goodbyes and pretty things

(Sorry about the gigantic photos. I'm having issues with Blogger right now - most likely me, not them.)

Right about now my dear friend Ayumi is on a plane headed for Tokyo. And this time she won't be coming back.  I'll certainly miss her but I'm also really excited for their new adventure in Japan and very happy that she gets to be back with her family.

It didn't take long to decide what I wanted to make for her going away gift. A few months ago we had this plan to make matching potholders, from one of Kumiko Fujita's books, and applique our initials in the center of the flower (Ayumi's idea - I'm not that creative).  Like all Kumiko Fujita's patterns - the potholder pattern is tedious and without much in the way of directions.  And we talk...a LOT.  So, the potholders fell by the wayside.

I decided to take another crack at the pattern and I'm glad that I did.  They turned out cute - although the one I made Ayumi is so so so much cuter.  Even she said that :)  Gotta love a friend who tells the truth! Mine was used as the test run and what a good idea that was because I messed up the center. As luck would have it, I did not have to attempt to monogram or applique our initials because I found fabric with large letters. YAY!

 Now for the good part. Even though she's the one leaving, she still made me the cutest wall hanging. After we tried our hand at image transfers she told me about an idea she had and it sounded so cute.  How lucky am I to receive it? Also, as my husband said, "it is the perfect gift for someone with an unhealthy relationship with taffy." true true. I'm working on it.  I love this wall hanging to pieces.

Can you believe all the details? I'm not surprised by the details but definitely amazed. So. Darn. Cute.   I have a fairly vintage-y kitchen so this wall hanging is a perfect fit! However, it's not going in there because I don't want to risk getting it dirty. Instead, it's hanging in my sewing area - I spend more time there anyway!  I almost died when I saw the cute little strawberries and the heart cut out on the bird is just darling. I could go on.

If the amazing wall hanging wasn't enough, I was also gifted with her famous scrap bin, which will obviously be put to good use.

Thanks Ayumi! I will miss you and I'm already excited to see you in January.

Week 3 and some other news...

I'm happy to report that I'm still keeping up on the Farmer's Wife quilt along. In fact, this week I jumped ahead a bit and made four blocks! The other day I was looking at my schedule and realized that there are at least 8 weeks that I won't be able to make blocks and that doesn't include all the weeks that I won't feel like it! So, I need to do some doubling up whenever the inspiration strikes because I'd love to finish this on schedule with everyone else. If you haven't checked out the group yet, you should. Amazing blocks are posted everyday!

Unfortunately I didn't take pictures of the single blocks and I'm blogging from work so I have to use the pictures from my flickr stream.

Block #? (I'll fill in later)
Fabric: the pink recipe fabric is by Kumiko Fujita and is just the cutest! It also comes in aqua, which I don't have. If you have some you'd like to swap, please let me know! The stripes in that block are by Suzuko Koseki and the brown dots are Lecien medium in brown.

Block #1(?) Attic Windows (I think)
Fabric: The greenish fabric is Lecien (my folklore, I think), pink heath, the macaron was fussy cut from Yuwa's super cute pastry fabric, and I used those brown dots again because I love them.

Block #?
Fabric: The apple fabric is Clothesline Club Sweet Treats #7775 by Robert Kaufman. I don't know what the dots are but I'd love more! The fabric was a random fat quarter at my LQS.
This block was a nightmare for me. You can read about my attempts on my flickr picture.

Block#?
Fabric: The dots are those coral-y red ones from Joann's that I used in previous blocks and the floral print is vintage. I bought it for curtains in my kitchen. It's a poly blend and was a slippy pain to sew with. But it's cute.

Other News...
I was so flattered (shocked!) when Jennifer at Ellison Lane Quilts contacted me to ask if she could feature my Japanese + and x quilt on her beautiful blog for her Flickr Friday Inspiration post. She wrote such nice things about my quilt (in progress) and makes me think that she must be the sweetest person. Check out her cute pin cushion tutorial too!

In reading her post, I realized that I haven't even blogged about my progress on that quilt! So, I will have to make it my mission to take some pictures this weekend and write something up.  That is another quilt along that should not be missed! It's also a no pressure go-at-your-own pace QAL. Love.

Thanks Jennifer, you totally made my Friday :)

Week 2

I'm on a roll. The blocks for week two of the Farmer's Wife quilt along are supposed to be posted tomorrow but I know I won't have time so I'm posting them tonight.  What a joy this quilt has been to work on so far...of course, I've purposefully been ignoring the difficult blocks.

Block #71: Puss in the Corner (hmm)
Fabric: Moda Authentic dictionary print and two more prints from Denyse Schmidt's line at Joann's.

Block #4: Basket Weave
Fabric: Some random coral/red/orange polka dot print, Lecien strawberries, and one of the Denyse Schmidt prints from Australia (love - why oh why didn't Joann's choose it?).

Never having to repeat a block is a lot of fun - and a good learning experience. I am looking at sampler quilts in a whole new way.

I hope you had a lovely Tuesday and have an even better Wednesday!

Me? A Farmer's Wife?

Nope.  Our community garden is built on a Superfund site and our neighbours city chickens were hit by a car.  But my bookshelf is full of books on tiny homesteads, food preserving, and raising Alpacas.  So, when a friend suggested that I join the Farmer's Wife Quilt Along, being hosted by Angela and Amanda, I was intrigued.

I said yes. Blindly. While at lunch. Without looking up the book on my phone.

She warned me that the quilt and book don't look like something we'd normally pick up. But I admit that I still fought off a small curl in the corner of my lip when I finally saw the cover on Amazon. Yes, I judge books by their covers.  I shouldn't.  But I do.  I'm working on it.

The wonderful thing about quilting (or almost any hobby) is doing your own thing. Learn the history and tradition then do it your way.  The Farmer's Wife quilt is very traditional but that doesn't mean that you have to use traditional fabrics or colours. So far 92 people are in the quilt along and, in the end, there will be 92 different interpretations of the quilt.  Some will look like the original, some will be solids, many will use modern fabrics and you know that at least one person will come out with some sort of eye-popping version that no-one imaged possible.  All be great!

I'm impulsive - no Vegas for me. So I purchased the kindle version of the book.  Be warned that the digital version does not come with templates. Don't worry, the math is simple.  I downloaded the book and read most of the letters, which I highly recommend. Perused the blocks. Imagined the blocks in my fabrics. A couple hours later, I was really excited to get started! I certainly have enough projects on the go but this quilt along is pressure-free and only requires you to make two 6" blocks per week. The labour intensity varies by block so you can choose based on your available time. 

My plan of attack is to choose my fabrics when I choose the block.  No surprise there since scrappy is at the heart of my sewing.  I don't want the FW to compete with my Japanese + and x quilt so this one won't be too bold or busy. But that's about as much as I know right now.  Here's what I made for week 1 (last week, I think). 

Block #31 - Evening Star.  Ok, so I'm a little slow and didn't grasp that it's called evening star because it should have a very dark background.
Fabric - the green polka dot is by Lecien and currently one of my most favourite fabrics in my stash. I have no idea who makes the cherries. I received a small piece with a fabric order from Japan.

Block #21 - The Contrary Wife
Fabric - The pink text is a Suzuko Koseki print, the yellow woodgrain is Aviary2, and the tiles are from Denyse Schmidt's line at Joann's. 

I hope you decide to join. If you do, be sure to join the group.