Monday, May 6, 2024

April Block Remix - finsihed up!

Our challenge block was the Flower Basket - a traditional block ... 

I played around with it and tweaked it a bit to make it simpler.


I cut all my pieces, making sure I got the right sizes 

(I mis-cut some pieces for a quilt this past month).


I sewed units together - no matter how weird they  looked. 

I knew my plan would work out!



 And finished up the month with a simpler version of the Flower Basket Block.

Monday, April 8, 2024

Quilt Block Remix


 in 2022 I participated in the Quilt Block Remix Challenge and enjoyed how it stretched me. I started to think more creatively in my designs ... the challenge was on hiatus in '23 and has come back in 2024. 

In January we remixed the Alabama block


In February we remixed the Raspberry Cheesecake block

In March we remixed the Yellow Tulip block


This month we are remixing the Flower Basket block

 

 

Today is the fabric pull ... not sure which direction I am going color-wise until I get into the Quilt Cave!

follow the remixes on Instagram #quiltblockremixchallenge

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Villa Rosa Blog Hop 2024

I am running late on getting my post up - I didn't realize that today was the 19th - my day to blog!

Villa Rosa has again sponsored a Blog Hop offering a special set of patterns for the Hop:

Blog Hop 2024 SET of 5 CARDS 

It was hard to choose which one to do - I want to make them all! But life is too busy to make them all, so I chose Gypsy as I could picture it with some lively fabrics. Abbi Mays Fabric Shop provided the fabrics for my blog entry and will have kits available to make similar quilt for yourself.

This pattern is named for the Gypsy Rose just as many other Villa Rosa Designs patterns have been named for roses.

I chose to use Fat Sixths for the pattern, rather than a pack of 10" squares so that the same fabric could be in more than one place, giving some motion to the quilt as you follow the fabric from place to place.

The fabric line is Murano by Odile Bailoeul from Free Spirit. There were opportunities to fussy cut some of these lovely fabrics!

An important thing for this quilt is to lay out your fabrics after cutting to balance the colors. Using Fat Sixths means that you also need to balance the fabrics!

Another consideration as you sew this top together; make sure your seam allowances are accurate. There are not the same amount of seams in each round, thus if your seam allowance is off, so will your rounds be off. One way you can work around this (for those who have a generous 1/4") is to trim your round to fit the center before you sew it together.


With such a busy top, it was hard to choose a quilting design. After auditioning many different patterns, I chose to use Sugar & Spice by My Creative Stitches.

The optional border makes the quilt a really nice size for a couch throw! It is a very happy quilt with these bright fabrics.

check out the other blogs participating in this hop:

villarosaquilts.com

      https://kathleenmcmusing.com/

2.     http://livelylatte.blogspot.com/

3.     https://www.homesewnbyus.com

4.     https://www.piecefulthoughts.com/

5.     https://www.ctpub.com/blog/

1.     https://needleandfoot.com/

2.     https://www.mmmquilts.com/

3.     https://www.texasquiltgal.com/

4.     http://time4stitchn.blogspot.com/

5.     https://siysewityourself.com/

1.     https://quarterinchcapers.blogspot.com/

2.     https://www.nortonhousequilting.com/blogs/news

3.     https://quiltinggail.com/

4.     http://wazoonewsbits.blogspot.com/

1.      withstingsattached.blogspot.com

2.     https://scottfortunoff.com/

3.     https://www.cocoaquilts.com/

4.     http://quiltwithaview.blogspot.com/

2.     http://thedarlingdogwood.blogspot.com/

3.     www.knitbug2.blogspot.com

4.    https://somethingrosemade14.blogspot.com/

5.     https://www.qovf.org/

1.     https://www.graceandpeacequilting.com/

2.     https://happycottagequilter.blogspot.com/

3.     https://joyfullytracie.com/

4.     https://patchouli-moon-studio.blogspot.com/

5.     https://doyoueq.com/blog/

villarosaquilts.com

To be entered in the prize drawings, leave a comment on this post by midnight, March 23. Make sure you leave your email address so that if you win, we can contact you!

Thank you to Tricia from Villa Rosa Designs and Quilt with a View for inviting me to join in this fun Blog Hop, thank you to Abbi Mays Fabric Shop for donating the materials for Gypsy Rose and thank you to the other bloggers and the generous sponsors! AND thank you to the readers/hoppers for stopping by!

Hoffman -- https://hoffmancaliforniafabrics.net/
Moda -- https://modafabrics.com/
Timeless Treasures -- https://www.ttfabrics.com/
Jaftex -- https://jaftex.com/
Electric Quilt -- https://electricquilt.com/
Banyan Batiks/Northcott -- https://www.northcott.com/home.aspx
Benartex -- https://benartex.com/
Hancock’s of Paducah -- https://www.hancocks-paducah.com/
Fox Chapel/Landauer -- https://foxchapelpublishing.com/
C&T Publishing -- https://www.ctpub.com/
P&B Textiles -- https://www.pbtex.com/


 

Saturday, February 25, 2023

AQS Daytona Quilt Show 2023

What better thing for a Michigan Quilter to do in February than head to Florida and take a day at the Daytona AQS Show? I am always inspired and usually find some goodies to take home with me and this year was no exception.

I am always floored when I see the current Cherrywood Challenge - even if my quilt is in a different collection. Coming around a corner to see the display is always a treat for the eyes. This collection is from the Graffiti Challenge and is just delightful (as always!). I love how everyone interprets the theme in such creative ways.

I found some interesting quilts -  Selvages A La Rococo was more and more interesting the closer you got. You start with the tilted elements of the design, step closer to see the lacy on the circles and get caught up in the details of the embroidery and buttons.

I always enjoy seeing Pat Holly's work. Her choices of color and fabric inspire me. She has such clean, graphic illustrative pieces.




In with the special exhibits section, I was delighted to see Tick Tock - an interesting take on a "Baltimore Album" style quilt. At least one of my "kids" has been into Steampunk for a while, so this one caught my eye.
The quilts that look like one thing at a distance, but become much more close up are some of my favorites at the quilt show. This one is beautiful from a distance, but as you get closer, you see so much more! I wish I had taken more photos of the details.

What is it about quilts with high contrast? They draw my eye so quickly - this one with the black, white and sherbet colors is beautiful!
Art quilts fascinate me, too. I dabble in art quilts, but am the veriest beginner compared to some I see. This one has so much movement!
 

I took many, many more inspiration photos, this is just a peek at some in various styles that intrigued me ... Now I am looking forward to the Paducah show at the end of April!