Improv Picnic Plaid: Quilt Top

I've resolved to finish up as many WIPs as possible this summer. VERY tall order.

At first I thought I'd only allow myself to work on projects I already started and are in various stages of completion, using up some of my stash.

Then I started a new baby quilt with some new fabric.

Then, straight away (I promise), I hauled the pieces of this quilt top out of my cupboard and stitched it up.

Quilting Bee Spotlight: Neutral and Not II

It feels like time for a bee block post!  In 2012, we wrapped up Neutral and Not, a 12-month bee that I created after being inspired by the red and white quilt show in NYC a few years ago. I profiled our first six assignments earlier, and here are the rest:

June 2012:

Wayyy back in June, Tiffany sent out black, white, and splashes of color, requesting that we make anything we wanted using half-square triangles.  Just the kind of "guided freedom" that makes bees so much fun! I made a modified version of the star block in this tutorial.

Quilting Bee Spotlight: Neutral and Not

I love my quilting bees, as you can see here, here, and here.  After getting comfortable with their structure and rules, I wanted more, so I decided to start my own!  Neutral and Not was born out of my love of monochromatic quilts.  I'm so drawn to quilts that use limited colors and high contrast to create geometric impact, so I thought this would be a fun framework for a bee.  

(If you're interested, Rachel wrote a fantastic post about bee basics: what they are, how to find one, how to start one!)

The idea for this bee is that, each month, the queen bee can pick a one neutral tone, and one that is decidedly not. Red and white is such a classic, but what about red and bone? Gray and yellow? Aqua and sand? Coal and rose? Flame and stone? Before I got carried away, I also wanted bee members to be able to branch out to whatever colors/ideas they wanted, since I think getting what you want is an important part of a bee.

It can be a lot of work to lead a bee, wrangling 12 members all over the globe, tracking fabrics and blocks and missing members, but these lovely ladies have made it a breeze for me!  We're at a halfway point right now, so I thought I'd share what we've worked on so far.  

November 2011:

In November,  Esther assigned us Dresdens - any kind! - sent out a deep brown and some grassy prints, and changed my life.  I used this tutorial, modified to make the petals smaller.  No more Dresden fear!

January 2012:

After a holiday break, Stephanie asked for dark bird silhouettes on bright wonky tree branches.  I really loved seeing all the other members' blocks coming in for this one, since they were all so creative and different!

February 2012:

For February, Susan sent out some really lovely grays and aquas, requesting wonky log cabins.  This was actually the first time I'd ever made one!

March 2012:

Who doesn't love working with all solids??!  In March, Christina sent us some grays and a gorgeous array of purples, and requested star blocks.  I used this pattern for this little beauty. Christina's star inspiration mosaic is a terrific resource for star patterns, too!

April 2012: 

In April, Melisa took her inspiration from an improvised table runner made up of little strips.  I think this will make such a stunning quilt!

May 2012:

And, for May, Ella sent out grays and rosy tones to make these graphically bold wheel blocks.  Quick to sew up, with stunning results.

Can't wait for the fun to continue! To see the rest of our talented members' work, check out our Flickr photo pool!

Flexibility

I've always been not-so-secretly afraid to try a Dresden; they can involve some scary things like templates, applique, and circles.  I'd admired them from afar, but never attempted one.  Fortunately for me, Esther challenged us to make one! Back in November, our assignment for the Neutral and Not quilting bee was a traditional Dresden plate block, done up modern in chocolate and grass green fabrics.

To get my bearings, I used this tutorial at Sew, Mama, Sew from Elizabeth Hartman, and this one at Stitchery Dickory Dock.  Since I didn't want to waste any of Esther's fabric, I decided to make a practice block, and wound up using the templates provided at Sew, Mama, Sew. Ever thrifty...err, I mean, self-reliant, I printed them on regular paper and used a glue stick to attach the paper to a file folder, and just cut them out, ready to use.

I followed all the directions, sewed my scantest 1/4 inch, but the ring of 20 pieces wouldn't lay flat. At all. I'm not big on seam-ripping, so I tried re-sewing some of the seams, being a little more generous on the seam allowances.

No luck.

It just seemed that the ring wanted to be crimped, in a way.  So I took out a petal. Sewed it back up.  No big deal. Totally flat! Still looked fancy! Can't even tell there's a "missing" piece.

I think this says a lot about my approach to sewing and quilting. If I adhered to directions too closely, torturing myself over each imperfection, trying to do everything by the book, I would have no fun.

No fun at all.

You could call it stubborn independence or laziness, but I prefer to think of it as flexibility--being easy on myself and what I make, not sweating the small stuff.

I LOVED how this practice, missing-petal-ed Dresden turned out, so I made it into a quilted pillow, stitching it to an 18.5-inch kona snow background, complete with a batting layer for squishyness, straight quilting lines radiating out from the center, some hand-stitched details, and a solid kona aqua binding.

I used some upholstery-weight white cotton canvas to make an envelope closure in the back.

I also took advantage of the sole two embroidery stitches in my repertoire: straight up-and-down, and the french knot. They add the most delicious texture, making the Dresden even more like a flower!

By the time I finished this, I tackled the Neutral and Not block without hesitation. It emerged with all 20 petals intact.

Dresdens aren't scary.  They're awesome.