Oh where, oh where...

have I been????

 

Let's just say that a laid-back, long-napping, easy-going, baby bee grew into an active, inquistive MISCHIEVIOUS toddler bee. All those long hours of editing photos with a snuggly baby in the crook of my arm or peacefully sleeping upstairs have flown right out the window! The good news is...I'm back! Kinda, sorta... Bee started preschool this fall and after a couple months of catching up on life, I'm finding myself with tiny bits of time to actually weed through a year's worth of photos, and maybe, just maybe, share a few here.

 

But as I mentioned in the last long ago post...the crafting hasn't stopped. Just the photo-editing and posting. So, I'll try to catch you up on some of the highlights over the next couple of months.

 

So for now...what's on my table today?

 

I'm feeling the quilting bug, so lots and lots of fabric, blocks, quilts in progress, patterns etc.

 

First...Craftsy Block of the Month 2013. I have absolutely no idea where this quilt is going...wandering aimlessly through my stash, I suppose. This BOM class is FREE from Craftsy and I highly recommend it if you are looking to broaden your quilting horizons. Y-seams, applique etc. And video tutorials that are AWESOME! I joined this BOM for two reasons...1. to sharpen my quilting skills and get some extra practice with things that I don't do very often. 2. to use up that stash. I wanted several new lines of fabric, but the fabric bins were pretty full. I'm hoping to clear some space with this quilt.

 

Here is my January "block" or in this case set of blocks. An offset log cabin block. The video tutorial teaches you about chain piecing and shows you a nifty little way to standardize your scant 1/4" seam allowance. I have no idea what I never thought of that before!



 

 

 

Next up, the Lucky Stars BOM with Don't Call Me Betsy. I tried and tried and tried to resist this one. I did...really! And I was doing great until everyone started posting the pics of their first blocks. As long as I couldn't SEE the blocks then I could tell them, "NO!" As soon as those blocks started popping up on Flickr, though, I was done for. You can get this one on Craftsy too, but it's $10. Which I think is crazy reasonable for this pattern or set of patterns. Each month features a different star and a paper-pieced pattern. So why did I join this one? You mean, besides the fact that those block pictures were calling to me in my sleep? 1. I've never paper-pieced anything...see that down there...it's my very first paper pieced block. (I didn't take a pic of the unit whose seam allowances got sliced off:) So, I really wanted to give paper-piecing a shot. 2. That stash again...it really is out of control! Again...no plan for this one. Each month, I'm just gonna raid the stash and hope by the end it all works together. And if not, I'll use the blocks in pillows, bags, etc.

 

The pattern set actually comes with a practice block and a paper-piecing survival guide. This is my practice block. I haven't gotten around to the January block yet, but I'm hoping to get it done this weekend.

 



And, who could resist a BOM of the month that comes with a dessert recipe??? Sugar Block 2013 with StitcheryDickoryDock! Now this BOM has a plan! I signed up for this one pretty far in advance and spent quite some time picking just the right combination of fabrics. I ordered a collection of Kona solids from various Etsy shops with the hope of making a quilt for our camping cabin in the mountains (it has an official name now - The Roost, after the flock of turkeys with whom we share the land). We just built queen-size bunk beds up there, and now I need to come up with two quilts that will work with the all white palette we've settled on for the furnishings. I wanted to pop some color into the place:) And believe it or not, I had finished the first block before I went to bed on January 1...just hours after receiving the pattern!

So far, so good...I love the color combo. This block features tomato, eggplant, corn yellow, white, and medium gray. I didn't even realize the vegetable theme until people starting commenting on it via Flickr:)

I'm planning a wonky plus sign quilt using a white layer cake and the remnants of the solids from this quilt for the other bed...now to order that layer cake!

And last, but definitely not least, Belle's quilt! Remember eons ago, when I posted the first blocks of this bad boy??? Well, "bad boy" is quite the understatement! I was seriously insane when I decided this was a good idea! But 64 blocks later, I'm in the quilting stage...FINALLY! And just to add insult to injury...I'm hand-quilting this puppy! Yep...NUTS! I'm doing a pretty simple design of concentric squares (can you say, "concentric" when talking about squares???). But, then I'm adding some faux mending stitches just to give it some character. What's a faux mending stitch? Well...I might have made that term up. There's probably a real term for it out there. Picture a really old quilt in a log cabin some where. Now picture all the little stitches that grandma made over the years to patch up rips, tears, holes, etc. CHARACTER! So, I'm adding little rows of lines or asterisks or other things in tiny places on the quilt. You don't notice them at all until you actually lie down on the quilt and start to see the intricacies. Oh...and quilting with perle cotton as always. It's my new thing:) I might have ordered 50 spools of size 5 from Paraguay...that shipping label got a few funny looks around here!

 

There are lots of other things going on around here too...more quilts, decorating projects, clothes, doll clothes, etc. I'll be back soon!