Not Quite Vintage

count em... yep, 7 quilt blocks

Hello there, it is me again. I finally found a little time to get some crafting done over the past week. It was more like I finally made time for crafting than found extra time… you know? I wont bore you with my it has been so busy at work lately whining, instead I will just show you three months (yes I just admitted to being multiple months behind) of quilt blocks for the Pieced Together Quilting Bee.

 

First up is the Cathedral Window block for Sandy. This one was a bit tricky. I was really careful but things still seemed to come out a bit wonky. I really hope it matches up with the others and I didn’t hold up Sandy’s process too much by being dreadfully late.

 

Second are Michelle's half-square triangle blocks. I love half-square triangles – my month of the bee was a simple block of half-square triangles made out of menswear shirts. The combination of pink and orange was so lovely, so cheery. I would never have put those colors together on my own and I am so glad Michelle introduced me to the combination – I have a feeling it will start popping up in my stash.

 

Last are Katie, our fair quilting bee organizer’s vintage sheet blocks inspired by Oh Frannson’s Mod Quilt Sampler Quilt Along. I really loved the fabrics – that blue, lilac and green combination in the sheet was divine. I had a lot of fun putting these together – great fabrics and simple blocks patterns.

 

It really did feel good to be back sewing. I always forget how much I love it while on a break only to find it a wonderful way to spend an evening or an afternoon totally immersed in the sewing and happily unconcerned with the stressors of life. Yep, need to remember to MAKE more time for sewing or really any form of creativity when times are hectic.

PTQB2 April

April is my month for the Pieced Together Quilting Bee and I am happy to say all my packages are in the mail - and it is still March (at least for a few more hours). 

I am going simple this round and asking for simple block of half square triangles made from 5 inch charm squares - four squares by four squares. I was inspired by a quilt I remember from my childhood. My great aunt Sue made my sister Debbie a scrap quilt for her wedding present - at least this is the story I remember. I remember the quilt on her bed and it being stored in her hope chest when it was too warm. I also remember how cozy it was. It was made from a collection of scraps from old clothing and from old sewing projects. Nothing matched, but that added to its charm. 

I am not going so far as not having my fabrics match (I am sure you aren't surprised) but I am recycling a collection of menswear shirts from my Pops' closet that were on the way to Goodwill (they were all close to new but are now more than a size too large for him). They are a mixture of stripes, checks and plaids in blue, white and tan. I am pairing them with Kona Cotton is Ash - a grayish linen type color. I am really excited for this quilt - I love the colors, the blocks should go together easy and quilting will be relatively simple with all the straight and diagonal lines to follow.

And yes, I am still procrastinating on the cathedral window block for March... Sandy, I promise to work on it this weekend!

three tree block

My November block for the Pieced Together Quilting Bee is complete and in the mail just one day late... that is pretty good considering the month of November went by like a crazy, busy blur.

I am so glad I decided to take the time to work on this today. You know how after a really hectic day it is just so easy to sit on the sofa a veg for the evening? That is what I really wanted to do today, but there was this little twinge inside that said "do something creative tonight, it will make you feel better." That little twinge was right - I feel relaxed and accomplished... and now I am going to sit on the sofa and veg after I finish this post.

November's block is for Darci. She requested a Tree block for an unofficial Christmas Tree quilt. She supplied lots of lovely green and red fabrics - none of which were actually Christmas themed fabrics, but all together you definitely get the holiday feel from them. I had so much fun making this block. I love sewing tiny pieces/strips of fabric together so I I pieces two string trees, one tall and skinny and one short and stocky. In between I had fun with a few triangles. I think this is one of my fabric blocks I have made for the bee. I hope Darci likes it.

Check out some of the other cool trees in the Pieced Together Quilting Bee - they are all lots of fun.

This block has me wanting to find time to make lots of fun Christmas crafts and decorations. I am not sure if I will get to lots, but hopefully I will fit in a few in the next couple weeks. Up first is the crochet start garland I started a week or so ago. I have 8 stars done, just a few to go before I can string them together and decorate the mantel.

tiny log cabins and string blocks

Wow, I completed these quilt blocks close to two weeks ago and I am just now getting around to posting about them. Goodness time flew over the past two weeks... It has been busy, and I don't think it is going to quiet down for a while. Its a bit overwhelming at the moment but I am sure I will figure out how to juggle everything soon. More on all this later - this post is supposed to be about the quilt blocks : )

Up first are tiny log cabin blocks for Valerie. I must confess that every time I open up a Pieced Together Quilting Bee package and see paper piecing inside I cringe. Seriously, 4 inch log cabin blocks - wow. But look how cute they are. And Valerie set us up for success - she cut out all our pieces, supplied us with the pattern and the order of fabrics. After I laid out the fabrics is ready set sew fashion I was able to sew these up in about an hour.

And it was even fun ripping out all the little pieces of paper - weird I know.

 

Second up are four sting quilt blocks for Sandy. These were fun too... although when I neared the fourth block I wasn't quite sure I was going to have enough fabric. I always try to plan, end up running short and then everything ends up okay even after the panic. Am I the only one? 

 

Can't wait to see what blocks come my way for November and December! 

spiderweb block #3

September of the Pieced Together Quilting Bee brought another spiderweb quilt block request to my mailbox. I remember a few months back when I was soooo nervous to try paper piecing and now I can sew up a spiderweb block without following directions - crazy. Progress, that is progress.

I now love this block. Not sure if I would ever take the time to make an entire quilt myslef, but a pillow might be added to my crafty to do list for the near future. Ok, maybe distant future... I need to be realistic, with only ten weeks till Christmas I have a lot of other things to get moving on, like the project I bought all the fleece for.

drunk love block

Last night I checked another Pieced Together Quilting Bee block of my extremely long crafty to do list. It may still be long, but I am so happy to be making progress... especially on the things that are past their due dates!

The block was for Jody. She requested a Drunk Love block ala Denyse Schmidt Quilts. I always loved that pattern so I was excited to work on this one. The fabric cutting took a decent amount of time - and it was for only one block - I can't imagine how long it would take to cut out an entire quilt. 

Once I had the pieces cut I pulled out my Denyse Schmidt Quilts book for reference. I wanted to make sure I sewed the pieces in the correct order and ended up with a nice square block... The drunk love part of the quilt is a gorgeous effect, but you have to trust Denyse to know her stuff and that the block will square up in the end because along the way it seems a bit wonky and wrong.

To keep myself in line, I followed her Compass Pin technique. This simply suggests that you place a pin facing north (away from you) in the center piece of the block so when you turn the block while sewing you can easily keep track of what she calls the ready-set-sew position. I also followed her Modified Log Cabin technique in which you sew the top and bottom pieces first and then the left and right pieces before starting all over again.

I love the finished product. The muted color combination Jody chose is really nice. I can't wait to see her finished quilt top.

a circle and a cabin... block

A quiet Friday night at home was the perfect time to catch up on my Pieced Together Quilting Bee blocks. I completed two and have 2 more planned and ready to be sewn this week.

First up was the July block for Edith. Yes, I said July and it is now October. Oops. Honestly, this one had me stumped for a while. The "add a circle" request had me blocked. I dove in on Friday and came up with this. In the end I am pretty happy with it, plus I got to practice machine applique. Bonus. And like always, when I get nervous or stumped, it is never as bad as I make it out to be in my head. Someday I will learn.

Second was Kathy's August block. A fun scrappy log cabin out of an assortment of Amy Bulter fabrics. I really like how this one turned out. The color combination is really pleasing.

Speaking of Amy Butler fabrics, have you seen her new line LOVE? Want, want, want.

catching up on the bee

After a nice summer blogging and crafting vacation, I am finally getting back to it. First up on the list was to catch up on my Pieced Together Quilting Bee blocks. Over the past week I have completed three and it really feels great to be back sewing.

First up was Allison's Drunkard Path block. I waited way to long to sew this one. Honestly the circles scared me. I had a mental block. Funny thing is once I got started it was pretty darn simple. History repeats itself once again - I really need to work through the fear of trying new techniques because each and every time I get a really nice sense of satisfaction after learning something new. It is empowering.

You know that sense of empowerment, it helped me face Michelle's block. She chose some patriotic fabrics and asked us to create a 12 inch block using a nostalgic, traditional pattern. I searched and searched for one that I thought would use the fabrics provided nicely and fit within my skill level. I found instructions for the School Girl's Puzzle on about.com and I knew I had found a winner. The instructions were well written and I didn't have any trouble following them. I really like how the block turned out - I think more triangles are going to find their way into my quilting.

My last block is a spiderweb block for Stephanie. This one was a breeze since we had already practiced spiderwebs for Sara. The fabrics Stephanie sent were lots of fun.

More quilt blocks on the agenda for this week... and I need to bind a little boy baby quilt I have been working on. I'll share soon.

PTQB April blocks

Last night on the way home from work I caught a second wind and was inspired by the nice weather to lock myself in my basement and sew. I know that seems counter-intuitive, but I did open the basement door and let the fresh air in. Actually the nice weather inspired my creativity and that motivated me to get sewing and finish my Pieced Together Quilting Bee April blocks. And from what I know about myself, I need to strike while the motivation is high or I will continue to procrastinate.

The first block I worked on was for Erin of Two More Seconds. She asked for "Rectangles and Squares" and those are two things I love, so this block was a breeze. I also loved her sunny color scheme and paid homage by keeping the colors together. It really makes me think of Summer.

The second block I worked on was for Stephanie of Creative Reveries. She asked for a scrappy log cabin. I sorta complied. It started out that way and then I it kinda veered away. I used up almost every little scrap of fabric and some of the pieces I used were really little. Hope Stephanie doesn't mind.

I need to learn to plan a bit more before I start sewing blocks so that I use the available fabric better. I hope that will come with practice. It really makes me wonder if I sent out enough fabric for May. If you are a fellow PTQB-er, please let me know if you need additional fabric and I will happily send it your way!

PTQB May fabric is in the mail!

Whew, my Pieced Together Quilting Bee May block fabric is in the mail... and before May 1st. I mailed it yesterday, just in the nick of time!

It was a lot more work getting the packages ready than I was expecting. Honestly it wore me out... but it was a lot of fun. I included a little instruction sheet in each package - can I tell you how hard it was to decide what type of quilt I wanted? Seriously, I had so many ideas along the way, but I settled on sharing some of my likes and some inspiration links and letting the creative ladies be inspired by my fabric.

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And on another subject. Remember the birds nest I found nestled in my rose bushes? Well, the speckled egg is now a little birdie! I am having fun checking in on "her" everyday and watching her grow.