Just a quick note to say that the first tutorial is up over at Block Party. A fun and simple Friendship Star block!

Check it out!

Some very kind relatives gave me a sewing machine this weekend.  An old Kenmore.

It’s heavy as all get out and clearly all metal so I suspect that it’s a workhorse.  But I’m stumped.  It’s got a big 4 on the front (as you can see) so I thought that might be the model. But nope.

It’s in the 158 series, but somehow seems be the Kenmore missing link!  Try as I might, I can’t find ANYTHING online about this specific model.  Lots about 158 10… and 158 12… but nothing about 158 11…!  Anyone know anything about this specific model?  Any help would be appreciated.

I’ve figured out how to thread it and wind and out in the bobbin with no problems but I’d love to find an online manual for it.  Also, it sews really slowly.  Not sure why.  I think a visit to a sewing machine doctor would fix it right up though!

With the Block Party quilt along about to get started and all of the new bees popping up over in the flickr group, I’ve had bees on the brain!

I made two more blocks for 12 Squared:

The request was any sort of block you want. Was tough to decide but there’s a lot more fabric so I might make a couple more!

And all of the blocks that I’ve gotten back from Sew Connected 2! I had asked for no triangles and otherwise, no limits! I’m loving the blocks I’ve been getting back. I’m thinking white sashing (am I ever thinking anything else really??) but we’ll see once I’ve gotten all the blocks

Meanwhile slow and steady wins the race (I hope) with quilting the Lantern Bloom quilt. Dang stitching in the ditch (or right next to the ditch as I’ve found works a lot better for me) takes a long time! But I’m getting there! Just a glimpse…

A happy weekend to you all!

Hello everyone!

Wanna win that fabric??  Over at Block Party we’re getting started with our quilt along by having a giveaway.   Click on over to learn about how the quilt along will work and to enter the giveaway.

I’m off to San Francisco for the weekend! Anywhere other than Urban Burp, Satin Moon and Britex Fabrics that I should hit up??

Hope you all have great weekends!

So much quilt to baste!

You know you’re obsessed with fabric when you have a dream that your one yard of gray Kei Dots was exposed to the H1N1 virus and you’re being required to mail it to the CDC.  Yes.  I actually had that dream. It was more of a nightmare, really!  I’m sure that you readers can understand.

But I guess that the gray dots were on the brain because I’ve started a new quilt with them.  First I pulled all of the basics that I currently can’t get enough of:

I love a rainbow!  Notice the 100% lack of purple.  That’s not because I chose to leave it out.  That’s because I have zero.  Absolutely none.  And you know what, I’m not sure that I mind so much. Anyhow, some editing was in order so I came up with this.

And a bad photo of the very very beginnings of the next quilt:

I’m thinking that including gray solid is in order. We’ll see what it becomes…

Thank you all so much for all of your kind comments about the book!  The response makes me so happy. It just reinforces all of the ideas behind the book concept.  It’s going to keep me super busy over the next few months so you’ll have to forgive me if the blog mellows as a result.   I’m going to try to keep at it though!

Meanwhile, I’ve finished the Lantern Bloom quilt top:

Putting a quilt together this way has made me want to do it all over again with my comfort zone colors.  I might just have to do that!

Hope that you all have great weekends that involve lots of sewing!

Some very happy news out of my world today!

I’m thrilled to announce that I will be writing a book with Kristen, my co-host of Block Party and we are so excited.

C & T Publishing will publish it and it’s going to be about YOU!  Ok, well, maybe not you specifically, but about all of us: the online modern quilting community.

It’s not going to be your usual book of quilt patterns and projects, but instead a “how to” book that will also be about all of the virtual quilting bees and the amazing sense of community that we have found online.   Quilting bees have always given women a chance to get together and quilt, but now in the age of the Internet we have virtual quilting bees that have revitalized quilting and community among modern quilters.

I’m so excited that every member of Block Party has agreed to be a contributor to the book.  There are so many talented women involved and I’m so honored to include myself among them.

And the most exciting part is that we’re going to be including all of YOU in the book too!  We are going to be switching our Block Party blog over to a quarterly quilt along and we hope that lots of you will participate.  We are including photos of some of the blocks you all make during the quilt alongs in the book, so please do join in.  Your block might end up in the book!!

There will be more details coming along very soon so please keep an eye both here and over on the Block Party blog.

And lastly, thank you!  All of you are so kind and generous and have made me feel like I’m a part of something exciting.  We are so happy to have that wonderful community and energy transfer over into a book that represents all of us and the fun modern quilts that we have been creating.

So fall was here. And then it got replaced by summer again. LA weather is weird. Anyhow – to stay in the fall spirit I quickly whipped up this pillow sleeve.

The deer get all the props in Lush, but you can’t deny the trees!   That said, I couldn’t leave the deer out entirely…

I’m still working away at the Lantern Bloom quilt. Only a few more blocks and then it’s time to move onto the back. It was fun to make and finish a small project since it’s been two bed sized quilts in a row. Ok – I’m back at it!