STUD Sneak Peek

Sneak Peek, a photo by QuiltyBee on Flickr.

Sorry for the lousy pic--it's snowing outside!

Anyhow, my swap partner says she likes half square triangles--so I'm combining these with an idea I've always wanted to try. Look how small! I don't think they will ALL be this tiny--had to finger press these babies first, and then no steam on the iron.

Maybe working on this little thing will help me feel like spring--we're supposed to get 3 inches of white stuff today :(

You know, as I kid I always admired postage stamp quilts--until I realized how small those blocks are. I could barely get these through the machine--the feed dogs thought they were just a piece of lint. How small have you worked?

Joys

• My Friday morning extra cup
• yellow & orange fabrics
• my hubby's back is improving (which means he can do more of his chores!)

STUD Swap Finish

Sunflower Days

This pic is pretty mediocre, but I love this little quilt I sent to Sunflowerquilts. Can you see they're sunflowers? 

I took a cue from Malka Dubrosky's Fresh Quilting with a kind of improv log cabin block. My partner and I agreed to use only from our stash, since we're both in StashPact11. I've fallen in love with yellow and grey, so I got out all my yellows, with a few orange scraps, and the grey. I didn't worry about how big each one was, just sewed them all together.

I hope it goes in Sunflowerquilt's home--it looks on her blog as if she has quite a bit of black furniture . . .

I have a few more yellow blocks that I plan to sash with a medium grey for ME.

Joys

• More sunshine . . .although yesterday was 50 (!) and today started out at 8. March.
• All the purples and grays for my son's graduation quilt are collected.
• A night off--no meetings, etc. Yay

Sneek Peak

Or Wednesday WIP, take your pick.

 

Actually, this mini will be finished by the end of the day and in the mail on Thursday. I really want to keep it for myself. Yellow & gray are my current faves! Should be able to post a finished pic by Monday.

Joys

• Sunshine, glorious sunshine! Spring is right around the corner.
• Grandma's coming home from the hospital tomorrow--no nursing home for now.
• #1 Son gets to go to NASA for h.s. field trip--he's so excited!

Mail Box Boon

Sew & Tell Friday

Here are my May STUD quilts.
Top left, a wonderful sewing machine from Scrapnchick, inspired by my previous post on my mother and her sewing machine. The details are great, as was the letter sent along with it. I just love it!

Top right, SaraSQuilts "Wish You Were Here" mini of her farm in PA. Check out the little cows in front of the barn! The back also has a lovely pieced star. This will look great in my office "gallery"--thank you!


I've been waiting to Sew & Tell my May contributions. On the lower left, my "Wish You Were Here in Iowa." Later in the summer, the goldfinches (Iowa state bird) will flock to our sunflower folly ( a 10 ft circle of sunflowers). Everything in Iowa is surrounded by corn and bean fields, shaded in all kinds of green and golds at one time or another.

On the lower right is my "Anything Goes." Scrapnchick said she loved cherries, and I really wanted to try Oh, Fransson's rick rack block (see older post). Harder than it looks, at least for me to keep straight, so I embraced the wonky!

Check out more Sew & Tell's over at Amylouwho's (click on the sidebar button). Have a great weekend!

Gratitudes

• A good week at state church meetings with a little road trip thrown in--fun to get out of town!
• Starting a new STUD mini
• I'm in the DQS9! I have all summer to let my ideas percolate.

STUD Sneak Peek

Wish You Were Here STUD swap

Not any better clue than Sara gave me :) On its way today!

If you want to enter my 75th post giveaway, scroll down. Open until Thursday!

Sneak Peek

Sew & Tell Friday

Hmmm. . . which swap partner do you think will like these? Inspired by Oh, Fransson's Rick Rack block, I started with the yellow and blue scraps. After looking for some dots (to be like Elizabeth), I found this great cherry fabric from Robert Kaufman--my partner LOVES cherries (or so she says).

Anyhow, turns out this classic square within a square block is not so simple to keep square--the rick rack adds just enough bulk. So I cut the yellow one a bit wonky after the 2nd round--to cover up embracing the natural process instead of fighting it. Yeah, that's why. I just love this fresh look.

Today I will finish up this mini and get started on the "Wish You Were Here" swap--too many ideas for that one! I have the entire day to myself!

Check back Monday for a giveaway celebrating 75 posts!

Graitudes

• Blessed by an impressive school orchestra concert--don't my boys look sharp! The music was truly beautiful, too. Their teacher really loves these kids.
• Our cat, Chin, returned Sunday after 32 days missing! A little on the skinny side, but otherwise in good shape. Everyone except the dog is thrilled!
• So proud of all the new graduates--we've been making the rounds of receptions--many of these kids were in my Sunday School classes years ago. They have grown up to be so poised and respectful and fun. Next year our oldest DS will join their ranks (is that a tear rolling down my cheek?).

Check out all the other great Sew & Tells over at Amy's--just click on the button in the sidebar!

SEW Much Fun Swaps

Sew & Tell Friday

Don't Be A Square for Meg
April's STUD Swap couldn't be square. I spent most of the month thinking about the possibilities--circles, hexes. . . . after lurking around Meg's website I knew I wanted to use Asian fabrics. Finally, I went for simple--this great star. It was definitely easy until . . . .

The binding. I know, I know, IN THEORY the miters work the same way as a 90 degree angle, but it real life it took 2 tries and a lot of brain time. Turns out splitting this angle and matching it with the points was pretty much not ever what i expected. It looks ok, but I know it could be more precise. I did find some special rulers online for this purpose, but I don't have one yet--pretty sure I'll make more of these little mats. About 12 inches across, I really like the way this pattern highlights the fabric.

For April's Anything Goes Swap I made this:




I always wanted to try the Crazy Mom Quilts Zig Zag without triangles. SaraSQuilts likes blue and green and modern fabrics. Turns out following the directions (use the same fabric as half of each set throughout) would make the layout MUCH simpler. And I would have liked the color to go from dark to light--but it didn't quite work out. Still, this is another fun pattern with lots of possibilities.

Still lovin' these swaps--they're a great chance to try something new and get to know someone a little better. Up for May: Wish You Were Here (I got to pick the theme). Hmmm. . .should I do pigs, corn, cardinals, ice cream . . . .surprisingly, the options in Iowa are nearly endless :)

Gratitudes

• My mother's sewing machine is on its way to my house (a special inheritance to be sure)
• It's Friday--'nuf said
• We all survived prom--and DS even had fun!

Amy over at Sew & Tell just had a beautiful baby girl, so I'm not sure if they'll be a spot this week, but there are lots of great links to check out anyhow--just click on the button in the side bar.

::Fresh Churn Dash for ME!::

Check out this red & aqua love sent to me by SaraSQuilts for April's STUD swap. It is a sweet mini with beautiful shoo fly churn dash blocks and lovely quilting (despite her protests). There is something about these simple, straightforward yet wonderful quilts. I find myself drawn to 2,3 or 5 fabric quilts over and over.

Thank you Sara! I promise I'm working diligently tonight on yours--it WILL be out early this week.

Speaking of which, I have been so busy that sewing has taken a real back seat to life (could you tell by my non-existent posts?). Now, we are finished with confirmation (DS was dashing in his suit) and 8th grade Washington DC trips; we're gearing up for a new round of concerts, prom (!) and other end of school stuff. Busy time! But so much fun.

Gratitudes

• Surprisingly sweet teenage boys--they have their moments!
• Huge blooming bleeding heart just outside my kitchen window
• The promise of summer

And J is for . . . .

JELLY BEANS!

My "J" mini from QuiltinLady21 came in the mail yesterday for March's STUD swap. This is so cute. I love her choice of colors to go with the jelly beans, and the quilting is great. Look closely to see jigsaw quilting in the jelly beans.

She also included some nice goodies--FQ and Jelly Bellies (already gone! I can't even blame my teenagers.) All in all, a very nice package. Thanks, Peg! It is great to get to you know just a little bit. What a great swap STUD is!

Otherwise, it's busy, busy, busy--I'm a church secretary, so I have lots of bulletins to produce this week. Come back Friday for my Sew & Tell Finish--I'm pretty tickled about it!

Gratitudes

• Absolutely gorgeous weather--80 degrees yesterday in Iowa!
• Very effective allergy meds--gorgeous weather = tree pollen!
• My husband & I have been loving "McLeod's Daughters" on netflix--a fun getaway for us during a busy time.

D is for . . .

Sew & Tell Friday

Dots & Daisies, Dizzy, Ditzy Dots & Daisies!

The theme this month is Alphabet Mania, and I was assigned D. This seemed like the perfect chance to try out some new techniques from Rebecca Wat's book, A Fresh Twist on Fabric Folding. These petals start with a kind of origami-folded rectangle; with a single line of stitching, it's all transformed into a petal and appliqued down on a background.

For the background, I tried out the crazy 9 patch block tutorial by Jenny B at allsorts. Of course, I can't quite follow directions--I only used 3 fabrics instead of 9, which added some difficulty. But I was fairly happy with the 4 blocks I used for the background.

My main goal was to use as many dots as possible and make the focus as blue as possible because blue is what Peg likes! I would do some things differently, but overall, I think it's fun & pretty, and I hope Peg likes it!

Check out all the great Sew & Tell finishes over at amylouwho's! 

Gratitudes

• True spring weather (wind, cold, sunshine!).
• The first crocus have bloomed right next to the back door.
• Looking forward to an evening with 20 middle schoolers--confirmation mini lock-in (only until 11:30 pm). They are much more fun than they get credit for.

Finally . . .

Sew & Tell Friday!

 

Finally, I can talk about this mini I made for my January Swap Til You Drop (STUD) partner--I had fun playing with snowball blocks and using up some pink someone had given me. I was really stumped on the quilting, though. I think a stipple or something would highlight the blocks better. Sometimes when I looked at it I could NOT find the snowballs at all. I know using more fabrics would help, and I thought maybe larger corners might (but I didn't like the snowball shape with bigger corners). All in all, I'd like to make more snowballs.

I also completed a pillow cover for a Valentine's Swap. (Ok, Mary, if don't want to see it now, stop reading.)  

You know, I LOVE these swaps: it's fun to virtually meet other people, as much fun to lurk around their postings to try to figure out what they might like; at the same time, it's hard to start--paralyzed by the desire for perfection. You want so badly for them to love your piece. For the Valentine swap, I felt my partner would welcome appreciate a wide range of ideas, so I felt a little freer to experiment. This is actually plan C--I liked the first two, but they weren't very Valentine-y! It's all an interesting process. And yes, this was supposed to be wonky (maybe even wonkier than it actually turned out).

I started with Jacquie's wonky heart tutorial. (She posted about her heart quilt today--very cool.) But of course, I didn't really follow directions--and I ended up with a heart that had too much emphasis on the red polk dots. I wanted "love" birds, so instead of putting them next to the heart (love + birds, get it?), I put them on top. Then I had to relearn how to do satin stitch on my machine. I think the top one looks a bit more like a starling, but I guess they find love, too. Anyhow, I basically like it, and I hope my partner does, too.

For more great Sew & Tell (provided you actually read all this!) go to Amy's.

Gratitudes

• Settled (but cold!) weather that doesn't require so much shoveling!
• A day off on Saturday.
• The movie Julie & Julia--I might have to watch it again. My mom made boeuf bourguignon, too!

Dec Swap Til You Drop STUD!

Check out this lovely hint of spring from my Dec STUD swap partner! She loves to paper piece, and as the theme was Go Green, she choose everything from her stash. This looks so nice in my office; I'm starting to have a regular little gallery! Thank you Cyndi!

Since Cyndi has an entire blog devoted to her camping travels (they even went to the Quilt Show in Sisters, Oregon, clear from southern California!), I just had to use this camper fabric. I even talked my boss at my LQS to GIVE me her last 1/2 yard from the remnant pile so I could say this was GO GREEN and entirely from my stash (or at least I didn't buy anything for it).

The trees are an experiment from a Figgy Pudding pattern (couldn't find a pic of it anywhere)  Pink Chalk Studios sent me with my last order. You fold a rectangle in half (hot dog style) and then cut on the vertical diagonal with right sides out. Sandwich that in between two strips and stitch. Open up and press the resulting triangle flat. Hard to explain but pretty cool--the tree has side flaps that lift up from the background!

The camper has VW camper busses on it, too, just like we had when I was a kid, so I think I'll have to make another version for my folks. Again, I will try to use only scraps/stash!

My, oh my, I LOVE these swaps. They insure that I get something finished! And I have fun thinking about what my partners might like. Also, I get something new in the mail each month!

GRATITUDES

• A very cozy house, even with 22 inches of snow outside! (Yes, we were totally snowed in Christmas Day--never got dressed!)
• A fresh start with 2010, UFOs or not.
• Leave It To Beaver on netflix with my teenagers--we all think it's hilarious! Funny, I don't really remember the parents--of course, I wasn't even born the first few years it was on. :)
  

Sew & Tell Friday

::Nov STUD Swap::

I had so much FUN with this little quilt--I got the background finished fairly early in November, then I had a fantastic cold. Finally this week I was able to finish the yo-yos--only to find that the ones I'd made were not BIG enough (didn't take into account overlapping them).

Frantically, I made some larger ones and searched for buttons (I wanted to mail it on time to be in the Dec swap!). In the end, I was really pleased with the results. I didn't even want to mail it off! Nearly done with a smaller version (using the first yo-yo's) for myself.

 

November's theme is "Winter with a Twist." I have something sweet (candy border), something sparkly (lots of fairy frost and shiny thread), and something vintage (like--yo-yos).

Lessons learned:

1. Overlap yo-yos look cool.
2. One can spend oh-so-much time choosing buttons!
3. Backstitch rayon quilting because rayon thread slips out of knots.

Can't wait to get going on the December SWAP ~ Go Green!

For more Sew & Tell fun, go here.

This has been a tough week, but my GRATITUDES are:

• Satisfaction in finishing a truly nice swap.
• Great meatloaf sandwich for lunch (it reminds me of Grandma)
• No need to shop much for Christmas gifts--most of my family is perfectly happy with HANDMADE!

 

::WIP Wednesday -- Secret Project::

I can't show my work in progress--no more peeks until my swap partner receives her winter mini. I hope she likes it, but if not she can send it back (I like it!)

I am a little behind schedule due to this monster cold--I can't remember the last time I had one last a week! Praying it will dramatically improve before Sunday when I'm playing flute in church (deep breathing is kind of essential for that :)

 My best wishes to everyone out there for a Happy Thanksgiving! We are looking forward to game day with 2 teenage boys before going to Grandma & Grandpa for a big supper! Have a blessed day doing something you want!

Gratitudes

The beginning of holidays!

Relative health (achoo!)

Sunday I can start playing all my Christmas CDs at work :)

Sunday STUD

::November:: Swap Til You Drop (STUD!) Quilty Received!

Thanks to my swap partner for this sweet little quilt. The theme is winter with a twist~it had to have 3 of these 4: something sweet (candy cane fabric), something soft (flannel mittens), something sparkly (snowflakes & gold quilting), and something vintage.

I think she did a great job~and check out the goodies she included: scraps from this quilt, some nice hot things to drink on a winter's eve, a coaster & a notebook. A lovely package all around. And she's so speedy! THANK YOU!!

As soon as it snows, I'll be hanging this up in my office!

I love these swaps~like the sew-n-tell, they really motivate me to get a little somethin' done. It's fun to ponder what to make my partner, and it's fun to receive such a nice surprise. My November SWAP is coming along--probably done this Friday. I can't show you what it is until she receives it. :)

Gratitudes

• Quilting projects to keep me insane
• A sweet DH who makes me coffee EVERY morning
• The cutest (if not stinkiest) corgi mix who follows me around as if I'm the center of the universe--unless someone else has some food.

Have a great week! The best time of year is coming soon!