Patriotic Palette Blog Hop: Streamers

I'm so happy you are here today for the patriotic palette blog hop, sponsored by Paintbrush Studios.

This will be the story of a quilter (me) who had the opportunity to work again with Painter's Palette solids and has had a hard time following the guidelines (also me).

Since I sew primarily with solids, I have worked with solids from nearly every major manufacturer. The Painter's Palette solids are absolutely wonderful and have quickly become my favorite. When I received the fabric, I knew exactly what I wanted to make, and started cutting into the fabric. In the bundle were fat quarters in three shades of red (Claret, Crimson and Tomato), three shades of blue (Patriot, French blue and River) and a fat quarter of White.

All the beautiful fused glass was made by my husband, Mark

Shortly thereafter, I re-read the guidelines and thought, "uh oh." 

Let me explain. A few months ago, I designed a quilt, one which I haven't fully shared yet, but let me give you a sneak peek.

The blocks in the center of the quilt looked like ribbons blowing in the wind, so I thought it would be fun to make a patriotic version.

I quickly realized that one fat quarter of white would not be nearly enough. Fortunately, I had more Painter's Palette white on hand, so I kept going. I really wanted to do the double rows of hour glass blocks all around the outside, but didn't have enough blue. More is on the way. 

For the quilt top as shown, three fat quarters of blue and three fat quarters of red is plenty, but you will need 3/4 yard of white. If you decide to do the double row of blue and white hourglass blocks as shown in the diagram further down, you will need one yard of white, and at least two more fat quarters of the blue.

Cutting instructions are as follows (cutting total for the double hourglass border is in parentheses):

White: 
12 (28) - squares 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" sub-cut in quarters diagonally (each square will make two blocks--see below) for quarter square triangles (QST)
2 - squares 4 1/2 " 4 1/2"
14 - squares 2 1/2" x 2 1/2"
23 - squares 3" x 3", sub-cut in half diagonally for half square triangles (HST)

Blue:
12 (28) - squares 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" sub-cut in quarters diagonally (each square will make two blocks--see below) for QST

Red:
Color 1 (dark):
           13 - squares 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" 
             9 - squares 3" x 3" sub-cut in half diagonally for HST
Color 2 (medium)
          12 - squares 2 1/2" x 2 1/2"
             8 - squares 3" x 3" sub-cut in half diagonally for HST
Color 3 (light)
              8 - squares 2 1/2" x 2 1/2"
               6 - squares 3" x 3" sub-cut in half diagonally for HST

To make the hourglass blocks, match a blue QST with a white QST (make sure the same color is on top as you chain piece) and sew down one side. Press toward the dark. Line up the two halves and sew. Trim to 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" 

To make the red and white HST blocks, sew as shown below. Trim to 2 1/2" x
2 1/2".

Laying out the red and white blocks proved to be trickier than when I made the single-color version. Each block consists of squares and HST triangle units, as shown on the right side of the diagram. I labeled the blocks in the center of the quilt to correspond with block layouts along the side. If you have any questions, or something doesn't make sense, please email me. I'm happy to answer any questions.

I really like the way it turned out, even though it was a bit trickier than I anticipated. The double hourglass border will be worth the wait. And I have some really pretty red, white and blue variegated thread waiting when it's time to do the quilting.

Even though I made a few blunders when it came to the guidelines, I'm going to be sew happy with Streamers when it is completed. If you haven't been following along, please go back and check out the others who have made a lot of beautiful and varied projects. Thanks to Paintbrush Studio for including me--I love working with this fabric, and to Lisa Ruble for putting this all together. 

6/22: Fabri-Quilt blog (@pbstudiofabrics)

6/23: Jayne of TwiggyandOpal (@twiggyandopal)

6/26: Elizabeth of OPQuilt (@occasionalpiecequilt)

6/27: Stephanie of Spontaneous Threads (@spontaneousthreads)

6/28: Shelley of A Pigeon in Pungo (@shelleybrooksquilts)

6/29: Linda of Flourishing Palms (@flourishingpalms)

6/30: Cindy Wiens of Live a Colorful Life (@liveacolorfullife) YOU ARE HERE.

7/3: Stephanie of Peas in a Pod (@stephiepeterson)

What would a blog hop be without a giveaway? 

*One winner will receive seven fat quarters in the colors used  for the projects in the blog hop. Each blogger is giving away a bundle, courtesy of Paintbrush Studios, so make sure to visit each stop on the hop.

*To be entered here, please leave a comment on my blog and let me know your favorite place to see fireworks, or if there is someplace special you hope to see them. My brother lives in Washington DC and can see them from where he lives--so that is definitely on my bucket list. 

*The giveaway will be open until Monday, July 3. I'll announce the winner here as well as Instagram (@liveacolorfullife).

*If you comment, it is important that I can contact you in case you are the winner. If you are a no-reply blogger, please leave your email address and IG handle in the comment.

*Anyone can comment, but only US residents can win the FQ bundle.

Happy 4th!

Bella Skillbuilder, Month 5

Welcome to Month 5 of the Bella Skill Builder, sponsored by the Fat Quarter Shop. This month's skill-building technique consists of two blocks made from half square triangles.

I have tried different methods for making half square triangles, but the one method I have never tried before is Triangles on a Roll.

It is an interesting method, and I'm glad to finally have taken the opportunity to try it out.

You can find all the information for the Bella Skill Builder Month 5, including videos and a list of other quilters participating, on the Jolly Jabber blog.

Even though it's Month 5, it's still not too late to start the Skill Builder. Find all the information here.
Also, if you want to try Triangles on a Roll, they can be found (in multiple sizes) in the Fat Quarter Shop notions section. Happy skill building. :)

Bella Skillbuilder, Months 3 and 4

Happy May Day! A memory from when I was small and lived in Enid, Oklahoma, is that girls from the high school would put on pretty spring dresses, go the city park where May poles were set up, and then walk in circle after circle, weaving beautiful satin ribbons around the May pole. Does anyone remember that? Do communities still do it?

I'm a month behind on posting the skill builder blocks. During the middle of March, our son and his family moved to a new house, and two weeks ago today, Mark and I moved my parents into a skilled nursing facility about 40 minutes away, after going through every.single.thing in their house in order to downsize. Somehow, sewing completely fell by the wayside. Today, I'll share my thoughts on the blocks for Months 3 and 4.

Month 3 was the pineapple block.

I have always wanted to make pineapple blocks. To date, I had made one--using the paper piecing technique. The block turned out great, but I'm never a happy camper when it comes to removing all that paper from foundation paper piecing.

So I was anxious to try the Pineapple Trim Tool by Creative Grids, a company that is already a favorite when it comes to rulers.

It took a bit of concentration to make sure I was using the proper part of the ruler when it came time to square/trim. However, that was pure operator error. The ruler is easy to use if you just follow the directions.

For Month 3, you make four blocks that finish at 10"(above)  and 3 three blocks that finish at 8". I decided to try a little something different with the tan block, and so it looks more like rings, but it's an interesting variation.

I love how the blocks came out, and I would definitely recommend the ruler if you want to make some pineapple blocks. Using this ruler also saves fabric, as you only need to cut rectangles 2 x 4 1/2 inches, and 2 x 6 1/2 inches. Which is kind of ironic if you are making pineapple blocks to bust through your stash.

Month 4 is Flying Geese.

This block is made with the Eleanor Burns flying geese ruler by Quilt in a Day. I'll say that I was skeptical to begin with. I often find that shortcuts in reality take nearly as long as the non-shortcut version. But I was willing to build some new skills, so I remained optimistic.

I'm happy to report that I was quite pleased with this specialty ruler. I would probably have hesitated to buy it without being part of the skill builder BOM but, as with the Pineapple Trim Tool, this is another ruler I'm happy to have in my sewing kit.

One of my geese insisted on being rebellious and flying in the opposite direction, but sometimes you just have to follow your own personal wind current.

You can find all the information for the Bella Skill Builder for Month 3 and Month 4, including videos and a list of the other quilters participating, on the Jolly Jabber blog. If you haven't begun yet but are interested, here is all the information you need. Also, if you see a ruler you want to try, they can all be found on the Fat Quarter Shop website in their notions section. Happy skill building. :)

Bountiful Blog Tour: Bountiful Breeze

I have been following Sharon Holland, a designer for Art Gallery Fabrics, for awhile now, and in the process we have made a lovely connection via social media. She designs the most beautiful fabrics in soft and soothing colors. Her newest line, Bountiful, was inspired by the Midwest. Having lived in the Midwest (Oklahoma and Kansas) myself for quite a few years, these fabrics really speak to me, so when she invited me to participate in this blog tour and make something with this line, I said yes without hesitation.

I had a fat quarter stack of the entire line to play with, and then added some Pure Elements solids from my own stash.

Photo by Sharon Holland

I decided to use my Delta Breeze pattern, which is a modern take on the classic Bear Paw block.  Having only made it in solids, I was eager to see what it would look like in these pretty prints.

I'm so happy with how it turned out. I really like that some fabrics are bolder, and some are subtle and invite you in to take a closer look. 

The beautiful quilting was done by Darby Myers, a classic Baptist fan with "pearls" between some of the fans.

You can see find a recap of Week 1 of the blog tour here. Yesterday Katie from The Simple Life Pattern Company made the cutest dresses, and Monday you won't want to miss whatever it is that Maureen Cracknell, another Art Gallery artist,  has to show.

I hope you will take the time to check out all the fabulous designers in the line-up. 

Heidi Staples - Fabric Mutt

Emily Dennis - Quilty Love

Minki Kim - Minki Kim

Heather Andrus - Quilt Story

Sharon McConnell - Color Girl Quilts

Silvia Sutters - A Stranger View

Elina Temmes - Elina Temmes

Kim Niedzwiecki - Gogo Kim

Katie Skoog - The Simple Life Company

Cindy Wiens - Live a Colorfullife--you're here now!

Maureen Cracknell - Maureen Cracknell Handmade

Lynn Harris - The Little Red Hen

Anjeanette Klinder - Anjeanette K

Mathew Boudreaux - Mister Domestic

Alexis Wright - My Sweet Sunshine Studio

Sue Stone - Needle in a Fabric Stash

Also, you can follow me on Instagram at @liveacolorfullife and Sharon at @sharonhollanddesigns. 

And finally, here are Bountiful Breeze and Delta Breeze side by side, "fraternal twins." 

Quilt Stats:

Name: Bountiful Breeze

Block size: 8" x 8"

Quilt size: 48" x 48"

Designed and made by: Cindy Wiens

Quilted by: Darby Myers

I'm also linking up today to Crazy Mom Quilts, TGIFF,  and Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely weekend.

Mad for Solids: 2017 Edition

I don't normally follow college basketball. Until March, that is.

Every year when it's time to fill out brackets for March Madness, I get that excited feeling. Can the underdog beat the number 1 seed? There are always surprising upsets--it happens every year.

I was invited again this year to participate in March Madness--the Mad for Solids 2017 edition, a fun event for Paintbrush Studios by Fabri-Quilt. Solids have become my go-to fabric choice for nearly all of my quilts.

A few weeks ago, while sitting in church and nearly at the end of the service, I suddenly focused on the shirt the man in front of me was wearing. It had beautiful colors and such a lovely sheen. I took out my iPhone and covertly snapped a picture.

When I received the invitation to choose  Painter's Palette Solids again this year for the Mad for Solids event, I knew exactly where my color choices would take me.

There are 16 of us altogether in the competition (you can follow everyone's progress on Instagram by using the hashtags #madforsolids and #solidsbracket2017).

Aside from choosing our eight colors, we choose the name for our palette, and I chose Magenta Madness.

My colors are:
(Top row): 121-046 Royalty, 121-030 Bordeaux, 121-150 Wine, 121-028 Red Violet
(Bottom row): 121-107 Wisteria, 121-085 Thistle, 121-021 Mauve, 121-018 Petal

I hope you will check out the competition--as always, there are formidable contenders. And please vote. More details are on the Inspired by Fabric blog and voting will begin on Monday, March 27, both on the blog and on Instagram (@pbstudiofabrics).  I will be in Round 1, Game 2. If I win, I move on to the next round, very much like the NCAA March Madness.

The winning bundle’s creator will receive an additional 6 yards of solids—in our choice of colors—in 1 yard cuts. Even more, two randomly drawn voters from the championship game will receive 1/4 yard cuts of the winning bundle. bundle. So vote for your favorite and you just might win some fabric for yourself. Go team!

The Name Game (a special edition) and a giveaway: Tokodots

One of the things I love most about social media is the unexpected connections you make.

This one started years ago when I started following Rita of Red Pepper Quilts. I have been a huge fan of hers and over this time, we have had several great email conversations. When she started posting her work on Instagram, of course I followed her there as well, along with countless other fans.

Some time last year, she posted pictures of a quilt she had made, and cited her inspiration as Jan Burgwinkle. Rita inspires so many of us, so naturally when she gave the name of someone who had inspired one of her quilts, I wanted to check out this person!

Jan has a fabulous Instagram account (as well as a blog), and I have had such fun going back through her feed. Being a grandmother myself, with uber adorable grandchildren, I noticed this cute little boy who popped up frequently in her feed. Somehow, Jan's pictures finally led me to her daughter, Molly Lam.

Molly sells her designs in her Etsy shop, Tokodots. If you are a quilter, you will fall in love with her designs. If you are not a quilter, you will fall in love with her bright images and clean lines. Don't be surprised if you want to buy one of everything!!

In addition to introducing Molly and her work, I thought it would be fun to have a special edition of the Name Game.

1. How did you choose the name, Tokodots?

Tokodots came out of a play on words in Japanese.  I came across a really rare word in my days as a Japanese interpreter (tokowaka) and my Japanese co-workers told me that I must have misheard it because it wasn't a word that any of them knew.  It was a proud moment when I found someone who could explain its real meaning, and I was reminded that I should trust my instinct.  The toko- part basically means "always" so paired with dots it made a lot of sense for me, and reminded me of a proud moment in my previous professional life. 

2. Were there other names you considered, and can you share them with us?

I wish I remembered more of the names I had thrown around, but one that sticks out is Dot Days.  I'm definitely glad that I didn't pick that! 

 

3. Now that you are known by Tokodots, are you happy with it, or do you wish you could change it to something else?

I couldn't be more happy with the name.  I'm sure it's confusing to some people, but I love that Tokodots is unique and often starts an interesting conversation about Japan and the world when I meet customers in person. 

After placing my first order, an idea started percolating. I contacted Molly, asking whether she would consider allowing me to use her designs to make a series of mini quilts. I was thrilled when she said yes. I have the fabric already chosen, so look for my part of the collaboration to start unfolding over the coming months.

However, the thrill of interpreting Molly's designs into fabric didn't come close to matching my excitement when she asked if she could turn one of my quilts into a design for note cards.

She chose Delta Breeze, one of my most favorite designs. Ever.

Here is Molly's interpretation. Aren't they fabulous??

Individually:

I might have ordered over a dozen sets myself. :)

And now you have a chance to win a set for yourself! Molly and I are hosting a giveaway on Instagram beginning tomorrow, March 22, and you have two chances to win--leave a comment on Molly's account, @tokodots, and also on mine, @liveacolorfullife. The giveaway will be open until Friday, March 24, at 11:59 p.m. CST.

I hope you will have a look at all of Molly's fabulous designs in her Etsy shop (you can read about the Delta Breeze notecards here). Not only does she have sets of note cards available, she also has individual cards and art prints suitable for framing. Her series of origami prints has really captured my heart--wouldn't those make great mini quilts? Hmmmm....

I hope Molly and I have many more collaborations in the future.

Bella Skill Builder: Orange Peel

It is month 2 of the Bella Skill Builder series, sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop. This is a free monthly series designed by Sherri McConnell of A Quilting Life.

This month's block is the classic orange peel with the petals in two sizes.

While the block is fairly simple in construction, I had forgotten how many steps are involved. There are YouTube tutorials for each block. I happened to have the book, Playful Petals by Corey Yoder (another brilliant Moda fabric designer) handy, and I followed her technique for fusible applique.

I used Lite Steam-A-Seam 2. After tracing the petals and cutting them per Corey's instructions, which involve cutting about 1/8" around outside of the traced petal and then cutting out the center of each traced petal, leaving about 1/4" (this reduces bulkiness), and then removing the paper from one side, I finger pressed the Steam-A-Seam onto the fabric. At that point, you are supposed to remove the other side of the paper and be ready to fuse the petal to the background. However, I always had difficulty removing the paper and found that with a very light once-over with my iron, the fusible was adhered to the fabric enough that I could then cut the shape, remove the second side of the paper and it was ready to fuse to the background squares.

I chose to machine blanket-stitch the petals to the background squares.

Once I got going, this process didn't take as long as I had anticipated. And I'm really happy with the results.

Here are my completed blocks. This month I also decided that the overall quilt would benefit from some pops of a pretty turquoise here and there. I already had this color in my stash and I think it will really liven things up.

I hope you join in. You can find information here, along with other participating bloggers.