Diva

Do you remember Diva?

Designed in EQ8, Diva was published in Make Modern Issue 58. Now, she is available as a standalone pattern in my Etsy Shop.

I made Diva using the Vintage Charm collection, combined with Island Batik Solids in Red, Orange, Yellow and Fuchsia. The focus fabric strip sets were scraps leftover from making Kashvi, but there is nothing scrappy about Diva!

Finishing at 51" by 68" she glides in royal splendor. And although you may think that she is set in her ways, she is very adaptable. I encourage you to take a look at the various color options.

I quilted with my trusted walking foot using my favorite squiggly stitch. The binding is Island Batik Solid Fuchsia.

Some of you are likely to believe that she may be extravagant and she does look resplendent in those rich colors. But the truth is that Diva is very affordable. The pattern is $10 and is available at a 25% discount till September 3, 2024. If you act quickly she can be yours for under $8!!!

In fact, Diva is so persuasive that all patterns in my Etsy Store are 25% off on account of Labor Day Sale. But wait there is more. Two lucky winners can get Diva Quilt Pattern for free. Just leave me a comment on this blogpost, making sure that I have a way to reach you. I will pick the winners next week.

Update - The two winners are Comments #8 and #19. Emails have been sent.

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The theme of Island Batik September Challenge and BlogHop is Adventurous Applique, co-sponsored by Aurifil Threads. I will be working with the Geometric Symphony Collection.

Here is a sneak peek :-) I will be posting on September 17.

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar. As usual I'd love to hear from you!

Blush

Have you seen my Blush?

Paul the model

I made the flimsy as a part of the Pantone Color Quilt Challenge which included three categories - mini quilt, not a mini quilt, and flimsy. The extremely limited guidelines are a double-edge sword. As participants we can make anything we want - no limits to creativity. Since we don't know the judging criteria we cannot make a quilt to win the challenge. 

All the peaches

I chose to participate because I had plenty of gorgeous peachy goodness in my stash. I was in between projects. But most importantly, I wanted to play with peachy fabrics, which turned out to be a nice change of pace from Island Batik fabrics, which I absolutely love.

Making the Blocks

The block is super simple. One 2.5" square framed by 2.5" strips for a finished block of 6" square. But Blush isn't about block construction or piecing details.

Peach by Peach

Blush is about having a single-minded commitment to one color. Choosing one hue and giving it your all. Blush is about gathering every single fabric (in your stash) in one color and arranging them by value.

Value Gradation

Even if it requires you to use the same fabric from both sides, wrong side up for a slightly lighter value, as in the picture below. I did that more than once :-)

Two different blocks from one fabric - can you spot them?

Cute fabrics

Lots of arranging and rearranging.

It was a laborious task, getting that gradation from "caught in the act crimson" in the center to "the thought makes me blush" at the corners. I could not have done it without my design wall.

Design Wall

Oh, but when she was done, she took my breath away...

Blush is beautiful and she is gorgeous. Blush is my love letter to Peach Fuzz, the Pantone Color of the Year. 

Completed Flimsy

Such a show-off!

Blush makes me very happy. It was time to turn the flimsy into a quilt.

Basting

The truth is this - I LOVE to play with value.  I love gradation quilts. So who cares if Blush did not make it to the winning circle in the Peach Buzz Pantomime Challenge Whatever...

I am in love with Blush!

Reflection!

And also with Paul. 

Blush finished at 60" square and she happily rode the wooden horse.

Happiness

For backing I chose this cute cat print.  I quilted using my walking foot with my usual squiggly stitch. The binding is peach.

Labelled

From one childless lady who cannot have enough fabric cats, I wish you happy stitching!

Never too many cats :-)

And one last look. 

Bob and Blush

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Angela chose Orange as the Rainbow Scrap Challenge color for August.  I had a difficult time finding orange in nature, until I looked closely.

Not quite the orange I was hoping to find...

Wait a minute...

Blanketflower

Marigold

Moss-rose Purslane

I had no problem finding orange in my stash. Here are my sunshine blocks.

Sunny Vibes

Feeling the Burn yet?

All fabric scraps came from Island Batik. It is good to be an ambassador :-)

I have now completed 63 Hexie Blocks, which will make a 70" by 90" quilt. I am contemplating 5" borders to get to a final size of 80" by 100" although that quilt may not happen for a while. 

I am working on a new quilt pattern. That blogpost is next!

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties including Angela's. See full list on the sidebar.

Tampon Tim

It is possible (even likely) that you have not heard the term - Tampon Tim.  I only heard the term last week when conservative (right wing) media starting calling Tim Walz by the nickname Tampon Tim.

Red Fabrics 

According to the NPR article,  "The moniker refers to a law that Walz, the governor of Minnesota, signed last year, requiring public schools to provide menstrual products — including pads and tampons — to students in 4th through 12th grades. The products are free for students, with the state paying about $2 per pupil to keep them stocked throughout the school year.

The law, which was the result of years of advocacy by students and their allies, took effect on January 1, 2024, though students say the rollout has so far been smoother in some school districts than others.

It makes Minnesota one of 28 states (and Washington D.C.) that have passed laws aimed at giving students access to menstrual products in schools, according to the Alliance for Period Supplies. The issue enjoys broad popular support: 30 states have eliminated state sales tax on menstrual products, and Trump himself signed a 2018 package that requires federal prisons to provide them."

Value Variation

Here is the link to the actual policy document if you wish to read it. I did. Unlike the misinformation/disinformation being doled out by the bucketful, it says nothing about "tampons in boys bathroom". The law leaves it up to the schools to decide how best to meet the needs of their students.

I was disgusted by the right wing media but not surprised.

Applique Letters

I was 11 years old when my friend got her period. She told me about it including the pain in her belly and lower back. She also showed me what a sanitary napkin looked like. Why can't you just go to the toilet and pee it out, I had wondered. Since it hadn't happened to me, I could not realize the involuntary nature of the flow.

Few months later, there was a "huge incident" in our all girls convent school. Some girl came running out of the bathroom, screaming, "there is a ghost in the bathroom." Someone had discarded a bloody sanitary napkin and there were bloodstains on the bathroom wall. Ten and 11-year olds in the pre-computer era were panic-stricken.

Next week, Sister Principal came to our classroom and gave us the Puberty Talk. Not a lot of biology but enough that we knew what to expect and not panic when it did.

Next year when I got my period, I quietly went to my mom and asked for a sanitary pad. 

How many of us have found ourselves in the absolute horrific situation when the period came early or caught us unawares two days after we thought we were done? 

I remember staining my white skirt (I was in the 13) and tying my sweater around my waist to hide it. 

When I came to the US and saw the vending machines in our college campus bathrooms, where you had to insert a quarter to get a sanitary pad/tampon, it blew me away. So simple and so useful.

Work in Progress

It is natural to bleed. Half the world does. So why the taboo? Why the shame? 

Because it makes men in patriarchal societies uncomfortable. Because it isn't about making women/girls comfortable. It is about preventing any discomfort to men.

So when Tim Walz ensures that girls (and transgender boys) have access to hygiene products, I am overcome with gratitude. Thank you, Coach. You got my vote!

Looking good

The idea for the quilt came last week. I was listening to this episode of Pod Save America, when Melissa Murray mentioned the Menstrual Equity Bill (26:40 - 26:52). She added that if she were Tim Walz, she would wear a t-shirt saying "I am Tampon Tim and I am here to stop the red wave."

That is when I had to drop everything and make this quilt. 

Completed Quilt, 26" by 29"

Here are a few more pictures.

Walking Foot Quilting

Labelled

Red Fabrics with Value Gradation

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar. Should you wish to share your experiences or express solidarity with the girls/women who benefit from menstrual equity, you are welcome. I will delete negative comments.

Marvelous Mini Challenge

Island Batik's August Challenge is simple. Make a mini quilt using the fabrics and techniques of your choice in a size not to exceed 24" on any side.

Here is my response #1

Goddess Lakshmi's Feet

It is a simple response to a simple challenge. If you are familiar with Hindu culture, this image needs no explanation. But I want to explain so please humor me.

Goddess Lakshmi is often called the Goddess of Wealth, but that is not entirely correct. She is the Goddess of Prosperity. The difference may seem subtle, but Prosperity includes well-being and happiness, whereas wealth is just riches. And although it is not bad to be wealthy, it is pointless if you don't have health and happiness to enjoy your good fortune.

During Diwali celebrations, Hindus draw Rangoli patterns that sometimes include Goddess Lakshmi's Feet pointing towards the front door of the house, as if She is entering your home.

The following pictures show my process.

Repurposing Scraps

Scrappy Borders Added

I improv pieced bright fabrics from Juicy Mosaics, Celebrate, Lace and Grace, and Flutter Wings collections to make strata which I then cut into feet shapes. The toes were tricky since they are tiny and not much room for stabilizing. I used Steam A Seam 2, purchased from Missouri Star Quilt Company.

Appliqued and Layered

I used Hobbs Cotton Batting and Schmetz 90/14 Needles.

Quilted and Trimmed

At this point, I could add binding and call it done. But there has to be more to the Goddess than just a pretty picture. I love this mini quilt and it would be absolutely lovely as a wall-hanging but I wanted to add more meaning. So I used a zipper and leftover vinyl (from Rooms with a View Bags) to make a see-through bag.

Zippered Vinyl Bag

Project Bag

I was so happy with my finish that I decided to make a second one :-D Here is my response #2.

Kalpataru (Tree of Life)

I followed the same construction process. 

Neutral Background, Scrappy Borders

Tree Trunk and Branches

Adding Foliage

Ready to Quilt

See-Through Zippered Bag

What do you think about making Mini Quilts? How do you use them? Do you like my twist to the mini quilt challenge? Do share your thoughts.

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar.