More January blocks

I just realized I never blogged about the rest of my bee blocks. First up is the do.Good Stitches Bliss circle block. We were asked for american flag blocks with all prints that read as solid. Here are my two blocks:

And then I finished my 4x5 blocks pretty early. I don't know what's wrong with me, but when I have deadline sewing I have to get it out of the way or I can't enjoy my sewing time. I stress about the deadline stuff I have to get done. Is that just me?


Anyway, the block I picked is from Quiltmakers 100 blocks edition. It's called Chain Mail and was designed by Debby Maddy. Here are all the blocks I made (the one on the bottom left is for me):

And then today I was sewing other things and my needle started acting funny. It finally snapped and went flying (missed my eye by just a tiny bit!). I haven't gotten to see if it was a fluke or not, but I'm afraid I'm being punished for not taking it in for service. Bad Becky!


Oh and I apologize to everyone. I had to turn on comment verification, the spam was totally out of control and blogger wasn't catching it anymore. I hate doing those verifications myself so I feel your pain. Please don't let it stop you from commenting, I love to hear from you!

My Madrona Road Challenge Entry

I joined Philly Modern Quilt Guild in the National MQG Madrona Road Challenge. Our only guide was that we should paper piece our project and we couldn't use other prints. I love these fabrics. I already had the gray print below with the black hashes on it so I added it in to this challenge.

I had seen this block in all the Farmer's Wife quilts, I believe it's called the Century of Progress. It looked like an easy one to convert to paper piecing (maybe it already is?). Here is my version of the block.

Since I stink at quilty math, my block came out a little bigger than a 12" block. I decided to turn it into what I'm calling the mega-pouch! My sewing area is in the dining room so I have to clean up for company a lot. I love having lots of pouches to put current projects in and keep them together. Really, you can never have enough pouches.

I've also always wanted to do a circle of geese block so I finally tackled one for the back (front?).

I added white around the blocks since they were different sizes (haha!) and added lining and zipper.

So yeah, I cheated a bit. That stripe isn't madrona road. ::blushing:::  It just went so perfectly and I love a great print inside a bag. But hey, my zipper work is getting pretty good!


Thank you to the Modern Quilt Guild and Michael Miller Fabrics for hosting this challenge!

Quilting Angels Swap received

The sun came out yesterday so I was able to get some photos of the beautiful gifts I received from Kari for our PMQG swap.  I had asked for a tote bag and she made me such an awesome tote with heavy weight fabrics!

The inside has a bunch of pockets in it. I think I'm going to use it as my purse I love it so much!

And then all these goodies! A christmas quilt kit, HST ruler and a stack of yummie fabrics.

What a great bundle of fabrics right? And check out the adorable little owl ribbon. I have to find something special to make with that.

Thank you so much Kari for spoiling me so!

Quilting Angels Swap

Last night we had our 2nd Annual Quilting Angels Holiday Swap at the PMQG meeting. This is the one swap we do in our guild where you pick your partner and get ideas from them. Thanks to Elfster.com it's a totally secret swap (totally recommend the site, it's really smart!).

I pulled the hilarious and sweet Pat Deck. She had an iPad case on her wish list so I found a pattern on Etsy and went to work! Here's the front with the case closed. The dark band is actually a navy blue elastic. I had a hard time with the colors on these photos.

 I will admit, I struggled with this pattern a bit. Some of the grammar and descriptions were a bit difficult but I think the functionality will be worth it. (and sorry, i don't have an iPad to show you how fabulous it looks in the case). It can stand upright like this:

Clever huh?

It also sits semi upright like this:

Here's the inside lying flat with my label in it. And if you can believe it, Pat told me after receiving it that she actually had picked out the same fabrics in a different colorway to make her own iPad case! So glad I got her taste right!

Then she also wished for a smock for her grand-daughter. I already had this Smock Monster pattern that I got at a quilt show. I was all excited about it and my daughter poo poo'd the monsters so I decided to make it plain for Pat.  First I did a smaller size mock up for my son Evan to test the pattern with an adorable fabric I already had.

He was gracious enough to model it for me (I was too lazy to take off his bulky sweatshirt).

I love the way it covers the shoulders.

Pat asked for a "not too itsy sweet" version for her granddaughter. Having a girl who's not so girly myself, I tried to find a fabric that I would have used for her.

And I found these cute little buttons that matched so perfectly.

Then finally, I had some extra fabric from the iPad case so I made a little pouch for the goodies I included.

I hope you like everything Pat! Once I get a chance to take some photos, I'll show you all the goodies that I received!

Daisy Janie - New Leaf Blog Hop

Welcome to the first stop on the New Leaf Bee Block Blog Hop! Thank you to Jan Dicintio of Daisy Janie Fabrics for inviting me to join her. She's introducing her newest fabric line New Leaf and of course I said yes right away when she asked me! Her designs are beautiful and her commitment to creating quality organic cottons is so awesome.

I was really excited when my package of fabric arrived. And it did not disappoint, New Leaf is gorgeous! And it felt way softer than my past experiences with organic cottons. It is really quite beautiful.

Our inspiration for the blocks was about turning a new leaf, growth, new directions and such. The new direction I've been heading recently is actually towards the past. I've been really interested in vintage quilts and started looking at some compass blocks. I found this amazing compass block and decided to recreate it with a modern flair. If anyone knows the name of this block or anything about it I'd love to hear it! I wasn't able to find any identifying information about it.

Here is how I constructed the block. As I mentioned, I had a picture of a vintage quilt. I resized that photo to create a 12.5" block. From the printout I created templates. I drew over the seams with a marker to make them darker, then traced on template plastic.  Here is a PDF of my block at actual size that you can use to do the same thing.

Then the templates were cut out.

I used the templates to cut out the pieces making sure to add 1/4" seam allowances and started sewing together. Here is the order I used. Started with these.

Then put them together to get this.

Get everything together in a big circle.

Sew together all the outside pieces first and then sew them to the center circle.

The first test block I did, I pieced the center circle. It didn't come out very accurately so this time I did it with machine applique. I would recommend doing it that way if you try this block. Lay your template plastic over the block and create a circle that will cover all your raw edges. I used a compass and marker, but you can use anything you have to trace a circle around it (bottles, toilet paper rolls, etc).

From there you can create your center applique pieces and attach them with your preferred method. And your block will be finished!

I hope you like my modern vintage block. I really think these fabrics give a bright modern feel! Thank you so much Jan for letting me  participate in your blog hop! I'm excited to see New Leaf in the stores and get my hands on some more. You can find out where to get some here.

The blog hop will continue tomorrow at The Little Red Hen. Here's the rest of the schedule:

New Leaf Bee Block Blog Hop Schedule
Mon, 1/14 - Becky Moyer, My Fabric Obsession - you are here. ;)
Tues, 1/15 - Lynn Harris, The Little Red Hen
Wed, 1/16 - Candy Glendening, Candied Fabrics
Thurs, 1/17 - Holly DeGroot, Bijou Lovely
Fri, 1/18 - Melanie Thornton, Melanie Dramatic

Mon, 1/21 - Emily Cier, Carolina Patchworks
Tues, 1/22 - Rachael Gander, Imagine Gnats
Wed, 1/23 - Maureen Cracknell, Maureen Cracknell Handmade
Thurs, 1/24 - Leanne, She Can Quilt
Fri, 1/25 - Cindy Wiens, Live a Colorful Life

Mon 1/28 - Cheryl Arkison, Dining Room Empire
Tues, 1/29 - Jacquie Gering, Tallgrass Prairie Studio
Wed, 1/30 - Shanna Bailey, Fiber of All Sorts
Thurs, 1/31 - Katy Jones, Monkey Do


The FQ Scramble letter is:N

New bee for the new year

I really enjoyed my last Flickr Bee Experience so I decided to join a new one. Make it Modern Bee is being hosted by Kelie and Jamie Lee. We are doing 1 block for 2 different members each month so this will be a quick moving bee.

We had some fun blocks this month. Samantha asked for what she is calling a Mama Goose block which is her own design. I'm really excited to see this one come together. I still haven't gotten comfortable with coming up with my own designs and love to see when others do. Here was my block for her.

Our second block was for Kelie. She pushed me out of my comfort zone asking for a wonky log cabin improv block! Here was my version.

Looking forward to next month!

Something New Sampler Blog Hop

So I promised you some new fun things this year and this is one of them! I joined up with the Something New Sampler to help everyone try something new this year. So if one of your sewing resolutions was to try and learn new things this year, this is a great opportunity. I know I'm looking forward to trying some new techniques! Here's all the information.

Looking for your next project?
Resolved to learn some new sewing skills this year?
Want to win some great prizes?

Then join in the blog hop for The Something New Sampler!

Each week, one or two bloggers will present a block tutorial with an uncommonly used technique. There will be a total of 9 blocks presented. And, just to mix it up, we're going with a funky modern block size - 7" x 14"! We'll have plenty of suggestions on how to use this block shape along the way. There's no need for our modern blocks to always be square :)

Here's our schedule:

Jan 14th
Amy @ thecutelifesmiles.blogspot.com | Bargello piecing

Jan 21st

Heidi @ buttonsandbutterflies.com | folding 

Chelsea @ pinsandbobbins.blogspot.co.uk | a scraptastic technique

Jan 28th

Jess @ theelvengarden.blogspot.com.au | sashiko

Lindsay @ lindsaysews.com | reverse applique

Feb 4th

M-R @ quiltmatters.blogspot.com | trapunto

Heidi @ fabricmutt.blogspot.com | cathedral windows

Feb 11th

Alyssa @ pileofabric.com | pinless curves

Becky @ myfabricobsession.blogspot.com | machine applique - YAY Me!

And stop by the cute life on Fridays for tips and tutorials on how to set these rectangular blocks! Posts will be up on the following dates:
Jan 18, Jan 25, Feb 1, Feb 8, Feb 15

Be sure to join the flickr group to keep up with the hop, the chatter, and some inspirational photos.

Prizes!!
At the end, link up a blog post or flickr photo with anything you've done from the sampler series, even if it's just one block! There are two categories for prizes:

- finished projects, winners will be chosen by popular vote
"finished" includes an entirely completed smaller project, like a pillow, table runner, mini quilt, etc.
pieced quilt tops also count as "finished", even if not quilted

- participation prizes, winners will be chosen by a random number generator
link up any progress you've made!

Fort Worth Fabric Studio is an online fabric shop with yardage and some fantastic custom bundles you won't find anywhere else! One of these bundles - the Lagoon bundle - is a prize, and it is centered around Michael Miller's Lagoon line, with 18 fat quarters. You can also sign up for their newsletter to be eligible for a monthly prize. In addition to the bundle, they are also offering a $25 gift certificate.

Cotton Blossom Farm stocks great designer fabrics with plenty of modern options. One great feature of this website is the ability to search through fabrics based on categories such as color - it's just like shopping in a brick and mortar shop! You have the chance to win a set of ten 1/2 yards (of your choosing!!) of Simply Color from them.

Fat Quarter Shop is another online shop that sells yardage and precuts of some of the most popular fabrics. They offer next day shipping and have an incredibly large selection! Fat Quarter Shop also has a great selection of other items, such as books, magazines, and kits. They have generously donated a jelly roll of Paris Flea Market and an Amy Butler pattern for prizes.

Sew Me a Song is an Etsy shop that stocks Japanese and contemporary fabrics. Becca puts together some fabulous bundles of texty prints, polka dots, and - of course! - lots of Melody Miller prints. Don't miss the great collection of Type by Julia Rothman. She has created two custom bundles especially for our sampler event, one with six texty fat quarters and one with eight japanese prints. 

New Things

I'm feeling myself come out of my 2012 funk and I'm starting to contemplate joining the Scrappy Trip Along. I'm sure you have see this around the internet.


I definitely have enough strips!

Problem is they are all different sizes and I really don't want to sort them. Maybe a project for the preschooler!? And I can't decide if I really want a Scrappy Trip Around the World quilt or if I'm just drinking the kool-aid. Maybe I should do a strip quilt or a postage stamp. Whatever I decide, the strips need to be made into a quilt this year! What about you, what is your favorite use for strips?



I have been very busy working on some things I can show you soon! It will get much more fun around here soon, I promise!

Hourglass Quilt Finish

I have my first quilt finish for the year. Technically it's a 2012 finish, but I'm counting it for this year. I started this scrappy quilt last year when Rachel started her Scrap Attack Quilt Along. Once I started it I knew I wasn't going to finish it in time for her deadline, but instead it became my leader and ender project. It was a great way to do something like this, I probably would have died of boredom otherwise! So here's the finished product:

All of those hourglasses are 3" square. And there are 480 of them!! I just kept making them until I thought I had a substantial enough pile.

Evan can not resist this quilt. Every time I put it down he has to crawl all over it. Note the baby toes at the top of this photo! Most of my shots looked like this.

 My good friend Denise has been teaching me how to use her longarm. So I thought this would be the perfect project to try to long-arm myself. She generously let me use her machine for the afternoon and I ran a pantograph over it. I love how it came out! Now I need to scheme to get myself one now! I had a hard time getting a good photograph of the quilting because of the busy pattern. This was probably where you can see it best. I should have taken pictures before washing.

It was a pretty dense swirly plume pattern. I wanted something dense with all those seams. Here's the rest of the back. Just a collection of fabric I had around that was all kind of low volume so it wouldn't show through. No real plan there.

One of the things I love most about this quilt is that it is totally made of scraps. Sitting under it is fun for me because I can look at all the fabrics and remember the projects (usually gifts) that were made from those fabrics.

And finally, I just have to share this video. When I got the quilt out of the dryer, I laid it out so I could see it all. Evan went bananas and did this for about 5 minutes straight. The video is only about a minute though. This is just what a quilter wants to see their kids do!  :)

Quilt stats:

Size: 68"x57"

Pattern: Hourglass

Fabrics:  stash

Quilted by: Myself

Finished:12/20/12