patchwork quilt along 2017 month 4

Hello there! How did it get to be the fourth month of the Patchwork Quilt Along?! This month truly caught me by surprise. With all the house renovation craziness, I somehow am losing track of time, losing opportunities to sew, and probably also losing my mind. So I needed to carve out some special time to sew because these blocks are a fun diversion! I love how the collection of blocks is growing each month without much effort. I used just two prints with dense background color this month (from Brenda Riddle's Fleurs collection) to show off all those half square triangles to their best advantage.  These blocks took awhile to make but still super easy - a bunch of HSTs and a few squares and that's it. I made my HSTs a bit larger than the pattern directions and then trimmed them down to the exact size.

If you'd like to sew along with us, check out today's Jolly Jabber blog on the Fat Quarter Shop's website. There you'll find a link to the free pattern download. And don't forget that it's a charity fundraiser for Make A Wish, and Fat Quarter Shop and Moda Fabrics will match our donations up to $10,000.

patchwork quilt along 2017 - month 3

Hi everybody! It's time for the next installment of the Patchwork Quilt Along 2017 blocks. I think that these Box-In-A-Box blocks were the quickest things that I've sewn in years. They'll add a nice counterpoint to some of the more delicate blocks coming in future months.

I thought that it might be helpful to share how I've chosen my fabrics for the blocks. Each month I've tried to include a variety of prints: gingham, ditsy and large scale floral. I've reserved the medium and large scale florals for the blocks with larger pieces, and I am using the smallest prints for the blocks with the smallest pieces. I've also tried to have an even distribution of color each month (there isn't any green this month, so I'll make sure that I include it in next month's blocks). And while I'm using a Fleurs fabric bundle that includes white prints, I'm deliberately not using the white florals in this quilt because I don't feel that there is enough contrast with the cream background. They'll be put to good use in a future project!

Patchwork Quilt Along is sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop and Moda Fabrics. You can find a link to the pattern here, as well as a kit to make the quilt in an alternate fabric collection. The monthly block patterns are free, but please consider making a donation of $5 or more to Make-A-Wish.

Thanks for stopping by today! I'll be back very soon with a winner of last week's book giveaway as well as some new projects that I'm working on.

Now go sew your Patchwork Quilt Along 2017 blocks!

patchwork quilt along 2017 - month 2

Hi everybody, and welcome to this month's installment of the Patchwork Quilt Along 2017! Without further delay, let's get right to the block, ok? Here are Diamond Panes!

The Diamond Panes blocks are simple, spring-y, easy and quick. I love a block that covers all those categories! They're part of the Patchwork Quilt Along 2017 charity quilt designed by Fat Quarter Shop and Moda Fabrics. I'm sewing along to create a cute quilt AND to help raise charity funds for Make-A-Wish. So we can feel good about sewing, knowing that we're helping others, too.

(The blocks are "supposed" to look like tall X's, but I prefer them as short X's - they remind me of butterflies or bowties. And I love watching butterflies, and I have a collection of bowties. So in my finished quilt, the blocks will be turned sideways. That's the beauty of quilting, right? We get to put our own personal stamp on each project that we make.)

And I love how they look when they're combined with last month's blocks.

To get your free pattern for Diamond Panes, visit Fat Quarter Shop. You'll find the pattern here, as well as a kit to make the quilt (with different fabric). The blocks really use very little fabric, but I'm using a fat quarter bundle of Brenda Riddle's Fleurs. I like having a little extra fabric because that gives me more freedom when cutting my blocks - like the pink bowtie, where I was able to have all the "chains" going in one direction. Or just use your scraps! But please consider making a donation of $5 to Make-A-Wish for the use of the pattern.

I know that I've been a little quiet in these parts lately. We've been putting a lot of time and work into the new house... it's like a full-time job! Many of you are probably pros at the moving and renovating thing, but it's our first time, so everything is still new and exciting... and overwhelming... and bank account draining LOL! The painters were there yesterday (the entire interior is being redone), a contractor measured for bedroom carpets and kitchen backsplash, and I contemplated the new countertop samples for the 100th time. Then a big truck full of new furniture was delivered, and it will all sit in the garage until the painting is finished. That was how I spent Valentine's Day! But just seeing our paint colors on the walls instead of somebody else's really makes it feel like our home (My sewing studio is a pale, sheer shade of aqua by Sherwin Williams called "Glimmer.") I really need to start taking pics with my "real" camera to document the makeover before it's too late!  I've also been working on binding several quilts at night and I hope to share them with you soon.

Thanks for stopping by today, and I hope that you enjoy making your Diamond Panes blocks!