eBook Winner!

Thank you everybody for stopping by!

My winner for the ebook version of Modern Quilts from the Blogging Universe is:

#69, Heather

Blog Blitz!

As I had mentioned, I'm one of the 18 contributors to the new book, Modern Quilts from the Blogging Universe.

There are all kinds of awesome quilty bloggers in this book, and I'm honored to be included among them.



My quilt is called Starflower.

I designed it late last summer, at the time thinking quite a bit about the negative space we constantly talk about.  I thought it would be cool to look at the idea of reversing the prints and negative space within both traditional and common modern quilts.  The change in quilt design that results is really fun and sometimes surprising!

Well, the publisher's Blog Blitz is starting, and that means free stuff for you!  Leave a comment here, and you have a chance to win the ebook - 19 cool, modern quilt patterns for you to follow or give inspiration.

Mark sure you leave your name and email address, linked through or part of your comment, that's how they will get your ebook to you.

Even better, enter a ton of times - not only one chance here, but at Martingale and all 18 blogs.  Follow Martingale's link to get to all your other chances:  Martingale Blog Blitz

We will all pick our winners on Tuesday, January 29th.

Good Luck!

2012 Catch-up

I'm still here!  Making all kinds of stuff, but way too tired to actually edit and post photos of any of it.  Much to my woe, I don't have pictures of two of my finished quilts (!?!)

But here's a photo-heavy super fast summary of the last three months.

I was freezing in late October, so I made myself a SUPER soft scarf - AMH voile and flannel.  I also picked up a little knitting again, as I'm teaching a home school girl how to knit.  I used Lorana's laces worsted and made some fingerless mitts.

And you may not be able to tell from the photo, but I sure can - the reason I was totally lazy - I'm also busy making a baby!  Little one due June 22nd.  (Every one of my bathroom self-photos look a little psycho.  Not one of my skills!)



In October I finished up Bernina technical training.  I took an 830 apart into a million pieces.



And then actually got it back together and working properly!  Also did a couple other machines and a serger.  I've been having fun at the shop, cleaning and repairing both very old and current Berninas.



This is the year of the quilt for my close group of friends.  Our boys were tiger scouts in 1st grade, and we bonded over the cub scout years of crazy.  With those same boys HS sophomores at this point, the 5 of us get together for birthday breakfasts, at the least, throughout the year.  I always do something hand made, and was running out of ideas.  So I went the easy route and decided I would do a special lap quilt for each of them this year.

The first birthday is Larua's, in August.  She is a pink person, and I had a blast pulling all my pinks for a sparkle punch.  I gifted the quilt top and then took it back to finish :)  It turned out awesome, and I for some reason have only this one picture!



Maureen was next, with her December birthday.  I love this bow tie pattern and went with it in huge blocks to show off my favorite blues and greens.  She's a gnome lover, like me.  She's totally Heather Ross Gnome-worthy, and I used a big hunk of it.



All the bow tie corner extras were stitched at the same time into HSTs, and I did a random block of them on the back.  With one more little gnome in a special spot by my birthday wish for her.



Finished up my bee blocks - horribly late and some without even taking photos.

Lee's solids were wonderful.



And I loved doing my own hexagon improv, using the pink dandelion fabric as inspiration.



Finally got to see my quilt in print, after completing and sending it off a year ago November.



I'm one of the contributors in this new book, with my large lap quilt called Starflower.  I was having fun looking at the idea of negative space that we all talk about, and actually reversing it - swapping the prints/solid neutral, within modern quilt designs.  This is the one they accepted for the book.



I've made this pattern by Amy Smart three times now, and I love it every time!  This was a baby shower gift, and I actually have several more photos.  So I'll talk about it more in another post.



Same for the custom ocean quilts I did.  I so love how they turned out, but I don't have a single picture of the second one!  WTF?



Let's call it a wrap on 2012!

Sew to Swap : Blog Hop Book Tour

What a ton of fun!  I am so thankful that Chrissie invited me to join this group of quilting rock stars as we helped her create Sew to Swap.

Hey, that's my hexie on the front! 

I couldn't believe she assigned me purple - I was not a fan.  But I think this was the start of my appreciation of it.  I actually enjoy using purple every so often, now.  One of those great swap benefits.

Chrissie planned and wrote the book - we helped by being actual swap partners and also offering some personal thoughts on everything from favorite quilting tools to your mid-sewing munchies.

This is one of my favorites, from Melanie.

Chrissie gives all kinds of awesome info about swaps - what to make, how to do them, guideline suggestions.  Then there are a bunch of fun projects, from small pillows to large quilts, to make yourself or use for a group swap.

But here's what totally makes this book for me.  She tells REALLY how to do it.

For the Curvy Block Swap she tells you exactly how to do it from start to end - suggesting instructions for your bee mates when it's your month down to how she decided to finish off the quilt once the blocks made it back to her.

Best Part!!!  The Curvy Block Swap Kit.

And she has one of these for each of the projects.  A list of exactly what to send out to everybody.  Isn't that the hardest thing to figure out when it's your month?!

Look, it's me!  I was excited that they chose to feature this specific quote.  Because it is a big part of why I like to participate in bees and swaps.  The fun friends you make while doing it and the awesome sense of
accomplishment you get after tackling a super tricky request from those new quilty friends.

I wrote a step-by-step tutorial for the Ringed Double Circle block that I made for Chrissie - both how to draft your ringed pattern, as well as tips on assembly.

The publisher has offered a discount during the blog hop:

Get Sew to Swap now for just $14.99 ($10 off the retail price!). Visit the Martha Pullen Online Store and use promo code SEW2SWAP to get your exclusive discount.
{Offer expires Nov 30, 2011 at 11:59pm EST. Special Price in US Dollars, for items that are “in stock” only. Martha Pullen Company reserves the right to correct pricing errors.}

Ok, can you tell I had fun?

Here's the list of all the cool people I got to hang out with while making the book.  Check them out!

November 7 Lovely Little Handmades

November 8 Stitches & Scissors

November 9 Cluck Cluck Sew

November 10 My Three Sons

November 11 Twin Fibers

November 12 Stitchy Quilt Stuff

November 13 The Creative Juices of Ariel

November 14 Texas Freckles

November 15 Quilt Dad

November 16 Artsy-Craftsy Babe

November 17 Little Miss Shabby

November 18 A Cuppa and a Catch Up

November 19 A Quilt is Nice

November 20 A Little Sweetness

November 21 House of A La Mode

November 22 I’m Just a Guy Who Quilts

November 23 Little Bit Funky

November 27 In His Grace

.  

OMG It's me......

My purple hexagons peeking from the bottom corner.  And more inside!

The traditional quilt swap is being reinvented by Modern Quilters. Chrissie Grace and her contributors explore the different types of swaps with 10 different quilt projects. Each project is stepped out with clear, concise illustrated instructions on making the quilt as well as setting up a swap for that particular quilt. Each project features a photographed skills tutorial that will help the reader in making the quilt project, and will increase their skill set for use in future projects. The community aspect of quilting is brought to the book by the incorporation of popular swappers and bloggers insights into this exciting realm of shared art. 

I'm so excited that Chrissie invited me to be part of her book and can't wait to share the whole thing with you.  I had an awesome time making quilts with the group she gathered.

The book is available for pre-order on Amazon!