Row, Row, Row...

Are you doing the Bee in My Bonnet Row Along?  The fourth clue comes out Wednesday, and I am caught up!  For me, that is very unusual - we'll see how I'm doing when I get to Row 20...   I am using my 30s stash I have been building for the last few years.  Each row so far has been very different - squares, butterflies, and chevrons.  Can't wait to see what Lori has in store for us next.

As for the swaps I mentioned last week, I have started on one and am fretting about the second.  The first is a scrappy Postage Stamp 4-patch - easy, peasy...Doing these as leaders/enders while working on my rows is making them pile up fast.  The second is The Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt in country colors.  The country colors is what is messing with me.  I love brights, high contrast, etc.  Finding muddy, muted colors in my stash is proving quite a challenge.  I ended up ordering a fat quarter pack of Kansas Troubles fabrics to give me a starting place.

Instructions for the Stash Bee block for October should be coming out soon.  I hope it's easy!  Have a good week...

~Bri

My First Stash Bee Blocks...

I got my first Stash Bee blocks stitched up today for Hive 2's Anneliese who lives in Ireland.  The blocks were fun to make but a bit of a challenge.  There were no exact measurements given for the center and the rounds to keep things interesting, and I had a bit of trouble figuring it all out to end up with a block 12 1/2".  But all in all, I think they turned out pretty good.  They are "Converging Corner's" blocks and instructions to make your own can be found on Anneliese's blog.

I am going to work on my "Bee in My Bonnet Row Along" Row 2 next.  Clues come out every other Wednesday; however, she posted Row 3 early today.  Sooooo much to do!!!  If you're not playing along, it's not too late.  Come join the fun!

I signed up for a couple of more swaps this week on the About.com quilt forum, and I am very excited about them.  More to come on those later...

~Bri

A Change of Plans...

Last week, I had visualized my ‘second-ever’ blog post to be titled ‘My First Stash Bee Blocks’.  Unfortunately, I haven’t gotten those made yet….oops!  I do have a good reason, excuse, etc – today is my daughter’s birthday, she was off work all weekend, and she had me out and about all weekend shopping.  She was looking for the perfect fall jacket.  She ended up with what I would consider more of a coat, but she’s happy – so I am happy.  Maybe I’ll get to the blocks next weekend…

I did do one ‘quilty’ thing last week to share.  I bought fabric for a backing for this quilt.  It’s actually a throw or lap quilt – only about 60” square.

If you’ve never done a ‘tesselating’ quilt, let me tell you the biggest challenge is planning.  You have to choose all of your fabrics and their placement BEFORE you start sewing!  Crazy!!!  But each block interconnects with its neighbors.  Well, let me tell you, that is not how I normally piece.  I make my blocks scrappy and then I lay them out and figure out where each will go.  Having to plan ahead proved quite a challenge.  I really am glad that top is finished.  Now to get the backing pieced so I can take it to the ‘long-arm lady’ to be quilted.  It’s a retirement gift I expect to need by the end of the year…nothing official yet, but I am trying to stay one step ahead…

Ohhhhh….almost forgot….I found these lovely remnants in the bin…BOOMER SOONER!!!!  Almost a yard and a half…hmmmmmm…….

 

~Bri

My First Blog Post!

I recently joined Stash Bee and was encouraged to create a blog and share my quilting.  This picture is a quilt I made for my daughter.  She picked a pack of fabrics at the January 2011 Oklahoma City Winter Quilt Show.  We added a few fabrics to it and decided on this pattern as we went.  We think it turned out pretty good!
~Bri