Vivid

This finish is a bit of a final farewell to the Mid-Century Modern Bee. Oh I've many friends among them, and that won't change, but most of the blocks that make up this quilt were made for me by them, and since then, I'm no longer a part of the bee. But back in April 2014, I chose the Rolling Diamonds pattern by knottygnome crafts, and as requested, I received a bright, colorful mix! Except when it came time to finally put the quilt together, I needed a few more blocks. My friend Sharon/smbrendle graciously made me one, and I made a couple more. Aren't they fun?!

I know 'just' 16 blocks make a relatively small quilt - only 48" square - but I really liked them as they were, and it seemed like I'd waited long enough to finish this one up.

I searched in my stash for a backing and settled on a green Dear Stella ticking stripe. Quilting in a simple grid resulted in a soft, comfy quilt, and the Aurifil 50 wt #2021 (Natural White) I used was subtle enough to tie everything together and not make too much of a statement. Binding is from "Wish" by Valori Wells Designs and I went off on a limb doing a machine-stitched binding. I used Rachel/Stitched in Color's tutorial, which was really fun for a change, and seemed to fit the playfulness of this quilt. I used the same Natural White thread, and even though it's pretty obvious, I like it just fine. The only thing to note is that Rachel uses a 3/8" seam to sew on the binding, which obviously dipped into my block points a bit. I could have easily adjusted that, but was so focused following instructions, I neglected to. Otherwise, though, I'm quite pleased. I still totally consider myself a hand-binder, but for now and again, I think I'll revisit this technique.

So there's an end of an era, so to speak. Thanks to the Mid-Century Modern gals for the fun time we sewed together!

Yahoo. This quilt was on my 2015 Finish-A-Long Q3 List! Linking up with Finish It Up Friday.

W.i.P. Wednesday

The last time I popped in for W.i.P. Wednesday, I was heading on retreat, and had more than a reasonable number of projects on my to do list. Three of those projects are now happily posted in the 2014 Quilts tab above - yay for that! Currently, here's what else I've got going . . .

Postage Stamp quilt - I did manage to finish cutting over 1200-2 1/2" squares, basically cutting up my stash.

I'm using the tutorial by Louise/I'm Feelin' Crafty, and adhering my squares to featherweight interfacing before sewing the blocks together. The top block shown below has its seams all sewn; the others have the squares pressed to the interfacing and are ready to be sewn. I was gung ho on getting on these the other night, and then managed to distract myself on other projects. oops.


Cross-Stitch Blocks - Here's another scrap project - cross-stitch blocks using the tutorial by Alyssa/Pile O'Fabric. I'm using Kona Ash charm squares as my base. I've got at least 50 x-pieces cut out, but for the pattern I have in mind, I'll need over 100 total, so I've got a ways to go. Haven't touched this one in weeks. I'd really like to finish the scrappy Postage Stamp quilt and then move on to this one.


I'm calling this one a w.i.p. even though I am still expecting a few blocks from my Mid-Century Modern Bee. These are Rolling Diamonds blocks from the tutorial by knottygnome crafts. I'm really liking these blocks!

I'm pattern-testing for Leanne/shecanquilt - her soon-to-be released "Canvas" based on her Colour Study quilts. I've really enjoyed this process, and am putting the finishing touches on my sample, so will be showing that off soon!


So that's what's actually in the works! And of course there's plenty more project ideas rolling around in my head . . . So it goes!

Linking up with W.i.P. Wednesday.

So Here's the Plan

Believe it or not, one of the toughest things about participating in bees is deciding what to have your bee do when it's your turn to choose! After much deliberation, I've decided I'm going to have the Mid-Century Modern Bee made me Rolling Diamonds blocks in April. Here's my sample block, which measures 12 1/2" unfinished.

Yup, after my last round with this bee making a very low-volume quilt, this time I'm going bolder! I'm not even going to make requests for colors other than bright and fun! The inspiration quilt {and block tutorial} is by knottygnome crafts. It just makes me smile.

photo by knottygnome crafts