Design Floor Monday 6-25-12

Over the weekend Ruth and I went to Raleigh to the Sewing Expo. It was the first time it had been held in Raleigh. It wasn't a huge show but was a lot of fun. We did not attend any of the classes but plan to next year. There were some beautiful quilts displayed, including a number of quilts from Fons & Porter, plus a display called "Home Is Where The Quilt Is" (I think ... my memory ...). Anyway, the pieces in the Home exhibit were all shaped like simple A-roof houses - maybe 18" x 24" - and the designs were as varied as they could be. Some were funny. Some were sweet. Some were traditional. Some were very modern. All were delightfully creative. In the Fons & Porter display it was neat to see in person some of the quilts they have shown on their TV show - they were beautiful. There was a good assortment of vendors, too (I spent too much money .... :-(   ).

One of the things I bought was a jellyroll of batik fabric all in lovely beach-y pastels. So Sunday morning I knocked this out. I see in the photo at least two blocks that needs to be rotated - good thing it's just laid out at this point. But my sweet puppy was tired of being ignored so I stopped sewing around noon on Sunday and will try to finish up the quilt top Monday evening. It will end up being a very large lap quilt.

I also picked up a couple of wall hanging patterns, both of which have something to do with the ocean. Hmmm ... I'm seeing a recurring theme in the things I'm making.

And Ruth and I each picked up a purse/bag pattern.

I'm contemplating purchasing some of the Shiva Fabric Paint Sticks. Anyone using them? Willing to tell me what you think about them?

Visit Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times to see what other creative quilters are up to.

Design Wall Monday 6-18-12

Beach"es"Cape is finished. This was such a fun piece to work on.

The final touch was added yesterday which was all the teensy seashells I found at Shackleford Banks last weekend. It was just one of those unusually good shelling days - such fun. And I knew as I was picking up those shells, some about the size of a grain of rice, that they would end up on this piece.

So, since Beach"es"Cape was wrapping up, I decided to start a birdhouse-scape. The floral motif embroidery is from an autumn fabric I bought years ago - I only had a small scrap left but there was one whole motif in that scrap so I did a mimic style embroidery over it (got that idea from my friend Ruth!). The butterfly and bluebird patterns are from the book "Embroidered Birds" by Helen M Stevens. I transferred the patterns from the book onto white cotton fabric. Once the embroidery was finished I used an fusible web to help stabilize the pieces a bit, cut them out and added them to the birdhouses. I also used this piece as an opportunity to experiment with some of the decorative stitches on my BabyLock. I'm naming this piece "It's A Bluebird Day."

Hmmm ... what to do next? I have not a clue but I'm sure all the lovely posts on Patchwork Times Design Wall Monday will inspire me. I do have the Artrageous Quilters grab bag challenge  to work on. And I'm waiting on the July blocks for the craftsy.com block of the month project to be published. And  I bought fabric for a pair of pillowcases. And there is a messy sewing room that needs some cleaning attention. No shortage of things to do ...

Design Wall Monday 6-11-12

Beach"es"Cape is progressing nicely. I've thoroughly enjoyed the handwork and the "no-rules-do-whatever-you-want" process of this townscape. What's left to do? I plan to stitch in a few more beach chairs, a sand bucket or two, a couple pairs of flipflops, a bicycle ... a few other things might pop into my imagination, too. I also have some small colorful coquina clam shells and some small bits of sea glass I plan to glue to the "sand." And I'm also still leaning towards stitching on a few beads here and there, maybe as a few constellations in the sky.

Planning for my next townscape is well underway.

Take a few moments and visit Patchwork Times today for Design Wall Monday - the creativity and talent posted on Judy's Design Wall Mondays is quite spectacular.

Design Wall Monday 6-4-12

The local quilt shop, Cotton Fields, is having a delightful challenge this summer. A challenge kit is available from the shop and contains 3 fabrics that have to be used to create a crazy patchwork piece which can be embellished however the designer wants - is it okay to add additional fabrics as well. The challenge piece is due at the shop by the end of July. I am well on my way. Here is the base piece. I made the beaded dragonfly that will be adhered to the center. I plan to incorporate prairie points along the binding.I also decided to add piping between the blocks and the border. Next I'll start the embroidery, add beads, then finish the prairie points, quilting, and binding. The finished piece will be around 19-20" square. I'm naming it "Controlled Chaos" because even though it comes across as a crazy patchwork, the dirty little secret is that I made a foundation paper pieced pattern and all four blocks are the same!

The Artrageous Quilters group met Saturday. Our project was "cityscapes" - beautiful, lively, whimsical cityscapes or townscapes. I did a beachscape and will name it 'Beach"es"Cape'. This was just nothing but fun. No rules. Wonky. Cheerful. I enjoyed every second of it, and my imagination is running at a full tilt dreaming up other townscape pieces. The pieces are just pinned down right now so I need to fuse and/or sew them in place. I have some small seashells and sea glass to add to the "beach", and I plan to add some beads. I think my next one may focus on cottages ...

Take some time to visit Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times to see what others are up to.