The Habit of Giving

One of my summer sewing traditions these last few years has been to participate in 100 Quilts for Kids. Hosted by Heather/Quilts in the Queue, 100 Quilts for Kids is an annual charity quilt drive that encourages quilters to make a quilt and donate it to a child in need. One thing I love about this effort is that you are encouraged to donate quilts in your own community. I've set a few aside through the year, with plans to deliver them to my local Project Linus chapter. Here's what I'm sharing this year.

ETNO! Baby


Mod Irish


On the Clock

 

This year, the campaign is running from August 1-September 30. There's a place to link up, and a chance for prizes, even. Glance at this post which shows quilts I've donated in past drives, many with links to fun and simple quilt patterns that could still be made in plenty of time. Plus this year, I used my Quarter-Cut Baby Quilt Top tutorial, which provides another quick option. Hope you consider joining us in the giving tradition. It's a good thing.

Linking up with 100 Quilts for Kids. Join us in using the hashtag #100quilts4kids on Instagram (though I see #100quiltsforkids being used too).

Giving

One of my summer sewing traditions these last few years has been to participate in 100 Quilts for Kids, first sponsored by Katie/Swim Bike Quilt and currently by Heather/Quilts in the Queue. One thing I love about this quilt drive is that you are encouraged to donate your quilts locally. So each year, I've given mine to my local chapter of Project Linus.

I thought you might enjoy seeing the quilts I've donated in past years, as they have all been simple ones that have been fun yet non-stressful to sew together. I've linked each quilt name to the pattern or tutorial for easy reference.

Comic Strip (2011)
pattern and Sherbet Pips fabric by Aneela/comfortstitching 

Storytime Squares (2011) 
tutorial by Rae/made by RAE

Sweet Baby Girlie Charm Square Quilt (2012) 
tutorial by Elizabeth/Don't Call Me Betsy

Twinkle (2013)
Star Bright tutorial by Katie/Swim Bike Quilt


And while I'm hoping to make another donation quilt by the end of September, so far I have 2¢ Stamp all ready to go.


If you're interested in joining in, Heather posted a few ideas recently and has a Charity Quilt Inspiration board full of them. There's also the #100quilts4kids hashtag on Instagram and the finished quilt link up itself - plenty of inspiration to create a special quilt to share.

Twinkle

Ever since Katie/SwimBikeQuilt announced this years 100 Quilts for Kids charity quilt drive, I planned on participating, just like I had the last two years. Unfortunately I got waylaid and missed the official link up by about 10 days. The good news? I've finished my quilt and will be donating it locally to Project Linus.

I chose Katie's own pattern, "Star Bright," and as soon as I went to my stash closet, I knew it was the perfect choice. As I was looking for grays to use, I came across the stack of gray 10" squares I had swapped a while back. A little trimming made quick work of prepping fabric for construction. It's fair to say this was the quickest quilt top ever.

Backing is Erin McMorris' Floradots in Saffron, one of the yellows used on the front. I opted for super quick quilting, using Aurifil 50wt white and my machine's curvy stitch to quilt along both sides of each square. That resulted in a really squishy, comfy quilt, just as I'd hoped.

For binding, I got a little advice from Instagram, and didn't need much encouragement to go with Collage Newsprint Stripe. It made a fun finish for this quilt, and I love the bits of red scattered about.

So late for the quilt drive, yes, but still perfect timing to warm and comfort a child in my community.

A Finish or Two

So I finally finished a quilt for 100 Quilts for Kids, a charity quilt project led by Katie of Swim, Bike, Quilt. It's a simple little design, Sweet Baby Girlie Charm Square Quilt by Elizabeth of Don't Call Me Betsy. What drew me was that in addition to some neutral fabric, it used just 1 charm pack, which is basically what I had of "Meet the Gang". (Thanks, Kate!)

Piecing blocks was a snap, as was the wavy stitched grid I quilted.

A wonderfully coordinating binding stripe was waiting in my stash - just the right mix of colors from Woodland Trails by Sheri Berry Designs.

This quilt finished somewhat smaller than I expected (about 40" square), but is just the perfect size for a toddler to drag along. I'll be donating it to my local Project Linus chapter.

Also on the finished list are a couple of sweet drool bibs for my friend Toni, who just had a precious little baby girl. I tried a new pattern, Little Baby Bibs by Clover & Violet. This tutorial was fun to do up with scraps and some organic quilting. Hoping baby Jillian can make good use of them!

Linking up with Fabric Tuesday and 100 Quilts for Kids.

W.i.P. Wednesday

It feels like much of my 'sewing' time since last W.i.P. Wednesday was actually spent writing. But I've wanted to do up a tutorial for my Triple-Zip Pouch for a few weeks now, so it's good to have that done!

Completed projects
Triple-Zip Pouch + tutorial - As I explained the other day, it had been just long enough since my first triple-zip that I felt a little fuzzy on all the details. So I made this second one, and you can find the completed tutorial here.

Ongoing projects
Zakka Style Sew-Along project #20: Little Pocket Pillowcase - I certainly hope the most time-consuming part is done! And now that the pocket patchwork is complete, I hope to be able to finish this project soon.

*Picture-Perfect* Polaroid Block Swap - SO close to being done with my blocks! Good think since the deadline to ship blocks is today!

100 Quilts donation quilt - Stitching on the binding, so close to a finish here too.

Improv log-cabin quilt - No progress unfortunately.

Upcoming projects
* more Zakka - only four more to go!
* August do.Good Stitches blocks
* August Always Bee Learning blocks - more improv!
* August Modern Blocks Bee blocks
* a quilt to coordinate with my Christmas tree skirt
* scrappy Metrolink
* Plus quilt for my sister-in-law - I was mistaken; it's really a Modern Cross quilt using Susan Beal's pattern.
* EZ Dresden Challenge project - still hoping - at least I have wedges cut now!

Linking up with W.i.P. Wednesday, guest hosted by Cindy from Live a Colorful Life.

W.i.P. Wednesday

Here it is W.i.P. Wednesday again! I managed to wrap up my third Finish-A-Long finish this week, joined in on Allegory's Prep Party, which was really helpful, and finally got started on a quilt for 100 Quilts for Kids.

Completed projects
Zakka Style Sew-Along project #18: Bread Basket - I just love the linen fabrics I found in my stash for this project, and currently am enjoying using this basket on my sewing table.

Zakka Style Sew-Along project #19: Sweet Sugar Cookie Sack - A relaxing evening watching the Olympics allowed me time to embroider the front little patch (shock! I know!), and from there it was a quick finish. I'll share a complete post on this little sack tomorrow.

Digits, formerly known as QWERTY II - Presented this to my coworker yesterday and she looooved it! Not sure why I put it off so long, as it was really fun to make up. (full post here)

Ongoing projects
*Picture-Perfect* Polaroid Block Swap - Still puttering along with these. I seem to be dragging them out as long as humanly possible.

100 Quilts donation quilt - Thanks to the Prep Party, I was able to come up with a pattern and fabric to make Don't Call Me Betsy's Sweet Girlie Charm Square Quilt. I'm using some charms won from my friend Kate of Katie Mae Quilts. They are from Andover Fabrics "Meet the Gang", and I thought they'd be perfect for a child's quilt. There's two basic block styles, both quite simply pieced.

Improv log-cabin quilt - I have everything I need pulled for this mini, which I'll create with Quilting Modern  open next to me on my sewing table (p. 70-71). I'm looking forward to trying some improv on a small {safe} scale!

Upcoming projects
* more Zakka
* August do.Good Stitches blocks NEW
* August Always Bee Learning blocks - more improv! NEW
* August Modern Blocks Bee blocks NEW
* a quilt to coordinate with my Christmas tree skirt
* scrappy Metrolink
* Plus quilt for my sister-in-law
* EZ Dresden Challenge project - still hoping - at least I have wedges cut now!

Linking up with W.i.P. Wednesday.

Prepping

Oh my goodness. When I saw Allegory's post suggesting we all have a prep party the first Sunday of each month, I thought it was the best idea! Trying to work down my own "to do" list while simultaneously participating in a swap, monthly bees, and a sew-along . . . well, things can get confusing! And having some prep done as I head into a new month seemed like it would be sooo helpful! So in a relatively short amount of time this afternoon, I did the following prep work:

• Tracing pattern for embroidery onto fabric for this week's zakka project - and yes, I changed it up just a tad. Also cut out the other fabric I'll need.

• I have a bee block that needs a fix, so I hunted down the fabric needed and have that ready to stitch back up.

• Binding made for QWERTY II. 

• Pattern chosen and fabric cut for a 100 Quilts for Kids quilt - finally.

• Fabric gathered and centers cut for improvisational log cabin mini quilt.

• Last of all, I hauled out blocks left over from my Kaleidoscope quilt made last summer. I'd had a bit of an issue with several blocks buckling in the center, and had refrained from using them in my quilt. 

         Then came the {hopefully} bright idea of cutting Dresden wedges
         out of them.

          So I have 32 wedges now - hopefully enough for something.

Linking up with {sew} Allegorical's prep party.

Random

Oh my, there's lots going on in blog-land right now! First and foremost, the Summer Sewing Contest over at Ellison Lane Quilts closes for entries today, so consider entering some of your recent finishes if you haven't already!

I entered my Hopscotch in the quilt category, my Logo Card Holder in bags & accessories, and daughter dear's sewing machine cover in home decor. Can't beat taking a chance at some great prizes!

I just saw notice of the 100 Quilts for kids event sponsored by Katie at Swim, Bike, Quilt. I participated last year and was able to donate one finished quilt and one quilt top with backing and binding to our local Project Linus. So I hope to join in again this year.

And finally, what's this about Christmas?? Yikes! Not really ready to think about that, but Elizabeth of Don't Call Me Betsy is sponsoring a Christmas in July blog hop, so I'll definitely be following that and maybe, maybe doing some sewing along.

I also wanted to show off the lovely quilts Alecia just finished up for the FAITH Circle of do.Good Stitches. I made a gray zig-zag strip as my contribution.

And here are the finished quilts! Sweet, yes? These zig-zag quilts were our April project, and Alecia's post about them is here. 

1. do. Good Stitches {Faith} April quilts

And, I got my Japanese x and + swap blocks in the mail yesterday. I think I have 28 blocks now! I need to get them all out and take a shot of them all together. Sure hope there's a round three in this swap!

Lastly, I'm not really one to talk on and on about how many followers I have, but can I just make a comment that I think 300 is a very very nice number? All thanks to you.

100 Quilts for Kids Postscript

It was fun to be included in Kate's 100 Quilts for Kids flickr mosaic (see here). My sherbet pips quilt is all washed up and ready to go.

I just finished up a Storytime Squares quilt too. What a fun and quick little pattern by Rae Hoekstra of made by RAE! {find tutorial here} Most of the print fabrics I used are from Denyse Schmidt's new "Sugar Creek" line, but you'll see some "Fairgrounds" and other miscellaneous goodies in there too.

And, since Project Linus welcomes finished quilt tops, I am taking my finished Block-a-palooza quilt top, along with the backing I have pieced, and binding that's ready to adhere. Though this top is from my very first quilt-along (what fun!), it's just too big for me to quilt on my machine, and I think someone else might appreciate it more.

Revised to add this last-minute picture of Block-a-palooza

Lastly, I gathered up the charms I'd gotten in a recent Spoonflower swap, made a fun pouch for them, and have offered them to Kate as a prize for the 100 Quilts effort. Hope someone really enjoys them.

I've appreciated being able to support this good cause, while helping children in my own community. The quilt drive goes through October 15, so there's still plenty of time if you want to join in.

For Kids

You know about 100 QUILTS for kids, 

and I've told you about the 100 Quilts for Kids Quilt Along.

Well, the Storytime Squares quilt Kate made using Rae Hoekstra's pattern {see here} looks darling, and I decided I'd like to try to make one to donate to Project Linus. I don't have any charms packs on hand that seem quite right, but I do have some new (and older) DS prints, so why not use them, following Kate's lead? As I was cutting out my own charm squares, it dawned on me that some of my followers might have the same idea, and since I was cutting, I might as well cut extra and share.

SO, a give-away is the obvious result! I have two extra "home-cut" charm packs made of the fabrics you see above, each with at least 48 five-inch charms. Most of the fabric is from the new DS Sugar Creek line, but there's also some from Fairgrounds and Picnic. If you're interested, leave a comment on this post, and I'll choose two random winners sometime Tuesday.

Of course, I'm hoping you'll join the fun of the 100 Quilts for Kids Quilt Along and make a quilt to donate to a children's charity near you. Remember, the quilt drive runs September 15 to October 15, 2011. You can find out all the details from Kate at swimbikequilt.

100 Quilts for Kids

100 QUILTS for kids is an annual charity event that I heard about from Kate at swimbikequilt. It's an  opportunity to join other quilters and donate our quilts to local children's charities. The quilt drive runs September 15 to October 15, 2011. You can find out all the details from Kate.

I'll be donating my Comic Strip Quilt made from Sherbet Pips, with the thought that the darling characters will appeal especially to a little girl.

I plan on donating my quilt to Project Linus, a National organization with a local chapter in my area. Operating since 1995, their mission is to "provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans, lovingly created by volunteer "blanketeers." In South Snohomish County, where I live, fellow sewists can drop off quilts at the Everett Pacific Fabrics store, or The Needle & I. Let me know if you need more information about these locations or our local chapter.

I hope you consider joining your fellow quilters in this effort to help children!

REVISION:

Seconds after publishing, I saw Kate's post about 100 Quilts for Kids Quilt Along! Check it out! {here}