Modern Plaid Bright
Pillow #7
I've finally jumped the half way mark on my personal pillow challenge!  happy, happy!

I just can't do a plain ole scrappy squares anymore.  Even though it looks bright enough and I figure the quilting will add texture and dimension...

...adding these 1/4" sashings just brings these fabrics and the design to life, for me!

Comments were made on the last pillow of this design about the number of seams there must be...yeah, lots!

But they're sewn in strips.  It's not like actually having to sew all those 1" seams!...these pillows would not exist if I'd had to sew that many little tiny seams.

I'll be revisiting this pillow soon because I don't like the finished style that I "thought" was going to look really fun.  But I don't think it works.  So, first chance I get that I'm bored and don't know what to sew next, I'll be taking this one apart and redesigning it to the standard simple pillow I like.

This pillow is also an added project to this fat eighth fabric collection challenge that can be seen here as a flickr set.

While working on this pillow, I stumbled onto the blog of bohemiannie art  She was making the most unique baby shower invitations I've ever seen.  And their scrappyness was so inspiring to me, I had to immediately make a couple of postcards after I finished the pillow piecing.

I got so side tracked with postcards and inspiration, that when I got back to finishing the pillow, I totally forgot to add some batting and quilt it!  But it was going to look ok anyway.  I'll be able to add the quilting when I take it apart.

The two postcards above are going out in the mail soon.  Do I hear disappointment that you don't have a chance at them?!  Not to fret, I have a couple of bluebirds you might like.

Bluebird Postale

Bluebird in the Garden

If you aren't familiar with how my postcard giveaway works, you can read about it in this post .

While I wait to hear from you, I have more postcards I want to make.  More happy, happy!

Annie

The simple how-to of my

Modern Plaid

Pillow #6

I used a charm pack and cut the 5" squares into 2-1/2" squares, arranged them and stitched them all together.

This was my simple original plan for this pillow, but it turned out so blah looking that I had to come up with a plan B.  I cut some brighter strips of red, white and blue.  These strips are 3/4".

Next cut each row of blocks in half (1" from the sewn seam) and sew a 3/4" strip between the blocks.  I did this one row at a time.

I liked how it was progressing.

I continued and did the same pattern in the other direction.

Now it had the visual impact I was hoping for!

So simple, isn't it!  I'm so anxious to do this modern plaid in some brightly colored fabrics.

Have fun,

Annie

Modern Plaid
A Pillow for July

Pillow #6

I won this Prairie Paisley II charm pack from Just Carol's blog last April.

 

How perfect for a July pillow is what I thought.  That's such a cute little tag Carol made to add to the charm pack.

I am really happy with the outcome of pillow #6

The back is from scraps and I feel just so clever for hiding the zipper in the design in the back. (2nd red stripe from the left).

   When I started this project, I actually thought it would be pretty easy to choose a pattern or design, stitch it up and love it.  It hasn't turned out to be that easy.  So when one turns out well in the end, it makes me really happy.

 

I want to make another pillow with this design in a different color...that's how happy I am with it!  Off to decide on what next color!  :-)

Annie

Patriotic Celebration

I haven't ever sewn anything patriotic other than a potholder ... until now.  And I think I have learned why.  Nothing really grabs my attention and makes me feel like I've just got to sew that.  And red white and blue aren't my favorite combination for sewing. 

I noticed a couple of weeks or so ago on flickr where my friend, Carol (mamacjt) suggested a patriotic themed mug rug swap.  That threw me immediately into a patriotic sewing mood.  But I didn't want to sew for a swap.  But I felt like I wanted to sew ... something.

I thought of fireworks and how I love them, and wondered if I could make one with fabric and thread.

29" X 33-1/2"

I haven't decided if I was very successful or not.  I do think it's kind of fun though.  The gold tinsel thread really helps to define this patriotic burst a lot.  Without the glitz it was pretty darn boring.

  It's been a whole lota years since I've sewn with metallic thread and we won't discuss the grief it doled out to me here and there.  The point is I won in the end.

Happy 4th of July, America!

Annie

Fabric Postcard Recipients

I received overwhelmingly beautiful comments for my postcards.  Some were very touching stories.  So much so that I cannot resist wanting to make some very special cards.  And, surprisingly I found that I would love to make a card for everyone who would like one.  At this point that is not an impossible labor of love.  But for now,

My newest fabric postcard recipients are:

Tweet Bird will be mailed to Doris

and

Butterfly Post will be mailed to Terry

I just love that so many of you are so willing to help feed my addiction.  For a time now I will not lack for recipients, so I don't need to fret over making too many cards with no one to send them to...hooray for me!

Doris has reminded me that I challenged myself to make pillows and I'm now falling behind on that!  A few other works in progress going, but I'm always trying to sneak in a little break to make a postcard, so I'll have another offering soon.

Thank you all SO MUCH for your kind and wonderful words!

Annie

Hello, my name is Annie and I am a fabric postcard addict... 

...and you can help feed my addiction.

I've made a buncha fabric postcards over the past few years and sent them to family and friends for a variety of events or reasons.  But I'm worried now they may be tiring of them. 

But I'm not tired of making them!

This is where you come in.  I've had many admirers of my cards and I'm wondering if you would like to receive one?  As a follower appreciation gimmick giveaway, I want to sporadically offer up for grabs a postcard now and again.  Interested?

There won't be any jumping through hoops to win the cards, but since it's produced in appreciation of my followers and my flickr contacts, you have to be an already existing follower/contact when the card is offered up for grabs.

You can choose whether you would like me to mail the card to you from me (which means I write on it and address it to you and mail it to you naked), or you would like it to come to you ready for you to send yourself if you so choose to (which means I leave it blank and put it in an envelope to send to you). 

Mr. Random number picker will not be involved here.  I will just choose the winners, based on comments here and on flickr.  I would like to know that they go to caring homes.

Here are two cards up for grabs to start this off.  Let me know in your comment which one you would like.  Two recipients this time.

Tweet Bird

Butterfly Post

I so appreciate all the wonderful things many of you have commented in the past on my postcards.  I so love to make them.  Here's to hoping I will find some new recipients to send them to.  Cheers!

Annie

Blog Hopping

It seems every other blog I follow is in the middle of a blog hop.  It's so fun to see what so many are doing creatively, but I can't even keep up anymore.  Although I keep trying.  Dare I even say it's the latest craze?  **cringing**!

 

I work anywhere from 4 - 8 hours daily.  I try to keep up with flickr contacts and blogging buddies.  I'm doing good to see what those cyber friends are creating.  And I throw in a bit of blogging myself.  And now add blog hopping?...I can only get to that if I'm really feeling like lazing in my comfy chair and clicking...

...and that does happen now and again! **smiling guiltily**

When I'm working, I'm always thinking about what I want to do at my sewing machine when the time comes...usually right after my power nap.  It's hard to draw the line, but I'd much rather be creating something myself.  Then again, I'm so inspired with what I see on my computer screen.  Then again, it's not like I'm running out of inspiration.  Then again I don't want to miss something that could be the "ultimate" inspiration.  Then again....  I think this is called a vicious cycle.  STOP!

I am so happy to see that most bloggers have removed the word verification.  They've changed the legibility of those words to WORSE!  I hardly ever get them right the first time now and I'm sure some couldn't possibly be right, but I must have made a good guess.

I've got a few extra minutes, maybe I can check in on a blog hop.  Have a blogging fun day!

Annie

On The Bandwagon?

I'm waving to everyone on the bandwagon.  I jumped off.  It's too crowded for me.  It continues to travel far and wide and continues to have a great following.  I'm blaming the Internet for my lack of interest to "jump on the bandwagon". 

When all I had were magazines and books and sewing classes to inspire me to sew a specific project, my to do list really was never ending.  My list continues to be never ending, but for different reasons...such as life gets in the way of actually getting projects done in a timely fashion.

But, ..... the Internet is causing me to loose interest as fast as it inspires me!  I love it when I see a blogger or a flickr contact has created a fresh perspective for a quilting project.  I start getting inspired and mentally add the idea to my to do list.  Then, within a couple of weeks and sometimes even less, that fresh perspective starts popping up all over the Internet.  What happens to me being inspired happens to lots and lots of others.  It doesn't seem to take long after that for me to become uninterested in sewing the latest craze.

But I still love seeing every one's version of the latest craze.  I think all it's going to take is time for these newest fads to run their immediate course of popularity.  Once they disappear from sight for a while, I'm sure I'll become interested again.  I wonder if this happens to anyone else.

It isn't a bad thing either...it's also causing me to really dig deep for some originality to my own work and to add some personal perspective to work that inspires me from bandwagons long gone by. 

Just musing,
Annie

Man Quilt...

...that's not so man-ish anymore.

This quilt (#6 for me) began with a charm pack of batiks I received with a mug rug swap.  They were ugly and I couldn't re gift them because I didn't want anyone to think I'd actually choose that charm pack.  They sat around for a long time.  I finally decided they would work into an ugly "man quilt".

So I got started on a design idea.  I'm sure it was triggered by something I've seen somewhere.  This was back last November.

Then the holidays came and other sewing commitments took over.  Finally in April it surfaced again.  And I found that I was actually enjoying sewing this quilt top.  It didn't look as ugly as I thought it would.  Probably because the ugly fabric pieces are only 2" square.

Soon it was ready to sandwich.

I love when a quilt top is ready to sandwich.  The three layers together is when it changes from pieced fabric to a quilt.  I love to hug it after pin basting it just to feel all my hard work as a "quilt".  The design wasn't hard, but those corners of all the blocks match up really well because I worked hard to do my best to make sure they would all match up.

I moved along to my favorite straight line quilting. 

I couldn't be more pleased with the way the quilting looks with this simple design.

I just can't imagine sending a quilt top out to be quilted.  There is just no better feeling than sewing a quilt from start to finish.

Time for binding...

I wondered if I would ever bind a quilt with the same fabric as the design background rather than a contrasting piece.  Sure enough, this one called for a binding that didn't frame the design. 

 And in the end, I love the quilt!  It doesn't look strictly man-ish. 

It's definitely non gender specific.

I still have lots of pieces of this "ugly" charm pack left over.  Who knows what it'll turn into...we'll see.

Quilt #7 is on the wall and it's calling me to come play.  It's a rather interesting concept that I'm having a fun time with, so off I go to play!

Annie

Blooming Dresden

Table Mat

I'm not the biggest fan of the Dresden plate.  I don't dislike it but it isn't a favorite design.  However, I really like playing with the Dresden ruler wedge lately.

For this piece I traced the 8" ruler wedge.  Shrank the tracing with my printer to 3 different sizes plus a partial wedge. 

I fused the pieces to the background and stitched them down with a raw edge applique technique.  Easy peasy!  The binding is not bias, it's straight grain.  I don't like doing bias if I don't have to.

This piece is another make with this fabric collection for a personal challenge.  Other pieces can be seen in my flickr photostream here. 
Confession:  One fabric piece is not part of this fabric collection but I didn't want to keep repeating too many of the prints to make enough wedges so I just added one more print to the collection.  Is that cheating?  Maybe I can't count it in that challenge.

I've made a couple of table mats for my daughter and she said she'd like to have "some" more.  I'll have to send this to her eventually, but right now I just can't part with it.  I like it and want to enjoy it for awhile before I package it up and send it off. 

Now I can get back to work on my "Man Quilt" that I started back in January.  It's ready to quilt...I'm always so excited when a quilt is ready to be quilted.  See ya ~

Annie