Going Green

I finished up my June Mid Century Modern Bee block for Rene' of Rene' Creates this week. After being so far behind in May I really wanted to get caught up. Maybe, just maybe, I can keep the ball rolling when July comes around.  : )

Rene provided us with a paper piecing pattern (with permission from the designer) and we each chose a color. Without thinking I chose green. I love green and have plenty of green scraps.

I won't say this block was quick. It has very veeery small pieces. I mean teeny tiny itsy-bitsy only 1/4" wide pieces. Those little center squares are only 3/4" but the end result is an amazing scrappy circle.

I dug into all my green and light scraps. Made quite a mess.

Had help selecting the light scraps. NOT!

Sorted scraps and started piecing. Only made a couple of mistakes. Hint . . . don't take a lunch break in the middle of piecing without marking which parts you've already sewn. Otherwise you'll be unsewing. Just saying . . .

Ever so slowly one quarter was done . . .

Then two quarters were done . . .

Then three . . .

And finally . . . all four quarters made into the finished circle.

Pretty amazing circle if I do say so myself. I can see why Rene' asked for help on these. I wouldn't want to make very many. I think one super sized block for the whole quilt might be kind of cool though. You can see the quilt pattern for these circles here.

With green circles making a recurring appearance here in the studio, you could say I'm going green.
In April I made this jade green circle block for the quilt the Denver Metro Modern Quilt Guild plans to enter in QuiltCon Pasadena. Maybe you'll see it there. 

The final quilt came out beautifully thanks to the hard work of Stephanie, Christine and Wendy. This is the finished quilt. The photo was taken with my phone and isn't the best but you get the idea.. There's another row of all neutral circles on the far right that I couldn't squeeze into the frame. It's really a wonderful quilt and a great team effort by the guild..

It was also about a year ago that I took an inset circles workshop with Latifah. This was my concept . . more green circles.  Sorry to say this hasn't been finished but it was worth learning the technique.

Last but not least, to keep the curve theme alive there are the quarter circle blocks I'm making for my Drunkard's Path QAL. This was my May block. Green once again along with red. It's going to be a Christmas quilt.

There'll be another post for the QAL soon, so stay tuned. Thanks for stopping by.
Linking up with WIP Wednesday.

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WIP Wednesday . . . Look What I Found

Look what I found in my scrap drawer this afternoon. Meet Opal. She and her brother Leo have been with us for one whole year now.



































Can't believe how big they've gotten. Wish I could shrink them back to tiny kitten size. They both like to hang out with me in my studio. I love the furry company even if they do get into places I'd rather they stay out of. Today I came back up after lunch and was at the computer when I heard a sneeze, looked over and realized there was a kitty under the fleece throw on my rocker. Just a small little lump  moving around completely under the throw. Later I found her snuggled up in the scrap drawer.

As for WIP's . . . there are several things in various stages and a couple of things that need to get done by the end of the month. I'm in the midst of my next pattern and trying out some of the options I include in each of my patterns. This is a sneak peek at one of those options. I've loved the pink/yellow color combination ever since my daughter was little and had these colors in her room. So cheery and bright.

With the end of the month looming, it's also about time I get started on my Mid Century Modern Bee block for Linda at Buzzing and Bumbling. She lost her home to a fire last year so she requested a house block from each of us to commemorate her "year of the house" as she is calling 2013. A new home is in the works and we are all wishing her the best. She has maintained an amazing attitude through the whole ordeal. These are some of the fabrics I've pulled to build my house for her. Must make up my mind and get it done and in the mail.

I'm curious . . . do any of you have as much trouble as I do choosing fabrics for bee blocks?

We use our stash and scraps for this bee which is wonderful as we don't have to cut and ship fabric. Just make the block in the colors requested and send. Using modern fabrics is a given with this group. But sometimes I can have the hardest time deciding on which fabrics to use. So many choices. Will my choice work with the other blocks? Are they modern? What is modern?

The good thing is I'm challenged to view my fabrics through someone else's eyes.
I get to see how the others interpret each block request. It's a great opportunity to learn about my own fabric selection process, explore my stash and even loosen up on my tendency to hoard certain fabrics. Can you relate?

I'll be linking up with Freshly Pieced WIP Wednesday. Hope all your WIP's are going well.  : )

A Fresh New Start

I let myself get sidetracked this week with a little diversion. As you may know from reading my blog, I love leaves. All the wonderful shades of greens . . . all the beautiful shapes . . . and of course all the many leafy fabrics. Over the years I've amassed quite a collection of leafy prints. Many are more traditional in nature although now I'm gathering more and more modern versions as well.

I've had a sketch for a leaf quilt for years and thought I'd break out the stash and start cutting this week. The main design consists of a checkerboard in the quilt center and the Scrappy Trip Along block tutorial was perfect for getting these blocks underway.

I broke out the leafy stash . . . this is only part of it!

I cut lots of strips to size, producing lots of little trimming scraps . . . love these little bits of color.

I started sewing a few blocks together . . . many more to come.

I know this is a form of procrastination for other things I should be working on but what the heck. I'm getting something done.

With all the terrible flooding that happened in Colorado recently I am feeling so very very grateful that the little creek behind our house didn't flood any worse than it did and feeling heartsick for all the people who are now without their homes and belongings. I'm thinking these leafy prints might be just the thing for a charity quilt. What better way to symbolize a fresh new start than green leaves representing new growth? I hope to turn these blocks into a charity quilt for flood victims.

If you are interested in helping, one option is Cover Colorado: Quilts For Flood Victims sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum.

eQuilter.com is also offering to distribute quilts to those in need. You can see what Luana of eQuilter had to say in this recent newsletter.

Linking up for WIP Wednesday with lee at Freshly Pieced. Take a look at what a few others are working on this week.

Hope you are making progress on your WIP's.

What's old . . . is new again

Lately I've been trying to get my studio under control a little at a time. The scrap piles have been sorted and a scrap system begun that I can honestly say is working and quite useful so far.

Of course, the problem with the "little at a time method" is that there are always unfinished areas still needing to be organized and then whole new messes develop as I work. I think I need to accept the fact that my studio will always be a work in progress just like my quilts.

First off came making room for a group of stripe fabrics I've been collecting here and there. I have lots of design ideas for stripe fabrics with more popping into my head every day.

Do you ever start a collection of fabrics by picking up a fat here and there and then realize you have way more than you thought, or dare I say even need, once you get them all in place? I had no idea I had this many stripes and must admit this is only half the collection.

The main area I've been tackling recently is sorting, organizing and disposing of old publications. I love magazines and books and over the years have accumulated quite a library. My style has changed over the years and some of the old publications just aren't where I'm at today. My new favorites are Generation Q, Stitch, Quilty and Modern Quilts Unlimited.

Some of these older issues will go back on the shelf, some into the donation bin at my library and some will go to the next modern guild meeting to giveaway.

As I sorted through pile after pile of magazines . . . some over 15 years old . . . what I discovered is how often what is old is new again. I can't tell you the number of times I came across a quilt design from years ago that was very much like a quilt I just recently saw on a blog or online somewhere. New fabrics, new spin on an established design. Thus what's old is new again.

Was the newer one simply copied? I'd like to think INSPIRATION is a much better word. In many cases I would bet the quilter who did the newer version never saw the earlier one. In this age of instant digital access it can be extremely hard if not nearly impossible to be completely original.

We are all inspired by something, somewhere we've seen. It might be lurking in the recesses of our brain from years ago. It might be something brand new we just saw or experienced that has nothing to do with quilting. The important thing is that it inspired us. It moved us. It awoke our creativity and the need to make. Bringing this creativity to life by making allows us to express ourselves and give meaning to our work. Rather than simply copying, I hope we are truly creating.

I encourage you to let the inspiration in your personal world bring new life to your work . . . create your own vision. If starting from scratch with a quilt design of your own is intimidating, try a pattern but put a spin on it to make it your own.

If you're not sure how this works, check out my patterns which offer many different options so you can bring your own personal creativity and style into play. I have three new designs in the works too so stay tuned for new pattern releases in the next few months.

I'm linking up with Cindy's Really Random Thursday for this post.
Have fun creating.  : )

Organized!!

I posted recently about my need to get my scraps organized.
I save EVERYTHING . . . even the tiny tiny scraps and it was out of control.

Today I went from this . . . plus four more plastic boxes I didn't take pictures of.

To these lovely piles of color  . . .

I had a little help from these two . . .

It all fit nicely into these great carts . . .  kitties wondering where all the fun went.

I even threw some away which is amazing for me . . . from now on I'll be more discerning.

Now I'm all set to start something new tomorrow and it feels great.

Giveaway

I'd like to welcome you to my blog if you are hopping over to visit from the Quilting Gallery as part of the Quilter's Blog Hop Party. Give a shout out to Michele for hosting this great event!  There are some awesome posts and giveaways happening and hopefully you'll be one of the lucky winners. 

While you're visiting please do wander around a little and get a feel for my style. I sometimes go modern and sometimes more traditional, but the one thing you can always count on is lots of color and strong design elements. 

2 lucky readers will win their choice of one of my patterns featured below. The pattern will be emailed in a PDF format.

Both patterns include:

• 2 different versions of the quilt as seen on the cover.
• Size options.
• Additional ideas on how to use the pattern to make different variations.
• Coloring page to envision your own color scheme.
• A bonus pillow project made from the scraps.

Great design is first and foremost in all my patterns. In addition to directions for making the cover quilt, I include a Design Lesson and a Design Exploration page so you can envision optional ways to use the pattern. My hope is that these ideas will inspire you to try your own version based on the basic pattern. A coloring page is also included so you can try out your choice of colors and fabrics.


First up is Cascade. This is a great pattern for large scale prints but is equally at home with solids. It works well with fat quarters and layer cakes. Below are some examples of ways  I have used this pattern. As you can see, there are many possibilities.

This is the Design Explorations page included in the Cascade pattern. 

This bold zigzag baby quilt plus the bonus doll quilt were both made from the Cascade pattern. 

Cascade was also used to make a bright summery tablecloth and matching table runner form the Tradewinds fabric line by Moda

Next up is Facets. This quilt also works well with large scale prints and is the perfect quilt for using up scraps, charm squares or your favorite fabric bundle.

This is the Design Explorations page included in the Facets pattern. 

This is the alternative quilt as seen on the Facets pattern cover.

These two pillows were made as part of the bonus project included in the Facets pattern.

To win your choice of one of these patterns (to be emailed to you in PDF format):

• Become a follower or let me know if you already are.
• Tell me which pattern you like best and why. 
• Please be sure that your comment links to your email. No email = no win. 
• Comments are open through March 15th (MST). Winners will be announced shortly thereafter. Good luck !

Thanks for visiting. Enjoy the rest of the hop.

Stay cool and refreshed with a new pattern . . . Cascade

Summer has settled in with temps topping 100- way too often as far as I'm concerned. So what better way to stay cool than to surround myself with some of my favorite cool colored fabrics. They are refreshing and calming amidst all the heat. The fabrics in this quilt remind me of a gentle rain in a lush green garden. I think of hanging gardens and cascading water. 

Thus was born Cascade . . . another SpringLeaf Studios quilt pattern.

I'm excited to share this pattern with all of you because it has so many possibilities.

The pattern features two different versions; 

A Scrappy version and a modern take on the ZigZag.

Plus 7 additional optional looks . . . all from the same design.

This is the Scrappy version and features fabrics from Kaffe Fassett and Michael Miller. It's perfect for layer cakes, fat quarters and of course large scraps. One of my favorites so far because it feels so refreshing.

Here's the ZigZag version featuring Kona Cotton solids. This version also works great with prints. I have to admit this is my first all solids quilt, but it won't be my last. There's a calmness about these solids that is very soothing to me.

I have so much fun designing quilts. Each time I create a new design I'm always exploring what would happen if I tried this or that. What if I arranged the blocks this way? What if the emphasis is changed? What if this? What if that? Sometimes it's very hard to stop experimenting and actually get to work making the quilt. I need little elves to sew for me... that would be so cool.

When I decided to start publishing my quilt designs it seemed like a natural choice to include all these explorations in each pattern. I've never been one to follow patterns exactly as they come. A little change here or there. I'll bet a lot of you feel the same. I really want the Design Explorations page provided in my patterns to inspire you to make a quilt the way you want. Not only with fabrics that you love but also with a flare that makes you feel like it's your very own. Here's what the Explorations page looks like.

Here's a few other versions of Cascade I've made to give you an idea of how it looks in other fabrics and arrangements. Hope they inspire.

Cascade ZigZag made with large scale prints from Kaffe  Fassett and Michael Miller.
A mini quilt was made from the trimmed leftovers.

Cascade made using a checkerboard arrangement of fabrics.

Cascade made using a concentric ring arrangement of fabrics.

A pillow made from the trimmed leftovers. The pattern gives detailed directions for the pillow.

So here's what included:

Cascade gives directions and yardage for 2 different versions; Scrappy and ZigZag.

It includes 3 sizes; baby, lap/twin, and double/queen.

A bonus pillow project is included that's made from the trimmed leftovers of the quilt. Or you can make a mini like I did with the leftovers.

And of course it includes the Design Lesson and Exploration sections to inspire you.

Cascade is available on Craftsy and in my Etsy shop. Hope you'll give it a look. I'd really love to know what you think. Please leave me a comment and tell me which version is your favorite.

Stay cool . . . and quilt on.

Anne