Pretty Literal

I feel like I made a whole quilt today! But, really, it was just one block. For Andrea. I had a ball!

Loved making it! I added some fabrics from my stash as I felt like I needed more lights. Hope that's ok.

 I realized after I was finished that I may have been a little too literal in my interpretation. Maybe, too many of those small pieces that Andrea said she didn't want. That's what I get for waiting till the last day of June to dive in...and not read the directions again.  I love this so much that I will keep it and make you another one if you think it is too busy, Andrea. I'm just sayin'.

 Thanks for the challenge to do something I've never done before.  I feel like an artist!!

The block will be in the mail tomorrow with all of your scraps. New fancy camera and you can tell from the photo I should not be using it.

My July Block

My scrap bin is overflowing, and despite good intentions of getting to my planned "scrap quilt" projects--I haven't sewed a seam!  So, I'm going to have my One Block Over peeps sew some of my scraps for me...into a lovely Love in a Mist block:

How's that for a complete 180-turn from June's block?!  Photo and tutorial borrowed from the lovely ladies behind Modify Tradition:

Tutorial here.

Your packages will be mailed by the 1st of July! 

I plunged in!

It's finished! I'm happy and relieved to have made your block, Andrea. As you know, it's given me consternation since I first opened the envelope and pulled out your instructions. But I took the plunge.

Unfinished, it measures 12-3/4" X 15-1/4". An odd size, yes? But hopefully one you can cut down, if needed, to puzzle into place.

This block was completely outside my comfort zone, so I'm feeling a wee bit smug about about having made it. And to think... some people actually - gasp! - like making this sort of thing! (giggle)

Pleased with myself, Linda

x and + blocks

Hi all! I wanted to show you progress on the blocks you've been making for me for May. This is a combo of bee blocks made by you lovely ladies and ones I've made. I'm very excited about these blocks! Thanks so very much for sewing for me!

Andrea's Block

Can you tell I have a hard time letting go of straight lines? A little rigid perhaps? Well, I hope this block is OK, Andrea. It was fun to make even though it may look like I had a hard time "coloring outside of the lines." :-)

Art Quilt for Andrea

Andrea, I had such fun with this last night...the former art student in me was in 7th heaven!  .

I wanted to interpret the thumbnail image somewhat literally, (I really enjoyed Victoria's version) so I started free-piecing the left side first, then recreating the right side of the painting... 

Then I went back and free-pieced the center section, pulling two additional yellow/gold solids from my solids stash to get a little more variety in my pigment.  The bright lemon yellow and the duller maize yellow in this pic came from my stash:

So again here is the inspiration painting, and my finished block....

 

So what do you think, Bee Block or Art Quilt?


P.S. I'm going to wait a few days to mail this to you, Andrea...July is my month and I've changed my idea about seven times...now I may have to change it again!  I'll return your block and leftover fabric with your July package!

Andrea's Block for Andrea

Andrea - this block gave me a bit of anxiety. Not gonna lie...I was intimidated.  But when you wrote in your post that you didn't love the block you made, but rather you liked certain elements - it was exactly what I needed to hear to dive into your block. I added a little bit of pink and navy - hope that's okay.

Separately, I don't love them. But when I put them together - dude - I got so excited about what this thing will look like when you put it together. Love, love, love it! Can't wait.

Thank you for pushing us to explore new techniques!

Maverick Star

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The maverick star block is a good one!  Very easy to do once you get the hang of it, and precision for the points isn't necessary.  One could speed right through a load of blocks unless that one is me.  I spent way too much time trying to piece interesting pre-blocks and probably lost a couple of hours in the process.  I way overthink these things.  Andie, your girls' quilts will be fantastic.  The blue and black reminds me of a traditional Amish square I love, but, of course, this one is updated, modern, and fresh with all the prints you sent.  -- michele

Parisville Revisited

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So, February. What a mess I made! When I finally finished the block and had the motif sewn on, I started the decorative stitching all around. I ruined it. The sewing foot got caught on one of the seams underneath, and while I thought the stitch was taking a while to work its way out, I didn’t realize it was stuck and sewing over and over and over itself creating a thick web of thread over and under, and …. what a mess! I sent it to Michelle in hopes she could salvage it and/or just create something for herself with it. 
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To begin again, I went back to etsy, and I ordered more of the Tula Fabric to go with the fat quarters I bought a month or so ago, a half-yard set and 10 strips of 3-inch wide designs from the etsy shop. When I began to piece the strips, I realized I had nearly NONE of the original shades of fabric Michelle sent originally. Mine is so pink and purple compared to the sprout colorway. The next flaw in my plan: The half yard of the motif fabric was not cut centered on the heads, so NONE of the heads had a complete motif surrounding it! 
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Final Decision: STOP. Michelle told me she has more motifs, so I’m hoping she won’t be any more bothered with me than she may be already, and I’m sending the block without the motif to let her sew it in on her end. I don’t think I’ve ever messed up anything so bad that belongs to someone else, and Michelle and I have been blogging friends going on years now. I have a lot of making up to do, somehow ... -- michele  

June's Block - Free Piecing

Guessing by now most of you have received your packages and are either excited to dive in or wondering what in the world I've gotten you into this month! If you fall into the latter group, perhaps sharing a few thoughts on free piecing and my process in making this month's block will be helpful.

One of the things I use when free piecing is the question frequently asked by Jude Hill over at Spirit Cloth...."What if?" (She used to have a collaborative site dedicated exclusively to that question, but it appears it is no longer up.) Asking this helps me be open to possibilities and exploration, rather than set plans and outcomes. Each step becomes a process of discovery...what works and what doesn't, how one piece changes the whole, how I can fit different sections together, etc. etc. Perhaps thinking of your block as an experiment (without worrying about creating a masterpiece!) will help get the ball rolling. Here's what I experimented with on my block and the end result.

Like you, I began with two groups of fabric, light and dark, in assorted shapes and sizes. No set has all the fabric. Mine had lots of blue and said "sky" to me.

I started with the "dark" or "shadowed" side. First, what if I start with stripes?

Then cut it in half? What if I want stars like these? Just lay that big piece of yellow across one corner and stitch it down. Flip it over, trim and press. Trim again.

Another point amidst the stripes.

Do I want three or four points? Lay them out and see.

What if I just can't make four work? No more of that yellow and these improvised pieces are just cut all wrong to come together in any logical way!

This is how they work...but what if I don't love it like this?

Oh well...move on! It will do.

What about the little scrappies of yellow that are left? Could they go in the lower corner? Get out the rotary cutter and cut that corner away for the new piece to fit in.

And now the "light" side!!! What if I start with stripes again?

And if I don't know exactly where to place a piece, I just put right sides together, sew and trim. (I also keep my seam ripper nearby and use it as needed!)

Piece things together....

Finished! Leaving it raw and wonky (not squared up) gives me more options in piecing it together with all of your blocks.

Along they way, I created a fair little mess of the bits I trimmed away and didn't use. Most of them will go in the trash. The larger ones will be saved to fill in between the blocks. I didn't really use any of the red...they just didn't fit with my image of sky.

Do I love, love, love my block? Nope. I love elements of it and I hope it will contribute something to the whole. That's part of what I am interested in...the process of pulling all these different experiments together into one cohesive whole. So truly...experiment. See what you love. See what happens along the way. Don't worry if things don't turn out how you imagined them. They'll turn out just as they should and find a way into the whole of this quilt.

Hey Andrea, I came home today and I dove right in... 

I could keep going on this all day!

I LOVE things segmented....

I used your piece as inspiration as I cut and added and made

it up as I went along.

I really want ot add one more YELLOW across the top,

and I've used all your orange color...

Would you mind if I added this yellow strip at the top?

FUN STUFF!!!!

- Victoria

P.S. I made two because I had so much fun.... No scraps to send back!

(I want to keep these....) LOL

For Amy....under the wire!

First off....I'm mailing this today...but finished it yesterday...still May...right!! Anyhow, look for it soon, Amy. Second off....I love, love, love this block. It would be an awesome way to use up scraps. Third off....It sure was easy, especially since you had all the cutting done for me! Fourth off....you have the best ideas. It is fun being in this swap with you after following your blog for so long now! Sorry I am a bit late.
Here you go! Love, Carla