Sister's Choice Quilts

Sewcialites Block 1

This is the first block in the new "Sewcialites" sew-along I couldn't resist joining. The block is called Harmony and was designed by Lissa Alexander. Fatquartershop.com is sponsoring the completely free sew-along, and a lot of well-known designers are participating with block designs.  The sew-along goes through next June.  Block sizes are 3", 6", and 9". I have opted to do the 9" because I want a bed-sized quilt. A new free block pattern will be released each week.

Do check out Jolly Jabber (FQS's blog), the Sewcialites Lounge FaceBook group, and Fat Quarter Shop's Behind the Seams YouTube channel for tips and tutorials. On Jolly Jabber, there are suggestions for fabric collections to use, and a suggested setting. Clever individuals on the FaceBook group have offered even more settings. The support for this sew-along is phenomenal. If you are a beginner or intermediate quilter, there are so many tutorials and helpful tips you can take advantage of.  And if you are an experienced sewer, consider giving those 3-inch blocks a try! 

The FaceBook group seems quite encouraging.  A surprisingly large number of folks all got their block units oriented incorrectly, and others were so gentle about pointing out the mistakes. "You might want to have another look at that bottom left-hand block unit..."

I had a rummage through my stash and came up with even more fabrics that tie in with the Evelyn's Homestead collection I am using.  The main fabrics I am using were designed by Betsy Chutchian for Moda.

Goodness, how I love a good long sew-along.

It's All About Contrast

See what I mean?  I made the block on the left as part of the Moda BlockHeads 3 Sew-Along.  Block #37 "Broken Dishes" by Laurie Simpson. My first effort did not have much contrast.  It's ok but look at the difference in the block on the right. Greater contrast in the color tones makes the block on the right much more interesting, I think.

This block pattern is worth printing out, even if you are not doing the Moda BlockHeads 3 Sew-Along.  The construction of it is totally unique. You might think it is four hourglass blocks with larger background corners attached, but you would be wrong.  The construction of this block is so different.  Go ahead, make one. It will blow your mind!

Much starching of fabric has been going on. Out on my side porch, rack after rack of fat quarters has been saturated with spray starch and hung out to dry. I got it all ironed yesterday, and I am ready to start a new project.

Aaahhh. Just look at those beautiful fabrics.  Evelyn's Homestead by Betsy Chutchian for Moda. Plum, green, black, pink, and navy. I will use these in a new sew along sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop, called Sewcialites. If you haven't heard about it, you must click on the link and read up on it. I think it is going to be so much fun.  Whether you like modern fabrics or more traditional ones, this may be a project that appeals to you. Kimberly Jolly of FQS will do videos every Friday on how to make the blocks, setting suggestions, and more.

I need another sew-along, or any new project whatsoever like I need a hole in the head, but what the heck.  Life is short; you might as well be sewing. And that's what I'll be doing this weekend.

Moda BlockHeads Catch-Up= Block 37

This beautiful block is Block #37, "Fixer Upper", of the Moda BlockHeads 3 Sew Along.  You can check the Moda website/blog for a complete archive of the blocks so far released in this sew-along.  There are some wonderful free patterns in four different block sizes, so you would be wise to at least download them for future reference if nothing else.

I do love the Square in a Square block, although it can be tricky to get right.  This pattern allows for just a smidge of trimming, which was mostly enough for my units to come out accurately.  It was fun to make, and the results are pretty striking.

I made one other block yesterday when I was trying to catch up on my BlockHeads progress.  This is block #36 "Broken Dishes". It was a truly unique block, due to its really unusual construction technique.  I didn't have my head completely wrapped around it, so my fabric choices were off.  I am going to re-do this block and show you all what I mean.  Here is what I accomplished yesterday.  It missed the mark due to a lack of contrast in the fabrics I selected, but I have a plan to rectify that with my second attempt.

Stay tuned.

 

 

One More ModaBlockheads- Block 28

I made up one more Moda BlockHeads block yesterday.  It is called Broken Dishes, submitted by Joanna Figueroa of Fig Tree Quilts.  It is the 28th block in the year-long sew-along.  Joanna used all reds in her sample block, so I followed suit.  I chose the 12" size because I have been making a lot more blocks in the 6 and 8-inch size and wanted to get caught up with my 12s.

Here is a little laugh to get you started on your weekend.  Eva was helping me take the photo of the block and we got pretty silly.  She is so much fun to have around. Sure do love that kid. Here is our series of photos.

Back To Moda Blockheads 3

I think it is time for me to get back to Moda BlockHeads 3, which has been neglected in the past weeks.  I slept all day Tuesday after my medical procedure.  The anesthesia really knocked me out, but I am back to normal now.  I took a very short walk with my friend (proper social distancing observed) Wednesday morning and got up to the sewing room for a bit in the afternoon.

This gorgeous block is called "The Proposal", designed by the talented Jen Kingwell.  I used a selection of blues from various 3 Sisters collections.  It turned out so pretty.  Exquisite, really.  

The block was paper pieced.  As usual, I used an astonishing amount of fabric.  Wow, I am always surprised at how much waste there is with paper piecing!  At any rate, I got sick of unpicking my sewing on strips that were too short, so I started using gargantuan scraps in revenge.

Surprisingly, the block didn't take long to make, if you subtract the time I spent un-sewing sections of it.

Hope your week is going well.  Honestly, I am so glad to be home and getting back to a normal schedule I could do a little song and dance.  I will spare you that however.

Moda BlockHeads 1 Finally Finished

This has been a long time coming.  I finally got Moda BlockHeads 1 finished.  My big hold up was the borders. I wanted to do something fancy and different for the borders, and had an idea to add a flying geese border, then an outer border or two.  I made a gazillion flying geese and started attaching them as a border.  And it looked like this:

Do you see how rippley that is?  Honestly, I looked at that hanging over my balcony railing for months not sure what to do about it.  So I finally took it off.  There is so much going on with all those sampler blocks that I decided to keep the border much more simple and be done with it.

I did cut strips from my leftover fatquarters and made a scrappy inner border, then added a plain outer border of light background fabric.

All in all, I am satisfied.  Gosh, it was such a fun project to do.  I used a very large assortment of Kansas Troubles fabrics for the quilt top. There are 60 six-inch blocks, plus one center applique block (which is the size of four 6" blocks). The top is around 71" square.  Whew, those blocks represent a lot of hours of work!

Now for the quilting.  I always send my quilts out to be professionally quilted and typically opt for an all-over quilting design.  So, you long arm quilters out there, answer a question for me if you will:  The applique blocks are a little stiffer because of the fusible interfacing.  Is that a problem when doing an all-over quilting design?

Hope you all had a lovely weekend!

Piecing the Past Blocks Done

Piecing the Past, Comfort and Joy blocks are all done.  They published the suggested layout this week, but I am going to do my own thing. Their layout calls for a narrow lattice between the blocks and I want to spread things out more.  This is their suggested layout below: 

I am going to add alternate blocks and setting triangles.  I may do their suggested borders.  I made my blocks 6" rather than their 9" pattern, so I need to get creative to achieve a larger quilt.  I also made 42 blocks instead of the 32 their quilt has.

In the past couple of years, I have made so many sampler quilt tops.  I think I like them because one can work on them over time, usually a few blocks a week.  Plus, they really sharpen up your piecing skills and force you to try new things you might normally shy away from.

Thank goodness for discovering the Lori Holt books for some additional block ideas.  I used her Farm Girl Vintage and Vintage Christmas books and they had a ton of great block patterns that I was able to incorporate into this project.  The last five or so block patterns that Piecing the Past put out in the 9" size were impossible to reduce to 6". Chris B. kindly tried to help me, but the measurements were so wacky I just couldn't do it.  What is 13/16th of an inch?  That sort of thing.

These are a few of the blocks I made from Lori's VIntage Christmas book.  Isn't that little red "blossom" block on the left adorable?  I am definitely adding that into the ModaBlockheads sampler.

This was a fun project to work on during the shutdown.  Piecing the Past frequently offers sew-alongs that come with free weekly patterns. The thing is you have to sign up to receive the weekly patterns by email, and after a week or so they are no longer available.  It is worth it to sign up for their free sew-alongs, collect the free block patterns, and make the project later when time allows.  If you want the patterns after the sew-along is over, I think it costs $20 for all of them.  They are starting up a new Summer Sampler Row Quilt sew along this week if you are interested.  It's cute, you should check it out.

Hope your week is going well!  Can you believe it is July?  I want April, May, and June back.

If At First You Don't Succeed...

The stars must not be aligned properly.  I'll tell you this block took me a couple of tries.  Every possible piece I could have turned wrong, I did.  Repeatedly.  I finally had re-sewn the block so many times it was all floppy and covered with little thread bits.  I was ready to throw in the towel and just try again another day, but I had this blog post to get out, so I persevered.  I tossed the first block and started over again from the beginning, with much better results.

This troublesome fellow is block 11 from the Piecing the Past "Comfort and Joy" sew-along.  They call it Double Star, but it definitely has other names.  In fact, it was featured in the Moda BlockHeads 1 sew-along by another name.  "Honeymoon", I think it was called.  I don't recall having so much trouble with it when I made it back then.  Just wasn't my day yesterday I guess.

Here are all three of the blocks for this week.  At the top is block 12 "Fox and Geese" and on the right is block 10 "Star of Hope".

Have you all been doing more online shopping lately?  I know I miss shopping for things in person, but my spending has been a little nuts lately due to boredom and wishing for better days.  I keep buying books, even though my concentration is not it's best.  I recently ordered several pairs of sandals, fantasizing about wearing them to the pool or to visit friends.  Oddly, I have not been buying fabric, which is a good thing I guess. I even purchased three (three) cosmetics to enhance my non-existent eye-brows, because heaven knows I can't go out without eyebrows.  For goodness sake.  I sure hope my favorite checker at Savemart appreciates the effort I am making.  

I am sure there are good psychological reasons for this non-essential purchasing.  Or maybe I simply want to do something that someone can't forbid.  Just don't tell my husband.

Moda BlockHeads 3, Block 15

I absolutely love this week's BlockHead block, designed by Corey Yoder of Coriander Quilts.  It is a great block and you can change up the color placement and get totally different looks.  I made the 8-inch size this week.  I also made some changes in the instructions. Instead of the complicated outer half triangle units, I made two hourglass blocks and sewed them together.  Eight hourglass blocks all together.

And oh boy, did I ever screw that up.  They came out fine in the end, but I must have blanked on the formula to make hourglass blocks because I made mine about 4 inches instead of 2 1/2".  Better too big than too small.  They trimmed down just fine.

Do check out Corey's blog post and pattern.  She shows you all sorts of different color placements that make this block look like about six different blocks.

Here are my 8-inch blocks (and a few 4-inch ones). 

Hope your week is going well.  We are getting some better (warmer) weather, so I am a very happy woman.  Unfortunately, my husband is suffering terribly with hayfever, so our outside time is not what it should be.  Eva and have been having lunch outside every day and trying different flavors of tea.  

Quarantine Chronicles Day 296

It may not be 296 days of self-isolation, but it sure feels like it.  I had a live video phone call with one of my sisters yesterday and I was embarrassed to have dirty hair, no makeup and sweats on.  She looked much better than I did, I assure you.  It was nice to at least touch base with a living soul other than my husband.

The fabrics in the basket above are slightly different than the ones I posted last week.  I swapped out the former blues for some new ones that are brighter in tone.  The color is called "Cadet Blue".  I like it.  I also received the neutral fabrics I ordered online.  When I order online I try to shop independent shops that have an online presence, rather than "big box" fabric stores.  I occasionally order from the larger outfits, but right now it is the small companies that are getting my business.  And they are so grateful.  In three out of my last five orders I got a nice handwritten note included telling me how much they appreciate my business during these troubled times.

The Piecing the Past Sew Along starts next week, and I am excited about it.  I  have gotten about half the fabrics starched and pressed and ready to go.  I wish this sew-along was a little faster paced than a block a week, but I will live with it.  Heaven knows I have enough other UFOs to work on to fill my time.

These are my most recent Book of the Month Club selections, which got here in record time despite the delays in shipping I hear folks are experiencing.  Have you read any of them?  I love the title "The Guest List- You'd Kill to be On It".  Makes me want to jump right in.

Hope your week is going well.  Gosh, every day is feeling kind of the same isn't it?