WIP Wednesday - The New Hexagon

Welcome to WIP Wednesday everyone!  

Even though I've always said how much I hate handwork, I've decided to try my hand at English Paper Piecing.  I bought a new book a few weeks ago called The New Hexagon by Katja Marek.  The makes EPP looks so much easier than other books.  For one thing, she teaches you how to glue baste.  I think that's great!  Less hand sewing but it's still something you can do while watching TV or in my case, when my energy level is at zero for the day but I'd still like to feel that I can accomplish something.

Katja is sponsoring a free Milliefiore Quilt Along on her blog.  There will be 12 Rosettes in all (I think) and you can make your own paper pieces or do what most people do and order them already cut from paperpieces.com.  The Rosettes use the hexagons from her book but she provides the patterns on her blog for the rosettes.  Confusing?  I was too at first but I think I've got it now. 

Anyway, I've got my book, my papers and now I'm trying to decide on fabric.  I'm trying to be careful about value because I tend to pull all medium value colors.

I've gotten it narrowed down to a green, aqua, pink, gray color scheme.

Or a red, yellow, orange, with black text print color scheme.

I think choosing the fabrics will be the hardest part.  I hope I can do this.  I really need some type of handwork that I like.

** Linking up to Lee at Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday!

WIP Wednesday - My Inspired Project

One of the first modern quilting books that I ever purchased was Quilting Modern by Jackie Gering and Katie Pedersen.  The first quilt that jumped out at me in the book and begged to be made was the Fiesta Wall quilt.  I've wanted to make it for the past 2 years.  And I've had the fabric purchased to make it for the past 2 years.  :)

Lately, it's been calling to me again and I decided that I wanted to get it made in time to enter it into Quiltcon (deadline is the end of November).  So I pulled out my fabrics a few days ago and started thinking about the quilt.  I still love the quilt in the book but lately I've been wanting to design my own quilts more and more.  Or at least take inspiration from the pattern but put my own spin on it.  So, I got out my colored pencils and my graph paper and drew up a plan.

And that's my WIP for this week.  I'm working on my Fiesta quilt (possible name change is in the works).

I read a lot of blogs and try to stay up on what's going on in the online quilting community.  By doing so, it can sometimes be easy to go with the flow and just like what's trendy at the moment.  Lately I'm getting better at stopping myself, pulling back and thinking about the things that I really like and dislike.  How am I a modern quilter? How do my likes and dislikes make me one?

Well, I love patchwork, I love scrappy, I love minimalism or negative space - but not too much, I love traditional quilt blocks, I love traditional quilt blocks that have been made modern, I love modern quilt blocks, I LOVE paper piecing, I love sampler quilts, I love the colors blue, green and purple - the cool side of the color wheel, I love gray and black and some shades of chocolate brown - but not too much and I love color combos that are opposite each other on the color wheel.  

What do I dislike?  I dislike traditional borders and sashings with the little corner blocks, I dislike low volume, I dislike too much minimalism, I dislike some shades of brown, I dislike repro/vintagey fabrics, I dislike Civil War fabrics, I dislike solids that are too dusty and I'm sure there is more that I dislike.
**NOTE:  This is my personal opinion about the things listed.  I realize not everyone carries my opinion and that's what makes the world so great. 

After thinking about what I like and dislike for some time, I drew up my plan for my *Fiesta* quilt.  It has some of the things I love in it such as patchwork, minimalism (but not too much), and cool colors.  We'll see how it goes.  I really need to finish up some WIP's around here.  They're starting to take over the place.

Wow!  This post was just suppose to be about my WIP and it got all preachy.  Sorry about that.  Please don't take offense if I have disliked something you love. 

**Linking up to My Quilt Infatuation**

WIP Wednesday - Cutting, Cutting, Cutting

Today is WIP Wednesday, and for the last 2 days I've been cutting my fabric for a project that the new members group is doing in our guild.  The group is called the Hive and they meet for lunch and to work on projects after our guild meetings.

This is a new project and it's a paper piecing project - YAY!  It's called Completely Dotty and you can find the pattern here.  Our guild meeting isn't until a week from Thursday but I wanted to make sure I was ready.   I normally don't like saving everything until the last minute.  Also, this week I made a list of the things I'd like to get done this week and I'm trying to stick to it.  Otherwise, I seem to just wonder around working on project after project and never finishing anything.

Our cutting task was to cut around 250 of each light and dark colored fabric.  So far I have 100 light colored and about 55 dark colored.  I'm not going to make the entire quilt.  I thought I'd try for a mini quilt with just four blocks.  At next weeks meeting, we pay for our pattern so we can get started on our blocks.

My fabrics are all random ones that I pulled and some are from my scrap bin.  So, no actual color pattern, just scrappy.

What is your work in progress this muggy, rainy Wednesday?

Thanks for stopping by my blog!
 **Linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced, Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story, Show and Tell at Fresh Squeezed Fabric.**

WIP Wednesday - Giant Starburst Quilt

At the end of last year, Canoe Ridge Creations blog posted a quilt along for a giant starburst quilt.  I loved her finished quilt and wanted to join the QAL right away but I had too much Christmas sewing still to do.  :(

 However, I did go ahead and buy the fabric amounts that were stated in the requirements.  I chose 4 solids that are all Kona Cottons.  They are turquoise, chartreuse, mulberry and corn yellow.  The white fabric is a text print called Poppy Patio from Jill Finley for Henry Glass fabrics.  It's a very subtle text print.

As soon as I could after the new year, I started this quilt.  I'm hoping to have the top finished by February 13th which is the last day to enter into our local quilt show.  You have until March to actually finish the quilt so keep your finger's crossed that I can finish the top by next week.

This is what I have so far.
I just need to do the half square triangle squares and then sew it all together.  It's going to end up being 60" x 60".  I know you can't tell scale by looking at this pic.

I love it so far.  
I'll keep you posted.

P.S.  I've decided to participate in A Lovely Year of Finishes hosted by Shanna of Fiber of All Sorts and Melissa of Sew Bittersweet Designs.  The idea behind A Lovely Year of Finishes is to set goals each month and then try to complete your goal.  If you do, and you link back up with their linky parties, you can win a prize.  But more importantly, you have finished something and that always feels great!


So my goal for February is to complete the quilt top, sandwich, baste, quilt and bind my Giant Starburst Quilt.
 *linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced and a Lovely Year of Finishes goal linky party.*

WIP's for Wednesday - a quick update

It's Wednesday again and I thought I'd make a quick post to update the progress of some of my WIP's from this post.

WIP #1 was my Halloween quilt wall hanging that my DH requested for his office.  

I'm almost done with the quilting.  I thought I'd finish today but I had to shop at Macy's run errands.  I want to have it completely finished by Monday so he can take it to work.

My WIP #2 was to finish some items for my etsy shop and I did finish the stack I was working on but now it's time to start more.

WIP #3 was the homecoming mum which I finished and wrote about in my previous blog post.

WIP #4 was the stack of HST blocks that I have been slowly trimming.  When I last posted about them, they looked like this on my design board:

I've trimmed a few more and rearranged them and now they look like this:

One of the first modern quilts I saw was a version of this but in Christmas fabrics by Basic Grey.  I LOVED it and have wanted to make one ever since.  I'm not for sure that these blocks will stay like this but I'm really liking it so far.

WIP #5 was my cross quilt.  I haven't made anymore blocks for it although I do have a stack of fabric waiting for me to cut it so that I can make the final 6 blocks.

And of course, now I have a WIP #6.  

I've started a fall table runner using a stack of mini charms called Wrens and Friends by Moda.  I don't have a fall table runner and I thought I could whip this one up while it's still fall.  Especially since we, just this week, started having temps below 90 degrees. 

That's my progress this week on my WIP's.  I've got my fingers crossed that I will actually have a finish soon.  Maybe. 

*linking up with WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced**