In order to make the quilt large enough, I separated the 4″ squares into blocks of 12 (4 across by 3 down). I framed each block with white and then alternated this with blocks of white framed in a corresponding fabric. These prints are mainly from the Amy Butler Daisy Chain line, as that’s what I had available at the time.

(please ignore all the wrinkles - it’s been rolled up waiting to be quilted!)

In case anyone is interested, the measurements are as follows:

The patchwork blocks require 12 4″ squares, sewn together 4 by 3. For this quilt, I used 8 patchwork blocks, or 96 4″ squares. My squares were a little less than square, so once the squares were sewn together, I trimmed each block to 10 1/2″ x 14″.

I then cut 7 white rectangles of the same size (10 1/2″ x 14″)

The patchwork blocks were framed with 3″ strips of solid white, while the white blocks were framed with 3″ strips of the daisy chain fabrics.

Finished blocks measure approximately 15″ x 19″ and the quilt itself measures approximately 55″ x 73″. I expect it to shrink a bit, as my fabrics are not pre-washed.

I love the look of this one, and I think you may see it here again in the future with different fabrics!

And they did well, don’t you think?

In addition to these fabrics, Ryan also got me some precut fabric squares, which I immediately started sewing together for yet another quilt. I’ll show you the full top in a day or two!

I like it because it’s bright and summery, which is so unlike our current Vermont weather (snow, wind, and zero degree temps). Perhaps this is the wrong time of the year for such a quilt, but I’m hoping it will remind me of the nicer weather to come (can a quilt do that? perhaps I’m asking too much…)

I think I cut a flower from every piece of floral fabric I own. The flowers are all different sizes, then framed in white and cut to blocks of 10″ square. For those of you who have asked in the past, I used a solid white which I purchased at JoAnn’s. It’s a 100% cotton sateen. On the bolt, it appears to have a very noticeable pinkish hue, though luckily this seems to go away (somehow!) when used.

I need to figure out something for the back and maybe I’ll find some time for some quilting this weekend.

I’m looking forward to seeing this one finished!

Last year at this time I never would have imagined that I’d have a blog, or that I’d become a quilter, or that I’d rather buy fabric than clothing. Who would have guessed!

In fact, it’s only exactly one year ago that my mom taught me how to sew. At the time, I wanted a reusable market bag. I figured I could get her to make me one, and that would be the end of it. Instead, I seemed to have gotten hooked…

I started this blog in June of 2008, with the intention of it being a photo blog (hence the name!). My interest changed to sewing after being inspired by all the crafty people out there who have their own blogs, or who share photos on Flickr. Through the wealth of information available online, and through the help of other bloggers who went out of their way to provide helpful suggestions (thanks Alissa!) I somehow became a quilter.

I finished these 10 quilts in the last half of 2008, and I have 5 others which are well on their way to becoming quilts. I think there will be many more to come… I am really looking forward to 2009 and all it has to bring! Thank you to everyone who visits my blog and to all of those who leave such kind comments. I truly appreciate each and every one.

(and if tree skirts count, then here’s #11!)

I wish you all a very happy new year!

For this quilt I used my pink and brown scraps to create these small 4″ blocks which I framed with white. (I was banking on the fact that most little girls love pink - turns out she also loves polka dots, so this was perfect…) I quilted it simply with a nice diamond pattern. It measures about 20″ x 25″.

For the backing I chose this pink fabric with stars and incorporated a little piece of the polka dot binding

Sally came to our Christmas Eve gathering without a blanket, so she immediately got wrapped up in this one

It looks like both Sally and my cousin Augusta like the quilt!

#32, Holly. I had to laugh at her comment - “I NEED FABRIC. I Neeeeeed fabric. I really neeeeeeeeeeeed fabric. Please.”

Well Holly, here you go! A little selection of fabric just for you. I know what it’s like to need fabric, so I’m happy to pass this along to you! Send me your address so I can get this out!

I started thinking about his quilt right after Thanksgiving, and went through my fabric stash to pick out all the ‘guy’ fabrics. I selected fabrics in shades of green, orange and blues (nothing with flowers!). Then those fabrics sat in a pile for a couple weeks while I tried to think of a pattern to use.

I finally decided on this for the front - I love how the white brightens up these fabrics -

I used the orange Amy Butler striped fabric for the majority of the binding, and also pieced in a few other prints from the quilt top because I really do love a pieced binding.

(Once I finished quilting it I just couldn’t resist taking it outside in the snow)

Now I must tell you a little bit about my brother. We tease Ryan for his OCD tendencies - he really likes everything to be straight and to line up correctly, and he does love everything to be clean (let’s not tell him I had his quilt out in the snow!). We discovered that he has a real issue with blankets or quilts when he can’t tell which end is the top. In his opinion, you should always have your feet at the same end of the blanket so you’re never putting your face next to the side where your feet may have been. (Personally, I don’t care, and maybe that just means I’m the one with the problem!)

Maybe you have to know him to find this as funny as I do, but I really got a kick out of making the back of this quilt -

And it looks like he’s pretty happy with it as well…

Merry Christmas Ryan! May your head never be where your feet have been…

So what to do but have a giveaway!

There are some larger pieces here - a few fat quarters and one or two that may even be larger than that, as well as a mix of smaller scraps and a few pre-cut squares. Most is quilting weight cotton but there are a couple pieces of home dec weight fabrics as well.

Just leave me a comment - about anything, really! - and I’ll pick a winner on Monday night.

Edit: Comments are now closed. I’ll pick a winner and will announce it tomorrow morning!

Since I didn’t have time to sew a wine bag, I opted to make this quick little ribbon to give it a bit of a holiday look.

I finished it off with this cute little gift tag, available at inchmark journal. I didn’t have the necessary circle punch, and my rotary-cut circle left a bit to be desired, so I used a zig zag stitch to secure the fabric. Now you don’t notice quite how messy the cutting is…

If you want to make your own quick fabric ribbon, you’ll need a piece of fabric that’s at least 30″ long. I cut my fabric about 35″ long by 3″ for this project, but of course you could make it longer.

Fold this in half lengthwise, right sides together. At each end, cut the fabric on a diagonal. Starting at one end, sew along the edge, using a 1/2″ seam allowance. When you reach the middle, stop and backstitch. Leave an opening of about 3″ (to allow you to flip the fabric right side out) and then start sewing again until you reach the other end. Turn right side out (this is probably the longest part of this whole project!). A turning tool or a chopstick is probably helpful. Iron flat and then topstitch along that same edge. This will give it a nice finished look and will close that opening at the same time.

Ta da! This ribbon could be used as I’ve shown, topping a wine bottle, or it could be a nice touch on a present.

Happy holidays!

I decided to make this makeup/toiletries bag because I had some vinyl coated marimekko fabric just perfect for the interior. I didn’t have a pattern, nor did I bother to look for one, figuring it would be quick and easy to whip up a little zippered bag. It all seemed ok until I decided to use french seams. Add that to the already thick canvas fabric, and I was left trying to sew through fabric that barely fit under the sewing machine foot.

I should have stopped then and just called it a loss.

Instead I felt I had to finish it.

I’m going to force myself to use it, though I’m definitely not in love.

You’ll see that the zipper can’t even close all the way, and for some reason, the shape of the whole thing seems to have gotten a bit distorted. Don’t ask. It was a good idea in theory, just lacked a bit in the execution.

I’m going back to quilting.

And with that being said, here’s a little peek at yet another quilt that I’ve started. What’s that, three quilts now that I’ve started and then abandoned? Although I shouldn’t say abandoned, as I fully intend to finish them all. I seem to reach a certain point and then I find myself already thinking about the next quilt design.

I think we’re due for snow here this weekend, so perhaps that will give me the time to get these quilts finished!