Week 2 - Simple Modern Sampler

Here are my blocks for week two of Amy's Simple Modern Sampler Quilt Along. I was so excited to see this week's instructions posted this morning, since I am home from work today. Now I have a whole week to catch up on some other projects. You can still join in at any time! Click here for some more info, including a drawing of the entire project.

Simple Modern Sampler Quilt Along

Even though I already have several projects going on right now, I couldn't resist joining Amy's Simple Modern Sampler Quilt Along going on at her blog. I love quilt alongs because there is a set schedule. I'm not good at making schedules, so I like having it all laid out for me to follow along with. Hopefully I'll be able to keep up! I love that she posted a sketch so that I can see in advance which blocks will be made. This really helps in my fabric selection. I was inspired by another quilt-alonger (Melissa) to pull out some of my Christmas fabrics for this project. The fabric is Funky Christmas by Michael Miller. I like the pink mixed in with the traditional Christmas colors. I think this quilt will be a gift for my sister when it is all finished up. She loves anything pink!

I learned a great tip in the very first post! Even though I'm pretty diligent about pinning, I have always pinned perpendicular to the seam, removing the pins as I go. Amy has a picture on her post showing how she puts a pin in the middle, parallel to the seam. As long as the pin is in far enough to miss the presser foot, then it can be left in while sewing. I think this will really help me keep my fabrics lined up the whole time I am piecing. Thanks so much for that tip, Amy!

The instructions for Blocks One and Two can be found here. It's certainly not too late for you to join too!

A sweet little pillow.

I made my son a pillow for daycare a while back, but somehow the pillow and the case were lost. I secretly think someone thought it was so cute that they must have it for themself. So I made him another one, and I love it even more than the first!

I used a great tutorial that Ariel has on her blog. I think I made the top fabric a little taller, just because I love that farm animal print. I learned a few tips the first time I made it, so the second one is a little better. First, I put his name on both the case and the pillow! I sewed in a name label like I use for his clothes. I also made sure to zig-zag stitch the hem of the envelope closure, just like the tutorial says to do. I have no idea why I didn't do that the first time. Finally, I use pinking shears to trim the seam allowance after it was all sewn. The first one had lots of fraying after just a couple of washes.

Here it is!
And just for kicks - The original.

My First Bees :)

I'm in two quilting Bees right now. Both of them started in May. One is six months, and one is 12 months, so they will keep me busy for a while.

Here is my first block for the Not Your Grandma's Quilting Bee - The Bumble Bees.

Kendra asked for blocks inspired by coin quilts, and here is what I came up with.
For the other Bee that I organized on a private board, Mary wanted a specific pattern. The fabric is Martinque by 3 sisters for Moda and it was wonderful to work with. She sent honeybun strips, so some of the cutting was already done for us. Very nice! What do you think?

I should have some more to post soon, because I still have one May block to do (the fabric was lost in transit), and I need to be working on all my June blocks too!

Thanks for Reading :D