Modern Instabee 2014 (May)

Another month, another block!

I was worried that I wouldn't have May's block done in time, but I'll mail it  today and will just make the deadline :)

Christen wanted the "triple star" block, in pink, aqua and yellow, with the background black and white, or grey and white low volume prints.

I chose really bright colors for the block, so I thought the grey "crossword puzzle" fabric would work well for the background.

I fussy cut a pretty pink flower for the center of the block.

This block is easy to sew, and it's really easy to square up because it is much larger to begin with.

My points are perfect!

A treat after I butchered the friendship stars on my mini medallion! 

Here's the first star.

Now there are two stars.

The triple star quilt block, I hope Christen likes it :)

It would be nice to have different shades of each color for variation in her quilt.

I really love the background in this block!

I never heard from Karen, I sent her the "Painter's Palette" block over a month ago, you can read about it here.
I emailed her to see if she received it and she hadn't!
Oh great, back to the drawing board.

I like the look of the colored squares with their background corners, they look like little crosses.

Luckily, it was a really fast and easy block to sew.

The colors are arranged in a different order, and I think I like this block better than the original one!

You can look on Instagram for photos of everyone else's quilt blocks. 

#moderninstabee2014

#moderninstabee2014hive11

#moderninstabeehive11

Have a great weekend :)

Mini Medallion, part 2

I am working hard to finish this little mini medallion quilt.  

It will measure 24" square.

You can find my "mini medallion" board on Pinterest here.

There are two parts to the tutorial, and this is the mini medallion that Corey Yoder designed.

I've sewn the pinwheels around the center medallion.

It was fun choosing all the 30's prints.

It was a lot of cutting and sewing!

I didn't square the half square triangles, and am really sorry that I didn't.

A lot of my points were cut off...

Luckily I'm not giving it as a gift.  

It's a fun project and I will be in a drawing to win some Aurifil thread.

Next, I will be sewing all these little squares together and onto the quilt.

This little mini quilt is so scrappy that I don't think anyone will notice my sloppy points, lol!

Great Granny Sew Along

Hi everyone, I'm back from my travels and spending time with family!

I have been sewing my heart out, trying to catch up :)

This was the block I made with the balls of yarn and crochet hook.

Greg from Grey Dogwood Studio sent me some black Pam Kitty fabric, so I made another block with a black crochet hook, instead of a green one.

You can read about that here.

I made all my Mama blocks, adding some black ones here and there for a pop of color and interest.

I trimmed the basket and balls of yarn in black, and plan to bind the quilt in black also.

I couldn't decide on a border for the quilt, there are so many colors and possibilities.

My first choice would have been the red and white polka dot that I used for the basket handle, but didn't have enough.

I chose the strawberry print that I used for the basket, and now I have a happy little quilt that I'll probably use for a table runner on my black dining room table.

I've had a great time making this quilt and seeing everyone else's pretty creations on the flickr page.

Thanks Lori, at Bee in my Bonnet.

Sewing Machine Cover

This is the reliable sewing machine that I used to sew with all the time, until I got my new Bernina for Christmas.

My daughter made me this really beautiful sewing machine cover for me.

I love all the different fabrics she chose.

I love the machine quilting she did, she's getting very experienced!

I pinned a tutorial on my "random tutorials" board on pinterest that you can check out.

I think she might have used the same pattern :)

Great Granny Sew Along

I'm having so much fun making Lori Holt's Great Granny quilt.

Here are the first and second blocks that I made.

I am using mostly Pam Kitty fabric with a touch of Lori Holt.

I thought Greg's quilt looked so beautiful with the black trim, making the pink colors pop.

I wished that I had picked up some black, but it never appealed to me, until I saw Greg's quilt.

Greg from Grey Dogwood Studio said that he would send me some of his black Pam Kitty scraps to use in my Great Granny quilt.

I am in between trips today, and was able to check the mail.

Look what I found!

A beautifully wrapped package tied with a lovely green ribbon :)

Greg sent me 1/4 yard pieces, he is very generous and thoughtful :)

I can hardly wait to have time to sew again, so I can incorporate these beautiful black pieces amongst the rest of my Pam Kitty squares for the Mama blocks.

I encourage all of you to check out Greg's blog, it is eye candy!

He writes about all his gorgeous projects, and he has a great talent for choosing colors.

He is a quilting inspiration!

Mini Medallion

I love this quilt, it's a mini medallion.

Little Miss Shabby is doing a quilt along at Sew Mama Sew.

She designed the quilt herself :)

I have a board on Pinterest that you can find here.

It is only made in two segments, and measures 25" square.

I cut out my fabric for part 1 of the sew along, including all of the background pieces.

Here's the center section of the medallion.

I decided to use 30's prints.

I love them and they are small scale.

I'm not sure what other colors I'm going to use yet for the borders, but I have my 20 prints selected for part 2.

I have until May 31 to be eligible for some prizes.

I'm still traveling, but still hope to get this finished by the deadline.

My Quilting Journal #3

This is the week for "my quilting journal"!

This quilt was so much fun to make!

I made it with 2 wonderful friends, Nanette and Liz.

We pooled our fabrics together and took turns sewing blocks.

Then we would choose which was our favorite.

If you can't read my journalling, Nanette's colors were blue, Liz' were the brown/red, and mine (at the time) was purple.

I hand quilted it and it hung on my wall for years until recently.

Thanks for sharing the excitement with me, that I wrote in my journal :)

My Quilting Journal #2

Here's my second entry.

My first quilt project, a long table runner that I hand quilted.

The journal entry brings back lots of memories.

I pasted fabric swatches on the page.

My Quilting Journal

When I first began quilting, my mother bought me this journal.

It's a great way to record all of my quilting projects.

This is my first entry.

Lindsay made me the most beautiful table runner.

The colors match my decor, and the little squares inside the star 

are 1/2", so little!

I treasure it, because Lindsay made it for me with a lot of love.

Out to Sea

I'm sorry that this little outfit is so wrinkly!

It's a button on suit that I made for my son Sean when he was 

18 months old, 20 years ago.

It's picture smocking, and the smocking plate is called 

"Out to Sea".

I made piping from the fabric that the knickers are made of.  

There are six buttons that go around the waist and keep the pants attached to the shirt which buttons down the back.

I really love the pleats on the shirt, underneath the smocking.

This pattern is called Chery Williams button on suit.

Basic Square Yoke Dress

I made this dress for my daughter Vanessa when she was 10 years old, which was 14 years ago.

I have a plastic storage container full of dresses and buttons on suits that I've made for my children over the years.

As you can see, the insert of the dress is smocked on black fabric.

I picture smocked little cats with sunflowers and butterflies to match the fabric.

This smocking pattern was in an issue of Sew Beautiful magazine.

Notice the black piping trim on the sleeve band.

The smocked cats are exactly the same colors as the cats on the fabric.

I embroidered little bullion roses to match the smocking, on the piped collar.

I'm not a cat lover, but I couldn't resist these cute little cats :)

I sewed gold buttons on the back.

There is a big sash that ties in the back.

The pattern is Chery Williams Basic Square Yoke Dress.