Stonefields Progress and Bible Study Blocks

My original goal was to blog every week so I can actually see progress on my projects.  Hmmm..... that hasn't been going so well.  But this time, I DO have an excuse.  There's an mean little "crud" going around northern Virginia - and I got it.  It starts out with a little scratchy throat and headache, so you're not sure if you have a cold or it's just allergies.  So you give it a few days to "mature" - and it turns into a full blown sinus infection and, possibly, bronchitis too!  Ugh!  I'm on meds now and starting to turn the corner, but this thing's been kicking my butt for over a week now!  Which means that I have done absolutely NO sewing for over a week.  I haven't trusted myself to sit at my sewing machine or handle a rotary cutter.  And hand work?  I thought about it then figured I'd have to rip out anything I stitched and do it over.  So I've been doing nothing but taking meds and sleeping.

But, I do have some things to share.  After writing my last post, I was able to take some better pictures of my Stonefield blocks for month one..... and I finished with month two and took pictures of those.  Honestly, these little blocks are SO much fun to make!  And, in general, they go together pretty quickly - I think it takes longer to choose the fabrics than it does to actually make them. 

Disclaimer:  The blocks are each 6", I just haven't figured out how to make them all look the same size yet.

Here's month one:

The Stars

Orange Peel

Gateau de St Honore

Pomegranates

Willie's Birthday

Posy Pot

And month two:

Bordered Hexagons

Square Peg in a Round Hole

Star in a Star

O for Oscar

The Oscillateur

Four Little Stars

I've also got some progress to share on my Bible Study blocks.  I touched on this project briefly a couple of posts ago, but now that I've figured out how to post pictures, I can share my progress with months one and two.  When choosing fabrics for this project, I kept going back and forth on what I wanted to use.  In the end, I chose batiks in blues and browns and have a photo of those, too.

Fabric Selection

Month One Blocks

Month Two Blocks

I have some other projects in the works and will share some of those next time - and hopefully, will have some Stonefields progress to show.  In the meantime, what's under your needle? 

Stonefields Progress and Long Time Gone

I've been working on my Stonefields quilt for the last couple of months and am really excited to share my progress.  I'm participating in Sentimental Stitches' block of the month (you can purchase the pattern here) and eagerly look forward to each month's shipment.  Before I received my first month's pattern, I thought I would be using traditional/reproduction fabrics for this quilt - - but, once I got a good look at some of the whimsical blocks, I decided it had to be Kaffe with Grunge accents.  I'm using Moda Bella Bleached White for my backgrounds and, where the pattern calls for shirtings, I'm substituting a solid gray. 

I'm having so much fun making these little blocks!  Here's a peek at all of my blocks for month 1.  I took these pictures at night without great lighting, so the colors look a little dull - but if you're familiar with Kaffe fabrics, you know they aren't!

Star Blocks

Orange Peel and Pomegranate Blocks

St. Honore Gateau and Willie's Birthday Blocks

Posy Pot Block

LONG TIME GONE: 
I received Jen Kingwell's "Long Time Gone" pattern for Christmas and have been dying to start it.  I was going to put it off until I got a few other things done; however, Angie (of Gnome Angel) is sponsoring a quilt along with Nicole Calver (of Snips Snippets).  The schedule for the quilt along is pretty intense, with one block pattern per week beginning on March 15, but I'm going to give it a shot.  I may not be able to keep up with their schedule, but at least I can make some progress.  I've had my fabrics chosen for a while - I decided not to limit my fabrics to a single designer or collection - but this is going to be a BRIGHT quilt!  If you don't have the pattern yet, there's still time to get your copy.   (You can see my fabric choices below.)

Long Time Gone Fabrics

Long Time Gone Fabrics

Wish me luck on keeping up with this one!  I'll be posting my weekly progress once the quilt along starts.  In the meantime.....

What's under your needle? 

I'm Doing It......

My husband has been asking me to start blogging for a while now, but I've resisted for several reasons - the main one being that I'm not sure how much time I have to devote to a blog.  But, after talking it over with my dear friend Doreen (aka Aunt Reen), I've decided to give it a shot. 

I  belong to an informal bee group (love, love, love my Bee Sisters!) that meets monthly where we share our quilting goals, progress and finishes and have wonderful fellowship.  Another thing that we share is our "confessions" (read "I've started a new quilt") - and as luck would have it, those "confessions" often lead/convince others into beginning new quilts, as well.  After all, isn't it more fun when you have friends working on the same project??  What's not to like - you get to cheer each other's progress and see the difference fabric choices make, plus share tips and tricks along the way.

So, here's my confession..... I've started some new projects with the new year (Stonefields, the Rowdy Flat Library Quilt and Mary Mannakee, to name a few) plus I have some others that are still works in progress (the Shenandoah Valley Botanical Quilt and two - - yes, TWO -- Dear Janes). 

In addition, I belong to a History of Quilting group where we make projects based on our current topic of discussion - this year we're making a quilt of Bible Study blocks.   The patterns we're using were free up until a short time ago and are now available for purchase here.   January through August we're working on blocks representing the Old Testament.

As you can imagine, I have a LOT of work to do!  Not to mention that I have a longarm quilting business (Quilts As Desired) and my customers' quilts have priority. 

So, why start a blog?  Yes, it will take some time (more so in the beginning as I figure out what I'm doing), but it will help me in the long run as I use it to track my progress - and projects.  And as a bonus, maybe I'll make a few new blogging friends.

Once I take some pictures of my current projects, I'll post them here so I can start tracking my progress.  In the meantime....

What's under your needle?