Where I Cut Flea Market Fancy, and the World Didn't Explode!

I've spent all afternoon working on a really awesome project.  I'm pattern testing for a blogger I've read forever and squeed a little when I got the email yesterday.  Right now, it's super double secret, but hopefully I'll be able to share the pictures next week because I actually cut into these beauties for it.  And two Anna Maria Horner scrap packs that I've had stowed away for the right project.  It's awesomesauce.

I did manage to finish the last block for my Sew Pieceful swap.  And I got them shipped out!  I'm pretty proud of myself for getting that all squared away two weeks early!

Here's all the blocks together.  I ended up not changing out that brown polka dot fabric for white after seeing some of the other blocks that people have made in that palette.  I think the white would have been too white, so I hope she likes it.

Linking up with My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday and Live a Colorful Life for Really Random Thursday!

Blocks That I've Set Loose Upon the World!

 So here's a post all about blocks I've sewn and given away!  It's kind of the most nerve-wracking thing I've done.  I want to make everything perfect, because the person receiving them is going to see the backside.  They'll know if your scant 1/4 inch is really a true 1/4 inch. Oh, the scandal!

But you do never know if the person who gets it will like your color choices, the layout, or the style.  And once you've put that much work into a block, you don't want them to just cast it aside or have to rework the seams.  Really, the only thing to do is just make sure you like it.

 

This is the last block I made for our Guild's block lottery.  The theme was scrappy stars on a white background.  I thought I was done once I'd made the first two, but then I saw the Mercury star and had to give it a try.  

Surprisingly, I thought this one would be more complicated to paper piece, but I liked it much better than my first.  I think it helped that the block was symmetrical until you got to that last piece.  I think there's a whole quilt of these in my future.  Maybe in all solids!

Here's a shot of all the stars in the lottery.  I really can't wait to see it all finished.  It's going to be a pretty awesome quilt. 

And these are my blocks for the Sew Pieceful swap.  I initially started out wanting to make a Broken Herringbone, but just couldn't get myself excited enough to do all the little pieces of sashing.  Then I found this other block in Jeni Baker's HST Block of the Month quilt.  Once I had all the half square triangles pieced, I played around with them and decided I liked this layout the best.  

I'm not really sold on this block though.  The colors are true to what was requested, but it just doesn't look great.  I might switch out the dotted background with white.  Really not looking forward to that, but it might need to be done.  

And, yeah, couldn't think of a decent title.  When in doubt, go dramatic!

Linking up with Live a Colorful Life for Really Random Thursday and My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday!

WIP Wednesday!

This week I finally got my butt in gear and started my swap blocks for the Sew Pieceful group.  Half of the colors are out of my comfort zone, but at least in my stash, and there's one that I have to go buy a fabric because I have nothing remotely close to the color requested.

Here's the fabric pull for the third of my four blocks this month.  All the colors match the request, and I like it, but I have no idea how the recipient will feel.  And I'm a sucker for keeping things a surprise, so there's no way I'll ask.  I think it'll work out.  

And here's the stack of fabric to be made into clothes this week.  That denim will easily make two or three pairs of Parsley pants, and light green piping for the little girl, dark green for the dude.   

I'm not sure who's going to end up with the sparkly blue fabric.  I dug it out of a remnant bin thinking I'd make the girl a Bateau Neck Top like this one from No Big Dill, but I like the fabric so much I might keep it.  

This is what I'm working on at this very minute!  Mending a mountain of t-shirts for a friend.  I don't understand how they get so mangled, but they're a quick fix. 

Finally, the world's most patient cat presents the ribbing of the second arm of my Sweatshirt Sweater.  I feel like I'm very near the peak of this sweater and after I join the arms, it will all be an easy downhill slide to the finish.  

Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday!

More Fun with Block Swapping!

So far these are the blocks I've received from my Sew Pieceful swap on Flickr. I asked for turquoise, olive, and hot pink/magenta on a white background. I think they came out great.


They're hard colors to have people match, not like orange or red, so I was prepared with an open mind.  Individually, there are off colors, but when you put them all together, it works!  I might add some white sashing in the end to make them look more cohesive.

I signed up for the next round as well, so I'll be adding more blocks to these by the end of the month, but that also means that I need to start figuring out what block to make for my group.  I'm thinking I might try out the Broken Herringbone from Play Crafts, especially since Molli Sparkles has started up a Broken Herringbone Quilt-A-Long.  

This is the Broken Herringbone, courtesy of Play Crafts

I don't know if I have it in me to make a whole quilt of these blocks, but I can certainly do four blocks to send to my group.  It looks pretty precise, and I tend to get tired quickly of being precise.  I haven't actually read through the tutorial, just the tips and blurbs on Molli Sparkles' blog, but I was too busy giggling to take in any actual information.  I think that's something better left to a quiet day down in the basement sewing dungeon.

Linking up with Better Off Thread for Sew Cute Tuesday and Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday!

Block Swap Blocks!

Finished up my blocks for a swap I joined on Flickr.  It was my first swap, so I was a bit nervous about the time commitment, but it looks like so much fun when other people do it.

This one might be my favorite, probably because they're totally my colors!

The way this one works is that you pick some colors, and send it out to the Flickr-verse and you get paired up with five other people who send you colors.  Then you choose a block pattern to make and make it five times in the colors that the other people have chosen, and just send it on to them.

This is supposed to be low-volume.  The fabrics low separately, but I think their volumes have added up to too loud.  We'll see.  

Love that it's super quick, since you don't have to wait for other people to send you their fabrics, or learn how to make a bunch of different blocks.  And, with this group you can jump in for a month or jump out for a month, depending on how crazy life is.

This was my mosaic for the group to use.  I've been wanting to make myself a quilt from these colors for a while, but selfish sewing always tends to get shoved to the bottom of the to-do list.  But, this was the perfect opportunity to use this, and I can't wait to see the blocks all together in person.