Warm and Spicy

Warm colours on a wintry day! 

  I used this quick piecing tutorial for checkered garden blocks, given by Ashley at Film in the Fridge. 

Rainbow Log Cabin Block

 I love classic quilt blocks and it doesn't get more classic than a log cabin block!  Vickie requested this modified version, in pretty pastels (with a red center!), for her turn as Queen in the Rainbow Bee for November.

Scrappy Ray Block

 The second online quilt bee I have been sewing blocks for this year, is the Rainbow Bee and I have had the pleasure of stitching with a talented and global group of ladies!  For the month of October, Queen Bee, Jasmine selected the Ray Quilt block and requested a rainbow of soft colours for the center of these paper pieced blocks, mixed with happy low volume fabrics for the "rays".

Scrappy Pink Treasure Hunt Blocks

Soft romantic pinks and creamy low volume prints were selected for this version of the Treasure Hunt block, which I made and sent to Jennifer.

If you are looking for a simple, yet striking foundation paper piecing pattern, this block is for you! The Treasure Hunt block is given as a free pattern on Alyce's blog, Blossom Heart Quilts and was selected as the block to sew in July, in the Pink Bee 2019.

Scrappy Sideways Arrow Block

A mix of saturated and soft pinks paired with a variety of low volume prints for the background, make for a fun version of the Sideways Arrow Block!

I have diligently been sewing and sending off quilt blocks all year, as a participant in two online quilt bees.  However, surprisingly, I have not blogged about all the blocks that I have made.  Time to change that! 

It will not be a surprise, that I made my version of the Sideways Arrow block, as scrappy as I could for my pink sampler quilt.  This block can be found in the book, Modern Quilts Block by Block written by Emily Dennis and it was the choice for February in the Pink Bee 2019.

Birthday Cake Block

I sewed a strawberry frosted chocolate layer cake block to send to Queen Bee, Ayna for her month in the Pink Bee 2019!😍

The block chosen for the month of August in the Pink Bee, was the Farm Girl Layer Cake block - designed by Lori Holt from Bee in My Bonnet (click here for the free tutorial to make this block). August happens to be Ayna's and my birthday month, so how appropriate to be sewing cake blocks for both of us (her's was made and sent within August and mine came together a bit later...).

Pink Bee - Ombre Heart Block

I reversed the order of the ombre strips in the making of the scrappy version that I am keeping.

November brought another new-to-me quilt block to sew, in the #pinkbee2019 - one of the online quilting bees that I am participating in. It was another opportunity to gather and sew with pretty pinks and a variety of low volume fabrics!  I sewed two versions of the Ombre Heart quilt block, one to send the Queen bee of November and one to be added to my sampler quilt.

Falling for Checkered Garden Blocks

My latest work in progress was inspired by the images of a quilt that my friend, Dana, has been sharing on her Instagram posts.  The colours she has been combining are so warm and cozy, making the must luscious checkered garden blocks for a fall quilt.  I couldn't stop thinking about those colours and wanted to try sewing a few blocks, too.

Scrappy Pink Bunting Blocks!

The sweet bunting block was selected as the one to be sewn for the month of October in the online Pink Quilt Bee that I am participating in for the whole year!

 If you'd like to sew your own version, please visit Alyce's blog, Blossom Heart Quilts for her wonderful tutorial (click here for the tutorial).

Once again, I enjoyed sewing my version to send (as well as the second version, which I am keeping) in as many scrappy pinks and low volume fabrics as possible!

I pulled out some of my most treasured fabrics to make a fun block that I sent to my friend, Heidi.  Many of these are fabrics that have been long out of print and are difficult (if not impossible) to find and I knew that Heidi would enjoy and appreciate finding them in her block.  One of my favourite reasons to love scrappy quilting, is that I get to use every last bit of fabric.  It's even more fun when you get to share those special fabrics with a friend!

If you look close you will notice that I have a sweet theme in this block, check out these fabrics... an advertisement for strawberry plants,   three different  strawberry prints and then a strawberry jam print!  Too fun!

The second bunting block, is the one I am keeping for my sampler quilt and once again, I used some of my long time favourite fabrics from my stash - anyone remember Sandi Henderson's fabric line called Farmer's Market? If you do, you will spot a couple of those treasures within my block. 😏  There's even a sweet fussy cut that I couldn't resist adding - actually it was tough to stop at one.  It's not always possible to incorporate a larger fussy cut into a quilt block, so I couldn't let this opportunity pass me by!

My block went together a bit quicker - at least for the center of the block, due to the fact that I have some pre-made half square triangle units on hand. I have a growing collection of half square triangle units because I sew them up as leader/enders, using my cut off triangle scraps from block making. I take my scrap busting seriously! 😊

 This finish makes eleven of the needed twelve blocks for my sampler quilt for my year of sewing pink!  I am getting excited to lay out my monthly blocks, together with the setting blocks I received from my bee mates and see how my quilt is shaping up.  Stay tuned on that!

Wonky Star Blocks

Looking for a fun block to try?

Love that Sarah Jane print that I fussy cut for the center of my star!

I had the pleasure of sewing my first wonky star block as a part of an online quilt bee, selected for the month of September.  (Click here for the tutorial to make this block).

I am sewing two blocks for each month (one to keep and one to send to that month's Queen in the quilt bee).  I decided to make the first block as my keeper, so I could get the hang of free hand cutting the star points, to make sure I could then make a decent block to send! 😜

Turns out, that was a good plan - not because I messed up on the star points, but rather I missed the mark selecting fabrics with good contrast to really show off the star!

The second star is much better with contrast and is definitely "wonky"!  The beauty of this block is the freedom to create a unique star each time and it is a great design for going scrappy - which is always a win in my opinion.   One tip I would give in the making of these blocks is to start out with a 5" square for the background for the star points, that way once you cut and sew your points, you can trim down the finished square, before adding it to you block.  That little bit of extra fabric to play with, gives a bit more wiggle room in working with the improv points. 

This block is number nine out of the twelve I need for my all pink and very scrappy sampler quilt!

Carrying on

This month I stitched up my fourth version of a favourite messenger bag for children, which will be gifted to my youngest niece. I selected a mid weight denim for the main body of the bag, thinking that will make it durable and easy to care for (expecting that this bag will be taken on lots of  little girl adventures!).

The messenger bag pattern can be found in Liesl Gibson's book,

Oliver + S Little Things to Sew: 20 Classic Accessories and Toys for Children .

Kona Challenge "Twigs" Placemat Tutorial

How about a Throwback Thursday Tutorial?

This is a post that was written and shared back in October of 2014 on the Sew Sisters blog (and not previously published on my blog). I was invited to design a project using a bundle of solids - all Kona cottons, selected from their fabric club and I came up with a Nature inspired placemat for fall.  Since we are in the midst of the fall season, here on the mountain, I thought this post would be fun to share for some seasonal sewing! 

A Parade of Rainbow Bee Blocks!

I have been keeping busy with two online quilting bees this year and sharing it all on my Instagram account, but have failed at posting regularly on my blog!  Time to change that.

Scrappy Letter K Tutorial

My experiments a few years back on sewing letters of the alphabet using scraps , has received continued interest, which means I am not alone in my love of scrappy sewing ideas!  A recent inquiry about whether there is a pattern for making them, led me to choosing to share a tutorial on how I made my letter K.  I hope you find it helpful!  Now let's use some scraps...

Pink Bee Blocks - April and May

I have been enjoying participating in two different online quilting bees this year.  It's my first time taking part in a quilt bee (of any kind!), and now I fully understand the appeal - the chance to sew with friends (old and new!). 

Scrappy Log Cabin Blocks in Pink!

Moving twice in the month of May, meant I had some quilt bee block sewing to catch up on.  Let's start with the block that Teri chose for us to sew for the month of June.  

Low Volume Scrappy Zipper Pouch

My favourite patchwork is scrappy. Pair that with the delight I have in re-purposing items and you end up with a sweet zipper pouch!

Tiny scraps pieced together to make a wee butterfly on a background of near white fabrics and quilted onto a  remnant of batting, make the front panel of a zipper pouch.

I chose low volume (fabric that reads as white) scraps, to sew onto a leftover piece of quilt batting. After piecing, I did some straight stitch quilting and then cut a front and back panel for the pouch.

Rainbow Bee - Scrap Jar Star Block

Prior to moving at the end of April, I was happy to sew a couple of rainbow coloured, scrappy quilt blocks for the second quilt bee I joined this year.  The block is called Scrap Jar Star and Amber at Gigi's Thimble, has a wonderful tutorial (click here), for making them.

It's a Keeper!

Looking for a cute way to keep small items organized? 

My Mini Back Pack Coin Purse & Key Chain features a key ring and a swivel hook for use in clipping it to a larger bag or using it as a key chain! This new version uses alternative materials for the body and straps, without sacrificing the cute factor.

Gifted in Pink

Needlebook made from some of my favourite Tilda fabrics.

It's no secret! I love sewing gifts for others. It is one of my favourite ways to show a little of love.  Planning what to make and selecting just the right fabrics to suit the recipient, always makes me happy as I think about the person I am sewing for.  It's even more exciting when the gift IS a secret!

Serendipity - A Quilt

Every quilt tells a story.

Scrappy Triangles Quilt Block Tutorial

Simple shapes and scraps make this a fun block to sew!

Looking for a quilt block that features half square triangles and can be made from your scraps?

Wednesday Work in Progress - Making do

Making do and just making. There's been some sewing happening behind the scenes and most of it has been scrappy and pink! 

Flower Power in pink scraps!

Pink Quilt Bee Block - January

Let's start the New Year with a simple tutorial for the block I chose for my turn as queen bee, for the online quilting bee that I am participating in.