To buy or not to buy…

…Well, it didn’t take me long to answer that question! I found myself in my LQS yesterday with two children that were quiet (one was napping in his stroller, the other playing with legos the store had in their kid corner). I was there to pick up the December month of a BOM program, one for which I’d already pre-paid. Tho’t I’d run in and out, no money leaving my pocketbook and then I saw it.

And I had to have it. I told myself, “It’ll match the fabric you resurrected from 1996. Yup, that fabric you’re using in a bi-weekly block program, and that you’re worried about running out of…really, this is only to help you finish that project.”

Yeah, I don’t think so. That was a pretty lame excuse – the colors are not even close! I just wanted needed to come home with this beautiful layer cake.

And so I did.

And it’s all mine {silly grin}.

Round Robin – last border added, or is it?

Whew – finally found time over the weekend to work on the last two borders for the Patchwork Posse Round Robin. Yay!!!! Becky, the Posse Boss over at Patchwork Posse designed this last round herself, and it’s perfect. It’s a flower garden to finish off our whimsical fun flowery quilt top.

Here are some more close-ups….

 

I used only fabric from my stash, did a bit of hand embroidery, machine and hand appliqué, and lots of piecing {wink}.

Here is the top with all it’s pieced borders…

My daughter now wants this for her bedcover, sewwww, I may add another top and bottom border to make it cover her twin bed. It doesn’t have to be the perfect twin bedcover size, just enough to make it look proportionally okay.

I took a leap of faith in starting this round robin as whimsy is so not my style, and I was rewarded big-time! Not only did I get the chance to design for this round robin, but also I have ended up with a beautiful quilt top with no monetary investment. Still am pinching myself that this already 60” x 66” top came from my hands and the minds of some awesome designers!

SBS Round Robin Progress

I am part of a round robin (where we actually work on each other’s quilt tops and mail them around) – we started back in August 2010 and we only have one round to go – woo hoo!

This round robin is only “part” a true round robin., Yes, we are working on adding borders to each others quilt tops, and then mailing them to the next quilter on the list to then add her own border. Where it’s a bit different is that we’re all working on the same quilt top pattern using our own fabrics and colorways. In a true round robin, we’d each design and add our own borders to the quilt tops, each one unique to the quilt top itself.

We are working on the cover quilt from the Elm Creek Quilts book by Jennifer Chiaverini and Nancy Odom. Honestly, it’s not a quilt I would’ve ever tackled on my own. It’s beautiful, but a bit overwhelming for me personally. The gals in the online quilting group enticed and persuaded me, and it’s a super fun project. So glad I’m doing it. Something about working on someone else’s quilt…easier to do for another than for ourselves perhaps?

So, I just finished up the fourth of five rounds. It’s a half mariner’s compass border. Here is what I’ve done on Kathy T’s quilt top:

    

It’s out in the mail today to the next quilter for the final round, a crazy patch paper-pieced border. I am iching to see my quilt top – no one has posted a photo of it in our group since round three….it’ll be a special surprise when it shows up on my doorstep in March!

Now, have you read any books by Jennifer Chiaverini? Why not? They are seriously fabulous and addictive! She has an entire Elm Creek Quilts series of novels, and a bunch of quilt instruction books, too. Her web site is here. Her latest book The Union Quilters is out this month! So cannot wait to get my copy – you won’t see me for about a day and a half while I read it cover to cover!

Let me know what you think of Jennifer’s books – and if you’ve never read one, head over to her website right now! (Jennifer hasn’t a clue I’m posting about her and her books, I just really REALLY like them! Plus, she is a super sweet lady, too.)

Falling behind….

….but I am trying really hard to catch up! Not sure if I’m coming or going, just going, going, GOING right now!

Hope you all enjoyed a loveable Valentine’s Day yesterday. I spent it with my kids and then a semi-romantic dinner with my husband. This time of year (tax season), semi-romantic means:

Home from work on time, relatively

Dinner together, alone (kids were playing in the big sister’s room)

10 minutes of adult chatting before the “when can we come out?” question came from the bedroom…

Even with me filling the house with smoke from broiling the steaks and exploding butter all over my microwave (for the lobster tails), the dinner turned out great!

More soon…

Blockapalooza Blocks #2 and #3

Took ALL day, but block #3 is done

Still using Park Avenue, but it looks a wee bit different from block 1 and block 2 below.

Once we do more I am sure this one will fit right in. It’s so much fun seeing a quilt unfold block by block. Check out the Blogger’s Blockapalooza 2011 – you’ll be happy that you did!

I love a mystery!

Sew much fun!

This new mystery quilt just started and it’s been so cool already! See my first block here.

Dorinda’s 2011 Mystery only started January 1st, and we already have 2 blocks done. Today, the third rule was released today and I can’t wait to get started (after my “chores” of course!)

Here is my block #2

The rules stated that it had to measure 12x8 finished, include a hexagon somewhere and relate the theme of our quilt in a rectangle. My theme is
“scrappy anything” as an excuse to use up my scrap stash. I feel so guilty sometimes buying new fabric that I thought it was about time I did something with my scraps. Isn’t it funny that from a pile of disorganized bits and pieces (really, nothing bigger than 3” strip length, 3” square or sew) that I’ll end up with an actual quilt? Like found fabric if you ask me!

The hexagon star is a paper pieced pattern I came across by accident surfing for free patterns. The neutral strips were added around that log cabin style and then trimmed to form the rectangle. These strips are leftover from a shower curtain project back in 2004.

Here are my blocks sewn together

Fun, huh? And to think all the fabrics came out of my scrap pile.

What do you do with your scraps?