SewKatieDid

Because thread is the best glue

alexander henry

::Hello there Quilt Sandwich::

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I’m sure most of you are familiar with Etsy.  My friend Becca has an awesome shop on Etsy called Quilt Sandwich that she runs with her sister.

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I originally got to know Becca through her involvement with the Seattle Modern Quilt Guild.  We are both on the SMQG’s Board of Directors (she’s our secretary), so we spend a fair amount of time together.  Of course there is the diversion of quilt/fabric talk at every board meeting in between the business at hand.

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Becca and her sister stock Quilt Sandwich with a great mix of fabrics, from the newest designer fabrics on the market to must have solids that make it all work.  I ever spied some Charolina Chambray there!

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It was difficult to narrow down my selections, but the Modern Mecca has been on my radar.  It is incredibly difficult for me to pass up an Alexander Henry print that might disappear.

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I built my selections around the Modern Mecca fabric.  Some shot cottons, a pearl bracelet and that great zig zag by Dear Stella.

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I found the Erin McMorris print that I needed for my Nicquelle Quilt at Quilt Sandwich too.  Now I have a hand project for my drive to the Tri-Cities show.  Love that!

::Night Owl Quilt::

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sewkatiedid/Night OwlOh, “Hi Night Owl!”  Did anyone have a baby that was a night owl?

The blue colorway and theme of Lizzy House’s Constellations line was perfect for a remake of the Supernova quilt from the book.

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I searched through the stash for the focus fabric to be placed in the center.

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Since I sized down the squares to four and a half inches this fabric needed to be small scale and “Not purple,” Jefe said (I still snuck some in).  I went with this cute owl print that Alexander Henry came up with some years ago.  I thought it fit the night time theme.  From there I started thinking about the color development for the rest of the quilt.

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I was inspired by the colorway in this encaustic piece by Christine Terrell of Tincaustics that I picked up while in Austin.  This citron or chartruse color has taken me over.  I certainly need more fabric right?  So I moved onto hunting for some more of this color for the quilt and my stash.  My excuse was that they would help blend the lighter greens.

sewkatiedid/Night OwlI did a few block alterations from the original book pattern to make it a little less square and more explosive.  Pulling a multitude of fabrics from the stash for all the different rounds was a fun way to use up a few smaller pieces that have been around.

This pattern is loose, fun and FAST!  I pulled it together in a few days.

I’d love to have this quilted for class tomorrow night in a woodgrain pattern, but need to pack up and get my lecture fine tuned for the Tri-Cities show this weekend.

I hope to meet you Friday or Saturday if you are on the east side of the state!

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::Supernove Workshop::

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Tuesdays, March 19th and 26th from 6-9pm at Drygood Designs in Ballard.

This class will be a great opportunity to learn new techniques without intimidation. Play will both the shape and value in this class where you’ll take wonky star blocks to a whole new level with the Supernova Block.  The Supernova Block adds an improvisational triangle onto a traditional square block to create its swirling effect.  Your block design can go Supernova by creating one large block or multiple small blocks can create your quilt.

::Scattered::

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Thanks for all the quilt names!  We did some rearranging yesterday and I lost a major storage spot.  The spot held a large tote full to the brim with unfinished projects.  As I was trying to reorganize I finally came up with the quilt’s name, Scattered.

The name seems to fit where I am with projects too.

This loss of space created a fire under my ass to reorganize further and work through those projects.  I’ve had a few small projects on my sewing table that were becoming clutter, beautiful clutter, but still clutter.  So I made a list and am striking some off instantly.  Clutter keeps me at a stand-still and I’m re-energize for sure upon checking off a few.

These small projects are created from fabrics that I’ve picked up locally.

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This fabulous Anna Maria Horner velveteen that I got at  The West Seattle Fabric Company is finally an infinity scarf.  I’ve been matching the voiles with flannel or velveteen to make as gifts and was happy to see some of this type of fabric available in town.

sewkatiedid/drawstring bagI could procrastinate no longer on my delivery of my quilt to Quiltcon.  This required making a drawstring bag for its containment.  My boots will need something to travel in to Austin too and this Alexander Henry zebra print I got from Island Quilter is just so sassy.  I want to replenish its supply even though I have no project planned.

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Island Quilter had this Alexander Henry fabric in a variety of colors.  I wanted to go with the black, but as an ironing board cover I thought it would fade.  I totally white-trashed the construction by tracing around the shape plus an inch or so, zig-zagging an inch down to the wrong side and pulling some elastic through the hem.  The elastic is pulled taunt and held tight by a toggle.  If I could do it with duct tape I would.  You just don’t see it so perfection doesn’t matter.

It could use some ironing.  This will surely happen.

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I’m itchin’ to piece this Star-Bright Star-Light Quilt as a sample before the HST LOVE class on Saturday at Island Quilter and those diamond blocks are killing me.  I pulled it down to work on step outs for Jacquie’s and my Quiltcon Demo though.  Stick to the list.

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Ok, ignoring the list for a second and dreaming of Valentine’s Day I couldn’t help but pile.  I’m always collecting fabrics for gift making.

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This one from Drygood’s is my favorite this year!  I’m back to add this one too.

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Here’s to a productive Monday!  We’ll see how long I can stick to the list.

————————————————–OPEN QUILTING STUDIOS THIS WEEK—————————————

This Wednesday we have Open Quilting Studio at Make*Do*Mend in Ballard from 11-3pm and at Island Quilter on Saturday from 4-9pm following the HST Love class below.  This is a great opportunity to take a class and then stick around to finish the quilt!

::Half-Square Triangle LOVE Class::

$85/Saturday February 16th from 10am to 4pm at Island Quilter on Vashon Island.

This versatile quilt block lends itself to endless designs. We’ll cover quilting basics such as picking fabrics, matching seams and create perfect points.  We’ll play with a layout that suites your style and you’ll walk away with ideas for a multitude of quilts. All level of sewists welcome.


::Improvisational Coin Quilt Workshop::

$85/Tuesdays, February 19th and 26th from 6-9pm at Make*Do*Mend in Ballard.

No two will be the same. Learn improvisational techniques like angle piecing and strip piecing while creating a modern coin quilt loosely based on a tradition Chinese Coin Quilt Design. A great quilt to feature your favorite prints. All levels of sewists welcome/machines and tools provided.

::Sonstar Quilt::

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Roan will be eight this month.  He asked me if he could have the Unknown Direction baby quilt I made when he saw it.

I thought I’d do better and go Roan size.

The rows are nearly sewn, but I’ve been waiting on some more aegean shot cotton to finish it to size.  The Anna Maria Flannel I bought up when it came on sale for the back.  The softness is amazing.

In the weeks since purchasing the flannel I received Denyse Schmidt’s new book and couldn’t stop thinking about the string pieced star quilt in it.  Roan and I both have a lifelong love of singing “You Are My Sunshine,” so I believe there are some words going in here somewhere too.

I constructed the large block in nine-patch style with improvisational points and bypassed Denyse’s muslin foundation triangle blocks with matching points.

Now I’ve got to figure out a design to combine the flannel and the star for the back.  To achieve this I needed to order more shot cotton.  Does anyone else seem to have this problem of constantly ‘needing’ more fabric?

I’ll be quilting it in the same style as Unknown Direction, minus the mess up and more distance between lines.  Unknown Direction has since post quilting disaster been renamed Two Martini.

I doubt I’ll wrap this one up in time for his birthday next week, but I’m aiming for the end of the month.

::Coin Quilt Class::

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Just a little reminder that I have an improvisational Coin Quilt class starting this Thursday the 26th from 6-9pm at the Quilting Loft.  This class meets next Thursday too.  No two quilts will be the same.

If you are interested in learning improvisational techniques, this quilt is a way to perfect them.  We’ll cover strip piecing and a few versions of angle piecing.

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Plus a book signing and trunk show this Saturday at the Quilting Loft from 11am-2pm.  We’ll have a demo too!

Unknown Direction Quilt

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I left my seam ripper idle and forged ahead with the quilting on Unknown Direction.

Sewing down binding was my Superbowl activity.

(And by the way, a BIG shout-out  of “thanks” to those of you that shared where the path takes you when you make a boo-boo.  I love how we all have our creative process.)

Funny how a run through the washer and dryer eliminates all my mistakes distractions.

And look, we actually had a few random sunny days last week.  Yes, those are shadows!

Sunshine in these parts at this time of year is better than rose colored glasses.

I used the left over bits from the front to create a panel that would bring my backing to size.

That’s pretty much it for the Alexander Henry Entertaining Elephants fabric.  It has made its way into two quilt backs now and the rest likely will become parts of future blocks.

I’ve added a twin size for Roan (with the intended quilting design) in this same colorway to my list of quilts to make.  I really liked the light gray thread for the quilting.  It blended really well.

Unknown Direction was a start to finish quilt, meaning I never tucked it away or put it aside.  Generally when I finish a full project I move onto something that has been waiting on the sidelines.

Opposing Triangles needed binding.  Tomorrow I’ve got a date with this quilt and the 5th season of Big Love.

::Leftovers Quilt Top Done::

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Well, my computer has been in the shop for the week which means I was actually a productive sewist.  Mind you I also practically lost my mind since I couldn’t even look up a phone number.

Now my camera has decided that “close-up” mode is all that is needed so this is as good as it gets for a full shot (ignore dreary Seattle backyard mid-December too), but Eeeekkkk… L-O-V-E  this simple charm quilt!  It’s twin size.

Went with the orange peel free motion again and will likely revisit it when I get to another charm quilt with the grays I’ve been collecting.

The back is mostly Alexander Henry Whispering Wings, a print I want to keep on my shelf forever.  It was too perfect as backing for this quilt though.  I have a hard time with that sometimes.

I only had so much of it, so I added a few extra squares to the back.  It showcases the quilting a bit I think.

I went with the green binding.  I wanted to try to pick up on the small bits of green in the butterfly wings.

I think I’ve mentioned my need to switch between traditional and improvisational work, so when it’s a little bit brighter in these parts I have a “new” quilt top to share that steps away from this traditional squares stuff I’ve had so much fun producing lately.

I’ll certainly need some suggestion in quilting it, but I’m going to let it hang a bit for my own imagination first.

Happy Sunday Everyone!

 

 

 

 

 

::Enter Scrappy Sunshine::

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It’s been an odd summer here in the Pacific Northwest.  I thought it time to produce some of my own sunshine.

Enter Scrappy Sunshine Quilt.

This quilt originally started with cutting up all my Flea Market Fancy by Denyse Schmidt.  It just needed to happen, but when I put it up to create blocks, it was just bland.

Well you know what they say about best laid plans…

I pulled the duller colors and threw in the Amy Butler Lotus (thanks Heather for the pink!),

and then the Alexander Henry Aviary which I always wanted to have together with the Lotus in a quilt.

The Heather Ross campers were an afterthought and I had just enough for a few blocks, so perfect for a summery quilt.

I think I bought Pink Chalk out of these little Japanese flowers in every color way when they went on sale.  They are printed on the same soft fabric as Heather Ross’s stuff.

Of course I can never make a quilt purely from stash so I ordered this print in each colorway when I found it for $5/yard.

It all makes the Flea Market Fancy seem like an afterthought.

The layout doesn’t have any rhyme or reason.  I just grab blocks from the piles and lay them on my cutting mat in a square or rectangle and piece them.

And look what decided to make an appearance this morning.

Hello Sunshine!

::A Value Quilt of My Own::

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Wow, you all really came out of the woodwork on that last post!  It was delightful to explore some new blogs and I hope I didn’t miss anyone.

Don’t you wish everyone wanted to talk about quilts as much as us?

The quilt on the end of my bed received so much attention that I thought it was time I posted it.

It is the first quilt I’ve EVER made for myself back when I did the Value Quilt Quilt-Along using my Value Quilt Tutorial.

I’ve seen the same design recently on blogs as warm/cool.  From how I understand it, the same designs work with warm and cool half square triangles, because warm colors appear to move forward and cool colors tend to recede.  This contrast makes the design appear, but you still need value or the two triangles will appear blended.

You can learn a little more here.

My value quilt contains a load of larger prints and a high proportion of fabrics that would likely fall under the category of medium value if judged on their own.

Larger prints will generally have a mix of light, medium and dark values, and mediums next to darks or lights will create a less defined line.  These two elements created a quilt where the contrast is low, creating a less defined or blended design.

I also turned some squares to make some of the diamonds one color, ignoring value, which skewed the design in some areas.

I love that it showcases my fabric stash, especially since some of these prints are long gone.

But what I wanted to mention, due to all the comments on the last post was the quilting that was done by the fab and artistic Angela Walters (Quilting Is My Therapy).  I was able to meet up with Angela last Summer when I was visiting Jacquie.  The quilting is dense and amazing.  I only wish I would have made the quilt larger.

From the back the quilting really shines.

The flannel back really showcases it nicely.  I’m glad I only put a few spare hsts on the back.

I chose this print for the binding and never auditioned or doubted it.

My friend Chara did some headshots for the book and we thought it would be fun for some photos even though it didn’t make the final run.


(photo by Chara Michele Photography)

It’s perfect, in every way.  And best of all, It’s mine all mine!

::Modern Snippets Improvisational Coin Quilt::

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I added a coin quilt class to my teaching schedule and needed a sample for those that choose to go with a more modern or improvisational design.  An improvisational design will give students a chance to practice free piecing, angle piecing, strip piecing and design layout.

I still have a place in my heart for traditional design when it comes to this quilt and am going to raid my scrap bins to recreate my Colorway quilt too, but first things first.

I wanted to show you my original fabric picks for this quilt.  I think it’s important to audition snippets of fabric on your design wall when planning a quilt and I can’t think of a time when all the prints I pick in the beginning work their way into a finished project.

I actually cut into my fabrics and stand back from my design wall to see how they are mingling.  This is especially easy when working with one solid background color, I simply pin that up first.

If they don’t work the bits go into the scrap bin and I go back to my stash to try to find something new.  As I’m digging in my stash I think about leaning a bit more toward one color or another, eliminating distracting prints, do I need larger or smaller pieces to make the print work, or whether I have the values I need to create more or less contrast.  Then I cut some more.

In this instance only the elephants stayed and I went with a different color way of the spiral.  Sometimes I even sew up a block and end up with the rotary cutter or seam ripper.

As far as the design…that generally just evolves.

Don’t be scared to jump in and experiment!

That’s how this quilt came to be.

Little loops and circles meander along the quilt.  I let it develop rather organically and filled in where needed.

For the binding I went with a subtle print that reads solid from a distance.  I’ve had it in my stash for a while and since it is a sock monkey textured look it seemed to fit the elephant theme.

I loaded up on the Alexander Henry Entertaining Elephants from an Etsy seller at $5/yard for backings and easy whole cloth quilts.

Of course with improvisational piecing you general have some leftovers.

Those are nice for adding some interest to the back.

Yeah!  It’s so happy.  Off it goes to the shop as the sample.

I hope your day is sunny.  I’ve got a friend coming over for a visit to sew and going to try to quilt this quilt.

Happy Tuesday!

::Snippet Improvisational Coin Quilt::

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FYI, yesterday was National Kissing Day, so if you didn’t get your kiss on I believe today is the day to make it up.

Anyway, with all the family around there hasn’t been much time for quilting.

I managed to fill the calendar with classes though, one of which is a modern improvisational or traditional coin quilt.  With that needing to be done as a sample I did manage to get it basted today.

I’ve been in love with these little elephants snippeted in here since I first laid eyes on them.  I bought enough for the backing too.  I think I’ll just go loop-d-loop for the quilting.

I’ve made plenty of more traditional coin quilts, though not stacked coins.  In fact they were some of the first quilts I ever made and a good choice because of the simplicity of their construction.

I wanted the class to have the option of traditional or improvisational designs.  I think I’ll remake this one that I called the Colorway Quilt with my current fabrics for the traditional quilt sample.

I’ve made some where I fussy cut the fabrics, I guess you would considered it an I-Spy quilt.  I love any scrappy quilt that allows you to showcase your fabric stash.

Perhaps the easiest is the strip pieced method.  I prefer the fabrics all be different, but this technique is quick!

Now I’m thinking I might need a stacked coin example too.  Might be a cute use for those Heather Ross fabrics I’ve been stashing.

Hope you all had a great fourth!  I went shopping in my pajamas.

Check out the bounty from Pink Chalk Fabrics.

And speaking of Pink Chalk Fabrics, look what fun Kathy has whipped up for us all?  Click the button and see!

::Summer Visits::

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and gifting.

Family in town, no sewing, just fun.  But I’ve had some gifts building up.  Dad got a laptop cover as belated Father’s Day gift.

This is the second I’ve made.  I quite like Keyka Lou’s patterns and have a few more to try.

For my Mom and Sister-in-Law, roomy zip bags for traveling with their skivvies.

Clean:

With a lovely purple zip and this interior fabric that has been waiting for a home for a bit.  The lingerie print I adore and found on auction.  I’ll be making one for myself with it for my next travels.

Dirty:

Dark red just made sense.

Brother unfortunately has only gotten the tab for his Slurpee picked up.

I’ll find time through my students to sew this week.  I have a HST class on the books for Wednesday.

and Split Decision on Thursday.

Hope you are finding some time to sew this weekend.