Block Play

While I am awaiting labels to add to the notebook covers I will be making for our church Holiday Faire,  I am making pieces to use in the covers. 

Some batiks and hand-dyed fabrics and maybe a print or two and these were made.

Once I am assembling the covers these will be used on the fronts of notebooks.  They will be bordered with other fabrics. 

I also found these two heart blocks as I was gathering materials.

So setting corners were added to make these two cover blocks of tilted hearts. 

Since I work rather intuitively, making decisions as I go, there is often what I call "my creative mess."

But aren't those colors lovely together?

I would be remiss if I didn't tell you that Craftsy is having a class sale this weekend.

Over 50 classes are on sale for $15.  Many others are priced at $19.99.  

Class Sale Here

For example, Playing with Curves taught by Ann Petersen is only $14.99. I used her curved piecing technique for the curves/hills & Valleys in one of the blocks in the top photo. 

These are affiliate links meaning that you get the best price offered while I get a small stipend as a bonus.  Your price is completely unaffected by using my link. 

Thanks!

Comments are welcomed. I will reply when possible unless otherwise stated. Of course if you are a "No Reply Blogger"- I can not reply. Links in posts may be affiliate links for which I am compensated if you click through and purchase.

Another Notebook

After a great rehearsal last night and a trip to take Mom to the doctor this morning for her appointment, I sat and made this Quilted Notebook cover.

For the front cover, I used a piece of patchwork that I had made with quilting fabric and some of my handwoven fabric.  I also added a pocket inside the front cover for pens or pencils.
The effect of the handwoven fabric in patchwork piecing really makes my heart sing.  This will go in my "stash" for the November sale at church.  I hope someone loves it enough to buy it.  The great part about these is that they are easily refilled with a standard composition notebook. So it is usable for a very long time. I have ordered some labels for my small pieces - as soon as they arrive I will want to add one to this notebook cover.

Take care, my friends.   I need to get back to studying the music and choreography for the show.

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The Eclipse, Vote for Me - and a project

Today was the day - eclipse 2017.   As I was in the path of 95% totality (approx.)  it was on my bucket list to see as much of the eclipse as I could.  Cha-Ching!
Here is what happened:
I made a pinhole viewer by punching a hole in cardstock.  I tried it - ugh!  there were "artifacts" from the cardboard in the projection. So I made a bigger hole in some matboard and taped a curtain rod holder with one of the holes over the hole in the cardboard.
First look:

You can see the beginning of the eclipse here.
Oh, the viewer?

Fancy huh?

Here are some other photos -just so you know, it is hard to take a photo while you are holding the viewer to make the projection.

At one point this big old mean cloud covered the sun and blocked my view. (Disclaimer - I took the photo "blindly" by roughly aiming the camera without looking. Hey, it worked!)

I went inside and pouted until I saw sun on a building to my north. Then I went back out and watched some more with my pinhole viewer.  (Another disclaimer:  I know I am a geeky science nerd.)

And I am telling you that voting is open on the Pets on Quilts competition.  My quilt is registered as Pet Themed Quilt #4 Cat and Butterfly  Vote here http://lilypadquilting.blogspot.com/2017/08/and-now-voting-begins.html

Also I did actually do some sewing/quilting.
I made this quilted cover for a composition book.  I plan to make some various designs for a sale in November. This was my "test the size" sample - and it is less than perfect - so I will keep it.  It did help me to perfect what I will be doing, so that is a big plus.

Yes I did use some of my hand dyed fabric for it. 

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Rolling, Rolling, Rolling

Today's block, the Rolling Nine Patch, was published in the Fat Quarter Shop's blog.   My version is different a wee bit.  I needed a 9" block instead of the 5 1/2" block - so I improvised.  To do that every 1 1/2" measurement I changed to 2 1/2"  AND on the rectangle parts I made 4 1/2" long.  Do not assume that I am a math guru - far from it. I drew it up in Electric Quilt first as a 10" block.
Then when it was sewn I cut it down to 9" so that it will work in my Pineapple Surprise quilt.

If it looks a bit skewed, I think that is more the photo than the actual block. But if it is the block, it is okay for this quilt.
Notice that I used a hand dyed lavender along with a batik.  I had already used a bit of that batik in some other blocks, so it will add a little continuity.

By the way,  Craftsy is having a "Maker's Black Friday Sale" through Sunday at 11:59 MST. I saw some good deals on batting and even a great deal on Kaffe Fassett fabric collection.  There is also a Free Spirit Mystery Fat Quarter collection on sale - 50 FQs for $49.99.

If you don't hear from me a lot for the next month, here is why.  Our local community theater group is doing Mel Brooks' musical Young Frankenstein.  So, learning the music and choreography is going to take up a bit of my time.  Rest assured that I will be having a blast. If you are close, or going to be close by on September 29th thru October 1st,  I hope you will consider coming to see it.  It just so happens that the 30th of September is my birthday - so the Saturday show will be my way of celebrating.

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Eight Blocks-The Fun Way!

I wanted to do some more non-pineapple blocks for the Pineapple Surprise quilt that I am working on.  This will be my own design although it is not pre-planned.  I needed some blocks that are somewhat calm to add places for the eye to rest when it is being viewed.  All but one of the fabrics in the eight blocks are all hand-dyed fabrics.  The oddball is a batik that was a 10 inch square.  I knew that since I am making nine inch square blocks it would work perfectly.

I used a lot of bits and pieces scraps in these blocks. It is a great way to eliminate wasting those pieces that are "too big to throw away, but really too small to save."

I think I could do an entire quilt of these blocks. They are really fun to make.  But I would have to cut up pieces to use as "scraps" for it.
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Cat Quilt - Pets on Quilts 2017

The Pets on Quilts online quilt show is starting today. Thanks to Lilypad Quilting,  and her "minions" Padsworth and Dragondrop, for hosting the show.
For my entry, here is my Cat and Butterfly quilt. I am in the "Pet Theme Quilted Project" category for this show.   The background is made of woven strips of hand dyed fabrics. The cat and the butterfly, as well as the binding, are all of hand dyed fabrics.

I encourage you to visit the Pets on Quilts show. And if you choose vote for Cat and Butterfly I will be most happy.
Comments are welcomed. I will reply when possible unless otherwise stated. Of course if you are a "No Reply Blogger"- I can not reply. Links in posts may be affiliate links for which I am compensated if you click through and purchase.

Dyeing and Sewing

At some point, the realization came to me that if I am to keep dyeing fabric, I need to use what I am dyeing.  I also have a "stash" of hand-dyed fabrics from Vicki Welsh and even a few from others who dye.  
I pulled out a selection and started cutting strips of various sizes - some cut on slight angles also.
Then I sewed for a while.  I played around with the log cabin block for a bit and made four of those.

Rules?  Nah, as long as the seam is stable it is good. 

Then I took some leftover strip pieces and made this (sorry about the photo quality -it is raining and I am inside taking the photo.)

Yesterday I had managed to do a bit of dyeing also.  I have several pieces of fabric and two skeins of weaving yarn dyed.  But the only photo is this one- because I love it best.

How did I do this?  I wish I knew. I stuffed the fabric into a container with a little dye in the bottom and then poured other colors down the sides.  But the result is pure happy luck.

We have family visiting this week so I am creating in spare time. I sewed while the laundry was going. I dyed in the early morning.  You can always squeeze in a few minutes for creativity if you really want to do it.   Go create something!
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Playing with Strips

Wow, this week has passed quickly.  I have been doing some extra things for Mom and working on a project that I can't post yet.  That is why I haven't posted since Monday.  I also volunteered to work as an usher for the local community theatre production of Smokey Joe's Cafe for three nights.  The opening night was wonderful. I work again tonight and I am really looking forward to it.

There are a few blocks that I have sewn to go in with the pineapple variations and the other random blocks I am making for my Pineapple Surprise quilt.  Here are four of those.

Many of these strips are hand dyed fabrics.  In the two "brighter" blocks there is also a batik that I love.  It just seemed to go with the other fabrics I had chosen for the blocks.  These are all take-offs on the log cabin/courthouse steps block. Of course, I stayed true to my personal style and let them be wonky.   There are also some strips that were pieced together to be long enough.  I do that as a leader/ender as I am sewing the blocks.  It saves the pieces from the trash pile while making the block more interesting.

I have dyed some more fabric also, but I don't have photos of it yet.  I even tossed in a stained t-shirt to use up some excess dye.  Now I want to dye more of my t-shirts that are "aged" to spruce them up a bit.  I also have a white kitchen towel that has a chocolate stain - I consider that a good reason to dye it in bright colors too.

What are you doing that makes you happy and makes your eyes shine?



Comments are welcomed. I will reply when possible unless otherwise stated. Of course if you are a "No Reply Blogger"- I can not reply. Links in posts may be affiliate links for which I am compensated if you click through and purchase.