What's on my design wall Monday...

This is my This and That block of the month that I participate in.  We make two of the same blocks each month.  I just picked up the April blocks on Friday, which means I need to get them done and pick up the May blocks this next week.  Our monthly kits will end in June as we will have 12 done. The finished quilt will be 78 x 100.  What I really love about this BOM is that it is challenging me..and I've needed that this year.  You can go to www.patchworktimes.com  and see what other people have on their design wall today too.

Here are my fabrics for the Vignette hexagon quilt.  These Nancy Halvorsen fabrics were all collected with another quilt in mind, but this will be better.  I have loved her fabrics and designs for a long time and now finally have found the best use for them!  I am going to try the Accuquilt Go! die to cut the hexagons, hopefully speeding up the process up a lot.  Now for the Sewline glue pen to get here.  :)

The fabric for the Vignette mystery quilt has also been chosen. I am so excited to get working on this. It looks like it is going to be very bright and cheery...the bright part is a bit difficult for me to grasp, but I can go for the cheery...especially since the sun is finally shining today after a very long time. They are all Holly Holderman fabrics from Lake House Dry Goods.

Saturday I spent the day cutting out yet another quilt while celebrating Easter with my in-laws (there will be pictures to follow once there are blocks to show).  We had a great day visiting and actually had a large chunk of time to work on projects.  I've got a lot of energy and I'm ready to get to work.  :)  Happy Monday!

Kristen

A way to remember...

I finally finished this journal cover.  The honey bun (fabric) was purchased a long time ago, and I just recently found the right pattern for it. 

The row with the flowers is embroidered, and I also made my own ribbon for a bookmark.  If you want to make the same journal cover, you can find the free pattern at http://www.modabakeshop.com/ under recipes and accessories.

I think I'm going to go through my pictures and start journaling...Have a wonderful Easter!  --Kristen

What's on my design wall...

My design wall is obviously a floor right now, but here it is...my grandmother's flower garden quilt.  I started this over ten years ago and recently just started working on it again.  The blocks with the cream around them were done ten years ago and I'm not sure that is the direction I want to continue in.  I may be taking some apart, but that is okay.  I'm really enjoying working on this now.

I did finish another block yesterday. It has the lost fabric I found last weekend in it.  Looking at all these blocks I'm really getting excited to have this all in one piece.  Hopefully it won't be long.

I did finally receive the first two issues of the Vignette magazine...what fun they are to read.  Wow, I knew they would be good and are they!  I'm so excited to get started on the mystery quilt and the hexagon quilt.  Of course, I would really love to finish my already more than started grandmother's flower garden quilt before I start another, but I may just have to work on two at a time...imagine that.  I bet you'd never guess I've done that before.

I'm off to the sewing room to try and finish yet another project.  Thanks for stopping by! :)

Kristen

Friday night finish

I did finish something, although I had plans to finish much more.  One more grandmother's flower garden block finished...YEAH! Any progress is good.  I've been trying to figure out if I want to glue baste my pieces or continue to thread baste them. I tried one kind of glue last night and it was no faster than thread basting.  I found another glue today, and I'm hoping that will be better.  I'm also going to try using my GO! to cut the hexagon fabric shapes out. 

If you have any suggestions on the question of to glue baste or not to glue baste or what type of glue you use, please leave a comment.  I did actually have to use my Flickr account again to post a picture and miraculously it worked...I'm learning, slow but sure.

A virtual sew in...

How fun is this...a virtual sew-in...on a Friday night!!!  All I need to do is what I love to do on a Friday night and then post pictures of my progress tomorrow...If you'd like to join in, click on the button on the side bar or go here... http://handmadebyheidi.blogspot.com/2011/04/april-friday-night-sew-in-signups-are.html and sign up...there are prizes! :)  I have to run to the quilt shop quick to pick up some thread and a little fabric...see you soon!  I'll be watching Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives and sewing away.  :)

Kristen

It's Wednesday again...already

The weeks they are a flying by and have they been exciting!  I've been stitching, stitching stitching. :)

I've really been working on these grandmother's flower garden blocks because....I joined a group for a new quilt made out of hexagons and I am so excited.  There is only one problem...I don't have the pattern yet, and I'm trying to find one quickly.  Hopefully it won't be too long until I do because it is a mystery quilt and the third part is coming out soon.  If anyone has any hints of where to find the first and second issues of Vignette magazine in the United States, please let me know.  I want to get started soon, but I also want to get all my blocks finished for this one.  I think I need about 10 more.  I will be posting a picture of all my blocks on Monday next week so you can see the progress I've made since February.  It is so exciting!

I also finished my two This and That block of the month blocks for March...and they each had 61 pieces in them...talk about time consuming...but as I was sewing them together this morning at 4 a.m., I was really enjoying them...they are challenging me and I like that.  I'm a person who needs to be challenged.  I'm so glad I started this quilt, and I'm keeping up each month so that is amazing in and of itself. 

I found a photography class to take.  Aren't we all thankful for that?  See you soon!

A little bit of fall in spring

Here is fall.  I wanted to put pumpkin buttons on it, but the pumpkins just didn't match..so we did plain black.  There is something about doing something simple sometimes.  Now I need to get winter done and I will have the four seasons...I'm in the spring mood right now so that will wait until I'm feeling more wintery.

I finished another grandmother's flower garden block.  Funny how this has suddenly developed such steam behind it.  I can't wait to start putting the blocks together, but that will be another day...I still need at least 40 blocks and maybe more.

Now for the WINNERS....Merrilee and Jamie...your names were picked out of the lovely rubbermaid container by a very eager 10-year-old boy.  :)  Send me an email with your addresses so I can get the dish cloths to you.  Thank you to everyone who left a comment and/or emailed me.  I love comments...even if they are just a smilie face!

Working on a thousand things all at once :)

Ever feel like you have a 1001 things going and you don't know which direction to turn first?  I'm there.  I did finish a few things over the weekend, and I have pieces of about 20 other things all over the place.  If I would just spend a few minutes on all of them, they will be done. 

These two embroidery pieces are from Primitive Stitches...you can find the patterns for them at http://www.primitive-stitches.com/. I love looking at all of her patterns on her website.  I found them at Back Porch Quilts in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, a couple of summers ago and I picked up quite a few of her patterns then.  I have fall all ready to go but the buttons so that is something for tomorrow.

I love buttons and when I see some I like I pick them up.  It was so fun to just pick these out of the button jar and use them. The more I look at this "summer" picture the more I notice the color is off a bit.  I'm still fine tuning my knowledge about cropping and coloring my pictures, but I'm sure it all comes with practice.

Two more grandmother's flower garden blocks. I was so excited this weekend to find another fabric for this as I was searching for fabric for my wall hangings.  It is amazing how I have changed my color combination choices.  When I first started this quilt I was so conservative, and now I'm a bit more daring with combining my colors.  Fun to see how a person grows with age.  :)  Don't forget tomorrow is the day we'll draw for the dish cloths.  Just post a comment under the March 30, entry if you'd like to enter.  If it doesn't work, email me at my email address under my profile and let me know.  I've been told by a few people that they have had trouble leaving a comment.  We'll get this all figured out yet. :)  Happy Monday!