craftyblossom

3.28.2016

Farmer's Wife 1930s QAL

Block {55} Malvina

I have to admit, I've been lousy with keeping up with my blocks for the Farmer's Wife 1930s quilt along. Although, I'm not certain why (aside from being distracted with other demands). The patterns for these blocks are flawless and total dreamboats to work with! The seams match up so nicely. I love that, especially since I don't generally follow the rules when it comes to quilt patterns.

I will also admit that I overestimated the contrast between these two fabrics that I used. Not to publicly shame myself, but I thought the blue would seem much more pronounced as it does before chopped into 2 inch squares. So, to get the full effect I was going for, go ahead and blur your eyes. Yes, that's more like it…that's what i was going for.

I realized the colors weren't right after sewing 3 triangles together using the foundation paper pieced method. By the time my brain registered what was happening with the contrast, it was too late. This is vintage fabric folks, precious little bits. I will absolutely use this block in the quilt and remaking the block is not likely to happen. Perhaps it will grow on me, but I'm a little sour about the imbalance here. I plan to continue with my original quilt plan to use vintage fabrics with the exception of solids, in various shades of red, white and blue which I think will finish nicely.

My tip for this block:

-Truly visualize how your fabrics will play with one another before you cut. Keeping in mind size of fabric design and color (both blurry eye viewing and normal viewing).

-If it helps, tape out the shape on your ruler and place over your fabric to see what color is most pronounced.

Thanks for hosting, Kerry!

11.02.2015

Blossom: The Farmer's Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt

I was admiring the book, The Farmer's Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt by Laurie Aaron Hird when Kerry announced her quilt a long group and what better reason to follow through with good intentions than to join a group. This is my block, Blossom. I chose to foundation piece the block to keep it neat and tidy as these blocks finish about 6 inches square.

I have also decided to use authentic, vintage 1930s and 40s prints for this quilt. The solids are not vintage as those tend to be harder to come by, I have used Moda 'Betty's Red' for this block. This project will be a good use of my scrap bin fabrics and deconstructed damaged quilts that I have rescued over the years. However, foundation paper piecing tends to eat up fabrics or maybe thats just me? I may opt for the EPP templates to hand piece some blocks. I love that the book comes with printable patterns for english paper piecing or foundation piecing as well as coloring/layout pages to plan each block. I'm looking forward to knocking out quite a few of these blocks as the weather cools.

And for some reason, I am drawn to red and blue vintage fabrics so that theme may emerge as well.

TIPS:

-When paper piecing, follow the order for sewing and joining sections provided in the patterns and your seams will nest nicely

-I used Best Press on the fabric before cutting into individual pattern pieces, which helps at keeping your block crisp at every step

- I used a 2" strip for the smaller pieces, which I then sub-cut as needed

I do hope that you'll join along!

Thanks for stopping by.

5.02.2015

orange and aqua isosceles triangle quilt.

Oh, how I love a good triangle quilt.

Even more when it is gender neutral.

So bright and cozy, this one. I've been meaning to share it for quite awhile!

I hope it finds a home!

Thanks for stopping by!

4.17.2015

Story Collection and Giveaway!!

{photo courtesy Jill McNamara)

Hello fine people, thanks for coming to my little corner of the internet. Today I am celebrating Carrie Bloomston and S T O R Y, her latest (and greatest) fabric collection for Windam Fabrics. This is my third time sewing with love for Carrie to introduce her fabric collections and I'm super excited to share it with you! This is my story in pictures.

{photo courtesy Jill McNamara)

The colors of this line are out of this world. Cosmic.

And the text prints? So, so good.

{photo courtesy Jill McNamara)

For more photos, You can check out the Look Book Here.

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To Enter the Giveaway

Head over to SUCH Design Blog

10.01.2014

Art Techniques for Quilt Design: Giveaway!!

A few months ago, my friend Carrie Bloomston of SUCH Designs created a DVD for Interweave Press. I am super thrilled for the opportunity to help her promote this little gem of a video! You know Carrie, she makes stunning, graphic quilting textiles for Windham Fabrics, you've seen the lines here for Collage and PAINT. She's so full of goodness, that creativity enabler, you'll not regret getting your hands on this DVD!

There are so many things I adore about this video. Carrie's casual approach to making art: Don't over think it, just do what feels natural. Well, that is my philosophy. I have been "one girl making perfectly, imperfect things" since 2007. It's not just a motto, its a way of life. I don't do slapdash, but I think a lot of us could really benefit from straying away from the patterns and just letting loose with form and color. I get many emails asking, is there a pattern for that? What size did you use? What are the names of the colors? Sure that's all well and good, and I try to oblige when possible, but to stray away from a cookie-cutter recipe? That's where the magic happens. It is where we truly grow as artists and makers. In the video, Carrie gives you the basic skills and language to approach creating from a different perspective.

Carrie is a trained artist and her work speaks for itself. If you're ready to try a new approach for quilt making, this is your video. I was hardly through watching the video before I was toting my laptop into the studio to start ripping fabric to make the Nest Quilt that Carrie was demonstrating. Now, I fancy myself a crafter, but seriously, I didn't have single glue stick that wasn't dried up and crusty. I improvised using tiny squares of heat n' bond. So, you might want to get your hands on one before you make plans for this quilt. Just sayin'. I especially love that when you're not laboring for perfection, the process is enjoyable and freeing. After playing with fabric an hour or so, I had a quilt top!

To win a copy of the DVD for yourself, head over to Suchity Such and leave a comment! Giveaway closes on October 4. Tell Carrie I sent you! If you don't like the odds, pop over to Interweave store and purchase one for yourself, it's available in DVD format or streamable content, accessible whenever and wherever you are.

7.20.2014

mint and licorice :: a baby quilt.

No pattern. No rules. A custom quilt made with Michael Miller Cotton Couture solids : mint, black, white. The dot is Michael Miller Petit Point in Onyx, which is sadly, becoming a chore to find. These fabrics are simply scrumptious, they piece and quilt just like butter. If you haven't used them..I suggest you give it a shot. I promise it'll be worth it. As always, thanks for stopping by!

6.02.2014

American Made Brand: Blog Tour and Giveaway

Have you heard about AMB fabrics? It's a new line by Clothworks, which produces quality, solid quilting weight fabrics here in the U.S.A. The cotton is grown in American soil and milled right here, a philosophy I can vibe with. You can read more about the AMB story HERE and see all 50 great colors HERE!

I am incredibly honored and thrilled to have been selected by American Made Brand {AMB} to represent my home state of Michigan in their virtual blog tour of each of the United States, it's a road trip! No gas required. This challenge asked each contributor to design a license plate for their state, with the idea that each block will be incorporated into a quilt, it's the ultimate national quilting bee.

My License Plate Block:

Far from perfect, and not quite as I first drafted, but I'm super pleased with it. The letters are paper pieced using Carol Doak's 300 Paper-Pieced Quilt Blocks book, and yes, I tediously reduced the patterns to 1 inch, leaving 1/4" seam allowance around the perimeter for sewing the pieces together. I'm just hoping nobody looks at the back of this block ;) For the state, I fused Heat and Bond to the back of the fabric, traced the state on the paper side, used really sharp snips to cut around it, then fused it to the background fabric with a steamy iron. To finish the state, I took a single strand of embroidery floss and made tiny blanket stitches around the edges. The block is 6.5" x 12.5" So if you're a glutton for tiny piecing punishment, give it a shot.

My State, Michigan:

Michigan is the Great Lakes State, it's the Mitten State, it's home to Motor City, the birthplace of Gibson Guitars, Bell's Beer, the Kalamazoo Promise and Motown music. Michigan is home the largest freshwater coast in the world, which lends well to the fruit and wine producing industries. If you haven't traveled to Michigan, I recommend you do so. Please enjoy some of my favorite Instagram photos depicting some of the beauty of Northern Michigan. You can find me on Instagram at @cbhandmade