Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts Blog Hop

Welcome!  Today is my day for Monique's  blog hop for her new book Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts: 11 Traditional Quilt Projects from Open Gate (Quiltmakers Club)!  I'm excited to share my project with you today! The quilt I'm highlighting today is Canasta...I immediately fell in love with the block design, but I chose this quilt for another reason as well.  I have such fond memories of playing Canasta nearly every day one summer with a great-great Aunt who had come to visit for several months!

Canasta is made up of simple blocks that consist of 4 flying geese, 4 four-patch blocks, and a center 9-patch. The hardest part for me was choosing fabric! (I finally decided on Heirloom by Joel Dewberry).Monique's books are clear and easy to follow. She gives instructions if you are using her Fit to be Geese ruler as well as instructions for those who want to make the flying geese blocks the traditional way.

When I started I had decided to make 4 blocks and make a pillow top.  But then I thought it might be fun to make a runner for spring with these gorgeous fabrics!

Just 5 blocks...

And a narrow border using the background fabric...

And my runner is ready for quilting! I'm going to use another of the green prints from the collection for the binding!

 Here is the photo of Monique's beautiful full-sized version of the quilt...so stunning!

Thanks so much Monique, for inviting me to preview your book! If you'd like to win a copy of Monique's book and her Fit to be Geese ruler, just leave a comment on this post letting me know your favorite spring cleaning tip. 

Don't forget to stop by Carrie's blog and Nicole's blog tomorrow for more fun previews from the book! (And it's still not too late to drop by the other blogs on the blog hop...Thelma, Lisa, Denise, and Monique all have reviews and giveaways, too!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Worktable Wednesday and Elephants

First, the elephants...aren't they so adorable? I love them but just can't figure out what to do with them. There have literally been some elephants in my life lately, too...well...those "big project" kind of elephants, anyway. I'm really looking forward to a relaxing spring break next week with some "just for fun" sewing!

On the worktable today is a project I've been working on here and there for nearly a month.  I've finished all the applique' and am ready to start putting this together!

I'm hoping my ideas for the sashing are going to pan out on this one...hopefully I can finish a couple of things today and get at least a few rows together to share soon!

And here's a sneak peek of something I'll be sharing tomorrow...tomorrow is my day for Monique's blog tour!

Also, thanks so much to everyone who entered Jackie's giveaway and congratulations to Vicki!

Just a Few Things...

Have you seen the new Flea Market Fancy yet? Now that my fat quarter bundle of the re-release of this amazing fabric is here...don't know if I can cut into it...it's so gorgeous!  No, really...I think I'm cutting into it very soon.  First I'm going to cut a couple 2 1/2'' strips and some charm squares from each fat quarter...and then I have a project in mind to start as well.

Some gorgeous swatches arrived the other day from Mark Cesarik.  These fabrics are from his new line, Cosmic Burst for Free Spirit. Thank you Mark...I believe I'm going to use these for paper-pieced hexagons very soon!

And, last, but definitely not least...a wonderful blog tour starts tomorrow!  Monique Dillard has a terrific new book out,   Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts: 11 Traditional Quilt Projects from Open Gate (Quiltmakers Club), and here is the schedule if you're interested in seeing some fun projects. There will also be chances on each blog to win a book, and some bloggers will also give you an opportunity to win one of Monique's terrific rulers!

Monday - Thelma http://www.cupcakesndaisies.blogspot.com/
Tuesday - Lisa http://the-stashmaster.blogspot.com/
Wednesday - Denise http://www.quilterswindow.com/blog/ and Monique http://opengatequilts.blogspot.com/
Thursday - Me! http://www.aquiltinglife.com/
Friday - Carrie http://lavieenrosie.typepad.com/lavieenrosie/ and Nicole  http://sisterschoice.typepad.com/sisters_choice_quilts/

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Saturday...

Yay for Saturdays...seems I almost always get some good sewing time in on this day! As you can see, I have quite a lot of flying geese blocks to trim...just seeing these Strawberry Fields fabrics makes me happy!

Here are some of the fabrics I'm working with for a quilt for Lori...the fabrics are Millie's Closet by Lori Holt for Riley Blake...this is such a fun line!

I also put together a couple more Granny Square blocks...

Each one is a lot of fun (as most of you know who are quilting along)!

Note to self: looks like I need to get some more pink in the mix!  Okay...I'm headed back to the sewing room to finish up a few things!

Happy Saturday!

Giveaway Today!

For a chance to win these 9 fat quarters from Kaffe Fassett's Paperweight collection offered by Jackie of Canton Village Quilt Works...
                                                           
                                                                   Click Here!

Wednesday Things

I've been working on a market quilt for my friend Lori this week (sneak peeks coming soon)...but I do have a few "what I'm working on Wednesday" things to share today!  First is this little stack of Denyse Schmidt fabrics that came home with me yesterday...the orange prints are from the newly released Aunt Edna collection and were just calling my name.  The aqua is from an earlier DS Quilts line and just seemed to want to jump right in with those oranges. As soon as I have a chance to cut some 2 1/2'' squares from these I'll be making another Granny Square block!

I also had to make some more Farmer's Wife blocks with some Fig Tree Dandelion Girl that arrived in the mail on Monday (thank you Karin)! This is block 8, "Bouquet," and it was so fun and easy to make that I made 2.  I'm going to need an additional 34 blocks to make the king-sized quilt, so I figure I might as well start making doubles of some of the blocks. I will also be adding in a few of my own.

I also made Block 7, "Birds in the Air." I had the half-square triangles already made, so this block went together pretty quickly.

I sure am enjoying this Farmer's Wife journey! (Here is a link for the Farmer's Wife book...someone recently asked in a comment about where the book could be found: The Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt: Letters from 1920s Farm Wives and the 111 Blocks They Inspired

Oh, and my friend Sinta has a fun quilt-along she is starting for those of you who might have a Block-of-the-Month problem love! Head on over to her blog to find out about BOM Rehab!

Thanks for stopping by...have a great day!

More Farmer's Wife Blocks

I had fun putting together 3 more Farmer's Wife blocks this weekend!  I had drafted 6 blocks last week--for me, doing the math ahead of time ensures I'll make at least a few. I hope to make 3 more this week!

First up is block 60, Noon & Light. This was a fun block to make.  I used a different construction method than is used in the photo from the book...it just seemed easier to make this block using half square and quarter-square constructions. I used fabrics from the Fig Tree Whimsy collection for this one.

Next I made block102, Whirlpool using pieces from Butterscotch & Rose--more half-square triangles!

And finally I made block 64, Peace & Plenty, using California Girl scraps--as you can see I mad a lot of small half-square triangles this weekend.

I'm looking forward to sewing the other 3 blocks I have drafted! I really want to get a photo of all my blocks together this week too...it's been a while since I got them all in one picture!

Thanks for stopping by!

Work-in-Progress and a Distraction...

I've been working on a work-in-progress!  I stitched up these California Girl half-square triangles a few weeks ago...

Using a double-layered freezer paper template I've been slowly turning these squares into  fun pie shaped pieces! Sorry for the slightly blurry photo above. I trim my fabric about 1/4'' larger than my template then use a paint brush and some spray starch to prepare the fabric before ironing that little edge over the freezer paper.

The result is some very nice little "pies" ready for applique!  I will share the pattern I'm using when I get some blocks put together and ready to show.

I might be a little distracted this weekend though...the new Pioneer Woman cookbook  The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier arrived the other day...and I can hardly put it down! It is absolutely amazing--beautiful photography, step-by-step photos, and recipes I can't wait to try.  Seriously, I think I might need to make every dish in the book!

Thanks so much for stopping by...hope you get to sew this weekend!

Planning

I'm going to work on my Farmer's Wife blocks Saturday, so I thought a little preparation and planning might be in order today. I'm using all Fig Tree fabrics for this quilt and really want to make sure I have a good mix of the brighter lines and the more "fallish" colors. This morning I went through my blocks (boy, was that fun...just seeing all the blocks again!) and divided them into three piles--blocks with a "light and airy" feel, mostly comprised of Strawberry Fields fabrics; blocks out of California Girl; and blocks made with the darker fabrics. I was suprised to find that I had 30 blocks in the first category, just 8 made with California Girl, and 24 made from older lines such as Mill House Inn and Butterscotch & Rose. I think my proportions are okay...I'll probably sew with California Girl this weekend.  The next Fig Tree line (have you seen the sneek peek of Tapestry here--looks gorgeous!) looks like it will be the perfect addition to this quilt with the perfect tones to mix with these lighter and darker lines.

I also went through my Flurry Christmas version blocks.  This quilt is all made from one line, so the color proportions are working out perfectly.  I'm running out of some of the fabrics, though, so I might have to add in some other lines soon.

I've been storing the blocks for both quilts in the same project box...looks like they might each need their own box soon!

Oh...and on a totally un-related note...last night I found out a Container Store will be opening an hour away at the beginning of May...be still my heart...so excited to be able to finally visit one of these stores in person!

Also, before I go, I'd like to announce the winner of the A Joyful Soul Fabrics giveaway...congratulations to Kenna!

Thanks for stopping by