November 24, 2012

Not looking!

By    7:28 AM // 6 comments
I'm not looking at any more huge fabric sales for the rest of this weekend!
My wallet took a big hit yesterday. There are so many great deals all over the online quilt shops but I spent enough that now I feel a tad guilty. But just a tad. The poor mailman is going to have his work cut out for him when he delivers those packages. There is a lot of fabric coming into this house this coming week.

I did buy with very specific plans in mind. Not once did I buy something just because I liked it. I purchased backings for 7 quilts and with the awesome sales, I averaged $4.83 per yard. Prices like that are definitely hard impossible to resist.

I am soooo excited too! My current obsession fabric is also coming my way.

I took the plunge and ordered my Bella by Amanda Murphy. This will become a quilt for my bed and since it is king size, I had to buy a ton of fabric for what I have planned. I can't wait to finally see it in person. It isn't often that I like every single fabric in a particular line, but this one I do.

To tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, I didn't actually spend my money on the Bella fabric. No I didn't steal it and no Julie at The Intrepid Thread is not giving it to me out of the kindness of her heart. I wish. A couple of months back both my mom and my mother-in-law asked me to let them know what I would like for my birthday. Well I decided the Bella fabric is what I want so I used birthday money to bring it home to me. They both chuckled when I told them what I was doing. They weren't surprised at all that I'd want to spend the cash on more fabric!

I'm going to stay away from the computer for the rest of the day. I have plenty to distract me and help control my spending. The paint for the current playroom/future library was acquired yesterday so I'll be busy with that all day, finally turning the plain white walls into something a lot more pleasing. Hopefully I can also sneak in a bit of sewing while the coats of paint dry. There is plenty of laundry to get put away too. And I need to move some furniture around in the dining room. You see, we also purchased a china cabinet and a buffet off of Craigslist yesterday that will get delivered at the end of the week.

All my poor wallet can say today is Ouch!

November 23, 2012

A new finish - Dots in the Wind

By    6:01 AM // 4 comments
Last you saw of these blocks and this future quilt was during the Dots on Dots Blog Hop. I had completed 6 blocks and had another 6 started. Well life and work, specifically our fiscal year end and all the work that comes along with getting everything ready for the tax return prep done, kept me from getting back to this project. This is where I left off, the remaining 1/2 square triangles sewn together.
A little free time to sew finally came and they remaining 6 blocks were quickly pieced together.
My original plan was to sash them with the various dot fabrics from the blocks themselves, but as soon as I put them all up on my design wall, that plan flew right out the window. These blocks had enough going on and I knew immediately that if I added busy sashing, that the beauty of the blocks would get lost in all the visual chaos.
So what did I go with instead? Well plain white sashing of course. I kept trying to figure out which block is my favorite fabric combinations.
But I'm still torn and hence I declare that they all are my favorite.
The finished quilt top? Oh you want to see it? Why pray tell? It is just a bunch of fabric after all.
Oh Ok. If you insist!

I proudly present Dots in the Wind.
(sorry about the inside shot, it is all I had time for)

I elected to do a brick border in the various fabrics instead and I definitely like the way this turned out a lot better than my original plan. It is 48" x 62". This quilt is so bright and fun and full of color and I just love it. The best part is that I didn't buy one single fabric to make this quilt. Every last bit was from my scraps and stash, including the pieced backing. Yippee skippee for getting an entire additional quilt from leftovers. It will be hard to give it away. Tuesday it will be off to my quilter to work her magic.

Once it comes back and gets the binding completed, I'll be able to get the gorgeous outside photos and the true colors will be more apparent. And if you want to make your own version of this quick to complete quilt, the block tutorial is over at In Color Order, along with all her other tutorials for her HST blocks of the month. I see another one over there that will eventually become another quilt. Like I really need another project to add to my list! 

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November 22, 2012

November 19, 2012

My Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin Quilt

By    12:13 AM // 16 comments

Now it is my turn for my Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin quilt reveal.
I don't remember what I was doing at the time or just how the idea came into my brain, but 8 1/2 months ago, I created the 1st Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin. When I wrote my the post announcing it I was hoping to get at least a group or maybe even 2 of 8 participants. I was pleasantly surprised that the idea caught on with so many and we ended up with 30 ladies signed on to share in the fun (with 2 ladies doing doubles to round out the numbers).

Once I put the groups together and sent out the lists, it was time I made my own center block. Coming up with this Round Robin idea was the easy part. Deciding what sort of block to do was much tougher.

I pondered for days and days....what colors to use, what block pattern or design to use, go wonky or not...so many choices and so little time to decide. In the end, I decided to create a block that really spoke to who I am and this is what I came up with.
A rainbow of color, my favorite and just a bit off kilter, so like me. It really summed up my personality....when you first glance at me quickly I seem straight and normal  (the accountant part of me) but when you stop and look a little closer, you see that I'm typically just slightly askew. It is such a better way to live....a tad bit unpredictable.

This little block traveled literally around the world! It stopped at 5 destinations in the US including Georgia, Illinois, Utah, Montana, and North Carolina plus it flew across the pond to France and down under to Australia.

It is no lie that when the package arrived back home, I was extremely nervous about opening it. Seeing the return address, I knew exactly what was to be found inside the padded envelope. Being the master list keeper of all the destinations, I knew where each block was on its journey each month but not once did I ever attempt to suggest or influence what my group mates added to my own little quilt. So I had absolutely no clue as to what this would look like. When I finally lifted the flap and unfolded the contents, this is what I found:
Very cool. Very lively. Full of color and lots of visual interest. I don't know which part I like the most. I had originally planned on actually having this quilted and bound for this reveal but as you can see, it currently is still not finished. The hold up? Well I honestly can't decide exactly how I want to finish it. I did decide that I didn't want to finish it just for the sake of finishing it because if I rushed it and then wasn't happy with it, I would be more upset than if I wait to figure out just what it needs in the first place. I've auditioned a number of quilting designs but none are just right. And picking out a thread color isn't an easy task either. So many colors to take into consideration.

So this is going to remain on my design wall for a while where I can admire it. I know from experience that if I let things simmer long enough the right answer will come to me. They always do.

Thank you to each and every lovely lady that participated in this Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin. I hope everyone had as much fun as I did. I enjoyed being your hostess and I truly hope you'll all join in on the next mystery mini round robin.
  

Lisa's Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin quilt

By    12:11 AM // 8 comments
Hi! I'm Lisa Cox. I live outside a very small town in rural North Central Missouri.
I'm rather new to quilting. In fact, last month I finished my second quilt. I'm a total
newbie to round robins. This was my first.
I started out with a block called the Amish Twist. It was supposed to be a paper pieced
block, but I hate dealing with paper, so I put it on thin white fabric. I think someone told
me once that is called foundation piecing? This is a picture of my center block after the
borders have been put on. It never occurred to me to take a picture of it before I sent it
off. LOL

When I received my little block back, tears came to my eyes. You guys ROCK!!! It is so
beautiful! And so many different borders. I was trying to figure out how I was going to
turn it into a wall hanging when my husband saw it. He immediately said how cool it was and
how he thought that it would be great as the center of a quilt for our bed! It is the right colors.
Now, my husband is not into quilts at all. He can't visualize what anything will look like just
by looking at colors or patterns. He has to see the finished product. So for him to say that it
was cool! And that he wanted it for a quilt is amazing.
So, I'll say again. YOU GUYS ROCK!!!!

This is a picture of my block with all the neat borders. Sorry for the horrid pictures, but I didn't
have time to iron it after I got off work. I wanted to make sure Michele got this in plenty of time.

Lisa
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