Splendid Sampler, This & That

Time to check in with a few more Splendid Sampler blocks.  These are turning out to be really fun to make.  In no particular order; Friends Around the Square.

 Iowa.  I thought this was a great block to include since Rich and Bethany were both born in Iowa.  Not to mention, my in-laws still live there.  A state near and dear to our hearts.

This was a bonus block.  I ended up  using felt for the petals and center.  It may be the type I bought but the adhesive I used wouldn't release on the petals.  The cotton completely shredded.  But, was fine on the pot.  Not my favorite method of applique.

 This will eventually say Quilt Shop on the lightest pink space.  I promise the block isn't as wonky as the photo makes it appear...

I almost didn't do this one but when I realized I could make it be my daughter Sierra, I got pretty excited about it.  She has green hair, this week.  She sleeps with a white bunny named Little Susie and an orange bear named Patrick.  And, the first quilt I ever made for her was  covered in strawberries.

 Most people did this embroidered motif in chain stitches but I did it mostly using lazy daisy/ fly stitches.  Not sure how sturdy it will be on a quilt but I really dig the delicate look.

I worked on my local RR crazy quilt block.  I think this is Marsha's block.  I did the Fancy Bobbin Stitch that is barely visible in the upper right corner in 2 shades of blue.  Then I tried doing the Raised Cross Stitch with ribbon to make the 5 larger roses in the bouquet.

Lastly, I finished another block in the Vintage Valentine quilt.  I used a different bird in it than the pattern called for but I kept the flowers the same.  I think it turned out really sweet.

So, that's all I have to show for myself.  Thanks for stopping by!

Batik Me Round Robin

I thought I'd show my work on  Cindi Renaldo's block.  She didn't have any suggestions on what direction to go in, so I went with what I thought was obvious.  The colors just screamed tropical to me.

 My first motif was this koi fish and did a beaded wheat stitch above it.

 Then, I followed the fabric design and did a green and coral feather stitch with little sea horses for the next area.

 For my final motif and seam, I did a herringbone stitch with star beads and coral clam shells.  The fish are made with fly stitches.

Finally, my step daughter is getting married in June and I got to make the garters.  I chose one for the ceremony and one for the party.  Her dad and I eloped to Vegas, so I've never really been involved with a real wedding.  It was pretty fun!

Plugging Along

Hello friends, seems like it's been a while since I checked in.  Going back to work slowed my stitching down considerably but I'm still plugging away.  I did cave and start a new project!  This is block 1 from Vintage Spool's Vintage Valentine.  I bought the pattern with my birthday coupon back in May and immediately regretted it.  First off, it was not cheap, even with a coupon.  Secondly, upon closer inspection, I wasn't happy with some of the birds and flowers on a few of the blocks.  My first thought was to only do a few of my favorite blocks and make a wall hanging.  But, now that I started, I've decided to change things to make it more my own.  My first change was a completely different color pallette.  That's really to be expected, though.  On block 1, the birds' tail feathers were rounded.  I just squared them off.  I've started block 2 and replaced a bird with one I had from a different pattern.  Her birds are VERY vintagy...the new ones are only slightly more modern.  I'll show that later.  So far, I like what I'm doing!

My final block for our BOM at the guild.  This is pretty
outdated.  I've embroidered a beak and legs.  And, put the whole quilt together.  I took it to Show and Tell last night at guild because I don't think I'll be there next month when they're due.  Anyways, as I stared at it for few hours during the meeting, I realized that I don't like my border choices.  So, that'll have to change.  As is, the blocks and borders just kind of melt into eachother.

 I did 1 motif and 1 seam treatment on Alice's cq block.  This is for my local RR.  I did the music note and vine next to it.

I've been keeping up with the Splended Sampler.  The blocks are so quick and easy.  So far, anyways. This pattern is supposed to have circle flowers but I found my little flower buttons to use instead.  The background fabric should have been less busy but I love it...

 Sorry about the crappy pics.  I was sewing in the middle of the night and just used my cell phone.  Again.  I'm not thrilled with my fabric choice on the dots for this one.

And, this one might have been better off with the red and pale pink fabrics flip flopping.  Or changing out the small print.  But it was so cute.  So far, I'm really doing much more red than pink.

That's all I've got for now!  See you soon.