leap day blog hop giveaway

I am having a Leap Day giveaway.....a charm pack of Folklorique by Joanna Figueroa and Lisa Quan of Fig Tree Quilts for moda.   I used this same fabric line to make my clamshell mini quilt that you can see here.  There are several other color ways  in this charm pack...I used the greens, browns and oranges for my mini, but there are also some pretty blues and reds.

To enter please leave a comment.  You do not need to be a follower of my blog, but if you are, you can leave another comment, and that will give you two chances to win.  I will end this giveaway tonight at midnight and contact the winner tomorrow(Thursday).  Be sure and visit all the other blogs taking part in this blog hop giveaway.  Thank you so much, Elizabeth, at Such a Sew and Sew for hosting this fun link up party.

piece,

elizabeth

This giveaway is closed.

 Here are the rules if you would like to jump in and join the giveaway blog hop:

Here's how it works:
• Choose something to give away on Leap Day. Keep it simple. You can make something, give away a bit of your stash, offer a service, buy your favorite gadget to give away or offer something completely non-crafty. Your blog, you choose.
• To participate in the blog hop, your giveaway must start and end on Leap Day {February 29, 2012} in your time zone. You can open it at 10:00 am and close it at 10:00 pm, or go midnight to midnight, or anything in between. Your blog, your rules.
• Your giveaway winner does not have to be announced on Leap Day, but should be notified within a reasonable amount of time.
• Post your giveaway and then link up here. Please remember to link to your specific post {instructions here}. Please also include the Leap Day Giveaway button {code found below} somewhere in your giveaway post.
• The linky will open at noon MST on February 28^th and close at 10:00 am MST on March 1^st, to allow for people in different time zones to participate.
• If you want to include the linky tool on your giveaway post then others can link up from your blog and it will automatically update in every location the linky is posted. The code is available below. If you choose to add the linky to your post, you MUST include the above rules so that it is fair play for all.
• Consider changing your comment settings to the pop-up window option for faster and easier commenting for all the visitors who'll be stopping by your blog. Instructions can be found here.

granny square number 2

I made another Granny Square quilt block out of my vintage fabric stash.  These are so much fun to make : )   Another name for this block is Arbor Window.
Part of the fun is going through my fabrics, picking out the colors and looking at the different vintage designs.  It is playing with blocks...quilter style!

I think this is going to make a darling quilt.

piece,

elizabeth

I am linking up to WIP Wednesday.

little quilt monday~~~charms on point table runner

Little Quilt Monday

I have used my charms on point technique many times for larger quilts, but this time I decided to make a table runner.   I used 25  five inch charm squares from a charm pack of A Stitch in Color by Malka Dubrawsky for Moda.  The backing fabric is osnaburg cotton that gives the look of linen.

I used bright yellow and olive green crochet threads for the hand stitching.  I stitched the yellow going one direction and the green going the other direction making a crosshatch design.

The striped binding is from the same Moda fabric collection as the charm squares.  The table runner measurements are 15.5 X 30.5 inches.   Its fun to see how these turn out...this one started as a square...5 rows up and 5 rows down and then I used my technique to turn them on point.

Now it is your turn to link up something to

Little Quilt Monday

1.  This link-up party is for any small project.  For example, mini quilts, doll quilts, baby quilts, place mats, mug rugs,

wall quilts, table runners, etc.

2.  They can be a WIP(work-in-progress) or finished.

3.  If it is something from the past there is no need to write a new blog post, just link the one that you have already written, and, please link back to my blog post.

4.   If you are interested, you can add your pictures to my flickr group here, or join my Facebook group here. 

Let's inspire each other!

piece,

elizabeth

I am linking this post to Sew Modern Monday, Fabric Tuesday, and
Finish It Up Friday.

 

drunkard's path potholders

I made two potholder's this week for my curves class project.  I am really enjoying learning to sew curves.  The Drunkard's Path quilt block is one that I have always wanted to make.   I let the thought of sewing curves keep me from trying to make it until now : )

Click on the pictures for a closer look.

These were both made with Insul-Bright batting.  This was much thicker than the normal cotton batting that I usually use.   I decided to machine quilt them, and I am happy with how they turned out. 

The backing fabric is white linen.  I like the softness that they give to the potholders, and I also like the way the machine quilting shows up.  Yep, this was a fun project.

piece,

elizabeth

I have linked up to Can I Get A Whoop-Whoop
and

1st edition-vintage quilt thursday~~~sunbonnet sue and sam

Vintage Quilt Thursday

I must be honest, I am not a big fan of Sunbonnet Sue quilts.   They are cute, and playful,  but this quilt block is not one that I care to try, at least not right now.   I do, however, have a charming, vintage quilt that my MIL gave me that I want to show you today.  I am happy to have this cutie, and I appreciate the quilt maker.  It is obvious someone spent many hours making this quilt, using many tiny stitches.  I wonder who it was made for?  It is in wonderful shape, but you can tell it has been used and loved : )

Each hat/bonnet has some extra embroidery stitches.  My guess is that this quilt was made in the 1940's. 

Click on the pictures for a close up look.

The fabric is a mixture of feed sacks and, I am guessing, repurposed clothing and dresses.  This quilt was hand quilted in a zig zag pattern, and the appliqué is needle turned.  The measurements are 63 X 78 inches.  The binding was made by turning the muslin backing toward the front.   It would look fantastic on a twin bed because half(10) the Sues and Sams are facing one direction and half(10) are facing the other direction.

I hope you enjoyed seeing my Sunbonnet Sue/Sam quilt from the past.

Now it is your turn to link up something to

Vintage Quilt Thursday

1. This link-up party is for any vintage quilted or sewing related item.

2.  If it is something that you have already blogged about, there is no need to write a new blog post,  just link to the one that you have already written.

3.  Please link back to my blog post.

I hope to do more research on my vintage quilts as time goes on, and learn something about the quilt patterns and fabrics of the past.  Please feel free to tell me anything interesting that you know about Sunbonnet Sue quilts : )

piece,

elizabeth

wip~~~table runners

I have two table runners in the works.  One is an improv project from my curves class with Rachel at Stitched in Color, and the other is using my turning charms on point method.

The runner from Curves Camp is made with two charm packs of Kona.  I still have plenty of strips left over for another project.  The colors are very bright and cheery.  Rachel calls this project Rainbow Road.  The improv curves have turned out to be lots of fun, but it is a bit scary to make that first curvy cut : )

Click on the pictures for a better view.

The other table runner is made from a charm pack of  A Stitch in Color by Malka Dubrawsky for Moda.

I am using my method of turning charms on point.   It is also a very bright, happy project.   I am ready for Spring!

I haven't decided if I am going to add a border to either one of these, or just sandwich, hand stitch and bind.  These will be perfect to use when Spring and Summer arrive, so I better get them finished soon.

piece,

elizabeth

I am linking up to WIP Wednesday.

granny square number one

I am joining the Granny Square quilt block bandwagon!  I have some 3 inch vintage fabric squares that I occasionally pull out for making hexagons.  These will be perfect for this quilt block.  The original pattern calls for 2.5 inch fabric squares, but I decided to just leave mine at 3 inches.  What an easy block to make using scraps, and I already had the Kona Snow fabric for the background.  I have squared up the block a little bigger than it will be in the end, just to make sure all my blocks turn out to be the same size : )

piece,

elizabeth

little quilt monday~~~finished pinwheel mini quilt

Little Quilt Monday

I had a chance to sit and finish the big stitch quilting on the pinwheel mini quilt.  I used a scrappy fabric binding, and turquoise crochet thread for the hand stitching.  These pictures of the four corners show the different fabrics I used for the binding and a closer look at my stitches : )  And for a really close look, you can click on the pictures!

This mini's measurements are 15.5 X 21.5 inches.  Just the right size for a doll quilt.

My process post showing how I made this project can be found here.

I am linking up to Sew Modern Monday, Fabric Tuesday and Finish It Up Friday.

Now it is your turn to link up something to 

Little Quilt Monday

1.  This link-up party is for any small project.  For example, mini quilts, doll quilts, baby quilts, place mats, mug rugs,

wall quilts, table runners, etc.

2.  They can be a WIP(work-in-progress) or finished.

3.  If it is something from the past there is no need to write a new blog post, just link the one that you have already written, and, please link back to my blog post.

4.   If you are interested, you can add your pictures to my flickr group here, or join my Facebook group here. 

Let's inspire each other!

piece,

elizabeth

vintage

Starting next Thursday, I am going to have a link-up party for vintage quilts and quilt-related things.  I have several wonderful, antique quilts and I thought it would be fun to do some research about their fabrics and patterns.  I know absolutely nothing about the history of fabric and patterns, so this will be a fun, learning experience for me : )

Why vintage instead of antique?  I like this definition that I found for vintage:

Characterized by excellence, maturity, and enduring appeal; classic.

I know that many of you have quilts and quilted things from the past that would be fun to see, so I hope you will join the link up party next week.  And it would be great if you would help me with the name.  I am considering  Vintage Quilt Thursday.

piece,

elizabeth

wip~~~sashiko stitching

I have a WIP kit that I purchased several years ago while in California at a wonderful quilt shop near Monterey.  The fabric is a loosely woven indigo and the thread is thicker than perle cotton and has no sheen.  The design is lightly printed on the fabric and the stitches are the traditional long running stitch.

The pattern and thread descriptions are all written in Japanese, so I can't tell you the name of the geometric pattern, but the kit and thread all say Olympus.  I have two more kits to stitch, and they each came with backing fabric to make a pillow.  I plan to make them into mini quilts or perhaps a table runner using all three designs.

The word sashiko means "little stabs" and I have found the stitching of these little stabs to be very relaxing : )

piece,

elizabeth

I am linking up to WIP Wednesday.