Giveaway Winner!

I'm happy to report that the drawing is late today because I've been sewing nonstop since 10am. I hardly ever get an entire sewing day! This means I'm not at my boyfriend's house so I have no cats to help me pick a winner! So, Random.org to the rescue! The winner is:



Comment #4...Jen! Jen has been quilting along with us since round 1. Check out her blog to see what else she's been up to. I'm especially in love with her Hello Betty quilt.

Giveaway Week 4

Today is giveaway day! You know the drill...comment below to win this rice heating bag and cover. I'll pick a winner on Sunday.



So, today I'm wondering...are you a night person or a morning person? I am most definitely a morning person. In one morning hour I can accomplish something that would take three evening hours. I usually don't get anything important done after 9pm. In fact, just about the only thing that can keep me up late is finishing a quilt. I try to sew the binding by hand all in one night...you know, because I'm impatient like that. How about you?

Rice Heating Bag and Removable Cover

I really love today's project because it's cute and (in my world) very useful after a long night of sewing. Today we'll be making a rice heating bag with a removable cover.



Just warm it in the microwave to help relax those aching shoulder muscles.

Sunshine

I love the look of this block-- it's similar to Sawtooth and Bear's Paw blocks, but just unique enough.  You can make this block using one, two, or four medium or dark focus fabrics plus a light fabric for the background.  My block uses four focus fabrics; if you want to use less, just adjust your cutting instructions as needed.

Just like last time, measurements given are for a 12" block.  Measurements for an 8" block are listed in parentheses.

Giveaway Winner Week 3

Before I announce the winner, I want to thank everyone for sharing their favorite family treasures with us. It was really fun reading about all the special memories that have been passed down through the ages.

And now, without further ado...the drawing for the apron.

The cats are ready and hunting for treats:



Vector finds the treat on the edge and nudges a slip off the plate:



And the winner is:



#23, Leslie! Congratulations Leslie, an email is on its way.

And the cats get more treats for a job well done.

SuperGirl's Finished Quilt Top

You guys are not going to believe this. I was emailing with Blueberrymoon (who quilted along with us in round 1) and she mentioned that our quilt-along inspired her 12-year-old daughter to make this gorgeous pinwheel quilt top:

SuperGirl's Finished Top
Originally uploaded by blueberrymoon

Are you as blown away as I am? Apparently, she loved the pinwheel block so much that she just kept going. You can read more about it on her blog here and here.

I'm trying to think about what I was doing at 12 and I'm pretty sure it was nothing as cool as this. I'm beyond thrilled to meet such a young and inspiring quilter. I love how quilting brings so many people together, young and old and in-between...how we all share a common bond, a common history. We may belong to different generations but we all belong to the same family. We are all quilters.

So with that, I say fantastic job, SuperGirl! Thank you for letting us feature your quilt today!

Giveaway Week 3: Tea Towel Apron

It's Thursday which means it's giveaway day! Up for grabs is our double-sided, one-size-fits-all tea towel apron...complete with darling patchy pocket:



...into which various (non-scissors) things will be tucked! Comment below to enter (the drawing will be this Sunday, as usual).



Although I don't wear them, I have a few of my great grandma's homemade aprons (more like smocks, really). So today's question (which you don't have to answer to win) is: do you have any hand-me-down treasures? Feel free to link to pictures if you have them...I'm sure we'd all love to see!

Apron Tutorial

This week's project is one of my favorites...a double sided apron:



These aprons are so fast and easy because the base is a pre-hemmed tea towel.



Interested?

Shoofly

This week's project requires a truly tiny block (6") so rather than drive you all crazy with truly tiny pieces, I picked an easy block. It's an oldie but goodie...the Shoofly Block:

Giveaway Winner Week 2

Alright...it's time to announce our Week 2 winners. The cats are hiding because we just vacuumed so Ian did the drawing for me today.

The winner of the quilted canvas from our tutorial is





comment number 8: denisewillia who is also quilting along with us.

The winner of the blank canvas is





comment number 22: Kelly O.

Congratulations! An email is on its way.

Mermaids! Birds! Love!

Take a look at Lisa's newest Eight Hand's Around block. I'm in LOVE! I mean, come on...mermaids! I'm too scared to cut into my Mendocino stash so I'm going to live vicariously through this block...

P2122002
Originally uploaded by 10THINGSatAtime

And what about samhanmama's stunning block with the bird in the center:

Eight Hands Around
Originally uploaded by samhanmama

I'm in love with all the fussy cutting going on! I need to know: what's your favorite fabric to fussy cut?

Giveaway Week 2

Woops, I forgot I had scheduled a post...with nothing in it yet! But, never fear, this is the real giveaway post.

There will be two giveaways this week. The first will be the Eight Hands Around canvas from this week's project turorial:



And the second is a blank canvas so you can make your own fabric art.

Just comment below to enter. And if you feel chatty, what's your favorite way to decorate your own little corner of the world? I'm a big fan of photos...both of people I love and places I love. Sprinkled among the frames on my shelves are little trinkets from vacations or gifts from friends.

I'll draw two winners on Sunday afternoon so stay tuned!

Flying Geese Tutorial

Lesly was right when she said that making flying geese is "mind-bogglingly tedious."  All of that cutting and matching and pressing can get extremely confusing, not to mention extremely old (extremely fast!).

It turns out, there's a better way.  Thanks to the kind folks at Quilter's Cache, I learned a couple new ways to make flying geese.

This tutorial covers my favorite method.  It creates four flying geese at once.  Of course, there is a little bit of math, but don't worry, it's only simple addition.

Eight Hands Around - Fix

Hi, people.  I am a moron and listed all kinds of wrong measurements for the 12" block.  I made mine in 8", so I didn't notice that the 12" measurements were off.  I've fixed them in the tutorial, but I want everyone to know they need to look again.

If you already started, please don't give up.  Make another one, I'm begging you.  I love this block and want to see your creations in our flickr pool.

Here are the new, correct measurements:

Step 1 -  Cut light fabric as follows:

• Cut 1 7 1/4" square.  Divide into four quarter-square triangles.  (8" block -- 5 1/4") 
• Cut 1 4 1/4" square.  Divide into four quarter-square triangles.  (8" block -- 3 1/4")
• Cut 2 3 7/8" squares.  Divide each into half-square triangles.  (8" block -- 2 7/8")
• Cut 1 3 1/2" square.  (8" block -- 2 1/2")
• Cut 4 2" squares.  (8" block -- 1 1/2")

Step 2 - Cut medium fabric as follows:

• Cut 4 2 3/8" squares.  Divide each into half-square triangles.  (8" block -- 1 7/8")

Step 3 - Cut dark fabric as follows:

• Cut 6 3 7/8" squares.  Divide each into half-square triangles. (8" block -- 2 7/8")

"Quilted" Canvas Tutorial

Do you ever make one block and then have no desire to make enough for an entire quilt? Because, you know, sometimes the block is really complicated or you're just not obsessed anymore? Do you have "orphan" blocks that you love but don't know what to do with?

Hopefully you do because this week's project will show you how to turn those blocks into art.

Eight Hands Around

What a cute block!  In this tutorial you're going to get brave and sew with triangles, instead of cheater squares.  Don't worry-- if you don't press too hard and pull too much, they'll turn out just fine.  But, you're going to wish you had eight hands when it comes time to make this.

Giveaway Winner Week 1

This week's winner was chosen by my boyfriend's cat Vector. He nosed one piece of paper off the plate in search of a cat treat:



And Squidly verifies the winner:



Number 24, Cherie Wright! Congratulations Cherie...an email is on its way.

Thanks to everyone who commented on the giveaway. I'm definitely inspired to do more baking now! Stay tuned...our block for week 2 will be posted tomorrow morning.

Giveaway Week 1

Alright everyone, today is giveaway day! All you need to do to win this pair of potholders is to leave a comment on this post (even if you live outside the U.S.) It's not required but I'm wondering: what's your favorite thing to bake? Right now, I'm really into baking scones. I've even learned how to tempter chocolate to drizzle on top...because more chocolate is good!

Also, make sure there's a way for me to email you, either through your blog or by including your email address in the comment. I'll announce the winner (picked randomly of course) this Sunday morning. Good luck!

A finished quilt top!

Have you been to the flickr pool today? Have you seen Jen's finished quilt top? I'm completely in awe (and completely jealous!) I have to stop talking now or I'll never stop talking about how much I love this quilt top.

Modify Tradition Quilt Top
Originally uploaded by jennewby71

Stop by Jen's blog to read more about it.

Potholder Tutorial

Good morning everyone. Today we're making potholders! Sorry if you think potholders are lame but I love them (and I don't even like to cook). They're pretty and useful and fast and take relatively little fabric. And they're an excellent way to show off your blocks and use up scraps! Read on for the tutorial.

Round 2, FAQ

Just a few quick notes about Round 2. We'll be making 12 blocks this round, one block every week. Some will be very easy (like today's) and some will be more complicated (like next week's).

As you've already seen, in addition to 12.5" blocks, we'll sometimes post alternate sizes. For those who want a more varried look to their sampler quilts, it might be a good idea to work up the blocks in different sizes. Yardage will vary depending on which size blocks you make. I'd estimate no more than 2.5 yards total to make all 12.5" blocks. I didn't keep track last time and I know I ran out of some of my favorite fabrics so you might want to get more than you think you'll need.

If you're making projects, yardage and supplies will vary. I've done my best to come up with 12 different ways to use our blocks and hopefully you'll like at least one of them.

As always, if you're making a sampler quilt or projects or just blocks, please post pictures in the flickr group.

If I've missed anything, please feel free to ask in the comments and I'll update the faq. Thanks!

Broken Dishes

Alright everyone...we begin round two with the classic "Broken Dishes" block: