The Birds and the Bee Blocks

Appearances can be deceptive.

Generally speaking paper piecing is more complicated than regular straight line piecing.
And therein lies the deception.

Tall Tales Block

This paper-pieced block was completed in one afternoon - start to finish.  The Tall Tales Block was quick and I love how it turned out. It looks so adorable.

Economy Block - 1 of 9

This seemingly simple "economy block" block took three days. It was SO MUCH WORK. It has 81 pieces - go ahead count away. Each of the nine units has nine fabric pieces.

Economy Block - 2 of 9

Contrasts

Picking fabric required careful consideration of contrasts and values. I wanted to make sure that each unit had enough contrast between the three fabrics but also had sufficient contrast with the adjacent unit and yet the whole block had to look harmonious.

Economy Block - 3 of 9

Fussy-cutting, trimming, squaring, ironing galore and yet the points may or may not match.  I am exhausted just describing this 12.5" block.  In any case, it is done.

Finally Done

This economy block monster robbed me of my desire to attempt the next Bee Block.  The Urban Woven Block will just have to wait for now.

Completing Bee Blocks goal is incomplete :-(

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Besides, I have a new role to fulfill this year. I am the Block of the Month (BOM) Coordinator for my Quilt Guild.

After the success of My Twitter Feed, several of my guild members asked me to provide the Bird Block as a BOM.

Mirror Image Birds - 9" by 12"

I chose to enlarge the block and also include the changes I made when I was first making the birds.
The new block is 9" by 12".

I completed the enlarged birds block. Also finished writing the tutorial but...now the PDF file is so big that I was unable to email it to my newsletter. Split it into three PDF documents. That should work.

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I am having trouble with my June Tailor basting spray.  It is inconsistent. Sticky in some parts and not in others.  Makes the quilt sandwich unstable, causing it to move, resulting in tucks and puckers. I experienced the same problem when quilting Mayflower.

Basting Pins

For now, I have augmented the basted sandwich with basting pins.  Hope I can finish this quilt this weekend.  But I need to find another basting spray. What do you suggest?

Work in Progress

Just feels like I have been spinning wheels but not getting to my goals.  Ten days to go.
I could really use words of wisdom from you!!!

Creature Feature etc.

Paul works in the IT industry. It means that he sits at a desk looking at a computer screen (actually three screens) all day.  What do you think he does to relax?
Plays computer games!!!

Fire-Breathing Dragon

What do I do when I get frustrated while I am working on a complicated, treacherous quilt pattern?
I make a simple quilt.

Orange Octopus

Yes, we are so different!!!


Remember Sun City. When I got extremely frustrated working on tiny blocks, I put it away and made this. Meet Creature Feature.

Creature Feature

This darling quilt (42" by 42") came together so quickly, is so bright and cheerful and it lifted me outta my funk. The best part - I completed the top in one afternoon. Hurray for simple and happy quilts. It is the popsicle of quilts.

Smiling Whales

Let me explain what I mean by Popsicle of a Quilt - Imagine, you are slaving over a three-layer chocolate cake with ganache icing (for very special guests).  But what you really want to eat is a popsicle. Get it?  It is simple and low-intensity. It hits the spot and makes you giggle like a kid. 

Puppies - Yay!!!

See this fabric with puppies.  I love this fabric. Here is a fat quarter that keeps on giving.
I used it in Homeful with great success. And also in Playschool as well as Pre-K.

Tropical Turtle

All colored strips are from Connecting Threads. Used some of them in Lickety Split.
And this orange fabric was a gift from dearest quilter buddy in Pennsylvania -  Sylvia.

from Sylvia, with love

Knowing my love for cute fabrics, she saved me two FQs of this adorable fabric.
A bunch of 5" squares and some 2.5" strips + on afternoon = Magic!!!

Jelly Fish :-)

As I was quilting this cutie patootie, I was listening to NPR and this show came up - Creature Feature.
"In this adorable rhyming game, each answer is two words: an animal, and a word that rhymes with that animal. So if we imagined a red crustacean gangster that boiled its enemies alive and served them with butter, it would be called a Lobster Mobster."

That settled it. I found the name for my little adorable quilt - Creature Feature.

Labelled!!!

Walking foot quilting using a decorative stitch that looks like Cs. Mirrored it looks like clouds.

Bright Stripes Binding

The backing is blue, cream dotty fabric.
The binding is a bright black/colorful striped fabric.  I am really loving stripes for binding. They look lovely!!!

I do not have a recipient in mind for Creature Feature but I am sure that the universe will take care of it.
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Remember my last post where I talked about Craftsy kits that were great deals etc.
Guess what? Those very kits are now FURTHER reduced.  Check them out here.


I've had my eye on this Rhoda Ruth FQ Bundle for quite some time now, but I refused to pay more than $2 per FQ. Today it is 30 FQs for just over $60. SOLD!!!

Oh, I also bought this Michael Miller Melodies FQ bundle - how rich are these colors and at $1.625 per FQ, this was impossible resist.

Do you remember the KISS tutorial? It uses 6" strips. I used Kaffe Fassett's Design Strips.  Those are now 55% off at $18.45.  That means you could make two quilt tops for just $18.45.

Pastel Strips

Jewel Strips

And if you'd rather make the KISS quilt using batiks, there is great news.  Each of these Tonga Treats 6" Strips are just $21.

Jupiter 6" Strips

Citrus Mint 6" Strips

City Lights 6" Strips

Speaking of KISS, Kat of Scrapbox Quilts made a baby bargello quilt using my tutorial. I am tickled pink!!!

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All addresses have been received from the winners of the Orphan Adoption Event. Packages going out today with the quilt top to Cindy, pens to PK, and template to Shelley.  In your packages, I have also included one small surprise item.  Exact same in each package - because I don't want any fights wherein anyone says - Why is her surprise item better than mine?
Just kidding :-D  Thank you for adopting these orphans and hope you enjoy your surprise :-)
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I made another smaller quilt.

Someone had abandoned these triangles at the free table at our Guild Meeting.

I added some green sashing, some striped border and made a small quilt top.

It is only 32" square. It will work for a newborn baby girl.  But I am going to send it to NY Sue for the Stillborn Bereavement Group.

I used this stamp fabric for backing, received with love from Jake in SC.  I am thinking of you Jake and all the wonderful things you do :-)

A muted turquoise binding completes it.

Paul: Ooh, I like that fabric with the stamps.
Preeti: I can make you another coaster from that fabric, if you want.
Paul: Can you make me a little bag?
Preeti: Like with a zipper?
Paul: Yeah.
Preeti: WHAT??? WHY???
Paul: For travel, you know, to keep little things together.
I said fine while I rolled my eyes.
I did not think that my pouch making frenzy would have a negative side effect.  Further, I did not think that guys would want a travel bag in anything other than leather or leather look-alike. Well, I stand corrected.

I guess if I am going to use him as a quilt holder upper, he needs to be compensated!!!
How do you compensate your quilt holders/models?
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Here is the fabric audition for the next project.  I need about ten fat quarters.
I am considering these Pashmina batiks from Timeless Treasures.

Pashmina Batik FQs, Grey Background

More in my next post.

I will be linking with my favorite linky parties.
I'd love to hear from you, as usual.

Hugs,
Preeti.

Have a Minty Day & Pre-K Quilts

Serendipity is one of my most popular posts/tutorials.  Therefore, it is a crying shame that I have not used those blocks in any quilt.

That changes right now. Meet "Have a Minty Day"

Have a Minty Day!

I wanted to use some of the blocks from the original tutorial in a quilt. How do I pick which ones to use and which ones to save?  Eventually, I decided to pick out the non-blues. Just so the quilt was gender-neutral.

On the Design Wall

I used some of the fat quarters from the Horizons FQ bundle to add prints/interest.
It is amazing how closely these colors match.

Pieced!!!

The Serendipity blocks are on the bias and that was a bit of a challenge. Starch helped and squaring helped some more. But there are no seams to match!!! And that is why this pattern is a winner!!!

In the end, I love how these colors, prints and solids, all play so beautifully with each other.  It had a very summery feel to it but I was at a loss for a name. Paul came to the rescue.  He said that it looked like mints. Hence, I chose the name - "Have a Minty Day"

Quilted and Bound

The fall fabric was leftover from Curry Favor and I have been very protective of it.  With summer on the front, I was ready to put fall on the back.

For quilting, I used a serpentine stitch over the seams.  Since the blocks were about 6", I added some diagonal lines that also emphasized the Serendipity blocks.

Summer & Fall - Together

The black/white dotty binding works well with both the front and the back.  The finished quilt is about 42" square.

Labelled

Have a Minty Day is Quilt#12 from the Sugarland Series, and it is still available.  If you want it, please send me an email - sewpreetiquilts@gmail.com.


Remember Playschool?
This was just such a simple concept (random 9-patch blocks) that had amazing possibilities. I wanted to replicate that concept with a little more pizzaz.

Meet Pre-K.

Pre-K

More animals, objects, themes etc. Scraps from themed/novelty fabrics was the perfect choice. Some were cut from yardage and some from FQs.  Some came from remnants, but all from my stash.

Bees, Puppies and Monsters!

Giraffe, Pumpkins and a Hot Air Balloon

 The blocks finish at 9" and the sashing is 1".

Kites, Stripes and Swirls!

When I was putting together the 9-patch blocks, I made sure that all fabrics in the 9-patch were different. In the quilt layout, I agonized over distributing the blocks, so that same fabrics were not adjacent to each other.

Rich, Dark and Bright!!!

The borders are 1.5".  Yes, the borders are on the skinny side.  Because I did not want the quilt to be wider than 42". Any wider than 42" would require a pieced backing.

Pieced backings add interest but they also add time. I was still trying to make 14 quilts in 4 weeks.

Look at this Owls backing fabric.  Isn't it cute?

In my opinion, the pretty fabric makes a gorgeous quilt and I take all the credit :-D

I chose two orange fabrics for the scrappy binding. There is definitely a Halloween touch to it!!!

Orange Binding

And here is the label!!!  You can see the second orange fabric in the binding below.

Labelled!!!

Pre-K can definitely be an I-Spy quilt. Making Pre-K was a lot of fun and I could keep it. 

And yet, the best part was giving it to Nancy for she is going to be a grandma in March!!! YAY!!!

When I get pictures of the baby + quilt, I will surely come back and update this post!!!  For now, here is one more picture.

I will be linking with all of my favorite linky parties.  

Pretty Fabric+Simple Patterns = Gorgeous Quilts. That is my mantra.

What is yours?  I'd love to hear from you!!!

How I conquered the Green Eyed Monster?

Let's call her Rose.  I first saw her at a Toastmasters meeting. Instantly, I noticed her beauty, bright smile and cheerful eyes, her perfect hair and makeup. And then she gave a speech. I was awestruck.

3.5" squares

Later we connected on LinkedIn and saw that Rose had an advanced degree and was a federal employee. When Rose won the District Championship, I could not take it any more.

Sewn into 9-patch blocks

Why does someone have to be so perfect and popular and then go on to win the contest too?
I was jealous, very jealous. She represented so many things that I had wanted and did not achieve.

Grey Sashing

I wanted, at one point of time in my life, to pursue a PhD. Did not happen.
When I became a citizen, I tried to get a job with the federal government. Did  not happen.
I had been a Toastmaster since 2005, participated in many contests, won many awards and made a lot of friends. But NEVER won the District contest.

Flimsy Finished

I was not, I am NOT unhappy with my life. I am thankful and blessed. However, whenever I saw Rose or thought about Rose, it became clear to me that I was being consumed by the Green Eyed Monster. I hated it. I hated being jealous. I hated feeling unaccomplished around her.

Fox, Owl & Bird

I could not carry on while I was burning with jealousy. I decided to change this.

I decided that I will try to know her better, may be even become friends with her. I was hopeful that if Rose and I became friends, her successes won't make me jealous. I will feel happy for her.

Puppies & Turtle

Joyce was aware of my feelings towards Rose. (Joyce knows everything about me). No one else knew.
Me: I want to invite Rose and her husband over for dinner.
Joyce: What for?
Me: To celebrate her contest win
Joyce: You aren't going to poison her?
Me: I am jealous of her. I don't want to be. May be if I got to know her better, my feelings would change.

Can you find the elephant?

Rose and her husband came over for dinner. They were lovely guests, made perfect dinnertime conversation and even complimented my cooking.  I got to know her and her husband. I have to admit that Rose is a beautiful person both inside and out. As we became friends, I realized that Rose had had some challenges in her life too.  My feelings towards Rose did change, gradually.

Found a giraffe!!!

When I started quilting, I began to ignore Toastmasters meeting. When I posted my quilt pictures on my blog, Rose was appreciative of my work. When I skipped a few meetings, she sent me a couple of quilting magazines with a sweet note. Rose's mom is a quilter too.

Dots & Stripes too

One day, Rose had to come to Sterling to meet her uncle. She asked if we could meet for lunch later. Of course. Over lunch, she told me that she and her husband had been trying for a while and now she was pregnant.

Bird, Blocks & Buntings

I cried, not because I was jealous. (Paul and I had been trying too.)  I cried because I was happy. Happy for Rose.

Obviously, I made a quilt for Rose's baby. I decided to call it Playschool. The blocks remind me of the cubes in Playschool, where there is a color, letter, animal, fruit etc. one on each side.
I used the multicolored owl fabric as the backing.

Owls - so cute!!!

I used a simple scallop stitch for the quilting pattern and the squiggly stitch on the sashing and the borders.

The bright green binding is my choice. It is symbolic of how I felt - JEALOUS, but I don't any more.
It is symbolic of how I conquered the green eyed monster and reduced it to a strip of fabric!!!

Bright Green Binding!!!

The finished quilt is about 42" square.

Cuteness, quilted and bound

When I gave the quilt to Rose on Saturday, her face beamed with delight.
Rose: It is so cute. I love it.
Me: I love you.
Rose: I love you too.

Labelled

Finally, the jealousy in my heart was replaced with love and joy!!! The baby is due in October and I am so looking forward to meeting her. Yes, it is a girl!!!

Playschool, modeled by Paul

If you want to make this quilt, it is a terrific, easy and very quick pattern. And a great scrap buster too. I used 3.5" squares, some of them were fussy cut, arranged into a 9-patch block. The sashing strips were 1.5" and the border strips were 2".

I will be linking with my favorite linky parties and hope to hear your thoughts.