This is such an awful disease and I think if I can do something, even something small like this and others join me (like you all!) I think we can do great things and make a big difference together.
Thank you all so much!!
Sherri
This quilt would be a perfect Christmas present, so go ahead and make a bid!
There is an elite club that many talk about. It is a club that has thousands and thousands of members. The members talk about it with such gleam and glow. It is the infamous Grandmothers Club. So this is my first official post about our little angel Nolan who is now 3 months old.
My son and daughter-in-law are a bit old fashioned in many ways. They followed this “new’ trend of not finding out what the sex of the baby was. Imagine that, not knowing almost at conception whether you were have a boy or a girl. So this brought about 9 months of guessing. 6 of those months consisted of complete strangers predicting boy or girl. The gal at the nail salon assured us she has never been wrong, the neighbor down the street knew for sure, a friend of a friend previewed side profile pics of the mama and was willing to bet money she knew boy or girl. We didn’t keep a tally of who predicted what, but all this did was add more confusion.
Not “knowing” also saved us lots of money because there is only so much neutral baby stuff one can possibly purchase. Don’t really know if this was my son’s plan all along but no matter what it saved us all a ton of money.
This also made the choice of making a quilt extremely difficult. Don’t get me wrong during this time I made lots of baby quilts. The problem with that is when I am making a quilt for someone I like to know that from the beginning much like knowing if you are having a boy or girl when you find out you are pregnant. I like to think about the person while I am planning the fabrics. I like to plan what the design is and how it fits their personality. I like to think that I can make it just perfect. So add up all that pressure and imagine how I crippled myself when it comes to making the first grandkids’ baby quilt.
I knew I would make more than one quilt for this wee little one so I just jumped in and made something that included all the existing family members.
Using an accu-quilt die I made a big chunky clamshell quilt.I loved using this die and I will certainly do it again. I then embroidered all the family names on each of the clamshells.
The fun thing about this quilt is that I not only got to think about the new grand baby but also got to think about each of the family members and how one little person would forever change our lives. Those of you in the club completely understand, right?
Nolan Robert Alexander
on a side note: I had to include a pic of his guard dog, Peter. I did not include pets on the quilt, so I had to go on record with a pic.
Thank you Sherri for rearranging my turn on the hop.
Here are my blocks and my process.
I don’t have much room to sew so when it comes to laying pieces the space is limited. I always look at a block and see if block has any shapes that are duplicates or mirror images of each other so I can layout a small section and chain sew. .When looking at this block, I noticed that one quarter section of this block is the pieced in the same direction as all the other corners of each block. This comes in handy when making multiple blocks of the same design.
This makes it easy to assembly line sew the sections together. Or what I call mindless sewing. As long as each of the pieces are picked up in the correct order you can just out the pedal to the medal and sew.
Following the block layout each of the sections can then be joined into segments and then constructed into the finished blocks.
Finished blocks are ready to add to the other sections. Now hop back to Sherri’s blog as she shows the final chain part of the quilt. This finished quilt will be auctioned on Ebay with 100% of the winning bid going to the Susan B Komen foundation.
Stay tuned as Sherri will also be posting a link to the Ebay auction.
I have always loved Sherri from This n That’s clean classic style and her latest project, Sweet Scandi was on my “to make in some lifetime” list. So when Sherri said she was going to have a sewalong, I jumped in.
I am best under a deadline or else the quilt would just stay on the ever growing list “sometime”.
So if you are ready to sewalong here are the details. The best part is that you will have a new quilt in time for the holidays.
July 24th- Sherri (This N That) yardages and center blocks.
We will all finish our quilt tops for show n tell on August 28th. Hope you decide to join in and sew along. If you aren’t able to join us with this project, you could still own this quilt. Sherri is going to feature her quilt on an ebay auction with all the money going to benefit the breast cancer.
You can find more specific details about this QAL, such as fabric requirements, at My Fabric Relish and Pretty Little Quilts.
There will be a lot of fun information and prizes, so I hope that you
will be able to follow along even if aren’t able to make the quilt!
– See more at: http://www.pixelstopatchwork.com/2014/05/deep-in-heart-of-texas-roadtrip-quilt.html#sthash.p5ek0S3j.dpuf
You can find more specific details about this QAL, such as fabric requirements, at My Fabric Relish and Pretty Little Quilts.
There will be a lot of fun information and prizes, so I hope that you
will be able to follow along even if aren’t able to make the quilt!
– See more at: http://www.pixelstopatchwork.com/2014/05/deep-in-heart-of-texas-roadtrip-quilt.html#sthash.p5ek0S3j.dpuf
Welcome to your next to the last stop on the Texas Roadtrip QAL.
By now you have many of the highlights around the state and discovered many of the gems that give Texans our bragging rights.
I was born in Kansas but as the ol’ saying goes….
I got to Texas as fast I could.
Really it was my mom and dad that came to Texas as soon as they could since I was only 5 years old and couldn’t drive when my family moved to Texas. We started out in Lubbock and eventually moved to Dallas when I was 8.
Both my mother and father were native Texans so when I was told about this project I knew I wanted to play along. Making the blocks and reading about many of the parts of the state have brought back many memories of family reunions, road trips, and various adventures along the way. Enough about my families antics. You can read about my roadtrip down memory lane August 17th when I post the final quilt project and link up for prizes.
So today you are here to learn a little about the Texas Hill Country.
The area that defines the Hill Country varies depending on who you ask. It does however cover 25 different counties from as far north as West Austin and south all the way to Bandera and into San Antonio. Bandera, Texas is the Cowboy Capital of Texas. The town still has hitching posts outside many of the stores because it is not uncommon to ride your horse into town. Bandera also has as many honky tonks as it does churches. SIDE NOTE- This weekend, July 26th is the National Day of the American Cowboy. If you happen to visit Bandera, be sure and stop at the O.S.T Restaurant and enjoy your meal in the John Wayne room. I seriously have done this! I won’t share about the Honky Tonks we visited during the family reunion. Yes, Bandera also has a quilt store, Gone Quiltin’.
Everything is bigger in Texas except for maybe our hills, so to have an area of the state know for the hills, granite rocks and native brush tells you we are pretty proud. So if you visit, please no comments on the size of our hills. I could go on and on and tell you about the quaint downtown streets, the antique shopping, the mega outlet malls, the inter tube rides down the river but there is not enough time. You will just have to experience the charm for your self.
Any road trip is sure to include a few stops along the way at any and all quilt shops. So I will list just a few.
You won’t want to miss Creations in Kerrville, Texas.
They won’t mind that I borrowed this pic from their website.
Kathy and Julie are precious and have owned this shop for over 34 years so you know they are doing things right.
There are as many quilts shops as their are longhorns so I also wanted to include a few links that are state wide quilting events. Be sure and check them out.
http://www.rowbyrowexperience.com/texas-row-by-row-experience.htm
http://www.quiltacrosstexas.com/
The fun part of this project was we were all making the quilt step by step as the blocks were posted on the QAL. We didn’t have each others quilt blocks in advance. Since I am one of the last to post, I thought I could do a HILL block to represent the hill country but that was too predictable. I choose to do a Bed and Breakfast block.
This area has such great memories for me because many many years ago I was a young stay at home mom. I was making and peddling my wares at various arts and craft shows. This was way before e-bay, etsy and all the other wonderful ways to be able to sell handmade items that they have now.
The Country Peddler show was coming to Fredrickburg, Texas and this was the big time kind of show. I had no idea what I was in for. My husband told me about a gal that he had met coaching the boys t-ball team. He said, “I think the two of you would really hit it off.”
I invited her to come with me for the weekend and to help me out at this show. There wasn’t a single hotel room in town available so we found a charming little bed and breakfast to stay in. The house was on the back side of an existing home so finding it in the dark was an adventure all by itself. We were expecting two rooms as the Inn Keeper described on the phone. When we arrived there was one bedroom, one bath, a few steps along with a small door and a tiny keyhole. Once we opened door there was the most charming small bed inspired by Alice in Wonderland. Charming is all I can say about the decorations and attention to detail. We had a wonderful weekend and like my husband said, we did hit it off and have been best friends for over 25 years.
So when visiting the Texas Hill Country please visit the bed and breakfasts so you can truly experience all the hospitality and charm this area of Texas has to offer.
You can find more specific details about this QAL, such as fabric requirements, at My Fabric Relish and Pretty Little Quilts.
There will be a lot of fun information and prizes, so I hope that you
will be able to follow along even if aren’t able to make the quilt!
– See more at: http://www.pixelstopatchwork.com/2014/05/deep-in-heart-of-texas-roadtrip-quilt.html#sthash.p5ek0S3j.dpuf
You can find more specific details about this QAL, such as fabric requirements, at My Fabric Relish and Pretty Little Quilts.
There will be a lot of fun information and prizes, so I hope that you
will be able to follow along even if aren’t able to make the quilt!
– See more at: http://www.pixelstopatchwork.com/2014/05/deep-in-heart-of-texas-roadtrip-quilt.html#sthash.p5ek0S3j.dpuf
I am so lucky to work with such a talented group of people. One of the gals is Holly Hickman. Her brain is amazing. You may have seen her quilt in a recent Quilts and More Spring 2014 publication. I knew when she made that quilt that I would want to make it once the magazine came out so I hoarded the fabrics.
Quilts n More 2014- Straight and Arrow by Holly Hickman quilted by Natalia Bonner
Wanting
to make a certain quilt and hoarding is not uncommon for me, but for some reason
this one actually got done. Arrows are such a trending thing that I had
to jump right on this project. My husband is 5/128 Chickasaw Indian which makes the kids 5/256. I think this is the reason for their newly found attraction to Indian items.
Holly Hickman’s quilt- quilted by Natalia Bonner
I was surprised when my eldest son, Grant loved this quilt so I am sure it will find a place in his home. I made the quilt extra long because I really wanted to use the pre- printed log cabin fabric.
He is a tall
dude so this would cover him from head to toe. Don’t you hate those
“throws” that are big enough to actually get cozy under?
My version of Holly’s quilt is quilted a little different and I added a little bit more border fabric. I can’t wait to throw it in the wash and deliver it to #1 son.
I am sure you have seen this quilt all over the Internet by now.
A very talented and uber creative Jane Davidson of QuiltJane has started this quilt along and today is my day to post my version of this quilt.
First I have to tell you a little story. Jane participated in my Low Volume Burgoyne Surrounded #APQquiltalong project.
Quilt Jane’s version
Here is my version
The Fabric and value placement that Jane used in her quilt creating an entirely new design. The quilt is not even recognizable as the traditional Burgoyne Surrounded pattern.
So when it came time to make my version of Jane’s Nested Churn Dash, I thought I would get all artsy fartsy and make the fabrics start as a pinwheel in the middle and spiral out to the edge. I was going to shade each piece as if you were looking into the eye of a tornado.
I was going to ….. was the tricky part of that plan. Didn’t happen!
Instead I opted for Positive Negative.
I am really into that right now.
Everywhere there was a light I used dark instead and to keep the design simple I used Bella Snow in place of the prints in the design.
Now let me tell you this did get a little tricky because I was actually sewing backwards from what the pattern said and what my mind knew of the design. I loved how one single block came out.
That is all Jane asked us to do, one single 24″ block to make a mini quilt.
But, of course I saw that Miss Rosie was making a big quilt and Jane had done that super duper quilt for the #APQquiltalong. I couldn’t just stop at one block. I am a little competitive like that.
For the big version, I made every other block positive backgrounds and the other negative backgrounds. Confusing?
In cutting the fabric pieces the only thing that changed was what I used for the center square, so this was actually quite easy once I got the hang of it.
Here are the pieces for one of the 4″ blocks.
Here is a different block design. I just rotated the bar sections.
Now I have flipped the half square triangle sections.
Then by swapping out the center square, I have a negative version of my first block.
It really was fun playing with the simple possibilities to achieve a few different block designs.
If you are making this quilt, Jane has given all kinds of options to make your
Forgive me, because it is really hard to tell from a single picture what exactly this ruler does. It is called Bloc_Loc. It comes in a variety of sizes. I just happen to own the 2 1/2″ and the 4 1/2″ ones which is exactly what I needed to make this quilt.
The center of the ruler has an 1/4″ indentation. The ruler slides right up to the seam allowance and locks in place. This ruler only works if you press your seam to one side.
Here is a video that explains how cool this is.
Once you square up the blocks you will have this cute little pile of scraps.
I love the 4″ blocks all by themselves as well.
Just to update you on the list of blogger’s participating. Check them out.
It is that time again for the Blogger Girls’ Block of the Month. The final month of free block patterns includes month 6 blocks.
Next month we will be showing the final quilt and the layout directions.
Amazing how different these two blocks are using the same pattern. Can you spot the difference in how the templates were used?
Clue: top corner
Once you spot the difference you will also spot my mistake! I didn’t even notice it until just now! I guess it happens to all of us.
Some of the other blocks.
Be sure and stop by all the blogs for the Block of the Month.
You may know Jane Davidson of QuiltJane from Australia. I love the name of her blog, Want It, Need It, Quilt.
She is starting a quilt-a-long of the Nested Churn Dash. This is big fun quilt block that has taken on a life of it’s own. Starting June 1st, 2014, Jane will be taking us through the steps to make a 24″ x 24″ nested churn dash block.
She has invited 10 of her favourite quilters who couldn’t pass up the opportunity to “Quilt Along with Jane.”
For the more adventurous, you can continue on and using the 24″ x 24″ finished block you can make a pillow or mini quilt or make a quilt, ranging in size from 28″ x 80″ (1 x 3 block bed runner), 54″ x 54″ (2 x 2 block setting), 80″ x 80″ (3 x 3 block setting) and 106″ x 106″ (4 x 4 block setting).
Fabrics – April Showers, Happy Go Lucky
by Bonnie and Camille for Moda
Mark your calender
June 1st – Requirements, fabric selections and layouts.
June 23th – Making a quilt using the Nested Churn Dash block.
June 30th – Finishing the quilt.
July 30th – Winners selected from the Flickr group.
The block pattern can be purchased and downloaded from here and here.
Upload your finished blocks or projects to the Flickr Group to win some beautiful Aurifil thread packs and other great prizes. Use #NestedChurnDash on IG, FB, Flickr and twitter. Winners will be announced 30th July 2014.
