More blocks for my red and white goddess quilt

Hello everyone!  I received more goodies in the mail this week, with LeeAnn and Alexis's blocks arriving on Friday.  What a great way to end the week.

Now I can begin to play and see how I want this quilt to take shape.

Enjoy!
Mary-Frances



Three blocks from Alexis and a treat for me, some fabulous red circle fabric.

 

LeeAnn sent four blocks and a great card.



Here's one possible layout for the quilt.

 

Part of the fun of the quilting bee is getting to see all the different fabric people use.



A day of puttering

Hello everyone!  I had grand plans to spend the whole day in my sewing room yesterday, but it turned into one of those meandering days, where I flitted from project to project, not really focusing on any one thing.  That's ok by me, we all need those days once in a while, don't we?  I did a little more unpacking, some sorting of boxes, made a few red and white blocks, listened to a book on CD, did some reading, a little baking and tried to brush the dog...who was having none of it...took out a new puzzle and rescued my plants from the basement.  I have a feeling today will be spent in much the same way.

Enjoy!
Mary-Frances



A few more of my red and white blocks.  Looking pretty good if I do say so myself.

 

Love this little detail, don't you?



The book I'm currently listening too while I quilt.  It's quite a good story about George Mallory and his quest to be the first person to reach the summit of Everest, based on a true story.

 

The book I'm reading, 'Left neglected' is the latest by Lisa Genova, author of 'Still Alice.'  The subject matter is interesting and unusual, but I'm not drawn in by the main character or her struggles in this novel as I was for 'Still Alice.'  However, I'm only at the halfway mark, so I'll let you know what I think when I'm done.



April is my month for the quilting bee!

Hi everyone!  I'm so excited, April is my month for the on-line quilting bee I belong too.  I've never done this before, and I am very excited by the prospect of receiving quilt blocks from some fabulous quilters across the U.S. 

There have been some great blocks made so far this year.  You can check out what we've been up to here: http://www.15minutesplay.com/

There are two quilting bees going on at the same time, the one I belong two is the Scrap-Bee.  We have to use "made" fabric in our block, so unlike many quilting bees, there are no requests for any traditional type blocks, like say a log cabin block, or sawtooth star etc. 

I've had red and white quilts on the brain for some time now, and thought it might be fun to put a modern/liberated twist on a classic look.  Here's what I came up with.

Enjoy!
Mary-Frances




The final block.  Each one will be different of course, and that's part of the fun, seeing how everyone interprets the instructions for the block.




I began with a 6 1/4 inch square of phone book paper for my foundation and a pile of red scraps.




I placed my first piece of fabric on the paper (you can place it anywhere you like).




Added a second piece of fabric over it, right sides together of course...




...and sewed them together.  When I use paper as a foundation, I always change my stitch length to a smaller stitch.  It makes tearing off the paper when I'm done that much easier.




Continue adding fabric until your paper foundation is covered.  Trim off the excess fabric, using the paper as a template.




It's now time to add the white slash of fabric.  I decide where I want to cut my block, place my ruler and go for it!  Sometimes this is the hardest part because you are worried it might not turn out as you imagined it...don't worry, keep going, it will be all right in the end!




Here are my two pieces, ready to carry on...




...add your white fabric, sew to one side.




I didn't like how wide my white fabric was, so I place the other red piece on it at an angle and the sewed it together.




Voila!  Here it is, pressed, trimmed to size (it's now a 6 inch block) and ready to go.  I think I may even make a white block with a red slash just for interest and well, just to be contrary too I guess! :-)