Blogger's Quilt Festival, Fall 2015: Delta Breeze

If you are here from Blogger's Quilt Festival, welcome!

Delta Breeze might be one of my favorite quilts I've made this year.

I received a stack of Soho Solids from Timeless Treasures in a beautiful range of colors, and then added some of their neutrals as well (more details here).

The original inspiration came from pew upholstery in a church Mark and I visited in spring. It might not look too inspiring at first glance, but it reminded me of classic bear paw blocks, two different sizes and turned every which way.

You can even make your own version. There is a tutorial on the Timeless Treasures blog.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope you are enjoying the show.

Quilt name: Delta Breeze
Designed and made by: Cindy Wiens
Quilted by: Darby Myers
Size: 46"x46"
Category: Original design

Blogger's Quilt Festival, Fall 2015: A Day at Disneyland

If you are here from Blogger's Quilt Festival, welcome! If you are a regular reader, I hope you will enjoy A Day at Disneyland once again.

When Jen Kingwell's pattern, "My Small World," took over Instagram by storm, I immediately knew I wanted to make this quilt as well. I wrote about my thought process in this post, but I'll also post close-ups of some of my favorite parts here.

Your day at Disneyland starts at sunrise on Main Street. Mickey and Minnie welcome you into the park.

Be sure to bring lots of money--you're going to need it! If you're lucky, you might see the Disney Princesses walking around.

Head over the Fantasyland. Take a ride on the Teacups. Get a snack.

Say hi to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Can you believe how many socks she has to wash?! She hangs them up on the house chimney to dry faster. Watch out, Snow White--don't eat that apple!

Next up is Tomorrowland. Don't forget to search for "hidden Mickeys!"

Don't you just love Star Wars?

One of my favorite rides is Pirates of the Caribbean. If you look closely in this section, you will even see a pirate monkey! Watch out for Captain Hook.

Take a Jungle Cruise.

It's nearly Halloween--don't miss the Haunted Mansion.

It's probably about time to go on Small Small World. It's so fun to watch the characters come out every 15 minutes and march around.

So many different countries represented. You'll be singing the song for the rest of the day...

Finally, the day is coming to an end. Watch the fireworks in front of Sleeping Beauty's Castle. Pay attention--you don't want to miss Tinkerbelle.

It's been a glorious day at the Magic Kingdom. Thanks for stopping by!

Quilt: A Day at Disneyland
Size: 33"x51"
Pieced by: Cindy Wiens
Quilted by: Darby Myers (she used a Mickey Ears pattern!)
Category: Scrappy Quilts

Friday Finish: MCC 2016 quilt

I actually cannot believe I completed a king-sized quilt top in a week. It would never have happened if I hadn't been at a quilt retreat. No distractions like laundry, errands, dinner preparation....you know what I mean, right?

Isn't it amazing what a change in value does to two blocks made from an identical pattern?

I sized the center of the dresden to use Pearl Bracelets by Lizzy House. Can you see those pretty blue dots surrounding the center?

 

So while this is not a completed quilt, it is a major completion for me.

 

It now goes to Mark's cousin for her so-fabulous quilting. Every other year we collaborate to make a king-sized quilt for a charity donation. I'm so thrilled with Moccasin (pattern by Gen X Quilters) and the neutral color scheme that I stole from Kristi Kristi shared with me--giving me the list of each and every fabric she used. She works in a quilt shop near Olympia, Washington, so I was able to purchase some fabrics through her and was able to track down all the others except for one. Check her out on Instagram--@71stitches.  Thanks to you both. I hope it brings lots of money for such a good cause.

I'm linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts, TGIFF and Confessions of a Fabric Addict. Happy weekend.

Harvest Spice: From Start to Finish

If you are here from Quilt with Love, the blog of RJR Fabrics, welcome!

The inspiration for Harvest Spice came from two separate sources, which then blended together beautifully.

I have had this gorgeous piece of fabric for years. I loved the rich combination of colors. But then my style kind of changed and I donated it to my church quilting group. Then regretted it, and asked for it back.

I do know that it is called Harvest Spice, and hence the name for the quilt. However, because I have an alternate persona as a collector of selvages, the rest of the information is gone. It could be here.

Or here.

But I digress.

Mark and I went to a home show in July where I took a photograph of this chair upholstery to add to my inspiration file.

A few weeks later I had the opportunity work with Cotton Supreme Solids by RJR. Given free reign, I knew exactly the color palette to choose--Harvest Spice. I chose two different colors of red (222 Redwork and 356 Moulin Rouge), orange (276 Tangerine Dream and 367 Bandana),  gold (92 Goldenrod and 305 Butternut), green (359 Pea in a Pod and 343 Martini Olive), and purple (361 Aubergine and 279 Purple Haze), and added a soft white (364 Kerchief) and deep, dark brown (201 Espresso).

I spent a few days of relaxing and sewing at a cabin and made the first few blocks.

At first I was sure I would be making more of the half stripes/half espresso blocks but the more blocks that were completed, the less I thought they worked. Turns out, what looks good in upholstery where each square is about one inch just didn't translate to a block that is 10 inches.

I had several color combination "recipes" and when I needed five more blocks for the five by five setting, I made monochromatic blocks (one in green and one in purple) and three variations of courthouse steps, randomly choosing scraps from my cutting table.

I had originally planned on using Espresso for the binding. That would have been a "safe" choice for me. But in what now seems like a stroke of luck, I didn't have enough, and went with Moulin Rouge instead. I love it!!

I'm thrilled with the finished quilt.It's a simple square-in-a-square, starting with a center square 2 1/2" x 2 1/2". If you want more info on block construction, don't hesitate to email me.

My quilter extraordinaire, Darby Myers, said it was her favorite of my quilts she has quilted--and she has quilted a lot for me lately!

Cotton Supreme Solids come in many beautiful colors and are a joy to work with. Want to hear the best part? As part of their What Shade R U? campaign, RJR is giving away a fat quarter bundle of the colors used in this quilt. Just perfect for fall sewing! Leave a comment telling me whether you wait for pumpkin spice season (like I do), or if there is something else that says "fall is here" to you. I'll choose a winner on Sunday night, October 11 (giveaway open to US and Canada residents only).

Disclaimer: Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Pattern Play: From Start to Finish

Probably a year ago, I saw this great set of blocks for our grandson called Pattern Play. It comes with forty cards. You choose a card and then use the blocks to duplicate the pattern on the card. If you are like me, the first thing that popped into my head was that it was the perfect idea for a quilt!

A couple months later, there was an opportunity to work with two beautiful fabric lines, Artisan Cottons by Another Point of View and Heavy Metals by Whistler Studios, both for Windham Fabrics.  I knew these were the perfect fabrics for Pattern Play.

Pattern wise, I had nothing to go on except these 4" cards, but it was fairly easy to figure out that the strips should be 1" finished and the blocks would be 10" x 10" finished.

 

Some blocks were easy.

Even these two were quite simple.

Quite a few had a higher degree of difficulty.

 

With so much color and pattern going on, I separated the blocks with 1" black sashing strips.

 I used this fabulous fabric, also by Windham, for the backing. The bonus? It is 108" wide so there was no need for any seams on the back! Which was a good thing, because by then I was completely over trying to figure anything out!

I'm so happy with how the quilt turned out. The fabrics are rich in color, and the two lines, Artisan Cottons and Heavy Metals, play so well together. I think Pattern Play is the perfect name, don't you?

Disclaimer: Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.