snapshots month 6 - triple scoop sundae

/

Can you believe that we're already on month 6 of the Snapshots quilt along?

Oh yes, summer has arrived! Let's cool down with a triple scoop ice cream sundae!

You all know that I am truly a dessert fanatic. But my very favorite treat is ICE CREAM! I used to live in Burlington, VT and I would visit the original Ben & Jerry's shop weekly. It was in a converted gas station, and they played movies on the roof during the summer. So you can imagine how excited I was to finally make this block. I made three scoops in my favorite flavors. First is a strawberry scoop with drippy sauce and sprinkles. Next, a pistachio scoop. I love pistachio ice cream, and that goes way back to childhood car trips with my parents. We'd stop at Howard Johnson restaurants and I'd always order Mr. Twist (spaghetti and meatballs) and pistachio ice cream. And finally, the blue scoop represents another childhood favorite - bubblegum ice cream.

(Ok, the absolute truth is that I live for chocolate ice cream with marshmallow and chocolate sauce. But this quilt doesn't have any brown prints, so I picked my next best favorites! Remember, this quilt is all about snapshots of our lives!

I hope that you are sewing along with us. Snapshots is a monthly sew along that also doubles as a fundraiser for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. Each month's block pattern is a free download. This month's block pattern and a video tutorial are available here. Please consider making a $5 donation to the St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital here. Use your own stash fabrics, or purchase the kit with Daysail prints here. I used the kit as a starting point and then customized it with some prior-season Miss Kate and Scrumptious prints that were already in my stash. Be sure to tag your blocks with #fqssnapshots on social media so that we can all see your blocks! Happy sewing! And now... I'm going to eat my ice cream! It's Ben & Jerry's Americone Dream.


let's cook! snapshots block 5

/

It's Snapshots sew along time again! This month's block is Kindred Kitchen. It's the perfect vintage apron!

I had to add a fun stripey pocket to the apron.

Don't tell anybody, but I just wear a tshirt and khakis while cooking - NO apron. Maybe this goes back to a bad baking experience at a job that I had when I was in college. I was the baker's assistant at the food hall. I was responsible for making "monster-sized" chocolate chip cookies. I would load the oven with many, many sheet pans full of cookie dough, and the pans would be rotated in the oven by a conveyor belt. The only problem was that  I couldn't remove the baking sheets from the oven fast enough, and cookies continually burned. I was fired and told that I would never make it as a baker. Now who gets fired from baking cookies?!

Are you ready to get started cooking up your own cute apron? The full details about the Snapshots sew along are on the Fat Quarter Shop's Jolly Jabber blog here. The pattern download is available here, and please consider making a small donation to St Jude's Children's Research Hospital here. Get creative and sew blocks from your stash, or use the kit which features Daysail fabrics. Plus, there's another fun, monthly video with Kimberly, Bonnie and Camille that you can watch here.

And I still can't bake cookies, but I know how to eat them.

farm girl vintage sew along!

/

So have you all heard about Lori Holt's newest book and sew along, Farm Girl Vintage? It's just getting started today! Ok, so here's the scoop. Lori's new book has 45 block patterns that you can mix and match to create your own custom quilt, or you can make the sampler shown on the book cover. You can choose to make 6" or 12" blocks. And you know how I love a sampler quilt! I find them fun to sew because there's always a new block to work on, and you only need to make one of each. Sometimes with traditional quilts I get bored sewing the same block over and over and over and over...

Lots of quilters are already sewing up these cute blocks. For the sew along, we'll make 1 or 2 blocks each week, and we'll post them on social media using the hashtag #farmgirlfridays (and in my case, I've added #farmboyfridays!) I'm making the sampler quilt with 6" blocks.

But what fabric to use? I've been thinking about this for WEEKS. I had many different ideas - scrappy brights, 30's reproductions, Fig Tree, etc. I was making myself crazy. But Brenda Riddle's new Ambleside and Fig Tree's new Aloha Girl collections have been sitting right in front of me this whole time, and they mix together beautifully! (Thanks, Susan, for pointing out what should have been obvious to me!)


And here's this Friday's featured block - #apronstringsblock.

Each Friday, two bloggers will share a special block with us, and gradually, we'll work our way through all 45 blocks. For even more details on the sew along and a list of the participating bloggers, bookmark the Jolly Jabber blog here (you might even find me on the list for June!), and Lori Holt's blog here. Maybe you think that you'd like to make a block but aren't up to doing the whole quilt? Well, turn your block into a cute potholder using this nifty video tutorial. I hope you join us. It will be fun!

snapshots block 4 - puppy love

/

Who's ready for puppy love?

It's Snapshots month 4! Can you believe that we're already one third of the way through this quilt?! Ok, time for a quick refresher. Snapshots is a monthly sew-along, hosted by Fat Quarter Shop and Moda Fabrics. Each month we'll make a block that represents a snapshot of our lives. (Is it still called a snapshot if it's taken with a portable electronic device? Yikes can you imagine a quilt-of-the-future called "Selfie" with blocks that look like selfie sticks?)

Mr. (or Miss) Puppy really went together quickly. Just assemble the head and arm unit, then the cute basket and bow unit...

Then stitch the three strip units together. I'll sew the button eyes down after it's quilted. I think my longarm quilter might appreciate that.

Of course, it helps if you have a friend to help. Mia is wondering why I'm sewing a puppy block. (Relax, Mia, because there's a kitty block coming up in a few months!)

Snapshots is also a fundraiser! The pattern download is free and you can pick up your own copy on Fat Quarter Shop's Jolly Jabber blog here. A donation of $5 (or more) is requested for St Jude's Children's Research Hospital. Such a great cause, and quilters have broken the goal twice! The first goal was for $10,000 and then it was increased to $20,000. So far, over $21,000 has been raised!

My little puppy started with the Daysail fabric included in the kit, but I switched the basket print for an aqua floral Miss Kate print.

The Puppy Love block is a snapshot of my life in two completely unrelated ways. There was always a dachshund or miniature schnauzer in the house when I was growing up, and I have memories that are happy and funny and a little wistful. And then there's Donny Osmond's "Puppy Love". I was obsessed with Donny & Marie (you already know I'm a little bit country!) and I finally saw them in concert a few years ago. As I sewed this block, Donny's song Puppy Love ran through my head. YouTube video to the rescue! Here it is, but don't blame me if you start singing along.

And don't forget to check out the other bloggers participating in this quilt along. I can't wait to see all their creative puppy blocks. And I hope that you're sewing along too! Be sure to use the tag #fqssnapshots when sharing your photos on social media so we can all see them.

snapshots block 3 - put the kettle on

/

Welcome to the third installment of the Snapshots quilt along with Fat Quarter Shop! This month's block is a kettle. That's perfect for me because I'm a big fan of imported teas here at Grey Dogwood Studio, and my vintage kettle is in constant use.

In case you haven't heard about the sew along, the Snapshots blocks help us to capture life's photo-worthy moments in a quilt. You're invited to sew along with us! We'll sew a new block each month this year, and we'll have a finished quilt top in December! The monthly block pattern is free, but a donation of just $5 is requested for St Jude's Children's Research Hospital. I'm using the Snapshots kit and customizing it to make it a little more unique. For my kettle, I've used the kit's Daysail fabric, and I added a navy solid from Bonnie & Camille's Miss Kate collection for the center star.

And who doesn't like to have some cake with their tea?! Doesn't the kettle look cute next to January's cake pattern?

Ok, so here are all the links that you need. You can get the whole scoop on the sew along from the Jolly Jabber blog here. The free pattern download for the kettle is here, and you can make a donation to St. Jude's here. Use your favorite fabrics from your stash, or purchase the kit from Fat Quarter Shop here. Finally, there's a new video tutorial to help you with your block construction here.

Be sure to check out the Snapshots blocks from these fun quilters!

fig tree mystery sampler

/

I think that one of the best parts about quiltmaking is when I start a new quilt. There's all that new potential for discovering and creating and learning new techniques.

You're probably wondering about my other quilts-in-progress, right? I've finished the Moda Modern Building Blocks top! Yes! That thing is huge. I've been waiting for a sunny day to take some photos. Today was sunny... but I completely forgot to get out my camera. You'll see it soon.

So a few months ago, Joanna Figueroa of Fig Tree and Company announced a mystery sampler block of the month. Well, I couldn't make up my mind! I was afraid of another block-of-the-month commitment so I stalled until it sold out (I was already working on the Modern and Snapshots BOMs). And mystery quilts scare me. I like to know what I'm getting into before I sign up and commit to that monthly charge on my credit card. What if I don't like the patterns? What if I don't like the fabric? But I love everything Fig Tree, and when the blocks started popping up on Instagram I felt like I was missing out. Joanna was nice enough to find enough fabric for me to get started... so here I am with a third BOM project. I was determined to finish the Modern quilt before I started this one. So, now is the time!

I've created my very technically advanced chart with fabric swatches. Haha! But seriously... we will be using the leftover bits of fabric in future months, and this little grid will help me to remember the names that Joanna uses for each print. It's just copy paper and a glue stick but it works. There are some great prints coming up soon - even some prints from other Moda designers, so I'm excited about that.

I love churn dash blocks. One of my all-time favorite blocks. So easy and classic and you can vary the dimensions to freshen it up. (This reminds me of a Civil War churn dash block-of-the-month that I discovered in a quilt shop in San Antonio and got hooked.) Then there's the rolling stone block...

I love the rolling stone blocks! But because I'm a little crazy, I started thinking about the block name. Rolling stone? Hummm, these blocks don't look like Mick Jagger or Keith Richards. I prefer to think of them as glamorous, like Mick's exes, Bianca Jagger and Jerry Hall.

And then there are the Mini Stems blocks. Kinda deja vu-ish since I just made the Christmas Mini Stems quilt a few months ago. They're simple, time-consuming, and really cute.

The first month is done! (Well, almost... I'm going to temporarily skip the applique clamshell blocks and return to them later.) Now I need to complete three more back months and I'll be caught up. And just in time, because I've already signed up for the upcoming Fig Tree Christmas mystery sampler!

Thanks for checking up on me while I was away last week. I've been super busy at work - it's fall market time for the cosmetic industry - and I've had client meetings and dinners. I squeezed in an hour of sewing wherever I could last week. I've got a few more weeks like this before I return to normal. Those few minutes of sewing make me happy!

snapshots february block - sewing machine!

/

Are you ready for block 2 of the Snapshots Quilt Along? We're making a sewing machine!

Now why don't we have cute sewing machines like this? I'd love to have a gingham print sewing machine. Or maybe rose print... or polka dots!

Well, you can make your very own sewing machine block, and it can be gingham or roses or dots! Sew along with us!

This block is super easy to sew, with mainly squares and rectangles, and a few stitch-and-flip corners. And there's even a space to put a few strategic, fussy cut motifs like these "dials."

I love how it looks alongside January's layer cake block.

Snapshots is a sew along to benefit St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. The sewing machine pattern is available as a free download, but a $5 donation per pattern is requested. So far, $11,772 has been donated by generous quilters. We have already exceeded the donation goal! The pattern download is available on the Jolly Jabber blog here, and you can make a donation to St. Jude's here. Snapshots would be cute in lots of different fabrics from your own stash, or you can purchase a kit with Daysail fabric by Bonnie and Camille here. I'm using the kit, and I'll enhance it with some other Bonnie & Camille fabrics from my stash in future months. I'll also use the backing kit with a pieced camera block. I've heard that backing kits often sell out quickly. Watch a fun video tutorial with Bonnie and Camille and Kimberly Jolly from the Fat Quarter Shop here. And if you share your block on social media, be sure to use the hashtag #fqssnapshots so that other quilters can see your block.

And there several other bloggers participating in the sew along. Check them out to see all their cute sewing machine blocks.

Thanks for stopping by today. Be sure to visit me tomorrow because I have another top secret project that you won't want to miss!

modern building blocks month 6

/

I'm getting near the end of this quilt! It feels good to have finished this month's collection of blocks. Last night I celebrated this with a midnight snack. Leftover Christmas fruitcake, anyone? (I am so not kidding. There's another fruitcake in the fridge that I'll eat in July while sewing Christmas quilts!)

Each month there's one block that proves to be a challenge. This month the culprit was this 18" block. I wasn't happy with my block - it was 1/2" too big, and then I realized that I used the wrong fabric! - so I remade it. Now I love it. The rest of the blocks were a piece of (fruit) cake.

I completely love the Somerset houndstooth and teal star, and I don't even like teal! See how the houndstooth pieces all face in the same direction? That took some careful planning and fabric waste. I had a tiny bit of the houndstooth left that I wanted to use in another block. After much procrastinating, I altered Joanna Figueroa's color suggestion for the next block.

There are just 8 more blocks to go! Yay! I still need to make a 36" star (eek!) and some smaller, simple blocks, and then the big assembly can begin. Now I'll just sit here quietly and wait for the fabric to arrive. Kidding! I've got more stuff to sew!

If you visit my blog often, you know that I'm a devotee of all the fashion exhibits that we have in NYC. Yves Saint Laurent + Halston Fashioning the 70's opened at the Museum at Fashion Institute of Technology this past weekend. Eighty ensembles and accessories are displayed in a gleaming white space filled with disco music. The show compares and contrasts their highly influential work - Halston's clean, deceptively simple American sophistication and Saint Laurent's opulent, fantasy dresses, each leaving a permanent mark on 70's fashion and continuing to echo in today's fashion. It's a perfect show.

snapshots quilt along starts now!

/

I'm so excited today! Why? It's the first month of the Snapshots Quilt Along! I'll give you the full scoop in just a minute. But first, I gotta show you this month's block! It's a LAYER CAKE! 

Just what we need right after the holidays, right? A big piece of yummy cake. Except that this cake has no calories. None whatsoever. And we can all feel good about having our cake because the Snapshots Quilt Along is a fundraiser for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

On the 15th of each month for twelve months, Fat Quarter Shop will post a block pattern that you can download. The link to this month's pattern is here. The blocks represent snapshot-worthy moments in our lives, such as sewing (of course!), food, entertainment and pets. (My cats can't wait for me to hurry up and get to the kitty block!) The patterns are free, but a donation of $5.00 per pattern is suggested. St. Jude will benefit from the funds raised, and Moda Fabrics and Fat Quarter Shop will match donations, with a goal of $10,000. As I write this, donations are already at $2040, and today is just the first day!

I'll be sewing with the Snapshots kit. It features Bonnie & Camille's hot new Daysail fabric collection for Moda Fabrics. I'll also add in some of Bonnie & Camille's Miss Kate just to be a little different from the kit. The kit is available for preorder here, and it even includes a spool of Aurifil thread and some buttons for the cat and dog eyes. There's also a backing kit which has a camera block. But you can definitely get creative and use your stash or your own customized fabric collection. All you need to do is download the pattern each month and you're ready to sew! I'd love to see this done in Me & My Sister's new Bandana fabric, a grouping of Fig Tree fabrics, or Bunny Hill's new Mistletoe Lane.

Bonnie & Camille have even filmed a tutorial on how to assemble the cake block along with Kimberly Jolly from Fat Quarter Shop. You'll see that the block only looks complicated. It's easy to do when broken down into simple steps. And there's no applique and no templates!

Each month, I'll be sewing along with a group of amazing designers and bloggers. I'm honored to be included with this talented group of ladies. Be sure to hop over to be inspired by their cake blocks, too.

Even more details can be found here, along with a preview of all the upcoming blocks! I do hope that you'll join us. It will be fun for a good cause!

snapshots quilt along!

/

I've joined the Snapshots Quilt Along! I will be sewing twelve novelty blocks that capture life's happy snapshot-worthy moments! We all take pictures of our pets and our food, right? Well, this quilt includes cat and dog blocks to go along with cake, ice cream and picnic food! We'll also create some outdoor-inspired blocks, such as a hot air balloon, bicycle, sailboat and Volkswagen.

All twelve blocks, borders, binding and backing use Bonnie & Camille's hot new fabric collection for Moda called Daysail. I love the happy aqua, red and navy in this collection. And look at the cool white-on-white print! Would I be weird if I said that the white print reminds me of sequins? Here are some of my very favoritest prints in the collection.

daysail fabric.jpg

But maybe the best part is that the Snapshots quilt along will benefit St Jude Children's Research Hospital to help advance cures and preventative measures for children's illnesses. Fat Quarter Shop and Moda Fabrics will match up to $10,000 of the donations that are received during the quilt along. I love that, and I'll be making monthly donations right along with everybody else to help reach this goal.

So here's how it works. Fat Quarter Shop will post a pattern pdf which can be downloaded on the 15th of each month. There will be twelve monthly block patterns. The first pattern will be posted on January 15 and will be a yummy, layer cake (y'all remember my cake obsession, right?!) A donation to St Jude of $5 is requested each month when you download the pattern, although, of course, you may donate whatever you wish. And trust me when I say that these highly detailed patterns are well worth your time and donation. I've already started to work on the layer cake. Everything is rotary pieced! Here's a little peek!

You can use your own fabric! So get creative and clean out your stash! Or go ahead and sew with the Daysail Snapshots kit to make a quilt that looks like mine.

I'll post my block each month on the 15th, along with a link to the pattern. Fat Quarter Shop will also have a fun, tutorial video each month to help you sew your blocks. Here is a link to an introductory video that Kimberly Jolly taped with special guests, Bonnie Olaveson and Camille Roskelley to introduce you to the quilt along. (It is fun to finally hear Bonnie and Camille speak!)

I will be sewing along with a great group of talented designers and quilters. I'm honored to be a part of the group, and I can't wait to see their fabric combinations. Find even more detailed information about the Snapshots quilt along (and a preview of all the blocks) here.

I do hope that you'll join me!

(Do you see how I've loaded so many links onto this post? That's because my new computer works quickly and efficiently!!! Yay! Adding posts to my blog is fun again!)