Festival of Strings

Rachel over at Stitched in Color  is sponsoring a Festival of Strings to "celebrate the beauty and joy of scrap quilting." I do love a good scrap quilt. The blocks for this one have come from a few different virtual quilting bees (Lovely Linen mostly). I've had them for a year or so now. And while I've been knee deep in projects that I really needed to get done (as in some one was paying me to do them) I went ahead and procrastinated and finished this one up. And, lucky girl that I am, 2 weeks after finishing it, an invitation for a baby shower arrived in the mail. Cousins Scott and  Heather are having a girl!
Gift? Done. (If I were the kind of gal that said "boom", I'd say it now.)

Finished Size Approximately 36 x 48

Close up of Vintage Sheets

Pieced Backing

Gingham Binding

P B & J Sneak Peek

I have a little sneak for you. I did a pillow tutorial for BasicGrey using the super fun line P B & J.

As soon as it's up, I'll let you know!

My Ginormous Tote Bag

At the last meeting of the Baltimore Modern Quilt Guild, we had the reveal of our tote bag swap. Sadly, I did not participate in the swap. (Trying to be realistic about what I can actually get done in the time that I have!) I still wanted a tote bag, though, dang it. And I wanted a really large one. On the lines of an artist's portfolio. One large enough to hold a cutting mat, pressing board, big rulers, etc. Large enough to take to guild meetings and to classes. Large enough to hold a couple of quilts. Or, even a cute toddler if we come across one. (Okay, forget that last one. Family joke.)

At the same time I was dreaming about a tote bag, this quilt top has been hanging around. It was from the guild's Row Robin that ended in December. I envisioned a sewing themed wall quilt, and made my starter row some colorful spools. My fellow "robiners" did a great job with my top. But when it was all done, I just wasn't feeling a quilt.

And then it occurred to me I could make the top into a tote bag. So I took it apart in places, did some rearranging, added some solid red to the bottom and came up with this really ginormous tote. I LOVE IT! It's about 35" wide, 25" tall and 8" deep. It holds everything I want and then some. I layered the outside with some thin batting, did some minimal horizontal line quilting, then fused a stiff interfacing to the outer layer and the lining as well. The lining is a favorite vintage sheet in an awesome red print (never seen before or since.) I already have it stuffed to take to our next guild meeting. I know this will get tons of use.

Filled with 2 quilts and a 20" pillow!

Winners!

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and commented. So many great tips. I think a trip to Ikea is in my future, as many of you love their Alex's and Expedits.  I'll share one of my own tips. You know those giant tubs of salad mix you can get at Costco and BJs? After the salad is finished, I wash them out and use them for storage. Large enough for a quilting project, see through, stack-able and FREE!

Here are the winners:

nicolesender
SouthernGal
fabricdonkey
bethany
kathy@kayakquilter

Everyone has been emailed. Thanks all. I hope everyone won something!

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I made the switch!

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Sew Mama Sew! Giveaway Day!

I love the Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day. I've entered hundreds of giveaways, and I think I've won 2. So, that's not so bad, right? Always fun to win something.

So here's what I'm offering up: some of my original Subway Art! You can choose from Black, Tangerine or Aqua. You'll be sent a digital file, with an 8x10  image that you can print at home, plus a 16x20 that you can send to your favorite lab (I like Costco!) to print. Or, if you're feeling fancy, you can even have it printed on canvas (Groupon always has deals for this.)

To enter, leave a comment telling me either how you manage to fit in quilting with a full time job (mothering counts as a full time job!) OR tell me a great storage/organization tip for your supplies (we're thinking of downsizing soon, so I want to know how to sew in a small space.) For an extra entry you can become a follower or let me know that you're a follower. I'll choose 5, that's right, FIVE winners! (If you don't win, the prints are available in my shop. Just sayin')

Good luck with the rest of the giveaways. I hope you win tons!

Uh, where did April Go?

A blur. That's what the last month has been. It seems like there has been activities every weekend, with no let up until June. Not that I'm complaining (well, maybe a little bit.) I like being busy. I just wish I had more time to sew. I've got a couple of projects due, one June 1st, one July 1st. The first one is a t shirt quilt for a graduating Senior. I did one for his brother last year and the family loved it so they're continuing the tradition. I really do like making these. The quilting is a workout, though. Imagine trying to jam 30 t shirts plus batting through your sewing machine. If you've not tried one, I'd say go for it. I'm using a different fusible this year, which gives the t's a little more body and a lot less stretching. Email me if you want some tips!

I did some catch up on my bee blocks too. I'm only in one bee at the moment, Bee Vintage, the one that I host. The Baltimore Modern Quilt Guild has an ongoing bee, but I'm taking a break for a few month so I can catch me breath a bit.

For Emily

For Monica

For Pam

For Jodie

Project #2, due in July is super secret, and I'm super excited about it. More later!