've also got a few received goodies to share.
I received this special package from my good friend Rachel. She shared some homemade huckleberry jam, one of her signature calendars, and two skeins of Brooklyn Tweed Loft! Wow. Rachel is such an amazing person. I so admire that she loves her work, and I always enjoy seeing what crafty things she's doing. Thanks again, Rachel! I'm touched.
You may remember the Echino stag and Melody Miller tea cup pouches I made a few weeks ago? Those were for Rachel, along with one of my coffee (or tea) cozies)!
My other package was a large box of fabric from Pink Castle Fabrics.
Half Moon Modern scissors and the green chevron print. These prints are so bright!
I also scored a layer cake of the amazing " A Stitch in Color", Malka's new Moda line. I have a small piece of her hand printed fabric, so I was anxious to see the Moda-printed line in person! It's vibrant, and I'm already dreaming up ways to use the prints.
I also got a couple of yards of Anna Maria Horner's beautiful new flannel, which I plan to quickly transform into new pillowcases. The thought of a flannel pillowcase seems cozy.
In other swap and gift news, I received my #ssswap last week. My secret santa was Megan!
She made me an adorable zipper pouch, and sent along some stitch markers and some homemade caramels (which have already been devoured!). Fun! Thanks, Megan. I love it all!
Last, but certainly not least, my pal Amy, made lots of these adorable pouches in different fabric combinations. She gave one to each attendee of the HMQG holiday. These are so cute, and I love the kitty print!
Well, that's all for today.
I managed to finish the big secret project, which was a quilt for my sister. She loves it, however, the weather was so dreary all weekend that no pictures exist yet!
She has promised to take some photos soon so that I can share the FO with you!
I've been thinking about my 2012 crafting goals, and I'll be sharing them with you soon.
Oh, and I have a small birthday this week, too. ;)
Talk soon!
I am now the lucky girl with a mini-compost of my very own, as well as an amazing hand-print by Margot Bianca. There's also a wee pouch by Splityarn for me to enjoy.
Wow. Amazing. Thank you again, C, for your sweet gift!
Now, I've got a lovely space above my ironing board to enjoy.
The final reminder of community I received this week was attending my first Houston Modern Quilt Guild meeting. Meeting quilters in person was exhilarating, and made me even more excited about the upcoming Sewing Summit. In fact, I met some gals who will be attending, so I'll know a few familiar faces!
You can look at this photo to see what some of the members did with the Habitat challenge! Very cool projects going on.
I'll definitely be attending more meetings and events, and they're having meetups during the International Quilt Show, too!
