Hello Moon Blocks 11 & 12

I had a fun finishing up the November and December Hello Moon blocks this week:-)

The pattern is by April Mae Designs.
The November owl is available for free download here (limited time only).

During the year, I was secretly wishing and waiting for the cow (over the moon) block. I am not sure why I was so determined to have one, purple at that, but here is my own December block:

I squared up all 12 blocks to 6.5", and they are queued up for design wall space...

Fun, fun, right?

Linking up with Lyn at What a Hoot for BOM's Away:-)

Craft it Forward in 2014

Christmas reminds us all that handcrafted gifts are often the most sentimental and endearing.

This season, I've done a great job avoiding the computer, in favor of baking and sewing! I don't know about you, but I am still in Holiday Mode and plan to do a bit more of each today!

 

Overall though, I didn't make many Christmas gifts this year...

 

And now I hope to redeem myself:-) 

 

I will sew gifts for the first FIVE readers who would like to participate with Craft it Forward in 2014!

 

Here is how I got involved last spring:

I signed up to Craft it Forward with Amy at Crafty Shenanigans . I love following Amy, she works on a nice mix of stylish quilts, and somehow she manages to finish an on-going flow of smaller projects as well: bags, pillows, swap items, etc...  One of my favorites this year is her Wonkyville project, a quilt she is compiling of house and tree blocks - all of them made and collected from quilter's around the globe. Such a great idea! Anyway, I was thrilled with the prospect of sompin artsy from Amy, and she did not disappoint! Last week, this kitchy tea towel arrived via Royal Air Mail:-)

If you would like to participate in Craft it Forward in 2014, never-fear, you are given nine months to make the five gifts! Here is how it works:

1. Leave a comment! If you wish, you can include your favorite fabric type or color. Batiks, florals, brights, vintage, warm, cool.... or perhaps whether you know a cat who enjoys catnip...
2. I will email-reply, and request your address via email only.
3. Within the next nine months, you will receive a handmade goodie from me.
4. At that time, you publish a similar post and start Crafting it Forward!!

Looking Ahead: 2014 New FOs

Time to share several new projects I would like to tackle in 2014!

First up, I have hoarded five yards of this fantastic double-gauze for some time. Recently, I picked up a couple threads to try my hand at big-stitch quilting. I plan to quilt some large circles.

This next one may look more like a UFO, but because this is the way I inherited it, it qualifies for the NewFO list! It is new-to-me, from an estate sale, and it came with a lot of cut rectangles, the French Braid book, and two long rows like this already pieced. I know exactly who I want to make this for, just not exactly what. I am actually leaning toward a table setting.

I hope is to tackle some of my scrappy collections in 2014.

I have a high turnover of fabric. Acquiring fabric is a passion, & selling it on Etsy has only further enabled my addiction! I have quite a few 'collections' I continuously add to. A strip or square is cut from most every fabric I touch, and added to one stack or another! This stack is over 4" tall, all 2.5" squares for a baby girl quilt. I know I will love this quilt and I hope to piece it this year.

...this next pic is actually the same stack, but what a great photo to share with Barb:-)

I can't wait to dig into this next collection! I started it more recently, with a mini charm of Ticklish.

It's a summery stack and perhaps I will work on it then.

Somehow I will use those 5" pieces with it...

Here is a short stack of 2.5"ers - all geometric cools for a baby boy quilt. I need to add to this next year. I haven't decided if I will add those warm colors though...



Barb, over at Cat Patches, provides quilter's a place to link up & unabashedly add new quilting projects each month. Do you have any new projects stirring for 2014?

NewFO is one of my favorite linkups to participate in! It is very freeing to realize that starting new projects does not mean less will be finished. Oh, Contraire, participating in Barb's linkup in 2013 worked for me to actually produce more!

UFO's are high on my priority list to tackle next year, therefore I capped my allowance of Newbies to only four today. I am set to share some Unfinished 'Objects' on my New Year's Post!

For now, I will set thoughts of 2014 aside and focus on enjoying Christmas!



EPP Hexagon Block Update

The Completion of Flower Number 22

I am playing a bit of blogland catch-up today! It has not been easy to divide my time lately, so I am quite proud that I managed to complete a flower this month. Now I am qualified to link up to Hydee's In Hand EPP Party!

EPP or otherwise, this is actually the only block I have actually finished in some time so I will also share with Lyn for BOMsAway Linkup!

Here is a first-time OOPS:
I wonder if anyone else has ever done this?
I whip stitched two patches together - wrong sides together.
It was late at night, and I didn't even notice til morning. I thought of Hydee, and I knew that I would have to share this blunder with ya'll:

Can you see the stitching?
Actually, it is not very visible to the naked eye, but I can feel it, and the seam does not have the same indent as the others. Of course I didn't even consider taking it out. I use a super tiny whip stitch!

Way-back-when, before I knew anything much about sewing, I began my 1st flower, using a teeny-tiny whip stitch. Since I have made so many in this manner, I can's seem to let myself loosen up a bit. I know that no one will know the difference if the stitching varies, but I just keep whip stitching the same old way...
With 20 - 25 stitches per inch. Hmmm, I wonder what kind of thoughts that provokes?

 

Maybe, "No wonder it has taken her so long!!"

 

Actually, I have no idea what the 'norm' is, or the recommended rate.

And now I am very curious, and I hope you will share, what is your average stitch length for EPP?

 





Giveaway Wrap Up!

Sew Mama Sew's Giveaway Day Week had us all clicking away on the computer, am I right?

Today is the day I get to Wrap Up and post the Carpenter's Star Pillow Kit!
It is posting to Germany,
and although she is probably still sleeping,
email notification has been sent to...

(Friday the 13th was lucky for some!)

Lia's Handmades! Congratulations! Your number has been drawn by my RandomMan (Ty!).

This sweet comment was left for me:
#61 - Such a great giveaway, love the colours and fabrics you picked for the kits! Thanks for the chance to win :)

Thank you to everyone who took the time to stop by and enter the giveaway!

Remember to thank Sew Mama Sew, the genius behind the giveaway!

Carpenter's Pillow Kit Giveaway!

Oh Glorious Happy Giveaway Day in Quilting Blogland! Sooo many of the blogs I follow are offering generous giveaways today, I am having a hard time staying focused on the computer this morning! Tempestuous offers of fabrics are dangling about, and handmade's as well keep me jumping from one site to the next.

I began surfing, and leaving comments, and my excitement grew at the opportunity to WIN! Then I remembered the joy of GIVING & I decided I must head on over to Sew Mama Sew and CRASH THIS PARTY!

If you are new to my blog, welcome and thank you for the visit! I use this space to post about progress on projects once or twice a week. I blog to share with family and friends, and because I love meeting other quilter's online, especially funny quilter's (funny funny I mean, although funny odd is OK too). I enjoy being a part of the online community of quilting that has allowed quilter's to collaborate internationally. My part may be small, but I somehow feel we are contributing to history, a sort of New Age of quilting. I also find blogging helps me to accomplish more quilting!

My giveaway today is a kit I put together made of fabrics from my stash. I made these kits for my new Etsy Fabric Shop. I haven't finished quilting mine to show you, but here is a pieced square with the exact fabrics included...

The kit includes pre-cut fabric and a pattern to complete two Carpenter's Wheel blocks. I also did a tutorial for this block here.

Here is a photo of the first pillow kits I made, these with all vintage fabrics and finished quilting.

Anyone (with contact info) is eligible to win by commenting on this post prior to 5PM PST Friday, December 13th!

THANK YOU & GOOD LUCK!

Strip Piecing Improv Style!

A NewFO for Thursday Threads!

Although I am still technically restricted to UFO's only, I justified a new quilt start this week since I have been saving blue & yellow scraps for several years with mom in mind. Even though it was only a bin of yellow and blue bricks, in my mind that IS an unfinished quilt...

I pulled out the little border mom gave me a while back, a sample of her room décor, and right away I found the yellow and blue a bit unsettling next to her sample. No wonder this project had not actually begun yet...
Quickly, this turned into a NewFO!
I attempted to pull fabric that will work with the pattern...

It was a bit of a challenge to keep the focus on the blue and yellow that mom requested, and to make them work with the new color additions I made. The fact that mom is colorblind further complicates decisions. This is not the first time I have wished I could see her perspective of things! Growing up, turquoise was her favorite color, so I brought in the aqua colors, and navy is a color she often wears so I deepened the blue. The riskiest part is the coral, (a color I have been collecting a bit this past year and am anxious to use!), I am not sure how this will sit with her. I thought it risky & decided to go ahead and share this quilt online, sacrificing the surprise factor for her actual opinion :-)

Once I selected a bunch of fabric, I set to work making strip sets that are approximately 13-14" wide.

Making sure strip-sets will have similar finished widths is easy. One can randomly sew strips together 'til the target width is reached, OR,
if you love to control your 'scrappy' quilts you can do like I did:

1. Cut various widths 1"-2.5" or so, and laid them out in an order that pleases you.

2. Measure the total width across as they are lying, edge to edge.
3. Count the number of seams you have to sew. (ex: 12)
4. Divide this number in half. (ex: 6")
5. Subtract this number from total width across step1, and you have your finished width after sewing.

After sewing a bunch of strip-sets, I used the grid on my cutting table and marked the pattern line I wanted, right on the table with a permanent marker. Then I traced it on paper and cut it out.

I wrapped a strip set over the template, flipped it and removed the paper.

This way I could play with my options before cutting.

So many possibilities for strip sets!

 

Wonder what mom will think of these huge blocks? They come out about 26", so the quilt will have two blocks (columns) across and three rows. I will probably set them wonky (askew with white sashing), making them more like 30" blocks, to adjust the dimensions.

 

Linking up with gratitude to the hosts:

 

Kelly, at My Quilt Infatuation for Thursday Threads

 

Barbara at Cat Patches, for November NewFO's!

I am so fortunate to have such a busy quilt shop in my neighborhood!
Quiltique is featured today on the Moda Cutting Table!

WINNERS Anounced

Appreciation abounds this week! I am so thankful for the community of quilting that the internet has opened up to the world! It feels as though we quilter's, all around the globe, are really making history.

 

I offered up a hand made item for a giveaway this time. It really seems more personal even though I know we all want to win FABRIC from another quilter's stash! I wasn't sure this giveaway would be well received, and now I am so thankful for all the sweet responses!

Random winner of the sewing book - Congratulations to:
#10 Rhonda D. "Love your needle book! thanks for sharing with us. Your Etsy store has some wonderful vintage fabric.Thanks for the chance to win!"


I opened a new Etsy shop, RedLetterFabrics to branch off my first shop, RedLetterQuilts. I felt my hand made items were 'buried' in the fabrics, and I realized these are two different customers as well, those who buy fabric as a product, and those who buy fabric produced.

 

I was reluctant to send bloggers to my Etsy shop for the giveaway, but I offer unusual fabrics, and I realized bloggers may actually want to know about the shop! I appreciate, and I am encouraged by the great responses about the fabrics posted (there are a lot more to come!), and the many new followers! Without further ado;

Random winner of the $15 credit with RedLetterFabrics - Congratulations to:
#81 KathyinOzarks "If I should I win I would be delighted with either prize-I did find some beautiful fabrics in your shop so that would be fun too"

 

Well, there you go Kathy, time to be delighted!

Thank you to Michele at Quilting Gallery for hosting Giving Thanks Blog Hop Party 2013! We all appreciate your great work and organization!!

 

I hope everyone enjoys a Red Letter Holiday Weekend with quality family time, good grub, and a bit of quilting time too of course!

Today on my Design Wall & BOMs Away!

My Christmas Sampler has been on my wall for two weeks.

I designed and made the Christmas blocks in the late 80's. I made them just before I purchased a rotary cutter, and prior to having much stash. I learned to quilt with library books. And then with a couple BOMs, but I enjoyed drawing patterns out on graph paper and piecing them together.

LAST Christmas, I pulled out all the old blocks and set to work piecing the sashings. I was happy with the flimsy I finished, but I packed it back up with 'to be quilted by this Christmas'.
At 40" square, I thought this would be a wall hanging, but I have been re-thinking it now since it has been on the wall.
I'm considering making this a throw instead, but I really don't want to get back into piecing on it.. 
Such are the dilemmas.
Meanwhile, other things are going on in The room. (hear that, Sampler? The world hasn't stopped for you!):

Mr. Juki has acquired a huge backup of flimsies as a result of a very bad case of constipation. Apparently, he bit off more than he can chew when this 'quick' little project began:

He and I have to drive very slowly when following the black lines on this cheater fabric...

(I can't believe I started this, and I know if I allow Mr. Juki to begin another flimsy without finishing his business, he may never want to see this baby hex again...)

The clock is ticking til Christmas...

The Sampler's grand finish has been threatened...

It's lease on the design wall expires on Wednesday, 

I just cannot wait to play with some new blocks I've been stripping.. Some BIG blocks.. BIAS blocks... big Bias Blocks that CANNOT(!) be played with on the floor...
There they are in pre-starch mode...

I am linking up with Judy at Patchwork Times for Design Wall Monday today, check out more design walls here!

And I am linking with Lyn at What a Hoot...
Lyn hosts BOMs Away!, where I share my Hello Moon and Add-a-Border Block Swap blocks!

I finished my first Add-a-Border 'flimsy' this weekend! Round Four charges us to make a 24" block, but I let it grow a bit since it seemed like a great baby quilt for Christmas. I really loved adding the borders for this one, it came out real sweet...

Ty thinks it is vomit BTW.

What do you think, vomit or art? 

A week of heartfelt thank you's to the wonderful online community of quilter's , (that's you baby!)

Comment here through 11/26 to enter my current drawings!

Giving Thanks Giveaway!

It's PARTY TIME again at Quilting Gallery!

Quilter's Blog Hop Party runs November 16th-26th.

 

What are you giving thanks for this week?

 

Giveaways, perhaps?

 

First up, I am offering this little prototype Needle Project Book:

This was the first one I put zippered pockets in - it has two.

 

I know this may not be everyone's Zen, so I have added a second giveaway for the drawing!

 

The second name drawn will receive one $15.00 credit in my new Etsy Shop - the place I am listing scrap bundles, vintage fabrics, kits and pre-cuts, and unique kids prints:

Red Letter Fabrics!

 

Leave a comment to enter! If you are passionate about the prize, let me know which one you are hoping for! A comment is all that is requited! Well, that and you must be a no-reply blogger! (Please check! There were about 20 in my drawing last week!)

 

Followers of my new Etsy Shop will receive a second entry!

 

Comments for the drawing accepted until midnight, PST, on Tuesday, November 26th.

 

Michele really knows how to Boogie Baby....   Check out all her links here!

BOM's Away - Hello Moon Blocks Tackled

I caught up with my Hello Moon Blocks this weekend!

 

Just a quick post to link with two fun Parties:

 

 Lyn from What a Hoot, for BOM's Away

 

And with Marelize of Stitch by Stitch for Anything Goes Monday

A Huge Thank You & Two WINNERS Announced!

THANK YOU to all you lovely bloggers who cheered, encouraged, made my head swell, and participated in the fun Blog Hops I linked up with last week:

HydeeAnn's InHand EPP Linky Party

Lyn's BOM's Away! Linky Party

 

MadamSamm's For the Boys Blog Hop

 

 

And the drawing winners are:

 



Lucky random winner #1 - Girl's FQ bundle of Art Gallery Spellbound:
Michele commented: "I think your flowers look great together and I'm sure by the time you finish it you'll love them all together too, especially since they bring back so many memories. Thanks for the chance to win the pretty fabrics."

Thank you Michele!

Lucky random winner #2 - Boy's FQ bundle of Michael Miller Bots:
CeLyn commented: "In a word, WoW! This quilt is just stunning, and well worth the wait in my opinion."

Thank you CeLyn!

 

Winners have been notified by email:-)

 

Sunday Stash - Vintage Scores

I have two fabric giveaways ending today, Sunday the 17th at midnight, PST! See post here!

 



I picked up quite a few fabrics yesterday while garage sale hopping with Ty, and  I thought I would share photos with the enthusiasts at Sunday Stash, hosted this week by Lisa at Port Hope.

I know not everyone is into vintage fabric, but I love the thrill of a thrifty and unique find - especially when it relates to quilting of course!
My favorite vintage find is this large scale floral.
Pretty, but it is a poly blend, so I am unsure yet what I will do with it.

Here is another fun & very retro find,

I found two never-used sheet sets from the 70's.

I have never used sheets for quilting, but I know a lot of quilters are doing it and thought these may sell well:-)
And I found some juvenile cottons that will definitely sell well:

And some quilt fabric from two local quilter's I really enjoyed meeting, at separate sales:

Usually I avoid scrap size pieces, as they are a nuisance to launder, but several of these caught my eye, and they are of great quality, so I picked them all up;

Today I am in the mood to sew, and not up to going through my washing process with these , so they are all queued up in the laundry room. I treat vintage fabrics with one cup vinegar and 1/2 cup backing soda in the pre-soak & wash cycle, then run them through a normal cycle when that is complete. This usually works like a charm, but if they have any odor at all after this process, it is off to the thrift store they go!

Linking up with Sunday Stash, and as Molli Sparkles says,  'You should too!'
BTW, he is offering an amazing Echino giveaway today!

Happy Sunday!

Crazy For the Boys!

After much anticipation, 

it is,

at last, 

Day Five!

I am pleased to introduce to you my guy, Ty!

Apparently, he has always liked the color red..

But his favorite color is actually blue.

He has a lifelong passion for things on two wheels...

He may be ALL MAN now,

but I assure you he is very much a BOY AT HEART...

He tends to keep me laughing!

 

And sometimes on the edge of my seat!

Go 65!!

We all know it takes patience to be the husband of a quilter, eh?
For years now I have been stashing fabric, and every now and then I will show Ty some fabric with the promise, "I will stash this one for your quilt"  --  yada yada, right?

Well, thanks to Mdm Samm at Sew We Quilt for hosting this blog hop, 'For the Boys', and as well to Amy at Sew Incredibly Crazy for cheering us all on, and let us not forget Camelot Fabrics for providing such generous incentive(s), I have been properly motivated, and Ty has, at long last, been properly rewarded!

Back in July, on Ty's Birthday, I pulled out all the fabrics I had been stashing (cuz every Red Letter Day deserves a quilt, eh?).
It was really fun sorting through and adding to the pile. Here is a sampling:

Some of the more recent additions came from swaps and giveaways. (Thanks for the YZ fabric Amira, it is one of Ty's favorite bikes!) 

A ZigZag just seemed well suited to Ty, so I drew it up and showed him the sketch on his Birthday. (A quilt plan. Some present, right? I should have wrapped it!)

He wasn't quite satisfied, so I drew it up on EQ6 and he helped me add a bit of Ty-like Style to give it a bit more pizzazz. The drawing was terrific, and fun, but of course, the months went by...

Again, we have this Hop to thank for the fab-finish!

I took the quilt to the local dog park for photos. See the onlooker on the right hand side?
This park is also an interpretive one, with native plants. Since I am not native, I learn something every time I am there. These big peanut things caught my eye,

Off track we are, and this is supposed to be all about Ty...
And Ty's quilt...
Couple more photos for you and we can get on with the giveaway...
Here is Mr. Juki at work, quilting the Star Wars patch.
And the Ty Ty Ty Ty patch I printed...

The next shot shows a bit more of the quilting, although it is still hard to see with the busy prints..
Also the backside of the pillow. This is the first time I quilted a backing for a pillow that also has a hidden zipper.
Only the best for my Ty;-)

The front of the pillow is made with blocks Ty removed when it was still on the design wall. Culling is such sweet sorrow, right Liz?
I must admit, their placement did not suit the quilt well though. Now that they are in pillow form, Ty has adopted the orphans with gusto, so all is not lost...

I did not need to piece a fancy back as this fabric seemed to suit it well, and matches the Reunion binding perfectly. Woo-Lah!I

One more thank you to our ambitious, motivational leaders before we wrap this up!

Be sure and visit all of today's participants:

Pigtales and Quilts

Celynn's Sunflower Patch

Rainbows. Bunnies. Cupcakes

Devoted Quilter

Desertsky Quilting

Sew Fresh Quilts

RedLetterQuilts (That's me! Thanks for visiting!)

Craft Nurse Quilts

Miss Priss Quilts

 

Enjoy the hop!

 

BUT FIRST, stick around for the giveaway!

After winning several prizes this year, I figure it is my turn to spread the love!

Leave a comment and you will be entered for the drawing to win this bundle for the BOYS! Giveaway entries will end at Midnight, PST,  Sunday Nov. 17th.
No pond is too daunting for me to ship over, as long as I can contact you for an address ;-)

Bundle of FQ Bots by Michael Miller!

P.S. If you are interested in my GIRL giveaway, visit Monday's Post!